From the owl's memories, Kaelan finally gained a deeper understanding of the demon cultivation system.
A beast unconsciously absorbed and expelled Spiritual Energy, the name used in this world for Transcendent Energy, from the moment it was born.
However, such creatures were not considered demons.
Only after a beast formed its first wisp of Demon Energy did it truly become a Demon Beast.
As Kaelan reviewed the owl's memories, he experienced the process firsthand through the owl's perspective.
The method proved surprisingly simple.
First, a beast had to reach the physical limits of its mortal body.
Once its body could no longer improve naturally, the excess vitality generated within its flesh would begin interacting with the Spiritual Energy it absorbed from the environment.
When vitality and Spiritual Energy merged together, they formed Demon Energy.
The moment the first wisp of Demon Energy appeared, the beast entered the Inferior Demon Realm.
Within this realm, a demon's physical strength increased only slightly.
The true significance of the realm was that it marked the beginning of transcendence.
After forming eleven wisps of Demon Energy, a demon advanced into the Intermediate Demon Realm.
At this stage, both intelligence and physical capabilities increased significantly.
An Intermediate Demon possessed intelligence comparable to that of a human child.
After forming forty-one wisps of Demon Energy, a demon advanced into the High Demon Realm.
Beyond that lay the Demon General Realm.
The owl had belonged to this realm.
A Demon General was equivalent to a Tier One Transcendent.
To enter the Demon General Realm, a High Demon had to gather one hundred wisps of Demon Energy and refine them into a Demon Seed.
The refinement process was the true obstacle.
A demon could not refine Demon Energy into a Demon Seed without first becoming proficient in a spell.
In other words, spells were not merely combat techniques.
They were a fundamental part of a demon's evolution.
Only the descendants of Demon Lords possessed bloodline advantages that allowed them to bypass this requirement.
Ordinary demons possessed no such privilege.
Beyond the Demon General Realm lay the Demon Lord Realm.
Unfortunately, the owl's knowledge became vague beyond that point.
Its status had not been high enough to access information regarding higher realms.
Kaelan carefully analysed the process of advancing from High Demon to Demon General.
The more he studied it, the more he understood the underlying principle.
Spells were essentially methods of transforming energy into a higher form.
In a sense, they represented controlled evolution.
When Demon Energy was repeatedly refined through a spell, the energy gradually evolved.
As the energy evolved, the demon itself evolved alongside it.
That was why the choice of spell was so important.
The spell chosen during advancement influenced the direction of future growth.
The owl had chosen the Fireball Spell.
As a result, after becoming a Demon General, it had gained a heightened affinity for fire.
Its perception of fire-related energies had become far sharper than before.
The spell had shaped the direction of its evolution.
Kaelan immediately grasped the implications.
The Demon Seed was not merely a source of power.
It was the foundation of an evolutionary path.
The wrong choice could limit future potential.
The right choice could determine how high one could climb.
As he contemplated the matter, Kaelan reviewed the spells currently available to him.
The Energy Bullet.
The Fireball.
The Fire Star.
Any one of them could theoretically be used to refine Demon Energy and form a Demon Seed.
Yet he rejected all three without hesitation.
Every one of them was an offensive spell.
Powerful offensive spells certainly possessed value.
However, Kaelan had no interest in risking his life through direct confrontations.
His greatest advantage was time.
As an immortal Void Monster, he possessed something most cultivators lacked.
Patience.
As long as he remained alive, one day he would inevitably reach Tier Four.
Perhaps even higher.
Why gamble his life in unnecessary battles?
What he needed was not greater offensive power.
He needed a better means of survival.
A movement-type spell.
A spell that could help him escape danger.
A spell that would allow him to survive encounters with stronger opponents.
Only by surviving could he continue climbing.
Only by surviving could he eventually achieve true transcendence.
As these thoughts circulated through his mind, countless possibilities emerged.
Flight Acceleration.
Instant Burst Movement.
Shadow Movement.
Void Movement.
Energy Propulsion.
Among them, Void Movement was undoubtedly the most suitable.
Through his inherited Void Monster Way, Kaelan possessed a profound understanding of the Void Law.
Unfortunately, that understanding was useless within this world.
Small Worlds did not contain every Law.
Instead, they were formed from a limited collection of Laws.
Some possessed only two.
Others possessed dozens.
Only after accumulating more than a hundred Laws could a Small World evolve into a Middle World.
The Void Law did not exist within this world.
Kaelan could forcefully manifest it through his Void Monster Way.
However, doing so would immediately attract the attention of the World Will.
The moment the World Will discovered traces of his Void Monster Way, his situation would become extremely dangerous.
For now, any Void-related abilities remained out of the question.
The second option was Energy Propulsion.
Creating such a spell would not be difficult.
In fact, he could derive it directly from the principles behind the Energy Bullet.
Instead of propelling a projectile, he would propel himself.
The result would be explosive speed.
He could move through the air like a fighter jet.
Yet Kaelan disliked the idea.
Speed alone was not enough.
The spell would leave him highly visible.
A streak of energy crossing the sky could be seen from miles away.
That was the opposite of what he wanted.
His goal was survival.
Not glory.
Not attention.
The third option was Shadow Movement.
Among all the possibilities, it interested him the most.
If he could create a Shadow Movement Spell and continue developing it in the future, he might eventually gain insight into the Law of Shadow itself.
At that point, he could potentially travel through shadows.
Hide within them.
Conceal his aura.
Avoid danger.
Such abilities perfectly matched his temperament.
As long as he could remain hidden and survive, time would solve everything else.
Given enough years, he could eventually reach Tier Four.
Perhaps even higher.
The problem was obvious.
How was he supposed to obtain a Shadow Spell?
Kaelan thought carefully.
He reviewed every memory he possessed.
The gang leader's memories.
The owl's memories.
His inherited Void Monster knowledge.
Nothing provided an answer.
Minutes passed.
Then hours.
Yet no solution appeared.
Eventually, Kaelan set the matter aside.
The choice of his Demon Seed was too important to rush.
A mistake at this stage could influence his cultivation path for centuries.
He would rather spend years searching for the perfect spell than hastily settle for a mediocre one.
With that thought, he turned his attention toward another category of memories.
History.
The owl's understanding of history far surpassed that of the human gang leader.
However, its perspective belonged entirely to demon society.
As Kaelan sorted through those memories, a much larger picture of the world gradually emerged.
Thousands of years earlier, the entire supercontinent had been united beneath a single power.
The Night Dynasty.
The dynasty had been founded by the legendary Lord of Night.
Under his rule, both humans and demons had flourished.
The Night Dynasty had dominated the continent for countless generations.
Then, one thousand years earlier, disaster struck.
The Twilight Race, which inhabited the floating islands above the clouds, launched a massive invasion.
The war that followed shattered the Night Dynasty.
Its ruling family was destroyed.
Its territories fragmented.
Its authority collapsed.
From the ruins of the Night Dynasty, four major powers emerged.
The Sacred Holy Empire.
The Holy Demon Palace.
The Night Council.
And the Ancestral Demon Temple.
Each inherited a portion of the Night Dynasty's legacy.
Each claimed to be the rightful successor.
For the past thousand years, they had struggled against one another while simultaneously resisting the influence of the Twilight Race.
After finishing with history, Kaelan turned his attention toward geography.
The owl's geographical knowledge focused primarily on the surrounding region.
Most of the information concerned the demon territory.
Mountain ranges.
Rivers.
Demon settlements.
Ancient ruins.
Dangerous hunting grounds.
As he sorted through the information, one particular location caught his attention.
A city.
Not a human city.
A demon city.
According to the owl's memories, numerous demons gathered there to trade cultivation resources, techniques, and spells.
Most importantly, shadow-related spells occasionally appeared within the city's markets.
The moment Kaelan saw that memory, his eyes narrowed.
This might be his opportunity.
If he could obtain a Shadow Spell, his future path would become much clearer.
Unfortunately, another problem immediately surfaced.
Money.
Whether among humans or demons, cultivation resources were never free.
Spells were especially valuable.
No one would simply hand one over.
If he wanted a Shadow Spell, he first needed wealth.
Only then could he purchase the spell he desired.
As the realisation settled in, Kaelan felt a headache coming on.
After drifting through the Void for two thousand years, he had finally entered a living world.
And now, perhaps for the first time since becoming a Void Monster, he had encountered a universal truth.
No matter the world.
No matter the race.
Money was always important.