Everyone went quiet. The silence lulled before laughter erupted!

  “Elder? Did the new core just call The Dungeon Master old?”

  “He’s not wrong. The Dungeon Master is more than old; he’s ancient!”

  “Right! If he is a cow, he would be put out to pasture!”

  “If he’s a cow, he would be dead!”

  Laughs and jokes erupted like water from a hot geyser, and Xu Han wondered if he had truly made a social mistake when he sensed bemusement even from Snowy Grief. Luckily, The Dungeon Master proved his status as a wise elder and ignored everyone.

  “Think nothing of it, young core. A magitech carriage is nothing to me and considering these Techniques you are willing to exchange with us, it really isn’t much. I hope you enjoyed the gift.”

  “I did,” Xu Han immediately replied. “I had absorbed it, and it is a truly marvellous device. I am currently working through the book and the idea of building simple everyday devices that could use magic is incredible. May I know why you gift the vehicle to me? I did not know such a thing even existed.”

  “I noticed that you had a hard time understanding what technology is the last time you were here, and since you did say something about wanting to spread knowledge, I thought giving you something that was new to you would be appropriate. This world has knowledge of its own, and an exchange is always better than an outright gift.”

  Xu Han was startled as he quickly understood that what The Dungeon Master was implying. Xu Han had made a mistake. He came into the dungeon chat offering his knowledge, but he did not do it as a suppliant. Xu Han had offered his knowledge to everyone because he believed that all the knowledge he had was more than enough for all the cores within the Dungeon Core Chat Group.

  The knowledge of one core been equal to all the knowledge of all the cores in the chat group? That reeks of pride, arrogance and superiority.

  Xu Han suddenly realized how it must have looked to The Dungeon Master. Xu Han acted like an arrogant Young Master who came into the chat thinking like he knew more than everyone. Even if it is true, it would be only a matter of time before he rubs someone the wrong way.

  Xu Han mentally cursed himself. He never meant to insult the other dungeon cores, but you did not need to mean insult to give it. Xu Han had made a social mistake, and he made it the day he entered the chat.

  Fortunately, The Dungeon Master did not take offence but offered guidance instead. He may have given him a gift to put Xu Han in his place, but the gentle chide was the least the new dungeon core should expect. A senior cultivator in the Crimson Lands would have reacted with much more severity. Xu Han certainly would have. Considering the number of Young Masters he had killed, Xu Han’s respect for The Dungeon Master increased several folds as he realized that The Dungeon Master truly was the wise elder of the chat group.

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  “Xu Han thank his elder for his consideration. I shall strive to improve my knowledge and conduct in the future.”

  There was a pause, as if The Dungeon Master was wondering how to response before he finally did. “That is good. I expect great things from you in the future.”

  Xu Han was gladdened. “I shall try my best to meet your expectations, elder.”

  Once again, his humble response was made with laughs and giggles. The other dungeon cores found his words strange and funny. It did not take long for one of them to tell him why.

  “Xu Han, don’t take the old core too seriously. He always says that to new cores.” Bookkeeper said with a laugh.

  “Not word for word though, I think he said he expect ‘amazing’ things from me.” A dungeon core Xu Han remembered as Dancing Green answered.

  “I think it was ‘wonderful’ for me.”

  “Brilliant.”

  “Exceptional.”

  “Fabulous.”

  A series of dungeon cores each told what The Dungeon Master expected of them, and Xu Han mentally smile in return. He never knew there were so many words for great in the language of this new world. Extraordinary, Marvellous, Magnificent, Excellent, the list went on and on before even the patience of The Dungeon Master was reached.

  “All of you, shut up!”

  Everyone laughed, and Xu Han joined in. He had come to give thanks, and it turned into a joyous occasion. For the first time in a long time, Xu Han felt that he was not alone. As a cultivator, Xu Han had joined many groups, academies, and sects in his quest for knowledge, but the chat group felt different. Xu Han felt that the other cores in the group were more than acquaintances or allies.

  They felt like family.

  Xu Han knew then that Jemma was right in telling him to join the group and he felt even more certain of his path. “Dungeon Master, everyone, I, Xu Han, thank everyone for the warm welcome you had given me. As such, I wish to do something for the group.”

  “Oh, what do you intend, young core?” The Dungeon Master asked guardedly.

  “I wish, with the humblest of intentions, to give everyone knowledge on cultivation.”

  Xu Han waited as the members of the chat group slowly digest his words. Surprisingly, the reticent Dancing Green was the first to recover.

  “Cultivation? Is that not the power of your former world? The Crimson Lands, correct?”

  “That is correct senior.”

  “How does it work?” Snowy Grief asked without hesitation, something that Xu Han found very refreshing. In the Crimson Lands, it would be embarrassing for seniors to ask their juniors questions, even on topics they knew little about. The dungeon cores have no such hangups.

  “Cultivation starts with the art of pulling Qi into the body and circling it through the various parts of the body. Qi is an essence in the Crimson Lands, a part of the world much like how Mana is in this one. As a cultivator cycled the Qi through his body, the body will slowly strengthen. This is the start of the cultivation journey, something cultivators called the Qi Gathering Stage.”

  “Very interesting but how is Qi different from Mana?” Bookkeeper said.

  “I do not know. I have not been able to gather Qi since arriving in this world. If Qi exist, it is not located near my dungeon.” Xu Han admitted.