The first few years of my new life were a blur of warmth, the scent of woodsmoke, and the constant, rhythmic thrum-clack of my father’s processing factory nearby. Unlike my previous life, where every day was a battle against a decaying body, here, every day was a discovery. I was a passenger in a tiny frame that grew stronger by the hour, fueled by the Martial God Cultivation Technique that hummed in my veins like a sleeping dragon.

  I was six months old when I decided it was time to break the silence.

  My mother, Adoma, was sitting on the porch, sorting through a basket of "Sun-Dry" herbs. My father, Kobina, was wiping grease from his forehead, looking frustrated at a broken gear from the factory.

  "If we can't get this press moving, the harvest will rot," he groaned, his voice heavy with the weight of the village's needs.

  I looked at him, my mind clear and sharp. I didn't want to see that look on his face. I reached out my small hand and let out a sound that wasn't a cry.

  "Pa... Pa."

  The silence that followed was absolute. My mother dropped her herbs. My father froze, the heavy iron gear nearly slipping from his hand.

  "Did... did he just speak?" Adoma whispered, her eyes wide.

  "Pa," I repeated, more clearly this time.

  Before they could even scoop me up in their arms, a familiar ripple of light shimmered across my vision.

  > [Achievement Unlocked: The First Word]

  > [Reward: Appraiser Skill (Level 1)]

  > [Description: Allows the host to see the true nature and value of items, people, and resources.]

  >

  Suddenly, the world changed. I looked at the broken gear in my father’s hand. A faint glow surrounded it, and a box of information floated in the air:

  > [Item: Factory Pressure Gear]

  The author's narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  > [Condition: Damaged (Stress Fracture)]

  > [Value: 50 Cedis]

  > [Note: Needs heat-tempering to restore durability.]

  >

  I blinked, overwhelmed. My parents were crying and laughing, passing me between them like a trophy. I was just a baby, yet I could see the hidden cracks in the world.

  By the time I was one year old, the energy from the cultivation technique had made my bones feel like iron. I wasn't content with crawling. One afternoon, while my father was explaining the factory's layout to a group of village elders, I grabbed the edge of a wooden table and pulled myself up.

  My legs didn't shake. They didn't buckle. I took one step. Then another.

  "Kobina! Look!" one of the elders shouted, pointing at me.

  I walked toward my father, my pace steady and purposeful. With every step, I felt a massive transformation occurring deep within my marrow. It felt as if my blood was being replaced with liquid gold.

  > [Achievement Unlocked: The First Step]

  > [Reward: Martial God Physique (Rank: Unknown)]

  > [Warning: This physique is of an unmeasurable grade. It will evolve as the host grows.]

  >

  The air around me seemed to ripple. My father caught me as I finished my walk across the room, but the moment his hands touched my ribs, he jumped back in shock.

  "He's... he's burning," Kobina gasped, looking at his palms. "No, not burning. He’s pulsing. Like a heart."

  Adoma rushed over, her face pale with worry. "Is he sick?"

  "No," the eldest villager said, his eyes fixed on me. "He’s not sick. Look at his stance. He stands like a king of old. Kobina, your son... he isn't a normal child."

  The years followed in a steady rhythm of growth. By age five, I was a strange sight in Koda Village. While the other children played with sticks and dirt, I spent my time in the factory.

  I didn't play. I studied.

  With my Appraiser Skill, I watched the raw materials come in. I saw the quality of the herbs and the impurities in the ores. I watched my father struggle with the ancient, clunky machines of the processing plant. He thought I was just a curious boy, but I was learning the foundation of our family’s life.

  One evening, as the sun dipped below the horizon, painting the slash-and-burn fields in shades of violet and orange, I sat with my parents at the dinner table.

  "Zan is getting too smart for his own good," Adoma said, smiling as she ruffled my hair. "He spent four hours watching the oil press today."

  "He's the heir," Kobina said, his pride masking the worry in his eyes about the factory’s falling output. "He needs to know how we survive. But he's only five. Zan, go play tomorrow. Be a child."

  I looked at my father, seeing the faint grey hairs starting to appear at his temples. I looked at my mother’s calloused hands.

  "I like the factory, Father," I said, my voice steady. "It’s how we take care of the people. It’s how we stay strong."

  I didn't tell them about the Martial God Physique that made me feel like I could lift the factory roof if I wanted to. I didn't tell them that when I looked at our village, I saw more than just dirt and smoke—I saw a foundation that I would build into an empire.

  I was no longer the orphan in the bed. I was Zan Koda, and I had thirteen years left to prove I was worthy of the crown.