"System, give me the technique," Lucian commanded in a low but excited voice.
The system responded immediately, as a screen materialized in front of his eyes.
---
[Understood.]
[Fetching requested item from the host's inventory...]
---
Just like he had expected, the system screen pulsed with a bright luminous glow. The rays of light extended and converged, then expanded into a rectangular shape. In a heartbeat, the glow dimmed, and the sharp corners of a book's cover were revealed.
The cover was a striking white color, with dark letters engraved in the center—Whispering Breeze Technique.
It was a fairly thick book, considering it contained all the information needed to start one's journey as a cultivator.
As it floated above the system screen, Lucian slowly raised his hand, grabbed it softly, and pulled it towards him.
The system window disappeared the instant the book was removed. While his eyes remained fixated on the book.
Slowly, he opened the book and began to read its contents one by one. With each second, he turned a page over. It wasn't that he didn't read, but that he read it too quickly. After reading and writing for years, his eyes and mind had gotten so comfortable with words that even just a glance was enough for him to skim through pages in detail.
As instructed by the book, he first sat cross-legged with his hands meeting in an arc around his abdomen. He straightened his back and, one by one, began to take slow, deliberate breaths.
'This is pretty similar to what I had written, but more complex and detailed at the same time.' A thought crossed his mind as his mind subconsciously pondered more about the method itself.
The first part of the book consisted of methods to expand one's awareness beyond the body to sense particles of energy that are usually invisible to the eye.
'According to the texts, the energy is supposed to be warm yet extremely cold and rigid... Quite the metaphor, but that doesn't really help me, to be honest.' He shook his head slightly before closing his eyes.
Within seconds, Lucian's slow breaths stabilized and his mind grew calmer. More and more time passed, and as the time hit a minute's mark, Lucian sensed a strange warmth.
Not from inside, but around his body. Although, it felt different compared to the book's description. No doubt, it felt warm and was fairly new and foreign to Lucian, but the energy didn't seem rigid at all. On the contrary, it felt rather cooperative and, well... curious.
Even though he could not see anything, he could sense the energy particles slowly getting closer on their own. Lucian, too, did not refute. In fact, he accepted them with an open mind as he began to absorb them through his breathing.
One by one, the particles entered his body and phased through his internal organs as if their presence didn't even matter. At the same time, Lucian felt their strange, comforting warmth enwrapping his body from the inside. Then, the energy simply reached his abdomen and deposited itself.
In that exact instant, something peculiar occurred. The energy... It suddenly felt different.
Lucian snapped open his eyes in shock, muttering in a barely audible voice. "Up until now, it felt so easygoing and, well, soft... But all of a sudden, as it deposited itself in my abdomen, it felt too... dangerous..."
He frowned and raised his gaze only to find his answers in the most obvious way. A system window hung before his eyes, explaining everything.
---
———————————————————
[#~System Notification~#]
———————————————————
[Since you have been sitting in a meditative stance for more than 1 minute, 'Environmental Qi Absorption' has begun!]
[Congratulations! You have absorbed 0.01 Mana!]
[The system has detected a Mana within the host's body; 'Mana Conversion' has begun!]
[Congratulations! 0.01 Mana has been successfully converted to 0.01 Qi!]
[The system has detected Pure Qi within the host's body. Due to the effects of 'Perfect Qi Control,' you'll be able to control it naturally.]
[...]
[Congratulations, a unique stat—Qi—has been created!]
└ [Qi] - 0.01 / 1.00
---
"Hoh?" Lucian slightly shook his head. "That explains it all... So 1 is the current limit for the Qi? I guess that's where the breakthrough comes in..."
"Neat! I like that." Lucian straightened his body once again and began to fall back into his meditative stance.
But then, a sudden noise jolted him awake.
"Oh! Hey, hey! You guys, come over here! A tiny sheep is hiding on the rooftop!" A man's voice echoed behind, muffled in a bunch of laughter.
Lucian, however, did not move. He simply opened his eyes and waited to figure out the situation.
"Oh! You were right! Nice job, sneaky nose!" Another man yelled, his voice rough and deep.
One after another, he started hearing countless footsteps—all coming his way. At a certain distance, even Lucian felt the need to see it for himself as he quickly rolled to the very edge of the building and sat menacingly, facing the horde of humans that had crowded behind.
'Shit... That's way more than I had thought...' He sharpened his gaze and tightened his grip on his daggers.
'Even a child could tell that they mean no good, especially so with all those weapons in their hands... But why are they so eager to attack a frail boy like me?'
"Hey, you!" A giant man slowly stomped his way to the front, pushing countless men aside with just his body. "Drop your rewards and kiss our toes, then I'll let you go respectfully." He threatened, pointing his gigantic club towards Lucian.
The other men followed the giant man and began laughing too. Although, Lucian had a completely different reaction.
He raised one of his brows and stared at the giant man with a straight face. "What the fuck is this fatso talking about?"