Chapter 57: Qi Sensing

It was as if the lake itself whispered a warning, but it was too late. The canoe swayed and broke his concentration. His instincts kicked in and, while exhaling impurities, he paddled forward. At the spot behind him, a shadow formed and his senses picked up on something moving in fast.

’Dammit.’ He let his OCD tendencies get to him. He made a mistake. A mistake he wouldn’t have ordinarily made if the power hadn’t seduced his patience.

A huge splash of water flew up and crashed down on him, and the Misi-kinepikw lunged high above him, its serpentine body unfurling with astonishing speed. The creature’s enormous, fanged jaws gaped open, revealing rows of dagger-like teeth as it came down upon him.

“Em—” His throat hitched and the impurities bottled up. Through sheer will alone, Dasha managed to circumvent the wheezing, and announced, “Ember Uppercut!”

His fire encoated fist slammed its jaw. The creature was sent back into the water, flailing from the pain. Panting, Dasha waited for another attack. Unfortunately, due to the releasing of purities, his Qi Sensing was malfunctioning. In midst of the pain and struggle, his remaining senses told him that the Misi-kinepikw was revolving around his location.

’I see! It was able to sense my Qi and when it noticed that it went down, it attacked.’ A hasty breath, a nasty black smoke. ’Creatures capable of interacting with Qi—so that is possible too. So far, I assumed only humans possessed a degree of control over their inner energy. None of the books I read mentioned animals doing the same. A rash assessment, stemming from my scientific perspective. Indigenous works put emphasis into the spirituality of animals. Of course they can control it.’

The canoe shifted. The Misi-kinepikw was coming. His initial thought was to paddle away but his constricting lungs told him otherwise. This battle couldn’t go on for more than a minute.

Therefore, the suitable course of action was to dive into the water and surprise it. Immediately, the heftiness of the water slowed him, yet he landed two critical punches to the Misi-kinepikw’s long, sparkly body.

On its head, it bore a set of impressive, curved horns. What truly mesmerized Dasha was the radiant crest on its forehead, a gem that gleamed with an otherworldly luster, akin to a flawless diamond.

Its speed surpassed his in the water, weaving its serpent body left and right, waiting for the correct opportunity.

’Seven, eight, nine…’

Four minutes. That was Dasha’s limit underwater before he would drown. Plenty of time, it would seem, as the Misi-kinepikw opened its mouth. Dasha lunged forward, eyes feral, and shoved his arm down its mouth. His arms lit up as he activated Fire Fist ten times over.

The horned serpent struggled, but Dasha kept it in place with his other arm. He didn’t care that his nose was expunging impurities. None of that mattered to him.

All that mattered was killing the creature and reaping its awards.

’When fire is underwater water, it instantly vaporizes it, creating pockets of superheated steam—’

That smoked the Misi-kinepikw from the inside out.

The expected blue screen highlighted in yellow came up. Relief and impurities poured from his breath.

’Eleven, twelve…’

[ Receive:

500 XP ]

[ Congratulations! Gate 5 : Fort Chipewyan

Main Objective: Kill the Misi-kinepikw — Complete!

Receive:

6,000 XP

10,000 PP ]

No level up, no rare drop, and insufficient Prize Points. Dasha figured he was over levelling and expected to feel its affects. He wasn’t disappointed nor thrilled. This was merely another obstacle for him to overcome.

’Thirteen, fourteen…’

He swam up and drank glorious oxygen. The counter reset. He kept himself afloat and reflected on his battle.

’That lunge right there was faster than any human on Earth.’

It was to be expected—he possessed Qi, humans on Earth did not. The question was: how could he tell with such certainty? In his teens, he conducted a study on Olympic athletes and their altered anatomies for his thesis, and learned more than most people would in their entire lifetime. Each sport altered an athlete in subtle yet meaningful ways, and he determined exactly how and what they did in order to reach that state. There was a reason Dasha was endless in his natural abilities, because he made sure to just that: learn a bit of everything as much as he could, like a sponge absorbing water.

In the System, that manifested as hundreds of martial arts skills. Whenever he conducted a particular fighting style, his stats would increase in a specific way. For example, if he selected to fight in the Muay Thai style, then attacks involving the fist, elbows, knees and shins were increased by 5%. If it was clinching, then 8%.

The thrill of a fight, the sensation of pain and the effort required, he drank it greedily. But it was a temporary high that never went far. On Earth and in this afterlife, it was the same.

His lips dropped into a frown and he stared into the empty sky without meaning. “So you’re not it either…”

***

’What a waste of time.’

Nothing. Dasha could figure out everything and anything, assuming there was logic to it. However, it was clear Gate 5 relied on luck or some other nonsensical factor because he simply could not find the special or hidden objective. There was just water. Too much water. He grew sick of it and returned to the White Abyss.

The nauseating smell of salt and fish pushed him into deeper agitating. Every time he thought about the days wasted, he wanted to smack himself. Wet, cold, and hungry, he gave no reaction as he accidentally bumped into someone.

It was some lowlife blond who stared up at him, bewildered. Sprawled on the floor, deformed tattoos running across his arms, his hair bleached and a generic sword on his waist. Dasha offered him nothing and moved on.

“H-hey, apologize!”

A hand grabbed his shoulder and stopped him in his tracks. Dasha craned his head back and stared at the blue-eyed welp.

“Do not touch me.”

The tattooed blond released him and stepped back, suddenly afraid. His voice was monotone. No emotion was shown. No anger, no aggression, it was a simple statement. Yet by mixing his Qi in his voice, Dasha projected a dangerous killing intent to it. A show of spirit that demonstrated his superiority. A great fear that couldn’t be shrugged off.

One step, two steps, three steps, the blond gulped and walked away. Dasha noticed people were watching the situation, puzzled. He ignored them and said in his head, ’Enter home.’

If he couldn’t gain XP at a gate, then he could only further his cultivation training. Reaching the Late Stage wouldn’t take long now.

Summoned in his pocket dimension, he promptly sat down and got to meditating. His hunger urged him otherwise, wet droplets falling from his hair, urging him to dry himself. He didn’t. The notion that he allowed someone like that to touch him was inexcusable. He should have been faster. His Qi Sense should have been stronger. His very presence should have told the blond to run.

Meditating was an exercise that brought the most results during terrible conditions. Whether it be on a rocking canoe or in a pocket dimension where you were cold and hungry, each provided the body a new experience. Each would help the body adapt.

Nothing worth doing was easy. In the name of efficiency, of stating his lust for power, he had to do this.

Shivering, his wet black garbs clung to his skin, and the chill gnawed at his bones. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, letting his breath steady.

With each breath, he focused on his meridians, the channels through which his life force flowed.

Minutes turned into hours, and the professor’s began to warm from within. His senses expanded, and he felt the connection between his inner energy and the silent world around him. The hunger in his belly slowly subsided as he continued to meditate. It was as if his widening meridians drew in sustenance from the very air.

[ Qi Condensation (Middle Stage) upgraded into Qi Condensation (Late Stage) ]

Dasha opened his eyes, feeling revitalized and nourished, despite having not eaten a morsel. His meridians were widened, his inner energy rejuvenated, and for a moment, his hunger was a mere speck. But then, as soon as he released himself from his Qi, the hunger struck back in spades and he nearly hurled out his lunch.

**********

“As I, Master Wu Tianlong of the Justice Sect, reflect upon my own experiences and the wisdom passed down by my forebears, it becomes evident that a human can become much like an animal and also not. Reactive, instinctual, yet still themselves. Qi, the life force that flows within all living beings, responds to the emotional and physical states of its vessel. Anger is common and short. Loyalty is rare and persistent. Stories of anger are found everywhere. However, of loyalty, many myths persist General Yue Fei, who lived during the Southern Song Dynasty and participated in one of the very first Heavenly Games. While many feats cannot be corroborated, I was able to meet with several of his soldiers and discuss in length regarding one circumstance.

The circumstance of protecting one’s home against monsters. The circumstance of seeing one’s home after death. The enemy forces vastly outnumbered his own, and the situation grew increasingly desperate. As the siege wore on, supplies dwindled, and morale began to falter.

His loyalty, however, stopped the destruction of his ancestral home; of Xiaoti, Yonghe Village, Tangyin, Xiangzhou, Henan. Of a home he forgot through war and remembered again. In that moment, he achieved Embryonic Breathing. He achieved the Peak of Core Formation.

What can be learned from witnessing Yue Fei’s loyalty is that the body’s response and Qi is deeply intertwined with the cultivation of Qi. The flare-up of Qi occurs when the mind and body are aligned in a state of absolute focus and necessity. Emotional intensity, whether it be fear, anger, or determination, acts as a catalyst, pushing the practitioner to tap into strips of the soul. Some believe lacking thought is what pushes humans closer to become one with the soul and attain godhood. Perhaps that is not entirely the case.

This phenomenon is not limited to moments of physical combat. I have noted similar experiences during meditation, deep concentration, and even in moments of profound artistic creation. My closest friend is a blacksmith. His spears often give me peace in practice, and in practice, my movements spur him on. The gleam in his eye, the rare shine of godly talent from a new idea, it cannot be different. What lies in the emotion of Qi is the ability to direct this surge purposefully. Control is impossible.“

– Excerpt from the scroll “The Emotional State of Qi” by Master Wu Tianlong, 120 HE

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