32 Absorb (2/2)

Dong leaned back again, slightly disappointed, but an inquisitive twinkle stayed in his eyes. It was probably only a matter of time before he found out himself.

”Ah, never mind.”

He went back to scoffing his food, and I dug in as well. It was basic, but not unpleasant. I paused for a second, asking Dong a question.

”What about the tradition thing that the Chairman said?”

”Ah yes, hunting season. I find it somewhat barbaric, but it does serve a key purpose. We actively encourage combat, so you grow up resilient.”

”For regular students, it's an occasional chance to test their strength, and, most often, experience defeat. On the other hand,”

Dong's words sharpened and he stared at me intensely.

”for you, it is a gruelling but crucial lesson. It is the best simulation of war. You will face fight after fight and cannot let yourself slip at any point.”

”Every injury or moment of exhaustion is a chance for them. You are forced to become an invincible fighter or experience relentless defeat.”

His words set my blood boiling, my heart racing in anticipation.

Dong startled slightly.

”Ah, dear me.”

I realised that my fists were clenched, and I felt a grin tugging on my face. My body's excitement surprised me. I didn't know that I wanted to fight that badly.

”Well, I would say that you shouldn't worry about that, but you should. Whenever you're training during this term, think about what's to come. Prepare yourself.”

”How long is this term?”

”It's two months, but you go back home for a week in between months, and two weeks after.”

I had almost 3 months to become unbeatable among my peers. It was satisfying to finally have a tangible goal after 8 years of independent motivation.

”I'm going to head back, and you probably want to get cultivating.”

I nodded in agreement and we walked to College. Getting back to my room, I started thinking about the mysterious force.

In one way or another, my qi was being attracted to something. I took some time to test it on different materials and I found similar effects on all materials.

I had a theory. My qi had acted on its own to consume the demon, and it seemed to be 'drinking' qi. Perhaps these materials had qi of their own.

Simply trickling qi into my eyes wasn't enough to see anything. I needed more power.

I gathered all the qi into my body, and sent it surging through to my eyes. It seared a burning path, tearing open my qi channels.

Biting through the pain, I forced my eyes open, anticipating what was to come. With a flash of light and a bolt of pain, it reached my eyes.

I recoiled in agony and my eyes snapped shut. They felt as if they would split open, but I pushed through. Cracking open an eyelid, I looked at a new world, dappled by tears.

The room glowed with beautiful greens, blues and golds. Light streaming through the window shone an even more brilliant white, striking against a dark black mist which curled from the shadows.

I could only see this for a second, before the burst of qi decayed and the world dulled.

So, qi was everywhere, and that opened up a possibility. Perhaps I could absorb the world's qi to boost my recovery, finally making use of my demon band.

I sat on my bed and meditated, bringing my focus to the tattoo. In contrast to the rest of my body, I could see twisting spires piercing my wrist.

My qi channels had wrapped around the spires like vines creeping up a tree. I imagined a suction force, pulling in qi from my surroundings, but nothing happened.

I kept picturing this force for a few minutes, when finally, a tiny white glow drifted into one of the spires. It flitted about, like a firefly in a jar.

I observed one of my qi channels drilling into the spire, piercing a tiny hole. A tiny tendril whipped out, striking the glowing light.

Unlike with the demon, there was no struggle, and the tendril absorbed the light. I could feel it drifting through my body, making its way to my soul.

When it reached my soul, I could sense that it had already become my own qi. With some relief, I couldn't sense any memories like with the demon. Instead, I felt a little brighter.

It was possible! Progress was slow for sure, but my room couldn't have been the most qi dense place.

Now I had a new mission in mind. To find a place with dense qi so I could speed up my cultivation.