READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 14
Chapter 14: Day 30, Growth (3)
A month. Harang’s goal was to absorb the entire “Tangakhyang’s Inner Core” within those 30 days.
However, Harang’s ignorance held him back.
Tangakhyang was a supreme spiritual creature, wise and powerful enough to interfere with the natural order. Was it possible to absorb the essence of such a spiritual being’s inner core in just a month?
Especially in the body of a seven-year-old.
“Impossible.”
Everyone would say the same.
Even if an experienced martial artist or Daoist were to absorb it, it would take at least several years.
If one tried to absorb the spiritual core in haste, they might suffer from energy deviation or have their meridians twisted, leading to disability.
Harang approached the absorption of Tangakhyang’s inner core in a very straightforward manner.
He divided the horn into 30 portions and predetermined how much to absorb each day, postponing any unfinished portion to the next day.
Once the 30 days were over, and he headed back to his home, who knew when he would have the chance to return to absorb the inner core again? By the time he became an adult, the efficiency would drop to less than half.
In other words, Harang was greedy.
But his greed wasn’t baseless.
He knew that the system’s blessing greatly aided in controlling mana and had realized his innate talent for mana.
Additionally, his dantian housed the Silver Heart, also known as the Dragon’s Heart, and he had already mastered the Silver Dragon Divine Qi Technique, the mana cultivation method of the legendary hero Kaladan.
However, he overlooked his age. Harang was too young to overly trust the Silver Heart and the Silver Dragon Divine Qi Technique, and his meridians were incredibly fragile.
Furthermore, such advanced mana cultivation techniques should never be practiced alone.
It was essential to have a mentor’s guidance to control the mana flow gradually and safely over a long period.
Thus.
“Huh?”
On the 30th day.
“Why does my head feel so dizzy?”
The consequences of overexerting himself manifested just after he absorbed the last of Tangakhyang’s inner core.
Splurt!
As blood spurted from his nose like a fountain, Harang sensed something was wrong.
Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!
His heart pounded wildly, dizziness ensued, and his head spun.
“…So, this is the early symptom of energy deviation.”
Harang was familiar with energy deviation. It was said that mana would backflow, causing one to bleed from all seven orifices and die.
Pop! Pop!
His veins swelled as if they were about to burst, and pain surged through them.
Even in this dreadful moment, Harang focused more on the sensations in his meridians than on the pain.
What he felt now was a sense of burden.
No, more precisely, an “alien feeling.”
“Strange.”
Harang thought he should be able to control this level of mana flow with the Silver Heart.
But for some reason, his body felt burdened, showing early symptoms of energy deviation.
What was the reason?
Harang slowly and calmly searched for the cause.
Most martial artists and magicians panic at the initial symptoms of energy deviation and cannot handle the backflowing mana, leading to an outburst. But Harang remained unperturbed.
His focus, which had once made him a champion, now proved its worth again in this moment of crisis.
“…I see. The Silver Heart is as tough and solid as steel, but my meridians were the problem.”
The Silver Heart was firmly established in his dantian, but his meridians were not.
The qi and blood channels throughout his body were still as fragile as those of a seven-year-old child.
The machine’s power was immense due to the latest technology, but the circuits carrying the electricity were old and outdated, resulting in poor efficiency.
“This alien feeling was because of this.”
So, there was only one solution.
“Extract a part of the Silver Heart and coat all the qi and blood channels in my body with it.”
Though easier said than done, covering his entire qi and blood channels with the sturdy mana core in his dantian was no easy feat.
But Harang was confident.
“Focus. Control it. Using the blessing to the fullest will direct the flow as desired…”
Where was the mana flow blocked?
The heart.
The most dangerous part of the body.
“Starting from here… Ugh?!”
Harang almost gagged as he tried to move the heart’s mana but was blocked by a massive “barrier.”
On closer inspection, the heart was surrounded by a solid, shell-like barrier!
“What, what is this?!”
If something suspicious surrounded his heart, it might harden and stop his heart as he grew older.
Harang, sweating coldly, came up with a better idea and smiled.
“Great, I don’t know what it is, but this is perfect. I was reluctant to shave off the Silver Heart, but I can shave this instead.”
It was many times harder than extracting the Silver Heart. He had to shave the coating around his actual heart to make it flow.
“I can do it.”
Harang slowly operated the Silver Dragon Divine Qi Technique, taking control of the mana.
Then, as if sculpting, he shaved the coating around his heart, and his stifling chest gradually felt relieved.
Removing the silver coating, Harang utilized it along the mana flow, operating it slowly.
Thud!
“Argh!”
Kaladan’s prime mana breathing technique aggressively pierced through his qi and blood channels. If Harang’s mana core were that of an ordinary human, it would have shattered more than a dozen times.
It was a reckless mana cultivation technique that could only be endured because of the rock-solid and massive Silver Heart!
If people saw this mana cultivation technique, they would have immediately discarded it as a technique that turns people into living corpses.
Harang compared this Silver Dragon Divine Qi Technique to a large truck. Not just any truck, but a 20-ton truck.
Sitting in the truck, Harang looked at the blocked mana channels and pressed the accelerator with all his might.
Thud! Thud!
“Ugh…!”
As his meridians opened, the pain was so intense that tears welled up. Any ordinary person would have fainted, but his focus did not waver. Instead, he forged ahead, clearing the path more vigorously!
Then something amazing happened.
Harang’s meridians, initially like a two-lane road, expanded to three lanes, then four, and finally five lanes!
Meridians aren’t actual roads. They can expand and soften as much as needed, enough to accommodate hundreds of trucks.
“Now that they’re expanded, I need to coat them so they can’t revert.”
He coated the widened meridian roads solidly, preventing them from narrowing again.
Thud! Thud! Forcing the meridians to open, expanding and coating them repeatedly, was a brute force method! While any other person would have spat blood and died from mana backflow, Harang merely broke out in a cold sweat.
“Not enough yet. If I continue like this, they’ll get blocked again somewhere.”
Harang kept pressing the accelerator, speeding up. Starting from the heart, through the head, back to the heart, passing the dantian, through the lower body, swirling around, past the dantian, and back to the heart again…
As he coated all the meridians in his body and completed a full circulation of mana, Harang achieved a significant milestone, the Small Heavenly Cycle.
Flash!
Suddenly, a lightning-like realization struck him. Harang, trembling all over, understood that his previous mana flow methods had been foolish and futile.
Crack, crackle!
His bones shattered, and his muscles twisted, causing his entire body to convulse violently.
The pain was so intense that he felt like he would faint, but the agony was so immense that it didn’t even allow him the respite of unconsciousness.
“Grrr!”
All he could do was widen all his meridians and circulate the mana throughout his body.
—
[Your skeletal structure is undergoing a significant transformation to align with the Silver Heart!]
—
Though Harang didn’t realize it at the time, this was akin to a partial Bone Renewal, something a normal martial artist could only experience upon reaching the level of a 4-star warrior. Yet, he was experiencing it at just the 1-star level!
Although different from a typical Bone Renewal, since it was adapting to the Silver Heart, this transformation granted Harang a body perfectly suited for both martial arts and magic, a truly blessed physique.
Whirr…!
After a while, the pain completely subsided, and a silver aura began to emanate from Harang’s body.
All blemishes on his skin were removed, and every small scar disappeared.
His skeletal structure transformed into the most perfect physique for practicing both martial arts and magic, though it was not visibly evident due to his young age. It would become more pronounced as he grew.
“Haaa…”
As he exhaled deeply, a silver mist escaped his lips.
Flash! As he opened his eyes, a silver gleam flashed and then vanished.
—
[Achieved Mana Core Level 2]
[Due to the effects of Bone Renewal, you now possess a body more suited for learning and using magic and martial arts, and your abilities have greatly increased!]
[The skill ‘Tangakhyang Descent’ has been created.]
[Partially overcome the ‘Stigmata Curse,’ breaking your growth limits!]
—
Even without reading the floating messages in the air, Harang understood.
“This is…”
Everything had changed. His reaction speed, vision, strength, and all his senses had blossomed.
“So, the thing surrounding my heart was the Stigmata Curse?”
If such a thing had been encasing his heart, he would have died of illness before reaching his twenties, just like his father in his previous life.
“Just like my father in this life.”
Running his hand over his chest, Harang raised his left hand as if holding a smartphone and called up his status window.
—
━━━
[Blessing] Synchronization Rate: 2.947%
[Mana Core Level 2]
[Swordsmanship Level 1]
[Stamina 25] [Strength 28] [Agility 30]
─────
Kaladan Swordsmanship First Form
Silver Heart: Silver Dragon Divine Qi Technique
Tangakhyang Descent (Sealed)
─────
▼Expand
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
—
Harang stared at his stats with astonishment.
Despite only training his mana, his overall stats had dramatically increased.
It was said that true masters improve their physical strength through internal training rather than separate muscle training; this must have been the meaning behind it.
It was well known that training mana was a more effective growth method than simple physical training, though not easily accomplished.
“The skills One Sword, Two Halves and Crescent Moon Step evolved into Full Moon Slash and Moon Leopard last time and merged with Kaladan Swordsmanship… and now a new skill has appeared.”
—
━━━━━[Skill]━━━━━
Tangakhyang Descent (Sealed)
Invoke the spirit of the mystical creature Tangakhyang into your body. Increases healing power and magic sensitivity, and enhances physical abilities.
*Condition: Mana Core Level 4 or higher
*Resource: 1 High-grade Mana Crystal
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━
—
“Invoking a spirit?”
Harang’s face lit up.
He had never seen a buff-type skill that required consumables with poor performance.
“And aren’t mana crystals… consumables made by refining one’s own mana?”
Sometimes, magicians refine their own mana to create “mana crystals.” These are used as insurance for times when mana is insufficient or to use powerful spells.
However, refining mana crystals is exceedingly difficult, so few magicians utilize them. It has become rare to see magicians who refine mana crystals.
“Though the usage condition is strict… the skill’s power should be exceptional.”
Despite the dizziness, Harang smiled faintly.
“Well, anyway. I succeeded.”
Stretching his stiff body, Harang stepped out of the lake.
Swimming felt effortless, as if he were a rocket moving forward. Like a dolphin, he leaped above the lake’s surface, rolling in mid-air before landing.
“I think I can do it.”
He looked up at the palace tower. The silver palace, reflecting the bright full moon, shone brilliantly even in the dead of night.
Tuck! He jumped onto a nearby low building, then onto a higher rooftop next to it. His jumping ability had noticeably improved, and despite being out of breath, he continued to climb.
Feeling the thumping of his heart under the dazzling silver light, the dawn breeze brushed past his cheeks.
As the scenery rapidly changed, the cool dawn air filled his chest.
Crossing from building to building, he felt his heart racing for the first time in a long while.
Thump, thump!
He raised his trembling hands.
It wasn’t exhaustion causing the trembling.
It was excitement.
So much joy, and more joy.
That’s why his hands trembled.
In his past life, Harang had a heart condition that forbade such vigorous activity. He was restricted to certain exercises, even for necessary health maintenance.
—
“Your heart and brain are like ticking time bombs. You must never run.”
“Don’t overexert yourself or get overly excited.”
“If you just sit still and wait, you won’t live long. You must move your body.”
“Just enough to stay alive…”
—
A life where he couldn’t even run like others. A life that didn’t permit even the simplest pleasures.
Now, it felt as if he had shed a burden of a thousand pounds and was truly ready to soar.
Boom! Gathering all his strength in his legs, he leaped high, landing on the top of the silver tower and grabbing the flagpole to support his weight.
In the distance, the orange sun began to rise.
“Huff, huff…”
This feeling was something no virtual reality game could replicate. The tingling in his muscles, the dewy twilight filling his lungs, the heart pounding with happiness…
“Not yet. It’s too early to be satisfied.”
Clenching his fists, Harang leaped beyond the cliff.
“Because now is just the beginning.”
Today was the day he finally left the Seventh Training Ground.
It was also the day he started anew at White Night Castle.