Chapter 7 --

A sapling sat beneath a towering oak with its roots and branches positioned suspiciously as if it were in meditation. The air around it fluctuated with every breath it took, which followed a gradually increasing rhythm.

Hui’s mind had delved into his body, as he forced the circulation of energy along an uncontrolled path. This was a process he had become familiar with over time. Following rigorous and exhaustive training, energy would flow within his body further nourishing its growth and capabilities, enhancing strength and flexibility.

Upon awakening, he had been elated to discover the wounds of his meridians were gone. In fact, though it was barely noticeable, there seemed to be an improvement in size and resilience.

Refreshed, Hui went about his daily ritual with a renewed fervor, going so far as to poorly emulate the martial artists of his previous generation.

After reaching his physical limit, Hui was pleasantly surprised with the thickness of the energy released. He hastily sped up the circulation of energy, basking in the warmth in his stem and branches as they were progressively refined.

The flow of energy from within the billions of cells seemed inexhaustible, and Hui soon began to be discomforted by the heat he felt. Hui’s sapling body reddened and the air around began to steam. His recovered energy channels strained under the load of the rapidly moving current.

Though Hui was experiencing excruciating pain, he continued to consciously increase the speed of circulation. Recently he had felt that his improvements from devouring the essences of the lesser beasts had dwindled to almost an insignificant amount compared to his earlier advances. Now he believed that it was because he had met some sort of bottleneck. If it weren’t for his fortuitous encounter with the second level beast, he would have had to wander deeper into the forest soon anyways. Currently, the overwhelming energy seemed to have a drastic effect on his body, increasing all qualities by leaps and bounds.

Clenching his imaginary teeth, Hui muttered to himself, “Hold out! If I can break through, I’ll be one step closer to my dream!”

Only Hui knew that he had to lock his perverse pursuits at the back of his mind to prevent distracting himself, all the while raging dementedly as if he were a main character overcoming destiny to keep focused. Towards the end, he began to spew gibberish.

‘Wait for me, Meng! I swear I’ll come find you again!’

When Hui was practically in tears over both the pain and an imagined romantic tragedy for himself, a thundering resounded through his body. The energy within his body violently surged, then rippled beyond the channel walls. Along its path the energy hidden in the recesses of the cells resonated. When the entirety of Hui’s body was encompassed by the ripple, a vortex seemed to form at its center, which was at the core of his body. The innumerable pockets of energy spun towards the core, consolidating into a single solid mass.