Chapter 12: Novice

Bandit’s Home, Jade Empire

The tone of Kai’s voice instantly made Austin and Creek tremble. He immediately took action before they could make sense of what he said. Creek was in the midst throwing a punch when Kai precisely pressed the pressure points of his wrists. He pressed the pressure point on Creek’s shoulder in the same motion and before Creek could wonder why his arm felt like jelly, his body went limp.

-Thud-

Austin was unable to register the exchange in time and already followed Creek’s punch with his own. Kai twisted his body to avoid the punch and simultaneously jumped. Utilizing the momentum of the twist, he launched a spinning high kick at him. The difference in height resulted in a perfect strike against the temple of Austin’s head.

-Thud-

Phew… I was excessive with this boy. It seems I still need to practice controlling my emotions.

Having his brain rattle, Austin fell unconscious and joined the motionless Creek on the dirt while Kai gracefully landed on his feet. His attacks unfolded too quickly for Teresa and the others to comprehend so they cluelessly gazed at the fallen bodies.

“Kai, what-”, Robert started to question.

“We have to act quickly”, Kai interrupted. “I’ll grab Austin, someone grab the other boys and we’ll place them besides the Watcher’s house. Move as quietly as you can.”

Kai hastily carried out his plan and dragged Austin across the dirt. They could not discern the intentions behind his actions but trusted him and moved to grab Creek and Bak. Together, they carefully placed their three bodies against the house. Teresa opened her mouth to question Kai but he stopped her with a finger to her lips. He waved his hands, motioning them to follow him as he quietly walked towards the forest.

When they crossed the wooden fenced exit, he explained, “If we talked there, the Watcher’s could’ve heard us and came out. If they came out then we’d have to explain the three unconscious bodies in front of their house.”

Their eyes widened in understanding and amazement at how he was able to react so quickly. Teresa, however, was slightly skeptical. “But what if they wake up and tell the Watcher’s what happened?”

“Hopefully they would not believe them. Better yet, they would stay silent from their pride. After all we’re are merely slaves in their eyes so they wouldn’t carelessly spread the fact we beat them”, Kai answered.

“I see…”, Teresa contemplated, slowly following his thoughts. “But even if we forget about the boys, what about you? You’re not a Novice yet are you? How in the world can you fight like that?”

She figured Kai was a genius from his abnormal cultivation ability but how could cultivating lead to his ability to fight? Even after witnessing the altercation first hand, she could not begin to logically describe it. It all played out too quickly for her to comprehend.

“... I don’t know why but it’s like I already know how to fight…”

“Could you be a super genius?”, Robert guessed, his eyes shining. Ben, Mark and Jennifer bought his theory and admiringly stared at Kai but Teresa was doubtful. She was incredibly perceptive and felt that Kai was withholding information from them. She decided to put her suspicions aside, believing she was overthinking.

The day continued normally. The adults wondered why they were slightly late to work but ignored it. As the night arrived and everyone fell asleep, Kai sat in his training location. With his legs crossed, he replayed the events of the afternoon.

The childish fight was a minor issue and had long since left his thoughts. Teresa’s question was what truly troubled him. Her question caught him unawares and he knew his answer was less than satisfactory. In the past years he often thought of explaining his rebirth but his mind was clouded with possible pessimistic outcomes.

My past life and reincarnation, is it fine to share these information?... if I was on Earth I would be tested and tortured… even if this isn’t Earth, would I still be alienated or worse, hunted down like an abomination?

With the knowledge of his past life, he knew how quickly humans were able to develop evil thoughts. The pessimistics theories threw his mind into a state of chaos, making it impossible for him to cultivate.

What should I do?…

Kai already knew the answer. Deep inside his heart, the clear explanation he avoided was there all along.

In my past life I’ve never cared for anyone besides my master but when I realized it, I was too late… but this life is different! I truly care about them and I believe they care about me too. If I truly care then I must tell them the truth and trust their opinion of me would stay the same. Next time… I will definitely be truthful!

After acknowledging the answer, he unconsciously entered a tranquil state of mind. A strong feeling of peace engulfed, seemingly blessed, his very being and he drifted into cultivation.

The illusionary wall appeared and hovered in front of his face. Before long he felt it against his nose. It gave off a warm feeling and refused to move an inch. Qi and Ki were no longer able to enter his body and washed over him, creating a glowing mist of white light around his body.

This must be it!

The feeling nearly suffocated Kai but he endured it. Small sessions of throbbing pain developed throughout his entire body. The wall was still pressing against his nose but he felt as if he was being compressed from all angles.

Break for me!

He integrated all of his concentration and mentally roared a single thought. A crack suddenly appeared on the spotless wall. The crack gradually grew bigger as more freshly made cracks appeared. Invigorated by the progress, he exerted more effort than before. The glowing mist that surrounded thickened and condensed into a makeshift shell that outlined his body.

The cracks accelerated on the wall until it exploded! The glowing shell encasing his body simultaneously exploded outwards and the resulting white light faded into the air.

The illusionary broken shards of the wall harmlessly passed over him before fading away. The suffocating feeling diminished, replaced by a warm gentle heat that coursed throughout his body. His muscles involuntarily tensed then relaxed, in a repeated fashion. He accepted the anomalies transpiring inside his body and waited. Eventually his body relaxed and he rose to his feet.

Kai moved his arms and legs, feeling no difference in the mass of his muscles nor the size of his height. He, however, felt his body contained a massive amount of power. He also vaguely noticed a strange presence near the navel of his stomach.

Isn’t this where my Qi and Ki were stored before? I can somewhat feel it now… is that an orb?...

The presence was shaped like a small sphere and he inexplicably knew it did not physically exist. As he continued to examine it, his mind subconsciously wandered to a distant memory in his past life. Before he could react, his memory took his thoughts!

…… High above the mountains, a teenager stood in front of his master. His heart was immovable and his attention was sharp. His master was talking and his concentration was solely on his voice.

“Our time was short but I have nothing left to teach you, Kai. You are far more talented than I ever was.”

The teenager felt no pride, nor arrogance, at the compliment. His face remained unfazed and his master nodded in approval. Believing it was the end of the conversation, the teenager turned to descend the mountain. Before he walked too far, his master suddenly called out to him.

“One more thing Kai. I’m suddenly reminded of something my master once told me before he left. ‘You will never truly be strong until you unlock your dantian’. I’ve spent many years researching and scavenging for any information pertaining the dantian but besides small fable tales, I’ve never truly discovered its existence. Perhaps you can accomplish what I could not.”

The teenager took heed of every word and when his master finished speaking, he merely nodded. He placed the information in the back of his head and turned to resume descending the mountain……

The memory left as quickly as it came but it was enough to shock him.

It must be my dantian! I abandoned the thought because there were too many false and contradicting information on it, but surprisingly enough I’ve discovered it in my new life!

He lifted his head up and stared at the sky, his eyes filling with sentiment.

Can you see me master? I’ve accomplished what you’ve wanted me to, if only you were here…

His eyes became moist. He shook his head, clearing his thoughts, and returned to examine his dantian. He mentally nudged it, attempting to will the stored Qi and Ki to move. The dantian stayed unresponsive but he patiently waited.

I don’t believe that the dantian is detrimental and exists to restrict my Qi and Ki!

His thoughts returned to the day Sandy, Jordan and Adam were fighting the wolf. Engrossed in the images of the white energy that protruded from their body, he slowly felt his dantian loosen the hold on his Qi and Ki. The combined energies escaped and made its way around his body, then through his skin.

White light encompassed Kai and he felt an unbelievable surge of strength. He extended his arms and curiously assessed his body. The white light thickly layered his body while numerous strands of stringy white light escaped the layer.

As expected from the combined energies, the visual features is that of Qi and Ki together.

Leaving his thoughts of the appearance behind, he returned his attention to the surge of strength. The urge of testing the extent of the newfound strength overcame him and he executed a casual punch at a nearby tree.

-Thump-

His fist collided against the tree and bore a small hole with the imprint of his fist inside it.

Amazing! I’m nearly as strong as I was in my past life!

The adrenaline of using Qi and Ki faded and he slowly realized the changes in his dantian. The amount of Qi and Ki that was initially stored decreased by half. He immediately halted the flow of energies from his dantian and the white light dispersed into the night.

The energies deplete at such a rapid rate…

He sat down and returned to cultivating. The energies entered his body at a much faster rate but he soon encountered a limit, slowing the rate of absorption. He felt the confines of his dantian reaching its limit of Qi and Ki. The energies, however, continued to struggle into his dantain and it slowly grew! The growth of his dantian was minuscule, nearly stagnant, but Kai was more than satisfied.

So that’s the advantages of a mid and peak Novice, they’re able to store more energy than me. Until then I will have to use my valuable Qi and Ki wisely. What if I only lead the energies to certain part of my bodies? It seems very plausible while being incredibly efficient…

Looking at the darkness of the night, Kai estimated that it was only midnight. He stood still and closed his eyes, focusing solely on his dantian. He released his Qi and Ki and quickly directed them into his left hand, then instantly closing off his dantian. White light encased his left hand and lasted several seconds before dispersing.

This can work!

He carried on experimenting with enthusiasm. Left hand, right leg, shoulders, right thumb, left knee, and so on. As he increased the speed of instantaneously releasing his energies, he produced more and more mistakes. Striving only perfection, he persisted and continued to repeatedly manipulate his energies.

Time flew by and before he knew it, he depleted his entire reservoir of Qi and Ki. He opened his eyes and saw that dawn was slowly arriving. Sitting down, he decided to replenish and expand his dantian until Teresa called for him.

“Kai!”

Kai eyes snapped open in astonishment. He looked at the sky and saw that it was well into the morning.

Time sure has an odd way of passing whenever I train or cultivate.

He met up with Teresa and together they returned to their house. Afternoon soon followed and the men and boys were stunned at Kai’s change. While lifting the firewood, he continued with his manipulation exercise and white light randomly appeared at different points of his body.

“Holy heavens, Kai you’re already a Novice?”, Robert exclaimed.