I had spent so much time observing the water constructs each Hindel had created and how they were fighting between themselves that I hadn't really taken the time to examine the people involved.

I made an accidental discovery when I was tracing the Qi involved in a construct that seemed relatively weak but was holding up well, even winning some of the battles with neighboring Hindel.

My perception traced the Qi and how it was being used, and when I reached the Hindel himself, I should have stopped, but I was so fascinated by the process I continued to trace the Qi inside his body, following pathways and meridians to the source.

Two separate sources of energy.

"The Hindel form a Dantian and a Beast Core to channel and focus Qi," I blurted out loud, my surprise at what I'd discovered revealing information the Alpha might not want to be shared.

"The Hindel don't have a Spirit sea or Dharmic body as the Elves know it," the Alpha answered, not bothered by the question. "Our people believe that we started as beasts, and it was only after we had reached a high enough tier that we evolved—an evolution where we developed sentience. The moment we were able to remember our past and could pass on our history from one generation to the next. It was then that we learned to control Qi and form a Dantian.

"The reason Hindel tier-up and advance across Realms faster than Elves is a combination of processing Qi from the food we eat using our core and the Qi we cultivate using our Dantian."

"The Hindel have no Dharmic ability?" I asked, noticing Wu Chen and the Patriarch's increased interest in our discussion.

"Not as the Elves understand it," the Alpha admitted.

"We can reach the Dharmic or Astral plane of thought, but we do so through resonance, by striking a balance with one of the [Laws] and using that balance as a touchstone to the spirit."

"But without an inner spirit ocean? How do you work around that obstacle?" I asked.

"Once we have stepped upon one of the paths of [Law], we can repurpose our cores. They still work in concert with our Dantian to gather Qi, but they also become a faux spirit sea. Our cores provide the same abilities and serve the same purpose as your inner worlds. The repurposed cores allow us to manipulate our soul and cast spells," the Alpha explained.

"Your core works to collect Qi, store energy, and acts as the vessel to encode and cast spells?" Wu Chen asked. He had made only a token effort to engage the Alpha in conversation before this, so his interruption of our conversation was jarring.

"Precisely," the Alpha replied, not bothered or surprised that he had intruded into our conversation.

"Does that mean you have ranks in both beast tiers and Qi realms?" Wu Chen asked.

"It does," the Alpha answered, surprised that he had made that connection. "Just as your people need to strengthen your Dharmic bodies in tandem with your cultivation realms, our people have to strengthen our cores.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

"The only difference is that our cores can be one level higher than our Qi realms. It is perhaps why some of your people consider us animals and lesser," she replied. "If you have attained a Dao, you can infuse your perception with the Dao and observe what one of the contestants is doing. You will better understand how a Hindel manages to merge core energy with Qi if you combine your Dao with your perception."

I had merged the [Dao of Movement] with my perception before, but always unconsciously or as a matter of survival. I'd never considered using it in concert with my perception.

The merger was easy enough. The [Dao], even with the understanding I had reached, was responsive to my needs. The world around me seemed to stutter, a sequence of events that had me perceiving the world around me like a flipbook, each instant a new image that coincided with the moment before and the moment after.

I turned my perception back to the Hindel that had first drawn my attention, ignoring everything else and adding Dharmic energy and Qi to help me regulate and understand what I was seeing.

I began by watching the diorama he had constructed as a whole before narrowing my focus to follow the stands of energy he was using to manipulate water and refraction to form his construct.

It didn't take me long to find what the Alpha had hinted at. His core was located near where his heart would be, his Dantian located about where it would be located in an Elf. The pool of energy each released was different, the purity and order of Qi that I was familiar with, and the elemental chaos found in any Beast core.

The two streams of energy were intertwined, a twisted rope of energy that enveloped each other. Neither source of energy seemed more potent than the other. Perhaps that was because of the skills of the Hindel I was observing. Maybe part of their cultivation required them to learn to master the bestial nature of their core and balance it with the ebb and flow of Qi.

The core allowed the Hindel to gain an affinity to an element. I wasn't sure if they had dual or tri-aspected Qi affinities like mine. Still, the affinity existed, and I noticed with some confusion that the Hindel that was doing so well had infused his battle model with metal elements.

I'd wrongly assumed that the Hindel would only have water affinity if they had an affinity at all. "Are there any restrictions on which affinity a Hindel might resonate with?" I asked in order to clear up my confusion.

"A few," the Alpha admitted. "Hindel are limited to one element. We have created a system similar to the Dharmic spells you use to allow us to use all elements, but those spells are weak when compared to genuine elemental affinity.

"There are a few elements that we have never managed to gain control over. Fire and Lightning and for obvious reasons. Although some of our people think if we spent more time on the water's surface, we might progress enough to gain mastery of even those elements."

"That would require an evolutionary leap forward for your people Hindel, wouldn't it?" I asked.

"There are those that believe so. Enough that no honest attempt has been made to test the theory. Too many fear that evolution would result in a new race and that what makes us Hindel would be lost.

"Too afraid to brave the unknown, too powerful to ignore," Alpha explained.

"I think that is a weakness of both our people," I replied thoughtfully. "The issues between our people are derived from a pigheaded belief that tradition is everything.

"It leaves no room for innovation, no room for experiments.

"We should be seeking opportunities that allow our two people to explore together. To research new skills and techniques. But there are too many afraid or determined to ignore the benefits of shared experience might offer to take the risk.

"As you said, people too powerful to ignore. A few people decide what is acceptable and allowed.

"I wonder if we can change that. Perhaps we can forge a real partnership here away from the politics of the Empire and the constraints of expectations."