Ever since I was a child, if someone asked whether I had an idol, I would always say General Jiang rather than General Lin Feng, even though the latter came from the same family as me. When asked why, I never gave a proper answer. I'd just say I admired General Jiang after hearing about his stories and legends.
Truthfully, there was another reason I idolized her, and the only person I ever shared it with was my childhood friend who is now my fiancé.
The reason was simple.
I've always been fascinated by magic and martial arts. General Jiang, who could manifest both types of energy and apply them to her techniques, was someone I truly admired. After all, magic and immortal qi were fundamentally incompatible. Even though they both originated from ether, they rejected one another.
But… what is it that I'm seeing right now?
A man who introduced himself as General Jiang's successor was training in the same area where Mei and I usually practiced. Because the training grounds were spacious, he kept his distance from us but I could still clearly see him.
He was practicing footsteps and martial arts movements I had never seen before. Not only that, but according to Mei, Gaia Matera was a magic user meaning he used mana. So how was someone with mana using martial arts? What I saw before me clearly involved qi or at least, that's what it felt like.
I glanced at Mei, intending to ask her, but seeing her shocked expression, I held my tongue.
Driven by curiosity, I moved closer. Even though it might seem rude to someone who could potentially be my superior, I activated my ether skill The System. It was an ability I had possessed ever since I reincarnated into this world.
[system notification]
Name: Gaia Matera
Race: Human (?)
Status:
Strength: 66 / Internal Energy: LockedDexterity: 66 / Mana: 6666Endurance: 66 / Vitality: 66
Title: Unknown
Abilities: Unknown
Description: A human born from the final wish of planet Matera. Trained and raised by Jiang Bailou, he is her sole successor. Enjoys relaxing, sleeping, and being lazy. Hates human scum. When encountering such people, he will always attempt to hunt and kill them along with anyone associated. Proceed with caution.
*
What's with all these sixes!?
born from the final wish!?
And that part about hunting and killing human scum and those around them, wow. I've heard stories that General Jiang was the same way, but to think her successor would also share that trait… Maybe it's true that mentors and their heirs often end up with similar personalities, whether they want to or not.
According to The System, Gaia doesn't possess internal energy. Despite the bizarre nature of the rest of the information, one thing is certain he's not using internal energy or qi. Then how can he use martial arts and imbue his every move with an aura like qi? Could it be… mana? But if that were true, then many mages should be capable of using martial arts, especially Brother Ballack, who has immense physical strength and magical energy.
However, even though Brother Ballack has a strong physique and vast magical energy, he can only perform martial arts movements. He can't infuse them with mana like true martial arts with aura or qi.
Could it be a secret technique? Still curious, I approached Gaia and stood nearby, waiting until he took a break from practicing his footwork.
"Excuse me, Gaia Matera. Sorry to interrupt your training." (Lin An)
"Hmm?" (Gai)
"H-How do you do it?" (Lin An)
"...Do what?" (Gai)
"That footstep technique you just performed… No matter how I look at it, I felt qi flowing through your movements. But I can't sense any qi from you at all. What I sense instead is… mana." (Lin An)
"Oh, that? I use mana to substitute for qi." (Gai)
"W-What!? That's impossible! Mana and qi have fundamentally different natures, even though they both originate from ether particles!"
"Yeah… using mana to replace qi is normally impossible. They're like oil and water they don't mix. But I redesigned my martial techniques so they burn with mana instead of qi. Think of it like replacing the fuel in a jet engine. If you tune the engine just right, it still flies." (Gai)
Adapting martial arts… That theory had been proposed before, but no one had ever made it work because martial artists couldn't use mana, and mages couldn't use martial arts. Then how could he…? Wait…
"Reincarnator?" (Lin An)
"Hah? How do you even know that term?" (Gai)
"Ah n-no reason…"
"Hm… you're avoiding the topic."
"S-Sorry, I can't say more than that."
**
Hoho… judging by that reaction, it seems like he either knows a reincarnator or is one himself.
I activated the magic circle in my eye and tried saying something that only someone from the world of Ryu Ryeon would understand.
"(Sigh) By the way, do you know where I can buy a smartphone around here?" (Gai)
"Huh? Yinzhou doesn't use smartphones. We have a special device called an Aetherlink." (Lin An)
"Oh…"
So he really is a reincarnator. Interesting. I or rather, Ryu Ryeon used to read many stories about reincarnators. Most of them had a system that could display information about enemies or other people. I wonder if Lin An has something like that too. If so, I'm curious what kind of info his system shows about me.
Not that I'm worried. I have no fear of Lin An learning about me, because I can tell that his soul isn't one that will ever become my enemy at least, that's what I saw when I used my Soul Eye.
"Well, I'd better go, Gai. I-I need to feed my pet. Bye…" (Lin An)
Yep, didn't even need Soul Eye to tell he was lying. He's probably scared I'll ask more questions about reincarnators. But honestly, I don't care that much as long as he's not human scum. I looked over at Mei and noticed she was no longer there. She must've left when Lin An started asking me about qi and mana.
Now the real question is, why didn't Lin An realize that the word "smartphone" is from Earth? Just saying that is already a huge clue that I might be a reincarnator or at least someone who knows of the same world. Hmm… I guess I'll wait until he figures it out on his own. After all, he's also a competitor.
*
The next day, Elder Sanghyuk came out of his seclusion and visited my residence after hearing the latest updates from Patriarch Jiang. We shared stories about how we were trained by Elder Bailou, and despite our large age gap, we developed a strong camaraderie because of it.
Afterward, Elder Sanghyuk returned home to see his family and prepare for the coronation ceremony where he would be officially recognized as the Grand Elder.
Days passed quickly, and soon the day of our coronation arrived mine as an honorary Grand Elder, and Sanghyuk as Grand Elder.
Honestly, I expected something dramatic to happen today. Usually in novels, important events like this are always disrupted by something. Of course, that's assuming I am the main character, or that the main character is even attending. But seeing how nothing so far has gone "according to the script," I'm not expecting anything to happen.
All members of the Jiang family including branch families gathered in the coronation hall of Elder Sanghyuk and Gaia Matera. Sanghyuk and I stood in the center of the hall, receiving respect from the Patriarch and the other elders. Hundreds of Jiang family heads were present, many accompanied by their spouses.
In one corner of the hall stood a thin-faced man with a neatly groomed goatee. His eyes radiated immense confidence. Though his temples were graying, his hair was slicked back and tied with a black silk ribbon. He wore a dark robe embroidered with black dragons weaving through gray clouds.
That man was Jiang Qinsheng and he was about to execute his plan.
"Perish, Jiang Family!!!"
A sudden flash of crimson light burst from beneath the floor, followed by a grinding hum like twisting metal. Before anyone could react, the air warped, and the entire hall vanished in a pulse of spatial energy. When the light faded, they stood in an unfamiliar wasteland cold, silent, and stripped of all energy
"W-Where are we?"
"What's going on!?"
Family members exclaimed in confusion and panic. Some were terrified, some elated, some puzzled, and a few calmly assessed the situation.
The ones panicking were heads of families who didn't train in martial arts.
The ones celebrating were the culprits.
The confused didn't know what was happening.
And the calm ones Gaia, the elders, the patriarch, Tianluo, and Yuemei were simply used to unexpected chaos.
Monsters were not a threat to trained martial artists of the Jiang family who could use immortal qi. At least… that's what everyone thought at first.
"W-What is this!?"
"I can't circulate my qi!"
One by one, family members panicked as they realized they couldn't access their qi.
"The Sakti Forbidden Realm!?" (Elder Sanghyuk)
"The what?" I asked, curious. I had already noticed something was off and had tried using magic but I couldn't access my mana either. Still, I didn't panic. I just calmly observed my surroundings.
"The Sakti Forbidden Realm is a place where all types of energy are sealed. It's a high-level technique that was often used by Cult of Kauket worshipers during the old wars." (Elder Sanghyuk)
"Hm… sealing all forms of energy…"
"If that's true, then how is he still using his techniques?"
I pointed at Tianluo, who was cutting down monsters while protecting other family members.