Chapter 8: Skin of Stone, Breath of Fire
The night pressed down like wet cloth. Frostpetal Town had gone quiet. A few lanterns still burned outside the inn, flick flick, their dim glow leaking through the window cracks. Yin Zhe sat on the bed, staring at the faint blue light of his system screen.
Hmmm. He rubbed his jaw and thought deeply. "Nine Breaths Circle Reactive Technique… or Jade Skin…"
He leaned forward, elbows on knees, eyes half-shut. His head felt heavy. He knew the Qi Refining Realm stood above Root Awakening, a whole world apart. Crossing it was like stepping from mud into thunder. Every book said the same thing. Cultivators who failed usually lost their spirit roots forever. Tch.
He sighed and looked at the ten skill tickets in his hand. Each one shimmered softly, like drops of gold rain frozen midair.
He wanted speed, fast cultivation, quick growth, but logic cut through that greed. "No," he muttered. Hmph. "To win, I have to live first."
The system hummed faintly. Ding.
He looked down at the scrolls again. Elder Zhen had probably known none of them could cross realms overnight. The spirit essence pills in that bottle weren't enough for anything beyond survival. Still, Yin Zhe wasn't the type to waste a single breath.
He whispered to himself, "If I can't outgrow them in realm, I'll outlast them in flesh."
He opened his system and tapped on Jade Skin.
> [Current Level: Root Awakening Lv1]
"Let's fix that," he said with a grin. Click. One ticket. Click. Another.
Crackle.
Golden lines shot across his arm. His veins lit up, glowing faint green beneath his skin. The feeling burned and cooled at the same time, like metal dipped in ice.
Then came the messages.
> Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv2
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv3
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv4
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv5
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv6
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv7
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv8
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv9
Jade Skin – Root Awakening Lv10
He exhaled. Hahhhh. The air trembled slightly. His muscles pulsed under his robe, a faint shimmer of light sliding across his arm like water on glass.
He stared at the last ticket in his palm. "Why stop halfway?"
He pressed it.
> Jade Skin – Qi Refining Realm Lv1
BOOM!
The air rippled through the room. The candle flame stretched thin and went pfft, out. A low hum filled the air like bees trapped in wood. His bones creaked. Crack, crack. His skin tightened, glowing faintly.
He clenched his fist. The power felt strange, firm but soft, heavy but alive.
He needed to test it.
He rolled up his sleeve, stood up, and faced the wall. "Sorry, wall."
THUD!
He punched with all his strength. The sound was dull, the wall didn't even flinch. But he didn't feel a thing. No pain. Not even a sting.
He looked at his hand, then at the wall. Heh. "So this is it."
His reflection on the metal lamp stand looked different. Calm, but dangerous. His smile crept wider. "Now no one can stab me from the back. No one can"
He stopped himself. Hmph. "No… that's a dumb thought."
He sat back down. His breath slowed. He knew the world had monsters stronger than him, cultivators who could turn mountains to dust with a finger. Even geniuses fell. Even jade breaks.
He ran his hand through his hair. Rustle. "I'm still nothing but a Root Awakener with a shiny skin."
He reached for the small bottle of spirit essence pills. The blue glow inside it swirled slowly, almost like calling him.
He popped the cork. Pop. A faint, sweet scent leaked out. His nose tingled. Ahhh.
He sniffed again. The smell was rich, cold, like snow melting on metal. A strange calm filled his chest, followed by something sharper, like pleasure crawling under the skin.
He shook his head. Hiss. "No… not yet."
But the temptation gnawed at him. He sat for a long time, staring at the pills.
Then, thud, he dropped onto the bed and lay flat, hands over his face. "These techniques… they pull you in."
He thought about the Nine Breaths Circle. The books had said it was a technique that sharpened the body by channeling inner air through nine spirit nodes. But to him, it felt more, addictive. Each breath made his mind clearer, his heart louder. It was like power and peace mixed into one.
He sat up again. Fwump. His robe slipped down his shoulder.
"Fine," he muttered. "Let's see how this feels."
He picked a pill, placed it between his teeth, and bit down. Crack.
The pill broke apart with a burst of icy sweetness. His tongue went numb. His veins froze, then burned. Blue mist leaked from his mouth. Ahhh!
The pill's energy started leaking out too fast. He panicked, remembering the scroll's warning, half of it would vanish if not properly controlled. He grabbed the air, took a huge breath, and pulled everything back in.
Haaaaa!
The Nine Breaths Circle activated. His chest expanded, and the world tilted. The air around him grew heavy, like thick oil. His breath whirled inward. Crackle, hiss, crackle.
The spirit energy rushed into his dantian like a river falling into a pit. His eyes rolled up, body jerking. Thud! He hit the bed hard, face twitching between pain and joy.
The cold energy spun inside him, clashing with his own. It was chaos, fire and ice colliding.
He gritted his teeth. Grrr. "Breathe... hold it... again."
One breath. Two. Three. Each breath scraped his throat raw but pulled more essence in.
The Nine Breaths Circle glowed faintly, invisible yet alive.
Then—boom—the last wave hit him. His back arched. Blue light flared from his chest. The air around him shook the bedframe, crack crack, the wood crying under pressure.
He gasped. Ahhh! Sweat ran down his neck. His hair clung to his forehead.
Then silence.
The energy calmed. The glow faded.
He lay there, chest rising and falling. His eyes were blank for a few seconds. Then—blink—they sharpened again.
"Still alive," he whispered. "That's good."
The window rattled slightly as cold wind slipped through. Hooosh.
He turned his head toward the moonlight creeping through the crack. His breath fogged the air. His body felt heavier, but strong. The spirit essence pill still danced in his veins, faint and warm.
He looked at his hand. It glowed faint green for a moment, then dimmed.
Yin Zhe smiled weakly. Heh. "If this is Root Awakening, I can't wait to see Qi Refining."
Then the dizziness came back. His eyelids drooped.
The system chimed faintly.
[Nine Breaths Circle Energy Stable]
He grinned, eyes half-open. "Stable, huh? Good…"
His body slumped sideways, pillow catching him with a soft fwump.
The night outside hummed with crickets. Chirp, chirp. The lanterns flickered again.
And inside that tiny inn room, Yin Zhe lay asleep, body glowing faintly like cooled metal. His breathing was steady, deep, almost rhythmical.
Each breath was stronger than the last. Each pulse of energy wrapped him tighter, fusing power into bone and will into flesh.