The back mountain of the Xiao Clan was quiet, save for the rustling of leaves and the heavy, ragged breathing of a young boy.
Xiao Yan—Ginga—collapsed onto the cool grass, staring up at the blue sky. His body ached. That "Spirit Glare" he had used on Ge Ye was a bluff, a massive drain on his soul power, and the "Ki Pulse" on the table had exhausted his meridians.
He held up his right hand. The black ring on his finger glimmered in the sunlight.
"Alright," Ginga wheezed, closing his eyes. "I know you're awake. I felt the suction stop. You're full, aren't you?"
Silence.
"Don't play dead, old man," Ginga said, cracking one eye open. "You sucked my Dou Qi for three years. The least you can do is say hello."
A moment passed. Then, a faint vibration hummed from the ring.
"Heh."
A wisp of white smoke drifted out, swirling and coalescing into the transparent figure of an elderly man floating in mid-air. He had white hair, kind eyes, and a smile that was equal parts mischievous and apologetic.
Yao Lao. The Venerable Yao.
"You are an interesting little monster," Yao Lao said, stroking his beard. "Most people would be screaming in rage right now. I stole your genius. I turned you into a cripple. Yet, you seem... satisfied."
Ginga sat up, dusting off his robes. "Anger is a waste of energy. Besides, equivalent exchange, right? I fed you for three years. Now, you work for me."
Yao Lao raised an eyebrow. "Work for you? You have a big appetite, brat. Do you know who I am?"
"I know enough," Ginga lied smoothly. "You're a powerful soul. An Alchemist, judging by the smell of herbs that lingers even in your spirit form. And right now, you're my ticket to the top."
Yao Lao chuckled, floating lower. "Fine. I owe you a debt. I can make you an Alchemist. I can return your talent. Is that what you want?"
Ginga stood up. He planted his feet shoulder-width apart.
"That's the bare minimum," Ginga said. "But I want to try something else first. Master, watch this."
Yao Lao hovered, curious. "What are you doing? That stance is full of openings."
"It's not a martial stance," Ginga corrected. "It's an energy channel."
Ginga closed his eyes. He recalled the diagrams he had drawn in his previous life. The physics of Dragon Ball.
Dou Qi in this world is fluid, he thought. People use it like water—flooding their muscles (Dou Zhe) or covering their skin (Dou Shi). But Ki... Ki is pressurized gas. It's explosive.
He cupped his hands at his hip.
"Ka..." he whispered.
He drew every scrap of recovered Dou Qi from his dantian. Instead of letting it flow smoothly, he forced it to crash against itself between his palms. Friction. Heat.
"Me..."
"Stop!" Yao Lao's eyes widened. "What are you doing to your meridians? You're reversing the flow! You'll blow your arms off!"
"Ha..."
A purple light began to glow between his hands. It wasn't stable. It was flickering violently, sizzling like a live wire. The air around his hands distorted.
"ME..."
"HA!"
Ginga thrust his hands forward at a nearby boulder.
BOOM!
A beam of purple light shot out. It wasn't massive—maybe the width of a baseball—but the velocity was terrifying. It slammed into the rock. There was no cracking sound. Instead, the Dou Qi drilled straight into the stone, melting a perfect, smoking hole through the center before dissipating.
Ginga fell to his knees, gasping. His hands were red and trembling.
Yao Lao floated there, stunned. He looked at the rock, then at the boy.
"That wasn't a Dou Technique," Yao Lao muttered, drifting closer to inspect the hole. "It had no elemental alignment. No hand seals. You just... compressed raw Dou Qi and fired it?"
"I call it... the Turtle Destruction Wave," Ginga panted, grinning. "Or Kamehameha for short."
"It's crude," Yao Lao criticized, though his eyes betrayed his amazement. "Inefficient. You used 100% of your energy for a strike that a 5-star Dou Zhi Qi could block. But..." He paused. "The penetration power was close to a Xuan Class technique. If you had more Dou Qi..."
"I can make it bigger," Ginga said. "But that's not all. Teach me to fly."
Yao Lao laughed. "Fly? You're dreaming, kid. You need to be a Dou Wang to manifest Dou Qi Wings. That's years away."
"No," Ginga shook his head. "Wings are aerodynamic drag. I don't want wings. I want propulsion."
Ginga pointed at his feet. "If I shoot that energy beam from my feet, constant and controlled... I don't need wings. I just need thrust. Like a rocket."
Yao Lao stared at him. The concept was alien. Cultivators in the Dou Qi continent followed the heavens' laws. Wings for Kings. Walking on air for Ancestors. This kid was talking about brute-forcing gravity with explosions under his feet.
"You really are a lunatic," Yao Lao murmured, a grin spreading across his face. "But... a lunatic with a strong soul."
Yao Lao waved his hand. A dark, ancient scroll appeared in his palm, along with a bottle of green liquid.
"This is the Foundation Elixir. It will fix your cultivation speed," Yao Lao said, tossing the bottle to Ginga. "And this..."
He held up the black scroll.
"This is a cultivation method. It's mysterious. It's dangerous. It's... hungry."
'The Flame Mantra (Fen Jue),' Ginga thought, his heart racing. 'The key to the harem. The key to the Heavenly Flames.'
"It can evolve," Yao Lao said solemnly. "Right now, it is merely Huang Class Low Rank. Garbage. But if you swallow Heavenly Flames... it can surpass the heavens."
Ginga snatched the scroll. He didn't hesitate. "I'll take it."
"You didn't even let me finish the warning!" Yao Lao sputtered. "You could die! Swallowing Heavenly Flames is suicide!"
Ginga looked up, his eyes burning with the intensity of a man who had memorized the wiki.
"High risk, high reward," Ginga said. "Besides, I have you, don't I? The legendary Yao Chen?"
Yao Lao froze. "How do you know my name?"
Ginga tapped his temple. "I told you. I did my research. Now, Master... teach me Alchemy. I have some body pillows... I mean, people... I need to protect."
Yao Lao looked at this strange, terrifyingly knowledgeable boy. He sighed, shaking his head, but his spirit form seemed to glow brighter.
"Fine. Kneel and call me Master. Your hellish training begins now."
Ginga dropped to one knee, clutching the scroll and the elixir.
"Disciple Xiao Yan greets Teacher."
'Just wait, Yun Yun. Just wait, Medusa,' Ginga thought. 'I'm coming.'
Hidden Stats:
Xiao Yan (Ginga): Learned [Proto-Kamehameha]. Current status: Exhausted but excited.
Yao Lao: Impression of Disciple: "A lunatic genius." Curiosity: 10/10.
Dou Qi Control: 5% (Terrible efficiency, high output).