The morning air was crisp, carrying the faint scent of rain from last night. Liang Chen moved silently around his small apartment, each motion deliberate. He had no illusions: awakening spiritual energy wouldn't be instantaneous. Every step would demand patience, focus, and persistence.
He knelt before the small wooden table where herbs, dried flowers, and tiny jars of powders were arranged. Years of experience from a life that had ended too soon ran through his mind. He knew the methods to awaken latent energy, the first steps to opening the Energy Sea. But this body… this young, inexperienced vessel… would resist.
Liang Chen began by placing his hands over a small bundle of dried ginseng.
He inhaled slowly, feeling its aroma fill his nostrils. In his mind, he traced the path of spiritual energy — the channels in his body, the latent reservoir deep in the dantian.
A flicker.
Not much. A faint shimmer, like embers barely stirring beneath cold ash. But it was enough to make him frown.
"Not bad," he muttered under his breath. "You exist. That's all I ask for today."
He closed his eyes and began meditation.
Modern Earth offered no distractions here — no threats of armies or demons, just the ordinary sounds of a city waking up. And yet, every heartbeat carried memories of battles that had once torn mountains asunder. He fed those memories into focus, letting the pain, the loss, the betrayal sharpen his mind rather than cloud it.
Minutes passed. Hours passed. Sweat dampened his shirt. His body ached. Every muscle protested.
And then — a spark.
Not a surge. Not a flood. But a single pulse of energy, faint and trembling, that traced through his veins, landing somewhere deep, hidden, like a tiny star awakening in darkness. Liang Chen's eyes snapped open.
"That's you," he whispered. "The beginning."
He didn't stop there. The Energy Sea needed to be strengthened, and the body could help. Liang Chen moved to the small workbench where jars of herbs and chemicals waited. From his memories, he picked out a simple combination: a pill that would increase blood flow, stimulate focus, and slightly enhance latent spiritual sensitivity.
Mixing, grinding, carefully combining — every motion precise, almost surgical. One wrong step, and the entire batch would be ruined. One wrong step, and he might burn himself out. But he didn't falter.
The finished pill was small, unassuming, a pale amber in color. He swallowed it, feeling it dissolve, and immediately focused inward. The pulse in his Energy Sea responded, stronger this time. Not enough to break through, but enough to excite him. Enough to tell him that his first real step toward cultivation had begun.
A faint knock at the door startled him. His mother's voice floated through:
"Chen, are you up already? Breakfast is ready."
He smiled faintly, adjusting his posture. "Coming."
Even in a world that didn't recognize spiritual energy, life went on. Bills had to be paid. School awaited. People still expected ordinary teenagers to behave in ordinary ways.
But Liang Chen had no interest in ordinary. Not anymore.
That small spark in his Energy Sea was a promise — the promise of power, of mastery, of revenge, and of reclamation.
And as he stood, walking toward breakfast, a plan began forming in his mind. Pills to sell. Herbs to experiment with. Energy to awaken. Strength to gain. Every step, measured and deliberate.
The city beyond his window didn't yet know his name. It would.
And when it did… the world would remember it.
Chapter Ending Quote / Hook:
"Even a single spark can start a wildfire. One step is all it takes to change a life."