Chapter 13: Lessons from a Tutor, Insights from the System

Chapter 13: Lessons from a Tutor, Insights from the System

The influx of QL players proved to be a consistent boon. Over the next day, the player count hovered reliably around the 200 mark, mostly QL personnel methodically dissecting Beginner's Rest. Ran's Dividend income stabilized into a steady, nourishing flow, constantly feeding his cultivation.

He was meditating, enjoying the effortless climb through the early levels of Qi Condensation Stage 2, when the System chimed again, not with a Dividend notification, but something else.

[MILESTONE ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED!]

[Criteria Met: 100 Concurrent Players Online Sustained for 24 Hours.]

[Reward: Passive Skill - [Enhanced Comprehension - Rank 1]. Effect: Significantly increases Host Unit's speed of learning, understanding complex concepts, and pattern recognition. Basically, you're smarter now. Try not to let it go to your head.]

Ran's eyes snapped open. Enhanced Comprehension? Another direct upgrade, just for hitting a player count milestone? This System was full of unexpected perks. He focused inward, trying to perceive the change. It wasn't a physical sensation like the Root upgrade, but more like… clarity. The complex diagrams in the cultivation manuals scattered around his room suddenly seemed less like cryptic squiggles and more like logical flowcharts. The underlying principles he'd struggled with for years felt… simpler. Obvious, almost.

Okay, this is useful. Very useful. His own cultivation practice would accelerate even faster now, and dealing with the outside world might just become slightly less tedious.

His thoughts were interrupted by a polite knock on his door. "Young Master Ran? It is time for your first lesson."

Ran sighed quietly. Right. The tutor. His father, Reynald, buoyed by Ran's 'surprising' performance at the assessment (all seven units of it!), had promptly hired a respected scholar and cultivator, Master Thorne, to nurture this supposed 'late-blooming' talent.

Time to put on the 'Diligent but Slightly Slow Student' mask.

He opened the door to find a man in his late middle age, with kind eyes, a neat grey beard, and the calm aura of someone who had spent decades steeped in Qi theory and practice. Master Thorne was known for his patience and his thorough understanding of cultivation fundamentals – exactly the sort of tutor Reynald would choose.

"Master Thorne," Ran greeted him with practiced politeness, bowing slightly. "Please, come in."

Thorne entered Ran's sparse room, his eyes taking in the training manuals with an approving nod. "Patriarch Reynald speaks highly of your renewed dedication, Young Master. I trust we can build upon the progress you've already shown."

"I will do my best, Master Thorne," Ran replied dutifully. With the help of my secret digital energy farm and newfound super-intelligence, sure.

Their first lesson was purely theoretical. Thorne began explaining the basics of meridian pathways, Qi flow dynamics, and the foundational principles of the Sayfrid Clan's primary cultivation manual. He spoke clearly, methodically, laying out concepts that had previously felt dense and impenetrable to Ran.

But now… things were different. With [Enhanced Comprehension - Rank 1] active, Ran absorbed the information effortlessly. Thorne would explain a complex meridian junction, and Ran wouldn't just hear the words; he'd see the energy flow, understand the pressure points, grasp the resonant frequencies involved almost instantly. He saw connections and implications Thorne hadn't even touched upon yet.

Thorne explained the concept of 'meridian harmonics' – how different pathways vibrated at specific frequencies when Qi flowed correctly. "This resonance," Thorne elaborated patiently, "is key to efficient energy circulation. Achieving the correct harmonic balance can take years of practice and subtle adjustment…"

Ran, processing this instantly, saw a flaw in the standard approach Thorne described. "But Master Thorne," he interjected, then mentally kicked himself – too fast, sound natural – "Doesn't that assume a uniform Qi density? If you account for the inherent fluctuations based on proximity to the Dantian and the variable resistance of minor collateral channels, wouldn't applying a counter-frequency pulse just before the primary harmonic peak smooth the flow and reduce energy bleed-off by, say, three to five percent?"

Thorne paused mid-sentence, blinking at Ran. He slowly lowered the diagram he'd been pointing at. "...Counter-frequency pulse? Before the peak?" He frowned, mentally running through the complex energetic calculations Ran had just casually suggested. His eyes widened slightly. "Theoretically… yes. The math holds. It would indeed optimize the flow… but that's an incredibly advanced concept, Young Master. Usually discussed only by those nearing the Foundation Realm who specialize in meridian theory. Where did you encounter such an idea?"

Ran felt a flush of panic. Smooth move, Ran. Casually drop Foundation Realm theory in your first lesson. Time for damage control. "Oh! Uh," he stammered, deliberately injecting confusion into his voice. "I must have misread something in one of the older scrolls… or maybe I dreamed it? It just seemed… logical? Sorry, Master, please continue." He made a show of looking slightly embarrassed and confused.

Thorne stared at him for a long moment, a thoughtful, slightly baffled expression on his face. "Remarkable," he murmured, more to himself than to Ran. "Such intuitive leaps… or perhaps diligent study beyond your years?" He shook his head slightly. "No matter. Let us continue with the basics."

But the dynamic had subtly shifted. Thorne proceeded more carefully, occasionally pausing as if expecting another unexpected insight. Ran, meanwhile, forced himself to slow down, asking deliberately simpler questions, pretending to mull over concepts he'd already fully grasped minutes earlier thanks to his enhanced comprehension.

This is going to be tedious, Ran thought, nodding along to Thorne's explanation of basic Qi gathering techniques he'd already surpassed thanks to his Dividends. Playing dumb is almost harder than actually being dumb.

He found Thorne's conventional thinking, while thorough, slightly irritating now. The System's direct infusion of understanding felt clean and efficient; Thorne's step-by-step pedagogy felt like wading through mud. But it was a necessary performance. He needed Thorne to report 'steady progress' fueled by 'remarkable natural insight', not 'suspiciously rapid advancement bordering on the impossible'.

The lesson concluded an hour later. Thorne departed looking thoughtful and slightly bewildered, praising Ran's "sharp mind" to Reynald later, though adding he seemed occasionally "distracted". Ran, meanwhile, felt mentally drained, not from learning, but from actively suppressing how much he was learning.

Enhanced Comprehension is great, he concluded, collapsing onto his bed as soon as Thorne was gone. But it comes with the added chore of pretending I don't have it. At least the steady flow of Dividends from the 200 players still diligently exploring his MS Paint world offered some real, uncomplicated comfort.