Chapter 6: Tutorial 2
Taesan's stomach stirred as the glow started to envelop his body. The sensation was similar to being stretched and compressed simultaneously like his body was being pulled in opposite directions.
He squeezed his eyes shut and held his breath as the feeling intensified. It felt like every cell in his body was being torn apart and put back together again. Definitely a nauseating experience.
After what seemed like an eternity, the feeling subsided, and Taesan felt his feet hit the ground.
He opened his eyes and looked around to find himself standing in a room that lacked any walls.
He adjusted to the dimness to realize he was standing in the center of a small, isolated light source that illuminated only a small area around him.
The rest of the room was wrapped in complete darkness, growing deeper and more the further it was from him.
Taesan took a deep breath, steadying himself after the disorienting experience of being transported to this strange room.
[Welcome to the tutorial. I am Sehwa, your guide, and I will be assisting you on your journey. To start, cast 'Status'.]
Suddenly, a voice announced, and Taesan turned to see a hologram of a beautiful woman materializing at the back of the room.
She was dressed in a long white Korean hanbok, and her hair was tied up in a neat bun. Her presence shone brightly in the dusk.
"Status," Taesan uttered, following the prompt.
Ding! It echoed through the space as the hologram displayed his status.
[Yoo Taesan, Lvl. 1
Cultivation stage: Unawakened
Class: Twin Blades Weilder
Subclass: None
Strength: 4
Dexterity: 5
Constitution: 3
Intelligence: 6]
Taesan took a moment to evaluate the information on display.
[This is your status. You will be able to upgrade your attributes once you leveled up.]
Sehwa continued to explain.
[As an example, hit the slime.]
Buzz. A sudden buzzing sound filled the air shortly as Sehwa mentioned the monster.
Taesan turned to see a small slime creature hopping toward him. It was about the size of a basketball and had a green, jelly-like body.
He raised his hand and struck the slime with his weapon. It flew back upon a single hit.
[Dealt 4 points of damage.]
[Exp has increased.]
Holograms appeared but quickly disappeared in a second.
Sehwa proceeded to clarify this.
[You have inflicted 4 points on the slime's health damage and acquired experience. Gaining more experience will level you up.]
[Each time you strike a monster, a hologram will appear each strike on the monster. Now, let the slime hit you.]
Taesan stood still as ordered. He waited for the slime to hop on him.
[-10 health]
Instinctively, he struck the monster to have distance from it upon dealing damage twice the damage he dealt to that monster.
"Shit, that hurt!"
Taesan felt the sharp pain in his leg, where the slime slammed itself. He took a step backward, pulled his pants, and witness a fresh bruise.
[Your physical attacks will not harm the slime, but you can defeat it by using your chi.]
Sehwa explained. At the same time, another buzzing sound came in.
Taesan flicked his head toward the direction where the sound was from, only to witness the disappearance of the slime.
[Chi is the life force energy that flows through all living things.]
'Chi.'
Taesan recognized it, which he had previously encountered in his knowledge of Buddhism. It was the essence of all creation and the source of power for spiritual practices.
[By cultivating your chi, you can harness its power to perform incredible feats.]
Sehwa continued as she gestured to a diagram on the hologram that showed a person with glowing energy flowing through their body.
[To begin, focus on opening your chi. Close your eyes and visualize a ball of energy forming in your abdomen. Concentrate on drawing in the energy around you and letting it flow into your body.]
Taesan closed his eyes and took a deep breath, centering himself. He followed Sehwa's instructions and imagined a ball of energy forming in his abdomen.
Slowly, he felt a warmth spreading through his body, and the ball of energy grew more substantial with each passing moment. He focused on drawing in more energy and allowing it to flow into him.
Suddenly, he felt a surge of power coursing through his veins, and his eyes shot open. He felt a rush of energy flowing through him, and he knew that his chi was now open.
[Well done. You have successfully opened your chi.]
Sehwa praised him.
[Now, let's see how you can use it to defeat the slime.]
As the new slime summoned slime approached him, Taesan realized that it was much larger than the previous one, almost the size of a small car.
He felt a shiver run down his spine as he considered the possibility of not being able to defeat it.
"W, Wait. How can I use chi in my attack?" Taesan stuttered nervously.
[Summon your chi. Visualize. Focus your energy.]
Sehwa's voice responded calmly in the background with Taesan focusing his eyes on the monster.
Taesan tried to steady his nerves. He took a deep breath and visualized his chi forming into a mask on his blades.
The slime continued to make squelching noises as it slowly hopped toward him. He took its slowness to his advantage and focused his energy on his blades.
With his heart pounding, Taesan waited for the right moment. When the monster was in range, he swiftly struck it with his right blade, directing all his chi into the attack.
[Dealt 60 points of damage.]
[You have received 10 copper coins.]
[Level has increased to 2.]
The slime shook and trembled before dissolving into a pile of green goo, and Taesan could finally relieve a sigh.
"That was... scary," he said, his voice shaking.
[Excellent work. You have learned the basics of chi cultivation.]
Sehwa congratulated him.
[Now, let's move on to the next part of your training.]
"But I was just about to die!" Taesan protested.
– – –
[Yoo Taesan, Lvl. 2
Cultivation stage: Novice
Class: Twin Blades Weilder
Subclass: None
Strength: 4+
Dexterity: 7+
Constitution: 3+
Intelligence: 6+
Skills:
1. Dual Wield: Lvl. 1
2. Sprint: Lvl. 1
3. Stealth: Lvl. 1
Equipment:
1. Twin Blades (Common)
Inventory:
1. Copper Coins: 10]