Part fifteen - A breakthrough?!

It had been a few days since the banquet fiasco, and Wooyun had been on high alert, waiting for Kang Choon-hee to strike—but she never did and this frustrated Wooyun to no end because he knew she was biding her time. 

It was most likely because of the tournament taking place soon, and so she decided to put her entire energy on making sure Yu-jun could qualify to enter and at least make it past the second round. It was the reason he hadn't been training much with Eun-woo. He was still tasked with going to the grounds with Yu-jun, which wasn't as intolerable considering how his mother had instructed him not to get distracted and be in a good state of mind. 

Apparently, cultivators needed to have good and healthy thoughts to progress. 

Once his session was over, as per usual, the young master went down the hill in a huff, leaving Wooyun to have to pick up after him. He sighed before looking at the older man, who was already staring at him. 

"Have you been keeping up with your training?" He asked. 

Wooyun furrowed his brows, giving him a 'how in the world am I supposed to do that?' look. 

"You can do qi circulation anytime and anywhere. All you need is to find a quiet spot where you can focus and absorb the surrounding energy." 

Wooyun blinked, unsure of why he was telling him this. Eun-woo shot him another cold 'are you stupid' look before sighing. "You need to keep your meridians open at all times or else all that work you put in will go to waste. Your homework from now on will be to meditate whenever you get the chance and focus on heavenly circulation." Once he said his peace, Eun-woo left in a huff, muttering unsavoury words about how undisciplined he was. Wooyun rolled his eyes at this. He made his way down the hill and put away Yu-jun's equipment before telling Auntie Lim he was going to take a break. 

Wooyun wasn't the fool or undisciplined man Eun-woo thought he was. He had been diligently training his body to become more receptive to directing his qi through his meridians in circles and had been getting better and better with each day. He would cultivate before going to bed and after waking up. And whenever Kang Choon-hee wasn't around, he would practice swinging a makeshift sword out of a large piece of wood he had found in the forest. Since his room was in the attic, he didn't have to worry about making too much noise, and he had ample space. 

On the days the madam was in one of her moods, he would be forced to sleep in the barn, but that was fine as well, considering he had more space in there to train. 

On that particular night, Wooyun did as he was told. He found a corner in the attic that was free of clutter, and sat in a lotus position. His hands rested lightly against his knees as he closed his eyes and controlled his breathing, freeing his mind of any distractions. Wooyun took in another breath, guiding his qi in slow, steady currents through his meridians like Eun-woo had instructed him. This was his normal routine since Eun-woo had taught him how to cultivate. He did the same as usual, but didn't feel anything different, no changes or crazy transformations like you would find in other cultivation novels or murim manhwa's. 

Wooyun was starting to think that he must've been doing something wrong, or perhaps because he was a man born from modern times, he didn't have the innate talent for cultivating. Just as he was about to give up, he felt something strange. As he drew his breath deeper, the flow of energy within him wavered. It was no longer that gentle stream he had become familiar with. It was as if the tides were starting to change. The current became more intense. Then, a prickling heat surged beneath his skin, pulsing from his dantian outward, tracing his meridians with an intensity that sent a shudder through his body. 

Wooyun's heartbeat quickened. And he knew something wasn't right. That's when he felt a sharp pressure coil in his core, searing, twisting. His breathing turned ragged as he clenched his jaw, brows furrowed, and beats of sweat forming along his brow. 

His body tensed against the foreign sensation, and unbeknownst to Wooyun, something within him had shifted—developed. 

Then, a rupture. Though it wasn't physical, Wooyun felt it like a metal object being snapped in half—if that was even possible. The entire time, Wooyun was losing his mind, freaking out and wondering what the hell was going on with his body. He had to fight the urge to open his eyes, as he knew that doing so would disrupt whatever it was that was happening to him. As he prayed for this moment to be over, a sudden, piercing heat erupted in his core, spreading through his veins like wildfire. 

His meridians, that were once weak, flared to life, expanding to accommodate the sudden surge of qi. A low guttural sound—one that Wooyun didn't even know was possible for him to emit, tore from his throat as his body trembled. It was a pain Wooyun had never experienced before—worse than the time he had broken his leg after jumping off a fence after being chased by the police during his delinquent phase, worse than the time he was accidentally hit across the head with a baseball bat. He even believed for a split second that this pain could've been worse than childbirth itself. 

That was when his eyes flung open against his wishes, and a bright light burst through them. His eyes shut close after that. Wooyun was now going through the process of purification. 

A strange, dark substance seeped from his pores, thick and putrid, smelling worse than the animal dung he had to sleep next to when he first entered this world. The substance coated his skin like an oily residue. The impurities locked within his body were being forced out, expelled by the rapid transformation taking place inside him. 

His muscles convulsed before stretching, strengthening. His bones let out faint pops as they realigned, reinforced with newfound power. Every river of his being seemed to burn away the weak shell that had once contained him, leaving him sharper and more refined. 

The storm that was brewing inside of him was settling, and Wooyun could tell the worse had ended. He opened his eyes and didn't say anything for a moment. His eyes blinked and noticed the world had suddenly changed. He could see things more clearly. Not only that, but he could also hear the faintest freak of the attic beams, and the wind blowing against the walls, as well as his own heartbeat. 

"Just what in the world…" he whispered as he raised his trembling hands before him, feeling the unfamiliar power coursing through his skin. That's when he noticed the lashings on his arms had faded, completely disappearing. 

A slow chuckle escaped his lips, which was then followed by a full bellied laugh. "….I did it. I actually did it!" Though he was a novice when it came to cultivating, he had read the book and recognized what this feeling was. It was the exact thing Seo-yoon had felt when she broke through after the Demon Lord had taken her in and guided her on her journey to become stronger. 

"So this is what Seo-yoon felt. It's amazing." He slowly got up on his feet and examined himself. That's when he noticed how different his body looked. He had grown a few inches taller, and his muscles were developed and more defined. As he burst into joy from this newfound development, he caught a glimpse of the weird black gunk on his body. His nose scrunched up in disgust as the putrid stench entered his nostrils. It was overwhelming and Wooyun nearly gagged at the smell. 

"Shit. Since coming here, all I've been experiencing is horrible eye watering smells, ugh." 

There was no way he could go to bed like this and so he snuck into the bathing rooms, making sure to fetch himself some water so he could bathe himself. He noticed as he carried the large amount of water that it didn't feel as heavy. In fact, it weighed almost nothing. 

A small smile tugged at his lips, and the young man enjoyed taking a bath for the first time since coming here. 

~*~

The following morning, Eun-woo's eyes nearly popped out their sockets at the sight. "D-Did you just undergo body reformation? Not only that you broke through?!" He exclaimed, his face riddled with shock and disbelief. Wooyun gave him a smug smile as he puffed his chest in the air, his fingers rubbing his nose. So this is what they call delayed gratification, huh? 

"I thought you weren't taking your training seriously…" he mumbled. 

"Of course I was taking it seriously, brother. You took your time to teach me; it would be rude to have all that hard work go to waste." 

Eun-woo narrowed his eyes as he studied the young man. He wanted to retort, but couldn't bring himself to consider the sight before him. It was clear Seo-yoon had worked hard. His face looked more supple, smoother, and free of blemishes. His hair was longer and shinier, and he had gotten taller and fuller too. He looked nothing like the young man he had seen all those months ago. Frail, weak—looking like he could fall apart at any moment. 

Eun-woo felt a strange feeling when looking at Seo-yoon now. He had always been a handsome boy; some could even mistake him for a woman, but now that he looked healthier, there was a certain glow to him. Eun-woo let out a deep sigh as he rubbed his face. 

"I see. Looks like we'll need to start taking your training more seriously now." He concluded. 

Wooyun nearly cried. "More training?!" 

Eun-woo nodded, the previous surprise on his face now gone and replaced with its usual cold air. "You are at the raging ember level of qi refinement—meaning your qi is much more volatile and powerful. Your meridians have widened so you can now handle larger surges of qi without any strain." He explained. 

Wooyun nodded. "So what comes next?" 

Eun-woo pursed his lips as he took in Wooyun's appearance once more. When he realized he had been staring longer than necessary, he quickly averted his gaze, clearing his throat in the process. "Stabilizing your foundation." 

Wooyun furrowed his brows. "What does that mean?" 

"It means we will be focusing on controlling the energy you have without wasting it, as well as strengthening your physical body even more so you can handle future breakthroughs." 

Wooyun winced at the thought of having to handle another horrific experience like that. He knew that the further down this path he went, the harder it would be. He wanted to cry at the thought. 

"You will also need to learn how to control qi flow during battles instead of just during meditation." He added. "Let's get started before the day begins." 

Wooyun let out a groan, but complied. He took a seat on the cold ground of the training yard, still adjusting to the subtle but undeniable changes in his body. His limbs felt lighter, breathing deeper, and his once sluggish movements felt sharper. Wooyun was proud of his little breakthrough and it was obvious on his face. 

Eun-woo stood a few feet away from him, arms crossed, watching him with an unreadable expression. "It's good that you've broken through, but don't get ahead of yourself." 

Wooyun's smile faltered as he frowned. "Should at least pretend to be happy for your little disciple." 

Eun-woo let out a cold snort. "You're still weak." 

Wooyun's lips twitched. Though he wanted to protest, he knew Eun-woo was right. Just because he felt a little stronger, didn't mean he could go on fighting whoever he wanted now.

 He knew that even against someone like Yu-jun, he would lose. And miserably at that.