Grandmaster Kim frowned slightly, his eyes sweeping the mist-veiled forest with a sharpness honed by decades of survival. "Wolves are territorial and cunning," he muttered. "If they've sensed us, they're already watching… or they've retreated deeper into the cliffs."
Arthur followed his gaze toward the looming mountain ridge. Jagged peaks reached into the sky like the fangs of some ancient beast, cloaked in a persistent silver fog that refused to lift. It was a place untouched by civilization—wild, breathing, and full of secrets. And their hunt hadn't even truly begun.
"Let's rest for now," Grandmaster Kim said, finally breaking the tension.
He reached into his robe and retrieved a folded yellow talisman, etched with flowing ink that shimmered faintly under the fading light. With a quiet murmur, he channeled his qi into it. The talisman flared to life, its symbols glowing briefly before sinking into the earth beneath them. A shimmering half-sphere of translucent energy emerged, wrapping their immediate surroundings in a veil of protective illusion.
"This is an illusion and defense talisman," he explained calmly. "From the outside, everything will appear normal. Spirit beasts won't sense our presence. At least… not unless something far stronger than expected wanders too close."
Arthur's eyes widened with wonder as he studied the barely visible barrier. "That's amazing... Grandpa, how do you make talismans like that?"
Kim raised an eyebrow. "I don't. Talismans are crafted by a special profession—**Alchemists.** They're part scholar, part warrior, and part madman." He gave a wry smile.
Arthur's curiosity flared. "So how does someone become an alchemist?"
His voice brimmed with excitement, eyes gleaming like stars in the moonlight. The idea of combining power, knowledge, and crafting intrigued him more than he'd expected.
Grandmaster Kim's expression shifted subtly. The smile faded. "Don't get greedy, kid," he said, not unkindly, but with a stern undertone. "You're already walking two paths—cultivation and soul mastery. That's a burden that no one dare to carry."
He sighed, settling down cross-legged. "If you try to juggle too much, you'll scatter your focus. Not only will you damage your body and soul… but your mind could collapse under the strain. I've seen it before."
Arthur's enthusiasm deflated a little, and he chuckled sheepishly. "I wasn't planning on becoming one, Grandpa. I was just curious."
"Hmph," Kim grunted, already pulling the edge of his blanket over himself. "Curiosity is fine. But don't let it make you reckless. We have a long way to go."
Before long, Grandmaster Kim was asleep inside the tent they'd assembled with ease—its fabric reinforced by qi threads and stitched to withstand beast attacks.
Arthur, however, had no intention of sleeping.
He sat cross-legged outside the tent, the mist curling around him like living breath. His hands rested lightly on his knees as he slowed his pulse, closing his eyes.
Then—he began.
Whispering Soul Breathing Technique... activate.
The world changed in an instant. The thick fog, heavy with concentrated soul force, surged toward him like a tide pulled by an invisible current. Instead of trickling gently into his lungs as it had in the town, here the soul force flooded into him, vast and pure.
It wasn't vapor—it was a river.
He inhaled slowly, and the mist seemed to respond, spiraling into his nostrils, flowing through his body like silk through a loom. It traveled upward, curling along his meridians and slowly converging at the center of his soul—his Soul Core, a glowing sphere that pulsed quietly inside his head like a second heart.
Arthur's body shivered.
"I can't believe it," he whispered, his breath visible in the dense spiritual mist. "The absorption speed… it's not ten times faster than the town—it's **twenty.** Maybe even more…"
Ding!
[+100 Soul Force]
He smiled. The warmth spread through his limbs. Power hummed beneath his skin.
Ding!
[+100 Soul Force]
Again and again the system chimed, a rhythmic confirmation of his progress. Every breath pulled in more strength than hours of meditation back home.
But then—
The warmth became heat.
The flow became a surge.
And the surge… turned into a flood.
Arthur's expression twisted.
"H-huh?" he murmured, his body trembling. His soul core pulsed erratically, expanding and shrinking under the weight of the incoming energy. "It's… too fast…"
His vision blurred as another wave of dense soul force poured in through his nose and mouth, overflowing his meridians, his veins, even his spiritual sea. His breathing faltered. His body, not yet fully adapted to this sheer intensity, began to protest.
His heart pounded like a drum.
His forehead beaded with cold sweat.
His limbs twitched involuntarily.
And then—crack!
A sound like glass cracking echoed in his mind. Not literal pain, but a splitting sensation inside his consciousness. He gasped and fell forward, hands digging into the dirt.
Ding!
[Warning: Soul Force Overload!]
Arthur grit his teeth. "N-not now… damn it…"
The technique forcefully halted itself—his body instinctively cutting off the breathing pattern to protect him from internal collapse.
He slumped to the ground, panting hard, face pale and body soaked in sweat.
The mist still swirled lazily around him, but now it felt more distant, less inviting. Like a beast that had nearly drowned its rider.
"I guess… even something good can kill you… if you take too much of it at once," Arthur muttered, a weak smile tugging at his lips.
Still, even as his body ached and his breathing slowed, his soul force core glowed brighter than before. He'd made progress—real, meaningful progress. "I will do thos again, tomorrow." Arthur made up his mind, even if it's dangerous, danger is normal if I want to take a shortcut.
"Let's see if the system have anything that can help my core to collapse and i can gather more soul force without worry."
He opened the system store. And started scrolling through artifacts, items, scrolls.
[System Store – Soul Force Optimization Section]
---
Soul Core Reinforcement Items
1. Soul Core Stabilizer Rune
Type: One-time-use Artifact
Effect: Strengthens the structure of the soul core, preventing internal damage during rapid soul force absorption.
Duration: 6 hours
Price: 120,000 SP
2. Spiritual Overflow Regulator
Type: Passive Artifact
Effect: Regulates incoming soul force to maintain a stable flow; perfect for continuous breathing techniques.
Additional Effect: Slightly boosts absorption rate (10%)
Price: 200,000 SP
3. Refined Soul Mesh Crystal
Type: Implantable Crystal Core
Effect: Expands the soul core's capacity and resilience, allowing +500 bonus soul force before reaching overload.
Permanent Upgrade
Price: 10,000 SP
---
Scrolls – Soul Technique Enhancements—
4. Scroll of Flow Harmonization
Type: Support Technique Scroll
Effect: Allows the user to harmonize soul force flow with their breathing rhythm. Reduces strain and increases recovery rate by 20%.
Learnable
Price: 90,000 SP
5. Secret Scroll: Thousand Vein Resonance
Type: Advanced Soul Control Technique
Effect: Teaches the user to open and stabilize additional hidden soul channels, increasing soul circulation efficiency.
Result: Reduces overload risk by 50%, boosts absorption rate.
Requires: Spirit Power ≥ Level 10
Price: 300,000 SP
6. Scroll of Fragmented Breathing
Type: Breathing Method Upgrade
Effect: Allows the user to fragment soul force absorption into precise micro-breaths, avoiding sudden surges.
Synergy: Boosts Whispering Soul Breathing Technique efficiency by 1.5x
Price: 180,000 SP
---
Consumable Elixirs & Pills
7. Essence Calming Pill
Effect: Stabilizes the soul core temporarily. Prevents rupture or damage due to overload.
Duration: 3 hours
Price: 50,000 SP
8. Soul Core Expansion Elixir
Effect: Permanently increases the maximum soul force capacity of the core by 10,000 points.
Note: Can be used only once every realm.
Price: 1,000,000 SP
9. Breathflow Refinement Tonic
Effect: Temporarily clears meridians and reduces internal soul force resistance.
Result: Speeds up breathing technique cycles by 20%
Duration: 1 hour
Price: 70,000 SP
10. Fog-Breathing Jade Pendant
Effect: Absorbs environmental soul fog and filters it into refined soul threads, allowing faster and safer absorption.
Additional Effect: +5 Soul Force per minute passively
Recharge Time: 24 hours
Price: 400,000 SP
11. Crimson Spiral Totem
Effect: Temporarily unlocks a higher-tier breathing state. Greatly increases absorption rate but triples fatigue after use.
Duration: 15 minutes
Price: 150,000 SP
----
.
..
...