The next thing I knew, I was waking up. Judging by the angle of the sunlight slipping past the curtains, it was already late in the afternoon.
Guess I was more drained than I thought.
At some point, the nurse assigned to clean and feed me.
My half-eaten tray sat neatly on the side table, untouched long enough for the broth's surface to film over.
Now, the room was quiet again. Just me, the monitors, and the steady hum of the air-conditioning.
I took a deep breath and closed my eyes. Enough distractions. It was time to focus.
Channeling my awareness inward, I began guiding my ki through the tangled pathways of my body.
Bit by bit, I worked at the blockages in my meridians, forcing the flow to circulate more freely.
This body may have been labeled a "vegetable" once, but piece by piece, I would reclaim it.
Soon, the effort paid off.
My fingers twitched, and for the first time in what felt like forever, I was able to close my hands into a shaky fist.
The sensation that followed wasn't just in my palms—it spread upward, a tingling warmth flowing into my shoulders.
With a grunt, I rolled them experimentally. Stiff, yes, but moving.
A smile tugged at my lips.
If things kept going like this, then by tomorrow… sitting up would no longer be an issue. And once I could sit, standing would just be the next step.
The thought alone filled me with determination.
With this pacing, I settled into a cycle—three hours of sleep, followed by meditation.
Again and again, the pattern repeated as I tempered both mind and body.
And then, near midnight, it struck.
A sudden pressure welled up deep within my navel, spreading outward like a furnace igniting in my core.
The pain hit me all at once. It felt as if my very intestines were being crushed, ground into powder by invisible millstones.
I clenched my jaw, sweat pouring down my temples, refusing to collapse under it.
Somewhere within the agony, I reached instinctively for the monk's persona. The knowledge embedded within came naturally, guiding me.
I understood then—this wasn't destruction, but transformation.
I was advancing, breaking free from the fragile stage of Mortal Breathing and stepping into the foundation of all true cultivation: Root of Qi.
Pressure mounted until I could no longer bear to keep my eyes open.
As soon as my lids shut, a vision unfolded—an endless void awash in cascading colors, like countless waterfalls, each flowing through its own unique filter.
I understood instinctively: whichever color shone the brightest would reveal my elemental affinity, my path forward.
But right now, all of them were equals. Fire, water, earth, wind, and so on. They all radiated intense power.
That could only mean one thing. I'm super talented.
My chest swelled with pride… right up until one color decided to fuck with me.
From above, a shadow descended, swallowing everything. The colors flickered and died one after another, devoured by the darkness.
My heart began to pound faster, erratic and violent.
Thump… thump… thump!
"Urghhh—!" I gagged, my stomach twisting.
Black sludge spilled out from my mouth, reeking like rotting fish.
Forcing myself upright, I raised trembling hands before my eyes.
Dark tendrils writhed beneath my skin, twisting through my veins. It was as if my very blood turned to ink.
That's when the system chimed in.
[Warning. Host's body is overflowing with Curse Element. Mind and soul? Rotten to the core. If you actually want to advance with the Monk's technique, you'll need a serious cleansing.]
[If cleansing succeeds, Host might actually scrub off all this filth and be a better person. Downside? Your favorite hobby—chasing skirts—could disappear along with it.]
That comment was unnecessary, but I didn't have the patience to bicker with it right now.
"I don't want that to happen... Do you have any other option?" I groaned.
[Alternative detected.]
[Host may instead retain all Curse and Dark energy, sealing it within the heart. ]
[This path will blacken your essence, making you prone to temptation and violence—but if harnessed correctly, it offers far greater potential than the orthodox way.]
"So what you're saying is… I would basically become a Dark Practitioner?"
A pause. Then:
[Affirmative.]
For a moment, I saw flashes of what the "clean" path promised—discipline, purity, and honor.
But then another scene rose: beautiful women, lots of them.
"To hell with it. I never really liked good guys anyway. They're bland and delusional."
The system didn't dawdle.
[Consolidating Curse and Dark energy into Host heart. Initiating containment matrix.]
Pain shifted. What had been a grinding sensation in my navel translated into a deep, burning ache behind my sternum.
It felt like someone was threading iron through my ribs and twisting. I clenched my teeth in agony.
The feeling was probably close to having a cardiac arrest.
[Containment at sixty percent. Pain expected. Remain still.]
"Remain still?" I
wanted to laugh, but the sound came out as a ragged breath.
The monitor by my bed started to shriek—flat-lined beeps spiking.
I didn't have time for hospital dramatics. Gasping, I yanked at the sticky leads on my chest—the adhesive pads and wires that connected me to the machine.
They tore away with a sting, and the monitor stuttered into silence as its alarm cut off.
No nurse, no interruptions.
My knuckles were white as I pressed against my chest, trying to keep myself from tearing it open just to let the pressure out.
Each heartbeat cracked through my ribs.
"I can't take much more of this…"
[Containment at eighty percent. Host's cardiac stress: critical. Hold on.]
"Critical? No shit…" I rasped, sweat dripping into my eyes.
The sensation turned more violent. Every breath was destroying me from inside.
Then, suddenly—snap!