The stew served looked similar to the one Damian was used to in his past life, the aroma even smelled the same. Damian saw how everyone had already started eating. He was still having second thoughts, but why shouldn't he? This world had been everything but normal.
'It looks good,' he thought. 'It also smells good.'
"If you're still thinking of Cassie, don't worry," Agnes said, as she noticed Damian hadn't eaten anything yet.
With a sigh, Damian took one full spoon of the stew, and to his surprise, it tasted exactly the same. The texture and the feel were so familiar. He quickly took another spoonful and another. He was relieved that there was at least normal food in this world.
'This is so good,' he thought.
[Damian, take it easy; the other children are looking at you.]
'Oh, Omni,' Damian responded. 'I figured, but damn, it's good to know there is normal food in this world.'
[Damian, I will use this opportunity to drill in you in the basics of mana gathering.]
'Mana gathering? I thought you said I don't need to absorb mana.'
[That's right, I did tell you that you possess a limitless reservoir of mana. The trick now is to master the basics, sensing and controlling it. Try focusing on gathering and collecting the ambient mana around you, that's the best way to start understanding it.]
Damian thought, 'Gather mana? Fine. But how do I gather something I can't even perceive?'
[That's a fair concern. Think of mana as the ambient essence of this world. To perceive it, you must fully relax your body. Allow your mana channels to respond to your surroundings, and you will begin to perceive a blue, air-like energy permeating the space.]
'Mana channels? Fuck this, I'm starting to feel relaxed in this world and your trying to complicate things again.'
[Damian, don't worry about it. Think of your mana channels as pseudo-pores across your body. Every cultivator has them, and their purpose is simple, they allow mana to be absorbed and stored.]
Damian's expression changed, he felt that things were moving too fast. With a sigh, he took another spoonful of the stew and glanced at Agnes, who looked entirely relaxed and worry-free, a stark contrast to his own turmoil.
'I hope all this won't be too tasking?' he asked.
[Don't worry, Damian. I'm not asking you to start some long, secluded retreat to absorb mana. My only goal right now is to teach you how to control your infinite mana.]
'So after this I will enter the netherworld to start slaying all the demons?'
[Yes and no. Once you've successfully learned how to perceive and control mana, your unlimited power will grant you unlimited reach.]
'let me guess, there's a but?'
[But, even that won't be enough to complete the task at hand. I wish I could tell you more, but as you already know, I'm under strict instructions not to reveal everything until you've reached the desired state.]
'Still hiding stuff from me,' Damian responded. 'Fine, let's get this over with.'
[To begin, I need you to close your eyes and relax all your muscles.]
'Closing my eyes?' he countered. 'Won't that make me look odd, a guy just randomly closing his eyes as he eats.'
[Damian, just do what I say, and clear your mind and focus on your body. Once you feel a cold tingle in your pores, that's your cue. Relax your muscles even further, and then try to control the mana that has entered you. Guide it and let it move freely through your meridians.]
Damian had second thoughts, but he did as he was told. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and felt his muscles loosen. After a few seconds, a faint, exhilarating chill spread across his skin. He relaxed further, and as he did, he felt a strange, subtle energy begin to circulate within him, following paths he didn't even know existed.
'Fuck, what's this feeling?' he asked. He felt something entirely ethereal, something he had never felt before. He felt better, somewhat stronger.
[Now, open your eyes and tell me what you see.]
Damian's eyelids fluttered open. His jaw immediately dropped. The air around him was now filled with ethereal, blue, air-like substances. He could see tendrils of this luminous energy swirling gently, and some of it was actively flowing into his body, disappearing into his skin. It was a sight of otherworldly beauty, completely unlike the mundane world he had known just moments before.
'This,' he thought. 'This Is beautiful.'
[It is indeed.]
Then, As Damian kept staring at the ethereal mana permeating the air, Agnes took note of it. Since she was a dormant, she was completely and utterly oblivious to the mana that filled the surroundings, unable to see what Damian was seeing. To her, Damian looked like he was spacing out, or even worse, had gone insane from the pressure of his sister's grief.
'I should talk to him,' she thought.
"Damian," Agnes called out.