It had been six months, six months since Damian and Cassie arrived at the Queen's Ravencroft Home. Following the advice of the exorcist Eldrich, Damian had accepted the offer, and during this period, he had accomplished a lot, at least with the goals Omni had set up for him.
His mana control was exceptional, as Omni had taught him a unique method to fast-track his training on mana control, the Mana Crucible Meditation.
'The Mana Crucible Meditation,' The core of this method was to treat his entire body as a Crucible, a sealed container where intense refinement takes place.
It started with Damian actively drawing the raw, external mana of the world into his body at a speed bordering on reckless. Instead of a gentle sip, he took a torrent, overloading his mana channels and dantian. This caused intense pressure and discomfort, forcing his perception of mana to sharpen instantly.
Once the mana was inside, instead of letting it passively integrate with his dantian, Omni forced Damian to focus all the accumulated mana into a single, small point—a 'crucible'—usually located just below his dantian. This tiny space had to contain and stabilize the violently fluctuating energy. This step was a mental boot camp, demanding absolute stillness and focus to prevent the energy from tearing his channels.
After holding the overloaded, refined mana for a set time, he would then practice moving it out of the crucible and through his body in extremely fine, complex patterns, like weaving thread through the eye of a needle. Omni forced him to manipulate the mana's density and temperature as it moved, not just its location.
For example, he was asked to trace a pattern on his arm where the mana was ice-cold in the forward motion but boiling hot on the return, all within the same channel.
This rapid overload and fine control loop was incredibly taxing, but it compressed months of standard practice into weeks, granting Damian unparalleled precision and stability over his unlimited power.
As the grind went on, he would occasionally receive notifications from Omni, detailing increases in his overall mana control.
[Ding! Mana control increased by 400.]
[Ding! Mana control increased by 200.]
[Ding! Mana control increased by 120.]
...
It went on and on. He constantly saw notifications of his increase in mana control, and his perception of mana was now exceptional. Omni also taught him how to conceal his aura output. Since his mana channels had been put to work, his aura now leaked through them, and this is how most cultivators and dormants were identified.
Then,
[Profile Loading....]
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[Status:]
Name: Damian Throne.
Age: 16
Cultivation Realm: Elemental Affinity Realm (Late stage)
Cultivation Rank: Rank 7
Affinity: Fire
Health: 450/450
Mana: ∞/∞
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[Cultivation Stats:]
Mana Control: 1400
Mana Capacity: ∞
Essence Purity: 0
Soul Strength: 0
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[Combat Stats:]
Strength: 245
Agility: 130
Endurance: 105
Intelligence: 310
Aura: ∞
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[Skills:]
-Fireball (Common) - A basic mana skill that creates a small projectile of fire.
-Flame Burst (Common) - Expels a short-range burst of fire from the user's hands.
-Minor Healing (Common) - A basic self-healing skill that mends small cuts and bruises.
-Dagger Mastery (Uncommon) - Increases proficiency with daggers.
-Thousand Heavenly Piercings (Epic) - An epic mana skill that summons an endless rain of swords from the heavens.
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[Trait:]
Infinite Mana Vessel (Divine)
"..."
As Damian checked his profile, he noticed that there was also an increase in his other stats. Intelligence and Strength got the most boost, while Agility and Endurance saw increases that were not minimal, but not as big as the former.
"Things are moving surprisingly well," Damian whispered to himself as he also took note of Cassie's emotional progression throughout the six months.
In the first month, Cassie only managed a few words with Damian and was still deeply sobered by her father's loss. By the second and third months, she was becoming more active in the orphanage, and her usual harsh tone and nature were being replaced by a more gentle touch. In the months that followed, she truly got herself back, having normal conversations with everyone who spoke with her, everything just seemed normal.
****
"Hip hip hurray!"
Everyone seated at the dining table stood and shouted, their gaze locked on Cassie, who had just turned eighteen that day. She was happy and in awe that everyone knew it was her birthday. She turned and found Damian, who gave her a tight hug as a brother should.
"Happy birthday," Damian said.
"Damiannn," Cassie said as she walked down the dining hall, receiving greetings and well wishes from everyone.
"Happy birthday, Cassie."
"Wishing you more years ahead."
"You're now a pretty young woman."
"This means a lot to me," she said.
Cassie was filled with joy. After her father's loss, she thought everything was over, but it seemed things were beginning to light up, and it was time for her to get past that stage.
Cassie stood at the front of the hall and thanked everyone for the special moment. "I meant what I said; this means everything to me. Thank you all."