[Welcome to the Interface]
[PLEASE ENTER YOUR NAME SO YOU CAN ACCESS THE INTERFACE]
Ryker is stunned for a second as the static is gone and his mind clears. Ryker quietly whispers “Ryker Lotus.”
[REGISTERING…]
[...]
[REGISTRATION COMPLETE]
[YOU CAN NOW ACCESS THE INTERFACE THROUGH YOUR QI]
[FOCUS ON WHAT YOU WANT TO DO AND THE INTERFACE WILL INTERPRIT THE ACTIONS]
Thought activated computing was one of the main reasons the Interface was so impressive. You can use it anywhere at any time, which is important for ease of use. The other benefit is that it is directly connected to your cultivation so you can view your progress easily.
[CULTIVATION PROFILE
REALM: INITIATE
STAGE 1: WELL CONSTRUCTION 0%
TALENT EVALUATION
MARTIAL ABILITY: 2 (AVERAGE)
RESILIENCE: 1 (BELOW AVERAGE)
SOUL POWER: 2 (AVERAGE)
UNIQUE TALENTS:
N/A
BLOODLINE:
N/A
OTHER SECTIONS WILL BE UNLOCKED WHEN THEY BECOME APPLICABLE]
Ryker cringed when he was reminded of his pitiful talent. Hopefully there is some remedy to that with the army. As he was still waiting for the transport to start moving, Ryker decided to use the Interface to try and find a solution to his low talent.
He browsed through a few forums before finding one that seemed interesting. The post mentioned an unconfirmed rumor that certain high end cyberware modules had the effect of improving talent. Apparently this kind of cyberware was military grade so most people will never own some. Along with that, the post also discussed the impact that bloodlines have on talent. Bloodlines can improve talent depending on their grade. Some high level ones could supposedly unlock latent unique talents. If one gains a bloodline even after awakening their talent will be improved.
Ryker’s hope shot up upon reading this, more ways of increasing his talent means that there is a greater chance that he can become someone great. Ryker read through a few more articles before the transport started moving. These articles were mostly just repeating the same rumours or advertisements for supposed miracle cures for talents.
“As if anyone would buy this shit.” Ryker snorts to himself after reading an ad that described someone obtaining a divine, or rank 5 talent, from a pill. With how many people were disappointed with their talents, it’s no surprise that there are people willing to spend exuberant amounts of credits for the meagre chance that the method might work.
As the shuttle started moving, the Lance Corporal walked in. The large man clears his throat and everyone’s attention snaps to him. “Attention everyone. Now that you have all officially joined the Military of our proud kingdom. As you all should know, our kingdom, the Raven kingdom, is currently at war with the Neveria kingdom. The disputes are currently small and only take place on the border planets. You will all be trained for the potential large scale conflict that may occur. Understood?”
The transport stays silent so after a few seconds Steven nods his head slowly and continues. “Good to see you all understand. Your group will go through a basic training course, at the end of which you will be assigned a position to serve. If you do well you will get more options to choose from with the higher associated risk and necessity of each position determining the rewards.”
This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
The Lance Corporal then picks up a box. “Since we will be here for a while, the higher ups had the great idea of having me teach you cultivation while we wait.” Steven starts walking around and handing out crystals from the box.
“These are Qi crystals. They come from slain monsters or Qi veins and form the fuel for your cultivation. Try to focus your attention inside the crystals and see if you can detect the Qi inside.”
The confusion was obvious in the recruirts eyes.
“What does he mean ‘focus your attention inside’?” Ryker questioned himself
The Lance Corporal sighed, “I always forget about how little you new guys know about cultivation.”
“Now that you have awakened your souls, you have a new sixth sense. This sense is only used for one thing, detecting Qi and is aptly named ‘Qi Sense’. As stage 1 initiates, you can only sense the QI within around 10 centimeters of you. As you increase you cultivation, this size will also increase.”
Seeing the recruits understanding this he continues, “While you are unfamiliar with your Qi sense it can be hard to use it. Try closing your eyes and try and push your senses out from your body. Don’t worry if you find it difficult. After a bit of practice it will be as easy as breathing.” After finishing his explanation Steven sits down and starts to browse the forums with his interface.
All of the recruits start focusing on their crystals. Some of them try holding it to their foreheads while others simply hold them in their laps or near their chest. Ryker decides to simply close his eyes and try to push his mind into the crystal because he has no better ideas. When he tries this he feels a strange form of perception. It wasn’t like seeing but more like a vague sense of his surroundings. It didn’t have much detail but had rough outlines of objects within a few centimeters of him.
Ryker pushes this strange sense towards the crystal, where it meets a barrier. He pauses for a second before increasing the pressure on the barrier. His perception slips past the barrier into the crystal.
Ryker gasps as he observes tiny specks of light floating around inside the crystal. The specks seem to float about as if they were carried by an invisible breeze. A bright flash of pain pulsed through Ryker’s head and his perception was pushed out of the crystal. Ryker winced and raised his hand to rub his forehead.
With his head still sore he decided to wait for a little while before trying again. He wasn’t actually sure if what he had seen was Qi so he kept quiet about it. He snorted to himself quietly as he thought to himself about how this was exactly what he did in school. Wait for someone else to call out the answer so you aren’t wrong.
After a few more minutes the Lance Corporal cleared his throat, breaking everyone’s concentration. “Did any of you feel the Qi in those crystals?”
The whole transport was silent for a second and nobody stepped forward. The silence continued for a few moments before the Lance Corporal spoke again.
“Haha,” the man chuckled, “That’s to be expected. It takes most people at least a day or two to first sense Qi. It isn’t uncommon to take someone weeks to be able to see Qi.”
Ryker was shocked by this, most people take over a day to sense it?
Ryker clears his throat before asking, “What does Qi look like, sir?”
The lance corporal smiles at this. “Good question, recruit. As you should all know, Qi has an uncountable number of affinities. Every Qi affinity looks and feels different. The Qi in these crystals is unnatuned, so each spark will appear as a glowing, white particle.”
“Qi can exist in multiple states, but the most common state is this inert particle state. When you use your Qi to activate a skill or cybernetic, it will be transformed into a liquid alternative form. This form is more condensed and unstable so it doesn’t last as long but has more power. There are more forms but we won’t go into those now.”
The lance corporal is about to continue with his lessons, but Ryker interrupts him.
“Sir, when I looked into the crystal I saw these particles. Was that really Qi or am I mistaken?”
The man looks surprised for a second before laughing “Haha! What a joke. Sensing Qi that quickly is ridiculous. Only the big shot young masters with divine talents experience that!”
He laughs to himself for a few more seconds before seeing Ryker’s deadpan expression.
“Wait, you're serious? This is an indicator that you have great cultivation potential! To think there was a cultivation genius in my selection this year. Coming here wasn’t a mistake at all!”
Steven laughs to himself even more now. Being a lance corporal he couldn’t wait for the benefits dragging in such a great talent. “It’s a pity his talents are so low. His cultivation may grow well but he might never truly have the foundation to get truly far.”
Ryker is shocked by this reaction. The other recruits are as well. Ryker suddenly feels their hostile gazes upon him. The envious atmosphere is so thick that Ryker felt like he couldn’t move.
The lance corporal sees this and calls out “What are you sitting around for recruits? You should all be trying to catch up to… Ryker was it?” He checks his interface for a second “Yes Ryker. And Ryker, you should start trying to exert your will on the Qi. Sensing the Qi means nothing if you can’t do anything to it.”