Chapter 55: Progress
The other term for psionics at the rank one level was Esoteric metaphysical beings. Many referred to them as 'esoterics' simply because they had just unlocked their first chakra to connect with their subtle bodies, which happened to be metaphysical quasi-material aspects of the human body that were neither solely physical nor exclusively spiritual.
Through the connections established by the unlocked chakras, psionics could tap energy from these transcendental esoteric bodies in the other plane of their existence and frequently experience physical and spiritual baptisms with mysterious effects. They could continue strengthening themselves beyond human limits and repeatedly utilize their awakened superpowers by relying on the psionic energy flowing through and out of their unlocked chakras.
The potency of the powers psionics possessed at rank one depended on the state of the psionic energy they could store in their unlocked chakra space.
At the primary stage of rank one, they would only possess misty psionic energy. But this energy would liquefy and increase in both quality and quantity if they broke through the small realm to ascend to the secondary stage rank one psionics. Then, if they continued growing their powers, they would possess semi-solid psionic energy at the advanced stage, which would, in turn, crystalize into a pure solid state to form a stronger connection with their esoteric bodies when they ascended to the peak stage of rank one.
The stages of rank-one psionics flashed through Tang Mu's mind as he settled back on his bed. He smiled with contentment when he thought about how much progress he had accomplished over the past six weeks.
He had continued his daily routine of three hours of meditation with the Star God Celestial Diagram and pushed his powers up by a sub-level. He had relied on the continuous supply of the red-tier origin essence crystals from the painting world to increase the quantity of his psionic energy before finally condensing it into a liquid state about three weeks ago. He was already a secondary stage rank one psionic, with more potent energy reserves in his unlocked Galactic Chakra space.
Aside from that, he had also improved the mastery of his darkness manipulation abilities when he ascended to the secondary stage of rank one.
Of course, sharing a conscious connection with the clone commanding a terrifying talent in the darkness domain had also allowed him to comprehend the essence behind the darkness arrays much faster. He was now more proficient at using shadow stealth, and he had also improved the number of times he could cast the shadow teleportation without resting to recover his energy from three to six times.
But was he satisfied with those accomplishments that he achieved three weeks ago? The answer was obviously no, and he had been training like mad even after breaking through to the secondary stage of rank one. He had arduously practiced with the Star God Celestial Diagram for the past three weeks and once again pushed his psionic powers to the brink of another minor breakthrough.
At that moment, the psionic energy in his Galactic Chakra space was about to turn semi-solid, meaning he was on the cusp of ascending to the advanced stage of rank one. With just one push, he could compress all his stored psionic energy and achieve another breakthrough before he entered the painting world that night.
Tang Mu glanced at his watch. It was only a few minutes past nine, meaning he would conclude his three-hour meditation with the Star God Celestial Diagram a few minutes past midnight. He would then enter the painting world around 1:00 AM and continue harvesting psionic crystals and origin essences. That was his plan.
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To be on the safer side, I better undergo tonight's meditation within the Star Orb storage space.
Tang Mu's eyes flashed with a strange light as he rose from the bed and extended his spiritual sense to perceive everything around the hostel. Everything was calm, without any threats in the vicinity. But he was still weary of the two combat detectives keeping watch around the place. He didn't wish to alarm them with the energy waves he exuded if he accomplished a minor breakthrough that night.
Tang Mu readily retracted his spiritual sense after ensuring the detectives had their attention elsewhere. He then extended it into the star tattoo on his wrist and accessed the Star Orb Storage space. He acted quickly, and with just a thought, he summoned his clone, which resembled him even by the strictest standards.
Over the past six weeks, he had gradually learned that the clone birthed from the Dark Origin Essence Imperial Lotus was a freak of nature that he couldn't compete with.
After consuming many psionic crystals, it had already pushed its powers to the peak of rank one. Its energy reserves and darkness manipulation abilities had grown to an incredible level, and it could cast the shadow teleportation twenty times without having to rest to recover energy.
Its fitness was also superbly abnormal, and its defense could resist damage from an ordinary kitchen knife to a certain extent. It could also move at a top speed of around 41 m/s, which was slightly above the maximum velocity of any other pinnacle rank one psionic.
But that wasn't all. Its spiritual sense had also improved significantly to become ten times as strong as that of Tang Mu's original body. Its perception could extend to a scope of ten kilometers. It could also teleport the same distance by triggering its darkness manipulation abilities just by instinct.
Tang Mu sighed and looked at the clone standing in his room. Over the past few weeks, he had repeatedly felt tempted to have it accompany his original body on an adventure in the painting world. He had repeatedly yearned to team up with it and take on the peak rank one metaphysical beings of that dimension.
But he had also consistently stopped himself since he understood it was the best substitute that must stay in his room when he was away. It was his best cover to prevent others from learning about the secret of the Star God Pagoda.
Of course, Tang Mu could let his original body stay in his room while the clone adventured solo in the painting world. But the option was not the best as he had to factor in unpredictable circumstances, like another intruder eluding the combat detectives manning the hostel and entering his room.
If such a situation happened, the clone could rely on its potent spiritual sense and darkness manipulation abilities at the peak of rank one to prepare well and fight back or escape. However, if Tang Mu's original body faced a similar precarious situation with his secondary stage rank one power, his chances of fleeing would be minimal.
Bearing all that in mind, Tang Mu continued adventuring into the painting world only with his original body. He would at least wait until he left the strictly monitored Mother Earth to commence university in another star cluster before deciding on whether to start taking the powerful clone on his adventures in the painting dimensions.
"I'm heading to the Star Orb storage space to meditate. Keep a watch out and inform me through our connection if anything unexpected emerges."
"Okay, main body," the clone replied with a smile.
Tang Mu shook his head and sighed. He hadn't gotten used to having the clone and often conversed with it as if it were another person. The experience was always strange as he constantly felt like he was speaking to a mirror image that shared a mind with him.
The whole thing was even weirder as the clone always knew his expectations and what he wanted to do. At times, he would ask himself why he bothered to give it any instructions.
Well, it is my clone. I can treat it as another individual if I wish.
Tang Mu smiled and extended his spiritual sense to the star tattoo on his inner wrist. He accessed the expansive Star Orb storage space and willed his body to teleport there.
Something magical happened, and his original body immediately flickered out of existence, leaving only his clone in his room. He had traveled to the mysterious Star Orb storage space, hoping to undergo a peaceful three hours of meditation there. He wished to rely on the absolute safety afforded by the dimension to break through another minor realm without facing any disturbances.