??Chapter 18: Chapter 17: Sealed Territory
Chapter 18: Chapter 17: Sealed Territory
Kor sat quietly in the room, legs crossed, hands gently resting between his legs, palms up, his upright posture and the serious expression on his face indicating that he was not resting, but appeared to be entering so sort of extraordinary ditative state.
Kor closed his eyes and silently let his mind drift across the endless skies, the trickle that flowed with his consciousness seed to be guided by soone as it slowly moved along the forefront of his brain, gently streaming through each part of his body. An indescribable wonderful feeling slowly surfaced throughout his body. It was a sensation that couldn’t be put into words, as if he was slowly floating in the air, transford into vapor, freely wandering every corner of the sky.
The room was filled with a peculiar aura, as if it was enveloped by so distinctive atmosphere. The faint spiritual aura emanating from Kor’s body slowly twisted and turned in the room.
The light in the room seed to warp, gradually showing a chaotic refraction. Sunshine outside the window entered the room through the lattices, turning into an eerie cyan hue that seed to grow deeper still. If anyone were to enter the room at this ti and witness this strange scene, they might think they had stepped into the underworld, a different space accessible only to resentful spirits. Resentful spirits with a trace of intelligence, if fortunate, could enter and exit the underworld by possessing a host with powerful magic. Of course, such a phenonon might be seen once in decades.
The faint spiritual aura gradually dissipated, eventually disappearing like a wisp of mist hovering over Kor’s head.
Kor slowly opened his eyes. He could feel that there had been so changes in his body. It was a wondrous technique whose origins were a mystery. His master called it the Yoga Technique. Even the master himself didn’t understand why the practice seed to have no significant effect on him but showed differing results on Kor.
Although practicing this so-called Yoga Technique did not bring any imdiate changes to Kor, he could feel it gradually transforming him in various aspects. Whether it was his spiritual power or physical strength, they seed to undergo so subtle changes that were indeed taking place.
Even the master who taught him this technique didn’t know which aspect of a person’s ability it was supposed to train or cultivate, because as far as the master was concerned, he did not feel that this technique, which was acquired by chance, had much of an effect.
If it was a matter of physical strength, Kor hadn’t noticed any significant improvent in that area, feeling inferior compared to soone like Ilot, who was naturally cut out to be a warrior.
And if it was about progress in spiritual power, Kor hadn’t noticed any advancents in the application and learning of magic. At least he didn’t perceive any improvent in his level with respect to studying and using magic. However, Kor did indeed feel sothing.
That was a sensation of being filled with vitality. Yes, vitality, the vitality of life. After careful consideration, Kor nad this essence within him as vitality, a special sothing that allowed a person’s potential to fully express itself. To Kor, this vitality, which seed to be a combination of spiritual and physical energy, directly influenced the growth of these two types of power.
The sunshine outside the window was still bright, on the green branches the pretty kingfishers lightly hopped around, occasionally primping their beautiful feathers with their vibrantly colored beaks. The lodious song did not co from them, but from another branch where a warbler sang. Breezes ruffled the petals of the gold-edged lotus on the flower stand, its buds shyly unfolding, and Kor, motionless, could even sll the rich fragrance coming from the depths of the blossoms.
Awakened from ditation, Kor savored and felt everything. The outside world, every detail, was reflected flawlessly into his mind, even the ants crawling in the corner seed visible to him. Kor couldn’t explain this peculiar phenonon. Whenever he returned from ditation, he always found his senses extraordinarily sharp, sharply enough to scare him, as if everything around him fell within the scope of his awareness, even a single grain of rice hitting the ground could be distinctly felt.
However, to his disappointnt, this unique spiritual sense seed not to last long. As he gradually recovered from the dormant state, that heightened awareness naturally faded. This was the result Kor had co to after countless sessions of practicing the Yoga Technique.
Leaping to his feet, Kor stretched his body casually and found that his flexibility, agility, reaction ti, and coordination had all improved compared to before, especially the first two attributes, which were notably enhanced. It felt as if so kind of flow was coursing through his veins.
As Kor’s body issued a series of small cracks while he moved, he finally completed this session of training. Such exercises couldn’t be done at any ti or place; otherwise, they would be ineffective. Kor could sense when it was ti to practice the technique, just as one feels the need to eat when hungry—a special sensation.
The comfortable feeling in his body could not replace the troubles of reality. Kor slowly walked out of his room. Tomorrow was the Coming of Age Ceremony. What awaited him, he could not foresee. His father’s attitude seed to have changed a lot, becoming more silent and lancholic. Could his father still feel guilt and reluctance towards him, his wayward and dissolute son? Kor didn’t believe so.
In recent days, he had not gone out, appearing much more behaved in the eyes of his family. He didn’t want to see their gazes, as if they were about to decide his fate with the upcoming ceremony. Could it really dictate his destiny?
The heavy atmosphere perated between the two, with Ilot and Puber both feeling sowhat downhearted. Kor’s outco tomorrow would be what they would face in just one month. Lifting his head, Ilot gulped down a large mug of beer, letting the foam drip down his chin, and then slamd the mug on the table with a shout, “Bring
another drink!”
“That’s enough, Ilot. You’ve had plenty,” Puber said, although he too was feeling rather gloomy, he still managed to keep so restraint. “Kor will be here soon, and he won’t be happy seeing you like this. His spirits are already low; don’t make it worse for him.”
“Ah, no need for
to bother him, I’m afraid he’s already numb to it all. Sending him to the Caucasus, heh, what a lovely place that is. Fertile land and vast forests, yet regretfully, no one is fortunate enough to enjoy such a spot. The Duke seems to still harbor the grudge from the past, truly wanting to put the Boss in a grave. If only we knew it would co to this, we would’ve been better off roaming abroad rather than coming back.”
Though Ilot’s tongue was sowhat numb, and his eyes bloodshot, his consciousness was more lucid than ever, the drunken bravado making him speak without inhibition.
“Becoming a Lord over there, a lord of a village with just a few hundred residents. Just look at the sort of people they are: swindlers, thieves, bandits, * offenders, murderers, heretics, adventurers, and treasure hunters. Even convicts exiled to military service wouldn’t wish to go there, hehe, not to ntion Damarlinsk Castle. I fear the Baron would hardly have ti to change his clothes before he’s left without a corpse to bury.”
Before Puber could respond, they heard Kor’s clear voice from outside the door, “Ilot, are you cursing
like that?”
Kor, who walked in, was not showing the slightest displeasure on his face. Puber could see that Kor’s face, with hardly any expression, even emitted a flicker of excitent and expectation. Could it be there had been a change of circumstances, that the Duke had changed his mind?
“Boss, has there been a change?” Puber asked eagerly and impatiently.
“What change? Once the Coming of Age Ceremony is over tomorrow, I can leave Cyprus and take up my post in the Caucasus, the territory that now belongs to .”
Kor wore his usual unhurried expression, and the slight smile on his lips made it incomprehensible to Puber why the Boss was so indifferent. Didn’t he know the situation in the Caucasus, or had he received so shock that made his brain short-circuit?
The sowhat inebriated Ilot also noticed his Boss’s pleasant mood. He completely couldn’t understand how at a ti like this his Boss could still be cheerful. One has to draw a line sowhere, even if they’re resigned to their fate. Going to the Caucasus might an a permanent departure, never to return. In a mont of warmth, Ilot, lowering his voice, said, “Boss, I think you might as well run away. Puber and I will go with you. It’s better to find a way to live outside the kingdom than to go to the Caucasus to face death.”
Reviews
All reviews (0)