Dark Breath

"Dark Breath?" Mu Fan chewed over the four words.

"Mm, a breathing martial art, and also a skill for tempering yourself." The Fighter put away the Metal Short Rod and spoke softly to Mu Fan. "For example... watch me."

A scene that made Mu Fan's eyes widen unfolded before him! Breathing... inhale... exhale... The sound of breathing was still there, but the next second, he watched helplessly as the Fighter in the tattered gray robe gradually vanished before his eyes. It was not the kind of disappearance where someone simply faded away, but one where he vanished bit by bit right before Mu Fan's eyes.

The man just disappeared?

The sudden voice startled Mu Fan. "I am still standing here. You simply cannot sense me."

"I can't see you. Is that the effect of Dark Breath?" Mu Fan asked excitedly, though he was somewhat puzzled. This skill merely made someone disappear. What use was that?

"Of course not." A rod suddenly appeared. Before Mu Fan could react, he was knocked down with a single blow. Sitting on the ground and clutching his head, Mu Fan groaned with a gloomy expression.

"Breathing techniques, as the name suggests, are about inhaling and exhaling. What you saw was merely a trick. What you hear, smell, and sense from every angle is the truth." The Fighter, rod in hand, appeared before Mu Fan again.

"Dark Breath is the adjustment of every minute muscle throughout your body. By controlling your breathing and closing the pores on your body, you achieve an effect like being immersed in the night. Add a few simple tricks, and you gain what people call 'invisibility.'" The Fighter toyed with the short rod in his hand, leaving behind mysterious green trails that drew Mu Fan's gaze.

"But that is only its most basic use. At its core, this martial art can place your mind in a state of Absolute Calm and greatly strengthen your five senses. In the terms of this era, it has a direct effect on improving your mental power!"

At present, Mu Fan only knew about power levels. He vaguely felt that mental power might be related to the state he had entered under Blood-colored Vision before, that feeling of having clear control over himself.

"Martial arts are divided into ten levels. If each level's effects were converted into Federation values, they would roughly equal Level 2. Once you reach the fifth level, you will find that this martial art significantly improves your control over every muscle in your body. You will understand then."

Mu Fan was utterly bewildered. How could he have known that the martial art the Fighter Instructor had just presented was something that could not possibly exist in the Federation... The brain was still an unknown realm of the human body. The use of mental power had only just entered its earliest stages. A martial art capable of directly increasing mental power was absolutely impossible!!

If people found out, how many geniuses would be shocked? How many great powers would fight until their heads bled over it?

Why? Because Level 10 was the first Mental Lock!! Fewer than 0.1% of people in the Federation had unlocked a Mental Lock! Mental Locks completely restricted one's ability to understand oneself. When you felt that you had reached the limits of martial arts and mecha operation, unlocking the first Mental Lock would reveal that all of it was merely the beginning!

Mental Locks were the keys to surpassing one's own limits!

"Right now, your mental power is only Level 3. Explaining this to you is still too far off. All right, start learning from me."

"Slow your breathing. Use your mind to control as many muscles as you can sense. Soothe them. Make them slow down. Synchronize your heartbeat with your surroundings. Use your mind to assimilate your body. When darkness falls, I... am the night..."

The Fighter slightly raised his head. His profound gaze rested on the youth before him, whom he had hypnotized into a meditative state. Weariness, relief, liberation, and a burning expectation hidden beneath them all flashed through his eyes.

He suddenly raised his left hand, wrapped in weathered armor plates. A cluster of soft, dark-green light floated in his palm, hovering quietly before pressing directly onto the top of Mu Fan's head. The instant his palm touched Mu Fan's forehead, the ball of light vanished. In reality, Mu Fan's brows suddenly furrowed before smoothing out again.

"Heh... heh, compatibility. The Fire Seed can actually continue in this world... the inheritance of my race..."

Mu Fan opened his eyes after being awakened by Brother Fatty's private message. Looking around, he found that he had already left the Training Field and was standing in the corridor. The Fighter Instructor had slipped away again. Every time he came here, things felt strange and mysterious. But there was no helping it. This instructor was too powerful. Mu Fan truly could not beat him.

That Dark Breath the Fighter had talked about... as Mu Fan practiced it, he felt as though he had... fallen asleep? Uh, Mu Fan scratched his head awkwardly. It did seem to be the case.

But now that he thought back on it, the method for practicing that martial art naturally surfaced in his mind. It was difficult to describe with words, yet it felt as though he had long since mastered it. He always felt that something in his mind was different from before he had gone to find the Fighter, though he could not say exactly what. If he had to sum it up, the world felt clearer to his senses, and he himself felt clearer as well.

Unfortunately, before he could properly reflect on it, Brother Fatty's call interrupted him. Suppressing the lingering doubts in his heart, Mu Fan logged out of the optical network.

Brother Fatty had somehow gotten hold of a Fat Milo and was noisily devouring it. Mu Fan, who had just exited the Battle Network, saw the juice splattering everywhere. So, without any politeness, he snatched the other one beside Brother Fatty and began eating.

"Mu Fan, why haven't Broken Axe and the others made a move yet? It's driving Brother Fatty crazy. I've exercised more these past few days than I did in the last half year. My dad is pretty satisfied with me now, but the key is that I'm not satisfied!"

Mu Fan narrowed his eyes as he chewed on the Milo and answered casually, "I have a feeling they'll definitely come. I just hope they don't interrupt the Federation Grand Exam."

"Are you kidding? No matter what, those space pirates wouldn't dare cause trouble during those two days. They're among the most heavily guarded days of the Federation's entire year. If we go then, there will probably be patrolling mechas everywhere along the roads."

"Hopefully." Mu Fan neither agreed nor disagreed, then revealed a longing expression. "Harry, you know? If I hadn't met you, my world probably wouldn't have had so much excitement."

Those heartfelt words made the chubby Harry pause in his efforts to finish the Fat Milo. Looking at Mu Fan seriously, he said, "That's because we're friends! If nothing happens in a couple of days, come to my house. My dad has wanted to meet you for a long time. There happens to be some kind of gathering then, so you can come take a look too."

Mu Fan gave a quiet sound of agreement and accepted Brother Fatty's invitation.

"There'll be lots of girls!" Brother Fatty leaned over with a lewd grin, only for Mu Fan to press a hand against his face and shove him away.

Right now, Mu Fan just wanted to have a good fight with those space pirates, then hurry off to the Federation Grand Exam!

What, steal military mechas? Black said he would handle it.

What if he could not win? He could use the Dark Breath the Fighter Instructor had just taught him to run away. No one should notice him.

The more Mu Fan thought about it, the more he felt there were plenty of ways out. Little did he know that, in other people's eyes, he was truly courting death!

After spending the afternoon amid Brother Fatty's wails and howls, Mu Fan excitedly returned to his base, put on his Helmet, and hurried to test whether his APM had improved.

Taking a deep breath, he sat properly and solemnly put on the Helmet. Mu Fan pressed the activation button.

Mecha Piloting Training.

"Beep. Entry failed. Please listen to the message—Lord Black is busy today. You have the day off. Mu Fan, go practice on your own."

Didn't you know the space pirates were about to come!! Mu Fan's face darkened with black lines.

Black, transformed into a stream of data, was carefully cracking Luoqie Star's government network. Mixed within it were several ports connected to the military.

After breaking through a node without triggering an alarm, Black immediately became smug. "If my planetary-level main body were here, would I need to crack it so painstakingly? Using even slightly more resources would trigger an alarm. How annoying. Mu Fan, Mu Fan, I'm scouting ahead for you here and even letting you rest at home. I'm being quite considerate. Relax. The APM I tested for you that day was reduced by 30. With Disordered Folding Step, I reckon you could strut sideways around here. I'm truly too understanding."

Completely unaware of how sinister he was, Black rambled on in the virtual space like a true chatterbox. "Eh, this stream of data is interesting. I'll go trace it."

Several streams of data from military dedicated lines appeared in the administrative network at the same time, all pointing to the same date—June 2...

***********

PS: Thanks to "Summer Has Not Come, Summer Has Not Cooled" for the 10-coin reward.

Someone finally answered the bounty correctly. Student "Xiaoxiang Moon Rain," please reply in the pinned discussion thread as soon as possible. This book's cameo character thread is now officially open. Anyone who wants to make a guest appearance as a character is welcome to sign up.