Becoming a Saint from the Age of Myth

"I finally did it!"

He couldn't help laughing aloud, his spirits soaring.

After a short rest, he eagerly commanded the skeleton to head back up the cliff.

Chapter 19: Hakurei's teachings (part one)

After a day of arduous travel, Wuxin finally returned to the clifftop.

However, the return trip had taken a little longer than the descent.

Because of the accident he had caused earlier, a stretch of the path had been buried by a landslide.

Fortunately, he had mastered the power of Cosmo and could easily leap ten meters in a single bound, so obstacles in the terrain no longer meant much to him. Otherwise, he really wouldn't have been able to get back up.

By the cliff, Yuzuriha spotted him during her daily training and immediately came over.

"I didn't think you'd actually succeed!"

The girl circled the skeleton, examining it and clicking her tongue in wonder.

Only half a month had passed, yet Wuxin had actually revived a skeleton and completed the Grand Elder's test.

What was more, he had done it without any guidance or help, relying entirely on his own comprehension and effort.

It was simply unbelievable!

Wuxin's return also caught someone else's attention. A figure flashed, and Hakurei appeared before him in white robes.

"Congratulations on passing the test!" Hakurei nodded in approval.

Although he still wasn't particularly fond of Wuxin, after hearing about Wuxin's attitude from Virgo Asmita, he had finally let go of his wariness.

"Teacher, may I ask when I can begin learning?" Wuxin asked with his head lowered, silently withdrawing the power of Cosmo controlling the skeleton.

The soul fire in the skeleton's skull instantly went out, and it collapsed to the ground in a pile of white bones.

"There's no need to rush. We still have time!" Hakurei replied calmly.

"That may be true, but the Holy War is imminent. I also hope to master enough power as soon as possible to help share everyone's burden!" Wuxin said, suppressing the joy in his heart.

Hakurei hadn't rejected being called "Teacher." That meant he had tacitly accepted their relationship as master and disciple. Wuxin had officially become Hakurei's disciple.

"It's good that you think that way!"

Hakurei nodded, thought for a moment, and said, "How about this? You've only just returned, so get some proper rest today. We'll officially begin your lessons tomorrow."

"Yes!"

Wuxin then dealt with the bones on the ground before withdrawing, his heart full of joy.

In fact, throughout his days at the bottom of the cliff, he had been preoccupied with the test. Coupled with the overly good surroundings, he hadn't managed to rest properly.

Now that he had completed the test and returned to the stone tower, he could finally get a good night's sleep.

Wuxin slept for an entire day and night.

When he woke, he felt refreshed and full of drive, as though he had inexhaustible energy.

However, after sleeping for a day and night, his stomach also began rumbling like thunder.

"Looks like I'll have to fill my stomach before I start learning!"

With no other choice, he headed for the kitchen.

Having already spent some time here, he was quite familiar with the inside of the stone tower.

Before long, he had eaten his fill and gone outside.

Seeing Yuzuriha training nearby, he quickly approached and asked, "Yuzuriha, do you know where Teacher Hakurei is?"

Yuzuriha stopped and pointed to her right. "The Grand Elder is meditating over there. He told me to have you find him once you woke up!"

"Thank you!"

After saying goodbye to Yuzuriha, Wuxin followed her directions to a cliffside.

Hakurei was meditating bare-chested in the cold wind blowing up from below the cliff, as motionless as a stone statue.

Wuxin didn't dare disturb him and stood quietly behind him, waiting.

Only after nearly an hour did Hakurei stop meditating and turn around.

"You're patient. Good, very good!"

The old man nodded, thoroughly satisfied, and continued, "I was worried that, being so eager to learn something new, you might gain nothing at all. But seeing how composed you are puts me greatly at ease!"

In truth, apart from his lack of faith in Athena, Hakurei was quite satisfied with the disciple before him.

Both his talent and his temperament were outstanding. He was simply a fine piece of uncarved jade. With careful shaping, he would surely become a rare treasure.

"Let me see what you've learned at the bottom of the cliff!" Hakurei gestured as he dressed.

"Yes, Teacher!"

Wuxin answered and immediately burned his Cosmo, manifesting a strand of corpse qi in his palm. Like a small coiling snake, it wound continuously around his hand.

"Mm, not bad!"

Hakurei praised him again and said seriously, "All my special techniques are transformations based on corpse qi."

"So, as my disciple, you must master the basic applications of corpse qi and study it thoroughly."

As he spoke, he extended his right index finger and likewise burned his Cosmo, manifesting a gleam of silver light at his fingertip.

Then that silver glow split into several streams, becoming silver currents that rapidly circled Hakurei like dancing dragons. Each radiated a dangerous aura that made the heart tremble.

"Sense them carefully. What is the difference between your corpse qi and these currents of mine?" the old man asked Wuxin.

Wuxin immediately closed his eyes and carefully examined the streaks of silver light with his senses.

After a long while, he opened his eyes again and said slowly, "Your currents are purer than my corpse qi, Teacher, and they contain something strange as well."

"Every time I examine them, I feel as though my consciousness is about to be sucked inside!"

"This must be Sekishiki, right?"

It was a very powerful special technique that could strip an enemy's soul directly from their body. In a sense, it was an instant-death move, on an entirely different level from the ordinary corpse qi he currently wielded.

"That's right. This is Sekishiki!"

Hakurei didn't deny it and continued, "Sekishiki is actually the product of sublimating ordinary corpse qi."

"The gases produced by a decaying corpse naturally suppress living beings, while the lingering resentment of the dead entangles the soul."

"By combining these two properties, we can use the power of Sekishiki to strip an enemy's soul from their body, or even shred it directly."

"Like this!"

As he spoke, the old man pointed lightly, and the silver currents circling him changed direction and lunged straight at Wuxin.

Before Wuxin could react, several silver currents had already entered his body. Then he felt an immensely powerful force bind his consciousness.

His vision blurred, and then he was hovering in midair, entwined by several silver currents. Below him stood someone who looked exactly like him, while Hakurei stood directly opposite, controlling the Sekishiki.

"That's... my physical body?"

He froze for a moment before realizing that he was now a separate soul, already stripped from his body by Sekishiki.

"So this is what it feels like to have your soul stripped out?"

Glancing at his insubstantial right hand, Wuxin found it utterly unbelievable.

The sensation was truly extraordinary.

Chapter 20: Hakurei's teachings (part two)

"Teacher, may I ask how I can sublimate my current ordinary corpse qi into Sekishiki?" Wuxin asked earnestly.

The ordinary corpse qi he currently wielded had almost no destructive power. It fell far short of true Sekishiki.

As Hakurei pulled Wuxin's soul back into his body, he explained, "Ordinary corpse qi is merely a natural product of a corpse's decay."

"It is also mixed with other things in the air, making it highly impure and greatly weakening its effects. On top of that, the lingering resentment of the dead is weak and limited. Achieving the same effect with ordinary corpse qi is almost impossible."

"So the key to sublimating ordinary corpse qi into Sekishiki lies in purification and strengthening?" Wuxin asked tentatively.

By now, his soul had rejoined his body, and he had completely lost that special sensation of being a pure soul.

"That's right!"

Hakurei extinguished the glow at his fingertip, and the countless silver currents circling him vanished as well. He continued, "Purify the corpse qi, remove everything extraneous within it, then use our own mental will to strengthen the resentment of the dead, and Sekishiki is sublimated into being!"

"This is also the first technique I will teach you: Sekishiki Meikai Ha!"

"Thank you for teaching me, Teacher. I'll remember it!" Wuxin hurriedly thanked him.

Hakurei continued, "This Underworld Wave is foundational. Its destructive power isn't the greatest, but its uses are endless."

"We can use this technique to open the Underworld and send enemies inside to destroy them, or send ourselves inside to evade danger. It's convenient for both killing enemies and escaping."

"You must never underestimate it because it lacks destructive power!"

"Yes, Teacher!"

Wuxin gave his solemn assent.

"Next is the second technique!" Hakurei turned his right hand palm-up, and a pale flame manifested above it.

"Teacher, isn't this a little too fast?" Wuxin scratched his head at the sight.

He hadn't even mastered the first technique, yet the old man was already teaching him the second. It really was rather unexpected.

Hakurei thought nothing of it. "Your talent far exceeds that of ordinary people. There's no harm in teaching you a little more at once!"

"Besides, your comprehension is extremely high, and you learn quickly. Teaching you slowly, one technique at a time, would be far too much trouble!"

He could readily foresee that in just a few days, Wuxin would gain an initial grasp of Sekishiki Meikai Ha and come looking for him to learn the second technique.

"Then I'm sorry for the trouble, Teacher!" Wuxin thanked him once again.

The old man raised the pale flame in his hand and explained patiently, "The corpse qi produced by decaying bodies contains a component called phosphine."

"It ignites very easily. Even a slightly higher ambient temperature can cause it to combust spontaneously."