Avatar - Conquering the Elements-Chapter 152

The Spirit Realm. Yuki.

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Some plans that seemed non-urgent had to be hastily postponed. After all, the sixth chakra had recently made its presence known. I could have waited, but... I desperately wanted to grow stronger. Besides, even a slightly opened chakra was simply unbearable. No pain, but every second felt like I was about to sneeze, yet the sneeze never came. It was tolerable, but the situation was incredibly nerve-wracking. Now I understood why the records mentioned many practitioners with two or three open chakras, but few reached the final "door." Someone could go mad lingering in that state for a year—they'd surely rush to open the chakra, even if it meant almost certain death.

So, I decided not to delay. In an area untouched by Vatu's energy, cleared of any hostile spirits, four identical figures moved about. Yes, this time, the chakra opening would occur in a single body—that's what my intuition "whispered." In such cases, I trust it unconditionally, as the closer you get to the final chakra, the stricter the requirements.

Wiping the sweat from my forehead, I looked at Agni, the fire spirit squatting nearby. The heat radiating from his body easily penetrated even our energy-enhanced bodies. Van had succeeded, finally "merging" with the ancient spirit and gaining a drop of his wisdom. Honestly, Agni deserves respect just for his titanic patience. Not everyone can endure the constant "buzzing in their ear" from a stranger. Yet, he never struck back, only verbally expressing his disapproval of such a neighbor. What's truly impressive is that Agni is a genuine fire spirit, inherently excitable and slightly volatile.

*"Four of them..."* Agni muttered gloomily. Tell any other ancient spirit that the Great Agni was outtalked by some hybrid of spirit and human, and they wouldn't believe it. *"I should've fled while I still had the chance..."* First, he agreed to an intimate "merger," and now he's being used as a giant furnace.

*"A valuable acquisition!"* I couldn't stop rejoicing over our "accidental" encounter with Agni. In his time, it was Van Shi Tong who told me the approximate location of the ancient fire spirit. According to him, Agni had been living on inertia for years, and the world was close to losing one of its most powerful light spirits. The Spirit of Knowledge didn't want that outcome, though it was clear the Great Owl's genuine concern was masked by pragmatism. His motives were confirmed when he heavily hinted that I should somehow rouse Agni. And if he hadn't mentioned Agni's peaceful nature, I would never have acted so boldly. Find other mortals! Koha and Vatu are more than enough for me!

*"I think that's it,"* I said wearily, looking at the large cauldron I'd been crafting for a good two hours. This cauldron had its own story. To successfully open the new chakra, auxiliary tools are needed. One of the most important is the vessel in which I'll absorb the essence of millennia-old plants. Hence, another crucial factor: the fiercer the fire, the more profound my transformation. Agni's hands will serve as the "fuel," holding the cauldron. I doubt there's a more powerful fire in this world. The ancient spirit's flame can easily melt even the most durable human alloy, so my gaze fell on the curiosities of the Spirit Realm.

Spiritual iron—or, as humans call it, meteoritic iron. For a long time, the two names confused me, as Van Shi Tong's library only mentioned spiritual iron, leading me to think they were different minerals. I had to dig deeper, as the reason for the human name genuinely intrigued me. It turned out to be much simpler: the first documented appearance of this ore coincided with a meteor shower in some ancient year. Perhaps such a metal truly exists in the universe, but according to the Spirit of Knowledge, nearly 100% of spiritual iron entering the Human Realm results from micro-glitches in the "divider of worlds."

It's called spiritual for a reason: this iron enhances its properties by absorbing surrounding spiritual—that is, magical—energy. This is why ordinary people like Master Piandao can work with it; in the human world, there's not enough energy for the iron to become too "willful." Here, however, I had to work with the absolute "king," which had absorbed "tons" of energy.

*"Let's go,"* I said confidently, pouring water into the cauldron and merging with all my bodies. Then, I carefully began lowering the ancient plants into the water. It slowly started bubbling and turning a deep green. The scents wafting through the air were incredible! At times, it felt like I'd never had a nose until now!

Stripping off my soaking wet clothes, I began descending into the bubbling green concoction. The fire spirit exuded palpable anxiety. He's a good spirit, after all—we've barely met, and he's already worried. Smiling crookedly at Agni, I prepared for the opening. The sixth chakra is located at the center of the forehead and is blocked by illusions. Most likely, I'd have to pass through them.

*"I won't succumb to illusions..."* I began, infusing my words with life energy—all according to Guru Patik's method.

After a couple of strikes against the "door" of the sixth chakra, it swung wide open, as if it had long awaited my arrival. Suddenly, my thoughts became hazy and ephemeral. I was used to having to strike the "doors" dozens of times before they opened.

*"Don't succumb to illusions!"* I almost shouted to myself as my consciousness grew increasingly clouded. In the next moment, it felt like something heavy struck my head, and the scenery shifted. For the first minutes, I still fought against the imposed visions, but then...

*"What was I thinking about?"* pondered the man whose words decided the fates of hundreds of thousands. It felt like I was contemplating something extremely important to me. *"Oh well, maybe I'll remember later,"* I dismissed the empty thoughts, focusing on playing with my children.

*"Life without Vatu is much better,"* I smiled at my little ones, who kept trying to put things in their mouths. The battle with the Great Spirit had occurred a couple of years ago, ending in our victory. Though we lost many conquerors and light spirits, life went on. My elder daughters delighted me with their achievements, while the younger ones with their mischief. People had finally learned about my other identities and my significant contributions to our victory, forcibly placing me on the Emperor's throne. A living icon was urgently needed to prevent people from making mistakes. No matter how hard I tried, only about 20% of the conquerors returned home. The people thirsted for revenge, and many still didn't believe in the threat of some spirit. Over time, I managed to calm the people, and my authority soared to the heavens.

*"Dear, come to the table!"* called Ursa, who had not only retained her former beauty but somehow enhanced it.

Sitting at the table, listening to the cheerful voices of my family and seeing their happy faces, I felt this was true life. I could have stayed at that table forever!

Nothing troubled the life of our large family, and every day was filled with a sense of complete fulfillment.

*"Look, Dad! Someone's doing Agni Kai again!"* pointed little Kushi, now grown. People often gathered there to show off their martial skills or elemental mastery.

*"Agni?"* I inexplicably stalled on that word.

The following week.

*"Stop pouring it on!"* a man slapped the counter. *"It's impossible!"*

*"I'm telling you for the hundredth time—it's genuine 200-year-old ginseng!"* For credibility, they waved a slightly open box containing the plant in front of the man.

*"Ginseng?"* The word somehow slipped out of me.

That evening, I looked at the faces of my wives and found... no former warmth? My thoughts disgusted me, but the situation still "smelled" of artificiality. At that moment, my head throbbed intensely, and reality once again seemed... real?

*"No!"* I shouted loudly, trying to shake off the feeling of losing control over my life.

*"Are you okay, Yuki?"* Agni's voice sounded muffled, as if through cotton. *"Say something..."*

Now was not the time for him. Without giving me a moment to reflect on my potentially dire fate, my body began "reassembling"—no other word fits the processes occurring within me. Everything happened so fast that I couldn't keep up with the metamorphosis. The source alternately grew larger and smaller, yet became exponentially denser. The channels didn't stay still either, deepening and expanding every second until they completely filled my body.

*"A double energy body,"* a thought flashed before I refocused on the ongoing changes. It only intensified. The sixth chakra, as if alive, delved into my genome, rummaging through my hereditary information. Something was altered here, something added there, or entirely removed. Each time, my body responded with bursts of euphoria, making it clear—everything was beneficial.

After about five minutes, it ended. As I opened my eyes, a pungent aroma assaulted my nose, sharply cutting through my senses. The stench came from the black liquid covering my entire body. Welcome to the life of a cultivator forging their body...

Calming the spirit, I began washing myself thoroughly, though I just wanted to lie on the ground. I felt like I'd been reborn. While cleaning up, I noticed my body's proportions had slightly changed—not drastically, but the difference was there. For example, my balance had improved. There were countless such minor details, as if my body had been refined to a certain perfection.

Clenching my fist, I felt the explosive power within what seemed like a delicate hand. Beyond physical attributes, I gained better control over my life energy. Entirely expected, as channels determine much, and I'm now one big channel. Techniques based on life energy became significantly easier and more effective. Using the Yu Yan Archers' technique, I could even push off the air, creating a relatively solid surface from life energy. This will provide many advantages in combat, especially for making sharp turns during flight.

I played around like this all day until my body made it clear that the chakra opening hadn't gone unnoticed, and I needed at least a little sleep. By then, I realized I was more mentally exhausted than physically—those illusions had weighed heavily on my consciousness.

That night, I had a very strange dream. After successfully opening the sixth chakra, a gray-haired old man appeared on a flying sword. His entire appearance screamed "cultivator": flowing long hair, wise eyes holding eternity itself, and clothing befitting ancient Han Chinese.

*"Very well done, young man,"* he nodded approvingly. *"Reaching the sixth mortal rank in this energy-scarce world..."* He seemed to praise me, but with such condescension, as if speaking to an ant. *"Such a diligent student is needed in our Striking Divine Blades sect!* An unseen force immediately seized me, leaving me no choice. *"Spend a year or so in the outer courtyard, and perhaps you'll grow into the inner courtyard."*

He then began flying around Agni, who, like me, was immobilized. He repeatedly marveled at the fire spirit, saying something about a new spiritual weapon appearing in their sect. It seemed they wanted to stuff the spirit into some kind of sword. After that, I don't remember—I woke up.

*"Some nightmares you have,"* I grumbled all day, vigilantly looking around. What if some super-divine-emperor-cultivator tears through space and ends up here?! And I don't want to hide in a cave!

Ani helped distract me somewhat, deciding to test my increased abilities. I wholeheartedly agreed.

*"Very weak ancient,"* Agni said with a hint of praise after my fist struck his leg. The force in that blow came solely from life energy.

*"Hmm, just a weak ancient,"* the spirit said with genuine approval the next time.

*"So, when I use all my strength—be it neutral or life energy—I can spar with a weak spirit and have a good chance of winning,"* I thought. The changing face of the Face Stealer no longer seemed so terrifying. Realizing my strength helped restore my former confidence. No, I won't go looking for Koha just yet—I'm still no match. I need to increase my chances of victory, and first, I must understand the limits of my new abilities. It seems the sixth chakra has deepened all the others; at least, my senses are working even better. Practice and research are needed!