Is That A Wisp? Chapter 3
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Let alone the old man, even the crew behind him gave Krune weird looks. Some started to laugh, while others just snorted or looked at him with blatant disdain. They thought that this wisp was definitely looking for a beating.
But contrary to what they had expected, the old man just shook his head and didn't say anything.
Why should he care? It's just a wisp. There was no need to pay attention to what he said. Not to mention that Feifei was only a child. She would probably forget about her promise in a few days. Even if she doesn't, she would definitely see it as a joke when she grew up.
On the other hand, Feifei was as happy as ever.
"You said it yourself, okay? You can't go back on your word."
"Of course!"
In fact, even Krune himself didn't believe at the moment that he would get there. Nevertheless, he now had a reason to try hard, a reason to stop fleeing. Even though he believed that she would soon forget about him, it doesn't matter. The more he looked at the smiley Feifei, the better he felt.
But then, Feifei asked something that he didn't expect.
"To become strong, you need a good cultivation technique. Which one are you using at the moment?"
The old man just gave him a side glance in response. With his realm, he could totally tell that this wisp didn't cultivate any technique whatsoever. He could see that he was still at the 2nd stage of the Qi Condensation Realm. Not to mention that it was all done through the average accumulation of energy that all wisps were used to doing.
Krune was taken aback by the question. It's not that he didn't know what those techniques were. By following them, one's cultivation can reach higher levels at faster speeds. Even though that's the case, he was a wisp. What technique was there to talk about? From all the wisps he had met in his 3 years of life so far, not a single one of them had ever cultivated using a technique. They basically accumulated energy like any other wisp, that's all.
Feeling a bit embarrassed, Krune answered.
"Well, we wisps are truly weak with almost no life span to speak of, so I've never heard of a cultivation technique that a wisp could use, so I don't cultivate any."
The girl didn't expect that, saying in response.
"But without one, there's no way you can ever become truly strong. If you rely on just accumulating energy alone, I can tell you that you won't get anywhere."
Krune could only reply.
"There's no other way. I will just have to think up of another way to become stronger."
Feifei looked back at the old man and asked.
"Uncle Feng, is there a cultivation technique that we could let him try?"
The old man already expected such a question and didn't think much of it. Now that it had reached this point and he knew that Krune wasn't coming, he wanted to get over with it as soon as possible. With a flip of his hand, a scroll appeared, which he simply tossed at Krune.
"This is the only technique that I know of that could be used by a wisp. The problem with wisps is the fact that, unlike most life forms, they don't have meridians. Because of that, a great majority of the cultivation techniques available are useless for them, and that's still true even after acquiring a human form."
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Krune was ecstatic! He never expected to find a cultivation technique that works for wisps too. As a wisp, he knew all too well the difference between him and the others. The fact that there was even one that worked for them was already a miracle in his eyes.
Uncle Feng noticed that and wasn't going to say anything else when Feifei intervened.
"But Uncle Feng, isn't that one of the most common cultivation techniques out there? Father said that there's nothing worth praising about it and that only poor cultivators would use it at the start. Isn't there anything better he could use?"
"There isn't. It's not that I don't want to help out, but it's because there's no other way to help. Without meridians, how can a cultivation technique even be used? Be happy that this Myriad Energies Technique even works."
Uncle Feng left with those parting words and turned to enter the ship.
"Say your goodbyes because we're leaving in a few minutes. By the way, my full name is Su Feng."
In fact, there were two things he didn't say. The first thing he didn't say was that this was an incredibly common cultivation technique used by poor cultivators at the beginning. If Krune could leave this forest without being hunted, it wouldn't be long before he found out about this cultivation technique.
The second thing he didn't say was that although everyone considered it ordinary and easy to obtain, there was one thing no one was ever able to figure out regarding the technique. How exactly did the creator of this technique make it work without meridians?
It followed a totally different path than any other cultivation technique, that's for sure.
Krune didn't mind that at all. He already got much more than he could ever expect today. His life was saved; he became acquainted with someone from the Wang Clan and even got a cultivation technique that, although ordinary, works for wisps. On top of that, it seems like he got a fiance?
Of course, just like Su Feng, Krune knew that it would almost be impossible for that to really happen.
Nevertheless, he now at least had an objective, which was enough for now. He might not succeed, but he would definitely try.
By the time he came back from his thoughts, Su Feng had already disappeared, so Krune simply expressed his gratitude to him in silence.
Feifei knew that it was time to go. In her childish mind, she really believed they would meet again.
"Krune, you must definitely come! After you get there, I won't need to be acquainted with all those pampered young masters my father wants me to see. They are all too boring. Krune is much cuter and funnier!"
Krune couldn't help but chuckle in response. She really had no idea what marriage really was about. But that's okay. Even if she forgot about it or just treated it as a childish thought, later on, that wouldn't matter. It's okay as long as he remembered. Of course, he wasn't expecting that he would marry even if she remembered anyway.
"Alright! I'll definitely do my best to get there. It'll probably take a long time, but I won't give up. You can count on me."
Before leaving, Feifei left him a device and explained how the universe worked. It wasn't anything extraordinary, just a compilation of information. Since Krune was going to visit her in the future, he had to at least know what planets, stars, and the universe were. Fortunately, this device had a lot of information like that. Of course, from where Feifei came, this kind of thing could be bought basically everywhere, and it was quite cheap.
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With that, they bade their farewells. Feifei was heading to the ship while Su Feng had already embarked on it. There were only a few more members of the crew outside finalizing the last steps to take off. No one noticed, but at that moment, something flew out of Feifei's glabella and entered Krune's core. One must understand that the cultivation difference between Krune and Feifei was like the difference between heaven and earth. It wasn't even worth mentioning! Because of this, even Krune himself didn't notice anything.
Inside, Uncle Feng was just listening to his subordinates talk.
"Master Feng. Is it really okay to let that wisp go after what he said? Master Wang won't be happy if he finds out about it."
Su Feng replied as if it was nothing.
"Why would he? It's just a little wisp. If Krune was one of those boys from the big clans, then sure, he might have said something. But he definitely won't give a second thought about this matter."
"Considering who said that, he would just take it as her daughter's crazy child talks again. As for me, it would be beneath myself to make a move on such a weakling."
The subordinate heard that and didn't say anything else after.
On the outside, Krune was looking at the spaceship taking off. He didn't know when he would be able to leave the planet nor if he would ever do so. But since things had reached up to this point, there was only one way to go now.
And that was forward.
--------
After that meeting, Krune found a place to hide. The place he found was a waterfall. Behind it, there was just enough space for him to stay. To him, the vacant space was more than enough. He took the information device that Feifei gave him and started memorizing everything. The device only had information about the universe. It explained how it worked, like what planets, stars, black holes, and so on were. Of course, it was still an eye-opener for Krune. At this point, he realized that he was really living at the bottom of a well.
After making sure that he had memorized everything, Krune threw the device away. It would be annoying to carry it with him anyway. Not to mention that wisps were extremely intelligent. Once Krune learned something, he would never forget it as long as he willed so. As for studying the contents, Krune would take his time to do it. While he was cultivating, for example, he could use that time to access those memories and comprehend them. He was confident that he wouldn't need to spend too much time understanding everything, at least not until he could grasp the basics.
A few days later, Krune was still hiding behind the waterfall while scrolling through the Myriad Energies Technique. After fully memorizing the contents, he came to understand why it worked for wisps. It turns out that it wasn't because the method could be used without meridians. In actuality, it merely had no use for meridians to start with.
In fact, although all races could practice this technique, it seemed like it was tailor-made for wisps. Instead of using the meridians, the cultivator had to manipulate the energy in their body to create a thing called pseudo-energy meridians. These pseudo-energy meridians were made up of energy themselves and would disappear once one stopped cultivating. That's why the meridians that one was born with had no use since this technique only worked through the pseudo-energy meridians. One's own meridians wouldn't be able to absorb spiritual energy while this technique was activated.
The reason behind that was because when a cultivator absorbed energy from heaven and earth, they would change the properties of the energy they absorbed into that of their own. Only then would it be deposited into the dantian or demon core. But the Myriad Energies Technique followed a different path. It absorbed the energy as it is and stored it inside without doing any conversion. The conversion itself only happened inside the dantian or demon core. This was why this technique couldn't be used with any other method since they would conflict with each other and probably cause a cultivation deviation.
Krune felt that this technique was made for wisps precisely because of that. Since he didn't have true meridians, the pseudo-energy meridians were the only ones that he would be able to use.
That was also why almost no one used this technique for an extended period of time. In the end, by using true meridians, one would obtain faster results in their path of cultivation since most of the life forms were born with over a hundred of them. And unfortunately, the Myriad Energies Technique could only allow one to create up to 9 pseudo-energy meridians.
The reason why other races had a use for this technique at all was that they needed to first open their true meridians for use. To do that, they needed spiritual energy, and that's where this technique came in handy. After a few months of cultivation, a cultivator with average talent would still be able to open more than 9 real meridians for use. After that, they would cast this technique aside since it would lose its purpose.
Of course, there were several other ways to open up one's true meridians. Take big clans, for example. They would have their elders inject spiritual energy into the body of their offsprings. It would help them open up those channels, which was a much faster and reliable way to do it.
Krune soon put his thoughts aside and started the process of creating pseudo-energy meridians. As a being of energy, he obviously had it easy. By the end of the day, he had already created a full working pseudo-energy meridian. Beings made of flesh and blood could do that as well, but it would definitely take them several times longer.
Once a meridian was successfully created, it would dissipate after the cultivator stopped cultivating. But by the next time he started cultivating again, it would only take a few minutes to reform that pseudo-energy meridian. It's just like riding a bicycle. Once one learned how to do it, that knowledge stays forever.
Time soon passed, and just like that, a week went by.
---
Back inside the Wang Clan spaceship, Su Feng was inside Feifei's room. He sent out some spiritual energy as a barrier soon appeared around them. After that, he looked at Feifei, who was playing around, and finally decided to ask.
"Feifei, even though you're quite the playful girl, that was a lot coming from you, especially that marriage thing. What happened there? What did you see?"
Feifei kept playing while laughing. It was as if she didn't hear Su Feng at all.
"Feifei!"
This time, Feifei answered.
"I didn't 'see' anything."
Uncle Feng didn't believe it and kept pressing, saying.
"There's no need to keep it a secret from me. You should know that as well. There's no way I would betray my words from back then. So, why can't you tell me?"
Feifei finally stopped playing and looked at him, responding.
"Uncle Feng, I know very well that you would never do me any harm. That's why I'm not hiding anything from you. I really can't see anything about him at all. And that's what caught my attention."
This time, Su Feng was taken aback.
"Is that even possible?"
Feifei laughed once more and simply answered.
"Seems like it is. That's why it'll be very fun! As for this promise of marriage, I will hold onto it until he comes for me. I won't give him to anyone! I'm not lying when I said I liked him very much. He's funny and cute, but above all, I can't see anything."
She then made a playful smile as she added.
"I even gave him my mark."
Su Feng's heart almost stopped at that moment.
"You can't be serious!"
Feifei just laughed after that, but Su Feng didn't find it funny at all.
"If the Wang Clan finds out that your mark is gone, they'll surely flip the universe upside down looking for it."
Feifei didn't mind that at all.
"I trust that he'll be able to deal with this bit of trouble. Otherwise, he wouldn't be the one I chose."
Uncle Feng sighed in response and didn't say anything else after that.
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