Chapter 95. < 38. The Best Disciple >
"Will it really be okay?"
"Of course. At your current level, there's no way it won't work."
"Really?"
"Really."
"Alright, here I go."
"Yes."
Inside her own room. Tania Eloyce assumed a cultivation posture and gently closed her eyes.
She currently faced an important matter before her.
She was attempting to challenge the lower dantian gate, one of the three steps toward becoming an Expert.
"Huu."
A faint breath flowed from Tania's lips.
Lumian watched her. His eyes contained far more anticipation than worry.
At that moment, Tania, who had exhaled once more, opened her eyes and turned to look at him.
"Are you sure it'll work? Maybe I should wait a bit longer......"
"Ah, I told you there's really no need to worry?"
"But...... breaking through the lower dantian at my age, there's no way it could be that easy......"
"It's not easy. It's extremely difficult. But for you, Senior, it's easy. You said you believed in me, so why don't you believe me now?"
Frustrated, he slipped in some casual speech.
Tania's eyes narrowed. As she was about to say something, Lumian quickly blurted out his next words.
"Close your eyes."
"......They're closed."
"Now, try to recall all the training you've done over the past three weeks."
"Do you have a hobby of tormenting people? I thought so from when you were reading that book with whips and ropes drawn in it......"
"No, why are you suddenly bringing that up...... I'm not trying to torment you, I'm trying to instill confidence in you."
"Hmm."
"Think about the training intensity from those three weeks. You suffered that much, and you achieved even more than you suffered, but you're still worried? Really?"
Tania pouted her lips as she recalled the training process with Lumian.
It was hellish. Enough to make her shudder just thinking about it.
Swinging a heavy sword for hours until her arms wouldn't rise wasn't that difficult.
That was something she had done before, and when she received Lumian's help with aura cultivation afterward, the pain disappeared cleanly.
When Boomer Simpson saw her rolling on the ground with a horrified expression, she even felt a sense of pride thinking 'I'm working hard.'
But after swordsmanship training ended.
The test conducted while her body and mind were in tatters was truly terrible.
'How can he emit such energy?'
What Lumian demanded wasn't anything special.
Approach him. And strike his abdomen as strongly as she was angry.
She wanted to ask what was so difficult about that, but the moment he released his aura presence, Tania's expression had no choice but to stiffen.
Fear, despair, malice.
It was frightening.
It felt like standing before a high-ranking demon.
The moment she was exposed to Lumian's aura presence, she wanted to immediately turn and run away. She wanted to collapse. Sometimes she almost lost control of her bladder.
'If your belief in yourself is strong, this much pressure is nothing. Come forward one slow step at a time. If you want, you may hold a sword.'
It was the first time she felt negative emotions beyond 'resentment' toward Lumian. She shed a single tear like a child held in a giant's grip.
But eventually she overcame it.
Breaking free from not being able to move a single step for a week, she took one step forward.
The time needed to take two steps, three steps was much shorter than that. Having gained momentum, she was able to break through Lumian's aura presence and land a punch on his abdomen within two weeks.
And immediately after, Tania could feel it.
The fact that cracks had formed in the wall frozen like ice in her dantian, and that a portion of it had melted into power she could wield.
"How is it. Do you have a bit more confidence now?"
"Yeah. You wicked guy."
Tania nodded.
An extremely resentful guy, so vicious that she thought about kicking his shins throughout the entire training.
But gratitude weighed far more than that.
If he hadn't periodically infused her with energy, she still wouldn't have perceived the energy solidified inside her.
'Even if not for that, just by being nearby...... I feel at ease.'
Like a massive existence like a mountain embracing her.
It was a shameful thought she couldn't voice aloud, but it was Tania's true heart.
"Huuup."
She took a deep breath. And exhaled.
Repeating that several times, her mind became peaceful.
She looked at Lumian again. He remained the same. He was protecting her side with heavy stability like a mountain.
'Even if I can't trust myself, I can trust Lumian.'
"I'll start."
"Yes."
"Wish me luck."
"Do your best."
"Yeah."
With the brief conversation ended, Tania entered aura cultivation.
She forgot everything around her, even Lumian. She concentrated all her nerves solely on her interior, and specifically toward the lower dantian gate.
Seeing this, Lumian nodded.
He murmured in a small voice.
"You can come in now."
Rattle-!
As if waiting for those words, the window opened.
And the baby dragon Semu revealed himself.
Having taken the form of a golden parrot for the first time in a while, he greeted Lumian happily.
"Hello! Nice to see you, Lumian-nim!"
"Shh. Lower your voice more. She's in the middle of cultivation."
"Oops! I'm sorry."
Semu scratched his head with his wings.
Lumian gave a gesture that it was fine, then closed the window the fellow had opened.
Even in that brief time, the guy couldn't stay still and was fluttering around here and there in the room.
"Stay still, you rascal."
"Gasp, I'm sorry. It's been so long since I came into a human's room other than Lumian-nim's......"
"It's fine. You know what you need to do, right?"
"Of course I know! I just need to watch over Tania!"
"Right. Just watch for now. I hope you'll just keep watching until the end if possible."
Lumian looked at Tania who was immersed in cultivation.
He trusted her. At her level, she was more than capable of breaking through the lower dantian passage. It was a much more optimistic situation than with Teorona or Boomer.
'Since she can do it alone, rather than unnecessarily giving help, it's better to just watch. For the future as well.'
But that didn't mean he didn't want to take any precautions. She too was as precious a being to Lumian as his three friends.
Therefore he had summoned Semu who was sleeping soundly in his lair. It was possible thanks to the communication crystal the fellow had given him.
Now he could relax. Having finished his thoughts, Lumian held a faint smile.
'Even if by any chance a problem occurs, if Semu stabilizes the surrounding energy and I help, we can avoid disaster.'
Of course, such a thing wouldn't happen.
He watched Tania quietly with eyes containing warmth.
To say it was simply a gaze looking at a talented junior, there was a somewhat deeper emotion melted within it.
"But, Lumian-nim! When will you do the promise after this work is done? Will you do it right away?"
"..Right away?"
"Yes! I'm totally looking forward to it, I'm totally ready to get excited!"
The promise the fellow spoke of wasn't anything special.
Lumian had promised to sprinkle a rain of flower petals for two hours to receive Semu's help. He chuckled and said.
"I'll do it right away when we return."
"Heeheehee. Oheeheehee."
"Shh. Now you really have to be quiet."
"Mmph!"
Semu covered his beak with both his wings.
Even amid that disturbance, Tania wasn't affected. She had already forgotten everything except herself.
She was simply, steadily making preparations to break through the lower dantian gate.
***
Concentrating on her inner self, knocking on the mass solidified in her dantian, scraping together the fragments that fell and melted away.
Finally, having finished preparing to break through the lower dantian gate, Tania moved her aura. The wriggling energy soon formed a cone-like shape.
'I wish the tip was sharper......'
Regrettably, it was beyond Tania's ability.
A slight anxiety settled in her heart.
If her aura had been like stone, it would have been easier to maintain its shape, but perhaps because it had qualities similar to water, it was extremely difficult.
'No, it's fine. Instead, it has high stability!'
Tania's energy was like heavy water.
As heavy as a boulder, yet much softer, therefore it had stability. Because of that, there was the advantage of being able to knock on the gate multiple times without burden.
Thinking that way, confidence rose again.
The encouragement Lumian had drilled into her ears also gave her strength. Having concentrated her mind, she fired her aura with firm determination.
And after a while.
Thud
Thud, thud
Thud, thud, thuump!
Crack...... kwaaang!
'Huh?'
In just six knocks, she succeeded in breaking through the lower dantian gate.
She wore a bewildered expression.
'It was this easy?'
Of course, it wasn't so easy that she thought 'let's break through the middle dantian gate while I'm at it!'
But she thought there would be at least one or two hardships. Severe pain shooting up to her head, or having to fight a long battle that slowly gnawed at her concentration.......
Yet without any of that, she just succeeded.
She had simply applied the principle of heaviness as usual. She had simply pushed forward steadily like when breaking through Lumian's aura presence.
'No, it wasn't just a success!'
Tania shook her head in her mind.
She had already paid the price. Through training with Lumian.
That was how she had to think. When she thought about those three hellish weeks of agony, breaking through the lower dantian gate felt like nothing.
Lumian's excellent teaching.
Her own effort in following that teaching to the end.
Her talent that didn't make that effort go to waste.
Thinking that she was belatedly receiving compensation for these three things, the current achievement didn't feel like luck at all. It felt like a price she deserved to receive.
And she could realize.
The emotion that had bloomed in her heart right now was precisely true 'confidence.'
'Perhaps, my talent really might be great enough to be counted among the best on the continent......'
Thinking such thoughts, Tania forcibly calmed her excitement.
There was still a long way to go. She was still just a frog in a well. She tightened her mind again, which was trying to loosen.
She was someone who had lived her whole life restraining herself, fearing she would fall into arrogance. Such a nature wouldn't change in a short time. Tania was Tania.
However, it was certain that she was improving little by little.
As proof, her face right now looked more peaceful than ever.
Having gathered her energy, she opened her eyes.
Then Lumian's figure appeared. He was still watching over her with a solid presence.
Tania said with a shy smile.
"I succeeded."
"I told you, right? It would be easy. Just so you know, I didn't help at all. I just watched."
"I know. Today I did it all myself."
"What, you've become really cocky? For a disciple."
"For a teacher to just watch."
"That's true. Today Senior Tania did everything alone."
"Right, I did it all!"
"Hahaha."
"Heeheehee......."
The two, facing each other, let out soft laughter.
It was a harmonious atmosphere.
However, that atmosphere didn't last long.
Because another voice echoed, riding on their laughter.
"Puhheehee!"
"......What?"
"Puhheeheehee!"
"What is this? Where is this laughter coming from...... huh?"
Tania wore a surprised expression.
And reached her hand toward the top of her head.
But nothing was caught. The golden parrot that had quickly flown up flapped its wings and moved to Lumian's shoulder.
Seeing this, her eyes went wide.
"A, a parrot? What, when did you come into my room?"
"Well......"
"Lumian, did you bring it?"
"......If you think about it, yes."
Lumian scratched his head.
And gave additional explanation.
"To be more precise, this one said it wanted to see you, Senior Tania."
"What? A parrot? Me?"
"Yes. Said it wants to get close. Said let's get along from now on so......"
What kind of nonsense is that!
Tania looked at Lumian with an incredulous expression, and then at the golden parrot.
Am I the strange one? Or is Lumian the strange one?
Perhaps he's doing a gag, and I'm not properly receiving it?
All sorts of random thoughts entered her mind.
At that moment, the golden parrot that had hopped down from his shoulder transformed with a popping sound.
"Hello! I'm Semu!"
"......."
"And I'm a dragon! Nice to meet you, Tania!"
Tania looked at Lumian.
Seeing her astonished face, he shrugged his shoulders.
"It is a dragon."
"......."
"Really."
One more human who knew of the baby dragon Semu's existence was added.