We make our way through a winding black hallway before Monk leads me to a room that has dozens of rectangular doors on it.
He turns to one, then points to all of them.
"Choose a room; there are showers and fresh clothing in all of them."
I walk up to the closest door and pause for a moment, then place my palm against the cold stone.
I push on it with a lot of force, but it doesn't budge at all. It's like a solid wall.
Monk speaks.
"All it needs is a small amount of Qi. Less than you would use to throw a punch. Channel a small amount into your hand while making contact with the door, and it will open wide. The stone won't budge unless a Qi user opens it."
I do as he says, letting a small amount trickle into my fingertips, then the panel of stone swings open.
There's a small dimly lit room with fresh white shirts and pants, along with the orange robe everyone wears in this place.
On the back wall, there's a shower and bath.
I take 10 minutes, and the room steams up nicely as all my soreness and fatigue from our training goes away.
I change into the shirt and pants provided, but decide against wearing the robe, putting my armor and cloak back on as an overlayer before coming out.
Monk greets me, and we make our way to the Dining hall as initially intended.
There are many bows and greetings as we get food from a fast-moving line. Everyone gets a very similar meal, but it smells delicious.
I sit down across a table from Monk and we begin to eat.
There's meat, vegetables, rice, and plenty of water. It's all very standard food, but I'm grateful for the hospitality.
The only thing that stands out to me is a small spherical white pill that comes in a black cup next to the water.
Monk swallows his whole without a second of hesitation, and I watch many people at the surrounding tables doing a similar thing. They all take the pill before even starting the meal.
I pick up the tiny black cup with the pill inside and look straight ahead.
"What's this? Why is everyone taking it?"
I can sense there is energy coming off it, but it's unclear what exactly it does.
"A Tier 1 Qi pill. Everyone takes it after training."
He points to the floor and continues.
"Natural Qi resides in these mountain stones; we've mined and harnessed the power for centuries waiting for a time like this. Everyone restores their Qi after training instead of waiting weeks, months, or possibly even years to fully restore one's core."
I stare at the pill with a curious gaze but place it back down on the table.
Monk begins to eat, but nods.
"You don't have to take it now, but it would make you feel much better and prepare you for the next stage of training."
I take the pill out from the cup and hold it between my thumb and index finger, examining it carefully.
"What's the next stage?"
Monk replies.
"You need some practical training, and you'll need to adapt to a fighting style that includes both your mana-based skills and new Qi Techniques. The Arena event tonight will be a great place to test out what you've learned."
My gaze tightens on the pill for a final time before I decide to throw it into my open mouth. The moment it's swallowed, it feels as if a warm ocean wave hits my stomach and rushes through my entire body.
The tiny puddle of Qi that was left in me has turned into a raging river, igniting my body with energy.
As my eyes light up with power, Monk speaks again.
"Feels good, doesn't it?"
My gaze wanders around the room as everything looks just a tiny bit brighter and more colorful.
The feeling from empty to full is nearly instantaneous. It feels as if I have almost double the energy stores that I did at the peak when fighting Monk earlier. This confirms my Qi stores weren't even on full before, I was just working with shared power.
Soon, my sparkling daze settles down and I raise the question back to Monk as we finish our meals.
"So we'll go back into the fight Arena tonight...? What's the plan you mentioned earlier? To fight more Ghouls? Didn't you say the Royal Guard keep an eye on Soul Energy users?"
He nods.
"Sure, yes. I'm sure the moment you leave this building many eyes will be on you. So, be careful where you go, who you talk to, and what you say if you don't want them involved."
I gulp at the sound of this, thinking about my teammates potentially stuck behind the Royal Guards in the center of the City.
We finish all the food on our plates and bring them back over to the place we got them.
Many other men in robes do the same, leaving through seemingly random doors on all sides of the room. Some mention a nightly training session, others talk of Qi gathering to raise their natural capacity, and some talk in a tongue that I can't understand.
Monk and I walk back up to the surface.
I use small amounts of Qi to open each door as we walk up until making it to the final narrow hallway that leads to the outside world within the Platinum Walls.
Two men bow as we leave and stay guarding the doorway, but if I remember correctly, the two there are a different pair than when we entered before. They must have rotating shifts.
Monk speaks as we approach the light.
"Brace yourself."
"For what?"
As both my feet leave the black stone structure, I understand exactly what...
The wristband on me turns from transparent to platinum again, the containment ring on my finger puts my formal outfit on, and every option on my status comes back to me all at once. There's a barrage of blue text screens that pop up in my mind's eye, ready to be used.
Best of all, I take a deep breath of fresh air in through my nose. Mana fills my body once again, and it feels as if I didn't even know what I was missing out on.
A few steps of euphoria is all it takes before my body and mind get used to it, and the world around me goes back to normal again.
Apart from one thing...
There's always small trace amounts of mana in the air that I can absorb, but now I can faintly sense Qi in the atmosphere too. It's barely 1/100th of what it feels like inside the monastery, but I'm sure I sense it in the air even far out into the city.
After I let out another long sigh and use conceal to change my face back to a disguised version, then rummage through some items in my storage system beneath my clothing to make sure everything is still in the right place where I left it.
Monk and I step onto the moving platform and make our way to the gate that leads back into the golden walls.
A pair of Platinum Armored guards scan our wristbands and allow us to move through without a moment of hesitation or a single word.
The same process happens at the next gate, and before we know it, both of us are walking side by side into the fight arena as the midday events start to come to a close. I throw on my mask, and both of us walk over to the registration table.
Mr. Wright, the man in the white suit, spots us from afar and his eyes light up as he realizes his two top prize fighters have arrived earlier than expected.
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Author's Note:
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