After hearing them out, elder Thorne stroked his white beard before letting out a laugh.
"It hasn't been long since you both achieved a breakthrough, and now you are already rushing things. Tell me, are you in a hurry to grow strong?" He asked with a smile still plaster on his face.
When they heard his question, they could not help but feel embarrassed as they well left with nothing to say. Seeing them staying quiet, elder Thorne let out a sigh before getting up as he took his jar of wine before walking.
"If you are eager to learn how to control the power flow, then follow me" he said to them before walking out of the place.
They were both overwhelmed with excitement as they left the hall without considering grabbing their food as they quietly followed elder Thorne from behind. He didn't take them to the training field as they have thought, but rather, he brought the two of them but to where they started their training.
"This place seem noise enough with zero amount of noise" said elder Thorne before looking for a rock to sit on.
After settling down, he looked at the two before speaking.
"If you want to learn to control the spiritual energy within you, then the first you need to take his to be at peace at all time. Let take this river for example, if I were to throw a stop at it, it would disturb the peaceful state of the river" said elder Thorne while throwing a stone at the river which end up producing a ripple.
"With what I did, you didn't see the river flowing from side to side, but it continues to flow at it usual pace. So the question now is, can you be as calm as the river?" Asked elder Thorne, to which he was not expecting an answer as he continued with his teaches.
"When trying to control the spiritual energy in one's body, it is easy if you have a calm state of mind, and you must be patient since you are new to this.
"Sit down and try concentrating your mental focus on your lower abdomen which is where your dantian is located. An inch below the navel, you will find a glowing sphere there" elder Thorne instructed with his eyes closed.
Following his instructions, they both sat down with their eyes closed before concentrating their attention into their lower abdomen.
"The dantian is a vital core within a cultivator's body, central to their ability to harness, control, and enhance their internal energy, which is fundamental to their progress and effectiveness in the cultivation world. This is why it is the last spiritual source you need to fill".
After sometime, Alden was the first to speak out, as he said in a low tone.
"I've found the sphere elder Thorne" he said.
"Good, now try moving a bit of energy from the sphere in other to do this, you need to visualize yourself actually taking something from the sphere. That which you are taking is the spiritual energy that is being stored. Note there is a limit to the amount of energy you can take going overboard to empty the dantian is never a good idea" instructed elder Thorne.
Following his instructions, Alden began to visualize himself taking something from the sphere, though it took him some time, but he was finally able to derive a warm feeling which followed around his body while at the same time strengthening his body from the inside.
Alden continues onward as he led the energy all the way from his lower abdomen to his finger before slowly expelling it into the air. After successfully expelling the energy out of his body through his finger, he suddenly opened his eyes as he took a deep breath.
"I feel much stronger" he mutter with a happy look on his face.
"Congratulations Alden on finally being able to control the spiritual energy, although you still need to improve the efficiency since it would be more useful in a battle" elder Thorne praised him before turning his gaze at Ethan who was still meditating.
No one bothers to disturb him as he quietly tries to sense his dantian which took him longer time before he was able to feel the sphere and control the spiritual energy out of his body, and it was only then did Alden gave him a light punch on the shoulder.
Seeing that they could control the spiritual energy, elder Thorne continued to give them more pointers.
"Now that you can control the spiritual energy, your next objective is to fill the spiritual sources and make a breakthrough to the foundation realm. I believe captain Marcus has already instructed you on what these sources are, so I won't be saying anything".
"Yes elder Thorne, he explained them to us so you don't have to worry yourself about that" replied Ethan.
"Good. Before I go, there is something you need to know now that you have stepped into the world of cultivation. There would be many challenges coming your way and in order to face them all, you need to improve yourself continuously.
"Don't forget to meditate to keep a calm mind every day" said elder Thorne before getting up from the rock and excusing himself.
"Thank you elder for your great teaches" they both pay their respects to elder Thorne while he took his leave.
After they have been left alone in the forest, Ethan tried to control the flow of the spiritual energy in his body once again and this time around, he was able to easily control it before expelling it out of his body.
"Now there is hope that I can take revenge on the thundering sword clan" Ethan declared with his fist clenched.
"We still have a long way to go, but I agree with you on that one. With elder Thorne and captain Marcus's help, we shouldn't have any issues with cultivating" Alden added with a smile on his face.