[2nd Qi Cultivation Realm: Qi Condensation Realm]
[There are 20 meridians in the human body, with 12 primary meridians and 8 extraordinary meridians, all corresponding to the acupoints or Qi points.]
[Breakthrough condition: Open all 12 primary meridians using the Qi obtained from breathing.]
"Let's start, then," Damian said as he sat down in the lotus position, placing his hands in front of his Dantian.
He straightened his posture and began regulating his breathing, as instructed in [The Tital Body Refinement Art].
He closed his eyes, his breathing deepened, and a rhythmic sound emerged in harmony with his steady inhales and exhales.
At this moment, Damian could not yet absorb Qi into his body.
To do so, he needed to open his meridians.
Opening the meridians required ingesting Qi and channeling it through them, and the only source of Qi available to him now was from the air he breathed.
Qi, a form of energy, existed everywhere, in the atmosphere, in water, in the wind, and in the soil... in everything, everywhere.
Ideally, Damian could have used a Qi elixir to accelerate the process, but without one, his only option was to slowly extract Qi from the air using the breathing technique described in [The Titan Body Refinement Art].
After about an hour of focused effort, Damian had gathered enough Qi inside his body to attempt opening his first meridian.
Concentrating, he began directing the Qi toward the first meridian.
As the Qi continuously flowed through, the meridian started to open.
A shiver coursed through Damian's body as he felt the Qi forcing its way through.
As more and more Qi surged through the meridian, it began to expand.
Damian felt as though he were being submerged in ice-cold water, the chill penetrating deep into his being.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the meridian fully opened, and the sensation of cold was instantly replaced by a soothing, pleasurable warmth that radiated throughout his body.
Damian opened his eyes and let out a deep breath.
"Damn, it took me three hours just to open my first meridian," he muttered, frustrated.
He glanced at the time. "There are only five days and five hours until the system announces the countdown for class selection. I wonder if I can even reach the next cultivation realm before then."
Damian closed his eyes again and continued his cultivation.
Fortunately, since he had opened his first meridian, he could now absorb Qi directly into his body without having to gather it from the air through breathing.
The efficiency of absorption was much slower, but it was still far faster than gathering Qi through breathing.
The efficiency of his Qi absorption would rapidly increase as he opened more and more meridians.
After an hour, he managed to gather enough Qi to open his second meridian.
Although the efficiency of his Qi absorption increased after opening his first meridian, the amount of Qi required to unlock subsequent meridians also increased significantly.
Additionally, the meridians themselves began to resist being opened the more he progressed.
Time remaining until class selection: 4 days.
Damian was still sitting in the lotus position, continuing to unlock his meridians using the Qi he absorbed from the open ones.
By now, he had opened a total of 4 meridians.
Even though the speed of his Qi absorption had increased several fold, the amount of Qi required to open the following meridians had also increased exponentially.
Moreover, each meridian offered more resistance to being unlocked.
Time remaining until class selection: 3 days.
After two days of continuous and vigorous cultivation, Damian had unlocked a total of 7 meridians.
There was no upper limit to how many meridians a person could open before starting actual Qi cultivation, but the more meridians a person opened, the more efficient their future Qi absorption would become.
The maximum number of meridians a person could open was determined by their talent and constitution.
Even if someone lacked talent or constitution, they could still open up to 12 primary meridians through pure hard work, and this would already place them above average among cultivators.
The first 20 meridians of the body were known as the 12 primary meridians.
After these came the extraordinary meridians, which were the hardest to open.
No matter how hard some people worked or how many resources they consumed, they simply couldn't open all 20 meridians.
That was just how it was.
Damian had no choice but to try and open as many meridians as possible.
However, there was a high possibility that he would not be able to open more than 10 primary meridians.
If he managed to open all 12, it would already be considered exceptional among cultivators.
Damian knew he was reaching his limit, but he refused to give up. He persisted, determined to continue pushing his boundaries.
Time remaining until class selection: 22 hours.
After four and half days of cultivation, Damian had opened up to 9 Primary Meridians.
He grabbed his laptop and went through the remaining information about the Awakeners, particularly those from Italy, as he might have to deal with them soon.
He listed the top Awakeners in Italy, focusing on the top ten, to familiarize himself with them.
1. Pietro Grimaldi – The strongest awakened in Italy and the master of The Ivory Lance Guild.
"From 2nd place to 8th place, the positions are taken by the seven generals of the Vatican Church, each representing one of the Seven Heavenly Virtues," Damian muttered.
2. Benedetto Marco Giuliani – The Cardinal General of Kindness and the master of The Gentle Path Guild.
3. Stefano Barone – The Cardinal General of Temperance and the master of The Balanced Flame Guild.
4. Matteo Bianchi – The Cardinal General of Diligence and the master of The Unyielding Forge Guild.
5. Antonio Romano – The Cardinal General of Humility and the master of The Quiet Step Guild.
6. Teresa Lombardi – The Cardinal General of Patience and the Guild Mistress of The Stilled Water Guild.
7. Elisabetta Ferrara – The Cardinal General of Chastity and the Guild Mistress of The Pure Heart Guild.
8. Caterina Mancini – The Cardinal General of Charity and the Guild Mistress of The Benevolent Hand Guild.
9. Giuseppe Santis – The Chairman of the [Guild Name].
10. The Saintess of The Vatican
11. Eric Walcrown – Although he was supposed to be the 8th-ranked awakened in Italy, he was the master of the second strongest guild, The Wild Phantom Guild.
12. Lorenzo Rossi – The Guild Master of The United Sword Guild.
After learning about the top awakeners of his country, Damian returned to his cultivation.
After about 21 hours of continuous effort, he finally managed to open the 10th meridian.
He only stopped cultivating when he noticed the system notification appearing before his eyes.
Damian opened his eyes with an irritated expression, as if he could no longer hold back his frustration. "Damn it, is this my limit?"
Without changing his expression, Damian glanced at the system notification.
[The 'Adaptation' period is over.]
[In five minutes, you will be transported to the Hall of Ascension, where you will undergo your class selection.]