Eritance - Chapter 37
The problem was almost solved, but almost wasn’t enough. I knew the solution, but I didn’t know how to get there. I decided that Ross might be able to help me. At the very least I could bounce ideas off of him. It was almost like talking to myself, but with a real entity that could give their own ideas. Too bad that he wasn’t a master tactician or something else when he was alive.
“Ross, how can I get through these walls?” I started off. “That’s easy boy-o. Just smash through them!”. I was almost at a loss for words at his response. “That’s the most obvious tactic! I also already tried it. I’m not strong enough” I mentally shouted at him.
“Well it’s not my fault you’re weak. Just eat up some more relics and increase your power. Maybe you could try focusing instead of doing too many things at once” he retorted. I gave an exasperated sigh and decided talking to Ross wouldn’t help me. So, I decided to ignore him.
I decided to go back and try to wear down the wall. I punched it repeatedly for 30 minutes or more. I was glad that I had my increased stamina to allow me to keep going for long, but eventually it ran out and I became tired.
With that being the case, I decided to rest again. I wasn’t sure how much longer I would last. I had already spent two or three hours trapped within the sealed tunnel.
I decided meditation might help. I always felt better when I became one with my relic. I slowly found the energy within my body, but this time things were different. It must have been because I had been mediating for so long now. However, I noticed that my energy had a current with in my body. It flowed throughout my body and circulated to each part.
Instead of feeling like I was falling smoke to the source, I felt like I was swimming to it now. I decided to focus on this energy. I was on the verge of a breakthrough that would help me if I could ever get out of the tunnel.
I could feel the energy rejuvenating my body and enhancing it. An idea slowly formed in my mind as the minutes passed on. I began to wonder, if I could control the power within my body. Just like how a stone can divert a stream, or a dam can block water and create a reservoir, I wondered if it could be done with my power too.
I then remembered that Ross said I didn’t have enough focus. Perhaps focus was the key to enhancing my power? I wasn’t sure if it would work, but I didn’t have any other options that I could think of. So, I decided to push forth along this line of thinking, I just might be able to succeed.
I focused on the energy and understanding the current of the energy within my body. I followed it all throughout my body. The energy went to my legs, and I could feel the power in my legs. I then followed the current to my shoulders and felt the power in my shoulders. Finally, I followed it to my arms. I had a thought forming again. If I could somehow circulate all the power in my body to my arms, I might be able to increase my arm strength beyond my limits.
At first, I tried to hold the power, but it slipped through my grasp. I could only hold it for a small period, less than a fraction of a second. If I couldn’t hold it, maybe I could divert energy to my arms. I tried to speed up the flow of the energy in my body. I was able to get it circulating faster and slower, but I wasn’t quite able to divert the flow into my body.
It was very interesting for me to experiment on my power, but I just didn’t have enough time to experiment for fun. I kept switching between changing the speed of circulation and trying to grasp ahold of the power.
Over time I was able to control the speed much better but holding on to it proved to be quite difficult. Something strange happened though, during one of these switches I noticed that I could hold on to more power this time. I was excited. I didn’t know it happened though. It wasn’t for long, but I definitely could hold a lot more power than before. However, just as I noticed it, it slipped away from my grasp.
I tried to think long and hard about what I had done to make the gain in power, but I couldn’t think of what it was. It was very frustrating, but I had no choice but to continue.
I kept switching through the two techniques again and again. Finally, it happened again, just for a moment I was able to hold on to more power again. I finally realized what it was that I had done. I was very excited.
It wasn’t that one technique was the answer or better than the other one that I had. In fact, I needed both techniques in order to make this work. I noticed that the more I slowed down the circulation, the more power I was able to hold on to and divert into my arms.
I wouldn’t have understood this if I hadn’t focused and meditated. I suppose there was some truth to what Ross had said then. I spent more time focusing my power by slowing down the current of energy and diverting it to my arms. I would then hold it for as long as I could. After I had done this, I could feel a faint aura surrounding my fist.
The power in my body all went into my fist. I stood up and went to the wall with the slight crack. I focused the power again and punched the wall with all my might. This was my first breakthrough. The wall began to crack more. I would call this technique ‘focus punch’.