Fate Shift - Chapter 10

D’Gedda finished opening the last of his natural meridians with ease, bringing his total up to 113 opened meridians. While he couldn’t help but feel some amount of pride, D’Gedda refused to allow that pride to go to his head. He still needed to create seven artificial meridians after all.

The artificial meridians were rather different from the natural meridians in both their effects and how they were ‘opened.’ The Seven Powers Art contained several detailed diagrams and exhaustive descriptions regarding each artificial meridian. Even with all the information on artificial meridians the Seven Powers Art contained, which was carefully presented to avoid creating any confusion, forming even one artificial meridian was going to prove challenging.

While D’Gedda was up to the task, he tried imagining how hard it’d be to create seven artificial meridians when he was in the Meridian Opening Realm in his first life. Although even back then he was a rare talent, D’Gedda still found himself doubting his old self’s capability. Perhaps he would’ve been able to create all seven artificial meridians back then but he suspected he might’ve only been able to create four without making mistakes.

If someone like him would’ve had so much difficulty, how would others fare? Ignoring the average novice who would be completely incapable of creating a single artificial meridian, even exceptional novices would struggle. Thinking things over, D’Gedda decided that anyone who had created all seven artificial meridians without external aid would have to be prodigies worthy of his respect.

Returning his focus to the task at hand, D’Gedda once again chose not to rush. He sacrificed his spell practice time and instead pored over the Seven Powers Art First Volume. Only after completely memorizing all the content related to meridians would D’Gedda even consider working on the first artificial meridian.

As he studied, D’Gedda was truly impressed. The artificial meridians created by the Seven Powers Art were truly extraordinary! Each of the seven meridians was formed using one of the seven powers and each power’s method was rather different. The areas where the artificial meridians were positioned in the body also surprised and impressed D’Gedda. It was hard to guess how much time and effort was spent in order to create the method used for each of these artificial meridians. D’Gedda was truly awed.

To fully comprehend how wonderful these seven artificial meridians were, one would have to consider the many difficulties that had to be overcome in their creation. The first major problem was where the meridians would be located. The human body was incredibly complex and randomly messing with it could easily lead to injury or death. To make matters worse, a cultivator’s body had up to 113 meridians in addition to the other internal organs found in a mortal’s body. Each meridian was a hollow passage way through which Qi could travel safely without causing harm to the body. Moreover, each meridian had to connect to the Dantian, an internal organ formed in the first cultivation realm, Qi Acceptance.

This first problem alone was enough to send the weak-willed into despair. That was also a large part of why D’Gedda was so shocked by the Seven Powers Art. It wasn’t like it contained details for just one or two artificial meridians; it listed seven unique artificial meridians!

As for the methods used to create the seven meridians, those also had an impact on D’Gedda. They really were quite brilliant. For instance, there was the Water Meridian to consider. The Water Meridian defied everything D’Gedda thought he’d known about the fundamental nature of meridians; it up-ended his conservative ideas.

Put simply, a successfully created Water Meridian would make all the veins, arteries, and heart into a single meridian. In truth, if the Water Meridian was formed without any mistakes it would more than double one’s strength. There were several reasons for why this was the case. For one, blood traveled throughout the body. Even a complete set of 113 meridians didn’t cover the body to the same extent. There was also size to consider. Meridians were rather tiny, being essentially much smaller versions of veins and arteries that held Qi instead of blood. This meant the amount of Qi they could contain was also limited.

The Water Meridian’s benefits didn’t end there either. One of the reasons meridians existed was because Qi could harm one’s body. By channeling Qi through the meridians, this was prevented. So normally it wouldn’t make sense to release Qi into the bloodstream; it would actually seem like an act of suicide. The key here was that only the power of water was manifested in the Qi traveling through the Water Meridian. The water power only had beneficial effects when mixed with one’s blood!

As for the final benefit, it was in regards to the heart. Although it couldn’t compare to the original Dantian, the heart was also able to act as a reservoir of Qi. In a sense the heart became a second, smaller Dantian!

The Water Meridian was just one of seven artificial meridians too. All of the seven had their strengths. The Lightning Meridian was also incredible. As D’Gedda read about it he learned about something called the nervous system, which was apparently how one controlled their body. These nerves carried traces of lightning, which acted like messengers, bearing the mind’s will throughout one’s body! Just this piece of information on its own was startling to D’Gedda. It was as if he was peeking at the hidden mysteries of the world!

D’Gedda soon learned of the advantages a properly formed Lightning Meridian offered. Much like the Water Meridian, the Lightning Meridian took up a great deal of space in the body, meaning it could hold a significant amount of Qi. The Lightning Meridian also had an organ like the heart that could mimic the Dantian, the brain. The best benefit of the Lightning Meridian was its ability to enhance one’s reaction speed.

The other five meridians also had their strong points. The Wind Meridian was centered on the lungs. Aside from being able to contain a fair amount of Qi, the Wind Meridian had a tremendous impact on the quality of one’s Breath. This meant forming the Wind Meridian could increase cultivation speed!

The Earth Meridian mostly affected the digestive system. It allowed one to eat far greater quantities of food and also increased what types of food could be considered edible. The Cold Meridian altered one’s sweat and the Heat Meridian changed the skin. These two meridians both added defensive properties and would make it easier to survive in extreme environments.

The last of the seven artificial meridians was the Thunder Meridian. This meridian was different from the other six. Each of the other six artificial meridians worked with a specific portion or system of the body. The Thunder Meridian was more varied and could arguably be considered a set of meridians. Although when D’Gedda stopped and thought about it, couldn’t all seven be considered sets of meridians?

The Thunder Meridian was in a sense a kind of connector, something that linked the other six meridians together. One part of the Thunder Meridian was connected to the Wind Meridian by the vocal cords. The Lightning Meridian was linked to the Thunder Meridian via the ears. The heart was the bond between the Water Meridian and Thunder Meridian. In essence the Thunder Meridian was the most and least special artificial meridian. Unlike the other artificial meridians which could be completed in any order, the Thunder Meridian needed to be created last. Without the other six meridians it would be rather weak; with the other six it would be the best of them all. Much like the nature of Seven Powers Qi, the seven meridians were designed to fuse their power together, resulting in the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. In the case of the meridians, that fusion was predicated on the completion of the Thunder Meridian.

By the time D’Gedda had finished reading through all the information on the seven artificial meridians, he knew he wasn’t in the right frame of mind to focus on cultivation. He spent the rest of that day thinking about the many things he’d learned. To him, it was a period of great enlightenment.

D’Gedda found himself sinking into a melancholic mood. How many years had it been since he was forced into the Extermination Hell? D’Gedda had initially thought it might’ve only been a century or two. He doubted that assessment a great deal by this point. Thousands of years could’ve easily passed since his first life. Now he found himself wondering if everyone he’d known had already died a long time ago. Perhaps one or two people he’d known had achieved Immortality. Still, D’Gedda found himself doubting he’d see anyone he’d known ever again. Was he the last of the first generation of Qi Cultivators?

When the next day came all traces of yesterday’s emotion faded away. D’Gedda was already old when he entered the Extermination Hell; he’d seen a great deal in his life. Even emotional shocks far greater than the one he’d experienced the day before hadn’t stymied his cultivation in his first life.

For the next two days D’Gedda studied and engrained the lessons contained in the Seven Powers Art First Volume. He wasn’t merely preparing to create his seven artificial meridians but also using the learning process to temper himself. He was reminding himself the world had changed, reinforcing his will to grow stronger, and reflecting on his need to avoid making assumptions. The process was like a baptism of D’Gedda’s mind and will. He felt rejuvenated and youthful after completing the process. It was time to form his last meridians.

D’Gedda entered a meditative trance and sunk his focus into the depths of his body. He mechanically obeyed each of the Seven Powers Art’s instructions and acted with a grace he normally lacked. Each individual action smoothly flowed into the next. The old D’Gedda would’ve stopped after completing the first artificial meridian; the new D’Gedda didn’t.

Unbeknownst to D’Gedda, an intangible feeling manifested around his body. This feeling was weak, even phantasmal; no one noticed its appearance.

Following his first success D’Gedda began work on the second meridian. He drifted deeper into his trance and his actions sped up. He finished the second artificial meridian.

The strange presence lingering around D’Gedda grew more tangible. Some of the novices in the hall outside D’Gedda’s room sensed something, though what they knew not.

D’Gedda’s entire world became the interior of his body. Everything else had ceased to exist. There were only the need and the actions that fulfilled that need in his mind. His mind was cleared of all distractions and even had he wanted to, D’Gedda was no longer capable of thinking unrelated thoughts.

The third meridian was finished. By now many novices had formed a crowd outside D’Gedda’s door. Some whispered to each other, especially to new arrivals. Many others remained silent, intrigued by the mysterious feeling they felt coming from where D’Gedda sat cross-legged in his room.

Creating the first three meridians took five hours. Creating the fourth took less than one. D’Gedda’s last trace of consciousness dissipated. His unconscious mind took charge, acting with a clarity and speed that was . . . magical.

A cultivator’s divine sense swept past the dormitory where D’Gedda was meditating in a routine sweep. Seconds later the divine sense returned and then concentrated on D’Gedda himself. Orders were sent out and before long a group of Thunder Hall Enforcers cordoned off the whole building, directing novices elsewhere.

The fifth meridian took less than thirty minutes from start to finish. In that time many words were spoken and several new cultivators observed D’Gedda with their divine sense. Within a meeting room in the Hall of Elders, several Elders had gathered. They spoke amongst themselves energetically, until the Elder of the West arrived. A simple glare was enough to shut up loose lips and wagging tongues.

The sixth meridian’s formation happened in ten minutes. The Thunder Meridian came next. Out of all the seven meridians, the Thunder Meridian’s creation was the most shocking. In one moment it didn’t exist. In the next moment it did. An orchestra of countless actions was completed in the space of a second.

Some of the Elders stood up, planning to travel to D’Gedda’s location and offer congratulations. The Elder of the West shook his head and then motioned for them to sit down. “It’s not over” he stated simply. Looks of confusion and astonishment colored many faces in the meeting room.

D’Gedda broke through the Meridian Opening Realm, entering Soul Inception. The presence which surrounded him, now visible to the naked eye as a cloud of Qi and other, stranger components, surged into his body. Deep inside D’Gedda’s body, two souls had lain, mostly dormant. They had once remained almost wholly separate. Now, as the cloud roared into D’Gedda’s body like a flashflood, a bridge began to form between the two souls. A powerful attraction started pulling the two different souls together, gently but energetically forcing the two into one.

Had Taeh witnessed this scene he would’ve laughed. His estimate of a year had been quite mistaken. D’Gedda’s soul and the original inhabitant’s soul were merging that very moment!

Back in the Hall of the Elders, one of the younger Elders asked “How is this possible? I’ve never seen someone experience the Soul Inception Realm like this before! Even if this novice already had a soul, this still doesn’t make sense!”

“I’m sure you’ve heard of Soul Revitalization before right” the Elder of the West remarked.

“Yes, it’s a kind of good fortune people sometimes experience after a period of enlightenment where their soul is reborn with greater strength. Still, how can something like this be caused by just Soul Revitalization? He’s already more than halfway through Soul Inception!”

“He had two souls in his body, not one.” the Elder of the West replied. “Don’t bother asking me how that’s possible, I’d like an answer to that myself. What I can say is this: when the Soul Revitalization ends, whoever this person used to be will have ceased to exist. Like a caterpillar becoming a butterfly, this young man is undergoing a complete metamorphosis.”

While the Elders silently considered this, Gauljian stepped into the room and saluted. A rare trace of a smile appeared on the Elder of the West’s face as he said “Thunder Heart,” nodding towards the newcomer in acknowledgement. “Please give us your report.”

Gauljian obeyed and began. “His name is Kosh Ti of the Ti Clan. He joined the Seven Powers Sect three years ago and in that time has been utterly unremarkable. As you know the next leader of the Ti Clan is going to be selected in the next eight years and the competition has been fierce. Out of the twenty six potential successors only twelve remain. Kosh Ti was believed to have come here not to cultivate but as a way to avoid participating in the succession. Breaking through like this, he’ll have to fight for the position of Clan Leader if he wants to live.”

The Elder of the West considered what Gauljian had said. A different Elder stated “We’ve stayed out of the Ti Clan’s affairs in the past but this could be an opportunity to form an alliance with them, assuming this Kosh Ti has a real chance at becoming Clan Elder.”

“Isn’t he too weak” a third Elder asked? “Even if he breaks through Soul Inception today, which at this rate will happen, so what? To become the Clan Leader he’d need to either eliminate all the other successors or prove himself superior to them in the eyes of the Ti Clan.”

“It’s pointless to discuss these matters now” the Elder of the West said. “Continue your report Gauljian, tell us what you can about this Kosh Ti.”

Gauljian complied. “Kosh Ti entered the sect with thirteen opened meridians. He didn’t start cultivating till this past month. In fact, he began cultivating almost right after the incident with the mirror demon. As you no doubt remember, the Supreme Slayer inspected those who’d come into contact with the mirror demon. We now know that Kosh Ti was one of those people.”

Several of the Elders frowned. Many of them began to suspect that the demon had done something to the novice. The Elder of the West shared some of those doubts but he also weighed what he knew of the Supreme Slayer against them. Eventually he said “There’s no point speculating as to the nature of this Kosh Ti right now. Even if the mirror demon inserted part of its soul into the boy, the two souls he had in his body have already finished fusing. He’s someone else now. Thus, rather than treating him as Kosh Ti, we should approach him as a different person.”

The Elders continued their discussion even as D’Gedda broke through Soul Inception. Within such a short period of time he’d crossed through an entire cultivation realm! D’Gedda wasn’t excited though, as D’Gedda didn’t exactly exist anymore.

A new being was forming, a hybrid with the memories and traits of two people. The new being dreamed, he dreamed of many scenes. He saw an old man floating before a great emptiness, an expanse of nothing. The nothingness had no color, no noise, no sensation at all. It was the antithesis of existence, of anything and everything. It was not.

The old man still existed, as he was beyond the boundary where existence ended. He was currently within the Cauldron Hell, looking towards the edge of the Extermination Hell. The old man was tall, though his voluminous, brown cloak and fur clothes couldn’t hide how thin he was. The man had dark, almost black skin that was wrinkled and scarred. His wispy, unkempt hair was snow white and hung down in front of his eyes.

The man, D’Gedda Bohpurra, was indulging in his last thoughts. ‘I can’t resist the compulsion of the Heaven of Destiny much longer. I’ll soon have no choice but to walk right in to the Extermination Hell. You’re probably laughing right now Jin but the Free will have the last laugh! Junior apprentice sister Rall’s Foretellings are always accurate! Although I can’t resist the Heaven of Destiny’s compulsion, although I must step into the Extermination Hell, I will live again! With me dead you may believe the Free will collapse but they won’t! Even if I don’t see it, your end will come Jin!’

As the first scene ended a second began. A homely, brown haired child was running through a carefully cultivated garden with a wild innocence only the young possess. His shrieks of laughter added a sense of life to the scene and contrasted the previous memory sharply.

More memories followed, each from one life or the other. The memories contained events common and rare. They had contained emotions of every type; they felt at once familiar and strange.

Eventually the new being thought of a question: ‘who am I?’ He considered the memories of D’Gedda Bohpurra. ‘I’m not him.’ He also thought about the memories of Kosh Ti. ‘I’m not him either . . .’

‘Who am I?’

‘I’m not D’Gedda. I’m not Kosh. I have their memories but they have already ceased. Yes, I’m both and neither. I am new. Since I’m both and neither, I need a new name, a name that reflects the people who became me. I am . . . D’Gedda Ti. That is my name. That is who I am.’

D’Gedda Ti woke in his personal quarters. He laughed jovially as he looked at his ‘birth place.’ He opened the door and stepped out. He then began stretching, causing several joints to pop. He’d been sitting down for a while after all.

The Elder of the West, some other Elders, Thunder Hall Enforcers, and Gauljian were all standing in the hallway with D’Gedda. He wasn’t surprised though, waving at them with a warm smile and eyes that shined vivaciously.

“Thanks for coming to see me everyone. I guess I caused more of a stir like this then I ever did with Falcoun.”

Seeing Gauljian’s face sour in response to his words made D’Gedda chortle; which seemed to infuriate the Thunder Hall Inquisitor. The Elder of the West warned Gauljian to remain calm through voice transmission before speaking to D’Gedda Ti. “Congratulations on your breakthrough Kosh Ti. In a single day you’ve gone from the Meridian Opening Realm to the beginning of the Armament Bonding Realm! To my knowledge such an accomplishment is one of a kind!”

D’Gedda Ti continued smiling as he spoke in response “No need for flattery, it was just a small serendipity. I doubt you’ve come here just to offer congratulations Elder of the West sir. Why don’t we skirt the pleasantries and get right down to business? You’re here to get a look at me because you want to know if I have a shot at becoming the next Ti Clan Leader. I do have a shot. You’re also here because you noticed my highly unusual Soul Revitalization. You suspect I’m a whole new person don’t you? I am a whole new person. My name is D’Gedda Ti and I’m capable of things Kosh could never dream of.”

A variety of emotions flashed across the faces of the people watching D’Gedda. The Elder of the West remained outwardly impassive but internally he considered D’Gedda’s statement with great care. After a moment of thought he ordered everyone aside from Gauljian to return to their duties. Then the three traveled to a secure location within the Thunder Hall, a room where no one else was going to hear their conversation.

Once Gauljian informed the Elder of the West that the room’s anti-spying defenses were active, the Elder started talking. “It’s nice to meet you, D’Gedda Ti. Would you care to enlighten me about a few things?”

“Sure, I’ll tell you anything you want to know. All you have to do is swear a soul oath that if any of my answers are spread to someone else without my permission you’ll die instantly. You also have to swear that you won’t attack me, plot against me, or make things intentionally difficult for me over the things you learn about me here. That goes for Thunder Heart as well, if he listens in.”

Gauljian began to speak, perhaps to argue that what D’Gedda was asking for was unreasonable, but before he could say a word the Elder of the West agreed. The Elder then glanced towards Gauljian; he’d have to decide for himself if he wanted to hear what was said. Ultimately Gauljian agreed reluctantly. Mobilizing the power of their souls and Qi, both men swore soul oaths.

D’Gedda smiled at the two men as he said “Ask away.”

In a normal interrogation Gauljian would’ve been the one asking questions but this wasn’t an interrogation. Besides, even if it was an interrogation, the Elder of the West was too invested in the answers to let Gauljian do the questioning.

“You had two souls in your body” the Elder of the West stated. “Whose souls were they?”

“One soul belonged to D’Gedda Bohpurra and the other soul was Kosh Ti’s. You probably know all about how each of the successors was given a soul to help protect them. The soul you’re really interested in is D’Gedda’s, right?”

The Elder of the West nodded in confirmation.

“D’Gedda Bohpurra was a first generation cultivator.”

Gauljian couldn’t bring himself to believe in the validity of such a statement, shouting “stop joking!” The Elder of the West also found it hard to believe such a ridiculous tale. So D’Gedda dispelled their doubts.

He reached deep inside himself and manifested the strength of his Qi and soul; he followed that by swearing a soul oath. “I swear on pain of death that one of the two souls that once resided in this body was the soul of a first generation cultivator, D’Gedda Bohpurra.”

The Elder of the West inhaled deeply, appearing shocked for the first time. This youth before him was telling the truth after all! Gauljian felt as if a bomb had exploded inside his skull. He was so stunned that it took a serious reprimand from the Elder of the West for him to close his mouth. In truth, Gauljian had known Kosh Ti rather well due to his misadventures with Falcoun. Up till now he’d still felt that he was dealing with that same miscreant. It was only now that he truly realized he was looking at a completely separate person.

I plan to try to publish 120K words each month starting with this month. That means I gotta do 4k words a day for 30 days. Since that’s my new goal I’m probably going to start releasing two chapters a day that total 4k combined. I may stick to my rule of every chapter being 2k+ or I may change that rule. Still, I think everyone reading Fate Shift should benefit. I’m also planning on making a patreon but I’m not sure how I’m going to set it up yet . . .