The Ranch

Victor's Secret Method (1)

Today, Tih is hanging out with Victor. Victor wanted to test something with just him and Tih. It's not that he doesn't want to let the other members in on his experiment, but it's just too important to tell them yet. He can only trust Tih because he knows what kind of guy he is.

When he first acknowledged Tih's strength, he was prepared to become his subordinate and learn under him. After getting a better understanding of Tih, he realized that wouldn't be possible.

Although Tih is the strongest in the group, he isn't a leader. Luckily for him, he's surrounded himself with capable people that can do all the jobs he can't, including Victor. Victor likes Tih character and he's made the decision to stand by his side as the team's playmaker.

He knows the others made the same choice. Tih has the ability to attract others to him. Which is interesting, because he constantly has this sinister aura. Speaking of, it's not as noticeable as of late.

Victor recollects on his first meeting with Tih at the newcomer's tournament. He's ashamed at his past behavior of stooping down to the other childrens' level. He's matured a lot since then.

Before, he had the arrogance of a respected ancestor that's lived a long life. He was a cultivator and had the pride of one.

But this wasn't his world, this body didn't have his previous strength or backround. Tih was a wake-up call for Victor. Now he's a lot more calm-headed and has found his place in the team.

There's something that needs to be addressed. Although he's not comparable to the monster that is Tih, Victor is not weak by any means.

He was the unassigned leader of the five aces. He could fight off one of two instructors alone. It's only because he's been compared to Tih this whole time that he seemed weak in comparison. Once you hang around Tih long enough, all spotlights will, without a doubt, land on him.

Who knows where Tih's ability comes from, but Victor has been training since the womb with a method from the cultivation world.

The cultivation technique is meant to be practiced in a world with abundant Qi. This world has minimal Qi, so the effects are minimal, but it's better than any training a regular human can handle.

He can recall other techniques, but they're not plausible with the amount of Qi in the atmosphere. It would take too much time to improve and he's not sure if he can extend his life.

Taking everything into consideration, he decided on a secret body strengthening technique that's been passed down in his family. This method takes significantly less Qi.

The method doesn't show any physical signs of improvement. If it did, all cultivators would look super bulky. This is why Victor is so strong but maintains a similar body type as Tih.

He also still practices his main cultivation method out of habit, but the effects are negligible. It's practically useless, but it's already ingrained into him, even if he's in a new body.

Today, Victor wants to discern the origin of Tih's chanting. When Victor first heard the voice that came out of Tih's mouth during their slumber party, he was confused. The voice was undeniably demonic, but it wasn't the same language as the demonic cultivators in his world.

First, Victor writes a talisman. He's been practicing infusing his Qi for the past month and only succeeded a few days ago. He pastes it on Tih's forehead but it has no effect.

Then he uses chalk and draws a circle with runes around Tih. He says a chant but again, no effect.

He flicks a special water at Tih, makes him swallow a spherical pill he concocted, and everything else he had any proficiency in, yet Tih remains the same.

"I'm out of Qi." He talks to himself. He draws a different circle with chalk for himself. It's a Qi gathering array. He reaches in his pocket for something. He pats around his pockets but can't find what he's looking for. Did he forget it back at the dorms?

Tih looks at the chalk circle below him, then looks at the other circle. He hops from one to another and the white chalk lines glow green. Wind picks up, enough to blow a kite far away.

"What?!" Victor looks on in surprise. Qi swirls around Tih like a whirlpool and pools together at the center of the circle like a vacuum. It hovers in there and continues piling in. The Qi gets denser and denser.

Victor unconsciously stretches his hand out. The moment it touches the circle, Qi flies into him at breakneck speed. The pressure of so much Qi intake at once is an excruciating feeling for the body. It feels as if he's been thrown in a volcano, when it should be a light warmth.

Victor struggles to stay conscious but manages to ingest the Qi, he feels something pop. He's broken through.

The last time he broke through a level was when he was five. That's just how little Qi there is. But...there should be a lightning tribulation, yet the sky is as clear as ever. Well, it looks like the heavens favor him.

Now Victor has time to think about the current situation. He looks at Tih. There's no change. Being in such close proximity to such dense Qi, Tih should have absorbed at least some of it, but he didn't. There's something weird about this.

He's ignored it before because most humans only intake enough Qi to survive. The Qi a normal person intakes in their lifetime is less than the Qi he got from cultivating for an hour in his past life.

Recalling past events, Victor comes to the conclusion that Tih doesn't absorb Qi. Why? Every living thing needs Qi to live, how can Tih live without it?

Victor sighs with a frown. After a whole day of experiments, he's left with more questions than answers.

At least something good came out of this. "Tih, whenever you're free, can you come find me?" He plans to use Tih as a Qi conductor in the future. The team's only as strong as its individuals. Plus he still has his pride as the leader of the aces, he can't be left behind by his teammates.