Chapter 2
Chapter 2
Heavenly Demon Divine Art
The reaction was strange. Everyone treated my post like something that should not exist.
Reply: GalaxySmile: Is this an anonymous user? First time seeing one like this ☆
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: This is a private board, how did an anon even get in? The mod didn’t say anything.
It seemed there was a misunderstanding, so I calmly replied.
Reply: me (8.8): I got an entry to the World of the Hundred Towers and it gave me an Adversary trait, so I can access this place.
Reply: GalaxySmile: There really is an Adversary?
Reply: SerialKimchiMaker: Yeah, rare but they exist.
Reply: BloodDemon: A newcomer, I see. If you’ve arrived, you should state your affiliation first. Tsk tsk, modern ones lack discipline. Which lineage of Heavenly Demon are you from?
Reply: me (8.8): What Heavenly Demon are you talking about?
Once again, a flood of reactions poured in.
Reply: GalaxySmile: LOL what is this guy even doing
Reply: BlondeBlueEyesBig: Maybe it’s roleplay?
Reply: me (8.8): I’ve been stuck in a hospital so I don’t really know. Is this the Heavenly Demon from martial arts novels?
After ten years in a hospital bed, you get used to all kinds of things.
I had never even read martial arts novels before, but nowadays “Heavenly Demon” wasn’t something limited to wuxia stories.
In my world, Heavenly Demons showed up everywhere.
Fantasy academy students, hunters, healers, oriental doctors, blacksmiths, farmers, chefs, bakers, masseuses…
In short, every profession imaginable had someone called a Heavenly Demon. The ultimate all-purpose worker.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Confirmed, anon is from modern Earth?
Reply: me (8.8): Yeah.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: You’ve never learned martial arts?
Reply: me (8.8): There’s no such thing in my world.
Reply: FaithUnitesAll: May you rest in peace. Namo Amita Buddha.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Don’t kill the newbie off already, monk lol
Reply: GalaxySmile: LOL
Somehow the conversation turned strangely intense.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: So what country are you from?
Reply: me (8.8): Republic of Korea.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: HOLY—yeah that’s real lol I almost forgot that name, haven’t heard it in centuries. I’m from Korea too.
Reply: me (8.8): My world doesn’t have martial arts.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Same. I’m a dimension traveler. I learned martial arts in another world.
My sense of closeness jumped instantly.
So that was why their speech sounded oddly modern for a group that seemed like martial artists from another world.
But one thing bothered me.
Centuries.
That meant they were at least hundreds of years old, didn’t it?
At that point, she wasn’t a “young girl,” not even close.
And yet her username was KawaiiHighschoolGirl.
My instincts screamed a warning.
This is something I absolutely should not comment on.
I erased the thought.
Reply: BlondeBlueEyesBig: No martial arts at all? That’s a fresh newbie… ahh…
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: How old are you, anon?
Reply: me (8.8): 20 this year.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Too old to start cultivation properly, hmm. Male?
Reply: me (8.8): Yeah.
Reply: BlondeBlueEyesBig: Oh~
Reply: ???: Mod has posted. Everyone stop.
The chat froze.
When I returned to the board list, a highlighted post from the admin appeared.
It was addressed to me.
Apparently, they had no intention of kicking me out.
That was a relief.
Title: To the Anonymous User
Author: Wheelturn Demon
Investigate things, extend knowledge, refine sincerity, correct the mind, cultivate the self.
Attachment: Heavenly Demon Divine Art (final-final-revised edition).pdf
The post was short.
But beneath the formal text was an attachment that practically begged to be clicked.
Reply: GalaxySmile: The revised edition is finally out ☆
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Isn’t Heavenly Demon Divine Art too hard for a beginner though?
Reply: GalaxySmile: Yeah, super hard lol
Reply: ???: If it’s the mod’s order, it’s absolute. No need for discussion.
Without thinking, I downloaded the file.
It opened on its own.
Black-and-white diagrams and neatly written text flooded the screen.
Heavenly Demon Divine Art (Final-Final-Revised Edition)
Preface
The Heavenly Demon Divine Art is a technique that anyone who wishes to become a Heavenly Demon must learn. This manual is designed to make it more efficient and easier to study compared to previous versions.
Especially for beginners…
(omitted sections)
This revised edition includes the following improvements:
(omitted sections)
Acknowledgements
We thank all Heavenly Demon Gallery users who contributed to this revision.
— First Heavenly Demon, Wheelturn Demon
For some reason, I felt a strong instinctive rejection from the preface.
But curiosity won.
I swallowed dryly and scrolled down.
First Chapter: Holy Flame
Zzzzt—
Static. My head felt like it was splitting open.
“All beings carry the spark of the Holy Flame. The first stage of Heavenly Demon Divine Art, refining the body and gathering energy through cultivation, awakens this dormant flame and reshapes the body into the foundation of the demonic path…”
Each character felt like it was being hammered directly into my brain.
“Ghk—!”
It hurt.
Like thousands of needles stabbing into my skull.
I had experienced pain before, but this was a completely different kind.
“Ugh…”
My body arched violently.
The waiting room’s function prevented me from dying of shock, but the pain itself was fully real.
Then, finally—
“Haa… haa…”
My vision slowly returned to normal.
I immediately checked the gallery.
Reply: GalaxySmile: The anon stopped talking after the mod’s post ☆ what happened?
Reply: BloodDemon: He’s probably dead. Manuals of this level are like demonic scripture. The information overload likely caused his head to explode.
Reply: GalaxySmile: Are you T?
Reply: BloodDemon: I am B. Blood.
Reply: FaithUnitesAll: Namo Amitabha, may he rest in peace.
Reply: BlondeBlueEyesBig: What a shame… such a fresh newbie too.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Sigh, guess it was too much. The mod’s permission and all…
They were already holding my cyber funeral.
I typed quickly.
Reply: me (8.8): I’m not dead. The waiting room heals injuries.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: WHAT—say that earlier!
Reply: GalaxySmile: LOL
Then I noticed the timer outside the gallery window.
[4:42:17]
Before reading the Heavenly Demon Divine Art, I had over 23 hours left.
Now only about 4 hours remained.
When the timer ends, I would likely be forced into the first floor.
Beside the swirling portal-like gate, weapons were displayed.
Going in immediately was impossible.
And rebuilding my body in four hours was also unrealistic.
My only option was this unknown martial art.
At least the first stage—the Holy Flame part—was already inside my head.
But there was a problem.
Reply: me (8.8): What are the Eight Extraordinary Meridians and Twelve Regular Meridians?
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: LOL he really is a complete beginner, hold on
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: I posted an explanation, check it
She responded quickly.
Title: @anon
Author: KawaiiHighschoolGirl
(roughly drawn human meridian diagram image)
To understand meridians, you first need to understand essence, energy, and spirit.
I didn’t understand any of it.
Reply: me (8.8): yeah I don’t know
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Simple version: essence is the body, energy is internal force, spirit is mind.
Reply: me (8.8): so meridians are pathways connecting body and energy?
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: wow you’re sharp, yeah basically. Meridians are channels where energy flows. Martial arts training mainly strengthens the body through them.
Reply: BlondeBlueEyesBig: Aww, she’s monopolizing the newbie~ so cute ♡
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: I claimed him first today, back off lol
Reply: BlondeBlueEyesBig: Tch, that’s not how moderatorship works
I ignored the bickering.
There was no time for that.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Normally you’d form a dantian first before learning high-level arts. Do you know the lotus position?
Reply: me (8.8): I think so.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Good. Sit down and try sensing your energy.
It sounded simple, but it wasn’t.
“Ugh…”
I forced my stiff body into a cross-legged position.
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: Focus on your breathing while remembering the meridian diagram. Try to sense the energy mixed between inhale and exhale. You might not be used to a world without internal energy, but even an average person can do it in a month. And you said you won’t die there anyway.
A month.
I had four hours.
I erased the thought.
In situations like this, rushing was useless.
I closed my eyes.
Inhale.
Exhale.
I focused on my breathing.
And then I felt it.
A faint, strange sensation.
Reply: me (8.8): feels like tingling when I breathe, is that it?
Reply: KawaiiHighschoolGirl: WHAT—yeah that’s it, focus!!
Reply: GalaxySmile: Whoa, this newbie is insane ☆ sensing energy in a day normally takes at least one day lol
Breathing was familiar to me.
My illness caused sudden, random waves of extreme pain.
Not even morphine worked.
Even sleeping pills couldn’t keep me down.
So I had learned to endure it by instinct—grabbing the blanket and breathing slowly through it.
Humans are like that.
You can get used to happiness, but not to pain.
Pain never becomes normal.
You only learn how to manage it.
That was the truth I learned in my hospital bed.
I followed the faint sensation.
The moment air passed through my lungs and reached my chest—
My heart twitched.
Inside the breath was something tiny.
Something like a spark.
Ah.
So this is qi.