First step

He struggled to get out of the water, as he set the body of the dead frog onto the ground. He was soaked and so were his clothes, so he began taking off the gauntlets and chest plate. He set his sword down and eventually took his clothes off too, setting them up on a tree.

Even then, despite his small stature and lean build, anyone could tell he was quite athletic. He was hoping nobody would show up and see him in his underwear, that was gonna make going back to town a very strange experience.

Pushing those worries aside he walked back to the deceased frog and slowly opened its mouth, as he reached inside the mouth and pulled on the tongue. He had to admit he felt a bit disgusted in doing this, but it was necessary.

The first step in his ascension was establishing a storage for his chi. Humans and beasts alike usually produced chi on their own, Some locations in the world were also an option. He didn't live in such a location so that option didn't exist. The bodies of animals and beasts usually didn't have a place to store it, so one had to establish a chi storage. This matter was easier said than done though, and most people weren't aware of this anyway. The only reason he knew was due to his upbringing... His dad had created a weapon for a woman on her way to ascend and he had managed to learn a few things. He knew the first and second step, the rest he had absolutely no idea what to do, But that's what the schools were for.

He unsheathed the blade slightly using it to cut the tongue of the frog, he grimaced as he brought it up to his mouth. The blood spilling from the tongue spilled on his body, and the smell made him want to push it away. 

He took a deep breath and covered his nose as he pushed it into his mouth and tried to swallow it as quickly as possible. He gagged and nearly threw up, the only thing stopping him was sheer will.

Once he managed to swallow the tongue of the frog, a surge of strength spread across his body. He had to push the feeling of wanting to throw up, and disgust away. This energy he felt would disperse and it was unlikely he would get so lucky again.

He closed his eyes and took small but deep breaths, as he focused on pushing this surge of energy inward. Occasionally normal people would get lucky and arrive exactly where he did, they failed to do the correct thing however and ended up wasting their change. The energy had to be focused inward and towards the heart. Animals didn't have such a problem though, it was most instinctual the way they created a storage for chi.

The heart was connected to the entire body and was the key to overcoming the first step. He was an amateur at controlling chi, and would most likely fail at controlling completely. He only needed to ensure that he had taken a step closer even if a small one.

The energy was beginning to scatter and he was almost unsure if he would succeed, but he felt a change happen inside himself. A small almost close to a grain of sand orb of chi formed inside him, he could feel it concentrated at his heart. This only served to motivate him and enhance his focus, it was almost similar to when he forged a weapon.

By the time he opened his eyes the small orb was the size of a copper coin, a smile spread across his face as he felt his hair stand straight from the excitement coursing through his body. He had done it, he had started his journey. He had wasted quite a bit of the chi the toad gave him, but that was due to his lack of practice in such a thing, with time he would grow into a capable person.

He wanted to do a little dance, but first he had to wash the blood off him and himself. He threw himself into the water, he had to keep his head under the water or he would be cheering in excitement. He relegated his excitement to throwing a few punches under water, he was being quite a nuisance to the fish around him.

By the time he had pulled himself out of the water most of the excitement had left him, he still had a grin on his face as he sat down on the grass and waited for his clothes and himself to dry.

He closed his eyes and focused back onto his heart, the orb of chi had been filled while he was celebrating it seems. It wasn't very big so it wouldn't take long to fill anyway, but now he had to make it bigger with his own chi or find another animal and use their chi for his own gain.

He wanted to try something else though, he tried to gather his chi onto his fist and enhance his power. He used the blood vessels as a way to transport his chi, most of it scattered as he moved it, but in the end he succeeded with less than half of the original amount which wasn't much in the first place.

He took a deep breath and turned to a tree, it was taking quite a lot to ensure the chi didn't scatter like the rest. His gaze was locked onto a nearby tree, he swung his fist towards it. However, that action broke his focus and the chi scattered before the blow landed.

"I-I'm a moron..." He said quietly as he held his fist. He hadn't swung with his full force so luckily his fist was uninjured, except for the pain.

He needed more practice controlling his chi before trying such a thing. With this though his chances of getting into one of the many schools that cultivate people to ascend is more than secured, as long as he kept this pace he might even get a quarter of the way through the first step.