Meridian Opening

Nyle didn't even ask Aster why Aster knew that he was the one behind the door.

"What grave news?" Aster asked as his heart skipped a beat. 'Did it start? Did the traitor already kill someone?'

"Open the door first. I want to talk face to face." Nyle's voice could be heard from behind the door.

Aster complied, opening the door. Not without making sure that he could react to any possible attack.

'I can't be sure that Nyle's not the traitor. Although it's unlikely.' Aster thought.

Once the door was opened, Aster could see Nyle's face. It looked apologetic, slightly angry, and even somewhat determined.

"The first boss's corpse..." Nyle paused for half a second before continuing. "It's gone."

"It's gone?" Aster narrowed his eyes.

"Yes." Nyle only nodded.

"Got it." Aster nodded. "Is that all?"

"You aren't surprised?" Nyle asked Aster with a surprised tone. 'I expected him to be at least somewhat angry or surprised. He just brushed it off.'

"I'm just happy that everyone is still alive." Aster blandly said.

"Aster." Nyle looked him in the eyes. "You changed. You weren't like this when you came to the temple."

"I just don't care, really. I can't do anything about the situation, so I might as well just relax and wait for the next expedition." Aster replied to Nyle. "In the meantime, I can only hope that you will be able to deal with the traitor."

"You trust me?" Nyle asked Aster with a weird tone.

"No," Aster replied. "Not fully. But if you were the traitor, it would be extremely easy for you to deal with all of us. That's why I am placing my hopes on you."

Aster lied.

He didn't trust Nyle at all.

He knew.

He knew that no matter how a person could look like, they could have been a traitor. After all, the person he trusted the most in the world had already betrayed him once.

So he didn't trust Nyle.

Nor did he trust Cecil.

Or Asher or Boar.

'I'll find him myself. In the meantime, I'll let Nyle take the spotlight.' Aster had decided that he would learn magic and quietly wait for the traitor to reveal themselves.

"Thanks." Nyle released a breath of relief. "I am glad that you trust me. Thank you, really."

"No need to thank me. It's all just logical reasoning." Aster downplayed his 'trust'.

"Still, it's something I am thankful about. And for that, I will do my best to find the traitor." Nyle smiled.

"Thank you for the hard work." Aster bid Nyle farewell.

Nyle had also brought Aster his share of resources. Aster was supposed to get a big part of the final boss's body as well, but that went down the drain.

'Still, it should be enough to help me somewhat.' He grinned.

Taking out the meat out of the bag, he started eating.

And he ate more.

Somehow, ever since arriving in the new world, Aster became hungrier. He could eat much more.

He believed that it was a side-effect of strengthening himself with monster meat.

And so, he ate for a whole hour, stashing meat inside himself.

[ You have gained 0.25 strength ]

[ You have gained 0.25 agility ]

[ You have gained 0.25 vitality ]

It was a good reward for the expedition.

Aster grinned. "Status."

[ Aster

Strength: 1.53, Agility: 1.74, Vitality: 1.31, Mana: 0.12 Status: Healthy

EP: 23

Current Quests:

Bird in a cage:

-Escape the Temple of Trickery in 30 days (25 days remaining).

-Rewards: Random Option unlock 1x, Rare Gatcha Ticket 1x.

-Punishments: Mana Blockade (30 days).

]

Aster's stats had risen by 0.3 in the last two days.

'If I continue like this, I should be able to reach Cecil's level in a few days at most.' He couldn't contain his grin.

"But damn, I can't believe that just a small part of that boss got me 0.10 stat points."

Then, Aster looked carefully at his Status.

"Hm?" He noticed a new stat.

"Mana: 0.12? Does the System register my mana increase as well?" Aster felt like jumping out of happiness.

It was extremely hard to gauge how much he could increase his mana just by training with Zoroaster's Way Of Magic.

Now, however, he found a way.

And so, he immediately sat down, training.

'The first step is to imagine mana, allowing the body to understand, recognize, and harvest it.' He thought.

'The second step is to open up all your meridians. The more meridians opened, the better talent you will have in your journey.' Aster remembered Zoroaster's teachings.

And so, he imagined an invisible force around him. He imagined it going through the first meridian. The meridian that Zoroaster himself named. The Gate Of Imagination.

Usually, many apprentices in the making would struggle with the first step. It was also known as one of the biggest hurdles in becoming a mage.

However, thanks to Aster's modern knowledge, imagination enriched by the internet, and pure talent, he was able to open the meridian in less than thirty minutes.

Once he opened it, Aster could feel his whole body changing.

He could feel mana flowing inside. He could feel it reaching the second meridian and pushing to open it.

The second step of cultivating magic was called Meridian Opening, and its purpose was to allow the body to adjust to mana.

After opening the Gate Of Imagination, the mana would push forward in order to flow through the body.

If it doesn't establish a path in which it can cycle, it would result in an injury. Many people had even died.

At least four meridians must be opened in order to establish such a path.

But the human body had twenty meridians that magic could circle through.

In other words, the more meridians a person opens, the bigger capacity and talent they will have for magic.

And so Aster didn't try to resist the raging tide of magic that intended to burst through his second meridian.

No, he supported it, pushing with all his power.

The very moment he opened Gate Of Imagination, he could slightly control mana inside his body.

He used that control to push the mana even more. Even stronger.

The mana broke through the second meridian without any obstacles.

And then the third.

And then the fourth.

It kept pushing, making Aster cough black blood from the sudden burst inside his body.

But Aster wasn't afraid. He knew that he had just coughed out impurities that the broken meridians left behind.

He kept pushing, reaching the twelfth meridian without problems.

At the thirteenth, the mana started slowing down.

Coughing another round of blood, Aster kept pushing.

Thirteen.

Fourteen.

Fifteen.

Sixteen.

Seventeen.

At that moment, he could feel his mana barely being able to break through more.

With a really hard push, he managed to break the eighteenth meridian.

[ New quest: Only Losers Can't Do Twenty ]

Aster looked at the new notification with surprised eyes.

"System, show me the new quest."