Time waits for no one

P.O.V. Aadi

It has been two months since I was stuck in this dungeon but I have finally completed the beginning setup of my new cultivation. After another three weeks I realized that I'm only able to cleanse using the plant every other day as it uses up to much of the plants energy to purify me and it can only do it when it's energy is full. While waiting for it to be ready I have begun to actively hunt any slimes within a ten minute radius of my cave area in order to lower the chance of being surrounded.

I also have begun to see what some of the plants will be when fully grown to name some there is lettuce, cabbage, potato, carrot, radishes, and onions along with many different types of bean plants.

With two more low grade cores obtained and being fully purified I have all I currently need to begin cultivating and not have to worry about the comm failing. Sitting down in his cave he begins to push the energy in his mind down his body and into his energy system, although uncomfortable at first he slowly start to compact the energy in his body at his dantian to form a rudimentary energy core.

However just as he was about to succeed the energy dissipated through his body leaving him drained and uncertain of what had happened. 

He had never heard of someone failing to make a core as long as they had enough energy, was it possible that there wasn't enough energy. However there was little he could do to change the outcome and so laid down on his sleeping bag and slept, waking up 6 hours later refreshed and full of energy he once more attempted condensing  a core.

And once more it dispersed through his body.

Worry began to set in as he contemplate whether he would have to absorb outside energy in order to solidify a core, but that would mean corrupting my energy veins again. Hesitant to do so he contemplated how to get more energy while not absorbing it from outside sources, the main reason he won't produce more energy is cause his energy veins are already full. But is there a way to not lower the amount of energy he currently holds while also adding more, people with cores compact the energy in their core to do that but he couldn't do that.

As concepts flew his last thought before drifting off was 'why don't I just compact it while it's in my energy veins.' 

Waking up six hours later I get up and go out to start cleaning up any slimes nearby, then pour water in the garden. After doing that I eat and drink some water while going back to contemplating my problem, finally I decide to just experiment with attempting to compact my energy in my veins rather than in a core.

Spreading the energy out through his body as evenly as possible he begins to slowly apply even mental pressure to all of his spirit veins, after a few seconds pain flairs through his body but he continues on slowly he feels the gasses energy in his body begin to gather and slowly begin condensing into small amounts of liquid energy in his veins.

  Blinking again and again while feeling both light and heavy at the same time.

He had succeeded, he could now gather more energy so in order to condense a core and officially awaken. Getting up he begins to circulate his energy while also plugging his absorption points using mental energy so as to prevent energy from getting in. Another upside he had discover about awakening what he called his mental sphere, it was sluggish like the nutrient solutions he had seen soldiers drink while on duty. 

However unlike before he could feel a small trickle of energy leaving his mental sphere and entering his body, he wouldn't have to constantly sleep anymore in order to refill his energy veins instead all he need to do was sit down and cultivate. Slowly he continued cultivating while listening for any slimes.

As one hour after another slipped away his body slowly began to refill with energy, however unlike just now the pressure caused by the liquid energy caused the gasses energy to gather naturally and slowly turn liquid just like the rest of the energy.

  Over 6 hours passed and he wasn't even half full when multiple plop sounds could be heard in the cave, getting up he gets his pots and tarp and heads out.

After dealing with another 6 slimes he returns back to his cave to once more begin practicing and filling up his energy veins.

Like this two days pass and he is finally able to completely fill his energy veins up with liquid energy, however after reaching 90% full a consistently worsening headache appeared and with it reaching a 100% it began to feel like someone was repeatedly stabbing him with a knife in the head.

Laying down and connecting with the plant he begins to drift off into sleep, he is once more in his mental realm and the liquid energy is causing the energy in his mental sphere to also condense and liquify. After the process finishes and his mental sphere energy completely refills he begins to control parts of his body and starts trying to condense a energy core only for it to disperse once more like it did previously, waiting for his body to refill he begins to contemplate the next move. Since the liquid energy isn't enough maybe if he solidifies it more there will be enough.

And once his energy is full he begins to condense the energy in his veins once more, and once more succeeding in that endeavor. Jolting awake his body and mind feels heavy and dull like it is wading through dense water, gathering himself and looking at his comm he freezes, 2 days, that's how long his mental and physical energy breakthrough had taken.

Shaking himself he begins to stretch and refocus on the situation, he needs to go out and begin hunting the slimes again as he has no doubt without him their numbers had skyrocketed.

Gathering his items he heads out of the cave and towards the closest sound, he had not been expecting twenty slimes together when he checked around the corner. He didn't have enough water on him to deal with that many and even if there was they would surround him faster than he could poor it on them.

Retreating he returns back to his cave to continue cultivating, he needed a way to both defend and attack and that can only be achieved with energy in his current situation.