Climbing the Tower with Multidimensional Avatars - Chapter 38

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 38. Galaxy Martial Arts Divine Hall – Entrance Examination (2)

The next day arrived, and I continued with the same training regimen.
I cultivated my dantian through breathing exercises, ran on the treadmill to build cardiovascular endurance and foundational fitness, and strengthened my physique.
After building muscle through strength training, I compressed it using bone-muscle compression techniques, then developed flexibility through soft energy cultivation.
My footwork, unarmed combat, and sword training continued as always.
Siu fell into thought as she watched me wield my blade.
“Have you perhaps achieved some enlightenment recently?”
“Enlightenment? Well, I did have the enlightenment that I need to learn lightness techniques.”
Siu nodded at my response.
“For now, I’ll focus your sword training on fundamentals and extend your strength training time.”
Siu adjusted my training schedule based on whatever she’d observed in my swordwork.
Well, it was always like this.
Siu constantly watched my training and gradually adjusted the pace and intensity of my regimen.
Just then, Cheon So-yeon’s voice called out from outside.
“Ji-woo~! Let’s play~!”
Cheon So-yeon’s Parents, who commanded the Cheon Family Clan’s Military Force Unit, were always busy.
Originally, a nanny was supposed to be hired, but after the amusement park kidnapping incident revealed that Cheon So-yeon was a Heavenly Martial Physique, she started visiting my residence every day instead of having a nanny, since my place was safer.
I had Siu, an android from Hwagyeong, and numerous security systems installed throughout my home—more reliable than most daycare centers.
And I was here as her friend too.
I could have refused, but the Cheon Family Clan had practically forced this arrangement on me, so declining might have caused complications later.
Of course, in exchange for looking after Cheon So-yeon, the family compensated me generously.
Even without those benefits, I wouldn’t have abandoned a friend whose parents both worked.
When she entered the residence, Cheon So-yeon waved happily at me, then glanced at Siu beside her and bowed respectfully.
“Hello.”
“Welcome. Young Master is currently training. Would you like to rest for a moment?”
“No, I’ll train alongside you. I enjoy training too.”
For some reason, Cheon So-yeon seemed uncomfortable around Siu.
I thought she’d get used to it after a day or two, but quite some time had passed and she still seemed wary of Siu.
When Siu looked at me as if asking what to do, I nodded.
“What’s the difference? Train with us. It’s not like I’m learning some secret technique—it’s all basic knowledge anyway.”
Everything I was learning was fundamental martial arts.
Even though the Cheon Family Clan was bloodline-centered, they didn’t refuse to teach outsiders, and anyone who entered Elementary School could learn martial arts at a similar level.
What truly mattered in the foundational stage wasn’t martial arts itself, but grand techniques like spirit medicine, ultimate pursuit, and blood-vein cultivation.
And above all, unlike me, Cheon So-yeon was already a first-rate master.
“Understood. Miss Cheon So-yeon, please come sit beside Young Master.”
“Yes!”
Cheon So-yeon sat beside me. Siu displayed a human anatomical diagram with acupoints marked and the flow of energy on the screen.
“From now on, I’ll teach you a martial technique—a lightness skill called Wind-Linked Lightness. The incantation is….”
She recited a relatively simple incantation and explained the theory of how the body becomes lighter, but her explanation felt like she was expounding on an academic thesis.
I’d researched various materials and often read books that Siu recommended, so I understood her explanation without difficulty, but Cheon So-yeon looked utterly lost, as if hearing voices from another world entirely.
When Siu finished her explanation, Cheon So-yeon leaned close and whispered to me.
“Did you understand?”
“More or less.”
Siu’s explanation used somewhat technical vocabulary, but once you grasped those terms, it was logical and remarkably easy to follow.
“It’s completely different from the lightness skill explanation I know.”
“Oh, you’ve already learned it? The manual says not to teach it to anyone under ten years old.”
“Huh? Y-yes, that’s right.”
Cheon So-yeon occasionally panicked over inexplicable details.
“But why shouldn’t you teach it to anyone under ten?”
Each time, she seemed aware of her own awkwardness and would redirect the conversation as naturally as possible.
I didn’t press the issue and simply told her what I’d heard from Siu, and Cheon So-yeon nodded as if satisfied.
“How did you learn it?”
At my question, Cheon So-yeon stood up and spoke.
“Wind-Shifting Void-Heat—the heat moves wind into empty space. Rising like Swaying—ascension is like trembling. Wood-Root Unwavering—tree roots have no trembling. Spring-Fountain Light-Path—surging water is like a light path. The dantian supports the entire body, the lower half moves gently, the foot’s center is like tree roots, the spring-fountain is light….”
Cheon So-yeon wove together remarkably abstract metaphors in her explanation.
After hearing that explanation, I thought to myself:
What nonsense is this? Even after hearing Siu’s explanation, I have no idea what you’re talking about.
“Well? My explanation is easier to understand, isn’t it?”
Having earnestly explained and demonstrated the lightness skill, Cheon So-yeon looked at me like a dog waiting for praise.
“Um… my teacher is Siu. Let’s continue.”
“Yes, I understand. Young Master.”
I’m sorry, but I’m not a genius like you, so I can’t follow something that abstract.
At my response, Cheon So-yeon’s expression fell.
I studied Siu’s explanation and the supplementary instructional video, and my mind grasped what needed to be done.
“Hmm, is it like this?”
“A bit too fast. Don’t try to imitate Cheon So-yeon’s lightness skill. Move your qi more slowly instead. At first, it’s important to become accustomed to the qi’s movement.”
As the saying goes, a magpie trying to follow a stork will split its legs.
Under Siu’s guidance, I gradually mastered the lightness skill.
“You’re doing well. As expected, Young Master has a natural talent for manipulating qi.”
“Ha, the problem is I only have talent for manipulating qi.”
Making the body lighter itself wasn’t particularly difficult.
But lightness skill is still martial technique—a discipline of using the body.
“…Still, with your sharp mind, Young Master, you should master the footwork quickly. The rest is just becoming accustomed to it.”
She was right. Though that process of becoming accustomed seemed like it would take quite a while.
Lightness skill was, if I had to describe it, like an elaborate, rhythmically complex dance or a rhythm game requiring flashy footwork.
I had to time my steps precisely to push off the ground in sync with the flow of qi connecting my core erector spinae muscles to my lower body.
When the qi’s movement and the body’s movement created dissonance, I’d be sent flying in an unwanted direction.
Think of it like a racing game.
If my inner energy were a booster, I’d need to activate it when going straight ahead, but the slightest twist of my body would send me crashing into the wall just the same.
Moving the energy itself was easy.
The difficulty lay in moving my body.
It felt like I was learning ballet.
In martial arts novels, I’d thought of lightness technique as something anyone could master, something trivial, but here I was.
Unlike me, who struggled to learn lightness technique, Cheon So-yeon had already mastered it, so she kept watching my expression and tried to match my pace no matter what.
While review was nice, Cheon So-yeon’s level had already far surpassed my progress.
It was like a high school student doing addition and subtraction under the guise of review.
“If you’re going to watch my back like that, just watch television while I practice. Or train at your own level instead.”
“Oh…! Sorry, I was getting in your way.”
Cheon So-yeon left my training room looking dejected.
Watching her retreating figure, I let out a soft laugh.
“Once practice is done, let’s watch a movie. There were some interesting ones that came out on OTT lately.”
“Uh… yeah!”
Cheon So-yeon’s face brightened again as she nodded and left completely.
“Would it help if I turned on a metronome?”
I’d heard that when practicing dance, people use a metronome to develop a sense of rhythm.
“That’s a good idea. I’ll get an analog metronome to help you visually as well.”
My lightness technique practice continued.

* * *

The metronome ticked steadily.
I hurled my body forward in rhythm with its beat.
“Ugh!”
My body veered off the predetermined path, tumbling through empty air.
Siu, who had been watching from the side, quickly caught me with a gentle cushion of energy.
Thanks to her, I suffered no impact whatsoever.
“Your qi control is excellent, but your sense of rhythm leaves much to be desired.”
I’d never been good at rhythm games, that much was true.
…Yeah, I’m genuinely tone-deaf when it comes to rhythm.
Who knew that learning martial arts would require a sense of beat?
Swordplay and hand-to-hand combat never demanded such precision timing.
“Please don’t be discouraged by your difficulty with lightness techniques. In fact, isn’t it rare these days for anyone to properly master them?”
She had a point. In the Galactic Martial Arts World, proper lightness technique training only occurred among certain athletes where machinery was forbidden or restricted.
Most people learned only the basics of body lightening and moved on.
With machinery so advanced, simply lightening one’s body allowed movement nearly as swift as using auxiliary devices, and motorcycles could outpace even masters of lightness technique. What a world we lived in.
Body lightening fell within the domain of qi cultivation, something I’d mastered on my first day of training.
However, such machinery weighed at least ten kilograms, making it difficult for me to freely move between my clones and use them as needed.
Besides, equipment could break during combat.
Sensing my frustration, Siu pondered briefly before speaking.
“At this rate, mastering lightness technique will take far too long. Would you like to learn a new martial art instead?”
“A new martial art?”
“Yes. Since Azure Wood Technique is approaching its limits, why not learn the next stage cultivation method along with Sound Technique? Both should aid your lightness technique development.”
As for cultivation methods, I’d made no progress recently.
If I hadn’t hit a wall, then Siu’s assessment that I’d reached my limit was spot-on.
Azure Wood Technique remained at level 30, and my mana capped at 30—no growth whatsoever.
Now that I thought about it, the Librarian Elder had mentioned that Rarity 1 abilities grow quickly but have clear limits.
It seemed I’d reached Azure Wood Technique’s ceiling.
But cultivation methods aside—Sound Technique?
Wasn’t that an unusually unique martial art?
Siu, noticing my confusion, smiled knowingly and explained.
“Sound Technique is even taught as an elective at Music University. Until about three thousand years ago, it lacked systematic structure, but as scientific technology advanced, it was reestablished as a proper martial discipline.”
Sound Technique… I was someone who couldn’t even play a recorder properly.
“In truth, while I suggested you learn Sound Technique, it can only be used effectively at the first-rate level. Before that, it’s merely cultural refinement.”
“So you’re basically telling me to learn music and develop a sense of rhythm?”
“To put it bluntly, yes.”
“Well, fine. But how does this new cultivation method help?”
Siu smiled and answered my question.
“Azure Wood Technique is a cultivation method based on wood among the Five Elements. Wood qi encompasses wind and lightning. The next stage of Azure Wood Technique is Wind Cultivation Technique—an ascending cultivation method that absorbs wind energy.”
Azure Wood Technique had customized martial arts: Azure Wood Sword, Azure Wood Spear, and Azure Wood Palm.
Since Wind Cultivation Technique and Wind Cultivation Method shared similar names, they were likely paired martial arts.
Martial arts techniques only achieve synergistic effects when paired with a cultivation method.
Even if a martial art doesn’t match perfectly, it must at least share similar qualities with the cultivation method to exert its full power and avoid side effects like demonic cultivation.
The Cheon Family Clan fundamentally trained as a sect specializing in wood qi cultivation among the five elements of yin and yang.
“How much of an advancement is this advancement technique?”
“If Cyan Wood Art is the foundational cultivation method that most people learn up to the second rank, then Wind Cultivation Art is a technique you enter at around the second rank and master all the way to the peak. Young Master, you’re still at the third rank, but your handling of inner energy is no less than Cheon So-yeon’s, so you’ll have more than enough capacity to master it.”
“Ooh!”
Not inferior even when compared to Cheon Mu-ji’s physique.
Siu held my talent in higher regard than I’d expected.
“Of course, martial arts are a discipline of body movement. You may proceed to the next stage of cultivation methods, but other techniques are still insufficient.”
“Haha, I know.”
For some reason, Siu had been focusing on my sword fundamentals lately.

(To be continued in the next chapter)

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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