Immortal Ice Empress: Path to Vengeance

903 Blood-Soul Awareness

A month later, Mira was still in her forge, hammering away at a large piece of metal that looked as if it was being sculpted into a suit of armor. All around her were her various creations tossed about.

From daggers to swords to maces and even more normal tools like handsaws, chisels, hammers, and everything in between. Suits of armor were also thrown about, with each one having a unique design. Some were just a breastplate, while others were full-body chain mail.

Over the last month, she didn't hold back, creating whatever came to mind.

However, after hundreds, if not thousands, of creations, the process became rather simple for her. Whether she was creating something out of iron, wood, leather, some sort of alloy, or a different type of Human-Grade metal, she had perfected the art of making Human-Grade items.

Not far away from her, in her own room, was a little blood-red fox. The walls of the room were red, dried with what looked like blood. She was twirling her fingers as a thin stream of blood hovered around her, performing all sorts of intricate movements.

Over the last month, under Mira's strict guidance, Dominique had pushed her limits, reaching the peak of the Foundation Realm.

Now, it was time for a crucial phase in her development - the first step of the altered Harmonic Trinity Cultivation Technique, or what she called the Blood-Soul Awareness Stage.

The original Harmonic Trinity technique didn't have anything like that.

Mira spent much of her time doing research on Blood Qi, blood affinities, the soul, and more. In her Storage Space, she had a stack of books and manuals she had bought from the FLDIL that helped her to understand this unique affinity a bit more.

That's how she came to know that the kind of Qi Dominique naturally gathered wasn't all that similar compared to what normal people did.

Normal people would absorb the neutral Qi in the air and when they were planning to use it, the Qi would be transformed into their affinity. This would change slightly when they reached the Core Formation Realm, as instead, one's Qi would transform into their given element/s inside their dantian, but the point remained.

However, for Dominique, she didn't have any neutral Qi in her body. It was all Blood Qi.

That wasn't weird. More than anything, it was intuitive. But those who had more of an understanding of how the world works would definitely find it odd.

Even Mira didn't know this until one day, she sat down and did a thorough inspection of the girl. 'How peculiar.' She thought. Whether it was because she was in the Foundation Realm and stored Qi throughout the entirety of her body or something else, they had discovered that the little fox's own blood was transforming the neutral Qi into her own.

In other words, her blood and Qi were mixing somehow, creating a combination of the two: Blood Qi.

Normally, this wouldn't mean anything other than making her Qi techniques slightly more efficient than other people's.

But for Mira, who wanted to teach the Harmonic Trinity Technique, this was a massive discovery. As she's come to understand throughout the years, one's affinity is tied to their soul.

Since Dominique was always producing, generating, and gathering Blood Qi, an energy that was intrinsically linked to her own blood and vitality, she theorized that there should be a way to reach her soul through her blood–or rather, her Blood Qi.

If Dominique could indeed reach her soul through that connection and simultaneously practice the Harmic Trinity Technique, her future would be limitless.

In her room, the young fox, Dominique, was engrossed in a crucial phase of her training. The floating Blood Qi around stopped right in front of her forehead.

Her brows furrowed in concentration as she tried to link her mind to that stream of energy. Unsure of whether she had connected to it, she gritted her teeth and attempted to separate her Blood Qi into its two basic components: neutral Qi and blood.

Mira occasionally glanced towards Dominique's room but continued her work on the suit of armor as she hammered away. Despite her focus on blacksmithing, part of her mind remained attuned to Dominique's progress. She knew the importance of this stage in Dominique's cultivation journey.

At one point, she paused her hammering, wiped the nonexistent sweat from her brow, and turned to where Dominique was practicing. "Remember, Dominique," she called out. "understanding the essence of your Blood Qi is key. It's not just about control. It's about comprehension. Feel the separation, understand the process."

Dominique nodded slightly, acknowledging Mira's guidance. She took a deep breath and raised her hand, swiping her arm with her long, sharp nails. Blood welled up from the small wounds, and she focused her attention on it.

With a subtle movement of her will, she manipulated the droplets of blood, levitating them before her. Her eyes, which reflected the deep crimson hue of blood, were fixed on the tiny spheres of her life force.

'Since I don't quite understand how to separate the blood from the Qi, I'll see if I can gain any insights by combining the two.' She thought before closing her eyes and sitting in a meditative position.

Slowly, she began the process of transforming the blood into Blood Qi. It was a forceful approach to the natural process occurring within her body, and it required a deep understanding of her unique affinity.

Mira watched with a mix of sternness and pride. This exercise was more than just a test of Dominique's control; it was a way for her to intimately understand her own nature.

By manually transforming her blood into Blood Qi, she hoped that Dominique would be able to trace the path back to her soul.

As the minutes ticked by, Dominique's focus never wavered. The droplets of blood vibrated, and a minute amount of Qi around her began to gather around them. It was a slow process, demanding patience and precision, but gradually, the droplets began to shimmer with a faint energy – the beginnings of Blood Qi.

However, through that process, she felt something. It wasn't anything tangible, nor could she fully understand what sensed, but it was real. Like a manifestation of her will–of her existence.

'...I-Is this what my soul feels like?' She wondered, but as quickly as it came, it disappeared. Her ears drooped a little before they perked back up, and she cut open her now-healed arm again. Controlling an even larger globule, she shut her eyes hard and went back to what she was doing. 'So, there really is a connection! Now, I just need to feel it and find it again!'