Chapter 39: Visionless

Eren used Reinforcement even without looking at his fists. A complete defiance of Awakener standards. He broke against the normal and became an anomaly.

This was the true use of the meridians.

The very reason why Reinforcement required vision was because of the eyes. They were the only major meridian that was naturally open in every human.

’Eyes are the gateway to the soul,’ a famous adage said.

That was accurate not only on Earth, but in the cultivation world as well. Eyes were the very gateway that allowed the spiritual to see the physical. Therefore, it was the easiest way for the Dantian to connect with the outside world.

But now, with his meridian open, Eren had a new pathway that led straight from his Dantian into his fist, bypassing the need for vision and line of sight entirely!

He could Reinforce his arm even with his eyes closed! His Primal Strike could be summoned within a single thought!

Shocking, this news would be in this world. But in the land of cultivators, it was a well-known fact children learn even before they embark upon their training.

Immoræ had no artificial lights. During nights, the only luminance their world had came from natural sources like the moon, oil lamps, and torches.

If cultivators couldn’t use their Marial Manuals and Ascension Arts during nights, they’d be easy prey to the dreadful monsters lurking in the darkness.

They would be at the bottom of the food chain. Prey only for the apex predators.

It would have led to an apocalyptic situation, much like what was happening on Earth right now.

So, from the very start, Eren aimed to open his meridians. Even before Geister told him the truth.

Here in this world, Awakeners were naturally limited by their vision. Their Psions only extended as far as the eye could see. Almost everyone was beholden to this one golden rule, barring a few exceptions.

Some Awakeners were anomalies: Awakening with the ability to imbue Psions even without vision. No one had yet to understand why only some have this ’bypassing’ ability.

But Eren knew why. It was because their meridians must have opened through luck and serendipity!

This lack of information led them to misattribute this ability as ’talent’. A god-given gift through the universe’s random generosity.

They had yet to realize the truth about acupuncture. Which was a mystery, given that some Martial Manuals and Ascension Arts discuss meridians and such.

But as he studied more about this topic, things started to make sense.

According to what he learned through his perusal of the internet, Ræzoňic was a language they still struggled to decipher.

With such a crucial topic of research, some Awakeners choose to dedicate their work to decode the language in those ancient scrolls.

In fact, that was one of the few paths that Eren could have taken.

The License Exams were separated into three sectors. The Hunter sector. The Medical sector. And the Academic sector.

Hunters were Awakeners whose specialty focused on vanquishing Phantoms. They were the ones deployed to close any portal that spawns as soon as possible to prevent further catastrophic damage.

The Medical sector consisted of Awakeners like Nieve and Dr. Reid, whose Ascension Arts and Martial Manuals focused on healing and supporting Awakeners deployed on the front lines. They stayed on the backlines, but often still deployed in missions for support.

Then there was the Academic sector. Awakeners who partake upon this responsibility will be given missions to find and solve the mysteries of the Cataclysm, Psions, Phantoms, and everything else that had happened during the last ten years.

One of their areas of study, probably their most important, was Ræzoňic.

Due to the inherent risk and danger of cultivation scrolls, Awakeners must first earn their License to study them. After all, they often required a high cultivation just to simply look at them, much more to try and understand them.

And because of the esoteric knowledge of acupuncture and meridians and spirituality, Awakeners of this world were still ignorant of the meridians.

Eren was not. His mastery focused on acupuncture.

He could have chosen to become an Academic or a Healthcare worker. It’s what he was good at. It’s what Athan trained him to become.

However, he’d already spent millennia of his life as a doctor and a scholar. He’d had enough of living a life burying his head in books or pricking himself with needles.

An apex cultivator. That’s what he wanted to become.

And to do so, he knew challenge was crucial. No steel hardened without the forge. No cultivator became the pinnacle without tribulations.

Perhaps, he could have had a much easier path to a License if he had chosen the other sectors. But the easier path was rarely ever the right path.

In a world filled with mystery and ignorance, it was a death wish to stand out.

So, Eren must make himself powerful the old-fashioned way. Exactly like a cultivator.

He had to face challenges instead of avoiding it. Seek hurdles to surmount them. And find setbacks to set him on the right path.

Become... like a masochist when it comes to cultivation.

Unfortunate, truly, that he’d have to follow Athan’s words even after completing the [Masochist’s Dream].

But how was he to disagree with results?

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Eren spent the rest of the day opening the meridian of his other hand. By the end, impurities had disgustingly clung onto his skin like dried mud. It was caked into his black battle suit, making him look as if he’d just tussled with a pig on the ground.

But it was well worth it. Meridians open in both hands, his Primal Strike became a weapon he could let loose at a moment’s notice.

A hidden ace up his sleeve, if you will.

But instead of a card, it was a meridian that allowed him to imbue his fists with Ræzoň even without looking at it. He wouldn’t reveal this certain power of his until the time necessitated it.