Supreme Devil Lord: I Can Refine All Energy-Chapter 34: Opening the Spirit Pathways

He had memorized the technique, not completely but enough for him to use it slowly. Now he only needed to memorize his mana pathways, which, after reading the complete description of the technique, he realized was going to be a tall task.

This, however, didn’t worry him. What worried him was the fact that...

’I’ll have to waste quite a bit of Refined Energy to open up my spirit pathways.’ He sighed. He didn’t know how much one unit of Refined Energy was, nor did he know how much it would need to open up all the necessary spirit pathways.

’I hope it isn’t too much.’ Taking a deep breath, he willed the system to release the Refined Energy a bit by bit.

But when the system did, he realized he had another problem at hand.

’How am I supposed to control it?’

Just when he was worrying about this, the system’s screen flickered in his mind.

[Does the host need the system’s assistance in helping you familiarize yourself with the Refined Energy and open up the Spirit Pathways?]

Eric immediately said yes in his mind. Right now, it would be an immense help.

As soon as he said this, the system screen changed.

[Assistance will cost the host 3 units of Refined Energy. Does the host agree? (Yes/No)]

Eric frowned, not liking this. He then asked, ’Will you open up my spirit pathways in these 3 units?’

"..."

The system didn’t respond for a moment before it finally did.

[...Yes, host. You won’t need to use any more Refined Energy. However, if the host wants to nurture his spirit pathways, purify and strengthen them, the system can help you, and that would require more Refined Energy.]

The system screen flickered once again.

[Also, please rest assured. The system isn’t like a businessman looking for profit. It belongs to you and works for you. So, apart from the energy needed to operate and generate rewards, the system won’t take any more energy.]

Eric felt a little embarrassed after reading this because he was about to haggle with the system and see if it could open his spirit pathways for less Refined Energy.

’Alright. I agree. Please go ahead and help me.’ He said.

[Yes, host.]

Refined Energy appeared near his heart, at the center of his chest, out of nowhere, and entered a dormant meridian, or more commonly called, the First Spirit Vein.

Eric couldn’t see inside his body, so he didn’t see it and only felt a cooling sensation, which was followed by a stabbing pain in his chest that made him sway and momentarily black out.

However, he quickly gritted his teeth and endured, worried if the process would stop if he couldn’t bear the pain.

In just a few moments, his body was drenched in his cold sweat, and he was trembling and twitching as he was having a seizure, but he still endured it and did his best to remain clearheaded and sit with his spine straight.

...

Rosalie could feel Eric’s gaze on her body as he worked in the kitchen, and it strangely made her feel good. She was enjoying it and instinctively started to sway her hips a little more as she moved around.

A short while later, however, she frowned because she no longer felt his gaze on her and turned her head around.

Her eyes widened when she saw him sitting on the ground, cross-legged, twitching violently while his body was covered in sweat and black grime.

Worried, she rushed out of the kitchen, and when she arrived near him, a bad stench attacked her nostrils, making her recoil.

’What’s happening? What is he doing?’ She wondered. She had heard people would sit cross-legged when they meditated and cultivated, but he wasn’t a warrior, so how could he cultivate? And seeing his condition, he didn’t seem to be meditating either.

"Hey, are you alright?" She called out, realizing she didn’t know his name.

When he didn’t react, she wanted to shake him awake, but hesitated because whatever it was happening, he apparently was doing it on his own.

So, in the end, she decided against waking him up, despite her worries.

...

After what seemed like an eternity, the pain finally stopped.

He heaved deep breaths to stabilize his rough breathing and smelled the disgusting stench. He also felt someone wipe his face.

Opening his eyes, he saw Rosalie sitting there, dressed in a long sundress, using a dirty, black towel to wipe his face.

He frowned, "What are you doing?"

Seeing he had woken up, she sighed in relief and said, "Wiping your face."

"With this dirty cloth?" He said, wrinkling his nose and stopping breathing too deeply.

Rosalie forced a smile. "It was clean when I started."

"What do you mean?" Eric didn’t understand.

Rosalie stood up and walked toward the door to throw the now ruined towel away while saying, "Look at yourself and you’ll understand."

"Hmm?" Eric glanced down and noticed that except for his face, which Rosalie was wiping, his whole body and clothes were stained with a thick layer of horrible-smelling black tar.

’What the fuck is this?’ He almost threw up when he accidentally inhaled a little deeply.

Right then, the system screen in his mind changed.

[Congratulations! Your spirit pathways, required for you to cultivate the Essence Harmonization Technique, have opened, and the impurities within have been expelled.]

’This tar was inside my spirit pathways?’ He was appalled. He then sincerely thanked the system.

Given how painful and difficult the process was, if he had tried to open them up on his own, he knew it would have taken him days, if not weeks. Or perhaps he might not have been able to open them up at all. So, he felt genuinely grateful for the system’s help.

The system didn’t reply, which didn’t surprise him, and he hurried to the bathroom to clean himself.

The scrubbing and cleaning of his body was a chore and took more time than the system needed to open his mana pathways.

After he was done, he walked out, naked, since his clothes had been ruined, and saw Rosalie standing there with neatly folded clothes in her hands.

"Here, wear these."

Instead of taking the clothes, Eric hugged her. "Thank you!"