Chapter 512: New Era

"Do not force your breathing. Imagine power, simply breathe, and follow your understanding of this world. Do not attempt to control what you feel or search for something that may not yet be within your reach. Allow your body to settle naturally, and let your mind guide your breathing."

The young members of the Stein family followed King Stein’s instructions, settling into their respective positions as they closed their eyes and concentrated on their breathing. They inhaled slowly, held their breath for a brief moment, and then exhaled, repeating the process while attempting to quiet their thoughts. Some imagined themselves surrounded by an invisible current of energy, while others focused on the familiar sensations of their own bodies, hoping to discover something unusual. Despite their different approaches, they all shared the same underlying expectation: if the ancient records were correct, then this simple breathing method might finally allow them to experience something their ancestors had spent generations searching for.

Several minutes passed without any noticeable change. The young members remained seated in silence, their breathing gradually becoming more uniform as they continued following the instructions. The only sounds in the library were the occasional rustling of clothing and the faint movement of air through the old building. King Stein stood before them with his hands clasped behind his back, carefully observing their expressions. He had instructed them to remain patient, and he intended to ensure that they did not abandon the process merely because nothing happened immediately.

Eventually, one of the young men became restless and opened his eyes. He glanced at the others before turning his attention toward the elderly patriarch, his expression revealing the frustration he had been trying to suppress. "Elder, I—"

"Continue," King Stein interrupted calmly.

The young man immediately closed his mouth and returned his attention to the exercise. Although he clearly wanted to ask whether they were wasting their time, he did not dare challenge the patriarch’s instructions. The ancient breathing method had been preserved by their family for generations, and King Stein had made it clear that they would follow the procedure exactly as it had been recorded. If there was even a possibility that the method could help them understand the recent changes occurring throughout the world, then abandoning it prematurely would be foolish.

Another minute passed, followed by several more. Yet the atmosphere inside the library remained unchanged, and none of the young members reported experiencing anything unusual. A few began to wonder whether the old records had exaggerated the significance of the technique, while others questioned whether the returning Qi was truly accessible to ordinary humans. However, they kept their doubts to themselves and continued breathing as instructed, unwilling to risk disappointing King Stein by giving up too soon.

King Stein, meanwhile, remained patient. He had spent considerable time studying the old records before deciding to conduct this experiment, and he understood that the process might not produce immediate results. According to the surviving accounts, the ancient practitioners had never treated the method as something that could be mastered through force alone. It required patience, awareness, and a natural connection between the practitioner and the energy surrounding them. If Qi had genuinely begun returning to the world after centuries of absence, then the human body would have to recognize and adapt to its presence before anyone could hope to use it effectively.

The patriarch had no intention of allowing his descendants to rush through the process simply because they were eager to experience something extraordinary. Their ancestors had spent generations preserving the technique, and the surviving records contained too little reliable information for him to make careless assumptions. If the method worked, he wanted to understand how and why it worked. If it failed, he needed to know whether the failure was caused by an incomplete technique, a lack of aptitude, or some other factor that their family had yet to discover.

Suddenly, one of the young women seated near the center of the room frowned slightly. Her breathing, which had remained steady until that moment, changed almost imperceptibly. She shifted her attention inward, attempting to understand the unfamiliar sensation developing somewhere beneath her chest. At first, she assumed that she had simply become too conscious of her own body after sitting still for so long. However, the feeling persisted, gradually becoming more distinct until she could no longer dismiss it as an ordinary physical sensation.

"I feel something," she said hesitantly.

King Stein’s eyes opened immediately, and his attention snapped toward her. "What do you feel?"

The young woman did not answer at once. Instead, she placed one hand over her abdomen, her brows drawing together as she tried to find the right words to describe the sensation. "I don’t know exactly. It feels warm, but not like the warmth you get when you’re sitting near a heater. It’s coming from somewhere inside me, and I can’t explain why."

King Stein stared at her without speaking. For the first time since entering the library, his composed expression showed a hint of genuine emotion. It was not the excitement of a man who had finally achieved something he had pursued for years, nor was it the satisfaction of someone whose theories had been proven correct. What appeared in his eyes was closer to fear, because he understood the significance of what the young woman had just described.

The ancient breathing method had been practiced by generations of the Stein family. Their ancestors had studied the surviving manuscripts, followed the same instructions, and repeated the same exercises in the hope of reconnecting with the power described in their oldest records. Yet almost nobody had ever reported experiencing anything that could be considered a genuine response. Over time, the practice had become little more than a family tradition, an inherited ritual whose original purpose had gradually faded beneath centuries of unanswered questions.

Now, after generations of apparent failure, a young woman had finally experienced something that might indicate the technique was working.