Quantum Cultivation by Jace Kang (simple e reader TXT) 📕

like he could storm the Peacekeeper Headquarters all by himself in this moment.

Gasping for breath, she met his gaze. “Did you…?”

“Yes.” He nodded. “But I drew it all in.”

“Really?” She looked up through half-lidded eyes, her question less curious, more rote.

“Yes, I haven’t spilled my seed for over seven hundred years. When I do, whoever receives it might be able to Cultivate her Core to the next rank.”

“Oh.” For all her prior curiosity, her tone now bordered on disinterest. She propped her head up on an elbow, and even leaning on her side, her breasts didn’t seem to hang. Just what material had the Immortals sculpted her from?

In any case, it would be a waste to let her Essence disperse inside of him, so he sat down in lotus position. “Pardon me while I Cultivate. It might take a few hours.”

She shrugged.

Closing his eyes, he visualized her Essence consolidating in his Core with each of his breaths.  The excess, he used mental intent to direct into his meridians and extra vessels. If those channels were like riverbeds, her energy was like pure water, coursing through and cleansing impurities, all the while strengthening the pathways. It filled his bone marrow, expanding his capacity.

If she allowed him to do this a few more times, he might very well be able to advance to the next rank in the Water Path.

Hours passed before he’d integrated her Qi into him. When he opened his eyes, Siena, Kentaro, and Aya were gone.

Chapter 15:

The Hacker

G iven how skinny Aya was from her sedentary lifestyle, the Elestrae’s gown looked like it would fit, especially since it was essentially a collection of ribbons. Unlike Siena, she wasn’t about to undress in front of Kentaro. He’d taken them to a nearby coffee shop, which had an Age of Greed aesthetic with the clean lines of its chairs and tables, and the simplicity of its neutral-colored décor.

Not only that, instead of holographic servers and automatic dispensers, it had an actual Purebred woman taking orders at the counter; while more Purebreds worked at making drinks and food.  All gaped at Siena, no doubt seeing a naked alien for the first time in person. Or any alien in any state of dress, for that matter.

Well, it was the first time Aya had seen one up close, as well, but she hadn’t gawked. The Elestrae’s ethereal beauty wasn’t impressive compared to her martial skill.

Which in turn, didn’t rate with Ryusuke’s. It was amazing he could achieve such feats given his cystic fibrosis.

“That will be sixteen credits,” the Purebred woman said, her voice chirpy.

Since Ryusuke had shorted Kentaro’s chip out, and Aya didn’t want to be tracked, Siena paid for their breakfast with a microchip embedded in one of her baubles. She’d restrung it, along with the other istrium and aquaryl-titanide beads. The necklace was the only thing she was wearing at the moment.

“You really should put something on.” For the fourth time, Aya proffered the Elestrae’s gown while pointing with her chin at the staff.

Already utterly inefficient compared to AI robotics, the two young men working the food and drink distributors both kept sneaking glances at Siena. Even the woman staff member eyed her.

“You humans are so amusing.” With a laugh, Siena spoke a word. Some of her beads glowed. The air in front of her shimmered, and she reached in and pulled out some folded blue cloth.

Channeling! Aya had heard stories, but a secondhand account was one thing; experiencing it was something entirely different.  She was probably gaping at this feat just as much as Kentaro was at the Elestrae’s nakedness.

“Wait,” Aya said. “The Peacekeepers asked you to examine Ryusuke’s pills.”

“Was that what they were?” Siena asked. “Their composition and energy concentration was fascinating!”

“How did they open his robe pocket?”

The Elestrae’s eyes brightened. “It was so amazing! I didn’t think humans were able to open interdimensional spaces!”

“How did they do it?” Aya raised an eyebrow.

“Well, they didn’t. I did.” Siena shrugged. “I detected the pocket on one of my scans, and was able to open it through istrium channeling.”

With a snap of Siena’s wrist, the blue cloth unfurled to reveal another dress, this one plain and practical, not nearly as revealing as the one in Aya’s hands.

Aya held up the original. “Is there any reason you came to us in this gown as opposed to that one?” She pointed her chin at the blue dress.

“That one makes me feel pretty.” Siena shrugged.

Kentaro coughed.

This Elestrae would be stunning wearing an ancient burlap sack. Aya harrumphed. “Are those made of natural fibers, too?”

Siena gave a quick nod. “Yes, we don’t like synthetic cloth. It feels…wrong.”

“How so? Does it chafe?” Kentaro asked.

She shrugged. “It’s more like someone coated your skin with sticky tree sap.”

Aya studied her. Elestrae were supposed to be aloof and arrogant; Siena seemed flighty, more like she belonged frolicking among the flowers. And copulating in them.

“How about if you give me that dress, and you can take this one?” Aya held out the gown.

Shrugging again, Siena swapped. The way she slipped into the garment was even more erotic than when she’d taken it off. The staff would have to clean up the pool of saliva Kentaro left, if they weren’t too busy drooling themselves.

“This is All News Network with a special report,” came a pleasant female voice over the shop’s speakers.

At the front of a cafe, a holoprojector cast the scene from the grounds of an ancient temple. From the low morning sunlight, it looked to be current. A figure draped in red-stained white cloth lay on the ground, its limbs bent at awkward angles. Peacekeepers were milling about, some