章 36: Chakras and mana channels

Hugo surveyed his small room taking in every detail as he oriented himself to his surroundings.

His gaze passed over the small bed; the window already letting in intense sun rays; the straight-backed chair; the washstand; the bureau mounted with a small mirror; and finally rested on the hourglass timer on his reading table.

"It's only been about two hours?" He exclaimed in disbelief, looking at the askion-sand that hadn't even dropped an inch since he last viewed the hourglass.

[I just can't get used to these hourglasses. This is a bit like making a rough estimate of hours rather than measuring time? Why would the people in this world lack the small bit of ingenuity required to invent a geared clock?] Hugo wondered.

"I should invent better clocks for Gaia. But I need to go about it carefully…"

[Gaia likely isn't as simple as it looks on the surface.]

[A civilization that wields such great power shouldn't be way back in their technological tree. That doesn't make any sense!] Hugo suspected a force or unknown factor was stifling the technological advancement of Gaia.

[Could it be these Gods; or the Colonialists I keep hearing so much about?] Hugo mused.

From what he had seen so far, the people here still mainly walked on foot or used carriages pulled by calamity-beasts.

For a civilization with very strong beings that would undoubtedly be perceived as Gods back on Earth, the Gaians had surprisingly been stagnant for years in their technological innovation.

[There must be another factor in play.] Hugo deliberated.

If his soul-training could improve his thought process by a factor of three compared to his previous life's peak, what about terrifying mystics like the Matriarch, what were they truly capable of? Inventing machines should be as easy as preparing popcorn for such mystics.

[I need to exercise prudence when facing the unknown.] Hugo deliberated. He didn't want to be faced with a situation similar to when the Nazis cornered him in his previous life.

[A simple invention might bring deadly enemies to my doorstep once again… But this wouldn't matter if I had great power and influence.] He sighed and shook his head in resignation.

"Success is the sum of small efforts, repeated day in and day out. I should start small…" Hugo whispered as he psyched himself up.

"If the journey of a thousand miles begins with one step, I have already taken the second step," Hugo mumbled, once again focusing on his body and the mystic-art.

The energy from the red-tailed goose eggs had almost entirely been used up by his body. This was a surprise as he had expected to sleep for at least half a day before absorbing it all.

"What happened?"

Hugo started flexing his arms, trying to discern if any transformations had happened to his body. However, there appeared to be none.

"Why hasn't anything changed?" Hugo mumbled as he hopped off his bed.

"Eehh!" Hugo exclaimed in wonder after stepping on the carpeted floor.

[There seem to be some slight changes when I am grounded on my two feet! Maybe, I've begun connecting with my earth-Star chakra mentioned in the Kratos-Body-Yoga.] Hugo contemplated.

[But isn't that premature?]

Sensing the earth-star chakra without opening one's mana channels was supposed to be impossible. Hugo was perplexed by the feeling of power that flowed through his body when he stood on the floor.

That was supposed to be a sign of connection with the earth-star chakra which should have been impossible, having taken only his first steps on the path of mysticism.

[Hopefully, this doesn't have any drawbacks. The Owl didn't say anything negative about sensing the base-chakra.] He mused.

From the manual, Hugo comprehended the fundamental chakra-system governing the path of mysticism. Within the chakras, one could create mana wells for storing the mana that fueled mystic powers.

Hugo was very excited by the prospect.

[I need to start from the basics, that is by understanding the essences of the 'physical' and the 'esoteric' body.] He decided.

[Human life simultaneously exists in two parallel dimensions.]

[The first is the physical body also known as the mystic-khet. The other is the non-physical existence also referred to as the esoteric body which was known to the ancients as 'mystic-sah'. Are these ancients the same Hindus or Egyptians from Earth?] He wondered.

The earth-star chakra he was sensing was positioned about twelve inches below the feet in the etheric body.

The Kratos manual referred to it as the super-root.

Its most important function was rooting a mystic's etheric body into the astral-plane that lay beneath the fabric of the whole universe.

"The first level of the Kratos-Body-Yoga only stops at activating the base-chakra," Hugo mumbled.

There were myriad chakras; some major, some minor; positioned throughout the esoteric body. The manual had only introduced the major two; the earth-star and the base chakras.

[When I activate the earth-star, I will finally become a mystic wizard that can traverse the whole of Gaia. Only then can I start pursuing the mysteries of the cosmos.]

Before he could even conceive treading this path, he needed to become an apprentice first and then a scholar.

[But this poses the question; why did I sense the Base Chakra first instead of the earth-star chakra ?]

[Was it because of the astral-energy being refined by the pyramid?] Hugo was perplexed.

He recalled the moment when he had sensed a red vortex of energy spinning clockwise at the base of his spine that morning.

After absorbing the scroll's contents, Hugo had gained some insight into the vortex's nature. He had been surprised to find out that that was his base-chakra.

[The base-chakra is the foundation of the mana that fuels the mystic spell system on Gaia.]

[The earth-star goes a step further in being the chakra system's anchor to the astral-plane. Why is it that I sensed the earth-star first, instead of the base?] Hugo was puzzled.

[I will cross that bridge when I reach it. I should start by opening up the mana channels referred to in the manual.]