บท 47: First Session

"First of all, read this" Rongrong said giving Haotian a book.

Haotian took the book and examined it. It was a thin book with a leather covert where Heart Separation Control was written over it. The book seemed to not be very old, clearly a newer copy than the original, however, by the marks of it and the folded pages, it was clear that it had been read and used a lot.

Haotian sat on a near sofa and started attentively reading the book under the attentive gaze of Rongrong.

After some time, Haotian finally closed the book. The book contained the steps and basic explanations of the Heart Separation Control. The technique was based on deep concentration, entering into a deeply concentrated state while circulating your spirit power over the body in a certain way, heavily focusing on the brain and in its connections, being the nerves of the body.

'This is even better than what I thought.'

Finishing it, Haotian was clear. Rather than a technique, it would be more correct to call it a cultivation technique. However, instead of cultivating spirit energy, the one being cultivation was the mental energy. The ability of being able to control or support more people is was due the strengthening of the mental energy.

It was simply that in the DD1 timeline the mental or spiritual energy was not researched, not being directly studied as it's only before the DD3 that it shows its great importance for its relation with spirit souls. Attentively studying it, to clearly detect the maximum age of a spirit ring that you could absorb.

The Heart Separation Control could become very beneficial for everyone, not needing to be control or support spirit master, increasing the absorption limit of a spirit ring.

"Did you finish?" Rongrong asked seeing Haotian's eyes leaving the book.

"Yes." Haotian nodded "It's an incredible technique. And it certainly needs a lot of effort to master."

The Heart Separation Control was based on improving the mind little by little, strengthening the synaptic reactions of the brain and improving the mental strength. It wasn't something that could be done in a day, no matter how talented one was.

"Yes. It's very difficult to train. Maybe it would be better for you t-" Rongrong said.

"You must have trained a lot to reach such profundity, miss Ning" Haotian interrupted.

"Of course as the heir of the clan, how could I not have such a talent" Rongrong puffed her chest.

"Hm!" Haotian hummed "You must be certainly talented, but I'm talking about the effort" Haotian lifted the book "This is your book" He said opening the cover, Ning Rongrong written over the next page "Only seeing the used state of this book, it's clear the days and effort that you used in learning the technique. This is the result of your hard work, don't put it all in your talent or background."

Haotian knew about the expectations that one could receive for his clan, being treated like an object from it and expected to be in a certain way. Yes, he knew, he had experienced it in the Tè Clan, only to be abandoned and thrown away like trash when he didn't reach them, all his hard effort being ignored.

Nowadays, Haotian was even thankful to be thrown away from the Tè Clan, letting him learn the truth of them and their view of everyone. If not, he really didn't know in what kind of human being he would have become, letting him be influenced by them. Maybe discarding live like this is a mere collection game.

Listening to his words, Rongrong's eyes opened wide in shock "My effort" She whispered quietly while looking at the floor.

"Yes, I put a lot of effort" She said this time a little louder. She lifted her face and directly looked a Haotian, her face blooming into a pure and beautiful smile, making her seem like a phantasy cute fairy, not from this world. Haotian was a little taken back by such cute image.

"Thanks, Haotian" She said keeping the smile.

Haotian recovered and smiled at her "No need, miss Ning"

"Rongrong!" Rongrong said pointing at Haotian.

"What?" Haotian said confused.

"Call me Rongrong. There's no need for the miss Ning." She said puffing her cheeks "Anyway, I think that you only had done it to tease me, never truly saying it respectfully."

"I was caught!" Haotian said theatrically, causing an angry gaze from her "Are you angry about it?"

"No. I prefer it openly like that rather than the hid and fake one from other people. But..." Rongrong averted her gaze a little "I would prefer you to call me Rongrong."

"As you want" Haotian made an overly open bow "Rongrong" He said with a smile, quickly breaking the pose and letting himself fall on the sofa. "How did you find it?"

"It could be improved" She said with a smile.

"Oh?!" Haotian clapped his hands, making an expression as if realizing something "I would also have liked to give you permission to call me by my name, but as you had already taken such intimacy, it doesn't matter."

Rongrong blushed a little, perfectly knowing that she had always called him by his name. She was usually the higher-ranked one, so the need to be polite with the other side was strange.

"S-sor-" "Tian!" Haotian interrupted "My friends call me Tian, so you can also call me like this, no?" Haotian said with a smile.

"Okay, Tian" Rongrong said, completely accepting him as her friend.

"Could I be able to call you like your family. She-Devil was it?"

"Please no!" Rongrong shouted embarrassed "Muu! Stop teasing me!" She puffed her cheeks, looking at Haotian's light smile.

"Would you prefer my Princess?"

"Hahaha!" After some seconds, both exploded in laughter.

"Rong'er" Haotian said stopping laughing "Simple and cute, as I like it."

Rongrong blushed "Okay" She said in low voice "You can call me Rong'er. BUT!" She shouted pointing at Haotian's chest "Only if when we are alone. If not, call me Rongrong."

"Of course, Rong'er" Haotian said bowing again.

"Please stop!" Rongrong said hitting Haotian's chest against his teasings.

After some time laughing, they finally calmed themselves, returning their seriousness "About the Heart Separation Control, do you have any doubt?" Rongrong asked.

Haotian made a thoughtful face "I'll need to try it first to know more about it, but for now, I have some doubts of how to move the spirit power, especially over the brain area as it depicts some strange patterns."

"That's where I would help you" Rongrong answered "In the first sessions, I would help you, helping in controlling your own spirit power around your body, this way it would be easier. If there's no help, it became incredibly difficult and dangerous, risking being turned into an idiot."

Rongrong could see Haotian's worried face. "But don't worry!" She quickly waved her hands "I'm very prepared and it had become like second nature for me, like breathing. I have 100%, no! 150% to not fail."

"Okay, I leave it to you." Haotian said with condifence.

"Yes!" Rongrong nodded "You will need my help for the first sessions, but then it would become easier, being capable of doing on your own."

Haotian nodded in understanding "So, will we start the first session now?"

"Let's do it now." Rongrong accepted "Come here" Rongrong eagerly dragged him over the clear space in the middle of the room, forcing him to sit in a lotus position.

"Do it like it's explained in the book" Rongrong said while she knelled herself in front of Haotian, attentively looking at him.

Haotian closed his eyes and started cultivation as explained, moving the spirit energy around his body.

"I will help you. Be calm and don't resist" Rongrong leaned over Haotian, resting her forehead over his, concentring over Haotian while she invoked her spirit, the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda shining brightly.

That was another reason why the technique couldn't be widespread. To open the path and start practicing the technique, your 'teacher' must have a compatible spirit with you as if not, both energies would crash, resisting each other. Luckily, it didn't matter for the Nine Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, being compatible with any kind of spirit that let it be supported.

Rongrong focused on her own spirit energy, supporting Haotian with her spirit while controlling his own spirit energy 'It's strange. Tian has very concentrated and pure energy, but it flows very easily.'

Rongrong might be unable to discover, but this was due to the Dragon Cores that Haotian had in his body. This let him have a higher spirit power than the higher than average thanks to his body spirit, letting it have greater control over it.

'Also...' Rongrong blushed, she could feel some energy coming from Haotian, it was warm and pleasant, Rongrong feeling extremely good with it.

Rongrong looked at Haotian's handsome face with his eyes closed and shook her head 'You must concentrate, Rongrong! This is very important' She returned to focus on Haotian while letting herself be flooded by such warm energy.

After an hour, Rongrong finally separated from Haotian. Rongrong body was all sweet and her face was all flushed. Somewhat she was a little reluctant to separated from Haotian, wanting to keep that pleasure feeling.

"So we finished" Haotian opened his eyes slowly. "It's truly incredible" It has only been a session and he was unable to even break through the first level, but it was clear that there had been some improvements.

He could feel his thinking quicker and clearer as if a cloud in it had disappeared. And that was only with the first day! Once he master it, the benefits would be enormous, being able to fully exert his full power.

"Thanks, Rong'Er" Haotian said gratefully.

"O-of course" Rongrong said averting her face, wanting to recover her cool and not show this weakened state.

"Oh, and congratulations, Rong'Er." Haotian smiled.

Rongrong turned at him with a strange look "Why the congratulations?"

"Why it would be? Of course, it's for your break through" Haotian nodded "The Beautiful Silk TUlip it had certainly helped you."

Rongrong looked at him strangely, but once she focused in her own spirit energy, her eyes went wide. She had broken through rank 40! "How could it be!?"

After absorbing the Tulip, Rongrong had found her spirit evolved and her rank increasing from rank 34 to 38, but now she had reached 40. Unknowingly with her, while she helped Haotian cultivate, Haotian's spirit had influenced her, creating something akin double mental cultivation with him.

Using Haotian's spirit, she had been able to more efficiently absorb the Tulip, gaining greater benefits from it.

"I suppose that you have digested more of the Tulip" Haotian supposed. He didn't know if it was due to his spirit, too focused on the technique while doing it, but he has some thoughts about being for it.

"B-but" Rongrong said even now with shock "I have even broke through the Heart Separation Control, achieving the Four Aperature Constant Heart"

Rongrong looked sharply at Haotian 'I might have learned something thanks to him. People say that even the teachers learn from the students, this might be the case.' Rongrong thought 'I'll need to see in the next sessions if the effect repeats.'

"Are you well, Tian?" Rongrong asked "Some discomfort or anything strange."

"Yes, no problem. It went perfectly as it's expressed in the book" Haotian answered "I could even sense an improvement, but nothing negative."

"Great!" Rongrong beamed "We will need to do more sessions!" She said eagerly "Let's make another one next week, we can meet at Shrek."

"Okay" Haotian smiled. Then, they started planning, preparing the plans for the next sessions.

"It seems that it's quite late" Haotian said while standing, stretching his body that was kind of sleepy "I think it's time for me to return."

"O-of course" Rongrong answered "You must be busy and need to return to your academy. I will also return shortly to Shrek."

Haotian went to the door, opening it. He stopped just about as he was about to leave and turned to Rongrong "Until next week. Let's have some tea and talk about ourself a little more next time" He said waving his hand, saying good bye.

"Yes! Until next week" Rongrong said goodbye, seeing Haotian leaving.

Once she found herself alone, Rongrong made a thoughtful face "In a week..." She whispered "I need to buy a new dress. What would he like?"

...

Riding the carriage to his academy, Haotian was thinking about what happened today, attentively reviewing it, especially his time with Rongrong.

"It went pretty well. Today, I became from an interesting stranger to a close friend. While a bond hasn't been created, it certainly improving, being able to faintly sense something." He reviewed "Plus I adquired a new cultivation method and a future mean to meet Rongrong again."

"She seemed especially happy when I talked about the hard work rather than talent or background, so she should be very pressured for her clan. If I want to progress with her I should treat her like a normal girl, keeping that kind of relationship." Haotian reasoned.

"Oscar might be an obstacle, but luckily it wasn't too late, she not having completely fallen for him. I should take things slowly and gaining her affection, winning her over" He concluded.

Haotian turned his gaze back, looking at the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Clan over the distance. "Rong'Er is very cute, intelligent and funny. I had a good time." Haotian smiled "I look forward to next time."