A Few Things I Want to Clarify Before I Start Posting More Consistently
Before I begin uploading more content regularly, there are a few points I want to explain so you all understand my creative process and why posts sometimes take longer to come out.
Energy Types & Tiers
There are five distinct energy types in this world, and each one has its own set of tiers. I'll go into more detail about each one later, but for now I want you to understand that they're unique and will not be relied on to an insane degree or at least this is what I'm trying to achieve, i want them to fundamentally be different from one another. I want them to support and not carry, meaning that i want more action involving hands and not standing in one place and throwing balls of water and fire at each other.
No Plot Armor / Meaningful Consequences
One of my core goals with this story is to avoid plot armour. I want strength and survival to feel earned, not pulled out of nowhere (If i ever do this please tell me, its better for me to learn from it than to ignore it and move on.). If someone is saved in a life-or-death situation, it shouldn't be because of some invisible force or random Deus ex machina - it should be because that character made choices, trained, learned, or built relationships that logically led to that outcome.
I want the growth in this story to feel authentic - both internally to the characters, and externally to you as the reader.
My Writing Process & Why It Takes Time
When I write, I don't just make one draft and keep it. A single chapter might have dozens of scraps, ideas, and rewritten arcs, all before I decide on the final version - and sometimes, I end up going in a completely different direction than I originally planned.
I'll be honest: I'm a perfectionist when it comes to my chapters. If I'm not fully satisfied with something, I won't post it. So if uploads take a bit longer - that's why. I'll normally try to keep within a 1 to 3 day time frame and if by chance i am sick i will post with 1 to 5 day time frame. I want each chapter to feel complete, intentional, and meaningful.
The Tools Behind the Story
I use an app called Obsidian to plan this world. In particular, I use its canvas feature to spider-diagram every detail - events, lore, character relationships, and more.
I don't want to reveal everything right away. A lot of the lore is meant to be mysterious, so you as readers can form your own ideas about what happened, from the characters' perspectives. I love the feeling of a book that triggers your imagination - where how you think the world works matters just as much as what the author says.
Because I try so hard to connect lore fluidly and coherently, it sometimes takes me longer to develop a connection that feels right. So thank you in advance for your patience.
Explanation of Stages & Energy Types
If you don't care about the nerdy breakdown, feel free to skip this part! I'll try to explain it as clearly as possible.
What Stages Are
All energy types have 10 stages of progression, but the way you advance through them differs depending on the type.
Mana
- Mana is considered the third strongest energy type.
- Advancing through stages in Mana requires:
1. Enlightenment (not required for the first three circles),
2. Control,
3. Stabilization,
4. Application.
- From Stage 3 onward, you also need battle experience, not just training or meditation. You have to actively engage with challenges to grow stronger. To use mana you also need to complete a series of calculations, if you want an element that you control to be strong you will have to apply formulas and calculations in order for it to move and be stronger.
Qi
I'm sure everyone's familiar with Qi - but it doesn't work the same way as it does in Murim-style stories.
- Qi empowers the body physically and enables techniques like sword Qi at higher stages.
- It does not make you younger or grant spiritual powers by default. Its focus is purely on physical enhancement and bodily support.
How Qi grows:
- Qi isn't gained through enlightenment.
- You absorb Qi through battle experience and intense training - pushing your limits again and again.
- Qi builds as you train and perform techniques, almost like breathing it into yourself through exertion.
We'll go even deeper later, because there are many branches of Qi that evolve in interesting ways.
Aura (Branch of Qi)
- Aura is an advanced offshoot of Qi - the kind you see referenced in many novels or manhwas.
- If someone is born "talentless" - meaning they can't use any energy - they are classified as a pure vessel.
- A pure vessel can still Obtain Aura branch of Qi through martial arts training, and eventually develop Aura techniques, even without innate talent.
Impure Energy
Impure energy is fundamentally different from Mana or Qi.
- It doesn't come from meditation, pain, obsession, or despair.
- It is created when a soul starts to corrode - usually because of the influence of the Seven Sins.
- There are no stages or circles for Impure energy. Instead, it grows through consumption - devouring other souls, regardless of species.
- But there's a cost: if your mental state is not perfectly stable, Impure energy will absorb your identity instead of empowering you.
- The specific sin you embody most deeply affects how your Impure energy manifests (greed, wrath, lust and so on).
Holy Energy
Yes - there is a counterpart to Impure energy. It's called Holy energy.
But it isn't what you might expect:
- It's not just light, angels, blessings, or purity.
- Holy energy is born from vows and sacrifice - equivalent exchange for strength.
- Only someone who offers something meaningful, sincere, and pure can access this energy.
Unlike Impure energy, it doesn't feed off corruption - it feeds off commitment, sacrifice, and inner resilience.
The Fifth Energy Type
The final energy type will be explained later in the story - so I won't spoil it now. Just know it has its own unique mechanics and rules hehehe i work on it everyday maybe one day ill see it referenced in others stories >.< .
Final Note
Thank you again for reading, supporting, and being patient with my pacing. I'm always learning and improving as a writer, and your feedback helps me grow too!