Chapter 124: No Ground Lost

Seven days after his first successful Innate transformation, Joe examined the affected region again. He had avoided further transformation attempts throughout the week, allowing his body to recover while maintaining ordinary circulation exercises. The altered tissue continued functioning normally alongside its mortal surroundings, and he found no deterioration in its condition. His panel confirmed that Innate Transformation remained at 1.00%.

The Greyspine manual warned that early transformation could regress during recovery. Practitioners sometimes spent months changing a small portion of their bodies, only to lose part of that advancement when the transformed tissue failed to retain its new state. Joe had expected No Regression to protect him, but this was his first opportunity to verify its effect on bodily evolution. The result confirmed that genuine transformation received the same protection as his earlier cultivation gains.

Satisfied, Joe resumed his experiments. He initially concentrated on expanding the existing transformed region, reasoning that tissues already accustomed to the change would provide better support than an entirely new area. His first attempts produced results, and the transformed portion gradually increased as he repeated the method established during his initial breakthrough. However, the growing region began affecting his movements in ways he had not anticipated. Transformed tissue responded to Acquired Energy differently from its mortal surroundings, transmitting force more efficiently while requiring neighboring structures to compensate. Return to Nature maintained his overall coordination, but Joe could sense the additional adjustments whenever both types of tissue participated in the same movement.

He spent the following morning examining the problem through walking, running, lifting, and controlled force transmission. Ordinary movements revealed little difficulty, whereas actions involving several connected structures exposed small inconsistencies. His transformed tissue performed its function correctly, and the surrounding mortal tissues remained healthy, but their different responses required additional coordination.

Joe reviewed the Greyspine manual before continuing. He had concentrated on advancing one region because it offered the clearest route to further progress, but the manual emphasized maintaining the body's overall function throughout the transformation. Strengthening one area beyond its surroundings would eventually make that coordination increasingly difficult. He therefore changed his approach and selected another region involved in a different bodily function. Distributing the transformation would allow him to develop several parts of the body without placing excessive demands on a single group of surrounding tissues.

The first two attempts produced no measurable advancement. Joe repeated the circulation, adjusted the pressure, and became more familiar with the new region's response, but neither attempt initiated a lasting change. On the third, he achieved another small transformation, bringing his progress to 1.03%. He continued experimenting over the following ten days. Some sessions produced measurable advancement, while others ended without changing the panel. Unsuccessful attempts generally improved his familiarity with the process, although they seldom revealed anything particularly useful. Occasionally, a comparison exposed a mistake in his method, allowing him to correct it before the next attempt. His talent rewarded valid transformation work directly, but the body still had to begin the required change. When Joe established the correct conditions, the resulting advancement far exceeded what an ordinary practitioner could expect from a comparable effort. When those conditions were absent, additional pressure accomplished little. He therefore concentrated on improving the reliability of his attempts rather than increasing their frequency. By the end of the tenth day, his panel showed Innate Transformation — 1.46%. The experiments also exposed a limitation in his recovery medicine. His sustained-nourishment formula had been designed for a fully mortal body, but the transformed regions now responded differently from their surroundings. Some required less support, while neighboring mortal structures experienced additional demands during movement and circulation.

Joe adjusted the preparation to provide steadier support over a longer period. One variation improved recovery but caused mild digestive discomfort, prompting him to review the interaction between its ingredients. His earlier studies of medicinal toxicity helped him identify an unsuitable concentration without treating stronger nourishment as an automatic improvement. The corrected formula produced more balanced results. Joe continued using his concentrated spiritual-remnant medicine to replenish Blood Energy, while the new preparation supported recovery between transformation attempts.

During those recovery periods, he also returned to calligraphy. His technique had already reached Perfection, allowing him to reproduce complex characters without consciously correcting his brushwork. Recently, however, he had begun choosing passages according to their meaning rather than their technical difficulty. He noticed that writing about familiar experiences sometimes produced a different result from copying an established model. His hand followed the intended meaning more naturally when the subject mattered to him, although concentrating too heavily on expressing a particular feeling often made the writing appear deliberate. Joe kept the better pieces for comparison and continued practicing without making the activity another pressing obligation.

Near the end of the second week, Serena arrived with the latest business accounts. After reviewing Ferrow's purchasing arrangements and the commercial medicine's sales, Joe raised a matter she had not expected.

"I'd like to arrange my Acquired verification," he said. "Preferably within the next week, if the examination office has an opening."

Serena looked up from the ledger. "You've formed Acquired Energy already?"

"Yes. I've established stable circulation and completed enough training to satisfy the examination requirements."

She remained still for several moments before closing the ledger. Although Joe had always been unusually private about his cultivation, she had assumed he was still working toward the breakthrough. His official Internal Organ III verification was recent, and even with the suspected benefits of his constitution, reaching Acquired so quickly exceeded her expectations.

"That's much earlier than I expected," she admitted. "You should have informed me when you began approaching the breakthrough. Montclair could have provided additional medicine and arranged for a physician to supervise the transition."

"I had enough medicine, and the method was available through the development program. I wanted to establish stable circulation before requesting verification." Joe put aside his records before continuing. "There's another matter I wanted to discuss. Once my advancement is confirmed, would I qualify to apply for access to Montclair's core library?"

Serena considered the question. "You could apply, but Acquired cultivation doesn't automatically grant access. The family restricts its core collections, particularly the records concerning higher realms. Some materials require special permission even for established martial artists."

"My current authorization covers Acquired theory and historical accounts, but the detailed research on Innate transformation remains unavailable. I've been studying the limitations of Acquired cultivation, and those records would be useful when I eventually approach the next realm."

"That explains why you're interested in the library, although I doubt they'll open everything simply because you've reached Acquired." Serena reopened the ledger and made a note. "I'll ask about the requirements when I arrange your examination. Your cultivation record should help, particularly if the physicians confirm another unusual advancement."

Joe thanked her and returned to his notes after she left. Montclair's research had become more valuable to him than additional financial support. His medicine business already supplied sufficient nourishment, and he possessed the cultivation methods needed for his present work. What he lacked was the experience accumulated by practitioners who had attempted Innate before him.

The Greyspine manual described the transformation method, but it contained relatively little information about the difficulties that appeared during prolonged attempts. Montclair had supported martial practitioners for generations, including those who had successfully entered Innate and many others who had failed. Their observations, experimental records, and accounts of unsuccessful methods could help Joe distinguish genuine obstacles from problems others had already solved.

Access to those records would not eliminate the need for experimentation. It could, however, prevent him from wasting time investigating questions that already had answers.

Joe had another reason to reveal his advancement now. Montclair's interest in his suspected adaptive constitution had increased with each public breakthrough. His repeated Internal Organ temperings and unusually efficient recovery suggested a physique capable of adapting faster than ordinary practitioners. Those observations resembled certain characteristics attributed to the Martial Ancestor, although nobody possessed enough evidence to establish a direct connection.

Joe had never confirmed the speculation, but he had no intention of discouraging it. As long as his advancement remained extraordinary without becoming incomprehensible, Montclair had a reason to invest in him. A young martial artist who might possess a constitution resembling the kingdom founder's was worth cultivating and protecting, particularly when an early Innate breakthrough could affect his future spiritual potential. The explanation also had limits. Publicly entering Acquired at nineteen was remarkable, but the suspected constitution made it possible. Revealing that he had already completed Acquired and begun transforming his body toward Innate would place his progress far beyond what the existing evidence could reasonably explain.

Joe intended to preserve that distinction. During the following days, he prepared for the examination. The physicians would need to verify his Acquired Energy directly, and ordinary concealment would not be sufficient. They could assess its stability, pressure, and purity through controlled circulation, making it necessary to present more than a convincing outward appearance.

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Joe approached the problem by combining Breath Control with Foundation — Return to Nature. Breath Control restrained the circulation and outward pressure of his Acquired Energy, while Return to Nature allowed him to regulate how that energy moved through the body's interconnected structures. By coordinating both attainments, he could suppress most of his reservoir and reduce the apparent refinement of the portion he permitted the examiners to observe. He spent several sessions adjusting the method, testing how much energy he could conceal without making the exposed circulation appear unnatural. Suppressing too aggressively introduced inconsistencies, while allowing the energy to circulate freely revealed considerably more than an Early Acquired practitioner should possess.

Eventually, Joe established a stable presentation. He could display a small reserve of Acquired Energy with the circulation and pressure expected from someone who had recently entered the realm. However, even after reducing its apparent quality, the exposed energy remained unusually pure.

Joe considered the problem carefully. He could conceal more, but further suppression risked making the examination less convincing. His public foundation consisted of three complete Internal Organ temperings, an excellent achievement for his age but insufficient to explain the refinement his energy still displayed. He decided to proceed. The remaining discrepancy could strengthen the existing theory about his constitution without revealing the true extent of his cultivation. The examination took place the following week at a Montclair-approved martial facility. Two physicians and a senior martial examiner reviewed Joe's previous records before beginning. The senior examiner represented Montclair directly and had experience assessing newly advanced Acquired practitioners.

Joe's application had already attracted attention because of the short interval since his Internal Organ III verification. The examiners knew his earlier temperings had been unusually rapid, but they had not expected to assess his Acquired breakthrough so soon.

After confirming his identity and reviewing the examination requirements, the senior examiner instructed Joe to circulate Acquired Energy.

Joe released a carefully controlled portion of his reservoir. Breath Control restrained its outward pressure, while Return to Nature maintained the reduced circulation throughout his body without disrupting his movements. He allowed enough energy to reinforce his limbs and establish the characteristics required for verification. The examiner watched him for several minutes before asking for a slight increase in output. Joe complied, maintaining the same control while the physicians recorded his pulse, circulation, and response to exertion. His advancement was evident. The energy remained stable, and his body showed none of the difficulties associated with an incomplete formation.

However, the senior examiner became increasingly attentive to its quality.

"Your circulation is remarkably refined for someone who has recently entered Acquired," he observed. "How long have you been able to maintain this degree of control?"

"I've been practicing the circulation since completing my third Internal Organ tempering," Joe answered. "I wanted to establish stability before requesting an examination."

The examiner checked the measurements again before consulting one of the physicians. "Your control is excellent, but that isn't the only unusual feature. The energy itself is exceptionally pure, and its pressure remains stronger than I would expect from the foundation recorded in your previous examinations."

Joe maintained the circulation while the physician reviewed his records.

"According to these reports, you completed three Internal Organ temperings," the physician said. "Those cycles were unusually efficient, but three temperings ordinarily wouldn't produce Acquired Energy of this quality. Have you used a specialized refinement method?"

"No. I've continued using the methods available through the development program. My Foundation training has remained important throughout cultivation, but I haven't practiced any additional Acquired inheritance."

The explanation satisfied neither man's curiosity, although they found no contradiction in his records. Joe had demonstrated unusual physical adaptation throughout his earlier advancement, and the new results appeared consistent with that pattern.

The senior examiner instructed him to complete several controlled movements while maintaining reinforcement. Joe followed the instructions, then released the energy and established the circulation again when requested. After finishing the measurements, the examiner reviewed the results with his colleagues.

"Your advancement is genuine, and the circulation meets our requirements," he concluded. "I'll certify your entry into Early Acquired. However, I intend to recommend a separate review of your cultivation records. Your previous tempering results and the quality of your Acquired Energy deserve to be considered together."

Joe accepted the decision without volunteering further explanations.

The following afternoon, the development program issued his official confirmation: Joe Vale, nineteen years old, Early Acquired. The news spread quickly through Ashbourne's martial circles. His advancement came far sooner than expected, and the examination report attracted additional interest because of the unusual purity of his energy. For the Montclair officials responsible for evaluating promising cultivators, the result raised questions beyond the speed of his advancement. His three publicly recorded Internal Organ temperings should not ordinarily have produced such refined Acquired Energy, particularly when he had only recently formed the realm.

Some began comparing his records with descriptions of exceptional adaptive constitutions preserved in the family's archives. Those discussions included historical references to the Martial Ancestor, whose cultivation had displayed characteristics that conventional methods could not fully explain. The available evidence did not justify identifying Joe's constitution as the same one. Nevertheless, the possibility warranted attention, especially because his progress had remained consistent across several stages of cultivation.

Serena visited Joe after receiving the examination report.

"I expected the physicians to confirm your advancement, but I hadn't anticipated their comments about the energy itself," she said. "Montclair has requested copies of your earlier examinations for a more detailed review. It seems your constitution has attracted another round of interest."

Joe examined the report. "Did they say anything about my library application?"

"Not yet. I've submitted the request through the development program, together with your new certification. The examination results may help because the family has more reason to support your future cultivation, but the core library requires approval from people above the ordinary program administrators."

"That's sufficient for now. I'd rather they consider the request properly than grant access to a few introductory texts I already possess."

Serena agreed to follow the application. She also mentioned that Prince Corvin had received news of Joe's advancement and sent his congratulations.

The prince's household continued receiving its regular medicine allocation, and Corvin had asked to be informed if the development program made any significant changes to Joe's status. Serena considered the request unsurprising, given the prince's investment in the business and his previous interest in Joe's cultivation.

Joe thanked her for arranging the examination and returned to his private work once she left. His public advancement had produced the reaction he wanted. Montclair now possessed stronger evidence supporting the possibility of an exceptional constitution, while his new cultivation status provided a legitimate basis for requesting access to restricted research. He had also attracted closer attention, but that was an unavoidable consequence of advancing through the development program. The important distinction was that the officials remained interested in understanding a promising young cultivator rather than investigating an achievement that defied their expectations entirely.

Joe resumed Innate transformation the following morning. His public Acquired verification had required several days of preparation, but it had not interrupted his private progress significantly. The transformed regions remained stable, and he continued applying the distributed method developed during his earlier experiments.

Over the next three weeks, he refined his approach to selecting suitable regions. Instead of pursuing whichever area appeared easiest to transform, he considered how each change would affect the surrounding tissues and their functions. Some attempts failed to produce lasting change, particularly when several neighboring structures needed to coordinate during the process. Others succeeded more readily after he adjusted the supporting circulation. His control improved through repetition, allowing him to recognize unsuitable conditions earlier and avoid expending unnecessary energy. When he established a valid transformation, his hundredfold advantage increased the resulting progress considerably, although the body still required nourishment and recovery afterward.

Three weeks after his public examination, his panel showed Innate Transformation — 4.18%. The transformed portions now influenced enough of his body that their different responses became noticeable during demanding movements. Joe had anticipated greater difficulty maintaining coordination, particularly after reading accounts of practitioners whose uneven transformation disrupted circulation and force transmission. His own body adapted more smoothly.

Perfect Body helped integrate each legitimate physical change into the surrounding structure, while Return to Nature maintained efficient coordination between the transformed and mortal regions. The different tissues still imposed limitations on one another, but Joe experienced fewer complications than the historical records suggested. He adjusted his cultivation method to account for those differences and continued.

A month after the public breakthrough, his transformation reached 8.37%. Joe compared the result with several historical accounts describing later stages of Half-Innate. Practitioners who transformed enough of their bodies sometimes experienced a noticeable improvement in stability once the altered structures began supporting one another directly. The change often became apparent around the midpoint of the overall process, although the precise threshold differed between individuals.

Joe remained far from that condition, but his experiments were beginning to reveal relationships between the regions he had already transformed. Some supported one another through shared circulation or force transmission, while others remained functionally isolated. He continued distributing changes across the body, balancing the need for further transformation against the complications created by uneven development. His recovery medicine also improved through repeated adjustments. The latest preparation supported the changing demands of mortal and transformed tissues without causing the digestive discomfort he had encountered in earlier trials. Joe retained the formula and limited further changes to problems that his observations justified.

By the end of the following week, his transformed regions had begun interacting more effectively. During one evening session, Joe noticed that Acquired Energy passed between two altered structures with less resistance than before, although the mortal tissues separating other regions continued limiting their coordination. He completed the session and examined his panel.

Innate Transformation — 12.91%

Joe reviewed the figure alongside his records. The distributed method had prevented excessive imbalance, and the transformed portions had integrated well with his existing body. Nevertheless, continuing to develop separate regions would eventually create diminishing benefits if those regions remained unable to support one another. He needed to consider their relationships more carefully.

Rather than selecting the next target according to how easily he could initiate transformation, Joe began examining which structures would allow his existing progress to function together. Changes affecting circulation needed to support the tissues receiving that energy, while regions involved in force transmission needed compatible structures around them. He recorded several possible targets and compared their functions before deciding where to begin.

Nearly thirteen percent of his body had undergone genuine evolution. The remaining work was substantial, but Joe had established a method capable of producing lasting advancement and was beginning to understand how the transformed portions needed to develop together. His next attempts would concentrate on connecting those gains into a coherent whole.