Immortal Ice Empress: Path to Vengeance

["There are 5 types of auxiliary applications: Nullification, Amplification, Regeneration, Infusion, and Omission.

"Nullification can be used in multiple different ways, but its primary use is to cancel out a manifestation of Qi. Or, in pill making, you can use your Qi to nullify or suppress the effects of one of the herbs.

"How do you do this, you may ask?"

"Well, it mostly boils down to the intent, power, and density you put into your attack or Qi. Affinity can also be important, but your understanding of Qi must have reached a sufficient level to pull this off. For example, let's say someone is throwing fireballs at you. You have to create an attack of equal power to hit those fireballs head-on, and you'd have nullified them.

"Amplification is practically considered the opposite of Nullification and is mainly used on your to amplify your own manifestations, but do keep in mind that there is a big difference between Amplification and Augmentation. Just because you add a lot of Qi into something and make it bigger doesn't necessarily make it smaller. Similar to how something small might be just as strong as a large item."

"Let's use the Fireball example again. If you create a standard fireball, but its power isn't high enough for your needs, you need to amplify its effects. How do you do this? The most basic way is to add Qi to your ability without making it larger. Doing so would spread out the Qi too much unless you had already reached the limit of what you can make. Only once you've reached the limit of what you can amplify can you start augmenting it."

"Regeneration is probably the simplest application of Qi as there is generally only one use: stimulating your body to recover faster. Just cover your injuries with Qi with the intent of healing them, and nutrients from both your body and the Qi will begin congregating around the wound, healing it."

"Regeneration is probably the most straightforward application of Qi. Though in this dog-eat-dog world, it might be the most useful as cultivators are bound to face many life-threatening injuries throughout their life, and if you know how to heal those injuries properly, that may save your life. So, master this as soon as possible."

"Lastly, Infusion and Omission. These two applications are mainly for occupations such as Alchemists, Blacksmiths, Array-Masters, etc., but you can also use them for other things. Infusion and Omission do exactly as their names say. One permanently infuses Qi into an object or infuses two items together. The other means to take away or separate."

"Precise calculations must be used when doing either of these applications, so it's best if you don't try and do them in the middle of a fight. You could try to infuse your weapon with Qi to imbue it with an element, but why not just Enhance it and Manifest Qi around it instead? It's really just a waste of brainpower and energy to do such nonsense during a fight."

"That's it for the 10 basic applications of Qi. Once you master these, dominating an opponent who hasn't mastered them is simple. Not to mention, even if you're not that talented or your base power isn't that high, knowing these applications can give you an edge over those with higher strength or cultivation."]

Mira closed her eyes and let this information soak in. She reviewed her fight with Nova and noticed that the woman had used many of these applications seamlessly and dominated the fight.

She nullified her attacks, enhanced her spear, manifested all those spear shots, and fortified herself. Mira also felt like that golden sun could be considered a pseudo-materialization since it didn't seem to put too much of a drain on Nova's Qi and instead used atmospheric Qi to fuel itself.

Mira had also used a few of these applications, but she wasn't conscious of it. She just knew that putting Qi around her scythe would make it stronger or that adding more Qi to her Paragon Wings would make them more powerful.

Thus, her efficiency and the power output she was capable of were severely limited.

'Maybe if I had known and practiced these applications beforehand, I could've won.' Mira thought with a bitter smile, then shook her head.

'No, that fight wasn't about winning or losing, but about what I can learn and how I can improve. Nova showed me what I could do better and the areas I need to improve in.'

Mira didn't regret losing that spar against Nova. She did her best in that spar without showing too many of her cards and lost. That's it. She wasn't so petty that she'd plot to take revenge against someone she had a friendly spar with.

'But now I know how Nova won so easily against me. Her knowledge, experience, and understanding of Qi are superior to mine. So, in order to not lose next time, I have to work on these aspects of myself.'

Mira brought her attention to the next book, [Master Qi Manipulation], and read:

["While the applications of Qi tell you what you can do, manipulation is about how you can do it. The basis of Qi manipulation is that you're able to control the strength of your applications no matter the size. For example, if you've mastered Qi manipulation, you should be able to manifest a thin hair-like thread that's as strong as a 100-meter-tall steel pipe! That way, you can weave together techniques and spells without losing out on any potential power."

"In theory, Qi Control, or manipulation, is the basis for one's strength. If you have poor control, then your abilities aren't at full power, and if they aren't at full power, then you are essentially weakening yourself! If you just unleash a clump of Qi from your Core and coat your fist in it, sure, your fist will be stronger, but not nearly as much as you'd think. If you took a sliver of highly dense Qi and weaved it thinly over your fist, that'll be much stronger and more reliable than just some blob you covered your hand with."

"The Qi in your body is always at a certain density level, but oftentimes, beginners will take out a chunk of Qi and spread it out, decreasing its density!

"So, then, now the question is, how can I get to such a point where no matter the size or application, I can keep the strength of my abilities at full potential?"

"Well, the best way is to get used to working with all the Qi in your body and/or Core. Don't just take out a little sliver and begin practicing with that. No! Whenever you train your Qi Control/Manipulation, always work with everything in your possession!

"That's the very basics of Qi control. If you don't even know how to work with what you have, then how can you operate at full potential at all times?"

"To start with, remove all the Qi from your Core and body, clump it up into as small a ball as you can possibly control, and just start playing with it. Don't let any Qi leak out from your control. This is very important! If any Qi leaks out, then it means you can't handle that amount, so just increase the ball's size and work from there."

"Keep repeating this process until when you take out all of your Qi, it's the same density as when it was inside your Core. That's when you know you've reached your maximum potential. You can only move on to working with smaller slivers of Qi and weaving them together hair-like threads once you've reached that point."]

Mira put down the book with a profound expression on her face. She didn't even think of doing that! When she practiced her Qi control in the Abyssal Battle Ladder, she mostly focused on working with small slivers rather than big chunks of Qi.

She didn't think learning that way was necessarily wrong, but she did notice she'd hit a wall that she couldn't overcome by only working with tiny slivers to create even smaller threads.

'So, this is the reason why I hit a wall in my training.' Mira thought as she instantly knew that what the book was saying wasn't nonsense.

It would only make sense that she learned to work with and control everything she has before moving on to smaller and more precise controls. What she did was like putting the cart before the horse.

But now that she knew how to progress, the rest should be easy.

'I'll have to tell Maria, Celaine, Dominique, and my subordinates about this so they can work on mastering their Qi Control. Especially Dominique. She's young and hasn't been cultivating for very long, so if she can master this skill now, then she has a bright future ahead of her.' Mika thought with a smile and moved on to the last book Aelina had given her.