Chapter 110: A Breathing Style Above All!
On the sixth day of his secluded cultivation, Natsuya shifted his strategy.
Since all Breathing Styles originated from a single starting point, and since he
had luckily witnessed the Progenitor performing that sun-like technique in the
cinematic, why not try to trace it back to the source?
He would no longer use the existing styles as templates to be kit-bashed or
modded. Instead, he would use their commonalities as clues to reverse-engineer
the [Primal Breath].
In the world of Science, the newest tech is always the strongest. But in the
world of the Occult, the older it is, the more broken the power.
However, this path was infinitely more difficult than simply "tuning" an
existing style. For three days, he couldn't even find the door to the "Source
Code."
It wasn't until the tenth day that Natsuya finally found the "feeling."
He had to forget the rigid rhythms and forms of the five styles and feel the
most primitive, natural way that oxygen flowed through the human frame. In a
sense, Natsuya was trying to run all five basic Breathing Styles simultaneously
at a low frequency.
Balancing five conflicting rhythms was even harder than Natsuya had calculated.
Even with his True Total Concentration and his mastery of Constant, trying to
weave them together with such precision felt like trying to hold a landslide
back with his bare hands.
Water was fluid and gentle, but here it acted like a crushing tsunami, hammering
his internal organs. Wind was natural and free, but it transformed into a
bone-chilling gale that threatened to shred his muscles and meridians. The
others were the same.
The distinct elemental signatures clashed violently within his chest, refusing
to yield. Natsuya felt like he was trying to break five wild stallions
simultaneously, all pulling in different directions. Every time he tried to
channel that blurry Primal Prototype, his lungs erupted in a spasmic, agonizing
burn.
This wasn't the heat of Flame Breathing. This was something more primal, more
dominant—as if he were forcibly igniting his own life force.
Even while performing sword forms to vent the pressure, he couldn't release the
buildup fast enough. Within a few breaths, he was doubled over, coughing
violently, the veins on his forehead bulging with the strain.
But then, the System's potential assessment popped up, and he forcibly crushed
the urge to quit.
[Detection: Prototype Breathing Style Identification...] [Potential: HIGH
QUALITY (SR)] [Compatibility: 63%]
A rough attempt and I already pulled an SR?! The drop rate for this method is
insane!
Natsuya wiped a smear of blood from his lip, his eyes burning with a terrifying
light.
"The path is correct."
That "burning sun" sensation wasn't a derivative of the Big Five. It was closer
to the original, radiant essence shown by the Progenitor. This "Internal Burn"
was likely caused by his current physical stats being too low or his kinetic
control lacking the necessary precision.
It's like trying to use a Level 100 skill on a Level 30 character. Without 'Full
Synchronization,' the hardware can't handle the software's output.
Natsuya figured that if he hadn't hit LV.5 Thunder Breathing and unlocked the
Constant realm, he wouldn't even have the credentials to understand the Primal
Breath, let alone attempt it.
Now that he had a direction, the rest was just iteration.
Natsuya's goal was clear: Retain the source-essence of the [Primal] breath, but
lower the entry threshold and the physical drain so a human Slayer could
actually use it as a "Derivative Form."
Underclocking the CPU to prevent it from melting the motherboard, Natsuya
thought.
He spent another seven days in this loop. Even though he could fast-forward the
"stabilization" phase of the progress bar, the physical toll left him looking
haggard. High-intensity self-experimentation was a brutal drain on his HP.
But with every adjustment to the depth, rhythm, and distribution of his breath,
his gaze grew sharper.
This 'Gacha' pool is incredible!
[High Quality] [High Quality] [Common] [Degraded] [High Quality]...
He rolled versions that found a balance between load and buff. He rolled
versions that focused on "Overdrive" bursts but had terrible "Uptime" and dealt
self-damage. He rolled versions that were too compromised—weaker than the five
basic styles.
Finally, on the sunset of the seventeenth day.
During a deep meditation focused on "Flow and Equilibrium," the rhythm Natsuya
struck finally triggered a different sound from the System.
[Detected Prototype Breathing Style Modification...] [Potential: EXCELLENT
(SSR)] [Compatibility: 79% (Can be improved)]
EXCELLENT! SSR! The eagle has landed!
Natsuya struggled to maintain the new rhythm. It successfully retained the core
of the Primal Breath while using the traits of the Big Five to check and guide
one another. It was a stable loop. It was like making five wild horses pull a
carriage in a perfect, continuous Circle.
In this dynamic state, they reached a subtle equilibrium.
The terrifying "Internal Burn" dropped significantly. Yet, the physical
stat-boost was clearly a tier above any of the five basic styles at the same
level.
And this was just the "Early Access" version with only 79% compatibility.
So, Natsuya deduced, the original founders of the five styles probably hit the
'High Quality' to 'Excellent' tier when they made their own versions. An SR+
build.
Natsuya felt the new rhythm hum in his veins. It was long, warm, and profound.
Faint, blue-green sparks—like the embers of a cold fire—began to flicker around
his body, making his aura feel alive and vibrant.
But was Natsuya satisfied? Absolutely not.
"System—"
I've walked the hardest 99% of this road on my own. As for the final 1% of the
"Ascension"... I'll let you have some participation points.
Natsuya opened his inventory and selected the special item he'd received after
the cinematic.
[Item: Essentials of Primal Breathing]
- Description: This item cannot be used directly. It can be sacrificed as a
'Crafting Material' when developing a Custom Breathing Style to drastically
increase the Quality and Completion rate of the result.
Show me your limits.
"DO IT NOW!"
Natsuya clicked use.
In an instant, a massive tidal wave of fragmented images and realizations
flooded his mind. It wasn't a manual or a guide; it was thousands of
"Genius-level" insights into Human Anatomy, Breathing Flow, and Kinetic Logic.
To be precise, it wasn't just "Genius thoughts." It was a Monster-tier
understanding of the very essence of Breathing.
In that moment, under the influence of Natsuya's "Supreme Wisdom" (and the
System's help), Breathing was no longer a technique to be studied. It became an
instinct as natural as eating or drinking.
Looking at the [Excellent] framework he had just built, dozens of hidden flaws,
desynced nodes, and untapped potential points were suddenly highlighted as if by
a neon laser.
I just have to follow the flow of enlightenment, Natsuya thought, his mind
crystal clear.
The rhythm shifted naturally. He began his final, most surgical adjustment. Some
changes were microscopic—the timing of a breath-turn, a slight shift in the
engagement of a lung-muscle.
Without his god-tier understanding and absolute body control, such "Coding"
would have been impossible. But Natsuya did it.
The [Excellent] style began to evolve, completing its final metamorphosis into a
higher form. When the last adjustment was made, the light on the System HUD
reached its blinding peak.
[Fused: 'Essentials of Primal Breathing'] [Breathing Style Potential
significantly increased!]
[Potential Rating: ULTIMATE (UR)] [Compatibility: 100%]
The corners of Natsuya's mouth curled into an irrepressible grin.
Cleared it!
☆☆☆
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