Chapter Fifteen: The First Achievement of the Root Realm

Having grasped the key to awakening his sixth sense, Yin Seventeen strove during every subsequent training session to enter a state where self and surroundings faded from his awareness, and his chances of dodging Owen’s thrown stones increased daily.

From being able to avoid ten stones in five days, he gradually progressed to dodging ten in a single day, then twenty, then thirty, and so on. As his evasion rate soared, the perception at the root of his senses was triggered more frequently, and his body slowly acclimated to this peculiar way of sensing. The once vague sixth sense grew ever clearer in his mind.

Eight months passed swiftly.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Owen hurled five stones once more. Unlike before, Yin Seventeen dimly felt as though he had ‘seen’ something just before the stones reached him. It was an utterly unfamiliar sensation; he knew perfectly well this was not a visual perception, yet he had indeed ‘seen’ something. There were five entities, flying toward him, and driven by this strange feeling, he easily dodged them all.

“Huh?” Owen, not far away and responsible for throwing the stones, stared in surprise. He had seen clearly: this time, Yin Seventeen avoided the five stones with ease. Unlike his previous narrow escapes, this time it seemed as if Yin Seventeen had seen the stones beforehand, moving to dodge them early, showing none of his past panic—only calm composure.

“Could it be that his sixth sense has fully awakened?” Owen mused, picking up another handful of stones.

With that thought, he threw the stones again.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Having just dodged five mysterious unknown things, Yin Seventeen saw several more flying toward him. Drawing on his recent experience, he followed the strange sensation and again successfully evaded the unknown entities.

Meanwhile, seeing Yin Seventeen dodge yet again, Owen barely contained his excitement as he stooped to gather more stones.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Countless stones fell like raindrops, covering the two-meter radius around Yin Seventeen. Compelled by the uncanny feeling, he dodged frantically, but there were simply too many unknown entities. He avoided one after another, but in the end, he could not escape them all.

Smack!

A sudden sting pierced his skin, disrupting his focus and abruptly dragging him out of the strange state.

Smack, smack, smack!

More stinging pains followed in quick succession.

Seeing this, Owen stopped throwing stones.

“Take off your blindfold,” he called out with a broad smile. “It seems you’re not far from fully mastering your sixth sense!”

The transition from passive, intermittent activation of the sixth sense to proactive, sustained use was a long and arduous process. Many required years to make this step, relying on help from their peers. For Yin Seventeen to show signs of completion in only eight months marked him as one of the elite of the training camp.

At Owen’s words, Yin Seventeen removed his blindfold and ear plugs, asking suspiciously, “Just now, in that hazy state, I seemed to see something—was that the world as perceived through the root sense?”

“Exactly!” Owen strode over, clapped him on the shoulder, and said, “Only with a fully awakened sixth sense can you see what was previously invisible, allowing you to actively dodge my thrown stones.”

“Remember that feeling. You should soon be able to control your sixth sense.”

“Shall we try again?” Yin Seventeen asked, brimming with excitement.

“Of course!”

And so, the two resumed training.

But, as the saying goes, you can’t fatten a pig in one bite. After almost an hour, Yin Seventeen was unable to re-enter that miraculous state.

“What’s going on?” he muttered, pulling off his blindfold in disappointment.

Owen shook his head and declared gravely, “Let’s end training for today.”

“To access the sixth sense for the first time without conscious effort has unsettled your mind, making it hard to return to your previous state.”

“In your current mental imbalance, forcing yourself will only make the sixth sense harder to awaken.”

“I understand, sir,” Yin Seventeen replied, nodding without protest.

His months in the training camp, listening to countless lectures from the Saints, had taught him that awakening the sixth sense wasn’t achieved solely through such stimulating exercises. There were also meditative practices, though these were not suited to newcomers but only to those like him who had already personally experienced the sixth sense, or to those with extraordinary talent.

At this moment, feeling restless, it was indeed best to return and meditate.

Time slipped by unnoticed.

With the first experience under his belt, Yin Seventeen grew ever more adept at controlling his sixth sense in subsequent training sessions.

Two months later, he could completely rely on his sixth sense to dodge every stone Owen threw at him, even with his vision and hearing sealed.

“Take off your blindfold and ear plugs!” Owen shouted, ceasing his throws.

“Aren’t we going to continue, sir?” Yin Seventeen asked, surprised as he removed the blindfold and ear plugs.

Owen replied earnestly, “This kind of training no longer serves you. You should begin the next stage.”

“Huh?”

Yin Seventeen was puzzled.

Owen patiently explained, “You can now use your sixth sense independently, but you haven’t truly integrated it into your cognitive framework.”

As he spoke, he suddenly threw a stone at Yin Seventeen.

Whoosh!

Yin Seventeen instinctively tried to dodge, but his reaction was a beat too slow, and the stone struck him squarely.

“See? Like just now!” Owen glanced at the stone lying on the ground and said gravely, “With your eyes covered, you could easily dodge it using your sixth sense. But now, with sight and hearing restored, you instinctively rely on them and push the sixth sense aside.”

“The next phase of training is to harmonize your five senses with your sixth, blending them completely, so you can use them in tandem at any time.”

On hearing this, Yin Seventeen immediately understood. “You mean, from now on, I should dodge your thrown stones without blindfold or ear plugs?”

“Precisely!” Owen nodded, serious. “I’ll slightly increase the speed of the stones, so your eyes can see them clearly, but only your root sense will enable you to dodge. Once you achieve the fusion of five senses and the sixth, the rest is just polishing and refinement.”

Strictly speaking, the first step—independently mastering root sense—was the most difficult. To carve out a sixth sense from common perception was a strange concept, and many spent a long time simply accepting it. The second step—merging the senses—was only a matter of adaptation; it could be overcome in time.

“Let’s begin, sir!”

Yin Seventeen exhaled deeply and gestured for Owen to proceed.