The training yard remained quiet.

  Most of the disciples still sat cross-legged in the damp dirt with their eyes closed, breathing slowly as Elder Han had instructed.

  But the silence was beginning to break.

  A boy near the front groaned in frustration and scratched his head.

  “I still don’t feel anything,” he muttered.

  Another sighed loudly. “Same here.”

  Someone behind Chunma whispered, “Maybe it’s all bullshit.”

  A few nervous laughs followed.

  Chunma ignored them.

  His attention remained on the golden specks drifting through the air.

  They were faint, almost invisible unless he focused carefully. Each breath seemed to pull them slightly closer before they drifted away again.

  The warmth in his chest remained small, but it was unmistakably there.

  So this is Resonance.

  Across the yard, Elder Han continued walking slowly between the rows of seated disciples.

  His expression remained calm as he observed them.

  “Most of you will feel nothing today,” the elder said.

  Several disciples opened their eyes in disappointment.

  “That is normal.”

  Elder Han stopped walking and turned toward the group.

  “Awakening Resonance is not something that happens easily.”

  One of the boys raised his hand slightly.

  “Elder Han… what about earlier?”

  The boy gestured toward the disciple who had produced the crimson shimmer.

  “Was that Resonance?”

  Elder Han nodded.

  “Yes.”

  The boy straightened proudly, though the glow had long since faded.

  “That is the first sign of alignment.”

  “Alignment?” someone asked.

  Elder Han folded his arms behind his back.

  “Resonance manifests through three paths.”

  He paused briefly.

  “They are known as the Three Pillars.”

  Several disciples leaned forward slightly.

  Chunma opened his eyes.

  Three paths…

  “Veyra,” Elder Han said.

  As he spoke, he gestured lightly toward the air.

  “Veyra resonates with force and the natural world.”

  Chunma’s gaze shifted slightly.

  The golden particles were still drifting faintly around him.

  “Those who align with Veyra often sense it as particles in the air,” the elder continued.

  “Golden specks. Like dust in sunlight.”

  Several disciples immediately began looking around the yard as if hoping to see them.

  Most saw nothing.

  Chunma remained still.

  Golden dust.

  So that was the pillar he had begun sensing.

  Elder Han continued.

  “The second pillar is Nyros.”

  He nodded toward the boy from earlier.

  “Nyros manifests through the body. It strengthens the flesh and enhances physical power.”

  The boy looked very pleased with himself.

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  “A crimson aura is often the first sign.”

  A few disciples stared at him with envy.

  “The final pillar,” Elder Han said, “is Eidolon.”

  The name carried a slightly different weight.

  “This pillar is rare.”

  “Eidolon governs the mind and spirit. Those aligned with it may sense Resonance as a dual flow.”

  He paused briefly.

  “Pink and blue.”

  A few disciples exchanged curious glances.

  “But it is uncommon,” Elder Han finished.

  Chunma considered the explanation quietly.

  Three pillars.

  Three ways to wield this power.

  Interesting.

  Around him, several disciples were whispering again.

  “Which one do you think you’ll get?”

  “I just want any of them.”

  “Nyros sounds strong.”

  Chunma ignored them.

  Instead he focused again on the golden particles drifting around him.

  They seemed slightly more numerous now.

  Or perhaps he was simply noticing them more clearly.

  Across the yard, Elder Han continued watching the disciples.

  His gaze moved slowly from one face to another.

  Then it stopped.

  For a moment, he remained still.

  His eyes were fixed on Chunma.

  The boy was sitting quietly like the others.

  But something about the air around him seemed… different.

  Elder Han narrowed his eyes slightly.

  He said nothing.

  Chunma, unaware of the elder’s attention, continued breathing slowly.

  With each breath, the faint golden specks drifted just a little closer.

  With each breath, the faint golden specks drifted just a little closer.

  Chunma did not rush.

  Years of discipline had taught him patience. Rushing a process one did not fully understand was often the fastest way to fail.

  Instead, he continued breathing slowly.

  Inhale.

  The golden specks shifted.

  Exhale.

  They drifted away again.

  The movement was small, almost imperceptible, but it was consistent.

  Curious.

  Across the yard, the murmuring among the disciples had grown louder again.

  “So if we see red, that means Nyros?” one boy asked.

  Elder Han nodded slightly.

  “In most cases.”

  Another disciple frowned. “What about Veyra?”

  “You will not always see it clearly at first,” the elder replied. “Some feel it as warmth. Others see faint particles.”

  Chunma kept his eyes closed, though his awareness remained sharp.

  Particles.

  So the elder had spoken the truth.

  Around him, several disciples began attempting to sense the air more aggressively.

  Some leaned forward with their eyes squeezed tightly shut. Others clenched their fists as if trying to force something to happen.

  A boy a few rows ahead suddenly groaned.

  “Why isn’t anything happening?”

  “Because you are trying too hard,” Elder Han said calmly.

  The boy opened one eye.

  “What do you mean?”

  Elder Han walked slowly toward him.

  “Resonance does not respond well to desperation.”

  He stopped beside the boy and gently tapped the side of the disciple’s head with two fingers.

  “You are chasing it.”

  The boy blinked.

  “Then how do we do it?”

  “Observe,” Elder Han replied.

  He stepped back again.

  “Feel the air. Do not try to seize it.”

  The disciples exchanged uncertain glances.

  Chunma allowed a faint smile to form.

  Sound advice.

  Many inexperienced soldiers had made the same mistake when learning swordplay.

  They tried to overpower the blade rather than understand its balance.

  Resonance, it seemed, required a similar patience.

  He inhaled slowly again.

  The golden particles stirred.

  This time several of them drifted noticeably closer before dispersing again.

  The warmth in his chest grew slightly stronger.

  Not painful.

  Just… present.

  Across the yard, another disciple suddenly gasped.

  A faint shimmer appeared briefly around his shoulders.

  It was not as strong as the earlier crimson aura, but it was visible enough for several nearby disciples to notice.

  “Did you see that?” someone whispered.

  “Yeah!”

  The boy looked startled.

  “Was that…?”

  Elder Han nodded once.

  “Nyros.”

  The boy’s eyes widened.

  Several others immediately began trying even harder.

  Chunma heard someone whisper behind him.

  “Damn it. Why does everyone else get it?”

  “Shut up and focus.”

  Chunma ignored them.

  Instead, he began observing something else.

  The golden particles did not move randomly.

  They drifted in subtle currents through the air.

  Almost like…

  He paused.

  Wind.

  No.

  Not exactly.

  But something similar.

  Invisible movement.

  Invisible flow.

  When he inhaled slowly and kept his mind calm, the particles followed the same pattern each time.

  That meant there was structure to it.

  So Resonance moves through the world like currents.

  Understanding flickered faintly in his mind.

  Across the yard, Elder Han continued walking slowly among the rows.

  His eyes passed over dozens of disciples.

  Most showed nothing.

  A few produced faint traces of crimson.

  Then his gaze returned to Chunma.

  The boy had not moved.

  His breathing was steady.

  Too steady.

  Elder Han stopped walking.

  The air around the boy appeared perfectly ordinary.

  Yet something about the atmosphere there felt… active.

  The elder narrowed his eyes slightly.

  Then he continued walking again, saying nothing.

  Meanwhile, Chunma’s focus deepened.

  The golden particles had begun gathering closer with each breath.

  Not dramatically.

  But enough that he could see the difference now.

  Interesting.

  This force responded to calm.

  To observation.

  To balance.

  It was almost like listening to the rhythm of the world itself.

  Across the yard, a loud groan broke the silence again.

  A large boy slapped the ground in frustration.

  “This is impossible.”

  A few others laughed.

  “You just suck.”

  “Shut up.”

  Elder Han stopped walking again.

  “Enough.”

  The yard grew quiet once more.

  “This exercise is not meant to produce results immediately,” the elder said.

  “Many of you may spend weeks before sensing anything.”

  The disciples looked disappointed.

  “But those who succeed,” Elder Han continued, “will take their first step toward becoming Resonants.”

  The word carried weight.

  Even the skeptical disciples listened more carefully now.

  Chunma slowly opened his eyes again.

  The golden specks were still drifting through the air.

  He watched them quietly.

  Resonants.

  So this was the path warriors followed in this age.

  In his own era, strength had come from battle.

  Men proved themselves through blood and conquest.

  Now, it seemed, the world had discovered another road.

  He closed his eyes again.

  The warmth in his chest pulsed faintly.

  The golden particles shifted.

  For a brief moment, several of them gathered closer than before.

  Then they scattered again.

  Chunma’s brow furrowed slightly.

  He had not intended to draw them in so strongly.

  Across the yard, Elder Han’s steps slowed.

  The elder glanced briefly toward Chunma again.

  This time his gaze lingered longer.

  He still said nothing.

  But something about the air around the boy continued to trouble him.

  Meanwhile, Chunma returned his focus to breathing.

  The particles drifted lazily again, as if nothing unusual had happened.

  Around him, the other disciples had begun losing patience.

  Some stretched their legs.

  Others whispered quietly again.

  The morning sun had begun rising above the rooftops, casting pale light across the training yard.

  Chunma inhaled slowly once more.

  A few golden specks drifted closer.

  Not many.

  Just enough for him to notice.