Ancient techniques flowed through Liu Wei''s body with terrifying precision. Each movement was perfect, each strike carrying centuries of refined power. Senior Ming crashed through a wooden partition, his defensive techniques worthless against the forgotten forms Liu Wei''s body executed. The other two disciples fared no better – one''s arm hung limp after a precise meridian strike, while the other lay gasping in the courtyard''s dust.


    "Enough!" Master Chen''s voice cut through the chaos. The old master''s hands flew through a complex pattern, and suddenly golden light erupted around Liu Wei, forming a cage of pure qi. "Wei, listen to my voice. You must separate yourself from the dummy''s essence. Remember who you are."


    But the memories were too strong. Liu Wei felt himself drowning in an ocean of martial knowledge, each technique carrying the weight of countless practitioners'' dedication. He saw them all – generations of disciples training against that wooden dummy, perfecting their arts, leaving their understanding embedded in its essence. Their collective will to fight, to perfect, to overcome... it consumed him.


    "The boy is lost," Master Zhou declared, his qi gathering like storm clouds. "We must end this before—"


    "You will not touch my disciple." Master Chen''s words carried a deadly edge. "Liu Wei. Focus on your own memories. What did you feel the first time you shaped clay? Remember the potter''s wheel, the simple joy of creation."


    Something stirred in Liu Wei''s consciousness. Yes – he remembered the cool touch of clay, so different from the violent memories now possessing him. The quiet satisfaction of watching a pot take shape beneath his hands. The gentle absorption of the clay''s essence, teaching him its nature...


    His copper meridians flickered.


    "Good," Master Chen pressed. "That is your foundation. The first essence you absorbed. Hold onto it. Let it anchor you."


    Liu Wei seized that memory, using it to pull himself back from the abyss of martial knowledge. Slowly, painfully, he began to distinguish himself from the training dummy''s accumulated essence. His movements grew less fluid, more uncertain.


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    "He''s fighting it," someone whispered.


    With a final surge of will, Liu Wei forced his body to stillness. He stood trembling in the center of Master Chen''s qi cage, sweat pouring down his face, copper meridians pulsing erratically. Around him, the courtyard lay in ruins – splintered wood, cracked stone, and the groaning forms of his fellow disciples.


    "I..." his voice cracked. "I''m sorry. I couldn''t... couldn''t control it."


    "Which is precisely why such techniques are forbidden," Master Zhou said coldly. "Take him to the restriction cells. The sect leader will decide his fate."


    "No." Master Chen dispersed his qi cage but kept his hand raised in warning. "Liu Wei remains under my protection. This was a training accident, nothing more."


    "Training accident?" Zhou''s face darkened. "He nearly killed three senior disciples! His meridians are an abomination, and now we have proof. The boy is a danger to everyone around him."


    Liu Wei stared at his hands, still trembling with absorbed power. Zhou''s words stung because they carried truth – he was dangerous. The essence he''d taken so recklessly could have done far worse than injure his fellow disciples. For the first time, he truly understood why the Path of Essence Absorption might have been hidden away.


    But before he could speak, a new voice cut through the tension.


    "Perhaps," it said, "we should ask young Liu Wei what he experienced. After all, no one has witnessed true essence absorption in three thousand years."


    All eyes turned to the courtyard entrance. There, leaning on a gnarled staff that seemed to shift between wood and metal in the morning light, stood an elderly woman Liu Wei had never seen before. Her robes bore no sect insignia, but they seemed to absorb light in impossible ways. Most striking were her eyes – they shone with a familiar copper gleam.


    Master Chen''s breath caught. "Elder Mei. We... did not expect you."


    "Clearly." The woman''s smile carried centuries of secrets. "But when copper meridians awaken for the first time in three millennia, certain interested parties take notice." She fixed her metallic gaze on Liu Wei. "Come, young essence collector. Show me what echoes of the past you''ve gathered in those fascinating meridians of yours."


    As Liu Wei met her eyes, the essence within him resonated like never before. And in that moment, he understood – his path was no accident. Someone had been waiting for copper meridians to return.


    The question was: why?