Shattered again...
This can't be the reason, I didn't properly move through my Qi pathways. I'm sure of it. I maintained the path as it's mentioned in the book, 99%. No one can do it 100%. I even doubt that Solomon could maintain the path at more than 98% what mention in the manual. So what went wrong this time?
It's damn frustrating, but I know for 100% sure that there's no risk to my body, so there's nothing wrong with how I moved Qi through my pathways. Then what?
Or is it wrong to try and copy everything exactly as mentioned in the manual?
Is everything I need truly written there?
Wait... I need to consider what makes me different from Solomon.
Solomon is an average green-tier cultivator who failed to advance. Assuming he refined his soul around 20 times, his Qi reserve should be relatively small. In the same realm, the quality of Qi typically shouldn't differ much but due to my unique circumstances, my Qi quality is at least 30% higher than other cultivators in the Soul Refining Realm.
So, is it because of the high quality and quantity of my Qi? Yes… and no. There's something more something important and fundamental that I haven't considered yet. But what is it?
It's frustrating. It feels like I was given a difficult question and somehow reached the answer, but I have no idea how I got from the question to the answer.
Like that, Luke began to think deeply, shutting out all distractions.
A few minutes passed...
Luke had an epiphany and found out why it shattered.
Of course, because he and Solomon are different people, and although their swords look the same, they are also slightly different. That's why!
Basically, even if cultivators have refined their souls the same number of times, their Qi reserves won't be identical. Luke is an outlier, he has refined his soul a hundred times and possesses Qi that is 30% higher in quality compared to others in his cultivation realm. This is one of the reasons the manual didn't specify exactly how much Qi is needed for augmentation, it must be calculated individually.
For someone like Solomon, who has practiced for many years, this process becomes almost automatic. At the same time, the type of sword must be considered. If the sword's density is higher, it requires slightly more Qi for augmentation, while a lower-density sword needs less. If he channels slightly more Qi than the sword can handle, it will deform—and if it's too much, it will shatter completely. That's the reason his sword shattered. On the other hand, if he supplies less than the required amount, the augmentation will fail.
So, he needed to have precise control over the Qi he supplied to the sword. It wasn't a one-time infusion—Qi had to be supplied continuously to maintain the Qi augmentation on the weapon. If he stopped the flow, the effect of the Qi argument would disappear within a fraction of a second, especially with normal weapons.
The third time, Luke knew the sword would either shatter or fail but this time, his goal was different. He began channeling Qi from his soul, not to succeed, but to understand how much the sword could handle.
He started by covering the sword with the absolute minimum amount of Qi he could control.
It failed.
He increased the Qi by a small margin.
Failed again.
Again.
Failed.
Again...
Failed.
Hours passed as he repeated the process over a hundred times. Finally, he succeeded.
But he didn't stop there.
Even after achieving success, he continued increasing the Qi gradually, testing the sword's limits. After several rounds, he felt the weapon reach its maximum threshold.
He knew it, this was the sword's limit. Yet, he still pushed a bit more Qi into it.
Thud. Thud.
Under the pressure of his Qi coating the sword, hairline cracks began to spread across its surface.
Then, without hesitation, Luke increased the flow of Qi into the sword.
BANG!
The sword shattered again but this time, it was by his own choice.