Limits

I found a suitable place, to start my experiment. I then found a stone, which could hold some water, and made a fire. With all that set, I placed ⅓ of the Blood Reed, into the boiling water. The water began to change colour after a while, and red veins could be seen inside. With more time, more veins started to appear. I waited a bit longer, and the colour of the water became completely red. Then, the opposite reaction happened.

The water started becoming clearer again, it seemed that the medical properties of the Blood Reed started to evaporate. I quickly extinguished the fire and waited for the water to cool down a bit. Some time later, the water became cool enough to handle. The colour of the water, was faintly red. I submerged a cloth inside the water, to collect some liquid, for comparison later. I then hanged it on a branch, to let it dry.

'I need to find out, if there are any impurities inside that herb. I now know, that the essence of the Blood Reed, can be extracted. Although, too much heat, would degrade the medical properties' I thought and prepared another batch. I had to test it a few times. My first attempt used a third of one Blood Reed, I still had two thirds left. Sacrificing one Blood Reed, was nothing. In exchange, I would get a better idea, about the properties and effectiveness of that herb.

I repeated that proces two more times. Each time, I extinguished the fire sooner, so that more medical properties were left in the water. When all the clothes dried, I compared them. 'The 1st cloth, doesn't seem to have any impurities, but the medical properties are about 50% weaker. The 2nd cloth also doesn't have impurities, and the medical properties decreased by 20% only. The 3rd cloth has impurities, while the medical properties only decreased very slightly' I thought. From my experiment, I figured out that, the best way to use those Blood Reeds, was to process them first. That way, there would be no impurities inside.

'If I were to eat them raw, the impurities would eventually accumulate. Although my blood would be more pure, it would also contain those impurities. That would probably hinder me in the future' I thought. No wonder Avians had such difficulties, breaking through their Limits. Although the blood could be purified using the Blood Reeds, it would also deposit impurities inside ones body. In a long run, the herb would actually harm the user, instead of helping him.

'Now, I know the exact time I have to cook it for, in order to get rid of impurities. Although the effectiveness will be smaller, it's still a small price to pay' I thought, and got ready for my 2nd experiment. I had to check the Earth Grabs as well. I didn't want to ingest them raw, like Avians. Especially since I learned the Art of Medicine from Nick.

I repeated the same process on the Earth Grab, and what I found out, shocked me. 'The Earth Grabs contains so many impurities. Ingesting them raw, would maybe increase my strength, but breaking through any limits later, would actually be very hard. This, paired with the Blood Reeds and other herbs, would make it almost impossible, to break through the Inner Limit. At least in my estimates. It's no wonder, that Avians can't brake through their Inner Limit. Even the King will not be able to do so, with so many impurities' I thought.

This also explained the herb, that the King of Avians proposed to me. If they worked hard and didn't ingest those herbs, there would be many more stronger Avians around. 'Although, this is what I figured out, I have no reason to tell them that. I will gain nothing else from them' I thought.

In order to use the Earth Grab, I would have to burn away the impurities inside. This would decrease the effectiveness of that herb by at least 50%, if not 60% just to be sure. With that in mind, I decided to make a condensed version of those herbs. I started with the Earth Grab.

I boiled the water and added one grab after the other. When the medical properties seeped out completely, I extracted the dregs and allowed the mixture to burn out the impurities. From about one and a half litre of water, I received around 300 millilitres of condensed Earth Grab Solution. The solution was pure, with no impurities, but it was only at 40% of effectiveness. The other 60% burned away and evaporated together with the water and impurities.

'This much should still be better, than ingesting those herbs raw or processed poorly' I thought. I did the same with the Blood Reeds. I used 21 of 41 Blood Reeds that I had, and created a condensed liquid. The liquid was dark red, just like blood, and had no impurities. I used about a litre of water this time, to make it more condensed, while the final product, came out to be only about 200 millilitres.

I decided to leave the 20 Blood Reeds for now, and not create more of that Essence. 'I guess these concoctions, are my creation now. They never appeared in Nick's books. I should name them' I thought. After a while of thinking, I named them Blood Purifying Essence and Earth Strength Essence. The names contained the characteristics of each herb, and sounded good as well. I noted the herbs on two pieces of cloth. Together with the effects, defects and the process of creating both Essences, out of those herbs.

'I'm kind of starting to create my own medical book. I should probably get an empty book, instead of writing stuff on cloth' I thought. With both Essences created, I could now try and break through my Limits, or rather, begin the process of breaking through. I drank the whole cup of Blood Purifying Essence, and sat down. When the Essence reached my stomach, I could feel a burning sensation, from inside my body.

It felt as if someone started a fire inside my stomach, that travelled through my veins, circulating my whole body. "Ughhh" I groaned. The pain was not something I expected, but I had no way of backing out now. All I could do, was endure. After a while, the pain of burning from the inside, changed to something even worse. My whole body became red hot, as if lava was flowing through my veins. Sweat stared to appear on my forehead, while my veins became completely red.

Frosty changed to its corporeal form, and looked at me with worry. The right arm started to fight with the heat. The coldness fought against the heat, to the point of creating steam around my body. I gritted my teeth from the pain, but no matter how much I tried to keep it in, I couldn't any longer. "AAAAAAHHHH!". I screamed. Letting out some noise, allowed me to at least vent my frustration.

Frosty wanted to merge with my right arm, but I stopped it. I shouted "No!..... Stay There!" and tried to endure the pain. I didn't know for how long that pain lasted, but to me, it felt like eternity. When the pain finally started to ease up and the burning decreased, I fainted. I was too exhausted from enduring the pain, to stay conscious.

When I woke up again, I felt a cool breeze, blowing on me. With my eyes opened fully, I noticed that Frosty used its breath, to cool me down. I said "Thanks, that is enough. Otherwise you will freeze me" and smiled. Frosty stopped and licked my face. I said "I'm fine, I just purified my blood. Who would've guessed, that the Essence will have such an effect. I should probably note that in the description of the herb. Although, I don't think, I will be ever able to forget that pain".

This was only the beginning though. I only purified my blood, and didn't break through the Half Step of the Outer Limit yet. 'I need to train physically, in order to break through. I should also take some of that Earth Strength Essence, while I'm at it. Although this time, I should take much less. I don't want a recollection of such pain again' I thought.

Before I did any of that, I decided to have a proper rest and eat something. 'Thanks to that experience, I'm exhausted and starving. I need to eat something first, before I attempt any limit breaking stuff' I thought, and prepared to make fire.