Karl looked around the room after Bennie's proposal and slowly nodded his approval. Although everyone present belonged to the Elder Council, no one wanted to make such a fundamental decision without consulting the rest of the family. The breathing method they were creating would become one of the family's greatest inheritances, influencing generations yet to be born. It deserved as much scrutiny as they could possibly give it before submitting it to the System.
"Very well," Karl said calmly as he stepped toward the whiteboard. "We'll put both proposals to a vote."
The atmosphere immediately relaxed.
Unlike many of the previous suggestions, the room already seemed to know which option would prevail. Even so, Karl insisted on following proper procedure rather than assuming unanimous agreement. If anyone still had concerns, this would be their final opportunity to raise them before the discussion moved on.
"Those in favor of the tree visualization?"
Only a few hesitant hands rose.
Several people had genuinely liked the concept, particularly because of the family's strong affinity for nature. The symbolism of roots, trunk, and branches fit cultivation remarkably well, and the proposal certainly possessed its own elegance. Unfortunately, elegance alone was not enough when the entire family needed to visualize the same image with absolute clarity.
Karl nodded before lowering his own hand.
"Now, those in favor of Lilly's proposal."
Every hand in the room immediately rose.
Several members even smiled as they looked toward the drawing of the bow and quiver still displayed upon the whiteboard. The result was so overwhelming that no one felt the need to count the votes. The decision had effectively been made the moment Lilly finished explaining her reasoning.
Karl chuckled softly.
"I suspected this might happen."
He looked toward Lilly with an appreciative smile.
"The proposal perfectly represents who we are."
No one disagreed.
The bow had accompanied their family for generations, long before mana had transformed the world. Every child understood how a bow functioned before they were old enough to hold one properly. If the visualization became the foundation of their breathing method, future descendants would never struggle to picture it during cultivation.
The discussion naturally shifted toward another concern.
"Does anyone object to associating our cultivation so closely with a single weapon?" Karl asked.
The question deserved consideration.
Some cultivation methods deliberately avoided specific imagery because they wished to remain adaptable regardless of what weapons practitioners eventually chose. If their breathing method centered entirely upon a bow, would future family members who preferred swords or spears find themselves disadvantaged?
Fortunately, no one appeared worried.
Bennie shook his head first.
"I don't think that's a problem."
Several others nodded.
"Our family has always been built around archery," another elder added. "If someone truly wishes to pursue another weapon, they can always develop a different breathing method later. There's no reason to weaken our own identity simply because of possibilities that may never occur."
Karl accepted the reasoning.
"Besides," he continued, "this isn't the only breathing method we're permitted to submit."
That reminder caught several younger members by surprise.
"Our faction has authorization to register up to ten different breathing methods."
He smiled faintly.
"Technically speaking, we're considered two closely connected factions operating together, which is why the System grants us a higher submission limit than most organizations."
The difference was substantial.
Ordinary factions possessed permission to register only a single breathing method. Governments naturally received considerably greater allowances, although exactly how many remained unknown to the public. The System had apparently decided that national responsibilities justified greater flexibility than private organizations enjoyed.
The room quickly accepted the decision.
"Good," Karl said while gathering several sheets of notes together.
"Someone please take copies of Lilly's proposal to the rest of the family."
He looked around the room.
"I want everyone else's thoughts while we continue discussing the remaining sections of the breathing method."
One of the younger family members immediately volunteered.
He carefully collected the notes before leaving the meeting room, leaving the remaining elders free to continue without interruption. The atmosphere noticeably calmed once the administrative work had been delegated elsewhere. Everyone understood that plenty of difficult decisions still remained before their breathing method could be completed.
Karl waited until the door closed.
Then he looked toward Arin.
"Come here."
Arin blinked.
"...Me?"
"Yes."
Karl motioned toward the center of the room.
Reluctantly, Arin climbed to his feet.
He already suspected exactly what his grandfather intended, and judging by the amused expressions spreading across several faces, everyone else had reached the same conclusion. Unfortunately, refusing was not really an option.
Karl had invited him specifically for this purpose.
More accurately...
Karl had practically blackmailed him into attending.
His grandfather knew perfectly well that Arin preferred remaining in the background whenever possible. Even so, Karl had insisted that the family's future breathing method required firsthand knowledge of Arin's unique Physique. Faced with that argument, Arin had found himself unable to decline.
With a quiet sigh, he walked toward the center of the room.
The elders immediately adjusted their chairs so they could observe him more closely. Some leaned forward with obvious curiosity, while others already held notebooks ready to record every useful detail. Arin suddenly felt less like a family member and more like an unusual specimen being presented for scientific examination.
Karl folded his arms.
"As I've already mentioned," he began, "our intention is to model this breathing method after the way Arin's Physique naturally functions."
No one looked surprised.
Instead...
Several people smiled with obvious envy.
"We are, after all, a family of rangers," Karl continued seriously.
His gaze briefly shifted toward Arin.
"And I have to admit..."
A faint grin appeared.
"I'm more than a little jealous of the advantages that boy possesses."
Laughter spread throughout the room.
Karl was hardly alone.
Nearly everyone present had witnessed Arin's extraordinary affinity with nature mana over the past several years. They had seen forests seemingly respond to his presence, plants flourish around him, and his cultivation advance in ways that ordinary practitioners simply could not replicate.
Jealousy seemed almost inevitable.
Karl quickly returned to the matter at hand.
"Our objective," he explained, "isn't to copy Arin's Physique."
He shook his head.
"That would obviously be impossible."
Instead, he tapped the whiteboard.
"We want to imitate the way his body interacts with mana."
That distinction mattered enormously.
No breathing method, regardless of its quality, could grant someone a unique Physique. Those gifts appeared to be innate, existing beyond ordinary cultivation. What they could potentially reproduce, however, were some of the beneficial effects created by that Physique through careful refinement of mana circulation.
Even partial success would be worthwhile.
"If we can reproduce even a fraction of those advantages," Karl continued, "our family's breathing method would already stand above most others."
The elders quietly agreed.
The decision had not been made purely out of envy, although Karl openly admitted that envy certainly played a role. More importantly, humanity simply lacked sufficient knowledge to design advanced cultivation techniques from first principles. Rather than inventing something entirely theoretical, they preferred beginning with a working example already proven successful.
Arin represented exactly that.
The reality facing humanity was surprisingly uncomfortable.
Yes, countless scientists had spent years studying the breathing methods provided by the System. Every available document had been analyzed repeatedly, dissected from every possible scientific angle, and compared against practical cultivation results. Entire research institutes existed solely to understand how mana interacted with the human body.
Yet almost everything remained theoretical.
No one wanted to risk experimenting directly on living cultivators.
One incorrect modification to a breathing method could permanently cripple someone or even kill them. Ethical restrictions, practical concerns, and simple common sense prevented researchers from performing the kinds of dangerous experiments that might rapidly advance their understanding.
As a result...
Humanity's theoretical foundation remained remarkably shallow.
They possessed techniques that worked.
They understood many observable effects.
What they still lacked was a deep understanding of why those techniques worked.
Karl intended to bridge that gap.
"If we understand how Arin naturally absorbs, circulates, and refines nature mana," he explained, "we'll have something tangible to build upon instead of relying entirely upon guesswork."
The logic was difficult to dispute.
Rather than chasing abstract theories, they would study a living example whose cultivation had already demonstrated exceptional results. Every observation they made could immediately be compared against something real rather than remaining confined to speculation.
Karl finally looked directly at Arin.
"All right."
He smiled reassuringly.
"For the next few hours..."
He glanced around the room.
"...you're going to answer every question we can think of."
Arin sighed dramatically.
"I had a feeling you were going to say that."
The room filled with quiet laughter.
Then the notebooks opened.
Pens were lifted.
And the Elder Council began carefully questioning Arin, determined to understand every detail of how his remarkable Physique interacted with mana so they could transform those observations into the strongest breathing method their family had ever created.