Deep breaths. One. Two. One. Two. One. Two.

After a long while, my breathing came under my control and my hands stopped shaking.

It's the standard Qi cultivation technique all temporary disciples of Azure Flames Sect undergo through before ascending to the Outer Sect.

However, with this body's crippled meridians, the most I could do is calm my breathing down. Better than modern calming techniques, I consoled myself.

Thud thud thud.

After three knocks, the door is pushed open and an older graying haired man appearing at the doorstep.

"Aiden, what did I tell you about timings?"

His voice was thick, with a gravitas of someone surviving through harsh times.

Aiden just coughed.

"I... I suffered a deviatio—"

"If you still want food, better come start your work before it's too late."

Harsh, uncaring words. With a scoff, the man left the area, leaving Aiden behind.

If it's the previous Aiden, he might've been brought down again, and start the day depressed. He didn't care as much now, but this scrawny twig of a body needs sustenance, and that means doing whatever is required of him.

With a sigh and another, Aiden calmly got up from the bed and pulled the standard dress from the left side of the room, just as he'd done many a times before.

With nary a thought, he started getting into the standard servant robes, his movements instinctive from repetition. His mind, however, is in the energy he's able to sense inside him.

Qi.

An otherworldly energy enabling humans feats such as cutting mountains and severing rivers.

As a modern day enthusiast, he couldn't stop gushing over it in his mind.

His body, however, is low in energy, sluggish and feeling like shit, dampening his emotions.

With another sigh at his fate, Aiden went through the door of his room and closed it. There was no lock, as a servant isn't given their privacy, but to show they are above 'mortals', he still has a room on his own however small it may be.

There were other similar rooms to his side and behind him.

Rows and rows of rooms greeted him, but he's already used to this sight as Xu Aiden, though his modern self is gushing over the 'fantasy theme house'.

Leaving the front door, he saw the sun almost crossing the tree line. He's required to clean the front yard of the Servant's Library before the sun crosses the treeline, and considering the standards required of him, the time isn't sufficient.

'It seems I'm not getting breakfast today.'

No servant is allowed food before completing their morning tasks. Ditching work isn't permitted, however late, and there are heavy punishments for enforce that.

Shitty black company.

He kept his head low, not meeting the eyes of the passerby fellow servants.

Most ignored him, their disdain evident in their eyes.

Some tried shoving him, and he just kept quiet.

The servants have been warned against outright hitting him, so passive aggression is the norm.

Naving the dirt-paved path, he entered the chinese-style building and made way to the side, where a broom and other cleaning equipment reside.

He grabbed them and got to work.

The Library is a tall building of four floors, and the front side of it has many visitors.

The falling leaves. The trash. Everything else in between.

By the time he finished cleaning the front yard, he was sweating, the minimal work exerting his weak body.

He complained none, however. Just being 'allowed' to live is a luxury for him.

The guard in front of the building took one look at his expectant expression, then another at the front yard, and muttered, "Again. Trash."

He's a frequent tormentor who asks him to do meaningless tasks repeatedly. Aiden didn't hold a grudge against him for that, as the guy isn't doing this out of personal vendetta and  was only instructed to act this way.

Nodding his head, Aiden did the task repeatedly until the sun is overhead.

Frequently being forced to skip breakfast, lunch and dinner for 'not finishing tasks' is a common occurrence. One of the reasons his body is so thin.

"That's enough. Go. Eat lunch and report to the manager."

A smile broke unbidden on his face. It seems the guy took pity on him. After all, it's only yesterday he suffered a Qi deviation, and it's pretty evident from his blackened arms.

Pity or not, his growling stomach demanded his attention.

He's been thinking about the cheat he's given for his reincarnation.

Haki.

While he was cleaning absent-mindedly, he's been attempting to kindle it, to no success.

Now it's lunch time so he made way to his room, suffering harassment all the while, grabbed his chopsticks and bowl, and swiftly followed the beaten path towards the culinary hall.

'No matter. It WILL unlock.'

Unknown to him, the surrounding people felt a small burst of uncomfortableness which went by as swiftly as it came, making many wonder which Senior is behind the phenomena.