As the first rays of sunlight awoke Thorian, he rose from his bed and dressed in clean clothes. Exiting his bedroom, he discovered Nox asleep on one of the living room couches. Smiling, Thorian roused his friend, "Nox, it's time to wake up."

With a grunt, Nox stretched and opened his eyes. "Is it morning already?"

"It is," Thorian chuckled. "Now, quickly get dressed so we can head out. We have quite a few tasks ahead."

"Okay, okay," Nox yawned, standing up.

Realizing Nox would need some time to prepare, Thorian returned to his room and gazed out the window. He then cleaned his mouth with a water manipulation spell. Before mastering this spell, managing his hygiene with mere water balls had been challenging. Now, it had become a routine. As the king of his village and representative of his people, Thorian could not afford to appear uncivilized.

After attending to his hygiene, Thorian rejoined Nox in the living room, now ready to leave. The two exited the house.

"So, what's our plan for today?" Nox inquired.

Thorian pondered briefly before answering. "First, I need to meet with William. Discussions such as these tend to be lengthy, and I'd prefer to start them as soon as possible."

"I see," Nox nodded. "Would you like me to fetch him?"

"That would be helpful," Thorian agreed. "But there's no rush. I have another task to attend to in the meantime."

"Understood," Nox chuckled. "We'll take the scenic route then."

After bidding Thorian farewell, Nox departed the village. Thorian, meanwhile, contemplated his next steps before heading to the Cultivation Hall.

Entering his usual room, Thorian thought, Although I didn't come here to cultivate, the higher concentration of ether here will certainly be beneficial. I also need the peace and quiet to focus on condensing my mana heart.

Settling into a lotus position, Thorian cleared his mind, concentrating solely on the cloud of mana in his chest. It resembled a colorful nebula, energizing his entire body.

Aware that he couldn't simply force the gaseous, unruly mana to condense into a single point, Thorian began guiding it in a rotating motion instead of directly towards the center. As the vortex of mana gradually gained speed, he subtly directed the rotation inward, causing the mana to inch closer to the center with each rotation.

With relentless focus, Thorian repeated this process countless times. Each rotation brought the mana closer to the center. After an hour, the vortex had transformed into a tiny spinning ball, its viscosity nearly gone due to the intense pressure. With one final effort, the blob of mana solidified, and a notification promptly appeared.

Congratulations, you have condensed your mana heart.