Ki (Alpha)

"All living things commune with one another on a certain level, doing so using the energy within themselves. This energy serves as our life force, propels our various actions & emotions and is made up of various aspects of our beings. It's a natural part of the planet and is something we can't live without. You can say this energy that's known by many names is part of our everyday lives. Even when we die and our soul moves on, it will still exist for all eternity — remaining apart of us and all of creation."

- Sao Huang Li alluding to the essence found in all organisms to Dante.

Ki (気, lit. "Essence") is purported to be one of the various energies that exist in Earthland — serving as the source of all organic functions. While having various uses and near limitless in quantity, it's mainly utilized in combat — specifically the Martial Arts, giving birth to many styles and practices. It's commonly used in the eastern regions of the world, serving as an antipode to the magical powers frequently used in the western hemisphere.

Over many generations, Ki has been referred by other names, such as "Vigour" (気魄, Kihaku), "Fortitude" (毅然, Kizen), and most commonly — the "Soul" (気骨, Kikotsu). This is due to the interpretations many eastern philosophers and martial artists have about the mysterious substance, gained through their study and eventual understanding of it.

Trivia

 * Though most of the pictures and information in this article comes from the Dragon Ball series, there are some that's taken from other series — mainly manhua and manhwa focusing on martial arts, something that's rather popular with the reading types.
 * Some information is slightly based off of the Ki article belonging to Ash; this is due to the concepts being the same at its core, with mine's being a bit more expanded in a few areas for storyline reasons. Thus, all credit goes to him.