"I will absorb Qi from my surroundings to cleanse my clogged meridians and strengthen my body. There are twelve cleanses I must undergo to prepare my body to hold the power of Qi. Three times for the flesh—skin, muscles, and tendons. After that, three times for the bones—joints, bones, and cartilage. Then the organs—also three times."
"After completing the nine stages, my body would be ready to advance to Qi Refining. But what about the other three?" she wondered aloud.
She picked up the manuscript again to check if she had missed anything. But to her surprise, the last three stages weren't mentioned—only that they existed.
I'll have to ask someone about the final three stages later. Maybe the Elder at the Library will help me again. For now, they don't stop me from beginning the first cleanse, she thought.
Kira searched for a good spot and found a comfortable-looking stone in the shallow river water. She sat down cross-legged, just as the book instructed, and focused on her body—trying to feel herself from within. She ignored the sound of the splashing river, the cries of birds, the whipping wind, and even the warming rays of sunlight.
Slowly, she felt her consciousness slipping into a tranquil state. At its peak, she could feel every corner of her body. Then, in a sudden explosion of stimuli, she became hyper-aware of her surroundings and could see them with her inner eye.
All around her, thousands—maybe millions—of tiny wisps in all colors floated in the air. That intoxicating, familiar feeling radiated from them. She now knew exactly what it was.
Qi.
"So this mysterious power I kept encountering was Qi all along," she whispered, her excitement building.
She tried to calm herself, then reached out with her consciousness toward the closest wisp—a brightly glowing green strand.
Carefully, she guided it into the skin of her palm.
The moment it entered her skin, it was absorbed, rushing through every cell like a strong gust of wind. Then another followed.
And another. One by one, the green strands were drawn to her skin, pouring in from every direction.
It became a chain reaction. She didn't even need to guide them—they came instinctively. These were Wind-attributed Qi strands.
Somehow, she just knew.
The pace kept increasing. What began as a strong breeze soon became a violent typhoon. It tore through her skin, mercilessly. She gritted her teeth against the pain. But in her calm state, she could see it wasn't her skin being shredded—it was the impurities being forced out of her pores.
Still, the pain grew unbearable. And then, the sensation changed.
The wind became electricity. Burning. Ripping. Tingling. Purple wisps now joined the green ones—Lightning Qi.
The new sensation felt like being struck by lightning—or at least how she imagined it would feel. The two forces assaulted her skin from every direction, pushing more and more filth out of her body.
Her consciousness began to waver under the immense pain.
Just as she neared her breaking point, that intoxicating feeling returned—like a flicker of hope.
She clung to it with everything she had. Her soul latched onto it like an anchor. She drowned in the sensation. The pain faded from her mind.
Then, with sudden and fierce intensity, Kira's eyes snapped open. The sharp movement radiated barely contained fury, as if the sheer force might scorch the very air around her.
Lightning danced in the emerald of her irises, crackling and alive—ready to smite anything her gaze fixed upon.
She didn't know how much time had passed, but the sun was already dipping toward the horizon.
The first thing she noticed was the stench.
A foul, bitter reek assaulted her nose, and she immediately jumped into the river, desperate to wash it off.
Shit! The book mentioned impurities… Why did I wear my new clothes?! Kira groaned internally.
She stripped off her robes and tried to clean them too—but the smell wouldn't come out. With a heavy heart, she pulled out a fresh set of the same robes and put them on.
"Well… at least I now have a designated cultivation robe for future cleansings," she muttered with a sigh.
She inspected her skin. It felt brand new—smooth and glowing with vitality. She could feel Qi coursing through it.
To her surprise, she could control the Qi in her skin—moving it freely to any part of her body.
Wanting to test her power, she walked up to a large boulder, drew back her fist, and threw what could only be described as a very unimpressive punch.
Even so, a tiny chunk broke off the rock. And her knuckles were completely unharmed.
I need to learn a martial technique soon.
Thank the Heavens no one saw that girly punch, Kira cringed internally.
She looked at her hand, then to the distant mountains, their peaks shrouded in mist beneath the drowning sun.
Newfound resolve sparkled in her emerald eyes—ignited by the power of Body Tempering, Stage One.
She yearned to experience how the higher levels of cultivation must feel.