In this day and age, cultivation was the only way for the poor to truly break through class barriers and ascend. Studying was useful, but it still left one at the mercy of others, at the mercy of capital.
Only through power could one achieve true self-reliance.
Hunched over, he huddled in a deserted patch of wasteland behind the academic building. Lu Xuan paid no mind to the muddy ground, simply letting the rain soak him as he listened in silence.
"Within the spleen and stomach, one must transform Essence and Qi. Guard it with your will, gather it as one, then disperse it throughout the body to nourish it. Over time, the body will grow robust and strong. Then, visualize your spirit as a fire, burning Essence Qi into Primordial Qi. Over time…"
Whether by coincidence or not, the teacher lecturing inside the classroom raised his voice just enough for Lu Xuan, who was huddled in the wasteland behind the wall, to hear him clearly.
At that moment inside the classroom, the white-haired Lu Xiuyuan closed his book and addressed the neatly and cleanly dressed students:
"You've had two semesters of theory. Today, we will finally discuss a true Cultivation Skill."
The students in the classroom, who had been yawning incessantly, perked up slightly. Outside, Lu Xuan, who was already fully alert, focused even more intently, a knot of nervousness tightening in his chest.
'I've heard that cultivation depends on one's aptitude. What if my aptitude is poor...'
"Cultivation is about entering the Dao through martial arts. The first great step is to build the Jade Tower. In this step, from the very beginning as a Martial Artist to the pinnacle as a Grandmaster, what you are actually training is the body's [Essence]!"
"[Essence] has no distinction between Innate and Postnatal. It is the tangible element at all levels that constitutes the life activities of the human body…"
In the wasteland, Lu Xuan felt a flicker of doubt. 'Didn't Grandpa Li in my dream say that Essence is divided into Innate and Postnatal?'
'Postnatal is without a constant number, while Innate is of a fixed quantity...'
He immediately laughed at himself. 'How could I take what happens in a dream so seriously?'
Even though the dream was continuous and so very real...
Lu Xuan grew sad. 'If the dream is fake, doesn't that mean Grandpa Li and Brother Zhang are fake, too?'
'After all these years together, how are Grandpa Li and Brother Zhang any different from my own family?'
"Sixty-eight hundred years ago, in the year 2056 of the old calendar—also the first year of the New Calendar—the Third World War broke out on the Ancestor Star. The world was 'pacified' by nuclear fire, and civilization was so grievously wounded that it nearly ended. But at the same time, the ancient Daoist Collection was unearthed, opening the door to cultivation."
Lu Xiuyuan continued his lecture, growing more animated as he spoke, spittle flying from his lips.
"It wasn't until eight hundred years ago that we concluded from the Daoist Collection that all history before the Ming Dynasty is incorrect, or that the years were forcibly compressed by some unbelievable Existence. In that era, everyone was like a dragon. Take the Pre-Qin Era, for example. The fragmented history that survived the Third World War says the Qin Dynasty fell after the second generation, but according to the Daoist Collection, the Pre-Qin Era likely lasted for over ten thousand years, and the First Emperor probably didn't pass away until he was ten thousand years old... But I digress."
He took a sip of tea, his expression turning serious.
"At the beginning of cultivation, you must have someone to guide you. Today, I will be that guide for all of you."
As he spoke, Lu Xiuyuan opened a sealed file and took out a thin book.
"The Federation's Fourth Standard Breathing Technique, also known as the Jade Tower Breathing Technique. I will now explain it to you. It is forbidden to transmit it to outsiders... Of course, it doesn't really matter if you do. Without a guide, even if someone obtains the Cultivation Skill, they can't truly begin."
Swordsmen use martial arts to defy prohibitions. Even today, the Federation's control over Cultivation Skills remained extremely strict.
Lu Xiuyuan began to meticulously explain the Jade Tower Breathing Technique. Most of the students were lost, only half-understanding him.
Outside the window, however, Lu Xuan was completely captivated. Every word from the Daoist text entered his ears and was instantly and thoroughly analyzed.
Within one breath, he grasped seventy percent of its true meaning. In the next breath, he grasped ninety percent. A quarter of an hour later, he had somehow comprehended a hundred and ten percent, adding his own unique insights.
Once the lecture on the Jade Tower Breathing Technique was finished,
Lu Xiuyuan took a deep breath and suddenly spoke, his voice booming like a great bell!
"All of you, guard your minds! Clear your thoughts! I will now guide you through your first, and most important, breathing exercise to open the gate of cultivation!"
It was impossible to cultivate with just the scripture alone, unless one was a monstrous genius. Ordinary people needed a senior to guide them in order to [open the gate]!
Outside, Lu Xuan's spirits fell. 'So even knowing the Cultivation Skill isn't enough?'
'You still need someone to guide you, someone to [open the gate]...'
He sighed softly. Still, just as he always did, he secretly bowed toward the old man in the classroom through the thick wall, preparing to leave.
'He may not be my teacher, but he has taught me. Even though I was eavesdropping, I must still show my respects.'
Inside the classroom, Lu Xiuyuan extended his palm. Primordial Qi gathered into fine, star-like threads that descended onto the heads of each student, guiding them to experience Introspection and learn how to transform their Essence and Qi.
He paused, a hint of a smile appearing at the corner of his eye. He glanced at the drizzling rain and fading spring scenery outside the window.
His hand trembled.
Another fine, star-like thread shot out, flew through the window, and landed on the boy's head along with the ceaseless spring rain.
"I must be getting old. My hands are starting to shake," Lu Xiuyuan muttered to himself.
'Eager to learn, persistent, respectful, and understands self-discipline even when alone... How could I not look after him?'
'Federation law... Who cares!'
Outside,
Lu Xuan forcibly suppressed the urge to sit cross-legged and experience the guidance of Master Lu's aura.
He bowed deeply toward the classroom.
The little old man inside the classroom waved his hand dismissively, but the smile at the corners of his mouth grew even wider.
'This kid's not bad.'
As he thought this, Lu Xiuyuan's hand "trembled" again. The thread of Primordial Qi flying toward Lu Xuan grew thicker, forcing the boy to sit down cross-legged, sink his consciousness, and perceive the path of the Primordial Qi's circulation.
"Train well!" the little old man muttered quietly. He split his focus, and the spring rain lashing at the boy outside parted to either side, no longer coming within three inches of his body.
Time passed, bit by bit.
Lu Xiuyuan slowly exhaled a breath of turbid air. He retracted his palm, pulling back the threads of Primordial Qi, and said to his students,
"From now on, it all comes down to aptitude... Since ancient times, there has been the saying of 'one hundred days for Foundation Establishment.' If you can transform your Essence and Qi on your own through willpower within a hundred days, you have average aptitude. If you can do it within a month, you have high aptitude. Within ten days, you have superior aptitude..."
As he spoke, he stretched lazily and added,
"Take the current Old Celestial Master of Dragon Tiger Mountain, for instance. In his youth, he transformed his Essence and Qi through willpower in just three days. In only one month, he completed a full Grand Circulation. He's a true monster, and today, he is one of the top ten figures in the world."
The students' hearts pounded with excitement, and they tried even harder to perceive Lu Xiuyuan's guidance.
As for Lu Xuan in the wasteland outside, his entire consciousness had long since sunk into his own body. He had truly achieved a state of "ultimate emptiness and profound stillness," completely unaware of the outside world, and thus did not hear the old man's words.
In his focused state, he seemed to truly see the inside of his own body: his organs, his blood vessels, and even the blood surging through them.
'Transform Essence and Qi with willpower...'
Lu Xuan murmured inwardly. The Jade Tower Breathing Technique that Lu Xiuyuan had just explained surfaced in his mind, and he unconsciously adjusted his breathing pattern.
With each breath, the large steamed bun and pickled vegetables he had eaten earlier dissolved in his stomach. Ninety percent of the nutrients that should have dissipated were instead captured. Together with the extremely inert [Essence] already present in his spleen and stomach, they were systematically sent throughout his entire body.
Half an hour later, he had successfully transformed his Essence and Qi. With a single inhalation and exhalation, the Essence Qi completed one full Grand Circulation within his body.
In that instant, from his flesh, muscles, bones, and skin to his internal organs, his entire body was tempered and strengthened.
The circulation finished. He opened his eyes. The spring rain was as it had been, but the man was not.
And just then, Lu Xiuyuan's melodious voice once again drifted out from the classroom:
"The first great step of cultivation is building the Jade Tower. The Jade Tower has nine gates, and each gate is a new realm. It starts with the Martial Artist who tempers their flesh and ends with the Grandmaster who pioneers their Acupoints... Once you can circulate your Essence Qi for a single, complete revolution, you are considered to have passed the first gate and become a Martial Artist!"
Snapping back to his senses, Lu Xuan heard these words and instantly understood. 'I... I'm already a Martial Artist?'
'That was fast.'
'Then again,' he reasoned, 'according to Master Lu, building the Jade Tower is only the first step of cultivation. What's the first gate, the First Realm, within those nine gates?'
'It's supposed to be this easy.'
Lu Xuan gave a self-deprecating smile. Seeing that it was about time, and now that he had set foot on the path of cultivation, he once again gave a secret bow toward Lu Xiuyuan and quietly departed.
The next time he could come would be a week from now.
Inside the classroom, Lu Xiuyuan watched the boy's retreating figure and sighed with regret. 'Is his aptitude poor? He couldn't achieve Introspection in such a short time?'
'What a pity.'
Shaking his head, he addressed the students again,
"Don't you think becoming a Martial Artist is simple. If you can pass the first gate and become a Martial Artist within two years—before the college entrance exams—then getting into a Cultivation University is a sure thing!"
After a pause, Lu Xiuyuan added,
"The Nine Gates Jade Tower may only be the first great step of cultivation, but how many steps are there in total? You should all know that once you take the second great step, Climbing the Divine Ladder, you are called a Celestial Human, capable of moving mountains and leveling seas!"
A Celestial Human!
Moving mountains and leveling seas!
The students erupted in an uproar.