Chapter 13: Let’s Try
Chapter 13: Let’s Try
The afternoon playground basked in the warm, high sun. The sunlight felt lazily comfortable on people’s bodies. Chen An was not the only one lying on the field; many others were lounging in small groups.
Suddenly, as if attracted by something, their gazes shifted. Then, Chen An felt a shadow block the sunlight above him.
“What is it? You’re ignoring me again!” A girl’s sweet and spoiled voice rang out.
Chen An was puzzled. “Don’t you have anything better to do? You’ve come looking for me three times today.”
“Who’s looking for you!” Lin Jingq vehemently denied, then sat down beside him. “I’m just out to get some sun and happened to see you.”
Chen An was confused. “Then why aren’t you seizing the time to cultivate? I’ve only heard of ‘the early bird catches the worm,’ not ‘the clumsy bird basks in the sun’…”
His words were quickly interrupted by the girl. “Hold on, who are you calling a clumsy bird?!” Lin Jingq stared intently at Chen An. “I’ll repeat myself: I am a genius!”
She huffed. “The main reason is that I can’t cultivate even if I wanted to, or I would already be on Mount Qingcheng.” Chen An turned his head. “Why can’t you cultivate?”
“I’m missing the most crucial introductory cultivation technique.” Lin Jingq propped herself up on the grass with her hands, looking up at the sky, and mumbled, “I came to Qing City a year ago, and my family had already arranged for me to join Mount Qingcheng. But later, I found out that everyone’s realm just appeared out of nowhere; no one knew the specific method for Qi Induction.”
She smiled as she spoke. “But there’s no need to worry. I heard the officials are leading the top sects, and they’re close to developing a method suitable for our Qi Induction. They said that after our college entrance exams, they’ll select promising talents with cultivation aptitude and teach them uniformly. At that time, everyone will also enter the officially founded Joint Cultivation University.”
Lin Jingq looked at Chen An, seeing his vacant, ignorant expression, and couldn’t help but chuckle. “What, do you find it magical? Expanding your knowledge?”
Chen An nodded and praised, “You guys are quite progressive.”
“Of course.” Lin Jingq seemed to have held it all in for a long time, and now that she’d found someone to confide in, she had a lot to say. “They also said that to maintain fairness, everyone will start from the same starting line.”
Chen An shook his head. “That’s not realistic.”
The girl chuckled. “Of course, it’s not realistic. Take myself for example: although I don’t have a corresponding method to enter Qi Refining, the breathing and concentration techniques my Master taught me are crucial for building a solid foundation. Once I start school, people like me will definitely pull far ahead of others.”
Lin Jingq sighed. “Unfortunately, my sect has an order not to pass it on to outsiders.” Hearing this, Chen An smiled. The girl’s sigh was clearly due to this reason, preventing her from teaching him the method. But if it were about breathing and concentration techniques, he knew of dozens of the most elite ones and wouldn’t care about these.
He thought of something and curiously changed the subject. “Then how do they determine if someone has cultivation aptitude? Do they use their eyes?”
“How is that possible?” Lin Jingq replied. “Mount Qingcheng has several inherited spirit stones. I heard that as long as you hold one, you can sense a person’s aptitude. Although it’s not very precise, it’s good enough.”
Chen An understood after hearing this. This was equivalent to Blue Star being in the most primitive stage of cultivation, with all sorts of methods for nurturing disciples being very rudimentary. For example, using spirit stones to test aptitude was a method used by ancient cultivators in his ninth life.
By holding a spirit stone, if it emitted a faint light, it meant the person had a spirit root and could cultivate. The brighter the spirit stone glowed, the better the aptitude. But by the time Chen An cultivated, there were already specialized techniques to inspect meridians. A mere glance would reveal a person’s aptitude.
For instance, looking at Lin Jingq before him, Chen An could tell the endpoint of her cultivation path. Her aptitude was decent; she should reach the Golden Core realm. It’s just that Blue Star’s spiritual energy was thin, requiring some discount. But these weren’t absolute. A person’s meridians and spirit root could often be altered through various means.
“You seem very confident about me. What if I don’t have any aptitude?” Chen An asked.
Lin Jingq waved her hand, a smile playing on her lips. “I told you, you have no idea what it means to have saved me. Even if you truly have no aptitude, I can let you use my connections. As long as the mindset doesn’t falter, there are always more solutions than problems.” In the sunlight, the girl’s smile was dazzling.
Chen An watched her quietly for a moment before looking away. “Do you want to practice Qi Refining?”
Facing this somewhat nonsensical question, Lin Jingq rolled her eyes. “Isn’t that obvious? I’m waiting for a Qi Refining method to come out.”
“Do you want it?”
“Want…” Lin Jingq almost answered instinctively, but then she stopped herself abruptly. She turned her head and stared intently at Chen An. Then, she pouted. “Is it fun to tease me? The officials and the big shots from the top sects have been researching for so long, do you really have a method for Qi Induction?”
“To be frank, you’ve only known about cultivation in this world for half a day, right?” Lin Jingq’s tone was teasing, but when she saw Chen An’s consistently calm expression, she couldn’t remain indifferent. “You don’t actually have one, do you?”
Lin Jingq became a little anxious. She didn’t think Chen An possessed a legitimate method, but a possibility occurred to her. She had heard her Senior Sister mention that although the method for Qi Induction hadn’t been formally developed, some people found alternative, unorthodox paths.
Take those evil cultivators who caused trouble, for instance. Some found their methods in antique markets, while others dug them up from who knows where. But without exception, these methods for Qi Induction often required the price of devouring flesh and blood; they were extremely wicked. Initially, devouring ordinary poultry was enough, but as cultivation progressed, more and more flesh and blood were needed. From one or two birds to an entire flock. And then to the flesh and blood of real humans, or even cultivators. The methods for breaking through realms were similarly simple and brutal. Cannibalism, utterly wicked. But this was certainly not the righteous path, and it would lead to no good end. Eventually, they would either become neither human nor ghost, or they would explode and die from being unable to control the chaotic and complex spiritual energy within them.
Lin Jingq was now worried that Chen An might have stumbled upon such a method without realizing it and mistook it for something good. Chen An noticed her concern and smiled, “Want to try it? All-natural and harmless.”
Lin Jingq was stunned. “All-natural and harmless…?” She had never heard cultivation methods described like that before. Chen An nodded. “Try it?”
Lin Jingq thought for a moment, then gritted her teeth. At worst, she could stop if something felt wrong. She wouldn’t lose anything by hearing how it worked. “Let’s try it.” She tilted her chin slightly, meeting a pair of clear, black and white eyes.
“What do I need to do?”
Chen An remained lying down, stretching lazily. “Just meditate normally.” Lin Jingq was puzzled but complied. She sat cross-legged on the grass and began meditating. Her posture seemed a bit odd to onlookers, but no one was nosy enough to inquire.
One minute… Ten minutes… An hour later, the school bell rang. Lin Jingq slowly opened her eyes, but the young man was nowhere to be seen. Her heart sank. She subtly felt for any changes in her body. Well, to say there were no changes would be an understatement; there were absolutely no changes.
Chen An! Lin Jingq gritted her teeth, her hands by her sides clenched into tight fists.
(End of Chapter)
Due to popular demand from readers, the VIP ad-free feature is now available.
Click to view
Chapter 13: Let’s Try
The afternoon playground basked in the warm, high sun. The sunlight felt lazily comfortable on people’s bodies. Chen An was not the only one lying on the field; many others were lounging in small groups.
Suddenly, as if attracted by something, their gazes shifted. Then, Chen An felt a shadow block the sunlight above him.
“What is it? You’re ignoring me again!” A girl’s sweet and spoiled voice rang out.
Chen An was puzzled. “Don’t you have anything better to do? You’ve come looking for me three times today.”
“Who’s looking for you!” Lin Jingq vehemently denied, then sat down beside him. “I’m just out to get some sun and happened to see you.”
Chen An was confused. “Then why aren’t you seizing the time to cultivate? I’ve only heard of ‘the early bird catches the worm,’ not ‘the clumsy bird basks in the sun’…”
His words were quickly interrupted by the girl. “Hold on, who are you calling a clumsy bird?!” Lin Jingq stared intently at Chen An. “I’ll repeat myself: I am a genius!”
She huffed. “The main reason is that I can’t cultivate even if I wanted to, or I would already be on Mount Qingcheng.” Chen An turned his head. “Why can’t you cultivate?”
“I’m missing the most crucial introductory cultivation technique.” Lin Jingq propped herself up on the grass with her hands, looking up at the sky, and mumbled, “I came to Qing City a year ago, and my family had already arranged for me to join Mount Qingcheng. But later, I found out that everyone’s realm just appeared out of nowhere; no one knew the specific method for Qi Induction.”
She smiled as she spoke. “But there’s no need to worry. I heard the officials are leading the top sects, and they’re close to developing a method suitable for our Qi Induction. They said that after our college entrance exams, they’ll select promising talents with cultivation aptitude and teach them uniformly. At that time, everyone will also enter the officially founded Joint Cultivation University.”
Lin Jingq looked at Chen An, seeing his vacant, ignorant expression, and couldn’t help but chuckle. “What, do you find it magical? Expanding your knowledge?”
Chen An nodded and praised, “You guys are quite progressive.”
“Of course.” Lin Jingq seemed to have held it all in for a long time, and now that she’d found someone to confide in, she had a lot to say. “They also said that to maintain fairness, everyone will start from the same starting line.”
Chen An shook his head. “That’s not realistic.”
The girl chuckled. “Of course, it’s not realistic. Take myself for example: although I don’t have a corresponding method to enter Qi Refining, the breathing and concentration techniques my Master taught me are crucial for building a solid foundation. Once I start school, people like me will definitely pull far ahead of others.”
Lin Jingq sighed. “Unfortunately, my sect has an order not to pass it on to outsiders.” Hearing this, Chen An smiled. The girl’s sigh was clearly due to this reason, preventing her from teaching him the method. But if it were about breathing and concentration techniques, he knew of dozens of the most elite ones and wouldn’t care about these.
He thought of something and curiously changed the subject. “Then how do they determine if someone has cultivation aptitude? Do they use their eyes?”
“How is that possible?” Lin Jingq replied. “Mount Qingcheng has several inherited spirit stones. I heard that as long as you hold one, you can sense a person’s aptitude. Although it’s not very precise, it’s good enough.”
Chen An understood after hearing this. This was equivalent to Blue Star being in the most primitive stage of cultivation, with all sorts of methods for nurturing disciples being very rudimentary. For example, using spirit stones to test aptitude was a method used by ancient cultivators in his ninth life.
By holding a spirit stone, if it emitted a faint light, it meant the person had a spirit root and could cultivate. The brighter the spirit stone glowed, the better the aptitude. But by the time Chen An cultivated, there were already specialized techniques to inspect meridians. A mere glance would reveal a person’s aptitude.
For instance, looking at Lin Jingq before him, Chen An could tell the endpoint of her cultivation path. Her aptitude was decent; she should reach the Golden Core realm. It’s just that Blue Star’s spiritual energy was thin, requiring some discount. But these weren’t absolute. A person’s meridians and spirit root could often be altered through various means.
“You seem very confident about me. What if I don’t have any aptitude?” Chen An asked.
Lin Jingq waved her hand, a smile playing on her lips. “I told you, you have no idea what it means to have saved me. Even if you truly have no aptitude, I can let you use my connections. As long as the mindset doesn’t falter, there are always more solutions than problems.” In the sunlight, the girl’s smile was dazzling.
Chen An watched her quietly for a moment before looking away. “Do you want to practice Qi Refining?”
Facing this somewhat nonsensical question, Lin Jingq rolled her eyes. “Isn’t that obvious? I’m waiting for a Qi Refining method to come out.”
“Do you want it?”
“Want…” Lin Jingq almost answered instinctively, but then she stopped herself abruptly. She turned her head and stared intently at Chen An. Then, she pouted. “Is it fun to tease me? The officials and the big shots from the top sects have been researching for so long, do you really have a method for Qi Induction?”
“To be frank, you’ve only known about cultivation in this world for half a day, right?” Lin Jingq’s tone was teasing, but when she saw Chen An’s consistently calm expression, she couldn’t remain indifferent. “You don’t actually have one, do you?”
Lin Jingq became a little anxious. She didn’t think Chen An possessed a legitimate method, but a possibility occurred to her. She had heard her Senior Sister mention that although the method for Qi Induction hadn’t been formally developed, some people found alternative, unorthodox paths.
Take those evil cultivators who caused trouble, for instance. Some found their methods in antique markets, while others dug them up from who knows where. But without exception, these methods for Qi Induction often required the price of devouring flesh and blood; they were extremely wicked. Initially, devouring ordinary poultry was enough, but as cultivation progressed, more and more flesh and blood were needed. From one or two birds to an entire flock. And then to the flesh and blood of real humans, or even cultivators. The methods for breaking through realms were similarly simple and brutal. Cannibalism, utterly wicked. But this was certainly not the righteous path, and it would lead to no good end. Eventually, they would either become neither human nor ghost, or they would explode and die from being unable to control the chaotic and complex spiritual energy within them.
Lin Jingq was now worried that Chen An might have stumbled upon such a method without realizing it and mistook it for something good. Chen An noticed her concern and smiled, “Want to try it? All-natural and harmless.”
Lin Jingq was stunned. “All-natural and harmless…?” She had never heard cultivation methods described like that before. Chen An nodded. “Try it?”
Lin Jingq thought for a moment, then gritted her teeth. At worst, she could stop if something felt wrong. She wouldn’t lose anything by hearing how it worked. “Let’s try it.” She tilted her chin slightly, meeting a pair of clear, black and white eyes.
“What do I need to do?”
Chen An remained lying down, stretching lazily. “Just meditate normally.” Lin Jingq was puzzled but complied. She sat cross-legged on the grass and began meditating. Her posture seemed a bit odd to onlookers, but no one was nosy enough to inquire.
One minute… Ten minutes… An hour later, the school bell rang. Lin Jingq slowly opened her eyes, but the young man was nowhere to be seen. Her heart sank. She subtly felt for any changes in her body. Well, to say there were no changes would be an understatement; there were absolutely no changes.
Chen An! Lin Jingq gritted her teeth, her hands by her sides clenched into tight fists.
(End of Chapter)
