"Shen Long, yes. You can choose two manuals, but I'm not sure if you'd be able to master both skills. Cultivating a spiritual technique requires lots of time and effort; being a jack of all trades, master of none will not do you any good in the cultivation world. Of course, it's your path after all, so I won't refrain you from doing so, but I would strongly recommend you to cultivate one to perfection, instead of having 2 passable techniques." The Guardian answered sincerely.
Shen Long was deep in thoughts after hearing the Guardian's explanations. Shen Long wanted a change. Back on Earth, Shen Long never dedicated all his time and effort on one skill, but chose to be a dabbler. Although being versatile and all-rounded had its own benefits, he never had proper expertise at one, and he had always envied those who did.
"If I want to spread my name throughout the Huaqui realm… the Zanghu universe I mean… I must be famous for one aspect of cultivation. Having impeccable defence may increase my chance of survival, but I won't be able to dominate others, forcing them to retreat. Holding extreme offensive power, however, will terrify any enemy of mine. As the saying goes… offense is the best defence!" Shen Long decisively decided.
"Senior, I wish to cultivate the [Starfall Strike] then. I may have to trouble you, however, to choose a weapon manual for me as well then. I would like to become a sword cultivator since it works best with this skill and it had always been my dream, to wield a sword and slaughter everything." Shen Long spoke as he grew more determined.
In reality, Shen Long wanted to be a sword cultivator because he thought it would look extremely cool. Another reason is that lots of MCs in light novels on Earth uses swords, and he wanted to be like them.
"Very well. With this spiritual technique and your master's [Fireblood Sutra], using a sword is probably the best choice. There aren't many sword manuals that would suit you in the library, so I will just give you this manual for now." The Guardian said as he handed Shen Long a glittering manual.
"This manual [Melodies of Nine Sole Swords] would probably the best option. If you really are fated to walk down the path of the Dao of Balance, this sword manual set would you invincible against other cultivators in the same realm. To create a melody with swords, it requires balance between every your sword strikes. Your strikes would be continuous, and every strike would be connected. Only then, would your sword art produce a melody, which can be extremely deadly when cultivated to perfection. Emperor Tideflow, a legendary figure in the Zanghu Universe, used this technique and rose to prominence almost immediately after he mastered all nine stances. Even if you only master five to six stances, your battle prowess would be greatly improved. Emperor Tideflow did not even walk down the path of a Heavenly Dao, and yet he is so powerful.
If your Master decides to help you, he can even get Emperor Tideflow to guide your cultivation. After all, he obtained the manual from this library, and hence he counts as a half-disciple of your Master. Now, go ahead and start your cultivation as soon as possible. But don't haste. Refine your Qi first, then visit the treasury to obtain yourself a sword. You can come back and collect your Soul Manual after that. I am still unsure about your Soul's power right now, and it should be clearer after you start your cultivation. Go ahead. I won't send you off." The Guardian returned to his original position and closed his eyes.
Shen Long started walking mindlessly in the library, trying to find his way back to his hut that his Master assigned. On the way back, he saw many cultivators in different robe colours though they all greeted Shen Long respectfully. Shen Long, a man of manners, returned their greetings, just like he did in school or normally.
In Daoist Fireblade's palace, every disciple was obligated to be respectful towards each other. The rules here were like a typical school on Earth. After all, Daoist Fireblade was from Earth, and it was normal that he, himself, followed these traditional Chinese philosophies - "Jing" (Reverence). Shen Long also followed these philosophies, hence he was quite happy seeing everyone being respectful, unlike people on Earth.
"This place really is different. People on Earth barely speak to one another, and "respect" in the modern society is rarely seen. When I return home, I am going to force the government and the world to learn some basic etiquettes and manners. Being respect is the fundamentals of being a human, yet lots of us choose not to respect anyone nor anything." Shen Long said as he praised the system there while ranting about Earth.
After returning to his newly established "home", he had decided to cultivate immediately. After all, he didn't know a single person here, nor there were any fun activities. Turning his loneliness into motivation, he opened his Qi manual and started reading the script.
[Moonlight Script of the Nine Dragons] - A legendary Qi Manual that is able to rapidly absorb the spiritual essence around the user. Each stance would aid a different prospect of the body, as each dragon had its own uniqueness. Although it's only a Qi Manual, the instructions were extremely detailed, completely unlike the one he read in the light novel.
Flipped through the entire book, he discovered how profound the manual was. Even without trying it, Shen Long knew for sure that... this manual was some good shit. Besides the endless, detailed text, there were even pictures to guide the Qi. The first level sounded fairly simple as it seemed like it was just a normal breathing exercise, but to execute, it was almost impossible for Shen Long.
"So I need to guide the essence from the Sun down to the Juqi acupoint... then to the Zushi acupoint... What the actual hell... How many acupoints are there in my body!?? Surely, there can only be 270 acupoints in our body as a typical human only has 270 bones!? Yet there seem to be endless acupoints in our body, according to this! Why can't we just guide our qi through the veins and heart, just like how we normally breathe!???" Shen Long got agitated as he was getting confused from the different acupoints.
Shen Long's rant was not completely wrong. Qi could be guided through the veins and arteries, and it would definitely work. However, guiding the Qi through the different acupoints would open up the blocked vessels within the human body. According to the Chinese Medicine Theory, an acupoint essentially is just a specific point in your body where a needle would be inserted (Acupuncture). These acupoints were originally closed and locked, and through guiding Qi, it would open them. When these blocked channels are opened, we would have more control over our body, as blood and Qi would be able to flow to any part of the body.
As Shen Long painstakingly attempted to cultivate the manual, his physical body was constantly strengthening, and his pool of Qi was expanding rapidly. The manual allowed Shen Long to store the essence of the World into his blood, which could then be used as Qi. This was another reason why this manual was extremely famous throughout the Huaqui Realm. It allowed the user to strengthen its physical body as well, as the essence and Qi fused into the bloodstream.
It wasn't long until the sky turned black. After his first cultivation session, he was extremely tired and decided to stroll outside his hut. Although the sky was clear, there was no moon, but thousands and thousands of sparkling stars.
Staring into the sky without the moon, it reminded him of his parents and friends. Even the moon which had accompanied Shen Long all his life was gone. Tears started dropping from Shen Long's face as he truly missed everyone on Earth.
After all, Shen Long was sixteen, and he was still a child. Living alone, on an unknown planet, was undoubtedly quite terrifying. He wished to return, yet he knew that the road of cultivation had no turning backs.
"Mother... Father... What if there are ghosts here... Who's going to protect me??" Shen Long thought to himself as he envisioned himself being chased by ghosts. Despite being a cultivator, Shen Long was still a kid. He was still scared of ghosts...
The journey of cultivation had always been lonely, and Shen Long was finally exposed to the harsh reality of being a cultivator. However, Shen Long became more determined to wield greater strength - to return home with glory, and to control the life and death of others.
At the same time, his understanding towards the Dao of Balance seemed to have grown. Life and death; Fire and water; light and darkness; yin and yang... His eyes widened as he pondered about these natural opposites and counters in nature.