Rihanna could feel her lips twitching. Wasn't this non-existential thingy having a rather melodramatic breakdown? How come she did not know before that it could be such a drama queen.
Sooo....she seemed to have gone a bit crazy yesterday night....expected....after all there didn't seem to be anyone who practiced this technique of cultivation. She was basically treating herself as a lab rat - experimenting, analyzing and drawing conclusions, and then deciding which path to take next....to say the least, it was a taxing method and exhausting to boot! But hey....did you hear her complain?!
She snorted in disdain.
'Well...since you don't seem to have a better idea, maybe I should continue with developing my outward sensory perceptions for the time being. Say....don't these large clans have a library of sorts? If we need to plan out an escape method, at least we need a map of the lands or something. Running from here back to Green-Stone City is no longer a viable option.'
'Hmmm....the actual library will most probably be inside the inner regions. After all, that's where all the higher level, supreme level and divine level technique and skill books are kept. Also all the important artifacts and important documents pertaining to the history of the clan will also be locked in it.'
'.....get to the point!'
'Ahem....well, the Clan Leader must have a study room, and all minor and regularly used documents would be kept there. A map of these lands, at least a map of Madsa-Tamu should be kept there. But we don't know where that study might be.'
'Clan Leader study room...it should be somewhere in the main residence. Let's do this then. I'll release my perceptive powers and try to sense out where that study might be.'
'Don't hold too much hope. Your perception is not really that strong as yet.'
'Perpetual pessimist! Don't douse out my optimism even before I have begun!'
Rihanna took a few deep breaths, then closed her eyes and started channelizing her breath through her body, as she allowed her concentration and senses to focus at one point at the center of her forehead. The more she breathed, the lighter became the stress knots binding her mind, gradually relaxing into a state of sublime tranquility.
Unlike the other days, whence she had to work a lot harder to build her focus to allow the senses to develop, today she felt the last knots holding back her perceptive power within herself loosening, and she decided to go with the flow.
As the final knot broke open, a dazzling white light pierced through her glabella, almost scaring her. But a sense of calm immediately flooded all her senses, stabilizing her nerves and nourishing her tranquil state.
All of a sudden, as if a new world had opened up before her, and her perception was flowing like a river. With the slightest nudge, she could send it in any direction she desired. A bubbling feeling of joy emerged from within her heart, and even as her perceptive powers streamed out, spreading in all directions, washing over every part of her vicinity, a silly smile sprouted on her lips.
'Now what is she doing?....Aish! This girl just doesn't listen. She thinks she is still working for AI South Asian Corporation.....all her training as a scientist, to be curious and always seek knowledge, is going to be the death of her! Whatever makes her curious, she starts running after it like a curious cat.....how I wish I could dump her and move on!...Or is this my karma for what I did to her back then...Truly, karma is a bitch.'
Unconcerned, and anyway ignorant of what Little Purple was muttering in its mind, Rihanna was quite busy with her new way of perceptory exploration. She let it wander around for a bit, still a bit confused with the geography of this new terrain. But soon she fell back on the path she was seeking, and then let her perceptions race on towards the main residence. Unlike the Alchemy building, there were no arrays or artifacts to control the flow of perception, and she skipped and jumped her way through all the doors and windows, vaulted over walls and finally found herself inside a room.
'Who is that?'
When she used her perception, she could make out the basics of the area around her - tall, short, flat, straight, open path, closed path, building, wall, trees or large shrubs. But the details were rather hazy.
She could sense that what she was standing before was some sort of a bed....and someone was laying on it. Probably sleeping. She couldn't see who it was, but the room was large and gave her a kind of feminine feel. Hmmm.....there was only one female member in the main mansion - Su Maihiya. Rihanna felt excited, suddenly wanting to go nearer, wanting to see the sleeping girl more clearly.
She felt a surge of energy, as her concentration turned sharper and deeper. The blurriness before her eyes started swirling around like a smoky curtain, spiraling in concentric waves, as the center of the spiral turned clearer and clearer.
And then....everything turned vivid and bright and blaringly clear before her eyes. Except...
'Eh?!.....What the hell just happened? What is this.....is this still my perception? Oh....is this what they call an out of body experience?!'
She was there, standing inside the very room....except she was not really there! She could not see herself, which meant she was there only through her mind. But this was entirely different from the earlier times she had used her perceptory powers! It was almost like she was there in person!
Rihanna went over to the bed in excitement. Indeed, just as she had thought. It was Su Maihiya, asleep on a large bed that could fit in another four-five Su Maihiyas. Comparing it to her tiny, cramped cot in the servants quarter, she felt depressed. Truly, comparison only brought pain, no pleasure!
Looking around the room for a while longer, Rihanna decided to move on and find the study of Grand-father Su. The corridors were dimly lit, with guards patrolling in pairs. She even came across Grand-father Su's room, and also Su Tama Yen....the only grandson of the Clan Leader. She had overheard the servants mention that he was currently studying at Divine Sword Sect, a mid-grade Sect. Unfortunately, as yet he had not attained any great achievement, and hence was not as useful to the clan as Su Maihiya.
Wandering around without a plan, she came across many rooms with arrays within them. She had to peek inside each, which was time taking even in her perceptory self, and she could feel her energy draining off very fast. Still, she did make it to the study in the end!
The study was quite small. Rihanna was sure there would be some trap door around leading to a hidden room or something - most of these places were provided with such conveniences in movies. But she did not have much energy to spare.
A large elliptical wooden desk with a polished stone top stood at the back center of the room. On both sides, the walls were hidden behind floor to ceiling wooden shelves, filled with books, leaflets, papers, scrolls, leather manuscripts, jade and metal artifacts.
A tiny water pool stood in the center of the room, with a blooming flower shaped metal vase floating in the center. A greenish blue fire was burning inside the vase. And the water in the pool gave off a light steam, creating a hazy and ethereal atmosphere. Even when the Clan's finances were choking out the life of others, Grand-father Su seemed to delve in all kind of personal luxuries!
The white fog spread and faded outwards, releasing a strange smell. She didn't know what it was, but it was definitely making her sleepy! Was this an added protection layer in case ignorant intruders dared to venture inside this room? Even in her sensory state she was finding it difficult to combat the rising drowsiness! She shouldn't be in this room for too long.
Rihanna hurried along the shelves, quickly glancing through as many papers and scrolls as she could. Basic skills and techniques, modular programs and training schedules for the kids in the inner region, blue prints of some of the buildings in the front region, log books containing the income and expenditure of the clan, log books containing the resources allocated to each residence...wait, what was this wrapped in an old leather roll?
Rihanna couldn't really pluck them out of their places. Instead she was touching each of them and letting her perception run through the inside. She knew she had found what she was looking for as she touched the leather roll.
'Found it! Now I need to take a good look at the inside and memorize this.....!'
Her eyebrows knitted tightly, and she let out a tiny whimper as her head started pounding hard.
'Pain!'
'Wake up. Where in the world did you go? It's almost morning. The other's will be waking up in a while. I was worried you wouldn't return in time and they would figure out something is wrong with you!'
Rihanna scrunched her face, blinking her eyes to slowly open them. The first sun was already turning the night sky lighter. Even the faint light felt harsh on her eyes, and she closed them back.
'I think I had an out of body experience.'
'No....you stupid girl found a way to bring your spiritual consciousness outside of your body.'
'???.....Spiritual Consciousness? What the hell is that?'
'It is something a cultivator figures out after they reach the Core of Ostolatia level. Somehow you were concocted the wrong way after your transmigration.....you have a semi-enhanced physique and have managed to extract your spiritual consciousness.....and yet do not know the first thing about cultivation! Seriously....what is wrong with you?!'
'Ahem.....ahh....you didn't exactly answer my question.'
'Cultivation has many levels, which are mainly related to the germination, sprouting, growing, budding and blooming of the spiritual seed. Accordingly they are divided into different stages.
The first stage is Spirit Sensing. This had 10 inner levels and is basically when a cultivator starts sensing the Spiritual-Energy of the universe and accumulating it inside their spirit seed. As the cultivator proceeds, the spirit seed will start cracking, and tiny shoots will emerge.
The Second stage is the Foundation Building stage. This had 5 inner levels. This stage is very important as the cultivators basically build their inner energy, nourishing the tiny sprout. Tiny roots will also develop at this stage. If the seed is not fully nurtured during this stage, it will not be able to sustain the energy build up in the succeeding stages, and can even cause a heavy damage to the entire sprit root and even take the life of a cultivator in future situations. More nurturing leads to a healthy and stout sapling.
The Third stage is called the Sprouting stage, and this too has 5 inner levels. Though it is called sprouting, basically the tiny sprout will start maturing, and grow into a tiny plant, and the first leaves will start sprouting. The roots too will start growing, and a tiny lake of spirit will grow from their end. This is very important for the next stage.
The Fourth stage is called the Sea of Consciousness stage, and has 3 inner levels. The tiny lake from before will now grow into a large ocean. It will also start developing its own consciousness, and the truly blessed cultivators might also be able to make it rain or create tides in their sea. The plant will also keep growing, and more leaves will sprout.
The Fifth stage is called the Core of Ostolatia. It has 5 levels, and is one of the toughest stages. Many people fail to form the Core of Ostolatia, and their cultivation forever stops at this stage. The Sea of Consciousness will now divide into two, and from one of the parts, a thin, translucent barrier will form, surrounding the spirit plant from all sides. This a protection for the spirit plant, so in later stages, even if there is any backlashes from using your powers, it will absorb a part of all backlashes. This barrier will also keep developing and strengthening through the cultivators own growth.
Ostolatia is a mythological term. It is believed by the people of this land that all the Spirit Seeds were born from the Mother Seed which resides deep at the center of the land. And it is protected by a translucent sphere made from the energy of heaven and earth, which nothing can penetrate. This sphere is called Ostolatia
It is only after reaching this stage, when the sea of consciousness divides, that a cultivator is able to extract his spiritual consciousness and send it out of the body....exactly what you managed to today! There are many more stages after this, but now I am feeling too tired to explain more.'
'Sooo.....how exactly does this knowledge about cultivation fit with me?.....I don't have a spirit seed.'
'...Go, go! Stop making trouble for me all day! It is time for you to get up anyway.....get up and go....and stop eating my head, you thankless little runt!'