The next day Michael awoke and was called into the living room by Grandpa Yin. On the table was a luxurious breakfast that was over the top. The living room table was packed with rice, freshly cooked chicken, river trout, steamed vegetables and even fried eggs.
Jason and Michael stared at the food in disbelief, they quickly looked at each other to confirm they weren't seeing things. As if the two were telepathically connected, they relayed their thoughts through their eyes.
'Shit, that old man must be feeling guilty' (Michael)
'Is the food poisoned?' (Jason)
'This must be his way of apologising, let's dig in' (Michael)
Despite the happenings of last night, Michael could tell that Grandpa Yin although harsh and quick to punish; had no ill intentions. He wasn't too sure of his motives for helping him and his brother, but he would save that conversation for another day.
Michael smiled softly at Jason before making his way to the table and stuffing his face with the tender chicken, the juices running down his bare chin. After seeing Michael enthusiastically downing the food, he quickly made up his mind and sat opposite before digging in.
Grandpa Yin watched on as the two dined on his apologetic breakfast. After raising his own children and their children who were born with a golden spoon in their mouths, he had developed a habit of being a disciplinarian. Seeing the fear and trauma within Jason's eyes last night gave him a wake-up call, these were not the same spoiled brats who had everything handed to them and faced no adversity.
'Aiii I'm getting soft in my old age' he sighed with a slight smile on his face.
"Okay young men, when you're done its back to cultivating' the smile now absent from his face, he clapped once to get the boys' attention.
"Yessir" Jason and Michael answered in unison, their mouths still stuffed with food.
Once the two had demolished all the food, they sat in front of Grandpa Yin with rapt attention.
"Ahem. It's time to cultivate again, like yesterday we will continue with the same set-up" he tossed another white-jade coloured pill at Michael, the same one as yesterday.
"This is the last one I'm giving you, should you destroy your meridians again I'll cripple you myself"
Gulp
Michael involuntarily gulped at the stern face and harsh words the old man threw his way, he felt a cold sweat seep down his back.
Grandpa Yin then turned to Jason who was looking terrified "Let's pick up where we left off" he said with an innocent smile.
It was now Jason's turn to gulp.
----
Michael sat down on his bed and quickly took the medicine Grandpa Yin had given him before guiding the medicine toward his left arms meridians. Like yesterday, the effects took 2 hours before everything was like-new.
"Archie" he called gently.
His 10-year-old self materialised in front of his eyes a moment after he said this name.
"Yes Master" the crooning young voice made its way into his ears.
"How can I refine my meridians without destroying them" he asked earnestly.
"Follow me" Archie quickly disappeared and materialised inside his body.
Michael shuddered involuntarily at the unannounced intrusion. He quickly activated his minds-eye and appeared next to Archie.
"First off, regular cultivation should not cause your meridians to be destroyed. The primary problem is that your body absorbs Qi too fast, and your current state cannot handle the volume and density of that Qi.
Another problem is that whenever the Qi passes the intersection of your heart it increases in speed dramatically"
Michael thought back to last night and it was indeed as he described.
"Is that normal" he asked
"Hell no, it's f***ing bizarre"
"Well what am I meant to do then? I can't reach the 1st level if I can't even cycle Qi" he complained bitterly.
"Baby steps Master. You need to absorb small amounts of Qi and confine them to one set of meridians at a time, ensuring that the Qi does not pass the intersection of your heart"
"But if I can't let it pass my heart, then how the hell am I meant to get the Qi to my Dantian?"
Archie shook his head in exasperation "We're refining your meridians individually, don't even think about activating your Dantian until your meridians are all refined at least once."
"But where does the Qi go after I refine my meridians? I can't just shit it out" he said blankly.
"I can absorb it with the Pendant" Archie had a triumphant smile on his face after his statement.
Michael narrowed his eyes at the relic spirit and said suspiciously "I thought you said you only take Qi from the earth, are you sure you didn't steal my Qi?"
Realising he had garnered more suspicion from his master, he quickly put his hands up to profess his innocence.
"M…Master, I can't take any Qi that you've refined into your Dantian unless you willingly give it, I swear!! The Qi that is in your body and hasn't been refined by your Dantian is still considered Earthly Qi"
'I guess that makes sense' he thought, once again rubbing his bare chin.
"Okay, let's try it"
Archie sighed in relief after he was given the all-clear. Despite what Michael may think, he was really telling the truth. The master-servant contract they had forged through his blood stipulated that any Qi taken from the master must be consensual, and Qi that had yet to be refined was not considered his masters Qi.
"Alright, begin to absorb the Qi from your surroundings"
Michael did as he was told, after barely a few minutes he had begun to funnel in Qi through his pores.
"Okay stop!" Archie announced.
He quickly shut-off his pores and appeared beside Archie again.
"Now guide the Qi to your leg, we'll begin the refining process."
Once the Qi had been relocated, Archie began to talk through the process he had in mind. Much like his other attempts, he needed to circulate the Qi by contracting and expanding his meridians. Instead of sending the Qi to his heart to complete a cycle, he would keep it isolated to just his leg.
After completing 5 cycles from his pelvis all the way down to his toes he began to notice a change within his meridians. Previously, the dense Qi would just speed through his meridians, damaging them in the process. However now that it was under control and lacked significant density, he could see the meridians beginning to absorb the Qi after every cycle.
"Aha!" Michael rejoiced at the revelation of this new way of refining.
Archie shook his head dejectedly 'This is how you're normally meant to refine your meridians'.
Normally a cultivator would refine their meridians after reaching the 1st level of Qi condensation, so they could limit and control the Qi within their bodies at will, with any excess being transported safely back to the Dantian. Unfortunately, Michael didn't have that luxury.
After 2 hours, Michael managed to complete 50 cycles with this Qi until his meridians began to swell and throb. Suddenly he felt uncomfortable, like he had just woken up with a dead leg, assaulted by pins and needles.
Archie waved his hand quickly and the Qi disappeared, leaving his red throbbing meridians alone.
Michael let out a sigh of relief, as the pressure was instantly alleviated from his leg.
"Phew, thanks Archie" he said gratefully, filled with a newfound confidence.
"My pleasure Master, it is in both of our interests if you get stronger" he said with a bow.
Michael then withdrew his minds-eye and was transported back to the bedroom. Apart from a little throbbing in his leg, he felt great. He looked out the window and saw that the sun was at its peak.
"Guess its time for lunch, I'll go check on Jason"
Jumping off the bed, he made his way to the lounge area where Jason was cultivating. The first thing that came into view was Jason laying on his back, sweat pouring down his body as he heaved in deep breaths.