Li Kang had hidden the entrance to the cave well and set up a nice camp inside the spirit pool foyer using the Suhn Clan scoundrels' equipment. He sat on a smooth rock shelf and began whittling a two pronged wooden fishing spear as he considered his next move.
He still had a bit of the food that he'd stolen from the larder back in the Li Clan Village, and he would now have no issues with getting water since the healing pool was potable. He had explored deeper in the cave and found multiple pools of varying temperatures. With his new cultivation level he found that he could see ki energy signatures radiating off of everything. "Most cultivators don't obtain ki sight until meridian crystallization, heh," he chuckled.
Several of the pools gave off the same signature as the healing spring that had stabilized his stolen ki energy, but others gave off intriguing and mysterious energies. He set aside his sheath knife and the finished fishing spear and pulled out Elder Guansho's book. He flipped to the index in the back and searched, finding the term 'chakra enhancing hot spring.' He turned to page 235 and read the entry there.
Chakra Enhancing Hot Springs, known as healing pools, are rare natural treasures rarely found on the Jangchi continent. Their pools can heal strong martial cultivators from grievous injuries quite rapidly. They can also aid the processing of ki energy, known as cycling, and possess many other hidden benefits. Be warned, however! Many ignorant cultivators believe that entering a healing pool while at a low stage of cultivation will cause the cultivator to gain a perfectly built foundation as the pool 'repairs' what is not already there. This is NOT TRUE. Any cultivator entering one of these springs at below a bone tempering level 3 will have their ki channels burned out and destroyed as they lack the ki structure to properly process the ki energy these pools possess. Do not attempt this under any circumstances.
"Well, fuck," Li Kang muttered. He continued reading.
However, in rare cases where an untrained cultivator possesses a great amount of ki energy, it is true that the pools provide an unparalleled lens to enhance and focus the ki cultivation at an early stage.
"It looks like I got lucky once again," he thought. He started skimming the entry, skipping ahead to where it discussed the different uses for the pools.
…The healing pools can be divided into four categories, one for each of the Four Winds. The North pools are the healing pools for which the chakra springs get their name. Most of the pools fall into this category. These have a clear appearance and a clean smell. The South pools are the reverse and produce a deadly poison much coveted among assassins. Some extremely powerful cultivators use these pools as a test of toughness to enhance their strength. It is said to be extraordinarily painful to enter one of these, even at a high stage of cultivation. You can identify these pools by their black coloration and noxious smell. The West aligned pools are known for drawing powerful martial spirits. Spirit hunters will pay fortunes on the black market for just a few vials of this water. Be wary if you encounter one of these pools as there could be powerful martial spirits beyond your ability to defeat nearby. These pools are identifiable by their green waters and citrus-like smell. Finally, Eastern Wind aligned pools repel martial spirits. You will never find these alongside Western aligned pools as they are diametrically opposed. However, you can find North and South alongside either of these. Eastern spring water can be a powerful tool to repel any martial spirit that is attacking you, or to weaken a martial spirit that you wish to bind. Waters from these pools are also highly valuable but illegal to possess in most regions.
Li Kang's interest was piqued by the Western and Eastern pools. It looked like he wouldn't be able to get water from both, but it was possible that one of these pool types was here in the cave system. He was especially interested in the Eastern spring water. If he could get his hands on some he would be able to bond a martial spirit magnitudes of power higher than he would be able to otherwise while it was in a weakened state. It wouldn't be bad to have some of the the Western spring water to attract a powerful martial spirit to him either. He wondered if it was possible to attune the water to attract martial spirits with a certain elemental affinity.
Unfortunately, that was all the entry said on the matter. He put the book away and picked up the spear. While the Northern pool had helped him refine the ki energy from the dagger of avarice, it sounded like he wouldn't be able to go back into the pool to reap its further benefits until his ki level surpassed the bone tempering 3 stage. Fortunately, although he was only at the bone tempering 1 stage, he estimated his ki levels to be almost as high a bone tempering stage 3 cultivator. He would just have to get a bit more power. He grabbed the fishing spear. Time to test his theory.
Making his way down to the pools by the entrance to the cave, he eyed up the huge carp swimming inside. They were so beautiful he almost hated to do this. Hefting the spear, he thrust it powerfully into the side of the nearest carp. It thrashed but his two pronged design withstood the writhing and he yanked the fish out of the water. Taking the dagger of avarice in his hand, he stabbed the carp in the flank.
It was just as he thought: the fish had absorbed the ki energy from the pools as they grew and it imbued them with power. Their prodigious size had given him a clue but now it was confirmed. Blessed ki energy flowed into his ki channels and pooled in his meridians. It wasn't nearly as much as when he had killed the men earlier, but to Li Kang who had been powerless all his life it was like water to a man dying of thirst. He immediately sat down in a cycling pose and began to refine the ki energy from the fish. I won't stop until every last fish is drained dry, he thought. Li Kang was climbing the Ladder of Destiny.