After my meal, I hear vicious knocks on the door
It's my mother, and she has came for me to beat me at home
I remember she always did do that after my father lashes out on her
"Heng Heto, are you paying attention"
I wake up stretching my sore muscles
Yes
I reply to the clan leader, Zhaoming Ban, he's a tall man standing about 63 cun and muscles that are very clear that even the blind could see and his weapon of a choice is a dadao that spans more than half his body length. Despite his brute like appearance, his voice is filled with wisdom and calmness like that of a river.
The dadao's blade is a beautiful jade green, and the blade's reflection is so clear that you can see mountains 10 villages away.
No wonder his name means the "Lighting Boar"
"Heng Heto, pay attention closely. Qu is a fundamental element in all living things; it's in plants, the animals, and every being with a will to live."
I see as his finger guide my eyes outside
"You see everything around us, everything that embraces the sun's warmth, they all have Qu"
So could even the rocks have Qu
"Yes, yes they could if they have a will to live despite not being alive"
"Qu allows you to do anything you can imagine if you cultivate it enough"
Well, how do I cultivate it
"There's several ways; you can cultivate by it meditating and channeling your inner Qu, making pacts with spirits, or even by absorbing them, and you can boost the cultivation speeds by going in areas dense with the essence of Qu"
"When you first try to cultivate your Qu by meditation, you will feel a sharp pain in your chest not physically though but in your soul. It's a pain that you have never felt before. Most get severely injured when they first try to cultivate"
"Some turn into abominations, mutating their human body and soul to those of a monster"
"However, if you succeed you will feel it changing your whole body, pleasure pulsating through your entire core that you wouldn't be able to imagine"
Hmmm, what is this core you're talking about
"Good question, your core is divided into 3 parts. Your top portion of your core is like a raging buffalo it houses the most powerful part of your Qu however it is the most difficult to harness. Your middle portion is like a loyal solider who has stuck with you for decades, it's Qu is very strong and it is always willing to let you harness it. Your lower portion is like moss, it spearheads your Qu cultivation, it is seemingly very weak but without it you cannot build your upper regions, it is so vast it is seemingly infinite"
Quit your blabbering old man, and teach me how to manifest it
His calm face doesn't falter
"When you first try to manifest it, feel it go through your core and into your bloodstreams, bringing your body temperature up however as you advance you do it all subconsciously"
I was eager to try it out
Here I go
I attempt to harness the Qu, but I feel my body morphing, becoming more disfigured
I feel like poison is directly inserted into my heart. It's like I have no mouth, and I must scream.
The pain is so agonizing it's like a thousand arrows are piercing my chest
The old man recognizes my changes and stops me before I go in too deep
"Stop it child, you're not ready"
My thoughts are clouded, I feel as if my core is screaming at me to stop
I take the brutal beating from my mother
I do not feel anything, I have suffered much worse
I've been thrown into smoldering hot lava before
Pain is nothing but a hinderance when in pursuit of Eternal Life