The next day, Master Gao takes Qiao Mingxi out for experience into the Balzamia Forest. Many of her training over the past two years took place in these woods and she was now quite familiar with it. As they venture deeper, the air becomes thick with the scent of earth and pine. They eventually reach a wide river. Though fairly shallow, the water is inhabited by countless palm-sized razor-toothed aquatic beasts known as Piricarps. They are low level demonic beasts which are harmless except that they can move at an abnormal speed and their bite can cause a deep injury. As if sensing the intruders, several fly a few meters above the water, their teeth snapping as they stare at Mingxi and her master, as if wanting to devour them.
Master Gao gestures to a series of jagged, slippery rocks stretching across the river. "Your test begins here," he says, his voice steady and authoritative. "You must cross using only the stones, without falling in."
Mingxi nods, her eyes widening with a mixture of trepidation and determination. Falling into the water will mean sure death for her, so mistakes cannot be allowed.
"Since this is the first test, I'll give you a hint." Master Gao went on. "Absolute focus is the key here."
"Understood." Mingxi said firmly.
He then picks a sturdy fallen branch and hands it to her. "Use this to ward off the Piricarps who attack you. As long as you channel your qi into the branch, you can get rid of them."
Mingxi takes a few seconds to compose herself, bringing her mind into absolute focus. Then, with a deep breath, she jumps onto the first rock. The task proves more challenging than she expected. She needs to channel her inner qi to cover the large distance between the rocks while at the same time concentrating on maintaining her balance and simultaneously avoiding the occasionally surfacing Piricarps. Not to mention some of the rocks are so sharp that she has to balance onto them by only the tips of her toes.
Right when she jumps onto a particularly small and slippery rock, a Piricarp surfaces in front of her, its mouth wide open to reveal its sharp teeth. Gritting her teeth, Mingxi swings the branch at it, causing it to fall back into the river. But then several more emerge from below, all heading towards Mingxi. Gathering her qi, she jumps at a height of several meters, then smoothly lands on another rock. However, this earlier move exhausted most of her qi, and she is now out of breath. Now she will need to cross the remaining half distance without relying on her spiritual energy. As if to mock her for her mistake of miscalculation, immediately after, two more Piricaps launch themselves at her. She manages to evade one while hitting the other but then a third one takes her by surprise from behind. She releases a surprised cry when its sharp teeth sink into her arm's flesh, the pain causing her to lose her balance. Her eyes widen when she sees the water surface rushing up to her. She is about to fall! But then she immediately calms her mind and gathers her focus again. After sensing the possible route, she kicks the rock close to her feet and does a somersault through the air, then lands in a crouching position on another rock. Thankfully her two years of physical training made her body very flexible. There was no time to rest, though. In this middle part of the river, the carps are even more relentless, coming at her from all directions. Mingxi now has a better grasp of it all. Bringing her focus on a much deeper level, she is able to sense all the movements around her and can determine the best route to reach her goal. She grins as she stares at the bank on the other side, then attacks the Piricarps at a speed which matches those abnormally fast creatures, while at the same time leaping towards the next rock.
After successfully crossing the river, she kneels onto grass bordering it while trying to catch her breath. Hearing master Gao's steady footsteps, she lifts her head to stare at him.
Gao Yun gives her a small approving nod. "Congratulations on passing the first test. As expected of my good disciple, you caught on to the method pretty quickly."
"Many thanks, master." Mingxi says demurely.
"However, this is only the beginning. The other ones will be much more difficult. So you better be prepared."
"Sure." She replies enthusiastically.
He then crouches down and pours a high-grade elixir onto her profusely bleeding arm, following which her wound rapidly closes up. "Let's head back for today and carry on with your other lessons. Since you've already mastered the basics, I'll now start teaching you the more advanced pill refinement techniques."
Hearing this, Mingxi's eyes brightened with eagerness. For the past five years, Gao Yun has been imparting all his knowledge of the arts to her. Under his guidance, she has been steadily developing proficiency in pill, elixir and potion refinement as well as medicine, arrays, crafting and several other skills. All these arts are so interesting and she has a desire to master every one of them.
Mingxi's training carries on just like this… having to face increasingly challenging situations where her mental strength is put to test. Combined with her meridian cleansing, then the study and practice of the various arts, her schedule is incredibly tight, to the point that she hardly has any time left for cultivation. As a last resort, she chooses to forego her sleep and cultivate instead. Cultivation itself is an act of calming the mind to allow the flow of spiritual energy into the dantian. It is said to be very relaxing on the body and can replace several hours of sleep. As she continuously overworks her mind like this, after some time, she notices that her mental power has considerably increased. She always had a photographic memory but now she can memorize books much more rapidly. Even her practice of arts is now significantly faster and more effective. After spending six months like this, Master Gao finally announces that she has passed the test.
"I will now teach you the method to cure your dantian completely." Gao Yun says solemnly.
Both teacher and student are currently seated facing each other on a mat, inside their hut's practice room.
Qiao Mingxi's eyes widened. "You mean, I can heal it myself?"
Gao Yun nods once. "With the technique I will teach you, it will be more effective if you carry it out yourself." He stares off into space as he goes on. "It is an ancient secret art which I acquired after lots of effort. It's way more effective than acupuncture. So be aware that what I am about to teach you is very momentous. You will be the only one to possess this art."
Mingxi stares at her master in awe. The acupuncture technique Master Gao previously taught her is already very rare and incredibly effective. But now he's saying he knows an even better one? Just how much of a heaven-defying existence is Master Gao?
Gao Yun's gaze then darkened. "But be warned, if not used the proper way, this technique can utterly destroy the patient and even cause death. For this reason, this technique has been banned several millennia ago. However, as long as one possesses a very strong mental power it is possible to practice it flawlessly. That is the reason I made you go through all those tests and training." He stares at Mingxi probingly. "Now, after hearing all this, do you feel confident to be able to properly practice this art?"
Mingxi immediately bowed reverently. "Yes, master. I promise I'll make good use of this treasure you'll bestow me."
"Good. The technique is known as Core Manipulation. It entails channeling your qi and mental power into a person's body or your own to manipulate it. With this, you can obtain results much faster."
Mingxi tilts her head ponderingly. "You mean like how I cleanse my meridians?"
"No, this one goes on a much deeper level. Instead of merely cleansing your body, you will now be modifying its DNA and molecules."
Mingxi's eyes brighten in understanding. No wonder Master Gao emphasized the importance of mental power. A person has millions of DNA and molecules. Manipulating them will require a considerably enhanced focus.
After a few beats, Gao Yun carries on. "It was this same technique which allowed me to heal you when I first found you five years ago. I tried healing your dantian in this way, but the process is too lengthy. And from what I observed, your mental power is much sharper than mine. It will be better for you to learn it and heal yourself."
His words made Mingxi feel quite awkward. "I don't feel any more capable than Master, but I'll try my best."
"Have confidence in yourself." He says sternly. "It is also one of the keys to success."
"Yes, master." She obediently replies.
"Before we proceed, I'll give you one last warning. This technique is very taxing on the practitioner so you should only use it in the most urgent situations. Even when you practice it everyday, you need to stop before your mental energy depletes too much. Overusing your mental power can make you lose your mind."
Mingxi's eyes still project her firm determination as she voices her approval. No matter the dangers, she is willing to face them all.