Cultivation

Cultivation

"The Book of Changes says, 'The Changes contain the Taiji. Taiji gives birth to the Two Forms, the Two Forms give birth to the Four Symbols, and the Four Symbols give birth to the Eight Trigrams!'"

Taiji referred to the primordial qi before Heaven and Earth had separated, when the original qi was mixed into one. That was Taichu, and Taiyi as well. The way of Heaven and Earth used Yin Yang Qi to create and transform all things.

Taiji was Yin and Yang. It explained the paths followed by all things under Heaven, yet its breadth and depth made it obscure and difficult to understand. In Chen Yun's previous life, there had also been the concept of Taiji. It was the essence passed down from ancient times, and people had even applied Taiji to real life, such as diagnosing illnesses in traditional Chinese medicine and inventing the C language.

It could be said that the term Taiji contained far too much. Even after countless generations of ancestors in the Chinese civilization had exhausted themselves exploring its vastness, they had grasped only two parts of it.

Chen Yun stared at the diagram in uncertainty. Although its strokes were intricate and confusing enough to make one dizzy at first glance, its overall outline was clearly a Taiji Diagram to Chen Yun!

This discovery left Chen Yun both excited and puzzled. Could someone on this other continent also understand Taiji?

In his previous life, Chen Yun himself had been especially interested in ancient writings on the subject. He usually enjoyed reading books about it, so he deeply understood the vastness of Taiji.

This diagram clearly contained the essence of Taiji. Taiji was known to encompass the profound principles of Heaven and Earth. From the looks of it, this Body Refining Art was far from ordinary, and its value was impossible to estimate!

"This book was created after I comprehended the stars of the universe and the momentum of Heaven and Earth. It contains all the vast and profound principles of Heaven and Earth, and is the work I was most proud of in my life!" The stars of the universe and all things under Heaven were nothing but transformations of Yin and Yang.

Since the creator of this book had said so, he had certainly been an unparalleled expert with an extremely deep understanding of Taiji.

Tsk, tsk, he had really struck gold this time! Uh, no, it should be that Grandfather had struck gold. Hehe! Chen Yun could not help thinking this.

Seeing Chen Yun's expression, Old Ent asked in puzzlement, "What's wrong? Have you discovered something?"

Even Old Ent found the idea absurd. What could a child of nearly seven years old understand? Even after studying it for so many years, he himself had not seen anything special. He could only circulate his Internal Qi according to the routes shown above.

When Chen Yun heard Old Ent's question, he immediately came back to himself. Pretending to look thoroughly frustrated, he said, "Grandfather, this is way too difficult! Just looking at this diagram makes me dizzy. Can this really be cultivated?"

That was all Chen Yun could say. Otherwise, how was he supposed to explain it? Should he tell Old Ent that he had discovered the Taiji philosophy contained in this secret manual? Then Old Ent would ask what Taiji was, and Chen Yun would have to explain a whole string of things. In the end, Old Ent would look at him as if he were a monster and ask how he knew all that. Was Chen Yun supposed to say that his soul had transmigrated here and that all this knowledge came from his previous life?

Obviously, that was impossible! Although Old Ent was his grandfather, this matter was far too bizarre. Chen Yun had no intention of telling him. It could only become his secret, hidden in his heart and never revealed to anyone.

Besides, he faintly felt that his transmigration had not been so simple.

"Mm. Actually, you only need to memorize this diagram thoroughly and circulate your Internal Qi along the routes shown on it. That's how I've always cultivated as well. But I feel that this secret manual isn't so simple. Such a divine technique shouldn't be this simple! Besides, I can't understand some of the terms written inside, like Taiji and such. Study it carefully yourself!" Old Ent said.

"Mm, all right!" Chen Yun's heart shook violently. Just as he had expected.

After giving Chen Yun a few reminders, Old Ent left.

Chen Yun sat cross-legged beside the pool and slowly flipped through the book.

"The Changes contain Taiji. Taiji gives birth to the Two Forms, the Two Forms give birth to the Four Symbols, and the Four Symbols give birth to the Eight Trigrams."

"Taiji refers to the primordial qi before Heaven and Earth separated, when the original qi was mixed into one. That was Taichu, Taiyi as well..."

"To cultivate this technique, one must deeply understand the meaning of Taiji. In the land of Taiji Yin and Yang, assume the posture of embracing the circle and guarding the One, then circulate according to the method of Taiji. This is the correct path!"

When Chen Yun first began reading, he was still bewildered. But after pondering it carefully and relying on his own understanding of Taiji, he finally parted the layers of fog.

The preface explained Taiji in just two brief sentences. The rest described the cultivation method, though that explanation was also simple. The highest realm of the entire technique was to complete eighty-one cycles. Being able to complete nine cycles meant entering the first level.

Completing eighteen cycles in succession meant entering the second level. Following that pattern, once one could finish all eighty-one cycles, one would enter the ninth level.

Each realm also corresponded to a different set of hand seals. Unfortunately, this book contained cultivation methods only up to the fifth realm.

In the days that followed, Chen Yun stayed alone beside the pool to study this Body Refining Art. First, he had to memorize the diagram of the Internal Qi circulation routes until he knew it by heart. But doing so was truly no easy task. With all its twists and turns, it was practically a maze. It took Chen Yun a full half-month to memorize it in theory.

Why add the words "in theory"? Because merely memorizing it with his mind was far from enough. Practice was indispensable. Every movement had to become habitual and flow as naturally as the movement of Heaven itself—but how easy was that?

As the saying went, it was easy to watch but hard to do. That was exactly the principle at work here.

Indeed, a month had already passed, yet Chen Yun still could not complete even the first cycle of the first realm. One had to admit that this book was utterly perverse. He had to form the hand seals while circulating the Internal Qi inside his body, and his mind had to be focused entirely on the movement of that Internal Qi.

The human body was extremely fragile. If something went wrong while circulating Internal Qi, even the slightest mistake could result in serious injury, and might even leave behind lasting aftereffects.

Therefore, one had to concentrate completely when circulating Internal Qi, without the slightest distraction.

Of course, there was one exception: if one's soul power was strong enough, one could focus on several things at once. But ordinary people possessed only so much soul power. Moreover, the soul was the most mysterious part of all. To this day, the continent had no knowledge concerning the soul, much less any method of cultivating it to strengthen the soul.

In that case, the hand seals had to be formed entirely by bodily instinct during cultivation. In other words, one had to practice the seals until they became an instinct of the body. Only then could one devote all one's energy perfectly to circulating the Internal Qi within the body. The difficulty was self-evident.

"Ah! I really don't know how Grandfather managed to master this. He even mastered such a perverse cultivation method!" Chen Yun stopped cultivating helplessly that day and shook his head with a sigh.

"Hehe, Little Chen, what's wrong? Run into some trouble?" Old Ent's voice came from behind him, carrying a teasing note.

During this period, Old Ent had been secretly observing Chen Yun's cultivation, but he had not given him any guidance. In truth, there was no need for guidance at all. This sort of thing depended on oneself, and Old Ent could not help much. Besides, he himself only had a vague understanding of the book and could merely cultivate according to its instructions perfectly.

Moreover, Old Ent had always felt that something was wrong with his own cultivation, as though something were missing.

"Grandfather, this cultivation technique is too perverse! I have to form hand seals and circulate Internal Qi at the same time, while concentrating all my mental strength on the Internal Qi's circulation. Is this even something a person can cultivate? More than a month has passed, and I still haven't made the slightest progress!" Chen Yun said with a helpless expression.

Old Ent smiled faintly after hearing this and shook his head. Then his expression changed, and he said seriously to Chen Yun, "Little Chen, hardships are indispensable on the path of cultivation, but perseverance is even more indispensable. You must not give up lightly! Otherwise, you won't go very far!"

"Cultivating this technique is indeed extremely perverse. Back then, it took me a full year just to set foot on the path to the first realm. You've only been cultivating for a little over a month, so it's perfectly normal that you haven't made any progress. But once you master it, the benefits will be unimaginable. You'll feel them for yourself in the future!"

After hearing Old Ent's words, Chen Yun immediately swept away the dejection in his heart. "I understand, Grandfather! I definitely won't give up!"

Old Ent nodded. Then, after thinking for a moment, he said, "Little Chen, there's one more important matter I need to tell you. I've thought about it for a long time. You can now begin trying meditation. It's an indispensable lesson in every warrior's cultivation!"

"Meditation?" Chen Yun froze. Why did that word sound so familiar?