After the last round of practice, I slipped into the state with familiar ease this time.
But this time felt a little different from before.
The Spiritual Energy gathered noticeably faster than it had last time.
So I tried sending the Spiritual Energy gathered around me into my dantian.
But I kept failing. Either I was too fast, causing the Spiritual Energy to rampage through my body.
Or I was too slow, and the Spiritual Energy could not connect. Even when I painstakingly gathered a clump of it,
the moment I sent it toward my dantian, it dispersed halfway there.
Gradually, I found the trick to gathering Spiritual Energy.
It could not be too fast, nor could it be too slow. It had to proceed step by step.
Like a little river that would never run dry, the current had to flow slowly onward.
Unceasingly, until small amounts accumulated into much and washed away the dam.
After finding the source of the problem, I threw all my focus into controlling the speed of the Spiritual Energy.
I had no idea how long it went on like that...
Finally, as an unending stream of Spiritual Energy poured in, I felt my dantian beginning to swell.
I slowly adjusted my position and guided the Spiritual Energy toward my lower spine.
I steadied myself, then abruptly released my control over the Spiritual Energy.
It felt as though a giant firecracker had been stuffed into my lower vertebrae, before exploding.
Then I felt the layer of resistance in my lumbar spine suddenly vanish, and Spiritual Energy could reach it directly.
Honestly, it felt awful, as though my waist were about to explode.
Succeeding on the first attempt greatly boosted my confidence, and I immediately prepared to break through the next acupoint.
Just as before, there was no real difference, and naturally, I succeeded again.
This continued until I reached the final acupoint—the meridians in my chest cavity.
Every time I sent Spiritual Energy in, my chest felt burning hot.
It came with a suffocating, breathless sensation, and every attempt failed.
I tried every method I could think of, whether adjusting the speed of the Spiritual Energy or its force.
Just when I was racking my brains without finding an answer, I suddenly thought of a somewhat absurd method.
Gather the Spiritual Energy inside the meridians I had already opened.
Since I could not open it in one go, then within those already-opened meridians,
I would compress a clump of Spiritual Energy at every point, then launch one attack after another at the final unopened meridian.
No sooner said than done. I had no other options anyway, and a long time passed like that.
With great difficulty, I gathered and compressed all the Spiritual Energy within my meridians.
I took a slight breath, thinking that I would stake everything on this attempt.
If this still failed, I would decisively end my cultivation and ask Martial Uncle what exactly was wrong.
Then I released the Spiritual Energy controlled within every meridian. First from the dantian to the lumbar spine, then to the spine, and then to the cervical vertebrae.
Amid a chain of booming sounds, I suddenly felt my chest loosen.
It felt as though the clouds had parted and the moon shone through. Everything was clear and unobstructed, without the slightest resistance left.
After adapting to my body for a moment, I felt the Spiritual Energy absorbed from outside travel through my dantian first.
Then it went from my waist to my spine, followed my torso into my chest, and finally returned from my chest to my dantian.
It circulated over and over like a river that would never run dry—stretching far and flowing long, endlessly alive.
I emerged from my cultivation state, and when I opened my eyes, a flash of golden light passed through them.
Feeling the Spiritual Energy continuously circulating within my body again, the sensation was simply wondrous.
I looked at Martial Uncle and asked, "Did I succeed?"
"Yes, you succeeded."
I clenched my fists and felt a strength unlike anything I had ever possessed.
Martial Uncle looked at a stone beside us and said, "Guide the Spiritual Energy into your fist, then punch that stone beside you and see the result."
I glanced over. It was a smooth cobblestone.
It looked as large as a millstone, not small at all. Wouldn't my hand break if I punched that?
But the unprecedented strength inside my body made me itch to try.
Gritting my teeth, I guided the Spiritual Energy into my right hand and clenched it into a fist.
I smashed my fist down onto the cobblestone. The pain of a broken bone I had expected never came.
Instead, where my fist had struck, there was a crater as large as my fist.
There were also several cracks around it, but the entire stone had not split apart or shattered.
Even so, I found it unbelievable and raised my head to look at Martial Uncle.
There was approval in Martial Uncle's eyes, but I could vaguely see a trace of worry deep within them as well.
Then Martial Uncle said solemnly, "From today onward, you have officially stepped onto the path of cultivation. At the same time, you have entered Underworld Practices, a place where people devour people.
"From now on, cultivate diligently. No matter where you go or what you do, you must look three steps ahead with every step you take.
"That final sentence may be short, but most people cannot achieve it in their entire lives.
"There are many reasons for this. I want you to cultivate well so that when you go out in the future, you will not disgrace your grandfather.
"Nor disgrace Maoshan. Uh... though you are not actually from Maoshan.
"But the cultivation method you practice is Maoshan's. In a sense,
you can be considered part of Maoshan as well, so you must not dishonor this method.
"I want you to look three steps ahead with every step because I want you to live a little longer in Underworld Practices. Remember it well and remain vigilant at all times.
"Do not have your campaign fail before victory and die first yourself. That would make a grand joke of you."
I smiled and replied, "I won't, Martial Uncle. Please rest assured.
From now on, I will cultivate diligently, and when trouble arises, I will look three steps ahead with every step I take."
Martial Uncle stroked his beard and nodded at me.
"By the way, Martial Uncle, you said I do not fully count as one of Maoshan's people. Then do I count as your disciple? Or rather, your apprentice?"
Martial Uncle's body jerked. Perhaps the movement was too large, because he tore out several strands of beard in his hand.
He grimaced in pain, then said, "No, no, no... I am not your master. I only taught you cultivation because I was entrusted by an old friend.
"Oh, right. If you get into trouble when you go out in the future, you cannot say that I taught you cultivation. I like peace and quiet, and I fear trouble."
"Then if someone asks me how I cultivated, what should I say?"
Without even thinking, Martial Uncle blurted out, "Say you taught yourself and became a talent. Say you are a cultivation genius, one in ten thousand."
I said, "Uh... all right."
"Enough. Go make something to eat, then rest well after you finish. I will teach you something else tomorrow."
Hearing that, I asked Martial Uncle in confusion, "Something else? What something else?"
Martial Uncle suddenly put on a stern expression and said, "Do you know what Maoshan's renowned signature art is?"
I said I did not know.
With an arrogant look on his face, Martial Uncle said, "Talismans."
I asked Martial Uncle, "Are they the things pasted onto all those jars and bottles in your courtyard?"
Martial Uncle nodded. "Yes. That is enough for today! I am a little tired. I will teach you tomorrow morning."
The next morning, I got up early. Martial Uncle had me make a larger wooden table.
I found several wooden planks, joined them together, then hammered nails into them to secure them. A simple wooden table was finished.
Then Martial Uncle brought a cloth bundle out from his room and took several writing brushes from it.
There were also several small jars and bottles containing powders of various colors.
Then he took out a stack of yellow paper from the bottom of the bundle and introduced them one by one.
"This red powder is cinnabar. Add a little water to dissolve it before using it.
"These are writing brushes and yellow paper. Use cultivation power—that is, Spiritual Energy—together with cinnabar.
"Maoshan talismans are all made using this method."