Contest of the Heart Arts

Wang Xiaohu said, "Do you remember Feng Yuan?"

"I remember him."

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Qing said, "Wei Kuang's lackey?"

Wang Xiaohu said, "That's him. I saw him on the way here just now. He mysteriously showed me a little porcelain bottle with a green pill the size of a fingernail inside."

"The pill had a fresh, fragrant scent. Just one breath of it made me feel far more energized, so I asked what kind of pill it was. He told me it was a Heart Strengthening Pill."

Zhou Qing said in surprise, "The Heart Strengthening Pill Elder Jin Mang gave Wei Kuang? How did it end up in his hands?"

Wang Xiaohu said, "Wei Kuang gave it to him himself. That man is proud enough, too. He told Feng Yuan that he had started cultivating several months earlier than him. If he took pills to cheat on top of that, then even if he won, it would bring him no glory. So he would rather throw the pill to Feng Yuan than take it himself."

Wei Xu was moved. "I underestimated him before."

"I thought he was only an obnoxious fellow obsessed with forming cliques. Now it seems he has some fire in his blood after all."

Zhou Qing smiled. "After all, he grew up in the sect. It is only natural that he has some pride. If he truly followed Elder Jin Mang's advice and took the pill, only to break the proud spirit in his chest, then even if his cultivation rose swiftly in the short term, it would still be a loss that outweighed the gain in the long run."

Wei Xu smiled. "Then Brother Zhou's chances have risen by a few more points."

Zhou Qing said, "The contest of the heart arts lies only within the space of an inch. If I think I have a chance and thus become anxious over gains and losses, then I no longer have a chance."

Wei Xu and the other two were startled inwardly. They secretly pondered his words, and the more they thought about them, the more profound they seemed.

The immortal path was a process of tempering the heart and refining qi side by side.

Qi refinement left traces to follow: there were cultivation arts, realms, and ranks. Cultivators only needed to ascend step by step according to the ranks of their arts.

But tempering the heart was hazy and ethereal, difficult to grasp.

The three of them had not failed to ponder it in private before, yet they had never found the door to enter.

Now, upon hearing Zhou Qing's words about the contest of the heart arts, it was as though they had suddenly caught a glimpse of the landscape of cultivating one's nature.

This greatly invigorated them.

Zhou Qing said, "Pay no mind to others. Let us all begin cultivating."

The three said solemnly, "Yes."

They immediately sat cross-legged and began that day's cultivation.

The three came to Zhou Qing every night for "extra lessons," so their progress was naturally faster than others'. After five days had passed, they could already sense spiritual qi proficiently.

By this point, they no longer needed deliberate preparation to commune with spiritual qi. Even if stray thoughts arose in their minds, they could swiftly rein them in on their own, preventing serious consequences.

Having reached this stage, they no longer needed someone to stand guard while they sensed spiritual qi. They had reached the threshold of learning a cultivation art.

Thus, that day, they went together to find Chen Qingxuan and requested to study a cultivation art.

Chen Qingxuan had seen their progress with his own eyes, so he was naturally delighted.

Although the Azure Cloud Sect did not have fixed master-disciple pairings, it still had similar groups bound by mutual interests.

The relationship between each new batch of disciples and the instructors who answered their questions was much like that between successful imperial examination candidates and their sponsoring teachers in the mortal world.

If gifted individuals emerged among that year's disciples and achieved great accomplishments, the instructors who guided them would rise with the tide within the sect as well.

That Wei Xu and the other two had become proficient at sensing spiritual qi within ten days truly exceeded Chen Qingxuan's expectations.

Among the disciples of this batch, only five disciples born in the Azure Cloud Sect, as well as Zhou Qing, had been faster than them.

Thus, Chen Qingxuan taught them the Qi Refinement chapter of the Floating Cloud Sun-Obscuring Art, pointed out its key points, and finally instructed, "First ponder the art until you understand it, then begin cultivating."

"Remember, when cultivating, you must have a senior nearby to watch over you."

"You must not imitate Zhou Qing. His circumstances are special; others cannot learn from him."

The three deeply agreed with his final words. They hurriedly gave respectful assent, then returned to their meditation cushions and quietly pondered the cultivation art.

The other disciples watched them with envy, growing restless as they all threw themselves into communing with spiritual qi.

Wei Xu and the other two each studied the cultivation art in their hearts. They felt that its text did not contain much that was difficult to understand, yet there was one concept they could not comprehend.

When faced with a difficult problem, seek Zhou Qing.

This was a reliable path proven by fact.

The three immediately gathered around Zhou Qing and asked, "Senior Brother, the cultivation art often says that one must pay attention to the proper degree when circulating qi, achieving exactly the right measure. What kind of degree counts as exactly right?"

Zhou Qing smiled. "The proper degree cannot be precisely defined with words. It is like a cup of water: whether it is hot, cool, or just right has different answers for every person, and even for the same person at different times."

"Only through cultivating yourselves can you slowly find the proper degree. Since you already understand the text, why not ask Uncle Chen to stand guard and let you try circulating qi?"

The three felt that he made sense, so they went together to find Chen Qingxuan.

Chen Qingxuan nodded and had them sit cross-legged and circulate the cultivation art.

The three then communed with spiritual qi and drew it into their bodies.

Spiritual qi entered through the spiritual roots and naturally stored itself at the jade steps.

Following the teachings of the cultivation art, they tried to use their minds to guide the spiritual qi from the jade steps toward the platform.

But the instant their thoughts moved, the spiritual qi suddenly raced through their meridians like wild horses breaking free of the reins. Wherever it passed, their meridians ached as if they were about to snap. The three were horrified, and their minds immediately fell into disarray.

Without their minds to guide and restrain it, the spiritual qi became even more violent, nearly tearing their meridians apart.

It's over!

Just as the three panicked helplessly, a gentle force suddenly entered their bodies and soothed their unrestrained spiritual qi.

The three opened their eyes and saw Chen Qingxuan looking at them with a smile. They immediately understood that he had saved them.

Although they had long heard that circulating qi was perilous beyond measure, they had never expected that they would nearly lose their lives the moment they began.

Still shaken, the three asked, "Uncle Chen, what happened just now?"

Chen Qingxuan smiled. "Zhou Qing, wake the other junior brothers and sisters and let them listen as well."

Once Zhou Qing had called all the disciples over, Chen Qingxuan began, "Before long, all of you will be able to cultivate cultivation arts as well. It is not too early to teach you some common knowledge now."

"The most important thing in circulating qi is the proper degree. This so-called proper degree is how strong an intent you must use to guide spiritual qi. It differs from person to person and also varies at different times. You can only keep exploring it."

"For those who have just begun circulating qi, the most common mistake is making the degree too intense. You want too badly to guide the spiritual qi, and your intent becomes too strong, causing the spiritual qi to move too quickly."

"The spiritual qi that has only just entered your bodies does not yet belong to us. If your intent is too forceful and it moves too fast, you can easily lose control of it. Then the spiritual qi will charge wildly through your body, damaging your meridians and even destroying your apertures. Once it reaches that stage, there is no medicine that can save you."

Only then did the three understand that their condition just now had been caused by an excessively intense degree.

Chen Qingxuan said, "Try circulating the cultivation art again."