Tummo Meditation

Doje stood before him with his arms folded, his expression solemn, looking rather formal.

Qu Zan teased, "Have you started growing a beard?"

"Have I?" Doje touched the corners of his mouth and felt a fine ring of down. "Junior brother, don't interrupt. I'm about to teach you something real."

"Practicing the Yoga Method is a way of tempering the body. Through breathing and postures, you awaken the energy hidden within you and strengthen yourself by strengthening the three channels and seven chakras. The Tummo Meditation I'm teaching you is one of the six methods of accomplishment, a practice passed down in our monastery."

"...Do you know what channels and chakras are?" Doje asked, raising his chin.

"The channels are the three main channels: left, central, and right. From bottom to top, the seven chakras are the root chakra, sacral chakra, navel chakra, heart chakra, throat chakra, brow chakra, and crown chakra... The original meaning of the word chakra is 'spinning wheel,' referring to the vortices of life within the body."

Qu Zan spoke according to certain texts he remembered.

Doje kept his eyes closed throughout, the corners of his mouth curling upward, wearing the expression of someone listening attentively to a court report. His hand kept stroking the air beneath his chin.

"Senior brother, could you stop putting on that old elder's expression? It's really asking for a beating. And why are you stroking your beard while you talk?"

Doje had already become completely immersed in playing the teacher.

"I'm imitating how my instructor spoke to me... The Highest Yoga Completion Stage Secret Method has many forms of practice: Vase Breathing, Vajra Recitation, Tummo Meditation, the Six Dharmas of Naropa... All these secret methods are meant to train the channels and chakras! The method I'm passing on to you is called Tummo Meditation."

"Once you gain an initial grasp of Tummo Meditation, your whole body gradually warms up, producing a spiritual heat within. Your muscles and bones grow stronger, and your strength increases!" Doje said.

Doje focused his mind and sank his breath, planting both feet firmly on the ground. "Come, junior brother, charge into me with all your strength. Let your senior brother show you how powerful I am now that I've gained an initial grasp of Tummo Meditation."

"Senior brother, you want me to charge with all my strength? Won't I hurt you?"

Doje smiled confidently. "My spiritual heat flows down into my thighs and calves, and my feet root themselves in the earth like tree roots! You haven't practiced, so you don't know how to circulate your breath. You won't hurt me easily!"

Qu Zan took a deep breath, lowered his body, and pushed off the ground. His strength erupted in an instant, his entire body like a wild horse breaking free of its reins!

Boom!

Doje felt as though a rhinoceros had charged into him. The spiritual heat within him spread out, and suddenly his chest felt as though it had taken a heavy hammer blow.

He lost his footing, tumbled backward, and fell to the ground.

The blood and qi in Doje's chest surged. He could not help staring blankly. "Junior brother, have you practiced the Yoga Method before?"

"No." Qu Zan shook his head.

Qu Zan was just as surprised, given his physique of 3.6.

Although he had held back half his strength, he was stronger than when he had ambushed and killed his pursuers, already surpassing an ordinary person. Yet when he struck Doje, he had only driven him back a foot.

It seemed this Tummo Meditation yoga truly did possess extraordinary capabilities.

"Junior brother, you were born with divine strength!" Doje rubbed his chest. "When I charged into my instructor with all my strength back then, the rebound knocked me down, and I couldn't get up for ages. He didn't budge an inch..."

"Are you all right?" Qu Zan asked apologetically.

Doje circulated the breath within his body. His body warmed, and he immediately perked up, springing to his feet. "I practice the Yoga Method. What could happen to me? A pity, though. I meant to show off my skill, but ended up showing my backside instead."

Qu Zan said, "All I have is brute strength. In a real fight, I'm probably no match for you." Doje had been somewhat discouraged, but hearing this delighted him.

Doje patted Qu Zan's shoulder. "Junior brother, sit cross-legged. I'll teach you how to practice Tummo Meditation!"

Qu Zan sat cross-legged.

Doje said in a deep voice, "Tummo is a fierce, explosive fire. It's the heat that practitioners and yogis produce below their navels through training. It is a method of practice."

"Visualize fire filling your entire body. Visualize it spreading throughout your navel, gradually rising through your whole body. Then visualize its fire blazing like lightning, radiating outward through your pores, cleansing the impurities and obstructions in your channels, breath, and vital drops...

"The channels are the pathways within the physical body, breath is life energy, and vital drops are the material essence contained within the channels."

Qu Zan followed his instructions and visualized fire filling his entire body, but he could not feel any heat.

Whoosh!

Suddenly, Doje delivered a light palm strike, pressing his palm, rich with spiritual heat, against Qu Zan's back.

As that strike imbued with life energy entered him, Qu Zan's channels were instantly opened and activated.

That wisp of spiritual heat was tiny, but like a spark falling onto dry firewood, it burst into flame in an instant.

The tummo fire spread through his limbs and bones, until every pore throughout his body was filled with it. He felt as though his entire being had opened up, incomparably happy.

[You have comprehended Tummo Meditation, awakening the life hidden within your body. Physique +3, Consciousness +1.4]

As though an electric current had filled his whole body, Qu Zan felt heat dispersing in every direction.

"Junior brother, you need to gather the tummo fire you've ignited. Don't let the heat dissipate too quickly, or you'll end up hurting yourself."

Qu Zan forced himself to observe his mind, enduring without moving, and gradually drew the tummo fire back below his navel.

He felt spiritual heat forming within his body, an exceptionally comfortable warm current pouring through his entire body.

It felt like exercising in winter: as the body heated up, its movements became more agile, gradually releasing all the strength within.

"Phew!" Qu Zan deeply exhaled a breath of stale air, feeling comfortable all over.

"How was it?" Doje asked.

Qu Zan clenched his fists. "Very comfortable. I feel a lot stronger."

"Right?" Doje was happy for Qu Zan. "Our instructor said practicing yoga strengthens our bodies and increases our strength. It has tremendous benefits and can help us subdue demons and vanquish fiends.

"I remember someone asking the instructor during class how to subdue demons and vanquish fiends. He refused to elaborate. There must be some other secret involved."

Qu Zan murmured an acknowledgment, not particularly concerned about the secret behind it.

What surprised him was that igniting the tummo fire through this practice had directly increased both his physique and consciousness scores. That was truly unexpected.

"Senior brother, thank you!" Qu Zan rose and bowed sincerely to Doje.

Doje smiled. "Junior brother, you're thanking me too soon. I also have a matching set of fighting techniques to teach you. Will you learn them?"

"Of course!" Qu Zan said with a smile.

"This set of fighting techniques is an extension of Tummo Meditation: the Tummo Saber Technique!"

Doje said, "Guide your breath throughout both arms, using your palms and arms as sabers. Chop, elbow, swing, sweep..." He demonstrated as he spoke, his movements fierce and his attacks exceptionally sharp.

Qu Zan watched once, committed it to memory, and then the two began sparring.

Doje asked, "Do you think learning fighting techniques is unnecessary?"

"Why would you ask that? Fighting techniques are useful, of course."

Doje said, "Many warrior monks at the Warrior Monk Academy think that however far you train these fighting techniques, you'll only ever be a martial fighter. When vengeful ghosts cause trouble, all that hard practice doesn't seem to offer any solution."

As he said this, Doje seemed somewhat downcast.

"When vengeful ghosts cause trouble, there might be evil people involved too. That's when fighting skills come in handy," Qu Zan said. "Besides, I think every extra skill opens another path."

The two continued sparring, now practicing how to exert force, throw punches, and use footwork.

The [Extensive Learning] talent improved his memory, but things involving experience, or even exerting force, required sparring.

"Stop, stop!" Doje raised a hand. "Sparring with you is more exhausting than sparring with three people!"

Doje gasped for breath.

Qu Zan was likewise drenched in sweat.

"Really?" Qu Zan asked with a smile.

"Yes! Your attacks are fast and fierce, and they always come from utterly impossible places," Doje said. "You're terrifying. You learn things frighteningly fast."

"It's probably just luck," Qu Zan said.

"You have good comprehension. But sparring with you will help me improve quickly too." Doje smiled and took his stance.

"Senior brother, let me treat you to mutton today," Qu Zan said.

"Why? To thank me? There's no need..." Doje said.

Mutton was still very expensive. How could poor scholar monks and warrior monks like them afford it?

"Didn't my family just move? It'll be a celebration. After buying the mutton, we'll go to my place and boil it," Qu Zan said with a smile.

He had learned a great deal from Doje today and wanted to thank him properly.

"What are we waiting for, then? Let's hurry!" Doje immediately dropped his stance and spoke impatiently.