A Thousand Li: the First Stop: A Xanxia Cultivation Series

by Tao Wong

  For a time, Wu Ying sat back and thought about the various exercises and martial styles, imagining himself with them. His lips curled as, in his mind, he fought an increasing number of masked foes, dazzling them with his impressive sword work, kicking them aside with the Red Ribbon, then unleashing single, powerful strikes that cracked bone, shattered weapons, and blew away his opponents. Even when his opponents managed to hit him, their frail blows glanced off the dragon scales and his tough, reinforced bones.

  Wu Ying indulged himself for a moment with the outlandish fantasy before he let out a little laugh. Such thoughts were foolish to the extreme. The time it would take to master each of those styles could be marked in years. Even someone as gifted as Tou He might learn many styles to a novice or maybe even intermediate understanding but would focus his time on gaining peak understanding of a few. Only the Elders could hope to equal Wu Ying’s fantasy self, and even then, few would dare to straddle so many areas.

  No. Better to focus and grow oneself in a narrow band.

  So.

  Defense or offense? A punching, kicking, or grappling technique?

  Wu Ying cracked his neck and looked about, realizing that he was alone in the library. All the other cultivators had left, the library illuminated by a sparse few lamps. Without his notice, day had ended and evening had grown late.

  No grappling. Wu Ying pushed the work aside. He was already learning from his interactions with Elder Hsu. Punching or kicking or a defensive measure? The Dragon Scales made no sense, not with his current studies. No poison, so that left the Iron Bone technique. It had the advantage of being something he could learn while practicing other things—like his strength building.

  As for offense…

  “You are done finally?” Elder Khoo said, carefully setting aside his brush before he looked at Wu Ying.

  The Elder glanced at the books in Wu Ying’s hands, nodding absently before he reached under his desk to extract blank manuals. Taking the books from Wu Ying’s hands, he waved them over a spirit stone then passed the blank manuals over them, brows knitting. Wu Ying could feel as Elder Khoo infused the spirit stone and the manuals with his chi, flooding both then sealing the entire thing with scribbled words.

  “Elder?” Wu Ying said, tilting his head as he received the formerly blank manuals.

  “I have infused the books in your hand with a copy of the manuals. The originals will stay in the sect, and your manuals will not be able to pass beyond the boundaries of the sect limits. Doing so will make them disappear,” Elder Khoo said.

  Wu Ying blinked, opening the manual and feeling the slight pressure of the infused chi. He frowned, unhappy that this work was being restricted, but then squashed the irritation. In truth, he was getting rare manuals for nothing more than a few hours’ work. So what if the sect had their own policies?

  “An interesting series of choices. You are focusing on developing strength over speed.” Elder Khoo tapped the Mountain Breaking Fist book and the other two manuals that Wu Ying had purchased. “Is there a reason for the change?”

  “Strength is speed,” Wu Ying said, shrugging. “The stronger I get, the faster I can become too. And I have noticed that my strength is already greater than many—excluding chi use.”

  “Yes. Physical strength is great, but do not forget that proper application of chi can overpower even the greatest physical strength,” Elder Khoo warned.

  Having said his piece, the Elder waved and sent Wu Ying out of his library, a half-smile crossing his face as he watched the young cultivator leave.

  Chapter 8

  “You are all fools.”

  The single pronouncement by Fairy Yang when she took the stage sent a susurration of shocked exclamations throughout the lecture hall.

  When no one raised their voice to object, Fairy Yang continued. “What is most important when building a house? The foundation, the roof, or the walls?” She did not wait for volunteers but pointed at one of the sect members.

  “The foundation, Elder.”

  “Exactly. The foundation. The foundation of cultivation is Body Cleansing. Yet all of you have rushed through the process, desperate to achieve the Energy Storage stage. How many of you took the time to learn new cultivation exercises? How many of you built upon your foundation by opening your meridians wider via a meridian-opening technique or strengthened your chi flow?” Fairy Yang said.

  When the silence ran through the hall, Fairy Yang smiled victoriously.

  “Fools.” She allowed the silence and her pronouncement to settle before she spoke again. “But luckily, it is not too late. While working on these techniques in the Energy Storage stage is not as effective, there is no reason you cannot do so. We shall discuss the various cultivation exercises that one may find in the inner sect libraries, their advantages and disadvantages, and how to best ascertain which type is most appropriate. I expect all of you to pick at least one such technique before the next lecture.”

  When the cultivators picked up their brushes, ready to copy down her words, Fairy Yang nodded in contentment at last.

  Four hours later, Wu Ying winced as he leaned back. Thankfully, nothing Fairy Yang had spoken had invalidated his previous choices. After all, all cultivation exercises were—in theory—good for one to do. Like any exercise which helped to build muscle, any cultivation exercise developed a cultivator’s strength.

  However, like any exercise, there were areas a cultivator might be weaker in and areas where they were naturally stronger. In fact, a large number of cultivation exercises were developed due to a significant area of weakness an unfortunate cultivator had been born with. For example, the original meridian-widening cultivation exercise had been developed for the Third Yellow Emperor’s son as the unfortunate child had been born with extremely narrow meridians. Without expanding them, the Emperor’s son would never have been able to cultivate properly—and thus an exhaustive testing regime of poison, herbs, and chi flooding exercises had been conducted to develop the original meridian-widening exercise. Since then, other, more sophisticated exercises had built upon that initial research.

  Listing all the various types of cultivation exercises available was impossible and not something Fairy Yang had attempted. Instead, she had led them through a series of assessment exercises to ascertain their level of competence in each area. Chi cultivation at their stage involved aspects of chi density, flow, storage, and containment. Within each of those areas were multiple, more exacting breakdowns. For example, chi storage consisted of storage in the lower, upper, and middle dantians, as well as storage in blood, bone, muscle, and flesh. While chi storage in the upper and middle dantian was not recommended, there were still cultivation exercises that developed these dantians. In fact, individuals who managed to open and store chi in all three dantians were universally feared. Those individuals had a significantly higher amount of chi than most practitioners, but were also often highly mentally and emotionally unstable.

  Once Fairy Yang had discussed and briefly taught the cultivators how to assess their own levels in each area, she proceeded to explain the variety of cultivation exercises available. Wu Ying had found those truly fascinating, since as he had realized, no single individual could develop and practice all these cultivation exercises. Or, in some cases, should. This was, as Wu Ying recalled, also affected by the limitations of cultivation exercises available in the sect.

  “At the Verdant Green Waters Sect, we have a significant number of cultivation exercises in chi flow and containment, but lack exercises in developing a cultivator’s chi density or storage,” Fairy Yang said. “While we are not completely lacking, other sects have wider libraries in those subjects. If, as has happened before, you are unable to find a suitable cultivation exercise in our libraries, you should speak with your Elders. They will aid you in seeking a suitable exercise from affiliated sects.”

  After that, she had listed and explained in broad strokes the various cultivation exercises available. That, in turn, allowed Wu
Ying to get a better grasp of his own two cultivation exercises and how best to implement them.

  Afterward, Tou He looked between the empty stage and his friend. “Did you want to practice Elder Yang’s assessment exercises?”

  “I should. But I might skip it for now,” Wu Ying said. “I already have two cultivation exercises. It’s best that I finish studying them before finding a third.”

  “Is that not inefficient?”

  “Possibly,” Wu Ying said. “But I had good reasons for progressing on both exercises. And those reasons haven’t disappeared just because it might not be the most optimal choice. I am surprised you haven’t taken an exercise before.”

  “Never saw the need,” Tou He said with a shrug. “My Master’s never mentioned it either.”

  “Har,” Wu Ying said with a slight smile. At least, for once, he had something up on his friend. A bit petty perhaps, but he could accept petty. “Need me to watch you during your assessments?”

  “Yes.”

  “Let’s go.”

  Wu Ying sat beside Tou He in the courtyard of his friend’s residence, watching the small bamboo grove sway. It amused Wu Ying to realize that this was the first time he had visited his friend’s residence. Somehow, they had always met on the streets or in Wu Ying’s place. There was, in the basics, little difference between Wu Ying’s residence and Tou He’s, but in the details, the differences were significant. The walls were all covered and painted. Numerous beautiful works of art that helped promote a serene mindfulness littered the residence. Tou He too had a servant, but unlike Ah Yee, his was younger and prettier. The garden around the residence was well cared for and larger, and the courtyard better stocked with training equipment. None of which were being put to use at the moment.

  Wu Ying watched as his friend meditated, chi gathering around Tou He’s body as he breathed, slowly running through test after test. There was, unfortunately, no single test to ascertain one’s strength in every area, so Tou He had to conduct the numerous exercises one after the other. Many of those exercises required the cultivator to exhaust a significant portion of their stored chi, an always dangerous process. Afterward, Tou He would have to cultivate and restore the chi levels before repeating the process.

  During the testing periods, like now, Wu Ying paid full attention to his friend, playing over and over the cautionary words that Fairy Yang had left them with. If things went bad, Wu Ying was ready to strike the necessary acupressure points or feed Tou He their gathered spirit pills.

  During the times when Tou He was resting and recuperating, Wu Ying could take his attention off his friend and pay attention to his own cultivation exercises. By this time, Wu Ying had grown so competent with his Aura Strengthening exercise that he rarely consciously paid attention to it. But with Elder Khoo’s and Fairy Yang’s recent talks, he took the time to review the original text of the document and his own understanding, assessing his application with the theoretical ideal.

  Aura Strengthening techniques were based upon the idea of enforcing the exterior boundaries of an individual’s aura more firmly. Eventually, one was expected to shrink that aura down, making it part of their skin and effectively invisible to others. The process of strengthening one’s aura required first the sensing of it, then the slow reinforcement of the membrane, the edge between a cultivator’s aura and the external world.

  Something that Wu Ying had noticed while browsing the Dragon Scale technique was the way both approached the idea of adjusting the membrane. Taking inspiration from it, Wu Ying traced the “ridges” of his own aura, feeling the way it shifted and twisted in its natural form. At first, all Wu Ying did was sense it. Eventually, Wu Ying pushed more of his chi into those locations, “smoothing” out the bumps and the occasional breaks.

  As he smoothed out his aura, Wu Ying felt his aura grow more compact and stronger and, as importantly for the cultivation exercise, hidden flaws in the membrane were exposed. Those, Wu Ying took the time to patch up, mentally sewing the gaps closed by further layering cultivation. It was, Wu Ying knew, a lot of work for little visible results, but it would, in time, reduce his chi signature, his aura, even further. And as Wu Ying had learned, it also helped him reduce the “waste” that so many other cultivators experienced.

  Hours passed, their mutual exercises crossing days. Unlike real school, the random disappearance of a cultivator from their classes was not unexpected. Enlightenment was not something that could be dictated by schedules, so teachers understood and made concessions. Even for those cultivators with assignments that required an individual’s presence, leeway was provided.

  Eventually, Tou He stood and stretched, coming out of his cross-legged posture and flashed Wu Ying a smile. After cleaning themselves, the pair headed for the buffet of food laid out for their consumption and set to with gusto. It was long minutes later, when the two were replete with sustenance, that they broke the silence.

  “So?” Wu Ying said.

  “Interesting results.”

  Wu Ying raised an eyebrow but did not inquire further. One of the aspects of being friends with another cultivator was the understanding that there were certain things you did not ask about, especially if the information was not directly offered.

  “Library?” Wu Ying said instead.

  “Eventually,” Tou He said, a light frown crossing his normally happy face. When Wu Ying stayed silent, Tou He finally relented. “I’ve got to decide which weakness to patch up. And if the sect can help.”

  “Oh,” Wu Ying said. If that was the case, whatever weakness Tou He had located in his body, that weakness was not something the sect specialized in fixing. Which meant that it was either an issue with density or storage. Those were significant weaknesses for a cultivator that would, in time, create a “soft” cap on what the cultivator could do. It would, to some extent, also explain how Tou He had progressed so fast in his cultivation, since the density or volume of his dantian might be quite small. Optimal for a quick progression to begin, but a hindrance when one needed to form a Core. “Thank you for telling me.”

  “Telling you what?” Tou He said.

  Wu Ying’s lips quirked, then he shook his head. “I don’t know either.”

  The pair traded glances before breaking into laughter, staring at the remnants of the meal left behind.

  As Tou He’s business was done, Wu Ying found himself returning to his own routine. His friend had assured him that he would speak to Wu Ying if he did take further action, but for now, Tou He would train, check the library, and speak to his sponsor. Knowing that Tou He, unlike him, had a reliable sponsor made Wu Ying relax. For once, that burgeoning streak of jealousy had died down, wiped away by the realization that everyone had their own circumstancesand their own difficulties. In the end, the road of cultivation would always have dips and turns.

  Over the next few days, Wu Ying worked on his new cultivation exercise. The Iron Reinforced Bones technique was not an easy technique to progress, as the changes it made occurred slowly. And once Wu Ying realized this, he was forced to make a new decision.

  “Rebuild my entire body at the same time or concentrate on a few areas?” Wu Ying muttered to himself.

  Things would be so much simpler if he knew how long it would take to convert either, but until he committed to the process, Wu Ying could not get a good estimate. If Wu Ying rebuilt his entire body at once, he would have no localized weaknesses but would also not see any effect for a long time. Rebuilding a single bone—or series of bones—meant that he would gain significantly increased defenses in one area. In the end, Fairy Yang’s earlier admonishment about haste rang through Wu Ying’s mind.

  “I have nothing to do anyway,” Wu Ying said. Even if he was just at Body Cleansing 9, barring death, he was certain to see at least another seven decades. What was a few years more as a Body Cleanser, working on his cultivation?

  Drawing a deep breath, Wu Ying made the choice and pushed other thoughts aside, focusing on the actual process of the exe
rcise. Then he ran into the next roadblock—sensing his own bone structure. If he pressed with his fingers, Wu Ying could feel his bones beneath his skin. But sensing his bones within his body without doing that? It was not something he could do, at least not yet.

  Over the next week, Wu Ying added the new exercise to his routine, splitting the time he would otherwise use for his cultivation to increase the base level of chi in his body with the new exercise. In time, by moving his chi through his body and following the pathways and the way they interacted with his bones, Wu Ying located and sensed his skeletal structure. He even managed to begin the slow process of repairing the damage from his regular routine of exercise and fighting.

  It amused him, somewhat, that the new cultivation exercise saw the greatest fruits of development after his sparring periods with the martial specialists. There, the constant abuse his body faced, along with the increased exercises he put his body through, saw microfractures arise, microfractures that his chi filled with a greater density of bone than normal. Wu Ying had an inkling that the Bone Strengthening was a technique he could eventually conduct without conscious thought, much like his aura strengthening exercise. But that would require him reaching at least Minor Achievement, if not Major. Considering the actual process required a readjustment of his body, it was probably best that he take it slow.

  Feet apart. Wooden dummy ahead. One hand extended. Second one by his ribs, fully retracted. Inhale. Exhale and punch, twist with foot, hip, and shoulders as back arm extends and front hand retracts. At the last second, just before impact, rotate arm to bring top two knuckles in line with the center of the wooden post. Stay relaxed through the entire process, tensing at the end to reduce impact before relaxing again.