Chapter 57: The Dantian is Full, Guiding Qi into the Meridians

Jiang Youling held the scraps wrapped in a lotus leaf, her heart filled with joy.

Though these spiritual materials were not many, they were enough to serve as tomorrow's breakfast. Finally, she would no longer have to eat that choking black rice from the dining hall.

For the next three months, Jiang Youling stood in a post stance at the hour of the Tiger and meditated at the hour of the Rabbit every single day. After finishing her cultivation and eating some spiritual food, she would head to the Talisman Academy for work. After finishing her shift at noon, she would hurry to the spiritual kitchen of Mount Danyang to assist. Every five days, she also made time to attend lectures at Master Hong's cave dwelling; her life was exceptionally fulfilling.

On this day, while performing her usual breathing exercises, Jiang Youling discovered that her dantian could no longer accommodate a single speck of spiritual energy. It was like a brimming pool of water, unable to hold even one more drop of dew.

"Strange..."

Jiang Youling ceased her cultivation. During her next visit to Mount Danyang for a lecture, she detailed her situation—how her dantian was overflowing with spiritual energy yet unable to grow—and expressed her confusion.

Hong Dengyuan merely looked intently for a moment, then shook his head with a smile. "You have reached the first threshold of mortal cultivation—the Dantian Fullness. You must now refine Qi into the meridians."

"Refine Qi into the meridians?" Jiang Youling asked, puzzled.

With a wave of Master Hong's sleeve, two diagrams of circulating spiritual power appeared in the air.

He explained, "When a disciple with a spiritual root cultivates, the spiritual energy surges from the dantian and naturally flows through the meridians like a rushing river. But when a mortal cultivates, the spiritual energy accumulates in the dantian; one must actively strike the meridians to clear them, much like digging a canal to guide water."

After explaining the distinction between the two in detail, Hong Dengyuan suddenly let out a cold laugh.

"The incomplete techniques the sect passes down to laborers only teach one how to refine the meridians, but they provide no method to fill the dantian. Those laborer disciples possess the realm of the Qi Refining stage, yet they have no spiritual power to use. Unless they endure until the late stages of Qi Refining and connect all twelve primary meridians, they cannot truly cast spells. But in this process, ninety-nine percent of people fail to persevere."

Hearing this, Jiang Youling finally understood why, despite having the same cultivation realm, the gap in combat strength between disciples with spiritual roots and those without was so vast.

"Aside from the difference in cultivation methods, there are three points a mortal must note when pursuing immortality. First is the speed of cultivation. A single day's work for a spiritual root holder requires three to five days, or even longer, of bitter cultivation for a mortal."

Hong Dengyuan picked up his teacup and sighed softly.

"Second is the potency of medicinal pills and spiritual objects. For the same pill, if a spiritual root holder consumes it and gains a year of cultivation, a mortal's gain will be negligible, perhaps only adding three or four months. Take the Yang Spirit Pearl I gave you earlier; if another spiritual root holder had obtained it, its efficacy would have been even greater than when you used it."

Jiang Youling remained silent for a moment. Seeing that Hong Dengyuan was drinking his tea without speaking, she finally could not help but ask, "And the third?"

"The third point is also the most important."

Hong Dengyuan set down his teacup. "If you have not cleared the twelve meridians before the age of sixty, the meridians will solidify, and your cultivation will struggle to make any further progress for the rest of your life."

This was also the primary reason the sect gave up on nurturing laborers. Cultivating immortality as a mortal not only consumed more resources and proceeded at a slower pace, but it also carried severe limitations and flaws. Even if the sect spent vast resources on painstaking cultivation, if they could not break through to the Foundation Establishment stage, they would ultimately be of little use.

*Sixty years old?*

Upon hearing this, a sense of relief actually rose in Jiang Youling's heart. She was only sixteen; sixty was still a long way off.

As if sensing her thoughts, Hong Dengyuan said indifferently, "The path of cultivation is like rowing upstream. At the start, a single ladle of water can float a small boat, but once you reach the midstream, only the power of the great river can carry a massive vessel."

He raised his hand and drew an arc in the air, causing spiritual energy to condense into the shape of a staircase.

"The first three layers of Qi Refining can be reached by ordinary people through three to five years of bitter cultivation. But after the sixth layer, every single step requires several times the effort of the previous one. You have currently connected the Hand Taiyin Lung Meridian, which counts as the first layer of Qi Refining. From here on, every time you connect a meridian, your cultivation advances one layer, until you reach the twelfth layer to achieve perfection."

At this point, Hong Dengyuan shook his head slightly. "Take the transition from the sixth layer to the seventh layer as an example; the accumulation of spiritual energy required is enough to take a mortal from the very beginning all the way to the sixth layer. Not to mention, the further you go, the greater the danger of striking the meridians. Once a meridian is damaged and your cultivation drops, it is equivalent to wasting several years of your life!"

After hearing this, Jiang Youling finally realized how naive her thoughts had been. She was already sixteen and a half years old; at most, she had less than forty-four years left until sixty. According to Master Hong's method of calculation, even if she cultivated day and night without pause, she would not be able to reach the twelfth layer of Qi Refining before the age of sixty!

Jiang Youling fell silent for a long time before lifting her head, her tone resolute. "Even plants and trees know how to struggle against fate; how can a disciple shrink in fear before even fighting?"

"Not bad. You have not wasted the months of cultivation I have invested in you."

Hong Dengyuan stroked his beard and chuckled. "The path of cultivation emphasizes Law, Wealth, Companions, and Land. To merely sit in bitter cultivation is to fail to achieve greatness, even with a Heaven-grade spiritual root."

He flicked his finger against his teacup, and the splashing droplets condensed in the air into the shape of several spirit stones.

"Do you know why those disciples in white progress so rapidly? Besides talent, it is because they receive generous monthly stipends. Once their cultivation is high, they can also take on sect missions or go out to slay demons to earn spirit stone resources."

Seeing Jiang Youling's eyes burning with intensity, he offered a few more words of guidance with a smile.

"However, regarding side paths like alchemy, formations, talismans, and artifacts—if you lack talent, do not force it, lest you waste your time. I have seen too many spiritual root disciples ruin their cultivation for the sake of learning alchemy or talisman making, only to end up with exhausted lifespans."

Jiang Youling noted every piece of Master Hong's advice before asking humbly, "Master previously said I have reached the stage of 'Guiding Qi into the Meridians.' How should I proceed with my cultivation next?"

Hearing this, Hong Dengyuan traced a path of flowing spiritual light in the void.

"Guiding Qi into the meridians prioritizes spiritual sense. Close your eyes and look inward; imagine your dantian as a spring and the spiritual energy as a stream."

Jiang Youling sat cross-legged as instructed, attempting to mobilize the spiritual energy in her dantian. At first, the energy remained as motionless as stubborn stone, causing beads of sweat to form on her forehead in frustration.

Seeing this, Hong Dengyuan tapped her brow with his fingertip, sending a stream of cool energy into her. "Do not force it. It should be like spring rain nourishing the earth."

Jiang Youling calmed her mind, and gradually, she managed to stir a wisp of spiritual energy. But as soon as that wisp was drawn from her dantian, it acted like a runaway horse, crashing wildly through her meridians, causing her to let out a muffled groan of pain.

She spent a great deal of time before finally managing to tame that wisp of energy. Just as she was about to guide it into the Hand Taiyin Meridian, she heard Hong Dengyuan say, "The hour is up."

Jiang Youling opened her eyes, inwardly marveling at how quickly time had passed. She felt as though she had only been cultivating for a short while, yet more than two hours had elapsed.

Regaining her composure, Jiang Youling prepared to leave with a formal disciple's salute, but suddenly remembered something. "Master, can I cultivate directly using spirit stones?"

"Of course. Once you have guided all the spiritual energy in your dantian into the Hand Taiyin Meridian, you may use spirit stones to cultivate. At that time, your daily cultivation period can be extended to two hours."

Hong Dengyuan nodded slightly. "With the aid of spirit stones, your speed can increase several times over. However, you must remember that using external objects is ultimately a shortcut. Do not merely pile up spiritual energy while abandoning your true self."

"I shall not forget your teachings, Master."

"Mhm. There is no need to come for the next lesson. It will not be too late to return once you have successfully guided the meridians into your body."

(End of Chapter)