Chapter 41 (1/2)

Shia Zhi went to bed straight after dinner. She lay on Lin Xun’s pillow, covered herself with Lin Xun’s quilt, and slept in Lin Xun’s bed, of course.

She was sincere and forthright without any unnecessary courtesy. She didn’t talk much but looked so special. Only when she was in deep sleep did she look like a real little girl with her lashes curving like a pair of fans, her breathing light and long, her delicate and fair face, pure and innocent.

Looking at Shia Zhi in her sound sleep, a hearty smile stole over the corners of Lin Xun’s mouth. He could feel her exclusive kindness, affection or even dependence on him.

Though still unknown about her history, Lin Xun no longer cared about it. His felt less lonely and much steadier than ever with Shia Zhi. Or was it also an emotional attachment?

He couldn’t figure it out now, but he already realized that Shia Zhi was part of his life.

…

Sitting in the meditating position, Lin Xun held his breath, concentrated his mind and began to cultivate.

The third level of Martial Realm, Viscera Opening, required one to channel his spiritual power through his five internal organs and solidify his foundation through expiration and inhalation.

The next level Orifices Connecting was to unclog all acupoints and apertures throughout the body so as to concentrate one’s mind and amplify the blood and Qi. Reaching this level, a spiritual practitioner would double his power, refine his body and wash away all the filth inside his body.

He keenly felt that his cultivation was further consolidated and enhanced after the dreadful battle four days ago. And it would not take long before he could advance to the next level as long as he kept cultivating hard.

The advantage of an actual combat was not only to improve a spiritual practitioner’s fighting skills, better his martial arts and increase his fighting experience, but also to strengthen his cultivation.

About an hour later, Lin Xun ran the spiritual power through his whole body for 36 circulations and began to meditate the image of Star Circulation.

The Meditating Magic was extremely extraordinary and profound. Although there were just three stages, namely Star Circulation, Moon Turn and Sun Glory, each of them encompassed nearly everything. The more Lin Xun understood, the more he’d feel the unfathomable mystery of it.

Now a starry sky that was abstruse and boundless dotted with billions of stars appeared in the sea of his consciousness. But every star was unreachable and dimming without light.

Lin Xun was a bit shamed that though he had been practicing the Meditating Magic day and night, he still didn’t manage to step into the stage of Star Circulation.

But any way, every time he perceived it, his soul was refined and strengthened. The benefits were obvious!

Hu…

With his breaths getting longer, Lin Xun concentrated all the perceptions in the sea of his spiritual consciousness, reflecting billions of stars in the sky.

When he could sense the Star Orbit and bring down a star light through it, then he was truly in the stage of Star Circulation, which was also called Lighting the Stars.

Lin Xun was extremely focused without any thoughts or desires. In his quiet and deep meditation, he felt like flying thousands of miles away without any tiredness or wants. As if guided by the natural forces of instinct, he flew to the blue sky, flew beyond the nine heavens and flew to the boundless universe…

Countless stars reflected in the sea of his consciousness. Not until now did Lin Xun notice that all those stars were not fixed but were circulating along different tracks.

As if controlled by an invisible hand, the circle of every star was unrestrained like a heavenly steed, full of unfathomable profoundness. The sky looked like a huge chessboard while those stars were the chess pieces, and the tracks were the places where these chess pieces were maneuvered.

Lin Xun watched and perceived the sky silently. As time flashed, an inexplicable enlightenment rose from his heart.

“If the sky were the chessboard, the stars the pieces, who can play it?”

“…It’s me!”

Lin Xun suddenly got it, and all his perceptions spread like a tide, lighting one of the stars like a ray of light rushing up the sky.

For a moment, it was like an invisible hand dropping a piece on the chessboard!

The stars were the chess pieces. When they were lit, the pieces were alive, and the real game and journey began.

Hua…

Meanwhile, a dim star in the dark sky suddenly brightened in the sea of his consciousness, shedding silver lights across the heavy emptiness.

Lin Xun woke up immediately from his meditation. His soul felt an ineffable refreshment like being immersed in a hot spring with his pores open.

He finally got to the stage of Star Circulation!

Lin Xun was excited. It never occurred to him that he would accidently light a star in the sea of his consciousness after two months’ attempts.

Now his perceptions were exquisite and clear like a cobweb spreading away and covered his courtyard in a flash.

All things in the courtyard were vividly reflected in his mind, grass fluttering gently in the night breezes, crickets sleeping under the window lattice, a drop of cold dew on the edge of the well, sweeping willows swaying gracefully in the moonlight…All were clear, vivid and ethereal.

That was perception, a power from soul.

And all this was called “The spirit is out of the body, and all things reflect on heart”.

In general, spiritual practitioners must break through the Martial Realm and get to Gang Spirit Realm to possess such perception. Now, Lin Xun, who was just in the third level of Martial Realm, was already able to do that, all thanks to Meditating Magic.