5 Meditation (1/2)

This problem disturbed me. Of course, I wanted to cultivate because I was attracted to the mystical powers of cultivators, but I also wanted to become someone special.

But what did that really mean? Did I have to forge my own path, relying on no-one else? No. As incredible as that sounded, it was unrealistic.

I may have read countless cultivation stories in my past life, but I could only guess how this world worked. I had to make use of other people's wisdom.

I would not allow the Soul Becoming World Technique to define me. I would use it to help me, but I would mould it to my own will. And I had already made a start.

I had to learn from everything available to me. But I couldn't read a book or ask a teacher. I had to learn from what little I was exposed to, and what I had already experienced.

It was easiest to start with my past life. I had been an athlete for some time, and I knew that I only improved by pushing myself to the limit.

However, I pushed myself without rest, damaging my body permanently. My knees were weak, my heels were shattered, and my back was a feather away from snapping.

As much as I hated it, I had to take a break from cultivation, at least until my body recovered.

What else could I do in the meantime? My past experiences were helpful, but I needed something more.

I couldn't speak or read. But I could observe and feel. What could I learn from my surroundings, and who could I learn from?

I didn't know much about my home. However, I did know that it had a specific nursery room, with some distance between it and my father's study. That would make it quite a large house, at least for my past life's standards.

Father also worked from his study, which could mean he had a somewhat secure job position. At the very least, my family was not poor. At best, we could be nobility.

Assuming that, it was reasonable to believe that I would have a good upbringing, and a get a decent shot at cultivation. Perhaps father was also a cultivator?

He sent a strange heat through his fingers before, so it was worth checking. Perhaps I could learn something from him. I had to wait until morning to check.

I lay there in my cot, waiting for the time to pass. It was boring. Excruciatingly so. Life without cultivation was dull, especially for an infant.

I couldn't stand the boredom anymore. There had to be something meaningful I could do. I decided to do some light meditation, just to observe the waves of qi flowing through my body.

As I meditated, I became aware of the passage of qi. How it flowed not only through my veins, but my muscle fibres, my nerves and my bones. With qi guiding me, my bodily awareness increased.

Time seemed to disappear as I followed the complex map of my body. Each pathway split into countless others and was connected to many more. It was easy to get lost, but the pulses of qi kept me grounded.

As I explored, the ripples were speeding up. Going down a pathway seemed to clear it, and qi would follow faster in my wake. The frequency of the pulses increased as well, the steady dripping sound winding to a patter.

I had been circling around my core, not going farther than a few centimetres away from my solar plexus. I finally felt that I had reached were I began, and the instant I touched my first path, I felt an eruption of pleasure.

It was nowhere near as intense as the first time I had experienced it and it came without any pain. But it was still all consuming, and I was brought back to reality, floating on a cloud of euphoria.