Chapter 14
In the abandoned courtyard, silence hung heavy in the midnight air, broken only by the occasional hoot of an owl.
Ji Wuye emerged from the shadows, his footsteps light yet purposeful on the weathered stone tiles. His return from the Tower still felt like a surreal dream, one he could scarcely believe was real.
He surveyed the dimly lit surroundings, the flickering torchlight casting dancing shadows across ancient walls. A deep sigh escaped his lips as he slowly shook his head in disbelief.
"I've truly become a 3rd stage martial artist now..." he murmured, a faint smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. The weight of this achievement still hadn't fully settled in.
Only three days prior, he had been a mere peak 1st stage martial artist, and now, he had shattered through that ceiling, ascending to the highest echelon - the 3rd realm. The realization washed over him in waves of emotion.
In the heavy silence, Ji Wuye's crimson eyes drifted upwards, finding the silver moon hanging in the velvety night sky like a beacon.
Its ethereal glow bathed his chiseled features, the wind tousling strands of his white hair across his handsome face as he gazed into the distance, lost in contemplation.
His reverie was suddenly broken by a fleeting recollection of the External Arts he had acquired from the shop. "Mending Meridians..."
The words rolled off his tongue with practiced ease, as if he had known this ancient healing art his entire life. "A martial art focused on healing, achieved through entering a meditative state and regulating breathing into the Dantians."
With those softly spoken words, Ji Wuye crossed his legs and settled into a lotus position, his back straight yet relaxed. He closed his eyes and began a rhythmic cycle of deep, controlled breaths.
As he exhaled, the very air around him seemed to stir and transform - coalescing into a shimmering emerald aura reminiscent of the soothing healing light from the Tower.
This verdant Qi radiated a refreshing, almost crisp sensation, like crystal-clear waters from a mountain spring.
The restorative energy flowed through him, traveling along six crucial meridian points - the lungs, large intestine, spleen, heart, small intestine and finally the bladder.
From these main channels, it branched outwards like a great tree, following an intricate network of tiny capillary-like pathways that reached every corner of his body.
This verdant healing Qi possessed an innate, almost sentient awareness. It sought out any frayed, torn or inflamed tissues, cells, blood vessels with unerring precision.
In these damaged areas, it stimulated the natural regenerative processes, reducing inflammation and purging underlying toxins. At a microscopic level, the Qi seamlessly fused severed connections back together with sublime finesse.
The depth and severity of his injuries determined the number of restorative cycles required, but Ji Wuye could already feel his battered body recovering, knitting itself back together.
As time slipped by in meditative stillness, the deep night gradually gave way to the first hints of dawn's rosy glow peeking over the horizon. Only then did Ji Wuye's eyes flutter open once more.
[>>[HEALING ART PRIMER(E)]<<]
The proficiency of your passive skill - external arts has been increased by 0.01%!
"It took me three full hours just to grasp the basics of this profound art," Ji Wuye mused aloud, a satisfied smile spreading across his lips. "So this is the true depth of the renowned Healing Art Primer."
His thoughts turned to the legendary figure who had achieved mastery through this path, forever altering the realm's understanding of such esoteric abilities.
"Now, onto the Cloudsoaring Steps..." This was entirely new territory for Ji Wuye - an unfamiliar art shrouded in mystery based on its intriguing name and brief description alone.
From what he could glean, it seemed to focus on enhanced movement, running and evasion techniques.
Standing once more in the now abandoned courtyard, Ji Wuye allowed the fragmented knowledge of the Cloudsoaring Steps to coalesce within his mind's eye.
Unlike the proven, tangible foundations of the Healing Art Primer, this new art felt ephemeral, ambiguous...full of untapped potential.
"The first stage, Earth Steps, involves sinking Qi into the meridians of the feet, enhancing balance and stability," he recounted, the information surfacing from the fog of his subconscious.
"The initial training revolves around stance switching to bolster stability, groundedness and overall body balance."
With those words, Ji Wuye closed his eyes once more, clearly visualizing the fundamental stances flowing through his mind's eye.
Slowly, fluidly, he began shifting his body through the ancient forms. For over an hour, he transitioned between the firm, rooted horse stance and the deceptively simple yet precisely controlled empty stance.
"With each shift, I can feel myself becoming more grounded, more centered," he muttered under his baited breath, keenly aware of the changes rippling through his Qi flow with each controlled movement.
"My Qi circulates smoothly, stabilizing my core...anchoring me to the earth."
A look of pure, unbridled excitement lit up Ji Wuye's face as he seamlessly flowed into another profound stance, fully immersing himself in the profound study of this new art of movement and evasion.
After mastering the foundational stances, Ji Wuye took several deep, centering breaths - his chest rising and falling with deliberate control.
Having internalized the anchoring principles of the Earth Steps, it was time to progress his training further along the path of the Cloudsoaring art.
"The second training involves footwork patterns..." he murmured, eyes tracing the floor pattern across the abandoned courtyard floor.
Without hesitation, Ji Wuye began meticulously moving through the patterns, he flowed with a preternatural grace from one seamless transition to the next, rotating through a myriad of geometric shapes and angles.
At first, his movements were measured and slow - cautious yet precise. But as the rhythmic routine took hold, Ji Wuye's pace steadily quickened.
His footwork became more dynamic, more aggressive, feet blurring through the intricate forms as he pushed himself from one grueling pattern to the next without pause.
For fifteen minutes, he danced along the razor's edge of the invisible grid - his entire world condensed into the singular focus ofomplete body control and awareness.
Only when he finally stilled did Ji Wuye become aware of the tremors rippling through his calves and thighs, the built-up lactic acid searing through his over-taxed muscles.
Glistening beads of sweat traced sinewy paths down his forehead as he wiped them away with the back of his hand. "It appears my intuition was correct about the training's intensity," he remarked with a breathless chuckle of self-satisfaction.
Each meticulously placed step, each of focus and Qi control dedicated to avoiding the intersecting lines, had fundamentally rewired his meridians and kinetic potential.
"Every step I take is controlled and yet weightless...unfettered. I can feel it stirring - the awakening energies along the meridian pathways of my feet."
As Ji Wuye raised his gaze towards the pre-dawn sky, he noticed the first few rosy tendrils of sunlight cresting the horizon - herald's of the new day's imminent arrival. In that tranquil moment of transition, a flicker of recollection surfaced from his subconscious.
"Ah...today is the day, isn't it?" The words carried a sibylline weight, hinting at some greatly anticipated event. "The day when 'she' will finally unleash her true potential?"
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