Illusory Flow Art

Zhenya stood next to the tree in the center of the island, his body still sore, but he was determined. He focused on the task at hand, the new technique he had just read. Illusory Flow Art, a movement technique focused on speed and unpredictability.

He stepped into position, and with a deep breath, he tried imitating the technique. "Empty your mind and let your body guide you," he whispered, trying to empty his mind to let his body guide him. But after a while he stopped moving and stood completely still.

Letting the contents of the manual echo through his mind, he tried his best to not think of anything, empty his mind completely, but it wasn't working at all. Trying to imitate the movements of the manual for an hour straight.

He kept repeating the same movements, but he felt something was missing; the manual mentioned being unpredictable, like an illusion, but his own movements felt sluggish and predictable, the complete opposite of what he had to do.

So he sat down. "It's totally not working; what am I doing wrong?" puzzled, he had no choice but to start cultivating again. Because during cultivation he felt like he could reach that state of mind, the one the manual mentioned. 

Crossing his legs and straightening his back, he closed his eyes and let the qi enter his body, letting it saturate his flesh as described by the Boundless Void Secret Art. Repeating that same motion over and over for hours, he felt it; he was coming close to the void state that the Illusory manual mentioned.

The void state was a special kind of trance where the person would be able to be almost free of any thoughts or distractions, focusing only on the moment. As Zhenya kept repeating the same cycle, he was getting closer and closer to this state.

Absorb qi, let the flesh absorb it, rinse and repeat; Zhenya's mind kept becoming calmer and calmer, and then half an hour of this process, he finally achieved it. The void state.

It was almost as if he was on autopilot; he kept cultivating without wasting any time. Then he stood up and started performing the Illusory Flow Art.

This time, however, his body moved like an illusion. It looked like he had mastered the technique; his body kept moving according to the manual, leaving phantom images behind as he also used qi to strengthen his body.

After some time he just fell down, unconsciously. He had completely exhausted himself.

A while later he woke up, groggily looking around, then he kept turning his head from the left to the right. "How did I get here? And when did I fall asleep?" wondering aloud, he tried to stand up, but his legs weren't budging at all.

"What happened? I think I tried entering the state of mind mentioned in the Illusory Flow Art, and for that tried cultivating and then... huh, why can't I remember what happened after?" scratching his head awkwardly, he lay down flat on his back.

"It feels like I did enter the state of mind but then lost consciousness." He mumbled, as he looked around, and he saw footprints everywhere across the island.

"Did I do that? Did I try the movement technique while in that state?" Sighing, he felt helpless. "When I do enter the state, I lose consciousness, and when I don't, the technique feels out of reach..." He had no idea how to fix this problem. What should he do now?

"Ah," he exclaimed. "Maybe I can ask Solvara for advice when he comes back. Yeah, I'll do that."

"No point in dwelling on it now," Zhenya muttered as he looked at the branch he had broken off earlier. "I'll focus my practice on the Serene Sword Art while I wait for the test to start."

Slowly getting up, he grabbed the branch and started repeating the movements of the sword technique. Imagining an enemy, he kept on fighting it.

"Offense and defense are basically one and the same in this sword art. And the Tidal Slash can be used for both; you gotta keep an open mind when using this technique," he mumbled as he immersed himself in fighting his imaginary enemy. 

And just like that, time passed slowly from noon to evening; when he realized it was evening already, he stopped his practice. humming happily, he grabbed a couple more apples and ate them up swiftly.

"Phew, I'm totally full. Those apples are some of the best I ever had," he said as he made himself comfortable under the huge tree.

"I hope tomorrow is the test. It's not bad training peacefully like this, but I miss the others." muttering that he closed his eyes and fell asleep.

As the sun peeked through the tree branches, Zhenya woke up; he then sat cross-legged, letting the qi flow through his meridians. The qi kept moving smoother and smoother as he cultivated more, letting his flesh absorb as much qi as he could; he finished his cultivation.

Standing up, he saw Solvara standing in front of him. "Ohh... sorry, did I make you wait?" He mumbled, flustered.

"Hahaha, no, it's fine. It's good that you are cultivating diligently." Solvara said with a big smile. "Now, the test will start in a couple of hours. So if there is anything you're unsure of, you can ask questions now."

Hearing this, Zhenya's eyes lit up with excitement. He bounced on his toes, barely able to contain himself. Remembering his manners, he took a deep breath to calm down before asking, "About the Illusory Flow Art, I entered the mind state that's described in the manual, but when I enter it, I can't control it. Like I woke up totally exhausted with no idea what happened. Do you know how I can master it?" he asked, his eyes looking straight into Solvara's.

Solvara looked at him with some doubt in his eyes. "Did you really enter that state?" he probed, as entering this state is not easy. Especially as a young child, so he had to make sure.

"Yes, I'm sure I did!" Zhenya said confidently, straightening his back and puffing his chest out slightly, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. His eyes gleamed with certainty.

"Well, the thing is I cannot really help you with that. That state is different for everyone, and how to master it is also different." Solvara answered the little boy and saw his expression deflate from proud to sad. But he couldn't help him; if he gave wrong advice here, he might hinder the little boy's path forever.