“Can you wait?”
[What? Why are you still waiting? Your answers and riches are just a formality away! Do not hesitate and greet me, fated Disciple!]
But at little Levis's denial of an immediate answer, the voice immediately became a tad frantic, as though not having anticipated such an answer from the small child.
“Eh---! This--. Well, this is what Grandpa had told me. "If someone offers you something that sounds too good, you should wait and-", "wait and see", no, "investigate"! Right, I need to look, for---, for--, for-, for---------?”
[For what? What to examine? Have you ever met a more sincere and forthright person as myself?]
"---."
“I have still to see your face. For all I know, you might be a ghost or a devil, that lives in my head.”
[That---!]
[Aha---, ha--, aha-, ha! It seems that even you do not have much success, but at least he is not dumb so as to trust anyone at first glance. And so I say, enough with this bullshit!!!]
[---.]
[Kid! You do not need to believe everything this idiot is saying. But it is true, that we have saved you, to be more precise, you died, and well, if I am to be accurate, we killed you, and then we saved you, by bringing you back to life. After all, if all we had needed was a mortal, we could have grabbed any random human, but what I had required at that precise moment was someone willing to live despite dying, and you have just so happened to be at the perfect time, and perfect place. The so-called "fate" of the idiot is nothing more than me selecting you by random chance, so do not consider yourself as anything special, for it is just randomness.]
[------.]
[The only remarkable thing is what I had done to you, and my research, not the idiot's action. So now greet me, my first and ever conclusive exper---, Disciple!!!]
[---------.]
[Because whether you like it or not, you are going to be stuck with me and the idiot, for most of your entire life, with no possibility to escape, as your time and life will be latched by me forever!!!! You, who is now the possessor of the Perfect Cultivation Physique, which I have researched, developed and created throughout my life, since the moment I had come to be.]
However, once the stern and to-the-point voice began to speak, little Levis felt his ears ring, body shake and mind rumble in pain, as with his both of his hands over his ears, the little boy fell down on the ground, kneeling, since the voice in his head was far too overbearing for him.
But all came to a stop once the words "Perfect Cultivation Physique" came to be spoken by the voice, as from that moment onwards, the tone became mellower, which calmed and soothed him to the point where he could not be sure if the pain from a moment ago was a delusion or a trick of his memories.
“Perfect Cultivation Physique!? What is that?”
[Yes, or no? Tsk---, tsk--, tsk-! Good question or should I say diversion? Well now wait for a moment, sit yourself down and I will explain it to you, since the name is not as it seems.]
“What? What do you mean by that?”
As told, little Levis sat himself down, so as to not make the voice shout out once more, while in contrast, he knew that the voice was once again preparing his torrent of words, which had many terms that he did not and could not understand, for the foreign words had expressions and meanings of which he was unfamiliar with.
[Ahem---, ahem--, ahem-, ahem! Cultivation, well to begin with, cultivation is about becoming the best version of yourself, a faster, stronger and more intelligent version of what you are at the moment. No different than what you are doing now, as you are growing to become an adult. This is, well, in all honesty, this is what all living things strive to achieve. But the only difference is that cultivation is all about running away from death, from ageing and from the degradation of the body and mind, while achieving in the simplest of terms Immortality and the leisure of a life without troubles and dangers.]
[---.]
[To clarify with an example---, mortals and their Gods. The prayers and devotion that you and they all might do, it is not so as to just look up to gods to venerate and beseech them with wishes. Because, in the deepest part of your mind, every living thing, aspires to become a God, just like they themselves are. Fortunately for you all, cultivation is all about becoming the idol in your mind, the God to whom you pray and envy all day and all night. However do not get it twisted, because the reality and expectations of what you have probably envisioned, will be very different from what you are going to see and experience. For you will have to be ready to fail and try again. Fail and rise up one more time. Fail and then bash yourself against the problem in front of you, until you resolve it by hook or by crook. For if you fail once, and do not rise up to your feet, then you will indeed be a disappointment and failure.]
[---!]
[And did I say Perfect Cultivation Physique? Well, as I mentioned before, I did not really name it before today, for I do not enjoy wasting time with meaningless words, although, this anointment should say a lot about what your body has evolved into, what it is in this moment. However, in essence, your body had simply become into the format and manner of what I have theorized it would be, at the end stages of a normal cultivator, higher than my true self.]
"---?"
[Ahem---! This could be said to be the best starting point that every living being would want to have. For as you will cultivate, bottleneck and cultivation stages will not exist in the standard form which everyone else has. Because all you will need to do, is to absorb energy continuously, and you will eventually become the most powerful being in the universe. Well---, that if I am correct in my supposition.]
"What was that?"
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
"Ahem!!! Ahem! Nothing, nothing! After all! If cultivation is all about getting more power, why should there be bottlenecks? Accumulate more and more energy, until you can brute force your way through every single obstacle, in a clever and simple manner, that is. It may sound dumb, after all, it is just accumulating energy, but in all the complicated reasoning and research I have done, the conclusion is that the stupid and idiotic path may be the right---, no, I should say, the most sturdy and clear one. Mhmmm----, do you understand me?]
"Not really---, but I can guess--, more or less-, about what you are trying to convey."
[Of Course not. Well---! No need to think too much about it, as you have yet to enter the cultivation world, so the concept of stages and ranks and even energy is better to leave to others to explain to you. As of right now, I want you to immediately start cultivating, using my approach and process, so as to prove once and for all, that I am superior in all forms and aspects to the little Star bastard.]
"---."
"---."
“Ehmm---, so--, cultivation-, how do I do that?”
With the unending torrent of words concluded, little Levis, who at this moment was feeling his head a tad muddled and confused, had a very foolish and contesting countenance on himself, for at the end of everything, he had yet to understand what the voice was truly trying to convey, in his river of words that were too much for him to follow.
[How do you cultivate? Did you not say that it felt good when you breathed? Well---, that is the "cultivation", I was talking about. Or more precisely, the feeling that you get from your cells, as they are immersed in energy.]
“Breathing? Breathing is cultivation?”
[Indeed. Although, this manner can be said to be flawed and not really suitable for you. But before we initiate, I have to remind you that up till now, you have constantly fallen into unconsciousness, three times in a row, since your body was still adjusting itself, and it appears that your consciousness had merged with your cells in their unification. And now, all that you miss is the energy needed to fill your cells. That is why simply breathing will not suffice to replenish every single cell, as the energy you need to refill your whole body stands at a high bar.]
“Body? Consciousness, energy?! What are those?!!!”
Yet while trying to get more clarifications, so as to have his doubts answered, little Levis was becoming more and more confused, as the number of unfamiliar words was increasing by the moment, which was making him incredibly light-headed.
[Right, I need to offer you a general view of what cultivation entails. Ahem---, in simpler terms, all you should understand is that cultivation is divided into three main parts, which can be said to be even more bizarre when taking into account the main species. For example, intelligent humanoids, who are born with a high and strong consciousness of self. Animals and their variety of types, which lack in consciousness, but make up with their strong and peculiar bodies. Then there is the plant life which is an even more strange and weird kind of life form, that is filled with energy, but lacks a conscious self.]
[Stonehead! You are deviating from the point of your explanation!]
But as little Levis was expecting to find a normal explanation, the voice began to make a detour once again, making him wonder if the voice could really keep a straight argument, for he was at a loss, by several utterances behind.
[Our disciple is lost again! Are you sure you are better than me at explaining things? Because it seems that you are losing yourself.]
[You idiot stay away, I know that already. But it is true I veered a bit. Ahem---, So as I was saying before! Body, Consciousness and Energy, the simplest version. You need a body to have a mind, which is logical, and you need your consciousness to set your body into stealing the energy from your surroundings, which in turn you will form what cultivators call “dantian”. And then, you can call yourself a cultivator, after which you can begin your journey as a cultivator.]
“Dantian? Cultivator?!”
But as little Levis's face was brightening for he was finally beginning to understand the voice, his eyelid started to twitch at the word "Dantian", at which point he was lost once more, as he was almost sure, that the voice was most likely akin to those people that his grandfather had called scammers, which were always promising good thing after a good thing, but then they were always adding something new to confuse the situation even more, or so he was remembering his grandfather had told him, even as at this moment he was not absolutely certain, yet he was more inclined to trust in the words of the grumpy old man who had lectured him when he was young, than the so-called Master in his head.
[The dantian is the form which the energy will take, as you will continue to amass more and more of said "energy", if you were an ordinary cultivator. It usually forms under your heart, with tendrils that follow your heart's arteries and veins, so as to enhance your body and help you grow an even stronger and tougher consciousness while you gather more energy. This is essentially the equilibrium which every cultivator is required to follow in order to advance, however, bottlenecks and mental instability or a wounded body can cripple or stop one from advancing, worse still, ruin your cultivation as a whole or make it decay from the peak stage and rank. That is why, I have researched my whole life for the perfect cultivation procedure and approach to solve said problems. To which solution---, is your current body!!! A perfect fusion between all three, well---, for now only between your body and mind, as you still have not gathered enough energy, for you still have to commence your first session, and understand the wondrous and marvellous "gift", that I have given you with my life's research!]
"---."
“So, what you're saying is that I need to breathe in the air---, to get energy--, and-, form a dantian?!”
[No---! I mean yes, well not exactly, for there is a second option to your problem, and that is your whole body, which is in partial terms a dantian and a mind at the same time. And all you have to do, is to initiate your energy absorption, and then let begin the cycle of enhancing your very being.]
"---------."
[Sigh---! This is truly taking a lot to explain. But no problem, for if you have not understood what I had just said to you now, I will just have to explain it to you once more, in a future lesson! But for now, focus---! Focus on your body. Use your mind, your consciousness to feel your own unknown body! And tell me what you sense and what you understand!!!]
"---!"
"Mmm---, I will try."
While he was still lost and confused, little Levis who at this point was feeling as though his head was about to explode, had no other choice but to accommodate the voice which appeared to be entering into a frenzy at his own words.
[Disciple, feel it, do not overthink it. If you listen to this smart ass, you will probably never arrive at what he is trying to say, as he easily forgets, the fact that not everybody can understand his stone-head words, as he himself does. So feel it as an instinct, as though you are on a stroll, pace yourself, listen to your heart beating and the blood flowing.]
But while trying to focus and having no success, the lenient and easy-going voice came to interfere, giving him a more primal and close approach than the second, one he could more easily understand for some weird reason.
But as he was doing as per what the voice was saying, with eyes closed and his focus on himself, the beating of his heart became more and more prominent, which was followed by the flowing of his blood from the heart, in and out, out and in, as information about his own body was constantly coming to his mind.
However, as the information was growing and growing, the overview of his body, came to be manifested in his mind as a cloud-like existence, made by billions upon billions of pieces, which came to form his body, superposing and adhering, one over another and one whit the other, to in the end form his very being.
“This---! What is this?!!!”
And as his first introspective inspection was finished, drops of sweat fell from his forehead, as a stunned and shocked expression was stuck on his face, as though something extremely shocking had just transpired before his own very eyes.
[Aha---, aha--, aha-, aha!!! Impressive---, right kid? Not even Emperor stage practitioners can do such deep introspection of their own bodies, as you can do at this moment. Not to mention you are still technically a normal mortal, well---, a brand new type of mortal. Aha---, ha---, aha-, ha!!! Now who can say I was wrong? Who---, who can say it? Mmmm---------!? I do not remember it. Anyway, how do you feel?]
"Blaaargh!!!''
“As though I have just pulled my innards out.”
"Blaaargh!!!''
And just as the high-spirited voice which seemed unable of stopping its words was demanding some feedback from little Levis, the sound of gagging came from him, as with a white pale face, he began to puke whatever he had left in his near-empty stomach.
[Well, the first try is always going to be challenging, so do not mind this little inconvenience.]
[You sure are talking big, as though it is of no great importance when our disciple looks on the verge of passing out at any moment. And---, there he goes.]
[What? Kid! Hey kid, hold on! I am not done yet!!!]
“Thump!”
Yet as the voice came to speak out of concern for him, little Levis began to wobble and then fall on his back, while in the process of doing so, losing consciousness, as a result of his corporeal introspection, which had brought too much information to his immature mind that could not handle such amount of forced knowledge.
[Dam it, kid! Our epic adventure is sure to go south, from the very beginnin---.]