Realms of Body Cultivation
Body Cultivation Realms (Prana)
1. Body Reforging Realm
2. Blood Ignition Realm
3. Divine Vein Carving Realm
4. Acupoint Opening Realm
5. Acupoint Tempering Realm
6. Rune Proliferation/Genesis Realm
7. Mystic Circuit Realm
8. Life Flame Realm
9. Integration Body Realm
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After their meal, Astrid and Doctor Bohn bid Miss Sunday farewell. Bohn paid 10 low-spirit stones for the current meal and deliveries for the next three months or however long it would last. Before they left, he had a private conversation with Miss Sunday, one that Astrid wasn’t privy to.
Once they were outside, Astrid asked, “That was a spirit stone, right? How much did that meal cost?”
Bohn replied, “It was two lowest-grade spirit stones for my share and one for yours. That’s about 300 gold or 30,000 copper.”
“What?! That expensive? But that was just one spirit stone,” Astrid exclaimed in shock.
Bohn smiled. “Oh, I’ll tell you later. It might seem expensive for cultivators below the foundation forging realm, but for those above it, it’s a small amount. I can’t even imagine how wealthy your master must be.”
“Fine. Answer this.” She paused, then continued, “Can you give me a basic idea of what cultivation is? Or rather, how would you explain it to someone encountering it for the first time? Whatever I do know is from hearing people talk, so no actual information.” Astrid asked, clearly curious.
“We’ll talk about that when we get back to my place,” Bohn responded.
“Fine!” Astrid grumbled, not pleased with having to wait.
“Oh, and I talked to Miss Sunday about your food situation,” Bohn added. “You’ll have a steady supply of meals without having to go there every time. That was what the 10 spirit stones were for.”
“But why? It won’t be as good back at the pavilion—it’ll all be cold!” Astrid complained.
Bohn sighed. “You’re quite the handful, you know that? Especially since you don’t even know the basics yet.”
Annoyed, Astrid thought to herself, ‘This was kind of fun, though. I feel better than I have in a long time. I could’ve probably eaten more. Whatever this innate divine strength nonsense is, it’s expensive as hell. I just hope I don’t end up indebted to Lys. She seems like the type who wouldn’t let me renege on debts. Whatever, she abandoned me in a day. I’ll consider these meals compensation until she explains herself.’
Without further discussion, Bohn picked up Astrid—who had grown accustomed to being carried by now—and sped through the streets at breakneck speed. They entered the Medical Pavilion through a side entrance and quickly ascended the mountain, arriving at Bohn’s residence in no time.
As they arrived, Astrid had a grumpy face and looked genuinely annoyed. She was frustrated with the absurdity of this new world and the fact that nothing made sense anymore. She resented being pushed into this unfamiliar place, her opinions tainted by memories of the world she came from. She was truly and utterly irritated. No one explained things clearly to her, and just when she thought she'd finally become a true cultivator with a master, she was abandoned in a single day with a doctor. Even if the doctor was decent, it still felt unjust to her.
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When they entered Bohn’s residence, he motioned for her to sit down in a chair in the living room, where he likely entertained guests. “I know you're looking for answers. I'll give them to you,” Bohn said.
He continued, “So, as you know, I’m Doctor Bohn. I’m a core formation energy cultivator and a divine vein carving realm body cultivator. Your master, Elder Lys of the Silver Star Sect, hired me to aid in your recovery because I’m one of the best at dealing with situations like yours.”
“You mean, there are others?” Astrid asked.
“Of course there are. You’re not the first one, but Lys has never left before. Usually, her disciples are already cultivators, not mortals like you.”
“Huh, why make the distinction? Aren’t we just people?”
“Foolish child,” Bohn scolded lightly, “you don’t understand the immensity of heaven and earth. There’s a lot you’re unaware of because of your upbringing. Normally, this would be your master’s job to explain, but she had urgent business at the Silver Star Sect, so she had to leave.”
“Oh, so she didn’t just dump me here, then?”
“Of course not. A talent like yours should be supported as much as possible.”
“You mean I’m talented?” Astrid asked, surprised.
“For most humans, body cultivation is usually an auxiliary path due to talent limitations. Anyone can start body cultivation, but for most, it’s a dead end if they do it haphazardly.”
“Uh...”
“Let me finish!” Bohn interrupted, his voice growing slightly impatient, which made Astrid fall silent. “This place we live in is the Eastern Continent. There are four other continents—one for each cardinal direction and a central one, making five. The Silver Star Sect has a presence on both the central and eastern continents, which is why it’s a hegemonic sect here. Elder Lys is a powerhouse on this continent, though I suspect... never mind.”
He paused briefly before continuing, “The sect you’ll be joining is a powerful one. Your master, Elder Lys, isn’t purely a body cultivator, but she’s gone far enough down that path to gain significant combat prowess. Someone like that keeps their promises, so don’t think anything negative about her. Got it?”
Astrid whispered, “Okay.”
“Now, let’s talk about cultivation,” Bohn said. “Cultivation is a method discovered to strengthen ourselves. When humans were faced with beasts that could continue growing stronger as long as they stayed alive, people tried to imitate them and eventually came into contact with spirit energy. They found that they could enhance themselves using it.”
After a pause, he went on, “From that discovery, two major paths emerged: the path of energy cultivation and the path of body cultivation. They also discovered that someone’s potential in energy cultivation is usually fixed and can’t be changed without a large cost. That’s how cultivation realms and techniques were developed. Got all that?”
“I guess so,” Astrid responded, still trying to wrap her head around it.
Bohn nodded. “By refining spirit energy, we obtain Ki for energy cultivation and Prana for body cultivation. Ki is more prevalent because humans, as a species, have limited talent for body cultivation or even energy cultivation. However, due to our large population, talents for energy cultivation are born. Body cultivation talents are far rarer, and creating powerhouses in that path is even harder, as body cultivation depends greatly on effort. Unlike energy cultivation, where having a great technique can take you far.”
Astrid nodded, signaling her understanding.
“Now, body cultivation allows you to reforge your body, surpassing your species’ natural limitations. This isn’t the same as strengthening your body through energy cultivation. Prana is closely tied to lifeforce, allowing one to reforge their body. Your body will only start generating Prana after you reach the peak of body reforging—the first realm of body cultivation. But to even step into this realm, you need to push your body to its limits. For you, those limits are far higher due to your innate divine strength, meaning your strength will increase dramatically compared to others as you advance.”
“Oh...” Astrid muttered, processing the information.
“Your innate divine strength may seem useless to most sects, but the Silver Star Sect has a small number of body cultivators who have reached quite a high realm, including your own master, among them is one of the greatest talents on this continent. They have excellent body cultivation manuals as well. Though I’d advise you to choose something from your master’s private collection. Don’t get too attached to her help or the sect, though. Rely on yourself and treat this as a debt you’ll eventually repay.”
“I’ll do that. But what are realms? I’ve heard of body tempering and energy refinement realms. Are they the same as body reforging? Is body refining similar to body reforging?”
Bohn sighed, realizing that this was going to be a very long conversation.