"Why is Goguryeo threatening them? Didn't the Khitan leave Liaodong and leave the territory to them? Although the Khitan's relocation inland seems to have increased the strength of the Central Plains," Qin Mu asked curiously.
"The Khitans, located north of Goguryeo, not only blocked the wolf tribes but also other tribes like the porcupines. If they left, the Goguryeo people would face the beast tribes directly, so Goguryeo certainly didn't want them to leave."
The Goguryeo people declared that if the Khitans dared to leave, they would launch an attack. Migration is extremely troublesome, involving children and mothers; if the Goguryeo people attacked at this time, the Khitans would suffer heavy losses, therefore they dared not move,” Qin Qiong explained.
"So that's how it is!"
"Liaodong is one of the weakest areas in the imperial court's power. This time, the Qin family is willing to lend a helping hand, which makes things much simpler. You can just wait here without worry."
“Okay, I’ll take this opportunity to calm down and study for a while,” Qin Mu nodded in agreement.
"Yes, don't leave the city unless necessary, and it's best if you don't even leave the Qin family compound," Qin Qiong instructed.
"Um!"
"Don't worry, I'll leave two people to protect you," Luo Cheng said.
The main reason was that Qin Qiong was traveling light this time, with only a few people, mostly ordinary soldiers, so Luo Cheng took on the task of protecting Qin Mu.
"I can't teach you about cultivation. Just practice according to the tradition. After we return to Chang'an, I'll find you a Confucian teacher."
"I see!"
"Go and rest, you must be tired today."
"Okay, Dad, you and Uncle should get some rest too," Qin Mu said, getting up.
We were supposed to eat lunch in the late afternoon, and after that we went back to Houguan, the sun was already almost setting.
I must say, since I started cultivating, the weather has had a much smaller impact on me. In the past, I probably would have needed to turn on the air conditioner to beat the sun. Now it feels about the same as February, April, or August.
Back in his room, since he would be staying at the Qin family's house for a while longer, he decided to begin practicing the Ghost Valley School's techniques.
He took out the manual again and read it through to make sure nothing was missed before he began preparations. The first step was to temper his physical body with medicinal herbs, because the Guigu School emphasized the balance of Yin and Yang and the Five Elements, cultivating both internal and external strengths.
A large tub was brought over; it was the same tub the Qin family had prepared for their female guests to bathe in. It was half-filled with water. Then, seven or eight bottles were taken out, and following instructions, the pills were crushed and dissolved in the tub. Qin Mu then stripped naked and crawled inside, letting the liquid cover his entire body, leaving only his nose and eyes exposed.
Closing his eyes, Qin Mu used his divine sense to perceive the spiritual energy in the air. In the past, cultivation involved consciously channeling one's righteous energy, but now the difference was that he had to seek out spiritual energy. Ignoring the righteous energy, Qin Mu then discovered that there were multicolored specks of light in the air within his divine sense. He guessed that in the past, because he only activated the righteous energy, he was attracted by its white color and neglected the others.
Actually, this is because Qin Mu's cultivation time is short. He mainly cultivates his righteous energy through reading. He only recently started actively using righteous energy to refine his body. Moreover, he wants to let the righteous energy flow through his capillaries to cleanse his physical body. Therefore, he mainly focuses his mental energy on himself and doesn't pay attention to the outside world. After all, some of the righteous energy will automatically enter his body as he cultivates.
Sensing the tiny specks of light in the air, Qin Mu silently activated the Beast Spinning Technique, drawing spiritual energy into his body.
As he circulated his cultivation technique, the spiritual energy from the outside world, within his consciousness, was like delicious food suspended in the air, rushing towards Qin Mu in an instant, like water flowing into a cave, entering his body through his nose and following the air in a flash.
With Qin Mu's long, drawn-out breaths, the waste gas was expelled, and the spiritual energy circulated along the cultivation technique, flowing directly into his dantian. If an outsider were to observe with their divine sense, they would see Qin Mu swallowing spiritual energy like a whale, drawing it in with the air and then expelling the waste gas; the air, like a slowly flowing stream of water, continuously carried the spiritual energy closer to him with each breath.
Qin Mu was startled during this cultivation practice, almost interrupting the flow of the technique. He then realized that there were cultivation methods that could increase spiritual energy so powerfully, countless times faster than his own method of using his divine sense to guide and attract the vast energy within his body. At the same time, he also learned that the vast energy was just one type of spiritual energy in the world.
However, he also admired the Confucian ancestors. Even without cultivation methods, one could attract external spiritual energy simply by circulating one's own righteous qi. Furthermore, reading could also cultivate righteous qi, which was undoubtedly very simple and safe, although it was much slower than actively absorbing spiritual energy through cultivation techniques. Each method had its advantages and disadvantages.
However, this cultivation method that allows for rapid absorption of spiritual energy is even more appealing.
Calming his mind, Qin Mu silently circulated his cultivation technique, drawing spiritual energy into his body. As the spiritual energy entered his body, the medicine in the bucket began to take effect, continuously seeping into his body from the water. This sensation was very intense; his entire body felt itchy, somewhat like his skin had been stained with chili peppers.
However, the medicinal power of the herbs was clearly incomparable to that of chili peppers, and the discomfort was far greater. Qin Mu tried his best to ignore the sensations in his body, concentrating his energy to carefully sense the spiritual energy.
Empty, or rather, tranquil, Qin Mu's heart calmed down completely. He felt as if he had fallen asleep in the air, and his spirit was also scattered. There was no cultivation, no medicinal bath, just quietly feeling the flow of air.
He didn't know how much time had passed when Qin Mu noticed the air no longer flowed in one direction, but began to scatter erratically, moving up and down, left and right, without any discernible pattern. Then he felt a slight bloating in his lower abdomen, and with a jolt, he "woke up."
Of course! He didn't wake up; rather, his consciousness returned to his body. Only then did he realize that his Qi Hai acupoint was already filled with spiritual energy, and he could no longer absorb even a trace of it.
He knew that the first stage was complete. Both the Fierce Beast Revolving Circle Method and the Five Dragons Prospering Divine Method absorbed spiritual energy through the nine orifices. However, the Fierce Beast Revolving Circle Method required the absorbed spiritual energy to open up the twelve meridians of the human body, achieving internal and external connection, and making the entire body perfectly round and unified.
The most difficult part is opening up the meridians. This doesn't mean creating a channel in the meridians, but rather treating the meridians as channels, allowing spiritual energy to continuously permeate them and become familiar with the spiritual energy. Eventually, the entire meridian becomes like a channel, allowing spiritual energy to flow freely through it. Only then is the process complete.
Qin Mu clearly felt that the medicinal properties in the water had stopped penetrating his body, and he knew the medicinal bath was over. So he opened his eyes and stood up from the tub. He found that the entire tub of water had become murky and had a faint foul smell.
Qin Mu hurriedly held his breath, quickly dried himself off, carried the bucket out of the room, and poured the dirty water under the tree outside.
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