The Laws of Cultivation: Qi = MC^2

I walked towards Ash, petting the giant wolf on his head. I could feel the Gu pulsing inside of him. It was shallower now, his ties to the earth and the energy of death weakening as he spent more and more time above the surface. There was no danger of Ash losing his abilities, but I could tell that his spirit was growing weaker, albeit very slowly.

I didn’t need to speak; I simply sent my words to the wolf’s mind, my intent conveying itself to him.

Ash looked up at me, dark eyes showing trust. I had seen the same look before, from Zhang, Labby, and others who I cared so much for. It filled my heart every time and made my back heavy from the burden of it.

“Change is natural. With you, we change as well,” Ash spoke, his words resonating through my mind. It was hard to describe what the bond between a spirit and a human felt like. But if I had to put it into words, it was akin to a thread made out of love and empathy that both sides extended forward and bound together to create a single rope. And the more time passed, the tighter this bond became. We all share the same thing with people, but with spirits, it is a physical, palpable thing. Like a limb for your spirit and heart, the loss of which would hollow someone out.

Even now, occasionally, I still remembered what it felt like to have briefly lost my bond with Labby when she had gotten hurt. It was hard to put into words. Nothing was more terrifying than it. Nothing hurt more. And with each new bond I forged, the things that I could lose grew. And the fear in my heart did along with it.

I let all these emotions flow through, my fear and insecurity that I’d tried hard to hide. In this moment, I let them flow through our bond, towards Ash. And the wolf accepted it all. Accepted my fear, my flaws, and my mistakes, and somehow, instead of losing the trust I had seen in those eyes, they grew stronger.

“We are not afraid,” Ash said, stepping back before he glanced down at the wolf pups hiding behind him. Unlike him, they were weaker. Though this place provided a sanctuary, it would not last forever.

Ash looked back up at me, and I understood immediately. Just like me, he too had things to lose and things to protect. I clenched my fist, grasping onto that fear, making sure it never went away. The day I stop being afraid of losing them will be the day I will lose myself.

“Alright,” I said, preparing myself as I took a deep breath in.

I sat down on the ground, crossing my legs. Ash sat down as well, and together the two of us began to focus on our shared bond. Chi pulsed in my core, and Gu pulsed in Ash’s. I let our spirits grow closer, as Ash’s spirit began to become clear in my mind. I felt the miasma pulsing. My spirit began to accept the Gu within itself, drawing more and more of it from Ash. I felt slightly alarmed as I tried to slow down the draw of Gu within me, but the energies continued to flow, draining Ash.

I knew that if this continued, Ash would be heavily weakened, and the changes I sought would not occur. Focused my mind, letting the first Law resonate within my spirit. The Golden ring carrying the first Law shone in my soul as the Chi within me broke down into Qi and Gu, flowing and resonating, waiting to be let go to annihilate each other in destruction. I held that state, letting the Qi and Gu both flow back into Ash. The wolf did not even whimper, though I could feel the Qi burning his body from the inside. White flames began to rise from Ash's body, and I almost stopped the process. But the willpower I sensed from the wolf helped me as I continued.

I drew upon the second Law, feeling it rise alongside the first. I had not tried to draw two of the laws together before. I could feel my spirit straining, as if stretching itself beyond its limits. I continued, undeterred, as I called upon the genesis of Chi and the duality of Chi, feeling the two laws resonating with each other in harmony. The pulses from the two sent ripples across my soul. My spirit shook, the Chi around me vibrating faster and faster. The world began to tremble as I let the two laws reach outwards to Ash and into his spirit.

I felt the laws settle within Ash's body, the flames around him growing more intense. I could hear metallic ringing in my ears, only to realize the sound was not coming from my mind, but instead from the shaking of my soul, vibrating the Chi around me in a similar manner. Like two intersecting forces that added onto each other, the two laws formed ripples that threatened to tear my soul. I embraced the resonance of the two as I imparted them upon Ash.

The world shivered around me. I could feel the tree within my soul trembling. It manifested itself around the cave before a leaf broke off, flowing into Ash’s body.

Silver flames engulfed the wolf, torrents of Qi swirling around him as Ash began to change. I felt the rising torrents of energy, the resonance in my spirit growing stronger and stronger as the cave around me began to shake from its influence. I could feel my spirit stretching, the pain starting to break my resistance.

The two laws shivered and shook, starting to meld into one. For a brief moment, I forgot everything, simply marveling at the intersection as I caught a glimpse of something greater hanging in front of me. Then the vision shattered as I felt my spirit cave. The Qi rushed back at me in a powerful backlash, shaking my spirit.

I coughed up blood, bending over as my body heaved from the energy. The flames vanished from around Ash, the wolf collapsing as well.

Yan rushed next to me, holding my shoulder as she looked on in panic. “Heavens! Lu Jie - are you alright?” she asked, holding me up as I gathered myself. Slowly regaining control, I wiped the blood from my mouth, feeling its iron on my tongue.

“I’m fine. The technique just failed and sent a backlash to my spirit,” I replied, turning towards Ash and walking closer. I put my hand on the wolf as he rose; he was injured as well, but it was light.

“I am sorry about that, Ash. I should have tested it more before trying,” I said, brushing his fur.

The wolf shook his head. “No. We are powerful. The others would not bear it. It is our task, to aid you in your discovery.”

I nodded at the wolf’s words, knowing he was right.

“Thanks for having me, Yan. Take care of Ash and the others. I’m going to head back now,” I said, standing up.

Yan gave me a nod before looking down hesitantly and adding, “Please take care of yourself as well.”

I smiled at her words. “I will,” I said, before stepping out.

***

Returning to the sect, I found myself seated in the spirit herb garden. On my way back, my mind had been replaying the sensation I had felt when trying to channel both laws at once. The resonance and the power of it, and the glimpse of something more that I had seen when the two had come together. Yet, I was clearly missing something.

I looked around myself, noticing the various spirit beasts roaming the gardens. By my orders, I had allowed them entry, and many of the spirit beasts from around Taizhou had followed me here. I could feel their spirits; they were connected to me as well, even if not as strongly as my own spirits were.

But somehow, unlike the mortals, it was harder to try and nudge them to the Path of Chi. My mind went back to the tribulation and how Lord Zhou had been unable to alter his Path because of the weight of it. There was an instinctual understanding within me that the further along someone was in their Path, the harder it was for them to change it to become something new. And unlike a cultivator, spirit and demonic beasts were both tied to Qi and Gu as part of their very nature. I had always known that the further a cultivator progressed upon their Path, the more like a spirit they became, and it was evident with Lord Zhou and the others that this was true.

But despite this, Labby had changed. Her Qi had altered. Was that because she had already altered her nature once? Or was it for some other reason I did not truly understand?

I scratched my head, feeling frustrated to be left with only questions once more.

“You look worried, boy,” the old man’s voice came from behind me.

I turned in surprise, standing up as I bowed my head. “Master, I did not sense you coming,” I said.

“Most people do not. This old man has a feeble presence,” he said.

I held back a snort. I knew well enough how strong the old man was. If people did not sense him coming, it only showcased his mastery over his own Qi.

“You did not answer me, Lu Jie. What is worrying you?”

“Well, I am trying to find a way to alter the Path of others. No, not just that. I’m trying to find a way to change their very nature. But so far, I have been unable to. I tried, and I could feel it working, but something held me back, and I don’t understand what.”

“It seems to me that you are trying to force something to change when instead, you should be asking what is preventing it from doing so on its own? The nature of a living thing is hard to alter, yet also easy. All it needs is the right path to follow. And like a river, our spirits will flow into those paths with ease.”

I frowned. “I’m not sure I understand.”

“It means that you must change not only from the inside but also the outside. But as you are right now, your spirit is too weak. The things you wish to achieve are beyond your capabilities, and they twist your spirit. You must first stabilize it,” the old man said.

“And how do I do that?” I asked.

The old man smiled. “Come, I will teach you. It has been some time since our last lesson.”

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