Volume 4, Chapter 59 – Cycle

She continued by manifesting and refining the Hidden Tianguan Orifice, then had Bai Zhuqing imitate her again, only to discover that Bai Zhuqing could manifest and refine it as well. The efficiency was absurdly high.

I have the power of the golden pupils. I used that power to cast Illusory God upon the soul and took a shortcut, which is why I was this fast. Qing’er can’t take that kind of shortcut, yet she was only a hair slower than me?

Bai Xiang pondered this. When it came time to manifest and refine the Hidden Heart-Pool Orifice, she deliberately “cut off the connection” with her younger sister and gave her only verbal instruction, describing Immortal Venerable Jiuli’s insights into manifesting and refining that orifice and telling her to try imitating it again.

This time, Bai Zhuqing’s efficiency could no longer be described as merely plummeting. No matter how she tried, she simply could not do it.

Bai Xiang even made an exception and allowed her to press a hand to her chest, using that as a way to guide her.

But it still did not work.

Once the connection was broken, the qi trait fine-grained control lost its wonder. It could no longer sense any of the hidden orifices or vessels.

Yet as soon as Bai Xiang established the connection again, fine-grained control regained its miraculous effect and began simulating and copying her actions with astonishing efficiency.

Even with the added step of using a reference, the difference in efficiency should not have been this exaggerated…

Bai Xiang stared at the younger sister before her and sank into thought, wondering where exactly the difference lay.

Could the distinguishing factor be me?

Was it that fine-grained control only worked on me? Or was the ability like how ordinary people study Visualization Charts, needing a concrete reference before it could activate?

Once the thought came, she acted on it. Bai Xiang took out several scrolls and had Bai Zhuqing visualize them, comparing the efficiency of different kinds of visualization. In the end, she found that although fine-grained control clearly became more active whenever there was some outside reference object, only when that reference object was her, Bai Xiang, did the efficiency shoot straight up into the realm of the unreasonable.

Even with Bai Xiang’s state of mind, she found that result a little speechless.

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So it’s bound to me?

A person having crooked thoughts was one thing. She could still write that off as the influence of Illusory God and let it pass. But now she had discovered that even the awakened ability itself had crooked thoughts.

Bai Xiang shook her head, honestly not knowing what to say.

Still, although this was certainly rather absurd, if she really traced it back to the source, there was some logic to it.

Two points.

First, Bai Zhuqing’s process of entering the Dao had been completed entirely under Bai Xiang’s control and guidance. That may have caused her body to “remember” Bai Xiang, making it naturally closer to everything related to Bai Xiang.

Second, even Bai Xiang could not clearly explain the origin of qi traits. To trace it back, one would have to go all the way to the Daoist Five Dragons Method, to that idea that “all things are freely attested by the heart,” and all the way back to that “Daoist who thought not much time had passed and therefore believed he could live forever.”

Seen from that angle, the essence of a qi trait was some sort of manifestation of the Five Dragons method. What it reflected was indeed the thing each individual desired most deeply in the recesses of the heart.

But if that was how one understood it… then when Qing’er awakened this ability, she had been under the influence of Illusory God quite severely, hadn’t she?

Back then, what Qing’er desired most was certainly not just “things.” To say that she merely had a desire to control external objects would definitely be wrong.

She had probably wanted only to control me. It was the manifestation of a certain pathological mentality.

At that thought, Bai Xiang’s brows furrowed even more deeply.

Should she blame Bai Zhuqing for having such crooked thoughts?

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First, Illusory God had interfered. Second, what had offended her here was actually the ability, not so much Bai Zhuqing’s own conscious thoughts.

Forget it.

After thinking it over, Bai Xiang decided not to dwell on it.

Even if it had taken her as an exclusive, bound Visualization Chart, since the ability itself could provide such enormous help to Bai Zhuqing’s cultivation, there was no reason to discard it.

I’d much rather have you advance as fast as possible. That way the efficiency of Qi-Origin dual cultivation will rise along with it.

Looked at that way, Qing’er is the real furnace.

And so, several hours passed. By “feeling her way across the river by touching Bai Xiang,” Bai Zhuqing relied on visualizing the resonant waves of Bai Xiang’s Body-scape and followed her in excavating the three hidden orifices: the Hidden Dumen Orifice, the Hidden Tianguan Orifice, and the Hidden Heart-Pool Orifice.

The same went for the hidden vessels. She excavated and manifested the Heaven-Pillar Vessel, the Taiyin Void Lung Meridian, the Taiyin Void Heart Meridian, and the Taiyin Void Pericardium Meridian, four major meridians in all. Her body-cultivation progress leapt forward by an enormous amount.

But there were problems as well. Bai Zhuqing could not fully sense all three core orifices. Even trying with all her strength, she could only sense the Hidden Field Orifice, which governed the dantian Qi Sea. As for the Hidden Heart Orifice, which governed essence-blood, and the Hidden Spirit Orifice, which governed the soul, she understood absolutely nothing.

“For the time being, leave aside the Hidden Spirit Orifice. As for the other two, it would be best if they could be manifested and refined in parallel.” Bai Xiang offered her younger sister some advice. “Do not manifest them yet. This is still too early for you. The most important thing for you now is to strike while the iron is hot and thoroughly train all the manifest orifices and meridians in your body.”

Bai Zhuqing nodded. Even if she only half understood the finer details, she at least knew the principles that haste made waste and that pulling up seedlings only stunted them.

The surprise gains she had received today were already more than enough. If she gained anything further on top of this, she was genuinely afraid that the strength of the rest of her body would fail to keep up, and that uneven output would result. If that happened, then exerting herself only slightly at full strength might injure her, and her combat power would actually decrease.

So after another half hour passed, she used qi-force under Bai Xiang’s guidance to temper all the body’s orifices and meridians once through, just as Bai Xiang had said, in preparation for formally cultivating body-refining methods before long.

After that, the two of them stopped focusing on physical cultivation and began preparing to engage in dual cultivation on the Path of Qi.

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Following the usual procedure, Bai Zhuqing once again sent in a sword pellet. Everything seemed no different from before.

But the instant the qi sphere entered, Bai Xiang’s expression changed at once, and she almost let an involuntary sound escape her throat.

This…

Has the sensitivity of the dantian Qi Sea increased?

She turned wide-eyed toward her younger sister’s face and saw that although the girl’s eyes were shut, looking as though she were concentrating on controlling something, her eyelids kept trembling now and then, and her face was gradually turning red as well.

Clearly, this change was two-way.

Frowning slightly, Bai Xiang said nothing and simply endured it in silence.

Just as Bai Zhuqing was feeling novelty and extreme excitement, the little mist-sphere buried deep in Bai Xiang’s dantian Qi Sea was suddenly torn apart and disassembled by her violent Qi-Origin. Wrapped around some remnant qi-force, it condensed into a new mist-sphere which, with lightning speed, surged back along their tightly pressed lower abdomens and plunged in one rush into Bai Zhuqing’s Qi Sea.

“…Mmph!?”

Bai Zhuqing’s endurance was much poorer. Her eyes flew wide open, and she let out a soft sound at once.

Xiang’er’s qi…

This… it’s too violent. It’s even reached the point of pain…

The girl’s body began trembling slightly. In order to endure the attached sensations, her entire face twisted into a gritted expression that looked almost comical.

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So it really is mutual.

Watching her struggle like this, Bai Xiang at last felt somewhat more balanced inside.

But even if it is mutual, at this rate, as Qing’er and I continue to improve in body cultivation, the intensity of the sensations will grow with it.

If this keeps up, won’t it become somewhat unseemly?

Bai Xiang hesitated.

She was considering whether she ought to abandon this method of cultivation.

But very soon, after the mist-sphere was finally digested within her younger sister’s Qi Sea, only to condense again and dart back into her, Bai Xiang froze even as she endured it.

The growth in Qi-Origin was still not especially obvious, but in terms of efficiency it had increased by nearly thirty percent over before…

For now, I’ll keep it going.

With that in mind, Bai Xiang decided there was no need to kill it off with one blow.

If there are sensations, then there are sensations.

At least for the moment, this cycle still seems healthy.