However, it must be said that the Qingfeng Sect occupies a rather large area, sprawling across several mountains, with its main buildings constructed in the valley and flat areas.
A large portion of the area is what is called the “back mountain,” which primarily contains many wild spiritual plants and some Yao Beasts with very low danger levels, manageable even by Qi Refinement Stage Disciples.
The Sect also has a large medicinal field for cultivating spiritual plants, though ordinary Disciples are not permitted to casually pick them.
After flying a circle, the Grand Elder brought An Chen back to his house.
“How about it? Our Qingfeng Sect is quite good, isn’t it?”
The Grand Elder said with a chuckle.
This method was incredibly effective for Mortals who didn't understand much; when he first entered the Fire Phoenix Sect, their Elders took them on a tour in a flying boat, filling them with infinite yearning for their upcoming Sect life.
If he took this boy on a flight on his bird, wouldn't the boy be ecstatic?
“Amazing.”
An Chen thought for a long time, only managing to squeeze out these two words.
“That’s not right, is this the expected reaction?”
The Grand Elder stroked his chin, looking a bit odd.
Is this an expression of excitement?
Watching An Chen dismount the bird and stand at the doorway, looking back at him, the Grand Elder lightly coughed and said, “Since you’ve ridden my bird, you are now my personal Disciple. This is the Qingfeng Sect’s Cultivation Technique. You can read it tonight, and tomorrow I will come here to guide you on the most basic breathing and Spiritual Qi circulation and absorption. Your master will take his leave now!”
The Grand Elder took out a book and used his spiritual power to deliver it to An Chen’s hand.
“Yes.”
An Chen cupped his hands again, took the book, and only after watching the Grand Elder ride his bird away did he retreat into the house.
He looked down at the book in his hand and couldn't help but read out the three large characters on it.
“Qingfeng Skill.”
An Chen eagerly opened the pages and began to read carefully.
An Chen enjoyed reading, especially books useful to him, and because he possessed the ability of photographic memory, everything he read became part of his own knowledge reserve.
And this book, “Qingfeng Skill,” should be the beginning of his Cultivation journey.
The book was not thick, and it contained many illustrations. An Chen’s reading speed was frighteningly fast; he finished the entire book in just half an hour.
The first part of the book explained the breathing method, as well as how to circulate and absorb Spiritual Qi to transform it into one’s own spiritual power.
As Su Xiaojiu said, the breathing methods in the Cultivation World are largely similar, and cultivating any one of them makes little difference. The variation in Cultivation speed still depends on the Cultivator’s Spiritual Root; the higher the quality of the Spiritual Root, the faster the rate of Spiritual Qi absorption and transformation.
A Cultivator with a Low Grade Spiritual Root might only be able to transform one-fifth of the Spiritual Qi they inhale, wasting the rest, whereas a Cultivator with a Superior Spiritual Root might only waste one-fifth, and their absorption speed would also differ greatly—this is the distinction.
The latter half of the “Qingfeng Skill” primarily detailed how to convert spiritual power into wind-attributed spiritual power, along with some simple usage techniques.
However, this was still somewhat distant for An Chen, so An Chen decided to first try the breathing and the Spiritual Qi transformation within his body.
Breathing is not merely about respiration; if breathing alone could absorb Spiritual Qi, then ordinary people would not remain Mortals.
During Cultivation, one needs to enter a meditative state to perceive the Spiritual Qi present in this world.
This meditation was almost indistinguishable from the meditation practiced by some people on Earth. An Chen had tried this meditation before and found it not as difficult as online sources claimed.
Perhaps this was also his talent; after all, it was related to the brain, and someone with his extraordinary computational and memory abilities surely had a well-functioning brain.
And now, he quickly entered this state.
He indeed felt a subtle difference.
An Chen could perceive that, besides the air, there were other “energies” around him. These energies were cool and gentle, which must be what is called Spiritual Qi.
After An Chen opened his eyes, his perception of these energies weakened slightly, but he could still feel them.
Once a person becomes aware of their breathing, it becomes difficult to let their breathing proceed unconsciously. An Chen was probably in a similar state now.
An Chen closed his eyes again, entered a meditative state, and began to breathe according to the method taught in the book.
During breathing, it’s not only through respiration that Spiritual Qi is absorbed; the entire body’s pores also absorb Spiritual Qi. His Spiritual Root inside his body acts like a lung, drawing in external Spiritual Qi.
Initially, An Chen found it somewhat difficult to absorb Spiritual Qi. After breathing for a long time, the Spiritual Qi flowing in the air couldn't be drawn into his body. His pores seemed blocked, barely absorbing any Spiritual Qi.
But he had plenty of time; An Chen didn't need much sleep at night, so he had more time for Cultivation.
After about an hour, An Chen gradually grasped the essentials of breathing, able to draw Spiritual Qi into his body with each breath.
Just as the lungs inhale by relying on air pressure to “push” external air in, absorbing Spiritual Qi also relies on a similar principle.
This is also why pores can absorb Spiritual Qi; the principle is somewhat similar to the skin respiration of some animals.
This was An Chen’s own conjecture; he couldn't be entirely certain of the specifics.
Once the Spiritual Qi entered his body, it flowed into his Meridians.
The book stated that this Spiritual Qi should flow through specific Meridians into the Spiritual Root, then transform into spiritual power and circulate through the Meridians in all four limbs and the entire body.
The difficult part of this step was controlling the Spiritual Qi. An Chen couldn't quite grasp the underlying principle, but he found he could easily do it in practice.
Perhaps, this was also an advantage of having a good Spiritual Root?
Feeling the Spiritual Qi entering his Spiritual Root and transforming into spiritual power, then circulating through the Meridians in his body, An Chen felt a surge of joy.
It seemed that Cultivation was not difficult after all.
As the spiritual power circulated, he could feel a warm current flowing within his body, a comfortable, soothing warmth.
During meditation, he could directly perceive the conditions within his body, feeling his Meridians and blood vessels—what is known as internal viewing.
He could clearly feel that as the spiritual power circulated through his Meridians, some Impurities were blocking them. As the spiritual power became abundant, these Impurities in the Meridians were slowly flushed away.
This was probably because he had stayed in a place like Earth, where there was no Spiritual Qi at all, for too long, causing his Meridians to become blocked, much like blocked blood vessels.
And his Spiritual Root, which was originally somewhat “shriveled,” slowly became full and vibrant under the nourishment of spiritual power.
Gradually, An Chen’s Cultivation efficiency became faster and faster, with Spiritual Qi drilling into his pores, and An Chen’s Dantian becoming almost completely full.
What made An Chen even more delighted was that he discovered that during meditation and breathing, his body could rest. After cultivating for an entire night, he was not only not tired or sleepy but even very energetic.