Prologue 1 (Part 3) Benefits Of Cultivation and Gaining Favor In Fvil High school.

Kazu Nini, in her first day of reading the first 3 chapters, had discovered that the best way to ensure a firm foundation was to continuously take the Ko-jin in her Ko-jin chamber and allow it to move around in there. This helped her in spreading out tendrils to various parts of the body. The organs that did not get tendrils attached to them eventually did as she copied the movement of the illustrated diagram. Feeling them seeking out the organs made her get used to the feeling of things swimming within her body. Having mental energy from learning how to wield glass with her mind made the task of moving about Ko-jin, or Divine Energy, easier.

When she opened her eyes, she saw her aunt staring at her and pulled her dolls close, her own eyes full of question.

"I am impressed."

Kazu Nini stopped and she felt the tendrils do the same. The ones far from their target slinking back into the core while the others closer to the organs connected themselves into whatever one was nearby. The sound of her rumbling stomach broke her concentration and she laughed. Her aunty held her with one hand.

"Don't worry." That hand felt lighter, as if since the last time her aunt had held her, she had lost 50 kg. "This is for cultivating till 11pm."

"11??? What??." She stood up to look out the window and barely felt tired. Staring at her body, Mako Nini commented.

"One of the many benefits of cultivation." The steam from rice was passing through the lid and smell of stew wafted into the air. She could tell it was meat in the stew. The way she inhaled it and could almost different each and every ingredient, not only because she had learned cooking from this woman but her senses *felt* so new to her that it was as if she had never used her nose in her life. "You will grow to like it."

Everything felt so rich. Colors, the sweat on her skin, the light, the words she heard. So much, and she smiled, "I guess you were not all wrong."

"Brat."

"Let me shower, I'll be down."

"Okay, but walk slowly. Take things easy."

Her limbs felt as if they were slower than her mind, but she got used to feeling as she walked like a robot and her aunty laughed at her. "When you connect the tendrils of Ko-jin channels to all parts of your body then it becomes smoother."

The voice had an echo to it, "okay." So did hers.

***

The next morning, she did not feel drowsy even though she had stayed up all night doing her school assignments. Having a plastic container where she had kissed her clay figurines before putting them in her bag, she stuffed her books into it after she was done her shower. Looking at her frazzled hair, she rubbed her hands through it roughly before she stepped downstairs and meeting her aunt there.

"Good morning."

"Morning, there is your food."

She snatched the apple, before downing the tea and taking some out of the pile of doughnuts, hastily dipping them in jam before stuffing it in her mouth, "thanks." When Kazu Nini touched her belly and realized they were not enough, she laughed in surprise.

"Yeah, you will need more energy now."

When the Young Pixie cleared the pile, she saw the lunchbox and held it in her hands before stepping out.

"Stay safe!"

Kazu Nini watched the bus pass her house and swore. Jogging there before winds stirred up in the Autumn breeze, she caught up to it just as it opened, barely breaking a sweat. Flashing her school ID which she had jammed into her pocket, she walked through the bus to reach the back seat, having another reason to be happy that she had started cultivation.

"What's wrong?" She turned to one of her school mates, "you look different today."

Someone threw popcorn at her which she effortlessly dodged with a twitch if her neck. "Stop that." She turned back. "What's up?"

Kivon regarded her, and his twin brother Devon threw another set which she closed her eyes and accepted, walking away while they burst into laughter seconds before she sat down at the back. Their hair reminded her of ruffled spaghetti anyway, how could she bother with people who had hair like ruffled spaghetti? Honestly, they were known as being cut with aquiline noses and eyes that were on the brink of glowing, their long eyelashes emphasizing these about them. But Sprites – a distant cousin to elves, or was it giants? – never really interested her. She had also heard they dabbled in some sort of spiritual cultivation method but that was all she knew or could care about them.

Knowing they were staring at her and probably would not stop, she ignored them by making sure her organs had enough tendrils in them while a part of her knew that the twins were not finished.

20 minutes later, she was dropped off at school, a mostly two-story building made in some parts to be entirely brick. Fvil High school was a gathering of different sets of people of the Dystopia. The occasional troll that had to bend his waist to fit in the bus, the dark elf with natural patterns on its skin, the elves with their point ears and feline grace, the fairy with wings beating so fast their movements were mostly invisible to the eye, not forgetting their beauty that shamed most elves. And the gnomes with extra-large teeth which took up most of their face.

The grass lawn had small mounds that welcomed a stair case into a concrete path. This path then branched off to different doors. To the far left, after the stairs, was an assembly grounds where the dining area was located which overlooked a playground with its glass walls. To the right was the academic buildings and extra-curricular ones. To the front, where she was nearing, lead straight to the administrative block where teachers and staff had offices but at its end was the Multipurpose Hall and at the far, far end of *that* corridor was a gym.

At this time of the day, they followed rough lines into the Multipurpose Hall as they had announcements before each day began, and they walked into a hall that had a stage prop made of metal and wood that was covered in rugs and decorated with chairs that were arranged in different sets.

The first set on the stage where the Upper Echelon staff; The Vice Principal, The Guidance Counselor, The Executive Director, Managing Director and the sponsors of the school. The Second set were the middle echelon; Administrative Director, Event Director, Accountants and so forth while the Lower Echelon where Teachers, Announcers and head of Janitors.

A man who was slim walked to the podium. "Morning Students, A lovely Monday like this should mean that we are once again ready for school…"

Kazu Nini had found a seat and was in her body once again; tendrils crawled out from her Ko-jin core in search for her organs. So far, her Spleen, liver, kidneys, heart and lungs had tendrils tethered to them – as she had been advice by the books to located these ones first which was easy because her mental energy helped her to visual her body. Plus, being an art student, anatomy was not really heard for her to grasp. She just had her intestines, bladder, brain and glands left. She opened her eyes to see the man on the stage when he said something that caught her mind.

"… The top ten students to have marks in this school will be awarded with Scholarships to Chilkt State Tertiary Institution, Kyniandral."

Kazu Nini snapped her head at the information she just heard.

"It is the best institution for miles about it and although it is not a complete Educational Institution as it is also a Martial School, every aspect of the school has been amply invested in – almost every amenity possible can be found there."

Going through possibilities, the gears in Kazu Nini's head clicked. Chilkt State Tertiary Institution, Kyniandral had the best art educational facilities in probably the whole country. She could finally be a sculptor like she always wanted to be. Her aunty would agree because it was also a Martial School and finally, it was in another state which signified new possibilities and new communities. Having being raised in the state of Jhoklon since birth, she had always seldom wanted to see a new world.

Clenching her fist, she now had another goal.

***

Throughout the first week after she had heard the announcement, she repeatedly always answered questions and helped Teachers with setting up the class by arranging tables or carrying their briefcases and whatever paraphernalia they had into class. Her status, in the mind of the students, went from 'silent geek' to 'Every teacher's favorite geek.' Mornings were spent in school and getting through classes, knowing answers and sweet talking every older person she knew.

"Beautiful smile, miss."

"Why, thank you."

"Resplendent Tie, sir."

"You have a good eye, I bought this from…"

"I love your shoes, please get me one if you can."

"A gift from a distant cousin, she actually had to…"

She was probably 'annoying geek' now. But when did she ever care about opinion?

Afternoons were spent in taking a lunch break, spreading more tendrils in her system then reading before classes continued. Thus, the first week, after she had learned cultivation also had her upgrading a stage. She was now Divine Early Level 1.

The book she had started reading – Universal Fundamentals of Cultivation – told her that for her first stages in cultivation, all she had to worry about was the quality of her Ko-jin which would be recycled by changing it from a gaseous state, to liquid and finally solid to signify her growth of one stage to another by repeatedly compressing it by passing through the tips of the tendrils that were now connected to her organs, and back to her Ko-jin chambers were she would cluster it until the nature changed from the pressure. This process also would move her up a stage in the first level of cultivation.

A week after she had first started cultivation, Kazu Nini had successfully connected the tendrils and the next week was spent compressing the Ko-jin from the core and back to the tips of the tendrils. She did this whenever she got back home and after she was done with assignments.

"You have grown an abnormal interest in your books."

"A week ago," Kazu Nini said while flipping through her notes, "they announced that Chilkt State Tertiary Institution, Kyniandral, is giving out scholarships."

"Since when did you care about school, I have always had to remind you about reading and your assignments?"

"It is an Educative and Martial institution." She watched her aunt understand what she meant and the older lady spoke next.

"And it had good art amenities?"

"Yes," Kazu Nini giggled, "a 50-50."

She studied her niece. "Reading and cultivating might stress you out."

"All the mental energy you helped me with before I broke my first limit?" She scoffed. "I have not slept in a week and I am still good."

She walked up to her and closed her books. "Every Saturday will be your rest day. I only have one niece I am willing to raise." Mako Nini left her to her books again.

"You know that before I broke the first limit it was quite good so imagine my mental energy after." She looked horrified.

"I will tie you to a bed if I need to."

"Get you interested then ask you why you have so much gusto." Tomorrow was a Saturday, so she had to try a breakthrough today. She went upstairs and locked her door, then she sat on her bead visualizing her Ko-jin channels that were all hanging on her organs like nerve endings.

It was not her first time doing this, so this time was no different and only more painful. Two weeks before, she had successfully spread the gas like tendrils from her Ko-jin core to connect to every organ she could – from ones like the larynx to others like the kidneys – and her Ko-jin in the form of gas 'felt' heavy enough to her mental senses. So, she knew she was ready.

The Ko-jin in her Ko-jin channels traced themselves from the brain, heart, kidney liver, lungs, spleen, bladder, pancreas, glands, intestines and sensory organs, retracing themselves to the area above her navel, currently in the form of a seemingly flat line. And there, she took a breath in before starting to beginning adding pressure to that point.

It went past squeezing her abdominal muscles or willing it to happen the way she did glass but she also had to let the gathered Ko-jin or Divine Energy in her core to bounce around the walls of the line as if wanting to let it break out.

It was like creating a stomach ache that not only ached the stomach.

The lack of oxygen into her system made her feel like passing on but she held on, until the once gaseous Divine Energy which made the tendrils on her system felt heavier than it used to be then she let out a breath and drew in air as if she had never inhaled in her life or she had almost drowned at sea.

"Yes! Yes! Yes!"

As Kazu Nini coughed, she laughed, feeling that now the tendrils now melting into the external walls of each organ she had already connected to – which was all of them - and clutched her dolls once more before allowing herself to sleep. The Young Pixie knew that as the stages progresses things will only get harder and thus, she allowed herself a full night's rest.