Chapter 8: Training to be Cultivator

Apparently, the first step to cultivating was to master breathing methods. Kai Li Si caught me how to breathe properly, to gather qi in my dantian and to circulate this mystical energy around my body.

"Qi is a natural force…the essence of the universe, limitless, boundless…it permeates every living thing. Even in a world like this, where the qi is so thin, where the air has been polluted, qi continues to persist and exist."

Kai Li Si stood in front of me, correcting any mistakes I might make. Taking a deep breath, I felt for the energies in my body. It was weak, probably because I had not cultivated before. Kai Li Si nodded in approval.

"Take it slow. This is your first time, so do not rush. Allow yourself to grasp the essence of qi and circulate it around your body. The more you practice, the more qi you will generate. So don't forget these breathing methods."

"Understood."

I was about to call him Master, but he refused the term of address.

"You're my master,��� he had told me. "Uh, in the future, of course. It'll be weird if you call me Master when I'm actually your disciple."

This whole time travel thing was making my head hurt. I didn't know if Kai Li Si was telling the truth about me suddenly appearing in the Celestial Realm after my death and turning into a cultivator, but it would be interesting if the truth was that I actually became a cultivator because my future self sent Kai Li Si back in time to train me. Cause and effect.

Well, since there was no way for me to verify the truth – as much as I believed Kai Li Si, there was the possibility that my future self had lied to him – I decided not to think too much about it and focus on training.

"How long do I have to train before I can catch up with Ba Bai?" I asked, still seated cross-legged on the floor. After all, the whole point of this training was so that I could protect myself from all these demonic cultivators sent back in time and space to assassinate me. I wanted to mentally prepare myself. There was still my family to worry about. I couldn't just disappear forever.

"Honestly? A few years." Kai Li Si looked a bit sheepish. I sighed.

"Do I have that long?"

"Not really, but you don't have a choice. Also, it is possible that the demonic cultivators weren't all sent back to the same exact period. That means they might show up in the future as well. So it's best to be prepared."

"So what do we do about Ba Bai in the meantime?"

"We'll figure it out. If it's just me, I wouldn't be able to win. But if you progress fast enough and the both of us team up, your presence will make a difference and give me a chance to deliver a killing blow."

"Killing blow?"

"Yeah, that's right. Hmm, I guess I should teach you that too. All right, get up."

Kai Li Si then demonstrated a punch to me, one that gathered qi in his fist and sent a sonic boom through the air. I could see a thick tree sway violently, even though it was quite a distance away.

"This is the Soul Crushing Strike. One of the signature moves of Heaven and Earth Sect." Kai Li Si demonstrated with his other hand, to make sure I saw how it was executed. He then smiled and dropped his stance. "Cultivating isn't just meditating and breathing. It also consists of physical training, so you should practice these punches too."

I obeyed, mimicking his movements and following the training menu he had prepared, which also consisted of horse stance, pushups, sit ups and running. Then back to breathing again.

At the end of the day, I found myself sprawled on the floor of the abandoned cottage we used as our camp, exhausted. Kai Li Si disappeared for a moment, and then returned with some food. Vegetables and meat. I wondered where he got them from, but he merely smiled mysteriously.

"Hunting. I'll teach you which plants are edible, and how to hunt animals for food later. But right now you should just focus on getting stronger. Otherwise you won't be able to hunt anyway."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

While I ate the stuff he brought back, Kai Li Si studied me for a few moments, and then he nodded in satisfaction.

"Good, seems like you've finally gotten to the first level of the Yellow Realm. You're officially a cultivator now."

"Yay." I then hesitated. "What realm?"

"Right, I should explain to you. There are nine cultivation realms that we used to classify cultivators. The higher the realm, the stronger the cultivator. Of course, it's actually just a broad, generalized classification because no two cultivators are identical, but generally there's a massive difference between the realms."

That sounded a lot like the cultivation stories I had read…

"Also, each realm is divided into nine levels. Though not as massive as the gap between realms, there's still a huge difference between each level."

He looked sheepish.

"It's also why I'm not very confident of defeating Ba Bai. In practice, of course, there are many elements in a battle that will decide the outcome, not just levels and realms. Cultivators with lower realms and levels beating opponents belonging to higher realms and levels are not unheard of. Strategies, terrain, tactics…even weapons – all these can help a cultivator of a lower realm overcome a much stronger opponent."

Yeah, that made sense. In this world, if I couldn't beat a stronger opponent who was a genius at martial arts, I would just grab a gun and shoot him.

"However, it's undeniable that having a cultivation realm or level will give you a massive advantage in battle. That's why everyone strives to attain a higher cultivation realm. Of course, you taught me – and the rest of the sect – that it's better to develop a solid foundation first, instead of rushing. So that's what we are going to do."

"Yes, sir." I saluted him. That sounded like something I would say. I understood the logic. There was no point building a house that was nine stories high if its foundation was unsteady. Then even the slightest breeze would topple the whole thing. Kai Li Si looked pleased that I understood (it probably didn't occur to him that I would disagree because apparently I was the one who taught that to him in the first place).

"The nine cultivation realms are as follows: Yellow, Black, Earth, Heaven, Yellowed Lands, Blackened Skies, Silver Moon, Astral Stars, and finally Celestial Divine."

He then smiled.

"Sect Leader…before I went back in time and through space, you were one of the few Celestial Divines in the Celestial Realm."

"Really?" I couldn't imagine myself reaching that high. I had always been an ordinary person. Above average academically, not exactly good at sports (honestly, I sucked at sports because I spent too much time reading and studying). Trying not to think too far into the future, I issued a question. "What about you?"

"Ah…I used to be level 4 at the Silver Moon Realm, but…I dropped to Heaven Realm, level 2, after I came here." Kai Li Si sighed. "As I explained, the cultivation realms of those who undergo the Nine Heavenly Temporal Tribulations will drop drastically. So I dropped three realms. I think it's also subject to the restrictions of this world…it probably would suppress our cultivation, given how thin the qi in the atmosphere is."

"What about Ba Bai?"

"He…used to be level 8 at the Silver Moon Realm, but now he's level 6 at the Heaven Realm." Kai Li Si grimaced. "With a difference of 4 levels…that's why I have no confidence of beating him."

"Heaven Realm…and I'm only starting out at Yellow Realm." I sighed and shook my head. "What exactly am I supposed to do? What difference can I make?"

"You can distract Ba Bai," Kai Li Si explained. "And that will open up a window of opportunity for me to deliver a decisive blow."

He smiled and punched the air. The wall opposite him cracked.

"Like I said, levels and realms don't decide everything. It indicates that the opponent is stronger, but there are ways to make up for the difference in strength. A tiger can still kill an elephant if it aims for the weak point."

"I see." I still wasn't sure what was going to happen. But Kai Li Si had a point. I was sure he had a strategy. For now, I would just follow along. Also, who wouldn't want to learn to use all these magic powers and become strong?

The whole thing still felt surreal to me, as if it wasn't…real. Even so, I was now in the thick of things, and I decided to roll with it. While I did so, another thought occurred to me.

"Do you need to take elixirs, herbs or spirit medicine to improve your cultivation?"

If that was the case, then it would be extremely difficult. I doubted that we could get such things here on Earth.

"Of course not! Where are you getting this nonsense from?" Kai Li Si snorted. "Oh, right. You've been reading way too many cultivation novels. I remember you telling me about them once. Since when is reality so convenient? Do you think you'll conveniently get stronger or make a breakthrough just from simply popping some stupid spirit pill into your mouth? That doesn't happen in real life. Elixirs don't exist."

"Interesting." I nodded, unsurprised.

"Don't learn from all those weird cultivation stories. Those protagonists are often drug addicts looking for their next fix. Also, if something sounds too good to be true, then it probably is suspect. Steroids that boost your cultivation or combat strength? That's basically doping, and it will have negative side effects on your body down the road. Don't rely on such dangerous drugs or pills, or you'll suffer in the future. Also, you're not going to conveniently find magical herbs growing in this world, otherwise you'd think people would have reported it and sell them for tons of money."

"Ginseng sells for quite a lot," I muttered.

"Yeah, but does that ginseng give you qi or improve your cultivation? Do people become superhuman after consuming it?"

Apparently not.

"However, there are ways to improve cultivation…and I'm afraid that Ba Bai will be making use of them." Kai Li Si grimaced. "But those are demonic techniques. We can't use them."

I didn't bother to ask. The name itself sounded ominous. Demonic techniques…in other words…

"He will probably be killing people and sucking their qi essence dry to try and recover his cultivation as quickly as possible. Blood rituals…sacrifices…"

Kai Li Si sighed.

Yeah, I definitely didn't want to do that.

"However, that also presents us an opportunity." Kai Li Si looked at me seriously. "The problem with demonic techniques is that they sacrifice foundation and stability for fast short-term gains. Ba Bai will definitely become stronger in a shorter period of time, but in exchange, his cultivation will be unsteady. While he's trying to consolidate his gains and stabilize his cultivation…that's the time we can strike."

"Uh, isn't he…you know, trying to kill me? Is he going to put that off and go around murdering other people and absorbing their qi essence? Also, if he does that, we have to stop him. We can't let innocents get dragged into this!"

"I understand how you feel, sir, but as we are right now, we have no way of stopping him. Also, he won't be too reckless and audacious. As I said, there are already cultivators hidden in this world. With his realm dropping to Heaven Realm…he's pretty vulnerable. If he makes too much of a commotion and kills too many people, he will end up drawing their attention to him. When that happens…" Kai Li Si grinned. "We don't have to deal with him. Other people will handle him for us."

Then he lost his grin.

"But we can't count on them for that. Ba Bai, knowing this, will move cautiously. And as you said, his priority is to assassinate you. He will probably grab a victim here and there, but he won't go overboard. And if you want to save them…the only way right now is for you to become stronger."

I took a deep breath and nodded.

"All right."

"Now rest. We'll begin training as soon as you wake up."

I sighed and glanced up at the night sky, wondering how I ended up being saddled with such a dark fate.