He read until midnight under the gentle light of the luminous pearl.
Only then did Nian Lin close the scroll.
After studying it for so long, he had finally gained a deeper understanding of cultivation.
The booklet recorded the first major realm of cultivation: Qi Condensation.
According to the records, Qi Condensation was divided into nine stages. Each stage possessed its own cultivation chant and circulation method. Only after reaching the Ninth Stage of Qi Condensation could one advance to the next realm.
Qi Condensation was the process of absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, refining it within the body, and gradually building a foundation for future cultivation.
The scroll also explained that talent played an important role.
The greater one's talent, the easier it was to sense spiritual energy and absorb it into the body. Such people cultivated quickly and often achieved remarkable progress in a short time.
However, those with poor aptitude could spend their entire lives trapped in the early stages.
Some cultivators could not even reach the First Stage of Qi Condensation.
After reading this, Nian Lin's expression became thoughtful.
He lowered the scroll and rubbed his tired eyes.
His stomach suddenly growled.
Only then did he realize how hungry he was.
Putting the scroll away, he walked toward the corner of the cave where he stored his food.
He did not dare leave the cave.
After the chaos caused by the two-headed bird, the outside world had become even more dangerous than before.
Fortunately, he had prepared for such situations long ago.
Several pieces of dried meat hung from the cave wall. Under the heat trapped within the cave, the meat had become half-cured and was still edible.
Nian Lin tore off a piece and slowly chewed it.
Afterward, he drank a few mouthfuls of water from his leather pouch.
The simple meal barely filled his stomach, but it was enough.
After finishing his meal, Nian Lin looked once more at the cultivation scroll resting beside him.
A faint light flickered within his eyes.
Tomorrow.
Tomorrow he would begin cultivating.
Tomorrow he would attempt to sense the spiritual energy described in the scroll.
For the first time since the catastrophe, he could see a path leading toward strength.
____________________
Over the next few days, Nian Lin devoted nearly all of his time to cultivation.
He had already memorized the cultivation chant for the first three stages of Qi Condensation and no longer needed to constantly consult the scroll.
Every morning, after ensuring the surroundings were safe, he would sit cross-legged within the cave and begin practicing.
One long breath.
Three short breaths.
Again and again.
The strange breathing method gradually became familiar to him.
According to the scroll, one long breath meant drawing in air as deeply as possible. The three short breaths that followed were each only a third of a normal breath.
Through this cycle, the body would become more sensitive to the spiritual energy that filled heaven and earth.
The scroll stated that when spiritual energy first entered the body, the cultivator would feel a strange sensation, as if countless tiny insects were crawling beneath the skin.
One must not panic.
One must empty the mind.
Forget the self.
Become one with heaven, earth, and all living things.
Nian Lin followed every instruction exactly as recorded.
The first day passed.
Then the second.
Then the third.
No matter how hard he tried, he could not sense even the slightest trace of spiritual energy.
Instead, he found himself constantly short of breath.
Several times he nearly fainted from practicing the unusual breathing technique for too long.
His chest burned.
His lungs ached.
His eyes became bloodshot from exhaustion.
More than once, frustration crept into his heart.
Perhaps his talent truly was poor.
Perhaps he simply lacked the qualifications to become a cultivator.
However, whenever such thoughts appeared, Nian Lin would remember the countless monsters roaming beneath the crimson sky.
He would remember the ruined city.
The corpses.
The hunger.
The fear.
Compared to those things, a little hardship was nothing.
Thus, he continued.
Day after day.
Night after night.