Simply Trading

For a moment, Qin Feng felt like jumping up and practicing his Lightness-of-Body skill, just to see the difference that his achievement in the Foundation Realm would make to the same. But just as he was about to rise up from where he was seated, he felt a cold, sharp stream of zhenqi rise from his dantian. Hadn't he felt something like this before?

Then he recognized the zhenqi that had been sleeping inside his body!

Old Man Snow Mountain! This was how it had felt, back in the day when the old man had pushed his zhenqi into Qin Feng's body! Or, to be more accurate, he had pushed his qi into the puppet's torso, while Qin Feng was in occupation of the same. Did that mean that he had another message from the old practitioner?

He took another deep Breathe then, and settled himself back down into his old Lotus-awaiting stance. And slowly drew his senses back into his inner mind. That was the spot where the old man had 'spoken' to him before, so it was the most likely place if he wished to pass on more information. Although he had no idea whatsoever, about what the old master intended to say now.

He did not have to wait long, before he felt Old Man Snow Mountain's consciousness flooding into his head:

"If you are listening to this, you have probably attained some basic understanding of the Foundation Realm. And formed your first stream of true qi. Which is something to be proud of, consider how I was not able to pass you my original cultivation method for that," the message began. It was almost as if the old man was there, sitting in front of him.

"But that is not the end of that stage, as you will soon understand. I have slipped a strand of my consciousness into you, in order to instruct you as to the next steps for your cultivation journey. That is, presuming that you are still holding to the goals that you had disclosed to me earlier, before I created this body for you.

"Without wasting time and energy, I must tell you first that the Foundation Realm is not as simple as most make it out to be. Since it is your first step into true cultivation, it is more important than you know. Without a suitably deep and wide Foundation, one can hardly build up a proper pagoda, as they say.

"Hence, you may wish to devote more time to the same, rather than rushing to the Qi Accumulation Realm."

What? Devote more time ...? What was Old Man Snow Mountain talking about? Wasn't he already done with the Foundation Realm?

"Consider what takes place in the world that you see around you. If someone wishes to build a simple house, then all that he needs is a simple foundation, isn't it? To simply prepare the groundwork, so that his house will be stable, and secure against the harshest weather, and safe against attacks from the lawless.

"That is basically what you are doing. Or what you have just begun to do."

Qin Feng nodded to himself, as he listened to what was being said. It was more or less true, what the old man was telling him. He had no quarrel about that!

"You could start practicing Qi Accumulation now. And that is what most practitioners do, once they have formed a simple foundation, sufficient for a simple house.

"But what if you wish to build a larger house? Or a temple? Or a martial hall? Would that same foundation be enough?"

He felt a sensation then, as if Old Man Snow Mountain was shaking his head at him.

"You will need to make it wider, and deeper, if you wish to accommodate a significantly larger, or more robust, building. And it is no different when you are crafting one for your own cultivation. You will need to decide if you are content with a simple one-storey hut. Or if you intend to build a seven-storey pagoda."

A seven-storey pagoda? In his dantian? Was that even possible?

But he doubted that Old Man Snow Mountain would lie to him about something like this. After all, hadn't he left everything that he had to Qin Feng? Why would he bother to hide something as ordinary like this, when he was passing everything else down to him?

"In the end, the choice is yours. You are the one who will have to decide just where you wish to go with your cultivation, and no one else. Hence, you must decide just how much time, and effort, you wish to devote to the same.

"Building a seven-level pagoda is just an example, you must understand. There are some who will not be content with a magnificent palace, while others are fully satisfied if they are able to achieve a simple hunter's hide. Everyone has different goals, and you must decide for yourself, just what you are aiming for."

Qin Feng took a moment to think, before he finally nodded. That last bit was certainly true. He wasn't intending to be some sort of invincible power with his cultivation. In fact, he only wanted enough power to protect himself, and his people, his friends, from others who would hurt them. He didn't really need a huge palace, equal to the King's, for that.

Still, he could not help but feel a little swayed by the thought of having a seven-storey pagoda, or its like, within his own dantian. If he could make it so ... Didn't that mean that he would be able to handle just about any sort of enemy that he would meet? At least, until he was in a position to claim Old Man Snow Mountain's territory?

That should be enough to prevent others from trying to take advantage of him, wouldn't it? And he wouldn't have to bother with all the games that he was playing, with Lingxi and Elder Ming. Or even Elder Xuan and the Left Guardian, at that! No, he wanted to be able to go where he wanted to go, and do what he wanted to do, without having to worry about people like that!

Qin Feng looked up then, and sensed that the presence of Old Man Snow Mountain was still there in front of him. Which seemed to hint that he might be willing to answer his queries:

"So ... How do I go about building a seven-level pagoda in my dantian? And just how long will I need to complete it?

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