Death God: Starting from Refining Essence into Qi

Spring passed quickly, and summer arrived. School classes ended at dusk.

Since the day he unexpectedly revealed his talent during the Shunpo lesson, Xuan's life has not changed, but he has attracted many more glances from the school.

Envy, jealousy, scrutiny, and exploration.

But it was just a matter of eye contact; no one provoked or deliberately made things difficult for them.

After all, everyone here is an aristocrat. Only a fool would provoke others for no reason, such as those who bully the weak and fear the strong, who say that "those who dare not cause trouble are mediocre."

This is the advantage of being part of a family: when potential is recognized, the rules become a shield.

Unlike the spirits in the remote areas of Rukongai, Xuan didn't need to fight for food and shelter all day long. He only needed to do one thing—

Become stronger.

At the beginning of the Yin hour, before dawn, Xuan had already gotten up.

The twelve postures of the Yi Jin Jing slowly unfolded in the morning mist. The spiritual energy after the foundation building was established could flow freely in the meridians, creating a strange resonance with the muscles and fascia.

Muscles become firmer, tendons more flexible, and bones become stronger under the nourishment of spiritual energy.

At the exact hour of Mao (5-7 AM), Xuan stepped into the school hall.

The academic classes were long and tedious. Xuan sat in the back row by the window, flipping through "An Introduction to Spiritual Particle Structures" that he had borrowed from the library yesterday.

"...Therefore, we Shinigami shall take it upon ourselves to maintain the balance of the three realms!" Kyusuke Shihouin's voice was impassioned.

Xuan's fingertip traced a line of small print on the page: "Spirit particles possess wave-particle duality; they exhibit a particle state in stable structures and a wave dynamic state in high-speed flows..."

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Even the sword-fighting classes in aristocratic schools don't teach techniques; those are only passed down to formal disciples.

Ordinary students only practice daily routines, while kendo instructors at most correct their posture.

The sparring sessions during the free time were unremarkable.

Like looking in a mirror, Xuan observes the flaws of each student and reflects on himself to avoid making the same mistakes.

As for the final footwork lesson, Master Kujo Tadatsugu's requirements for Gen and the others were clearly different.

Xuan is trying to achieve "sequential standing at will," which means being able to complete the sequential standing posture in any position.

From initially moving while stationary to moving while walking, and then to simulating being knocked down and immediately moving away by instant movement.

When Xuan first tried to perform Shunpo while lying down, he bounced up like a fish on a chopping board and then fell back down heavily.

"Shunpo requires a fulcrum, but it changes from the foot to the back, not striking the ground with your back!" Kujou Tadatsugu shouted in his aged voice, and the other students around him chuckled.

"What are you laughing at? You can even run into a tree while moving using Instant Step? Is this lesson teaching you how to headbutt?"

The other trainees, with pained expressions, started trying again.

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After class, Xuan went straight to the library.

In Soul Society, only nobles possess libraries. Knowledge is a more precious treasure than money, and acquiring knowledge in the library is like... well, it's a source of immense pleasure.

The books on the first floor were mostly classics, laws, rituals and sacrifices that were not very useful for becoming stronger. As for maps and the basic theories of spirit particles, Xuan had already quickly memorized them in the library and in his cultural classes.

Xuan stepped onto the second floor. Only instructors and those holding tokens could enter this floor, but these books could not be lent out. They were all valuable classic texts.

Xuan walked slowly along the bookshelf, his fingertips tracing the spines of the books.

"A Brief Analysis of the Bloodline Characteristics of the Shihōin Family", "A Study of Heaven-Sent Armaments", "A Collection of Covert Mobile Tactics"...

Xuan's gaze was drawn to a scroll wrapped in a dark brown leather cover.

The Secret Record of Beast Transformation.

Xuan took down the scroll and sat down at the long table by the window.

The setting sun cast its warm golden-brown light on the table. He slowly unrolled it; the ink was old but well-preserved.

The opening line states:

"All things possess a spirit, and take on various forms. The human form is the constant abode of the soul, while the animal form is a variation of the spirit. The Shihōin bloodline, blessed by the Spirit King, possesses the potential to transform and merge with all forms..."

Just as the Shiba family can sever the bonds between spirit particles, turning spirit particle creations into sand, the Shihouin family, also one of the five great noble families, possesses a unique talent—beast transformation.

The principle of beast transformation described in the scroll is not complicated.

The body of the Grim Reaper is composed of spiritual particles, and the spirit itself has no fixed form. The human form is merely the form that the human soul is most familiar with and accustomed to.

Just like water becomes square when it's in a square container, and round when it's in a round container.

Transforming into a beast involves changing the form of one's spiritual body and recombining one's own spiritual particles to reshape them into a beast form.

However, a line of vermilion annotation on the scroll reads that without exception, those who try to transform into more forms find it difficult to get used to the third form and ultimately cannot transform back into human form.

"Each generation teaches only three to five techniques, and only a handful succeed. Those who do not possess exceptional talent, temperament, and control over spiritual power should not attempt it lightly."

He closed the scroll, shut his eyes, and fell into deep thought.

The value of a transformed beast is self-evident.

Just like the Animagus in Harry Potter or the 72 Transformations in Journey to the West, if mastered and used properly, it can be considered a divine skill in reconnaissance, infiltration, and survival.

Once mastered, the rewards are quite tempting.

Although it takes the form of an animal, its speed and strength are close to those of a human, but it cannot use human fighting techniques.

In theory, one can transform into anything. However, if one transforms into a non-existent creature, such as the Black Tortoise or the Five-Clawed Divine Dragon, not only will one lack the abilities of legendary creatures, but one will also lose the greatest advantage of beast transformation: stealth.

The appearance of a legendary creature would certainly be abrupt, but a stray cat walking by the roadside is usually not a cause for much alarm.

more importantly--

The Beast Transformation ability can be combined with Instant Step and Instant Slash.

The so-called Shunkō is actually a fighting technique that combines the Kidō and Hakudō.

Yoruichi, the 22nd head of the Shihōin family, surpasses Kensei Muguruma, the captain of the Gotei 13, in combat power after using the lightning-attribute Shun'ō. Moreover, this form can be further enhanced by combining with Beast Transformation, making its potential extremely high.

But Xuan quickly calmed down.

"Don't bite off more than you can chew," he muttered to himself, putting the reel back in its place.

The most important thing right now is not to master these secret techniques, but to solidify the foundation and improve the ability to fight head-on.

With the academic year competition approaching, the Shunpo technique still needs improvement, and the Qi Refining skill is not yet complete—these are the fundamental issues.

Mastering the transformation of beasts can be a future goal, but not for now.

As dusk deepened outside the window, Xuan turned and left the library.

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When Xuan returned to the courtyard, he found Qianri there as well.

He wasn't wearing a haori today; he was squatting under the half-withered cherry tree in the yard, fiddling with a wild grass sprouting from the soil.

"Yo, you're back?" Qianri turned around with a grin when she heard footsteps. "The old man was too busy to look after me today, so I snuck over. How far have you progressed with your Instant Step?"

"I can complete the standing posture while walking, which is barely usable in actual combat, but I haven't made any progress in other postures," Xuan said truthfully, sitting down at the stone table in the courtyard and pouring himself a glass of water.

"It's normal." Qianri sat down across from Xuan at the stone table, blocked the water jug ​​Xuan offered, snatched it from him, and poured himself a glass of water.

"It took me three or four months to barely achieve 'sequential standing at will' back then. You've only been practicing for a short time and you're already in a hurry. You'll be faster later on once you've built a solid foundation."

The summer evening breeze swept through the courtyard, bringing with it the rustling of leaves in the distant woods.

"The key to establishing order at will isn't actually in your 'feet,' but in your 'heart,'" Qianri suddenly spoke, sharing his experience. "Don't you think you need to deliberately mobilize spiritual energy to create a support for establishing order?"

Xuan nodded.

"You're wrong." Qianri grinned, revealing a row of bright white teeth. "The more you try to capture it, the less you can hold onto it. You need to relax and treat the flow of spiritual energy like breathing—when you breathe normally, do you consciously think 'It's time to inhale now'?"

Xuan paused, his breathing suddenly becoming manual.

"No," Qianri answered herself, "because breathing is instinctive. Xuli also needs to develop it into an instinct."

"When walking, spiritual energy naturally sinks to the soles of the feet; when turning, spiritual energy flows with the center of gravity; even when falling—before the body hits the ground, spiritual energy has already gathered at the point of descent."

As Qianri spoke, his body naturally leaned backward.

Just as he was about to touch the ground, spiritual power erupted—

"Whoosh."

Light as a leaf falling in the wind.

He had already appeared at the foot of the courtyard wall three zhang away, leaning against the wall, his posture as relaxed as if he had just strolled there. The whole process was so smooth that it was impossible to tell whether the sound came from Shunpo or the summer breeze.

"See?" Qianri walked back and sat down again. "It's not 'preparing to stand in order,' but 'I need to move, so the spiritual power naturally takes its place.' You have to figure out the difference yourself."

Xuan remained silent for a long time before slowly nodding.

"I'll give it a try."

The two chatted while eating snacks, with Qianri mainly recounting her daily life, and Xuan listening quietly.

After saying goodbye for a thousand days, Xuan took advantage of the time before it got dark to practice the Instant Step for a while, and then continued with his usual practice of the Yi Jin Jing and the wooden dummy.

As night fell, Xuan returned to his room and began refining his Qi. After refining another wisp of pure Qi, Xuan introspected and realized that half of his spiritual power had been converted into pure Qi. As the amount of pure Qi within his body increased, the speed of Qi refining accelerated.

Logically speaking, not using spiritual power is like letting the meridians rest, while refining qi is like only using the meridians to let the body rest. Theoretically, refining qi can replace sleep.

However, not sleeping only ensures that the body gets rest. Sleep is an essential part of promoting physical development.

Xuan chose to sleep, refusing to stay up all night "cultivating immortality".

It wasn't to slow down the training progress, but simply to avoid not growing tall like that short captain surnamed Hitsugaya.