Chapter Thirty-Two: Summoning Spirits to Strengthen the Body

The reason it is called an art rather than a certain cultivation method is because this practice is still too rudimentary—at best, it can be considered a technique, far from reaching the level of a true cultivation formula. A genuine method, regardless of its depth, should at least be comprehensive. Take the Crane Cloud Method, for example: even though it is merely a second-rate formula in the world of martial arts, it still encompasses everything—practice routines, combat techniques, standing postures, dynamic and static exercises, footwork, body movement, and even weapon training, all of which are not lacking.

The key lies in the word “complete.” There is no doubt that this Spirit-Invoking Strengthening Art is frightfully incomplete, lacking in many respects. But Chen Yu did not mind. His intention was merely to accelerate the absorption of spiritual liquid and to better understand the nature of spiritual energy and liquid; improvements could be made step by step in the future. There was no need to force it to be profound from the outset.

Furthermore, he was the sole practitioner of this method, and for the foreseeable future, it was unlikely anyone else would learn it. The naming of the art rested entirely in his hands, with no interference from others.

At this moment, rain poured outside, pattering against the bricks and tiles at the front and rear of the house, loud and persistent. Chen Yu stood in the corridor, facing the curtain of rain. After swallowing a mouthful of spiritual liquid and feeling the warmth spread through his abdomen, he slowly closed his eyes.

He calmed his mind and regulated his breath, first following the Crane Cloud breathing method to stabilize the rhythm of inhalation and exhalation, then began to mentally visualize his self-created Spirit-Invoking Strengthening Art.

His body trembled slightly—failure in channeling. After a brief pause, he tried again. Inner strength surged, blood rushed.

At its core, this method stimulates the liver to accelerate the absorption of spiritual liquid, so he guided his breath and strength, gradually awakening energy within his flesh and bones.

It wandered and pierced.

A mild pain coursed through his nerves, but Chen Yu stood silently, unmoving, as if he had anticipated it.

The stinging pain deepened, traveling from the skin to the organs, especially encircling the liver, where it began to prod and stimulate.

Hiss!

Suddenly, a sharp pain caused him to bare his teeth and let out a low gasp; his eyelids twitched, and he nearly cried out.

Another failure.

The method was still in its infancy; last night's success was probably due to luck, and today more flaws had surfaced.

Revise! Everything must be revised!

Chen Yu composed himself, letting the pain dissipate.

Immediately, he adjusted certain steps and once again activated the art.

Inhale—exhale—

A slight sting arose, but after this round of modifications, the effect was much better. Without trouble, he moved on to the next stage.

With each breath, the spiritual liquid in his abdomen churned.

Warmth rose and fell with his inhalations and exhalations, rippling like waves.

Finally, some of the spiritual liquid seemed to be drawn out, passing through channels stimulated by inner strength and arriving outside the liver, where it then seeped in.

Moments later, the transformed spiritual liquid was released, becoming gentler, and his body craved it.

Though invisible, Chen Yu, sensing through his inner strength, perceived this process and felt relieved. He had succeeded again, confirming that last night’s result was not mere chance, nor solely a matter of luck.

He then began the second stage.

The Spirit-Invoking Strengthening Art had two aspects; he had just completed the spirit-invoking part, and now it was time to strengthen the body.

His breathing suddenly quickened, and his body was no longer motionless, but swayed slowly, fists and legs moving in rhythm.

Coordinating with his breath, faint glimmers appeared on his skin.

He had witnessed this phenomenon during his first absorption of spiritual liquid, but as the number of absorptions increased, its effectiveness seemed to decline. Until now, with absorption efficiency elevated, the scene reappeared: Chen Yu seemed wrapped in a cocoon as thin as a cicada’s wing.

He himself waited patiently, moving gently, for the moment to break free and transform.

……

In the afternoon, the clouds lingered, pressing overhead like a siege.

Under the dark cover, daylight faded, and the world outside gradually edged toward night.

Yet it was only mid-afternoon.

Within the Crane Cloud Temple, Chen Yu gazed at the oppressive sky that would normally stir annoyance, but his face showed no trace of irritation—on the contrary, he was delighted.

Clearly, he had good news.

As it turned out, his Spirit-Invoking Strengthening Art had indeed succeeded, though it consumed too much inner strength and overstimulated the liver, problems that required further refinement.

But the results were impressive.

After several attempts in the morning, he estimated that his absorption was much greater than the natural rate—about thirteen percent more.

A single session equaled a tenth of a day’s usual absorption!

Ten sessions equaled a day; three hundred sessions equaled a month.

Of course, limited by time and inner strength, he could not possibly perform the art three hundred times a day; at most, seventy or eighty times. Moreover, the liver needed to be nourished naturally by the spiritual liquid, so the number of sessions had to be reduced even further.

Even so, it far exceeded expectations.

“In this case, I might have to worry about running out of spiritual liquid.”

Fortunately, there were several white roots still planted in the medicine field; once mature, they would yield another batch of spiritual liquid.

Moreover, when he first processed that white root, only the portion used for the energy pearl was fused into spiritual liquid; the rest remained in the tuber-made ‘gourd.’

It would last until the big white roots in the field matured.

Next, Chen Yu wondered if such rapid absorption of spiritual liquid would also nourish that hidden, mysterious force, allowing it to grow stronger.

Rubbing his hands, he felt the possibility was high.

And once it strengthened, perhaps he could finally detect traces of it and uncover its secrets.

He was endlessly curious about the miraculous energy that permeated his body, enabling him to master inner strength.

He sensed there was something vitally important within it.

Yet, like a slippery eel, it always eluded him.

Suppressing his thoughts, Chen Yu rose, first checking on the chicks in the henhouse, then shouldered his hoe and plunged into the rain, heading to the mountain fields outside the temple.

The mountain waters had already surged, and far larger than expected; if they weren’t watched closely, he couldn’t rest easy.

……

Crash—rumble!

Mud and rocks tumbled down, trees uprooted, grass and wooden debris mixed with water, surging and cascading from the cliff onto the narrow mountain path.

Chen Yu stood at the edge, peered out, and looked toward the summit, where a section of stone had collapsed, taking the pines and cypresses with it, their branches blocking the path.

He shook his head, turned, and continued channeling water and digging ditches.

After the weather cleared, he’d have to clean up the mountain road; he suspected there would be many landslides and fallen rocks like this.

It was fortunate that when the ancestral founder built the temple, he chose a location surrounded only by woods, without steep cliffs and jagged rocks.

Otherwise, living here would have been unsafe.

The sound of rushing water filled his ears; his feet sank deep into the muddy ground, and he could see the fields flooded everywhere. Thankfully, the raised borders kept the water from pouring out altogether.

He dug a small drainage outlet with his hoe, connecting it to the ditch so the muddy water could flow away rather than stagnate in the fields.

He was concerned that precious soil might be washed away, so he kept the outlet high.

Stepping—

Wearing grass boots, he returned to the front of the temple, stretched his legs in the flowing ditch to wash off the mud, then, drenched from head to toe, retreated under the eaves.

The rain was so heavy that even the raincoat was of limited use.

After changing clothes, Chen Yu lay back in his chair, gazing at the deepening darkness. If this continued, cleaning the ditches outside would be dangerous, as the path was impossible to see and one misstep could mean a fall.

He hoped the rain would not worsen.