“Visualization is creating pictures in the mind. It is the conscious production of mental imagery. Psychology and religion have long recognized this process as an effective means for shaping skills and talents, alleviating pain and illness, and activating one’s spirituality. By spirituality, I mean your inner self. We use it for purifying our internal energy. Hey, you paying attention?”
The book that hit the side of my head was rather hard. I guess it had to be since it was a book. He couldn’t have used something lighter, or friendlier? It wasn’t my place to complain since I really wasn’t paying much attention as he recited the basis of our style for the thousandth time.
“say it.”
“It’s the process of visualizing our inner energy network. From that we take small amounts of unrefined energy and visualize them going through a filter to purify them. It takes a lot of work to do that, but the result is that it allows you access to a small amount of highly refined energy.”
“good.. now do it again.”
Lazy eyelids would fall, taking away my vision while I entered a more focused state. While a light breeze crept stealthily through the buildings, it would eventually cross my body, making hair stand on end across my arms. The training method had become easier, but was still done for the focus. If you lose sight of the basics, you would be unable to perform larger, stronger techniques. That was why we did this every day. Even master did it some of the time to keep himself focused on not beating me into the ground for doing something dumb. Each slow breath would cause my chest to expand and shoulders to raise. It was in this basic motion that I would slowly press energy across two specific points. While my body did have several energy points that this could be accomplished with, I preferred two of them specifically due to their natural alignment with my body. Both of these points were in the upper sides of my chest, allowing me ease of use when in combat.
The foundational breathing method, which really had no name, was something that allowed me to press a large amount of energy through these points and filter it. With each breath, a small amount of highly charged energy would emerge. The breath itself had its own significance, as it would determine the charge. Inhale, exhale, that was the system for balance. With each inhale, a negative charge was formed. That charge would be pressed down towards my hand, where it would be held until I exhaled. On the exhale, the same thing would happen but with a positive charge. Slowly, my right arm would raise outwards, slender fingers curling into a fist. The exhale would happen, quickly, before a static charge of lightning curled around my fist and forearm. That was the basis of the lightning fist, that was the basis of all of the abilities I would learn and create.
“Very good. We each have our own style, and now that you have the basics down, it’s time for you to continue on your own. I am teaching this to you so that you can learn your own style, and incorporate it into your own methods of combat. It doesn’t matter what style you use, as long as you remember the basics. Keep that in the front of your mind and you will go far. The second reason you were called here is so that I can explain how single inheritance works. This style is a sacred art that only I know. I have met no others who can use this. To protect it, and keep its secrets safe, you are my only student. Now, you will work on perfecting your art, and one day take your own student. That is the way of what I am establishing. As your master, that is my will.”
I would simply nod to him. His words made sense after all. I wasn’t one to want other people to know how my abilities worked. That would give them an advantage over me in combat and that was something I didn’t really like the idea of. Standing up, I would look at my master for the last time. He smiled, patted me on the head like he did when we first met, and then left. He casually dug his hands into his pockets and walked out the door, leaving me there. Where he went off to or what he planned on doing I had no idea. It was the idea of him being completely gone that bothered me. The rest of the day would be spent watching the other spirits go by in their daily work efforts to rebuild. A lot of construction had been complete, and everything was going well so far. It made me wonder if this was all our existence was. Maybe there was something else out there, something that we didn’t really know about. It was harder to imagine something like that especially if one wasn’t really willing to think past what we already had. It wasn’t that we had it bad here, we actually had it really good. The problem was that it was rather boring. Other than the normal sparring matches, all I would do is live my life day to day. Thinking back, there were a few places my master had told me to only approach when I had the resolve to do so. One of those was out from the outskirts. I had always wondered what was out there but really never considered going to look. It was half anticipation, half fear at the result. If even my master told me it was dangerous then it had to have been something serious. That settled it, I would definitely be going without a shadow of a doubt. Tomorrow though, today was nearly gone and I wanted to get some rest before setting out on what was about to be the greatest adventure of my life so far.
1,091 exp
