The Science of Cultivation [Xianxia]

“Master Yi Lin, how can you possibly have such bad handwriting?” Li Lang asked the moment he stepped into the study.

Yi Lin stared blankly for a brief moment at the sudden question before scratching his head.

“Oh…That was when I was young. I’ve improved…over the years. And I told you to just call me Yi Lin. No need to add master.”

“...I still can’t read any of this.”

“Haha, my master used to have the same kind of handwriting and I mimicked it. He said it showed character and prevented people from stealing his research from just a glance.”

“...I see.”

“Anyway, let’s get started! We’ll need to have you craft your own Moon Brush and dye your inkstone first. Then I’ll run you through the entire process of talisman inscription before I have you assist me in my work.”

“Understood. I look forward to it.”

“Come on now, no need to be so formal. So where did we leave off yesterday?” Yi Lin began rummaging through the mess as he racked his brain. “Ah yes, we were just talking about how to create a Moon Brush.”

Li Lang nodded along to urge his mentor to continue.

“Moon Brush is unique to each Brushweaver and is the most important medium we use to channel our techniques. One could say the Moon Brush is a reflection of the Brushweaver themselves. Just like their creator, the brush can be improved over time, so it’s not too important what material you used to create it at the start. It just has to be materials that are suitable for your current rank of cultivation. In your case, any mortal-grade resources will do, and I happen to have plenty of those.”

Li Lang waited patiently as Yi Lin fished out a box from within a large pile. He brought it up onto the table and gestured for Li Lang to examine it.

Inside were several blocks of wood mixed in with some metal ingots, ivory, and various materials for the bristle of the brush.

“Go ahead and pick out a material. You can mix and match them as much as you want, though it’ll just create more work for yourself.”

“Umm…Are you sure I should select randomly like this? Doesn’t the material affect my Brushweaving somehow?”

“Hmm…it does, but at the same time, it doesn’t matter. It will change the way you interact with it and how you channel your Qi through it, but it won’t matter once you get used to it. You will learn how to use techniques to control your output. Just channel Qi into these materials and find one that fits you best.”

Taking a deep breath, Li Lang proceeded as instructed. He began fishing out different materials and channeled Qi into it. He was familiar with the process since it was exactly the same as when he wielded his spear. However, it was only now that he began to feel how distinct each different type of material was.

Some allowed his Qi to flow straight through, while others snaked around inside. Some grew warm or required greater force to push the Qi through. Li Lang found the latter unsuitable for him as he couldn’t exert the greatest amount of strength with his Qi due to his low aptitude.

After half an hour of playing around, Li Lang finally settled on an ivory material for the body of the brush. It allowed his Qi to flow the fastest and unhindered while also being warm to hold.

For the bristles, he used the same logic and selected one that allowed his Qi to flow the smoothest.

“A fang from an Elemental Serpent and Silverthorn Lion’s Mane, good choice,” Yi Lin commented. “Now onto inkstone. Here, take this new one I have here.”

Yi Lin placed a plain-looking inkstone onto the table and then placed several ink sticks beside it. He then brought out a small bowl of water from out of nowhere and placed it down as well.

“As we talked about yesterday, go ahead and channel your Qi into the ink as you grind the ink stick down.”

Li Lang did as instructed and started by pouring water onto the center of the inkstone. He then ground down the ink stick on the wet surface as he channeled Qi into it. Slowly and surely, a small lake of ink formed on the inkstone.

He could feel the Qi inside of him draining quickly, but thankfully, the ordeal finished when he was three-quarters drained.

As soon as he finished, he immediately began sucking in the ambient Qi to replenish his stocks.

“Here, take a Qi Replenishment Pill or you’ll tire yourself out if you constantly try to absorb it yourself. And it ruins the flow of Qi around here, which will affect the end product.”

There was no reason to reject his mentor’s goodwill, so Li Lang quickly accepted it. He had a few Qi Replenishment Pills on himself that he rarely used. He had never been in such a desperate fight where he needed to take one to persist, or if he did, he wouldn’t have the leeway to ingest it. Now, he found another use for one of the pills in his repertoire.

The pill dissolved inside him and a burst of Qi rushed to replenish his exhausted stocks. The mentor and student quickly resumed their lesson.

“Okay, now that you have a pond of ink infused with your Qi, steep your Moon Brush materials in there for a day. We’ll craft them into a brush tomorrow. You can set it aside on the table over here.”

Throughout the process, Li Lang’s mind had been racing at its top speed as he thought about what he was doing. It was an entirely new experience for him to craft like this, as his usual pill-refining employed a lot more familiar techniques that made use of heat.

This process he had just experienced was simply preparing for calligraphy back in his world. It wasn’t creating anything new; it just dissolved some ink. However, he knew the variable of Qi added a whole new dimension to this craft. Brushweaving was something that stood equal to Alchemy among the five major crafts, and he would be foolish to discount it.

After the mentor and student put away their latest work, it was time for Yi Lin to begin working on his projects.

As a one-star Brushweaver certified by the guild, Yi Lin was not short of work. He was known for how much he was willing to customize the final product for his customers, which earned him high points with other crafters.

As the two cleared the table, Yi Lin opted to go with an orthodox commission to ease his new student into it.

“I will now be inscribing a simple talisman,” Yi Lin declared. “For this first task, you can assist me by simply grinding down this ink stick for me whenever the ink levels get low.”

He then handed Li Lang another ink stick that appeared at the wave of his hand. Li Lang immediately felt something different about this new ink stick and furrowed his brows as he studied it.

“This…is already infused with your Qi?”

“That’s right. The method you just used is the easiest to infuse your Qi, but you can also infuse ink in its solid form. Many Brushweavers at higher levels do this beforehand so they can focus on their work while they inscribe.”

“I see…”

Seeing how Li Lang didn’t voice any other questions, Yi Lin proceeded to bring out his tools. With the inkstone on the table and his Moon Brush in hand, he began to inscribe onto a piece of blank talisman paper.

Different from Li Lang’s session, the Foundation Establishment cultivator’s tool sparkled. The pool of ink on his inkstone appeared to be like the night sky, with stars glittering brightly.

His left hand supported his dominant hand by the wrist, while he first drew a rectangle along the edge of the paper. Despite his slow movements, it was apparent he was doing it with practiced ease. He even had the leeway to lecture Li Lang at the same time.

“Remember, the first step is always to plan out the talisman in your head first. You’ll need to decide on the elements you’ll include in your work. The more elements, the more complicated, because the runes may interfere with each other.”

He then extolled the steps and meaning of each rune he was inscribing. His hand never stopped moving the entire time.

It was only after an entire fifteen minutes that Li Lang actually did something and began grinding down the ink stick. The moment new ink dripped onto the inkstone, a small wave oscillated across the lake of ink.

This was all Li Lang did before Yi Lin managed to complete the talisman. In slightly more than thirty minutes, the air in the room congregated on the talisman as it was completed.

“...Yi Lin, can I ask what this talisman does?”

The man looked thoughtful for a moment before replying.

“This talisman can store one Qi art attack. It is still missing the final step of storing the all-important attack, but that is something I’ll be doing at a later date with the client. I hope I don’t have to remind you that this is a private commission.”

“Of course.”

The two then got started on the next piece of work. This time, it was something Li Lang had yet to personally witness. Instead of a regular blank talisman paper, Yi Lin brought out a spear. It wasn’t just any spear, Li Lang could tell with a glance that it was an artifact. It radiated an intense aura even without a wielder.

“This time, just watch. It is too soon for you to be helping with this one.”

With those words, Yi Lin immediately started inscribing onto the shaft of the spear. He used a different set of tools. A thin brush along with a transparent liquid with some degree of viscosity replaced the ink.

Does this mean I can inscribe on my own spear, too?