The old man gazed at me with an intense seriousness in his eyes. “You have a unique body constitution, boy, one that requires special training. You must adapt to your unique condition and train in a way that harmonizes with the reversed flow of your meridians.”
I furrowed my brow, trying to grasp his meaning. “But how? How can I train in such a way if I’ve never felt my meridians before? How can I harmonize myself with something I can’t even perceive?”
A knowing smile crept across the old man’s face. “There is only one way. You must become my disciple.”
His words hung in the air, and for a moment, I simply stared at him, trying to process the offer. Then, my frustration boiled over. “How can I become the disciple of a beggar?” I snapped, my tone harsher than I intended.
The old man’s eyes narrowed, irritation flaring up. “A beggar, am I?” He retorted. “Is there any beggar who knows so much about mana, physiques, and meridians as I do?”
I shrugged, unable to hide it. “I wouldn’t know. The only beggar I know is you.”
For a moment, the old man looked as if he might strike me, but then he laughed—a deep, hearty sound that echoed in the night air. “Well, perhaps you have a point. But appearances can be deceiving. I may look like a beggar, but I assure you, I am far more than that.”
I looked at him skeptically, still unsure whether to trust him. But something in his eyes told me he was speaking the truth. This old man…..He was like the mysterious ancestors who somehow wandered around the world and came across the protagonist.
‘Then….Does this make me the protagonist of the story?’
It was such a laughable thought. Who would want to read such a pathetic protagonist anyway?
“If I agree, what will you teach me? How can you help me with this… Physique of the Requiverse?”
The old man’s gaze softened. “I will teach you how to harness your unique constitution. You will learn to flow with the reversed meridians to draw upon your true potential. But it will not be easy. You must be willing to endure pain and hardship beyond anything you’ve ever known.”
Swallowed hard, the weight of his words sinking in. “And if I don’t?”
He sighed a touch of sadness in his eyes. “Then you will continue to struggle, unable to gather mana, unable to live up to your potential. You will never become the warrior you were meant to be, and you will never achieve anything in your life. You will be forgotten, just like the ones that you want to avenge.”
‘Just like the ones that you are trying to avenge.’
I clenched my fists, feeling the frustration and anger boil within me once more at these words. Indeed, that was the case. This was something I was already aware of.
I had trained so hard and pushed myself to the brink, only to be held back by something beyond my control. If this old man—beggar or not—could help me overcome that, I had to take the chance.
“Alright,” I said finally, my voice steady. “I’ll become your disciple, not that I have much choice.”
But there was something that had been plaguing my mind for a while now.
But there was something that had been plaguing my mind for a while now. “You have talked about my physique. You said I have this unique condition, but you never mentioned anything related to the sword. Why did you tell me my body was suited for a sword?”
The old man’s eyes gleamed with a mixture of amusement and wisdom. “Ah, you caught that, did you?” He said while looking at my eyes. “The thing is, I myself don’t know the answer as well.”
“What? You don’t know the answer?” I asked, feeling a mix of confusion and frustration.
He nodded, his expression thoughtful. “The reason why you are suited for the sword is not actually because of your body. It is because of something innate to you. It’s as if you have been limiting yourself because of something in your mind.”
I furrowed my brow, trying to grasp what he was saying. “Something in my mind? What do you mean?”
The old man took a deep breath, his eyes reflecting a deep well of experience. “I suspect it is related to your psyche. Your struggles with mana, your inability to gather it, and your discomfort with the spear—all of these point to something deeper. It’s as if there’s a mental block, a labyrinth of barriers that shapes the direction that your body is going to take.”
I looked at the old man, his words resonating within me. As I pondered his explanation, memories of my training and struggles surfaced. Despite my efforts with the spear, it never felt right. Yet, when I imagined myself wielding a sword, the movements came naturally, almost instinctively.
As I reflected, I began to see the truth in the old man’s words. My mind had always conjured images of fluid, precise sword movements with ease. It was as if my body knew the sword, even though I had never trained with it. The spear, by contrast, felt foreign, its rigid thrusts and stabs at odds with my natural inclinations.
Just as he had said, my way of thinking seemed more suited to the sword. I could visualize the strikes, parries, and fluid transitions with clarity. My body seemed to understand the language of the sword, responding to its rhythm and flow.
“You’re right,” I said slowly, still piecing together my thoughts. “When I think about fighting, about moving in battle, the sword just… fits. I can see the movements in my mind, understand them in a way I never could with the spear.”
The old man nodded, his eyes gleaming with approval. “Precisely. Though I have no explanation for this.”
“I see.” I nodded, understanding what he was saying. I took a deep breath, feeling a mix of determination and newfound clarity. “Then I will embrace it. I will learn the sword and let it guide me. Whatever it takes to overcome these barriers, I’ll do it.”
“Good.” The old man said and then gestured to me. “Now, sit down. We are going to start.”
“Now?”
“Now.”
I hesitated for a moment, then nodded and settled myself on the ground. The old man moved to sit directly across from me, taking the lotus position. I mimicked his posture, crossing my legs and placing my hands on my knees.
“What should I call you, Master?” I asked, unsure if it was appropriate to continue calling him the old man.
“Just call me Master,” he replied with a faint smile. “Just as I said before, names are not important. What matters is your training and overcoming the barriers within you.”
I nodded, accepting his words. Master’s presence was calming, and despite his initial gruff demeanor, I felt a sense of trust growing between us.
“Close your eyes,” Master instructed. “We will begin with a meditation to center your mind and body. This will help you attune to your unique constitution and prepare you for the training ahead.”
I closed my eyes, taking deep, steady breaths. Master’s voice guided me through the meditation, instructing me to focus on my breathing, to clear my mind of distractions, and to visualize the flow of energy within me.
“Imagine a river,” he said softly. “This river is your inner energy, your mana. Visualize it flowing through your body, through the meridians. Feel its natural path and let it guide you.”
As I followed his instructions, I pictured a river of light coursing through me. But contrary to what he said, I was not able to visualize the light coursing through my veins at all.
Rather, it was just plain empty darkness. There was nothing that I could see.
Everything was dark and abnormal. Whenever I tried to make the river flow, it always felt like it was blocked by something.
A wall.
“Were you able to do that?” Master asked, his voice breaking the silence.
I shook my head, feeling a sense of frustration. “No, I couldn’t make a clear flowing river. It was blocked and dark. There was nothing but emptiness.”
Master hummed for a second, his expression contemplative. Then, he turned to look at me with a deeper understanding. “Disciple, if you want to move forward, you need to let go of your past fears and your past failures. The experiences that are engraved into your heart, the cues you’ve set for yourself—that you are destined for failure—you need to get rid of them.”
“I—” I started to refute, my frustration bubbling up. “I’ve always tried my best to become better. How could I be setting myself up for failure?”
Master raised a hand, gently silencing me. “Remember, I never showed you or instructed you to make everything with light or to visualize it flowing everywhere. That was your own assumption. You assumed the light and then felt like the darkness was your own failure. And the walls… With no mana involved, there are no such things as bottlenecks. It is all in your mind.”
I blinked, trying to comprehend his words. He was right. He had only asked me to visualize a river of energy, yet I had immediately imagined it as a river of light. When I couldn’t see the light, I assumed it was a sign of my failure. The walls and obstacles were constructs of my own mind, manifestations of my insecurities and fears.
“You mean… I created those barriers myself?” I asked, the realization dawning on me.
Master nodded. “Exactly. Your mind is powerful. It can create both barriers and pathways. The darkness you saw and the walls you encountered were not failures. They were your mind’s way of interpreting the unknown.
Without mana, without understanding the flow of energy, there are no true obstacles but the ones you imagine. And all of them stem from your own perception of yourself.”
“And until you change this yourself, we are not going to start any internal cultivation.”
———————–
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