10 My Martial Way
NO.....came the resolute reply from my mother. "You are only ten years old. Outside of the palace, there are many dangers. I cannot let you wander alone." I had long prepared for such response so I had already prepared an excuse.
"Mother, my request is not unreasonable. Before my coming-of-age ceremony, nobody in this country will be able to recognize me. Also, I will stay in the capital, under the covert protection of the palace. If you want I can also stay disguised near the houses of soldiers living in the commoner's area."
My mother was still not convinced. But when she was going to reject my idea again, my father interrupted her and asked," Why do insist on living a commoner's life for two years? "
I had also thought out my response for such situation," I want to experience the life of common mortals, the hardships they face and their martial prowess. In that way, I can better judge the course of my life, be that as a martial artist or the prince of this country. I know that after my coming-of-age ceremony, my face will be known and it will be impossible to freely mingle within the masses. "
"What will you do after you leave the palace?"
"I plan to find employment in taverns or any place where I can come in contact with a lot of people, that way I can listen to their experiences personally and come in contact with many different kinds of people".
After hesitating for a while, my father agreed," Wait for one month, necessary preparations will be made for your request. In the meanwhile, continue with your training".
My mother wanted to stop me no matter what but she could not go against the king's wishes. So she sat down again on her chair, pouting. I made a bow towards my father in gratitude and went to console my mother. The rest of the banquet passed smoothly without any further events.
The next morning, I got someone to get me all manuals regarding techniques for Essence Gathering and even some for Foundation Consolidation stage so that I could properly analyse the nature of inner qi and true essence. I found out martial artists absorb qi using techniques, some of which are related to fist techniques while others are more like meditation. One thing I observed was that these techniques were all invariably divided into three parts- mantra chant, breath control and muscle contraction. First I researched various chants and what was their role in gathering qi. I found out the words were not important- just believing in the profundity of the words were enough. The yoga I did every morning already had its own mantras and breathing sequence, especially Surya Namaskar(1), which I did every day at sunrise. Also, Pragya Yoga, which when combined with Gayatri Mantra (2) became my primary method for absorbing qi. Surya Namaskar was extremely effective during sunrise and I completed 100 sets every dawn, this way I absorbed the purest qi every morning. Regarding Pragya Yoga, which was my core qi recovery technique, I slowly condensed the movements to such an extent that even when standing normally or walking, I could activate the required muscle groups to recover my qi.
Next came martial arts. I watched several duels (on a magical treasure that acted as a camcorder) and found out that the fighting techniques taught at sects were ridiculously straightforward at the beginner's stage. All manuals only contained techniques that relied heavily on one's cultivation level, there were no mentions about how to gain tactical advantage through strategies or how to create openings and chances to end the fight quickly. It was like getting a sumo fighter to only eat day in and day out, not teaching him any techniques, only saying that as long as he got heavier than the person next to him he could win any fight. While weight advantage did play an important role while fighting, like cultivation, it can never be a decisive factor.....
