Corbin Teaches Cultivation

As days passed, Fang grew increasingly restless.

The bandits spent most of their day gambling or drinking. The flowery aroma of rice wine filled the deck at all times, making Fang want to get of his nostrils.

The best part of being captured was the food and water he received once a day, but that fact only added to his grievances. A part of his mind kept telling him that being held in captivity was not that bad, and this was driving him crazy.

Trying to focus on something else, he mentally asked Corbin, 'You were in the middle of explaining how cultivation works before those rats interrupted us,' Fang said with an indignant huff. 'Do you mind resuming your explanation?'

'Sure, let me start by explaining the basics,' replied Corbin after letting out a cough. 'First off, before you start your journey on the path of cultivation, always check your spirit root,' explained Corbin.

'The spirit root is the most important element when you start cultivating as it is the very thing that allows you to draw in Qi from the world and supplement your mind and body by purifying it in your Dantian.'

Seeing Fang let out a small grunt in acknowledgment, Corbin continued, 'The spirit root quality is different for each cultivator, but all of them fall under one of the quality grades that range from one to five—one being the highest grade and allowing for more Qi absorption and refinement, while the fifth grade is the bare minimum and only allows one to reach as far as core formation.'

Before Corbin could move on and explain the cultivation realms, Fang cynically asked, 'You must know the grade of my spirit root since you tried to suck me dry, right?'

Corbin let out a muffled cough, 'Your spirit root is grade 2,' then quietly added, 'I thought we let that small mishap behind us.'

Fang rolled his eyes and pretended he didn't hear the last part, then he started pondering.

'Grade two... grade two is not bad, but I expected at least grade 1 or maybe even some special grade that is above the system.'

Hearing his arrogant thoughts, Corbin quickly interjected, 'Don't get cocky now, kid. You must know that grade two talents are very rare while the chance of being born with grade one is only one in a billion.'

Corbin continued, 'And regarding your thoughts on spirit roots beyond the general system...well, there are individuals who can inherit the forbidden Null Grade spirit roots, but those guys never survive once they reach a certain stage in cultivation.'

Fang wanted to ask for more information regarding the Null Grade but was interrupted by Corbin, 'Don't ask about that grade and it's best you forget about it, now let me continue or I'll stop explaining.'

Fang decided to ask someone else about it, so he nodded his head and let his elderly companion speak.

Corbin started by saying, 'Good, good, now let me tell you about cultivation stages; first off, I'll only tell you about the Mortal Realm and its six stages since any information beyond that will only confuse you and hinder your cultivation.'

After a brief pause to gather his thoughts, Corbin continued, 'The Mortal Realm consists of six stages: Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul, Soul Transformation, and finally, Mortal Ascension.'

Fang had an inkling that something was wrong as he was already familiar with these terms from all the novels he read back on Earth.

It seemed surreal that all the 'fictional' terms he learned from novels applied in this world, but instead of trying to figure out why this was happening, he decided to just go with the flow and see what this new world has in store for him.

Corbin could see Fang was unfocused, so he let him settle his thoughts before continuing.

'Thanks for telling me all this, old man. I suddenly remembered a few stuff about cultivation, so there is no need to continue,' said Fang while scratching his left ear with his leg.

'Great, so you now know about demonic beast cultivation and such, right?' Cheekily replied Corbin.

'Why would I care about demo-'

'!!!' 

Just as Fang was about to retort, a sudden realization hit him—He had the body of a beast!

'Please tell me about Demonic Beasts and their cultivation, Corbin.'

'Oh, interesting,' replied Corbin, while Fang fully pictured a shit-eating grin plastered on his non-existent face, 'now you call me by my real name instead of 'old man'?'

Frustrated, Fang shot back, 'Don't push it! Mind remembering the small stunt you tried to pull back at the temple?'

Hearing this, Corbin let out a strange sound as if he just choked on something, then slowly said, 'Demonic Beasts have a slightly different system than humans,' He paused for a few seconds then continued, 'they are usually classified by ranks which range from first to sixth.'

Fang nodded and told him to continue.

'Beasts have the advantage of possessing stronger bodies than humans and cultivate by creating a demonic core. The downside is they can't learn any cultivation art or spell until they reach the third rank, which is the equivalent of nascent soul in human cultivation terms.'

Corbin clarified before Fang could ask the obvious question, 'Yes, beasts who reach 3rd rank can take on human form as it is needed for their next advancement.'

'Why, though?' questioned Fang, puzzled by this new development.

'Well, the Universe is biased towards humans,' dryly replied Corbin, 'And even though they can create their own nascent souls inside their demonic cores, in the end, they'll still have to take on human form.'

Sensing that something was amiss, Fang pushed Corbin for more details.

'Fine, I'll tell you, so stop pestering me!' Loudly exclaimed Corbin. 'From my memories, I can tell you that I was created from the blood essence of the Primal Monarch.'

'I'm familiar with the concept of blood essence,' informed Fang . 'It's related to the well-being and spirit root of a person, right?'

'That's a crude way to put it, but you're mostly right,' confirmed Corbin.

'As I was saying' he continued, 'Since I was created from the blood essence of the Primal Monarch, I can tell you that he was a beast just like you, until he broke through the 6th rank and reached a new level of existence.' Admitted Corbin.

'What do you mean by 'new level of existence' ?' questioned Fang.

'All I can tell you is that once you reach a certain stage, you basically stop being classified as a beast and instead take the human form as a base for your existence,' said Corbin.

'You can view it as mixing the human bloodline that gets automatically created when you get your human form with the beast bloodline—giving birth to something new and unique.'

'So let me get this straight,' replied Fang while licking his paw, 'Once I reach a high stage, I become a demi-human instead of a full-fledged beast?'

'Basically, yes,' responded Corbin.

'What happens to my beast form, though?' hesitantly asked Fang.

Fang knew that humans could never match the body of a beast, so after hearing about this transformation, he got worried about it.

'If I have no way of keeping my beast form, then I would need to start practicing body refinement techniques,' he thought, remembering the painful descriptions of body tempering techniques in every xianxia novel he read, which made him get goosebumps all over his furry skin.

He wanted to become powerful, but not if it meant enduring inhuman pain! 

He was no masochist!

Before Fang sunk into the pits of despair, Corbin said the words he desperately hoped to hear.

'Don't worry, you'll still have access to it. Your demonic core will house your nascent soul that retains your beast form, allowing you to transform your body and regain it along with its power whenever you need it.'

Fang let out a resounding sigh while swiping the nonexistent drop of sweat on his furry forehead.

'When do you think I should start creating my demonic core?' asked Fang with an impatient tone.

'Wait until you find the core of another beast before you start. It will help by boosting your core creation and advancement in the first and maybe even second rank,' calmly stated Corbin.

Fang pieced together the information he just received and was not happy with the conclusion.

'So you're telling me I have to consume another beast that already created its demonic core to start cultivating?' 

'Yes, the higher the rank of the core, the better,' replied Corbin.

Fang decided to follow Corbin's advice and wait until he gets his claws on a beast core before embarking on his cultivation path.

―――

A full month passed by, and he finally spotted the Black Isles in the distance.