Chapter .22 Dantian

The next day, Lee returned to the training ground with excitement, eager to put his intense workout with 3x gravity to the test. Before going for a run, he carefully stretched his muscles and warmed up, feeling fully prepared for the challenge.

Lee stood poised at the starting line, muscles tensed and ready to explode into a sprint. With all his strength, he propelled himself forward, the rush of wind against his face signalling a noticeable surge in his speed.

As he raced ahead, the world around him seemed to blur and everything fell away except for the rhythm of his feet hitting the ground and the sound of his breath. The finish line was within reach, and Lee could feel the adrenaline coursing through his veins, pushing him to go even faster.

With a final burst of energy, Lee crossed the finish line, gasping for breath but with a triumphant smile on his face. He had not only surpassed his previous record but had also proven that he was capable of achieving even greater speed and strength. He felt ready for the next step, so he kept up with his training for the next two weeks to get used to his new speed.

After a gruelling day of training, Lee settled in to do his breathing exercises, seeking to overcome his accumulated fatigue. As he allowed the natural energy to flow through his body, his rapid breathing gradually calmed, and he began to recover at a remarkable speed. With each breath, his five senses sharpened, he became keenly aware of everyone and everything within a 100-meter radius.

The sensation was exhilarating, and Lee felt a surge of power and focus that he had never experienced before. It was as if he had tapped into an unknown reserve of energy and awareness.

As he continued his breathing exercises, he felt a sense of calm and clarity wash over him, and he knew that he was in complete control of his body and mind. With each inhale and exhale, he felt the tension and fatigue melt away, leaving him feeling rejuvenated.

Lee noticed that his recovery time had decreased, but he believed he could recover even faster if he remained still. "I need to figure out how to recover while in motion," he pondered. Although he could recover while on the move, it was much slower compared to when he was standing still. Unfortunately, he couldn't rely on shadow clones like Naruto, as it would restrict his fighting style and come with significant time limitations. Lee continued to ponder this problem and realized that he needed to come up with a new technique that allowed him to recover while still being able to fight effectively.

"I need to find stillness within movement, just like the concept of Taiji. Fortunately, I'm already practicing Taiji, but that alone is not enough. I waste too much energy trying to gather it while in motion. If only I could replenish my energy the way Naruto does with his shadow clones and use it when needed." Lee pondered over this question while meditating, and suddenly had an epiphany on how he could store his energy. The answer he found was the "Dantian". All he had to do was continue meditating and guide the energy to his navel, where the deepest energy resides, the source of all movement. "I can achieve both my goals - stillness and movement."

Lee continued to focus on his meditation, practicing the technique of storing his energy in his dantian. With dedicated practice and discipline, he found that he was able to access his stored energy during movement, allowing him to achieve a level of stillness within his motion that he had never experienced before. As he continued on this path, Lee found himself becoming more in tune with the flow of energy within his body, and his movements became more effortless and powerful.

With his newfound understanding, Lee's Taiji practice had reached new heights, and he had mastered stillness within movement. He was able to conserve his energy and use it with precision, just like Naruto and his shadow clones.

On the other hand, as he continued to perfect his Dantian meditation, he was able to store all the excessive natural energy in his Dantian. Now that he had access to the energy center, it would gather energy by itself while he was still in motion. Lee became a living embodiment of the harmony between stillness and movement, and he knew that he had truly unlocked the potential within himself.

"Congratulations are definitely in order. You've successfully unlocked your Dantian and opened the path to becoming a 'Sage'. Perhaps I should start calling you 'the mini-sage', hmm? Hehehehe..." Uzume couldn't help but giggle.

Lee blushed at Uzume's teasing but couldn't help feeling a sense of pride at the accomplishment. He had worked tirelessly to cultivate his Qi and unlock his Dantian, and now he was one step closer to achieving his ultimate goal.

"Since you have activated your dantian, you are embarking on a challenging and lengthy journey. Fortunately, we have the shadow clone technique to assist you. The dantian has three stages - gasses, liquid, and Cosmos - through which you will ascend and connect to the Universe," Uzume explained to Lee. Since he had no idea where to go from here other than to keep on cultivating. So he turned his attention fully to Uzume, listening intently.

She saw that Lee was fully focused on her and continued to explain, "The most important thing for you to understand is that initially, your Qi is in a gaseous form. Your goal is to condense it into a liquid form of Qi. To achieve this, you must master the shadow clone technique. Not the one I've helped you with, where you only gain memories, but the one you can create yourself. That's when you can absorb all the experiences."

Lee nodded, taking in all the information. He was determined to master the shadow clone technique and absorb all the experiences he needed to advance in his training.