Quantum Cultivation by Jace Kang (simple e reader TXT) 📕

“You’re sure it was him?”

“Oh yes, he’s so handsome. Almost as handsome as you.” Siena winked.

Ken and Aya both nodded.

“Thank you.” He held his wrist up to his mouth. “Base, we have a report of Ishihara heading north.”

When the Peacekeepers turned north, Ken looked to Siena. “I thought you were going to betray him.”

Her eyes widened, making her even more beautiful in her shock. She shook her head.  “No, there’s so much more I want to learn from him.”

Aya snickered. “Come on, let’s not keep the Cultivator waiting.”

They headed back toward the park, passing another pair of Peacekeepers, who ignored them.  A handful of Purebred passersby, including a few Ken knew, gawked and pointed.

When they arrived, the park looked empty.

“Where is he?” Ken asked.

Siena pointed. “There.”

Ken peered at the indicated spot. Nothing was there. He looked to her.

“Come on,” she said, taking his hand.

His heart leaped into his throat at the warmth of her touch, and he let himself be pulled along.  He looked over his shoulder to find Aya frowning.

The air shifted around them, and there was Master Ryu sitting in lotus position under a tree.

“You’re back,” he said, without opening his eyes.

“You’re still here.” Siena sashayed over and sat down beside him.

A ping of jealousy twisted in Ken’s gut.

“Yes, your Qi and Essence is so strong, it took me a long time to integrate it. It not only replenished me, it has also allowed me to fortify my Core. It will be easier to complete my mission.”

Ken scratched his head. The master had mentioned needing pills from his robe to close off the portals between here and the World of Rivers and Lakes.  Hopefully, he’d take Ken with him.

Master Ryu’s eyes opened and locked first on Ken, then Aya. “Now, Ken.”

Ken perked up. “Yes?”

“What did you sense during my friendly duel with Siena?”

Did he mean when they were fighting, or when they were engaged in a more intimate battle? Ken tapped his chin. “Energy.”

“Sure. But…” Frowning, Master Ryu turned away from Ken and looked to Aya. “Did you feel the push and pull of combat?”

Ken had noticed the push and pull of something.

The girl shrugged. “I guess?”

“No guessing. Either you did, or you didn’t.”

Aya shook her head. “I don’t think so.”

Ken didn’t think so either. Maybe Master Ryu wasn’t that good of a teacher. He hadn’t said what to look out for.

“So, no.”

“Yes,” Ken said. “I mean, no. Definitely not.”

“Good.” Master Ryu smiled.

“Good?” This wasn’t making any sense.

“Good, because there really is no such thing that you can feel, unless you are the one fighting.”

What? Ken scowled. “That was a trick question.”

“Yes. Why do you think I wanted you to watch?”

Because he was a showoff? Ken exchanged looks with Aya.

Master Ryu chuckled. “I wanted you to see how martial forms transition from one to another based on the situation. It’s the first step to learning to feel the flow.”

Ken nodded slowly. “Yes, I did see it, but it looked like you used more than Xingyi Fist.”

“You have a good eye.” Master Ryu smiled broadly.  “I tried to use just Xingyi Fist, but Siena was too fast. I resorted to Liu He Ba Fa—Six Harmonies and Eight Ways, also known as Water Boxing, as well as Tempest Fist.”

“Tempest Fist?” Aya asked. “I searched and found Liu He Ba Fa, but I couldn’t find anything about Tempest Fist.”

Searched? Ken stared at her.

“It’s a Yang Water style that belongs to the Land of River and Lakes,” Master Ryu said. “Mastering it will allow you to achieve Third Rank in the Water Path.”

“You used the same skills against the shocktroopers.” Aya held up a small black cube in her open palm. It cast a projection of two miniature versions of the master, one from yesterday and the other from this morning. They moved as if fighting opponents, and every now and then, red circles connected by lines flashed on both, indicating the same technique.

Ken could only gawk.

“Fascinating.” Master Ryu nodded. “Splashing Hands, the Water Whip.  You captured it all.”

“My AI recorded and analyzed it.” Aya tapped the neural interface on her head. “I’ve already uploaded it to my neural pathways.”

What? Ken’s stomach sank. That would explain how fast she learned.

“Oh?” Master Ryu grinned. “Show me.”

Aya flushed so red she could’ve competed with the sun to light up the sky. She took a deep breath and started moving. While much slower than Master Ryu, her body executed the techniques perfectly—at least to Ken’s untrained eyes. The Xingyi Fist forms which had taken him hours to learn, she was already able to do.

A mix of jealousy and anger made Ken want to vomit. This just wasn’t fair. As a Purebred, he didn’t have a neural interface.

“This is good,” Master Ryu said, “but without Cultivation supporting it, it’s like a Picasso knock-off.”

Whatever that meant, it made Ken feel a little better.

“Picasso, the painter?” Aya asked, voice trembling. “I don’t understand.”

“Your movement is a copy without true form or function.” Master Ryu shook his head, and pointed to the building beside them. “It would be as if that skyscraper didn’t have a framework supporting it. If you tried Splashing Hands, it would break several bones in your hands.”

Her shoulders slumped.

“More importantly, it will never help your lungs.” He pressed on her upper back and stomach to adjust her stance. “Keep your spine straight. It’s not hopeless. You just need to purify your meridians and replace it with good Qi. And the same goes with you, Ken.”

Ken sighed. “If only there were an easier way.”

Master Ryu sighed, too. “If I had my pills…”

“Could the effect of the pills be replicated by