Chapter 8: The Gym Bro Cultivation Path
After a few months of study, Dahlia could now explain the system of the body as clearly as any physician.
Garion stood in front of her with his arms crossed, his grin wide.
"Good. You’ve finally learned it all."
Dahlia bowed her head.
"Yes, Master."
Garion rubbed his chin, satisfied.
"Now that you’ve mastered everything about a body, it’s time for me to teach you our gym cultivation art."
Dahlia’s eyes widened.
For months, she had learned the things that were strange for a sect disciple.
Although she was interested in those, deep down, she had longed for the moment when her master would finally teach her a real cultivation method.
She clasped her hands and bowed down.
"Thank you, Master."
Garion smirked as he introduced it.
"My cultivation manual is different from all others. It’s a bit unique and made by me. It doesn’t even have a name yet."
"So, like just other manuals with a flashy name, let’s name it [God Physique Cultivation Manual]."
Dahlia’s mouth opened slightly, trembling a bit after hearing the name.
"God... Physique..."
Garion smiled, placing his hands on his hips.
"Exactly. My manual is unlike others. While others focus on mana breathing, mine focus on the body to reform and give you the physique of a god."
Dahlia stared at him, caught between awe and disbelief.
The title sounded like bragging, but she had already seen how her master was different from others. Maybe it wasn’t a joke.
Garion clapped his hands.
"Okay. Sit down and cross your legs, now."
Dahlia nodded and sat on the floor, crossing her legs like she always did before when cultivating.
Garion looked down at her and asked.
"Tell me. Do you know how mana cultivation usually works in the first realm?"
Dahlia nodded quickly.
"Yes, Master. One must breathe in mana, keep it in the mana pool, refine it into liquid, circulate it through the meridians, and then temper the body."
Garion raised a thumb, smiling.
"That’s right. But our method is different. We don’t waste time with imaginary organs like mana pool and meridians."
Dahlia tilted her head, confused.
"Imaginary... organs?"
Garion crouched down, reminding her.
"Yes. You already knew about organs, but did you see real organs like the mana pool or meridians in the cadaver?"
Dahlia thought for a moment before shaking her head.
"No, Master. I don’t see any organs like those. And also, the master didn’t tell me about them at all."
Garion nodded, satisfied.
"Indeed. They were not there because, just like I said, they were imaginary organs. They were formed because of mana cultivation."
Garion turned to her, pointing at her lower abdomen.
"And thanks to that, they were fake and inefficient, and that’s why we won’t use them."
Dahlia frowned slightly.
She wanted to ask more, but kept silent as it was still her master teaching.
Garion folded his arms and began to explain his manual.
"Now, try to sense and inhale mana. You already know how to do it, right?"
Dahlia nodded. "Yes, Master."
She closed her eyes and began breathing slowly. She quickly felt it and inhaled all the mana.
But before she could continue to another step as usual, Garion stopped her.
"Stop. Don’t put the mana into your mana pool."
Her brows furrowed.
Garion pointed at her back and tapped her spine.
"Visualize it entering your bone marrow instead. You already knew bone marrow’s function, right?"
Dahlia only nodded and couldn’t talk as she was still focused on cultivating.
"Good. Direct the mana into your bone marrow and visualize the bone marrow drinks the mana and produces mana-blood."
Dahlia nodded and tried it.
She visualized her bone marrow drinking the mana that she inhaled, producing mana-blood.
Garion quickly continued the next steps.
"Good. Now, direct that mana-blood into your heart, which is then pumped through your veins to every cell of your body."
Dahlia’s breathing slowed.
She followed Garion’s instruction, and soon the warmth of mana in her chest spread further into every cell.
Garion leaned closer.
"Keep going. Let your every cell drink it. Then, let the mana-blood return to the heart before starting the cycle repeatedly."
"Simultaneously, tried to keep inhaling and visualizing that the bone marrow drinks the mana repeatedly."
Dahlia began to sweat and smile at the same time. She had never felt mana move this way before.
It wasn’t pooling in her lower abdomen. It wasn’t getting stuck and flowed smoothly everywhere, tempering every cell.
"How can this be?"
Garion smirked.
"Tell me. How do you feel?"
Dahlia checked every inch of her body in disbelief.
"My body... feels better and stronger. It feels like my body is given more nutrients than normal."
Garion nodded, satisfied.
"Exactly. That’s the result of my manual. Why bother with imaginary organs when you already have the real ones?"
Dahlia’s eyes shone, realizing why her master waited until now to let her cultivate.
"No wonder the master taught me about the body first. The master’s manual needed knowldege of the body to cultivate it."
Garion pointed at her approvingly, explaining it further.
"You got it. That’s the [God Physique Cultivation Manual]. And also, as all of your cells keep drinking the mana, they should slowly become mini pools."
She gasped softly.
"Every cell... becomes a mini mana pool?"
Garion straightened, feeling proud.
"Exactly. Although the other had a huge mana pool inside their lower abdomen, we have a million mini ones all over our bodies."
"Although the mana pools should be a lot smaller, maybe a thousand times smaller, we have numbers, and it will be easier and faster to use as the mana is spread all over the body."
Dahlia was speechless. She never knew that her master manual was this amazing.
"Amazing..."
She then paused, thinking about something.
"But, Master... what about my mana pool if I don’t use it anymore?"
Garion thought for a moment, rubbing his chin.
"Of course not. The mana pool is made of mana itself. In time, it will disappear, absorbed by the body."
Dahlia nodded.
"I see. That makes sense."
Garion clapped his hands.
"Good. Now keep practising. We use the real organs, and the more you use them, the more they remember the process."
"Eventually, you won’t even need to think about it. Your marrow will absorb mana independently, your heart will circulate it, and all your cells will drink it passively."
Dahlia bowed her head deeply.
"Yes, Master. I’ll keep visualizing until it becomes natural."
Garion smirked, crossing her arms.
Dahlia closed her eyes again, focusing on the cycle and trying to make all her organs remember.