A Snail's Wisdom

The tree branch swayed under the young man's toes as he balanced and stretched his head as far up as he could.

Because he did not want to ruin his shoes, he climbed the tree barefoot. He hid his shoes in an opening under the tree's largest root before ascending the tree.

His feet were dirty, and his hands had several scratches from grabbing the rough bark, but he paid them no mind as he made his way closer to the opposing wall.

Despite his tremendous effort, he was barely able to peer over the wall in front of him that stood thirteen meters tall.

He would have climbed higher, but the branches above him were too thin and flimsy to hold his weight. Even though he had grown taller over the past three years of climbing this tree, his increasing weight offset the benefits of his growth and then some.

On the other side of the wall, he observed a teacher lecturing a class of students in front of a large building. They wore white daoist robes, some with a specially-colored stripe at the end of their sleeves.

Although the peeping boy's hearing was a cut above most, he was still too far to hear the words being spoken. He could only rely on his memory of previous lectures and his somewhat-honed lip-reading abilities to piece together the words being said.

"To cultivate is to advance oneself to a higher pain of existence."

Pretty sure it was 'plane of existence'. The boy was certain cultivation had little to do with masochism.

Squinting his eyes, the boy increased his focus on the lecturer's moving lips.

"By taking in Qi from one's surroundings and cycling it through your body over the course of your life, you can evolve and row your body and soul to the next stage towards Immortality."

Surely, he meant 'grow your body'. There weren't any nearby lakes or rowboats in Ryuga.

What he was spectating was the Flowing River Sect's 'Introduction to Cultivation' lecture and what it means to be a cultivator.

The act of 'cultivating oneself' meant to diligently seek the advancement of one's body, mind and spirit through enlightenment, meditation and a variety of other activities, vastly improving one's physical vitality, mental capacity and longevity. If one advanced far enough, they would achieve an eternal and godlike existence.

Putting the long and boring definition aside, cultivating was something everyone wished to do, but few had the talent or resources to accomplish it.

Sects such as this one were considered schools for cultivation. They brought people together and helped each other on their respective journeys to Immortality.

It was public knowledge that the Flowing River Sect held lectures in the mornings outside. Unfortunately, the sect was surrounded by large walls, preventing outsiders from observing the happenings inside.

As a result, the young man stood on the only tree growing outside the sect's walls that also happened to surpass them in height. Actually, he had climbed this very tree every single morning for the past three years to peek at the morning's lectures.

Out of routine, he stretched his hand out while maintaining his balance and grabbed a crimson-colored fruit from a nearby branch.

Back then, his original reason for climbing the tree was for sustenance, but after watching one lecture after another, he had become enraptured with them to the extent that he would be uncomfortable and fidgety if he were to skip a day of attendance. Additionally, the tree never seemed to run out of fruits, so he could always get a free meal up here.

After taking another bite of the scrumptious red fruit, he focused back on the lecture only to see that it had ended. The students cleared out a space in the center, and their teacher relocated to the middle of it. He was now facing the students, putting his back towards the young man.

The young man in the tree was not bothered by this. He had seen this specific part of the lecture multiple times before, and although the words might vary, the principles had been consistent.

Then, the teacher's open palms moved in sync with his shoulders that were rising up and down, indicating that he was breathing in and out. Both, the young man and the students copied him. They were circulating the world's Qi through their bodies.

Supposedly, Qi was ever-present in the world, and one could breathe in Qi along with the air after tempering one's body and practicing, but the young man had failed to feel the flow of Qi through his body every time he attempted the process.

This breathing exercise had been used as the first test of aptitude for the Flowing River Sect's entrance examination, and each time, the young man had failed to feel the Qi. And it wasn't a matter of failing once or twice, but nineteen times.

The exams were held over the course of a week each year, with all seven days accepting examinees. One could try the exam once a day regardless of their previous failures.

Thus, failing to circulate any Qi nineteen times meant that he had failed the exam that many times over three years!

The boy was determined though. Today would be his twentieth attempt, and even though there was no difference in his performance, he felt something special about today. Today would definitely be the day he succeeded!

He continued breathing in and out when he noticed a small dot appear in his peripheral vision. Momentarily puzzled, his eyes focused on that dot that was becoming larger over time.

Once he realized what it was, he quickly ducked his head, causing the branch he stood on to shake up and down with a frightful crackle. A stone whizzed past his hair, and he heard a loud yell calling his name.

"KENJA!"