Chapter 24: The Mystery of Meridians
It took Chen Ming several days to barely finish reading [Introductory Guide to Basic Spirit Master Common Knowledge]. Only after that did he begin flipping through the even thicker [Spirit Power and Meridians].
Precisely because he had already become used to [Introductory Guide to Basic Spirit Master Common Knowledge], the book [Spirit Power and Meridians] felt especially jarring in Chen Ming's eyes.
The introductory guide was thick, but concise and efficient. There was almost no useless content in it. It explained Spirit Master cultivation and the things one had to pay attention to from the shallow to the deep.
But [Spirit Power and Meridians] was inefficient, complicated, and its explanations were neither especially clear nor especially direct.
A large number of illustrations were used to depict the meridian patterns inside the human body, recording the routes Spirit Power took when Spirit Masters with many different Martial Souls circulated their Spirit Power, as well as the effects that different Meditation Methods had on the meridians during meditation.
From the overall meridian system to the detailed meridians of specific body parts, from Yin meridians to Yang meridians...
On top of that, when Beast Spirit Masters used Martial Soul Possession, their bodies often changed, and those altered body parts would in turn affect their meridians, causing them to thicken, shrink, disappear, or even multiply. Add to that the influence of individual physiques and Spirit Bones...
With its huge number of diagrams, explanations, and all kinds of records, some of which even contradicted each other, this book was less of a guidebook and more of a collection of mistakes. It was a record of Spirit Masters' Spirit Power going astray and of cultivation problems accumulated over 10,000 years.
This precious knowledge, along with the records left behind by various Spirit Masters, was definitely not useless.
But the efficiency was simply too low, and it was mixed with a huge amount of records whose authenticity could not be verified and whose conclusions could not be fully referenced.
If one memorized this collection of mistakes, then in the vast majority of situations, one would almost never make an error. And even if one did, it would still be possible to correct it based on the case records.
But that did not mean this collection of mistakes actually contained the right answer.
In his previous life, Chen Ming's childhood had happened to coincide with the height of the Wuxia craze. Both old people and children had loved the heroes in Wuxia novels and television dramas.
While reading Wuxia novels and watching TV dramas, Chen Ming had been very envious of the heroes within them. He had seen many martial arts secret manuals sold at roadside stalls, and had even tried practicing some of them himself, so he also had some understanding of the meridians of the human body.
The human body possessed the 12 Primary Meridians and the 8 Extraordinary Meridians.
The 12 Primary Meridians were the 3 Hand Yang, 3 Hand Yin, 3 Foot Yang, and 3 Foot Yin, distributed throughout the 4 limbs. The 8 Extraordinary Meridians were the Governing, Conception, Penetrating, Girdling, Yang Link, Yin Link, Yang Heel, and Yin Heel meridians, 8 special pathways inside the body.
Yet almost all the descriptions in this book targeted only the 12 Primary Meridians. A very small number of vague phrases hinted at the existence of other hidden meridians, but there was no detailed exploration or explanation of them at all. As for the 8 Extraordinary Meridians, there was not even the slightest hint or understanding.
Logically speaking, this should not have been the case.
No matter how complicated the human body was, 10,000 years should have been enough for Spirit Masters to discover the existence of the 8 Extraordinary Meridians. Even if they did not know how to open them, they should at least have known that they existed.
But when he thought about how the Mysterious Heaven Skill, whose section on the 8 Extraordinary Meridians had been castrated and only retained the 12 Primary Meridians, was still considered a first class technique even in the era of The Unrivaled Tang Sect, and how even the Tang Sect's own descendants had never suspected anything was wrong with it, Chen Ming truly did not know what to say.
It could be read, but it absolutely could not be fully believed.
Once all of this entered the brain and formed fixed thinking patterns, one would truly fall into a giant pit.
Among the Immortal Herbs, Strange Velvet Sky Chrysanthemum had 2 effects. One was opening the 8 Extraordinary Meridians, and the other was helping forge an Indestructible Vajra Body. After Dai Mubai consumed that Immortal Herb, the effect it produced was precisely the former, opening the 8 Extraordinary Meridians.
Even Tang Hao's strength had risen greatly back then precisely because Tang San had helped him open several of the 8 Extraordinary Meridians.
It could be said that not only would opening the 8 Extraordinary Meridians before becoming a Titled Douluo improve cultivation speed and strength, but even at the level of Titled Douluo, opening them would still be a tremendous enhancement.
"Wait, I'm inside the Holy Spirit Cult. What do we have the most of here? Naturally, it's research on and use of the human body. If the books of ordinary Spirit Masters don't contain descriptions of the 8 Extraordinary Meridians, then why don't I just go look at the books of Evil Spirit Masters?"
Chen Ming shook his head and closed the book. While rubbing his temples with both hands, he frowned and thought,
"I don't believe it. If they can use Spirits, control corpses, dissect who knows how many bodies, and play with so many evil arts, then could it be that Evil Spirit Masters still haven't figured out where the 8 Extraordinary Meridians are? It can't be that they've really been cursed by [He Who Must Not Be Named], right?"
"Why was American medicine so advanced in my previous life? Wasn't it because their bottom line was low and they had enough lab rats? Weren't all those detailed contraindication notes for medicines basically tested out with human lives... The bottom line of Evil Spirit Masters is sitting at the same table as America's, so their techniques definitely won't be much worse..."
After eating a little and drinking some water, Chen Ming leaned against a cushion and slept for a while. Once he had recovered some energy, he carried the heavy book [Spirit Power and Meridians] and left the room.
The administrator on the 1st floor was a Spirit King level Evil Spirit Master whom Chen Ming did not know. When he saw Chen Ming come out, he only nodded and said nothing.
Chen Ming, meanwhile, walked nervously to Zhao Sanjin's door while carrying the book and knocked on what should have been the main door.
A few minutes later, a metal door hidden seamlessly in the wall opened 3 or 4 steps away from Chen Ming. Zhao Sanjin poked his head out with a strange expression, looking at Chen Ming as if wondering why he was standing beside the wall with a book in his arms.
"Ahem, Old Zhao, there are some things I don't understand while reading, so I came to ask for your guidance. You're a senior expert whose knowledge even my Master praises, so you should definitely be able to answer the questions of a newly initiated Spirit Master like me, right?"
Be diligent and fond of learning, and do not be ashamed to ask those beneath you. Being shameless was definitely not the only road to success, but it was certainly one of them.
Chen Ming made full use of his age advantage. He looked at Zhao Sanjin with sparkling eyes, his voice filled with thirst for knowledge.
Only then did Zhao Sanjin understand why Chen Ming, who had been shut up in his room for so many days, had suddenly appeared here by the wall carrying a book.
Zhao Sanjin was very generous toward people who truly thirsted for knowledge and had talent. But as an elder and a Spirit Douluo, Zhao Sanjin could not lose his dignity.
Although he already held Chen Ming in rather high regard, when faced with Chen Ming's request for guidance, he still put on a serious expression, thought for a moment, and then nodded, signaling for Chen Ming to come inside.
After closing the door and arranging for Chen Ming to sit on a chair beside the desk, Zhao Sanjin slowly sat down as well, putting on the air of a senior expert before speaking to Chen Ming.
"Is there something you don't understand about [Spirit Power and Meridians]? Have you not yet finished reading the basic common knowledge?"
"I've already read through the basic common knowledge once, and then I opened [Spirit Power and Meridians]. Because I couldn't understand some of the content, I wanted to ask Old Zhao for guidance."
"Hmph. Reaching too high before your foundation is solid is not a good habit. Since you say you've already read the basic common knowledge once, then I will test you with a few questions from that book. As long as you can answer them roughly, I will teach you [Spirit Power and Meridians]."
"Please ask, Old Zhao." Chen Ming slowly placed the heavy book down and sat up straight.
"What is the title of Chapter 1, Section 1? What is its general content? And what is the basic definition of a Spirit Master?"
"The title of Chapter 1, Section 1 is [Spirit Power and Martial Souls]. Its general content covers the judgment of Innate Spirit Power, as well as the grades and characteristics of Martial Souls. The basic definition of a Spirit Master is a human who has awakened a Martial Soul and possesses Innate Spirit Power."
"What are the 12 Primary Meridians?"
"The 3 Hand Yang, 3 Hand Yin, 3 Foot Yang, and 3 Foot Yin."
"What is one of the reference sources for modern Spirit Master Meditation Methods?"
"It is the Tang Sect's Mysterious Heaven Skill. A large part of the early source for modern Spirit Masters' meridian research comes from imitation of and borrowing from the Mysterious Heaven Skill."
"What are the characteristics and identification methods of Beast Spirits?"
"They are classified by order and class, and can be further subdivided according to bloodline and the manifestations of Martial Soul Possession..."
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