Chapter 195: Pitch Perfect
After the introductory lesson, Anji spent more time outside than indoors. She also used a waist sash as a temporary blindfold while playing the Xun flute. Nobody else truly understood what the sect’s successor was doing, but they supported her endeavours fully.
Even if Anji knew all the finger positions for each note in the heptatonic scale, she still found it difficult to commit to memory the different sound vibrations from listening to them alone. Unlike Yan Ping, who was almost pitch-perfect, Anji’s world relied on a multitude of colours and visual stimuli.
On the third day of attempting to familiarise herself with vibrations and sound, Anji eventually removed the blindfold. She was not an auditory expert. This method of recognising vibrations would take too long. She needed ’training wheels’.
Yan Ping was gone for the day, busy with other sect duties. Anji appreciated her teacher’s attention during lessons as Yan Ping gave Anji her undivided focus, tailoring each step of her progress accordingly. Even if Yan Ping could only afford thirty minutes a day, Anji found it highly effective. It was a drastic improvement compared to the number of recording devices they exchanged over the years when she was self-studying. Books were handy. However, nothing can compare to the explanation given by an expert in real time.
Apart from becoming pitch-perfect, there was a second part to Anji’s basic training for the Celestial Root cultivation method. Unlike other spiritual circuits that focus on one type of element as a pivot for conversion, the Celestial Root has no fixed position. The position is constantly shifting while there are pivots, like the stars. It was partially why Anji could never progress as quickly as others, even if she had a functional golden core. It was easier to fill a cup than a well. Anji’s aptitude was like a deep well. Her connecting meridians were so densely intertwined in so many sections that it was difficult to control the movement of energy through them. Previously, the artificial cores acted as dams to redirect free-flowing energy. Now, Anji had to refine her control even more to harmonise with the energy outside her body.
When Anji was not training her pitch sensitivity, she read about different spiritual circuits. The Celestial Root circuit was said to be the closest to heaven. Those born with it were almost certain to become sages in their lifetime unless they died prematurely. However, the drawback was how long it would take to awaken all seven stars of the Big Dipper fully. If ordinary cultivators with only one element took about a year to progress from the Initial Core to the Strengthened Core, it would take a Celestial root Cultivator at least three years to do that. Of course, the duration differs from cultivator to cultivator. Talent, effort and resources played a huge role.
Seeing how Anji barely reached the Strengthened Core foundation in three years with all the help she could get and a sealed core, she wondered where that would place her on the scale of unique cultivators. While the drawback in the initial stages was cruel, Celestial Root cultivators had an innate advantage of achieving greater cultivation heights quicker than others. While they were slow to progress in the foundation stages, once that well was dug and filled, it would supply water to land and people for an entire mountain. Past the Refined Core stage, Celestial Root cultivators were known to surpass their peers and progress effortlessly until the Enlightened Core stage. Here, most cultivators become stuck for decades, some even a lifetime. However, in the book, Celestial Root cultivators have an advantage in breaking past that barrier and moving straight into the Radiant and Transcendent Core stages in less than ten years. From there, it would be another hundred to two hundred years before they could cultivate their way to the Supreme Core and attain ascension before reaching five hundred years old.
Although Anji had no idea how old Yan Ping was, she knew that the previous sect master was almost eight hundred years old before she finally ascended. Yan Ping had already taken over full operations of the Mystical Qilin Sect for two hundred years before the ascension. Anji had no idea how old her teacher was because she still looked very youthful, like Zhao Wanting, if not for her white hair.
Heavenly Core cultivators and above are said to have lifespans that could witness the changing of empires. Although nobody truly knows how immortal beings capable of absorbing pure energy could live, eight hundred years was a long time. The only reason why Yan Ping ran the sect instead of her shifu was because the blind prophet was better at logistic management than the previous sect master, who was too busy drowning out her misery.
On that topic, sages were born and destined to become sages. In one of the other books Yan Ping selected for Anji to read in the security of the restricted library, the secret of clairvoyance was revealed. Every sect master and successor chosen for the Mystical Qilin Sect met a specific trait that cannot be trained for. Anji had no idea if karma or rebirthing was real. However, she understood that the Mystical Qilin Sect sought individuals with special types of eyes. There were a total of seven types of eyes that could perceive the fate of the world, and Anji had the Eyes of Light, more commonly known as the Heavenly Eyes. When trained to its full potential, it should allow Anji to see through lies and armour right into the soul.
On the other hand, Yan Ping had the Eyes of Metal, also known as the Piercing Eyes, even if she was blind. The Piercing Eyes allowed her to see true strength, pinpoint accurately weaknesses and understand the links between any structure, physical and conceptual. It was the type of special eye for a very logical person, and Anji thought it suited her teacher well. On the other hand, the previous sect master was known to be a lazy person. In the records, she possesses the Eyes of Wood, also known as the Wonder Eyes. As Yan Ping previously revealed, the Wonder Eyes had the largest encompassing area. They represented growth, flexibility and creativity. However, the downside was the stamina and discipline required not to become overwhelmed by its potential. For this reason, Anji had a feeling that the previous sect master took eight hundred years to ascend, not because she slacked off. Instead, it took her that many years because she could not keep up mentally with the toll her gift took on her.
Other elemental eyes recorded include Eyes of Dark, known as Demonic Eyes, but have nothing related to demonic cultivation. It could see a person’s karma and death in advance, not that any past sect masters in the Mystical Qilin Sect possessed them. Many born with these eyes were usually killed by their own family and village before they could be found. Eyes of Fire, also known as Rebirthing Eyes, represented energy, passion and transformation. As there were no precedents recorded, nobody knew what it truly saw. Eyes of Earth, known as Healing Eyes, was by far one of the most commonly recorded. There were three past sect masters with these eyes. They were all calm and kind people who believed in stability, grounding and balancing nature. It was no secret that they spoke to trees and animals, understanding the secret voice of the universe through life around them. Then, there was the Eyes of Water, known as Star Eyes. The founder of the Mystical Qilin Sect was known to have Star Eyes. These eyes gave him wisdom, adaptability, and fluidity, which built the sect and lasted thousands of years.
Although Anji was not the first person recorded to have Heavenly Eyes, it was still rather rare as the only other person who had them was the third sect master. She was the ninth generation, and not many records from the third sect master were left behind for future generations. The third sect master also had a Celestial Root cultivation base. The only difference was how he had a functional golden core and ascended within three hundred years. He was the fastest sage recorded in history, even if he was mostly unheard of these days. Due to his short time with the sect, he did not have a long list of accomplishments. The most notable thing about the third sect master was his decision to create a civilian zone for retired cultivators and scholars instead of forcing them to leave the mountain.
Looking through the secret records, Anji understood how she would be the first in the history of this ancient sect, and perhaps in the murim world, to cultivate with a sealed golden core. It would not be easy, and nobody knew the right answer. However, Anji remained undeterred. Just like how her shifu created solutions that never existed previously, Anji could do the same.
Gathering some talisman paper and a charcoal pencil, Anji started drafting a way to identify energy types and emit a sound matching the vibration. Silver bells were known to guide the soul, and she hoped that the new accessory would allow her to identify energy vibrations better than blowing into the Xun constantly.