The job of a Servant Disciple is to assist the Disciple they are assigned to, helping with cultivation, pill refinement, and training techniques.
Inside a room in Huai's cave abode, Mao Xuelian was holding a scroll and reading the basic instructions for a Servant like herself.
"That's right, but that's only for the normal ones. As for you, Mao'er..." Huai, who sat beside her on the bed, said after Mao Xuelian finished reading the scroll. "You also need to cultivate alongside me!"
Huai pointed at a jade slip resting on Mao Xuelian's lap, beaming and giggling. "Look, that is a jade slip for the Pure Blood Technique, the common Inner Technique practiced by us Outer Disciples. Among all the Servant Disciples, only you received such special treatment, Mao'er!"
"I see..." Mao Xuelian nodded, clutching the jade slip and bringing it to her forehead.
The jade slip lit up, transferring the relevant information of the Pure Blood Technique into her mind. Specifically, it contained only the first volume: Crimson Constellation, which could be used until the Qi Gathering stage.
"Only the first volume?" Mao Xuelian squinted her eyes.
"It's because of your sensitive situation, Mao'er! The Destined One... The Elders still seem to have some hope for you. That's why they didn't kill you or refine you immediately at that moment. There's still a possibility, you know, a possibility~." Huai immediately offered a brief explanation, her eyes sparkling as she played with Mao Xuelian's shoulders.
Mao Xuelian glanced sideways at the giggling Huai while she began to seriously consider her words.
The Destined One, huh? Mao Xuelian thought, sneering inwardly.
'That cultivator, Cui-whatever, said he brought me here because he thought that I had the highest chance of being the Destined One among the villagers. There must be a reason behind his judgment... Maybe it even has something to do with my mother, Mao Yan.'
Huai suddenly stood up, grabbing both of Mao Xuelian's hands while she was still deep in thought.
"Anyway, let's go and train quickly!" Huai exclaimed, dragging Mao Xuelian to the yard of the cave abode.
...
In the yard, beneath a withered peach tree, Huai began explaining the basic knowledge of cultivation to Mao Xuelian.
"Before we start, Mao'er, you should know that people's bodies do not contain Qi or Spiritual Energy."
"That's why the first step in cultivation is to train our bodies. The goal is to open all 360 acupoints in the body to develop a powerful physique capable of withstanding Qi and Spiritual Energy! This initial stage is called the Body Tempering stage. By the way, I'm currently at the 234th acupoint in the Body Tempering stage, hehe!" Huai struck a peace sign after finishing her explanation.
Mao Xuelian nodded and rephrased Huai's explanation into simpler terms before rereading the first volume of the Pure Blood Technique in her mind. Only after doing so did she think she had successfully grasped the key points of basic cultivation knowledge.
"Just focus on the technique while keeping these principles in mind, and you'll become strong in no time!" Huai cheered.
Mao Xuelian smiled sweetly, feeling that she understood the basics of cultivation. "Thank you so much for your explanation, Senior Sister Huai!"
"You're welcome~!"
...
Mao Xuelian sat cross-legged beneath the withered peach tree. Huai had told her that this spot was her favorite for cultivating because the concentration of Spiritual Energy there was more abundant than in the surrounding area.
Mao Xuelian closed her eyes and prepared to begin the first volume of the Pure Blood Technique.
Crimson Constellation.
That was the title of the volume and also the main concept behind the technique's creation. It is believed that the 360 acupoints in the human body are more than what is generally understood. The creators saw potential in these mysterious spots.
Inspired by the starry sky, they designed the technique in the hope of aligning these 360 acupoints. This alignment would allow the Blood Qi they gathered to circulate more efficiently and powerfully. It is even said there's a possibility that this method could elongate the user's lifespan.
That's what the creator of the technique hoped to achieve. However, in reality, the technique still lacks refinement if it wants to produce such effects. This is why it is only qualified for Outer Disciples and not for the higher-ranked and more talented Disciples of the Blood Sect.
After reading and contemplating it thoroughly, this is what Mao Xuelian understood about the Pure Blood Technique.
Before she began meditating and cultivating the technique, Mao Xuelian activated her special innate ability to see how her body would react to this so-called cultivation technique.
Because she was 'looking' inside her body—rather than at the outside world—her eyes didn't shine as they had during previous uses of her ability. Instead, a thin, transparent symbol resembling a greenish flame appeared in the middle of her brow.
Once she confirmed that she could 'look' inside herself, she began to operate the technique.
The first thing that reacted to the technique was her blood. In some areas, it moved faster, while in others, it slowed down. According to the first volume of the Pure Blood Technique, this process is called Blood Initial Acupoint Opening. During this phase, the technique stimulates the blood within the user's body to initiate a chain of actions aimed at opening the very first acupoint in the user's body. Only after the first acupoint is opened can the user begin to condense and absorb small amounts of Qi into their body, thereby strengthening themselves enough to handle stronger Spiritual Energy in the end of the stage.
Mao Xuelian continued to follow the steps, commanding her blood to search for her Initial Acupoint. Beads of sweat formed on her tan-skinned face—the process was more draining than she had anticipated.
After two hours of relentless effort with her innate ability and blood circulation, Mao Xuelian finally located her Initial Acupoint. Her blood began circling that point, pushing to 'open' it with brute force and sheer volume.
A small cracking sound, reminiscent of firecrackers, echoed in her body just after she confirmed that she had successfully opened her Initial Acupoint.
She jolted and opened her eyes, feeling that her body had become lighter and cleaner—much like how a prisoner feels after being released from their shackles.
She wiped her face, only to discover that it was soaked with sweat and some brownish-black filth that smelled terrible.
What is this? Mao Xuelian thought, frowning.
"Wow, you succeeded so fast!" But her thoughts were interrupted by Huai's exclamation, her eyes shimmering with interest and curiosity. "And there are so many impurities extracted from just a single acupoint being opened..."