For the first time in a long while, Jin took the conscious effort to cultivate in the night while sleeping. Unsurprisingly, he returned to the same icy cold mountain peak where the Black Tortoise of the North was still lurking in the valley.
The surprising thing, however, was that he was alone. Ming was nowhere to be seen. Still, Jin gave his encounter with the Tortoise another shot, but this time around, he would attempt a different approach.
While both the Tortoise and Jin were willing to battle, the latter sat down on a short ledge and continued to observe it from afar. Unlike the Tiger of the West, the Tortoise’s tail did not outright attack him. Confused that he wasn’t outright aggressive this time around, the Serpent continued to be wary of the Astral Panda Cultivator’s existence and stared at him wildly.
They continued their subtle eye staring contest for some time until the Serpent finally understood Jin’s intention and was the first to lower its guard. Though it approached Jin cautiously, the Astral Panda Cultivator instinctively went on guard despite the constant reminder to remain calm.
This was possibly a chance to learn a little more about this particular Cardinal Demon. Worst case scenario? He gets bitten and returns to the real conscious world. However, at times like this, Jin wondered if the cultivation he’s using create such vivid phantasms or if it was merely his uncontrollable imagination that came to haunt him in his dream.
There were even times he questioned whether everything he went through was actually real.
Was his subconscious filled with demons of the System’s past or did he outright turn insane whenever he was asleep, especially since everything felt so real to him.
The pain and discomfort he felt during the whole process, the yearning of a true mentor and maybe to a certain extent, his grandfather… Were all his fears, desires and dreams manifested into something tangible for him to face every time he sleeps?
“You still tend to overthink stuff, though at this point you are not entirely away from the truth.” Ming, who was suddenly standing at the side of the ledge beside Jin, sighed.
“Why not just ask your gramps here?” He teased Jin as he placed his hand out for the Serpent, and it allowed him to pat him.
“Then tear another page out of your diary and throw it into the mouth of the Tortoise?” Jin practically shot an arrow into Ming’s feelings.
“Hmm, that is yet another valid point. Fine, I will give you the answer you are searching for. All these manifestations that you see, feel and touch are all embedded in your genes. The monsters, demons…even the places you experience in your sleep are all deep seated memories passed down from all the previous Panda Clan members that had been part of the System.”
“So, all those self realisation processes, the hunt against the Tiger of the West and even my existence, are part of your DNA, made real through the cultivation I created and your thinking process. That is why you feel that everything is familiar to a certain extent.”
“That is why, you never felt like the System is with you whenever you are alone here in your…’dreams’. The only things you can rely on are your powers and your grasp of reality…in other words, your perception. Besides, this is your mental plane, so your needs can actually manifest in your perceived reality in this never ending dream. For example, when you needed water during the Tiger Hunt, did water appear? Nope. But your subconscious still left you with a way to get water, from the bamboo shoots.”
“Then does that mean the dream that I had about this girl with blue hair, or someone’s attempt to kill me in a taxi ride, have happened to someone else? What about the time I was chained up, filled with hatred and anger. Are those memories of my ancestors?” Jin queried as he vividly remembered specific dream sequences that did not make sense and yet created a deep impression in him.
“I don’t think those…” Ming’s expression changed as if this was the first time he heard of those. He was the one who created the Astral Panda cultivation, and during the period his spirit embodied with Jin, he never saw any of those memories that Jin had mentioned. (Even though he was the Ultimate Stalker.)
Was it an unintended side effect?
Ming knew that this Astral Panda Cultivation Manual was barely a completed prototype with not much testing when he passed it to the System. A totally experimental style especially with the merging of Chi and Mana together.
However, he believed that with the inclusion of the System, it should have been able to weed out all the potential problems of the manual before giving the book to Jin.
“Hmm. Unfortunately, I do not have the means to test your Astral Panda Cultivation. What you experienced might be something to do with the explosive growth of your personal cultivation, and that could be an unexpected side effect. Do tell me if you experience such a scenario without me in the dream. I will make sure to personally appear in every subconscious moment of yours.” Ming reassured Jin as the Serpent now slowly moved its head towards Jin.
As both the hunter and the hunted came to the conclusion that the other party did not mean any harm, for the time being, they cautiously proceeded with a more hands on inspection.
The Serpent hissed with its tongue scanning the area around Jin while the latter raised his hand. Slowly caressing the scales of the Serpent, the panda cultivator could feel the quiet, silent wrath pulsating through its body.
Jin noticed that feeling was something similar to what he had felt for the past few days before Rei’s speech to take a notch down. “So, all along, the turtle is also another manifestation of my current feelings. Being stuck in between mountains of obstacles and too stubborn to move.” He thought to himself as he tried to recall if there was any correlation to the White Tiger he had fought.
“Interesting, so instead of fighting this one, you decided to become friends with it?” Ming commented on the limited interaction between the two of them, and Jin nodded his head.
“Perhaps. Also, I still don’t understand the concept of controlling my powers in this subconscious plane. Sometimes, I have a limited amount of Maqi flowing in me, and other times, I come out empty.”
“I am as frustrated as this Tortoise as I don’t know when my powers will be working and when not. So, for now, my goal is to learn how to control myself, and hopefully, the ability to exert my powers fully.” Jin explained and Ming tapped his back for figuring out that it was not his grandfather that disallowed his powers to work.
It was himself.
“Still, you do know that this itself is supposed to be a test? You eventually will have to defeat this big shell in order to advance your cultivation.” Ming reminded Jin as he became a fleeting voice and disappeared from Jin’s side.
“It’s fine. With the Tortoise of the North not being a threat for now, I can focus on gathering my thoughts properly.” Jin said out loud before sitting down and changed to the very same sleeping cultivation stance.
With a deep breath, he searched for his Dantian Core and slowly but surely, Jin came to understand the teachings written in the manual. The Astral Panda Cultivator then began to trace both his chi and mana circuits in an orderly manner in order to awaken his core.
