I don't remember anything about first breakthrough being painful, just .Meizhen's fast-track method of helping Ling Qi find her Dantian.
Though maybe it's not possible for a child to start cultivating without that pain.
Threads Of Destiny(Eastern Fantasy, Sequel to Forge of Destiny)
- Thread starter yrsillar
- Start date
- Original Users' Choice!
Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
I don't remember anything about first breakthrough being painful, just .Meizhen's fast-track method of helping Ling Qi find her Dantian.
Though maybe it's not possible for a child to start cultivating without that pain.
- Location
- The Maple Syrup Mountains
It looks like the only major difference between Ling Qi and Meizhen for the initial spark of qi is that Meizhen went through it when she was younger, but yeah, that first spark of qi is 'more than painful'.
- Location
- Europe
We might be able to make use of uh... the sciency friend we have? I can't remember her name.
Anyway, her tech which draws out impurities didn't seem to be painful but could help you get a sense for your meridians and consequently your qi network in general. Even if not, there's probably a way to have it draw on qi in a light way (like a weak magnet), some kind of rythmic pulse so that you can feel the difference in flow between normal and not.
Might be worth looking into, also might be sellable, if we can lower the average qi initiation age there's going to be a fair bit of money in that from clans at least.
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That's true, but since it's not the first breath or breakthrough, I'm wondering if the pain is strictly necessary.
I mean, there might be ways to feel qi for the first time without the pain, but they're slower or less efficient. Knowing the Bai, they'd choose the painful way every time if that were the case. Hell, knowing the Bai, they'd probably shoose the painful method even if it weren't better.
Maybe the Han, or the Gu, or the Xuan have a way to get children on the path without causing intense pain.
Honestly, pain and cultivation almost go hand in hand.
Even if we have a way to shelter her here, it wont help at all come time for breakthrough.
Remember, cultivation is pain. It hurts because you're killing off your impure human portion, bit by bit, to become a transcendant being. At every stage its pain, unless you succeed.
Cultivating too early means that you won't have much to anchor your Way to humanity as you go. Elemental influences for instance, are supposed to be based off your personality, and your cultivation colors that. But a child?
Small influences become large, when the canvas is blank.
Let her have time to grow and be herself first.
Things will start early as it is.
- Location
- Europe
This is a bit like saying kids shouldn't have exercise or basic education before they're ten years old because child labor is bad, they're rather different things.
You got any quotes for this? Early cultivation had little to no effect on our behavior, no more than learning a new skill or getting measurably more intelligent would have, sure setting up your domain does dramatically affect your mindset but that's much later on and having time to really think things through there is only a benefit.
Black Noise
Curious
- Location
- About 1AU from Sol
I'm sorry but this is so much bullshit.
In early cultivation there are exactly 4 sources of pain that we know of:
- Meizhen's jab to let her feel her dantian, which is more of a shortcut anyway and might not even be necessary, but which does presumably speed up Awakening.
- The physical exercise required to get to peak-mortal form, here's a relevant quote:
Actual exercise was needed alongside meditation to allow qi to properly seep into the muscles and bones, and he constantly reminded them that keeping their bodies in the peak of mundane health was necessary for laying the foundation of their physical cultivation.
- Failing a breakthrough attempt.
The rest of cultivation seems to be meditation where it's s all too easy to lose track of time.
The concern about having some more mortal foundations for a personality are valid but then unlike the Bai or Cai we sure as hell aren't going to force Buyi to cultivate full time, or have any serious expectations of her before she's like 12.
- Location
- The Temple of the Winds
I think we should have Biyu start cultivating at 12 years old. Two years ahead of the Sect entry should be more than enough to make a very solid foundation.
And of course theoretical lessons on cultivation and ... everything else, can be started much earlier.
And of course theoretical lessons on cultivation and ... everything else, can be started much earlier.
LQ cultivation was, if anything, late.
Most nobles start at around ten.
Personally, I am fine with 8-10, depending on Biyu herself.
If you push your cultivation, you are absolutely going to run into one of these.
Only way you wouldn't is if you are a high talent, low ambition type. Even then it's iffy.
Jensaarai
Sing Victory Everlasting
- Pronouns
- They/Them
Until she's ten or so, of course.
Then it's onto the cultivation train.
I'd prefer twelve or thirteen. That way, she has enough time to hit Late Red, learn the Cultivation Art/s we develop, and develop a broad suite of low-level Arts (As many of the Imp 8 and Trad 5 as we can teach her, in addition to the 'family' set of SCS/FVM) but not enough to truly push for Yellow, given the inefficiencies of Cultivating prior to age fourteen.
This leaves her in an excellent position to learn and master Argent Soul when she gets to the Argent Sect, and then gain a bunch of useful bonuses on her breakthrough.
Ah which point she uses a keyed Jade Slip to learn EPC, and then her path is out of our hands.
Beside it gonna be fun when she will outlive all her childhood friends that will be mortals found outside. The sadness from the death of her friends will push her further upon the path of cultivation.
- Location
- Nightmare realm
That sounds....not very nice lmao.
deadcrystal
Slaaneshi Cultist
- Location
- The Warp
IIRC what ys has said is that cultivating before age ~12 is largely pointless. Up until about that age the child suffers big penalties to cultivation you need lots of Clan resources to overcome.
So even the big clans don't start kids cultivating before 10. Plus cultivating too early has...other problems.
Don't think LQ would be interested in pushing Biyu to start too early what with knowing how damaged CRX was by her mother forcing her to awaken at age 6.
Plus LQ has had a pretty shitty early life. I think she'd very much like it if Biyu got a proper childhood in a safe environment, and got to make friends and have fun.
- Location
- United States of America
will it? not necessarily
I'm okay with Biyu starting early if she goes to a sect she definitely needs to be prepared, but there seems to be some amount of diminishing returns seeing as Meizhen cultivated for 6 years before she got to the sect (8-14 I think?) and only reached yellow, now that she's in the sect her speed has drastically increased and she went from did yellow to green in a year (not exactly sure what yellow stage she started at or what green stage she is at now)
and it seems most of the peeps who started early are going significantly faster now that they're in the sect
ex. Xuilan was in red (late red I think) at the start of the year in the outer sect and managed to reach green spiritual by the end of the year
and let's remember cultivation is supposed to get slower as you get higher up the ranks
edit: seems @deadcrystal has the scoop
edit 2: do they enter the sect at 12?, i thought it was 14
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BungieONI
Seven gremlins in a trench coat
- Location
- Lickwidget
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Meizhen was at Mid Sin Shedding when she entered the sect, you can search for that exact term in the first thread to find the update in question, which is Bai nomenclature for Mid Yellow and she was Appraisal Green Soul like Sun Liling according to Yrs at the time of the tourney. In all likelihood she shall reach Foundation Green Soul and Foundation Green Physical soon.
Even baseline red learn things at extreme speed compared to mortals. It would greatly simplify getting her combat skills up.
Unless you want to send in into thunder dome with nothing?.
We wouldn't be doing her favors by overly coddling her.
BungieONI
Seven gremlins in a trench coat
- Location
- Lickwidget
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I'm like 99% sure that isn't what deadcrystal is arguing for, and that what they are arguing for is that 12 and up is where they want to start. That's my reading at least.
more like they probably dont exist.
medicines are made from spirit creature parts, which are toxic for mortals.
deadcrystal
Slaaneshi Cultist
- Location
- The Warp
Yeah I'm just saying that starting before 12 would be difficult, would be deeply unpleasant for Biyu, and the gains would be marginal.
Sect starts at ~14, a 2 year headstart to give her a nice broad art base is more than enough.
The penalties for early cultivation must be fairly gigantic tbh.
Look at Meizhen, or even better, look at CRX.
CRX has a eight year headstart over LQ. Can you honestly say the cultivation gap between the two was worth those eight years, even remotely?
Meizhen started at mid-yellow after six years of cultivation. LQ reached mid yellow in what, six months? Less?