Chapter 3 - Laura Gives the Exposition!

(Word Count: 3,070)

That night, she found herself back in a field of pure white grass. Dotting the flat landscape were the occasional patch of flowers, their petals were the glittering black of the night sky. The sky held a large arm of a galaxy, though she could see another whole galaxy suspended beyond it.

Lily gasped in awe, taking in the sight of it, and her knees buckled beneath her, she fell back onto her rear in the white grass. ‘My knees!’ She looked at herself, turning over her hands marveling. She was back in her own body!

“Beautiful, isn't it?” A familiar voice called from behind her. Lily jumped out of her stupor and whirled around. Standing in the grass was her friend, Laura. Dressed casually in jeans and a large sweatshirt, a freckled face, brown hair in a ponytail, and black-rimmed glasses.

All of the clothing was the same, but there was something off. The usual unsurety and timidness wasn't there anymore. Instead, there was a self-confidence and presence about her that, despite the casual outfit, made her seem like a queen.

Laura smiled down at her where she sat in the grass. “Lily!” She greeted warmly. “It has been so long!”

“Laura!” Lily cried. She jumped up to her feet and hugged her best friend. “You're here! How are you here? Oh, I have so much to tell you! I was a bird! Like in those stories you tell me about! The isekai ones! And there was a bear, and magic, and a frog that wanted to eat me! And magic, Laura!”

Laura grabbed her shoulders. “Easy there, Lily, I know! I know! I was the one who put you there!”

Lily gaped at her, before snapping her mouth shut. ‘No, that can't be right, Laura was… well, Laura! How could she have put me here? I had died!!’

“I know, Lily, it's hard to believe! Trust me. Can we sit? Let me tell you the entire story, from the beginning. The day that you died,” Laura said.

She waved her hand and an ornate golden gazebo appeared out of the ground. In the center was a small table set for two with a teapot.

Lily blinked. “I'm going to need something a lot stronger than just tea if we're going to be talking about my death,” she joked nervously.

Laura smirked. “Don't worry, it's some of my ~magic~ tea.”

“Why'd you say it like that?”

“Whatever do you mean?” Laura asked coyly, and she went and sat down.

“Come on, why'd you say it like that!” Lily followed suit.

As they both sat there, Lily gripped her tea cup in both hands, Laura sipped from hers cooly. “Well! Aren't you going to tell me what happened?” Lily said, losing patience.

Laura sighed and placed her cup down. “It's just that… that time period was so difficult. I don't exactly know where to begin. The day that you died… was the day that the universe was introduced to Origin Qi.”

“The what now?”

“Origin Qi. Energy that contains the purest form of creation, life, and everything in between. The source of all the other types of Qi. It is this energy that makes anything possible.”

Lily nodded, understanding that whatever energy this was, it was something serious. “Okay, got it… you can keep going, sorry.”

“A wave of this energy instantly infused the universe. All those that had died at the same moment as this wave appeared, had their souls sent flying through time and space to unknown realms… For those of us that remained, it was the beginning of a universal race for power, and a collapse of civilization as we knew it. The sudden influx of Origin Qi forcefully awakened every living thing on the planet. Humans, animals, plants, fungi, even bacteria. Many did not survive.”

“Those that lived became cultivators, all racing for more and more power; for godhood. I was lucky enough to be at the top. Since then, it has been several billion years, Lily. When I reached the peak of the Divine Realms, I realized that there were souls appearing from the past and I realized what was happening. It gave me hope to see you again, my best friend. So I looked into the past and future to see exactly where and when you were sent to, snatched up your soul before you could be destroyed and placed you here, in this body, and in this mountain range, knowing you would find this valley!”

Laura paused, giving Lily a huge smile.

It was a lot to take in. So she wasn't isekai'ed into some fantasy world like Laura used to read, but her home universe is the thing that became magical. Her best friend won a universal arms race, became a goddess, and was the one that reincarnated her into a bird.

“Several billion years?” Lily asked quietly.

Laura nodded solemnly. “9.4 billion to be precise.”

They sat in silence for a while. Before Lily slapped her cheeks, “Ah, who cares! What about you reincarnating me as a tiny little hummingbird? I could have been eaten by a bug!”

“You still can be,” Laura said, her face oddly impassive.

“What? Why? I'm back to normal, right?” Lily asked.

“No, Lily, didn't you stop to wonder where you are right now? This is a dream world I created to speak to you. When this is over, you'll wake up back in the valley as a hummingbird.”

“But why! Why a hummingbird of all things? Couldn't you have reincarnated me as a human again?”

“Short answer? For your own good.” Lily nearly started shouting at her before Laura stopped her. “Long answer requires me to explain the path of Cultivation that you have embarked on.”

“Well, start explaining!”

Laura scoffed in amusement and looked at her in melancholy. “How long has it been since someone has dared to yell at me?” She chuckled. “I’ve missed you, Lily.”

Lily’s anger immediately died. ‘That’s right. For me, it’s only been a few days, but Laura lived through all of that time. She’s a goddess now.’

“Big ‘G,’ remember? I’m a Goddess, not a mere goddess.”

“Stop reading my thoughts, Laura!” Lily’s face flushed in embarrassment. “Anyway, can you explain this whole Cultivation thing to me?”

“Let’s start with the different realms of Cultivation, the thresholds of power. There are 4 mortal realms, 4 immortal realms, and 4 divine realms:

“The mortal realms are where cultivators seek to condense their Qi from a gas to a solid, as well as gaining insights into Daos related to their chosen path. The first mortal realm is called The Foundational Realm, also called The Flesh Tempering Realm. Your Qi is still a weak gaseous energy, so you can barely do any real techniques. You still can, but it’s hardly worth the effort at the moment. Instead, this is the time where cultivators prepare their bodies and minds to handle Origin Qi. You want to open as many meridians as you can while you’re in this realm, because it comes with severe backlashes which only get worse the more power you have.”

Lily raised her hand, making Laura’s lips twitch in amusement. “You don’t have to raise your hand, Lily, this isn’t a class. What is it?”

“What are Meridians?” Lily asked.

“Your Qi travels throughout your body from your dantian, your ‘magical core’, in paths. Sort of like veins for your blood. Meridians are points along these pathways which, while blocked, inhibit your energy. Opening one allows your Qi to travel much easier through that portion and also gives an exit point from your body. Techniques and spells will require specific meridians to be opened in order to practice them.”

“I see…” Lily trailed off in thought, so Laura continued.

“The next realm is The Inner Mist Realm. Your Qi condenses into a mist, hence the name. This is the realm when cultivators really begin to learn techniques and spells in their chosen paths. Talented cultivators will begin to grasp insights into the Daos.

“Next is the Inner Sea Realm. Your Qi is dense enough to be a liquid. Most cultivators gain insights into the Daos in this realm.

“The last of the mortal realms is the Core Formation Realm. Throughout this realm, you’re compressing your Qi into a solid core.

“Then we enter into the Immortal Realms. Cultivators, or Immortals now, in these realms can spend millions of years working their way through these realms. Through this time, Immortals seek a better understanding of their chosen Daos. The 4 immortal realm are: The Nascent Realm, The True Spirit Realm, The Golden Pill Realm, then The Emperor Realm, also called the Core Ignition Realm because at the end you need to figure out how to ignite your core with divine fire to ascend as a goddess.

“Then we have the Divine realms. Cultivators, or rather the Gods, have come to understand and embody their Daos to the point where they can now dictate what those Daos include exactly. The 4 realms are: The Ascended Realm, The Earthly God Realm, The Heavenly God Realm, and lastly The Divine Emperor Realm.”

Lily nodded along. Mortals, Immortals, and the Divine. “Okay, easy enough so far, but what does this have to do with me being a hummingbird?”

“As cultivators ascend through these Realms, they are improving what we call the Trinity of One's Being: Body, Mind, and Soul. Most cultivators will only cultivate one of these and rely on the peripheral strengthening that comes as a side benefit of ascending realms, along with pills and treasures, for the other two.

“This is due to the natural bottlenecks that appear throughout the path of ascension. Humans and other sapient races tend to be Mind Cultivators because being born sapient gives them a natural disposition towards the Mind. Beasts on the other hand tend to become Body Cultivators, having less bottlenecks in that path. Then there are the rare spirits and elementals that are naturally Soul Cultivators.

“Of course, one can always choose to cultivate the other paths, but they will face many more bottlenecks and tribulations. It is very rare that one of these become Immortal, nevermind a Divine.

“However, there are those born 1 in a million that are born with the natural disposition towards two different paths; usually Mind and Body, but there are the rare Mind and Spirit. The rarest duel potential beings are Body and Spirit. This duel potential is usually due to some ancestor that was a beast or spirit. These Cultivators take a bit more time cultivating both paths at once as they ascend, but in the end they become far more powerful.

“Lastly, there are those born 1 in a trillion: those that are naturally inclined towards all 3 paths and can cultivate the entire Trinity of their Being.”

“Lily, when the wave of Origin Qi infused our universe, it also infused our souls with potential. All those of the first generation could become Soul Cultivators, including those that had died and had their souls sent off, like you. You were born sapient, so you can cultivate the Mind. You were infused with the Origin Qi, so you can cultivate the Soul. All that you were lacking was the proper body to be able to cultivate the Body, and you would be a cultivator with a 1 in a trillion potential!

“As for why I chose a hummingbird instead of a powerful creature like a tiger or something, well, actually I didn't choose it. You remember the idea of spirit animals? Well, your spirit animal is a hummingbird. If I placed you in some other body it would have caused a slight rejection between your spirit and body, which would have caused you some serious problems down the line.”

Lily hummed thoughtfully. It seemed like this whole Cultivation thing was more complicated than she first thought. “Looks like you've set me up rather nicely than,” Lily sighed, resigning herself to staying as a bird. “Thanks, I guess…”

Laura laughed. “Oh, don't be so despondent! Beasts that are able to reach the Immortal Realms can transform into a humanoid body! In fact, if I had to guess, you'll end up looking like an exotic hummingbird-winged angel. You will be quite beautiful.”

Lily perked back up at the thought. “An angel!” 

“Yup! And if you're quick about it, it'll only take you a couple hundred years!”

Lily’s joy quickly fell apart. “Laura!” She whined.

“Hey, I had to go through the same thing! In fact, many gods end up incarnating themselves into their spirit animals to complete their Trinity. My animal form ended up as a bunny, so I can understand your worries to some degree.”

“Wow, really? Why?”

“Well, once you become a god one's improvements slow down to barely consequential. It was actually a huge benefit to temporarily seal my divine powers and spend a few thousand years cultivating my Body up to match my Mind and Soul. I gained more power doing that than the previous few million years combined.

“That's why I took special care to place you in that valley. It's a relatively safe place filled with Origin Qi for you to cultivate in. It's also rich in various spirit herbs that will aid you, especially since you're a pollinator. You can extract great benefits by helping pollinate them.” Laura giggled. “You're basically dual cultivating with a bunch of plants.”

“Dual cultivating?” Lily asked, not getting the joke.

“Ahem…” Laura smirked at her. “Well, it's a sexual cultivation method that involves the sharing of energies between the partners involved. It creates a positive feedback loop leaving both parties stronger than they were before.”

“Laura!” Lily gasped in shock. “I am not having sex with a bunch of plants! That's disgusting!”

“No, you just facilitate the act,” Laura said, amused at the disgust on Lily’s face. 

“Laura, stop!” Lily whined, “It's my only food right now!”

She held her hands up in surrender. “Nonetheless, as a pollinator, you'll not face much trouble against awakened plant life.”

“Anyway, we're running out of time here. I've brought some gifts,” Laura placed what looked like jade stone bookmarks on the table. “You've awakened your dantian, but to cultivate efficiently, you need a proper cultivation method. Here are 3 jade slips, each with a different option, each one cultivates the entire Trinity, but they're focused on different elements:

“The Life God's Scripture: focused on Wood Qi at first, which will be your best bet for defense. As a pollinator, you already share a special relationship with plants. This method takes advantage of that and boosts all benefits from spirit herbs, incense, pills, etc.

“The Sky God's Heavenly Rapture: focused on Air Qi at first. This technique is great at quickly gathering Origin Qi from the surroundings, making it the quickest Cultivation method.

“Lastly, you have The Storm God's Essence: this focuses on Lightning Qi at first. This method will definitely be the slowest of the three, but it will be the strongest for fighting, greatly enhancing your speed and attack power.”

Lily hesitated. Of the three choices, she immediately dismissed the Sky God’s. It offered the fastest growth, but it seemed like it was the weakest method. She didn’t want to be weak, and vulnerable to those in the same weight class as her. 

With the other two, she was conflicted. The Storm God’s Essence enhanced her speed and attack power, which was what she had wanted to focus on before this. But hearing the benefits of the Life God’s Scripture, she hesitated. It played to a strength that she hadn’t even thought of before, her connection with plants. It also used “Wood Qi,” whatever that was, to boost her defense. She had already decided that she shouldn’t focus on defense, but that didn’t mean she wanted to ignore it entirely.

“Erm… Laura? What are these ‘Wood Qi’ and ‘Lightning Qi’? What do those mean?” Lily had to ask.

“Qi can take on certain aspects of the world around it, elements like fire, water, air, lightning, earth, etc. Think of it like pokemon, essentially. You need a certain energy type to cast a certain elemental spell. Like casting a fireball needs fire qi. Does that make sense?”

“Yeah, I got it… So, is there no way that I can use both this ‘wood qi,’ and ‘lightning qi’ to get the advantages of both the Life God’s Scripture and the Storm God’s Essence? I kinda want both of them.”

Laura laughed. “Hahaha! Yes! That’s exactly what I wanted from you!” She pulled out another jade slip. “The first lesson to survive in a cultivator’s world is to be greedy! You need to be greedy to take every advantage that you can get! This jade slip contains the cultivation method I made specifically for you, knowing that you would be a hummingbird. I call it the Nature God’s Garden. It has both of the benefits you want, but it does come with some downsides. This method will be the most difficult to use, because it begins with two elements, Wood and Lightning. These elements are very reactive together, so you need to be very careful with this. It will also be slow going, but that can be made up for using the plants around you.”

“That sounds perfect! If I’m going to be stuck as a hummingbird for a couple hundred years anyway, what’s another few years on top of that? I’d rather make sure I’m more powerful than anyone else.”

“Good,” Laura slid the jade slip across the table to her with a soft smile. “Now, be warned, Lily! You have 1 year to get as powerful as you can before a group of cultivators comes to scour the entire mountain range you’re in for anything that has a bit of Qi. If you are not strong enough when they arrive, you will either be killed or captured to be used in the sect they’re a part of. You need to become strong enough to defend yourself!”

“Wait, what! Laura! If I’d known there was a deadline I would have chosen the Sky God!”

“That’s why I only told you afterwards! There will always be a ‘deadline,’ Lily. Besides, I think you already know what you need to do. You felt it when you killed the frog, right? One of the key benefits of having a Beast body is that rush of power on killing their prey. It’s the main way non-sapient beasts cultivate. You will need to use both the Nature God’s Garden and the beast's killing.”

“You want me to go on a killing spree?”

“If you wish to live… Yes.”