It was hard to describe, the pain I had to endure to open up the pores to my skin. Imagine tiny daggers being stabbed into every cell in your body, once the cells had been pierced, then imagine acid being injected. Once that is finished, imagine each cell being set on fire, roasted until there is nothing but ash left. And finally, when you've endured all of that, imagine being dipped in a bath of ice water, the shock to your system so extreme that you can no longer breathe.

None of that came close to the agony I had to endure. Pain beyond imagining. Pain so intense that I would rather die and start my next life than endure. Pain unrelenting and unyielding. Wave after wave of unbridled pain that I was somehow supposed to endure.

If I could have willed myself to die, in those moments when the pain was so bad, I would have, believe me, I tried. But since I couldn't, and since I could find the will or strength to climb out of the bath, I had no choice but to embrace death or marshal the forces that were being unleashed and absorbed as my body soaked in caustic liquid.

It was hard, so very hard to ignore the pain long enough to establish a bridge between my potential Dharmic body, to separate my mind in two so that I could focus, but I finally managed it, if only as a means to escape the pain. Elder Tye had much to answer for when I exited closed-door Cultivation, this was so much worse than anything anyone should be expected to survive.

Once I was satisfied the herbs that I had placed in the water had released their potency, that they were nothing more than salad scrapings at this point. I stood to escape the torture I had endured. It was hard to move, to regain control of my body, and I was wary. Afraid that there might be something more to this herbal concoction, watching intently as I moved to exit the bath. I wouldn't put it past Elder Tye to have concocted something that had stages, with the second stage not activating until I stirred the waters.

Thankfully, my fears were unjustified, and I was able to exit with no problems. I stepped into a shower and selected a temperature as cold as I could stand. Although my body hadn't really undergone destruction by fire and acid, it had felt like it. And I needed, I craved the sensation of cool water to abate the lingering memories of those sensations.

The room I would be cultivating in had spirit stones placed in a Qi gathering formation. They would release a steady supply of Qi as I cultivated. The Sect didn't stint or try to cut corners by using barely used stones. Each time a Sect member exited the chamber, the stones were replaced no matter how much or how little Qi they had been able to gather.

Spirit stones could be used for many things, blacksmithing, runic constructs, and powering arrays that were scattered around the Sect, took up a lion's share of the Sect's allotment. Nonetheless, a one-time use was practiced, with the spirit stones deployed here re-cycled and used where potency wasn't such a stringent requirement.

There was no way to tell who would use which room and if the stones weren't swapped out? An Elder that entered closed-door cultivation and was faced with a room where stones that had not been exchanged would demand someone's heads.

Sitting in the lotus position, I examined the Body Foundation pill I had created. It had lost none of the sheen or medicinal smells, none of its potency, but it wouldn't. I was alchemist enough to place all my pills in jade containers. There was one other container that was more effective, but nothing that I had access to as an apprentice Alchemist.

The unique methodology in the formation process of Amber made it more reliable and precious than jade. Fossilized resin, our people revered the gemstone, because of our innate connection with the world's forests. Jade was more readily available and suitable to hold and protect anything I could create presently. It was only when you were working with pills at the Profound Immortal realm and higher, that a change in container material was warranted.

I knew that I was procrastinating. But after placing my trust in Elder Tye and the herbal bath, I was leery of trusting his advice. The pill was a little too large to swallow, but that wasn't necessary. Taking a deep breath and clenching my muscles for what was about to take place, I popped the pill in my mouth to allow it to dissolve.

The cooling freshness of mint was the only thing I noticed, no pain, no trauma, the pill had the same effect as chamomile tea, soothing and relaxing. Once the pill was completely dissolved, I turned my focus inward. My body finally relaxed, muscles unclenched, and I began cultivating. Starting with my Heart Meridian, I began channeling and absorbing the high potency Qi the array was supplying.

The familiarity of [Transcend the Heavenly Footpath] finished alleviating any concerns I might have. My obsession with perfection forcing any other stray thoughts or worries from my mind. I began refining the Body Foundation energies was slowly being distributed throughout my body and adding the potential from the pill to the refined Qi that was funneled to my Dantian.

As I fell deeper into meditation, increasing the speed that I cycled both Qi and the medicine my body had absorbed, my Dantian which was already filled to capacity began pulsing in sync with each cycle. The Qi compacting, transforming from a gaseous state to one of liquid. Each cycle the collected Qi became more refined and exhorted additional pressure.

Breakthroughs were exactly what the name implied. A cultivator had to fill the Dantian past max capacity and force a fracture in the Crystal Matrix that made up the wall of the Dantian, the matrix that had been created to shield and protect when I had recreated the structure of ruby. Not only one fracture was needed, but a complex circuitry was needed.

A weakening in the structure that would allow a shattering of the matrix. It was only after the destruction that the Dantian could be improved. Reformed and repaired so that it was stronger and gave the Cultivator a larger capacity to store and concentrate the world's energies.

It wasn't painful; I had known it would be. I had already accomplished my first breakthrough when I'd advanced from the low to middle stage, so I had an idea what to expect. And I was right. The process was almost exactly the same, but the Body Foundation pill I had used allowed some deviations in the process, ensuring that this breakthrough would be a qualitative success.

As my Dantian shattered and repaired itself, instead of the incremental growth I had expected, I saw a major increase in my capacity to hold and refine Qi. I had jumped from the upper level of the middle stage to the upper level of the perfected stage.

I was so close to embracing a new Realm, if I'd realized this type of advancement was possible, I would have considered bringing a Qi Condensing pill and trying for a breakthrough directly to the Qi Gathering Realm.

Once the reconstruction of my Dantian was complete, and I had refilled my core, I breathed a sigh of relief. There was only one step left, the balm that Elder Tye had prescribed to adjust my Spirit Root.

I was hesitant about approaching the bath once more, forcing myself to return. I tried to convince myself that Elder Tye wouldn't subject me to the pain his herbal concoction had, but the part of myself that I was trying to convince refused to believe. Elder Tye had been firmly placed in the not to be trusted category.

There was nothing for it but to finish, although I didn't trust his methods, I did trust his knowledge. The bath had drained, been cleaned, and refilled with warm water while I was experiencing my breakthrough. An automatic feature of the room that I thought could easily be added to outer sect member's housing.

Getting into the soaking tub wasn't much of an issue, I even spent time just soaking in the water, luxuriating in the warmth and comfort I enjoyed. The elements of water and air heavy and potent in this room.

Reluctantly, I removed the balm from my storage device and allowed it to react with the water I was soaking in. The reaction was immediate, a fizzing release of bubbles and energy. Refreshing and calming the balm allowed me to enter the state of mind needed to turn inwards, to examine my Spirit Root structure in a way I never had before.

I'd assumed my root was a forked construct, similar to what might be found to hold the teeth in your mouth in place. And it was, but the two forks of the root were a tangled mess of fibers. A typical cluster of cilia that you would find if you dug up any plant or herb.

There was no order, the root system structure had formed and grown much as a tulip bulb would. The fine cilia growing in an effort to collect nutrients, they aligned with those bifurcated branches. Each branch making up a part of the taproot overflowing with lateral roots.

I had no idea what was expected of me, how I should move forward. When it came to species of trees, the taproots were the foundation of the plant, growing deep and anchoring and searching for nutrients the tree needed to grow. Lateral roots could become overgrown, jeopardizing the health of the plant, and just like branches or leaves might need to be pruned, a healthy plant might need to be transplanted, a new container allowing the roots to continue to grow.

That was the only idea I could come up with within the state of torpor I had entered. I couldn't transplant my Spirit root, but I could trim. I needed to increase the vitality and vibrancy of the taproot while trimming and destroying those lateral roots that were in danger of compromising stability.

The process of pruning my Spirit Root, even metaphysically, wasn't much different than if I had taken a scalpel and performed brain surgery on myself. As the lateral roots were removed, the herbal bath I was soaking in would cauterize the areas I cut.

Finally, after an eternity I had a network of supportive lateral roots and a duel root tap that was anchored and stable. I had no idea how much difference this would make to my skills, but I had excised everything I thought posed any threat to my growth. I had been ruthless as I pruned, hoping that anything I might cut away could be regrown if it was vital.

I felt much like a gardener creating a Bonsai must when the finished product was potted and there was nothing left to do but water it occasionally and snip any fresh growth that might destroy the aesthetics he was working towards. I endured, coming to understand I was training the paths and channels the same way those master's that spent years crafting the perfect vignette for a Bonsai that represented serenity and perfection. Time spent guiding stems and leaves so that they would grow in patterns they were establishing.

For the first time, the Platinum root that I had been blessed with or gifted with by Genesis at character creation became more. More a part of who and what I was.