Nine Clouds Purple Miasma started to talk as he was doing the meditation for Hou,
"This is the use of qi, there's no need to not use qi, we just use it in a different manner. While traditional cultivation uses qi to feed spirits, us true cultivators use qi inside the body to draw in laws. This was found by the great Earthly Master of the Heavens. He was the real originator of this modern and true cultivation. He had found that qi was just like consciousness, a sort of wild consciousness not controlled by anyone. When cultivators refine it, it becomes a quasi consciousness. This allows it to manipulate laws, and using a technique it can draw the laws inwards."
"Earthly Master of the Heavens seems like a great individual..." Hou commented to show he was listening but still focused on what Nine Clouds Purple Miasma was doing.
"He was indeed, truly an dragon among men. Perhaps I shall bring you some history books too, but for now let's focus back to cultivating. Just copy this technique and you can draw laws around you. However, until we reunited your body and soul, it will be slow. Just absorbing this Sun Crystal Orchid might take a day or more..."
"I see. Should I do this after lesson, I still need to learn about alchemy?"
"Yes that seems fine, do you remember how to do it?"
"Yes I think I will remember" Hou opened his eyes and looked back at Nine Clouds Purple Miasma.
"Then that will be your task for today, let's go inside now for your lesson on alchemy!"
Nine Clouds Purple Miasma sat up and brush his robe down. He had striking pink hair in a hair crown, and he wore a warm white robe. It was much like clouds as the sun just penetrated, a slight warm tinge.
He brushed it down and turned around with his arms behind his back. He walked through the field and into the house.
Hou stood and up and while stiff and exhausted started to walk by. Just that small session of meditation in the hot sun with his sun laws had caused him to sweat.
Hou made it to the house meeting up with Nine Clouds Purple Miasma but instead of following quietly, he asked a question,
"Is there some kind of bath in this new house? I've worked up quite a sweat"
"There isn't, but I can make one. For now though let me,"
Nine Clouds reached out towards Hou and with an open palm he gestured upwards. Then water rose from the wood panels and travelled up Hou's body. It deftly went up his skin and took away all the dirt and sweat. It left Hou's clothes perfectly dry, a ball of sweaty water floating above him.
Nine Clouds Purple Miasma swiped his hand sideways and the water disappeared.
"Thank you!" Hou gave his thanks.
"My pleasure, now follow me, I'll show you the alchemy room." Nine Clouds Purple Miasma then turned around and started walking through the doors and entered into a room adjacent the storage room.
It was a large spherical room, with a large chimney in the middle. The floor was stone as compared to the wood of the rest of the house.
"Do all alchemy here while you are still learning. Now let me explain what alchemy. Alchemy is the use of different physical materials to cause a change, transform or manipulate laws. In a way cultivation is a sort of alchemy. Let me give you an example, again this is another use of qi. However everything you can do with qi is better with mental energy or consciousness, but that is much harder to get in large quantities."
Nine Clouds Purple Miasma went into the storage room and picked up a few different herbs. He came back into he alchemy room and walked towards a furnace. All around the room were various furnaces of different sizes and shapes.
"This is a small pill furnace. Now I placed these materials in the furnace, no need to worry about how to tell what materials to use just yet, they are all labeled with the corresponding laws."
'I assume it is like witchcraft, you use the astral world to inspect the laws...' Hou almost rolled his eyes but refrained.
"Now watch me put these materials in and with experimenting we've found the right technique. I can use the recipe to manipulate qi and turn these raw ingredients into a pill."
Nine Clouds Purple Miasma took a few minutes and when he was done, small amounts of pink smoke rose from the furnace.
"That smoke is my qi, that is why it is pink, due to my method to refine qi. Just use whatever you have learned in your inheritance. Now look what I made.."
Nine Clouds Purple Miasma took the furnace and opened the lid, tipping it to Hou. He looked inside and saw a small golden orb.
"Can I pick it up?" Hou asked and Nine Clouds Purple Miasma nodded in response.
Hou picked up the pill and inspected it. It was small, about one finger joint in circumference. It was perfectly spherical and cold to the touch.
"It's cold isn't it?"
"Yes quite cold"
"There's the trick. It isn't actually cold, it's in fact very hot. But it absorbs heat from around it making everything around it becomes cold. It absorbs heat laws and once it's fully grown you can eat it to take those laws. This is called a Heat Absorbing Golden Pill. Leave it outside to absorb heat. You should know when it's fully grown when it's half a finger in circumference. About double the size it is now. Before then don't touch it much, it'll just absorb the laws you already have, no use in that"
Nine Clouds Purple Miasma took the pill from Hou's hand.
"In many of these books are recipes, just research. Don't attempt for now, I'll plant this Heat Absorbing Golden Pill outside for you. Do what you wish for the rest of the day. Soon, I'll bring you to the main sect and introduce you to the Nine Clouds Sovereign Sect."