Heaven's Laws - Lifestone - Chapter 13 part a

They did end up staying another full day in the capital before returning to their room at the inn Immortal’s Slumber. It was the preeminent inn in the entire city with specialty cultivation chambers that Chao and Huifen made good use of. Their normal dual cultivation could be rough on a normal room due to their energy circulation even if they weren’t refining any heavenly materials. Such was the life of high realm cultivators.

It was on their third day in the city that they sat down to meditate in the priciest chamber Immortal’s Slumber had to offer. It was made to look like the walls, ceiling and floor were lined with jade, but it was a form of qi infused marble that had dark specks in the canvas light green.

Sitting in the middle of the room, a single drop of Esh Vine Nectar that Father Zan had prepared was waiting in a bottle between them. Chao was shirtless and Huifen was wearing her Ice Phoenix Sect uniform. Her orange one was more qi resistant. They’d been circulating their energy gathering techniques to make sure they were at their peak.

As soon as they were, they reached out from where they’d been sitting cross legged and weaved their fingers together. With both of their palms touching, heaven and earth qi began circulating between them. They used a dual version of Chao’s mother’s technique that they’d confirmed was meant to cleanse and heal the meridians. This was the first stage of their Dual Energy Circulation and was unique to the two of them.

There was on heaven and earth artifact in the room providing them with extra qi, but it was a minimal amount. Esh Vine Nectar was too potent for anymore.

They continued sharing in this dual circulation technique until they both felt the sanitary feeling it produced. Then they were ready. They shared one last a determined look before Huifen unlaced her finger from his and picked up the bottle, undoing the lid. Even though only one drop was measured, she was careful to tip it slowly so that the drop had to work its way off the bottles lip.

It fell to land on her tongue. The bottle disappeared into her spatial ring and her husbands’ hands were already grabbing hers. He scooted closer and they retook their palm-to-palm position. The heaven and earth qi was already circulating when their mouths met.

Their qi circulation became a fierce cycle. The first few seconds were the most important. It was also the most painful. Huifen felt it first, like her tongue was burning. The feeling had traveled through her meridians in an instant. By the time she felt like her entire body was being seared from the inside out, Chao was experiencing the same.

They both had the same instinctive desire to stop circulating their qi. It was the very thing that would kill them. They knew before hand what they had to do. This technique and its principles wasn’t new to them. They might not have been as well practiced as they were with Qi Balance which they used almost daily, but they made a point to use the technique often even if it wasn’t necessary to refine some resources.

Ignoring the pain, they let the principles of the technique guide them. Their desire to live and for each other to benefit was far too strong after all they’d faced.

Many seconds passed, but it was only after burning sensation in their mouths lessened that they knew the drop had been fully circulated. It was then that Huifen spun her core, unleashing tendrils of ice qi through her meridians. The relief was immediate, but the Qi Balancing process depended mostly on her. Too much, and the Esh Vine Nectar could be neutralized too quickly before it seeped deep into their systems. It could also be dangerous to Chao. Not enough and… They’d both die.

The shaking in her husbands’ hands didn’t start until after the qi was balanced. After scanning him, she confirmed the damage to his meridians was spread evenly throughout his body. The first step had been a success.

“Slowly now,” she called out to make sure he heard her.

“Mmm,” he groaned.

She felt relief. Now was not the time for him to lose himself in qi circulation. Her core stopped spinning and the qi passing between them and throughout their systems kept the nectar’s side effects at bay. Soon, they returned to using the dual version of Chao’s original qi gathering technique. Their qi moved in a gentle, thorough cycle like it was polishing their meridians. The damage to Huifen’s wasn’t nearly as bad as it was to Chao’s, but after a few days, they’d both be back to normal.

As dangerous as the Esh Vine Nectar was, if they could survive the first phase, the rest was easy in comparison. Many lesser materials provided little danger but were far more tedious to refine. In a few hours, the process would be complete.

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There's not a lot to this first part, but I want to get something out early if the second part isn't finished today. The second part should give us some hints to what's going to happen later in the novel. :D