Shen Yuan smiles at him encouragingly. Whiskers on kittens who, an enthusiastic student is a teacher's favorite thing. "Alright," he says, and on a whim pulls his painted silk fan out of his belt and opens it, beginning to languidly fan himself as he begins.
"I am a type of magic-user called a cultivator, and our speciality is the collection and manipulation of a type of spiritual energy called qi, which is produced by all living things." His smile widens. "As the basics of our techniques are shared by martial arts traditions all over Asia and across many worlds, you may already be somewhat familiar with them from anime or martial arts movies." Or Star Wars, for that matter! But that's not a can of worms they need to open right now. Shen Yuan continues,
"Cultivators take the principles of qi refinement a step further by learning how to absorb spiritual energy from other sources, such as those found in nature." He taps the trunk of the guardian tree gratefully. "This tree for instance, thanks to the blessing of the goddess who planted it, is an excellent source of spiritual energy that promotes calm and healing even in those who have no spiritual awareness to speak of. I come here to meditate under its branches every weekend, and by absorbing a small amount of its spiritual power I am able to cleanse myself of corruption and promote my own magical development, without doing any harm to the tree. Although," and here he grimaces; it may be uncomfortable to hear this part, but Peter deserves to know.
"There do exist techniques that can drain all of the spiritual energy from a living being, including a person. But that is simply another form of murder, and those techniques are proscribed in every just society that I know of." He closes his fan, sharply tapping the piece of wood that guards its outer edge against his opposite palm. "I would never engage in such things, not even to save my own life. I mention this only so you needn't feel concerned for your safety around me, should you hear of such things from another person."
no subject
"I am a type of magic-user called a cultivator, and our speciality is the collection and manipulation of a type of spiritual energy called qi, which is produced by all living things." His smile widens. "As the basics of our techniques are shared by martial arts traditions all over Asia and across many worlds, you may already be somewhat familiar with them from anime or martial arts movies." Or Star Wars, for that matter! But that's not a can of worms they need to open right now. Shen Yuan continues,
"Cultivators take the principles of qi refinement a step further by learning how to absorb spiritual energy from other sources, such as those found in nature." He taps the trunk of the guardian tree gratefully. "This tree for instance, thanks to the blessing of the goddess who planted it, is an excellent source of spiritual energy that promotes calm and healing even in those who have no spiritual awareness to speak of. I come here to meditate under its branches every weekend, and by absorbing a small amount of its spiritual power I am able to cleanse myself of corruption and promote my own magical development, without doing any harm to the tree. Although," and here he grimaces; it may be uncomfortable to hear this part, but Peter deserves to know.
"There do exist techniques that can drain all of the spiritual energy from a living being, including a person. But that is simply another form of murder, and those techniques are proscribed in every just society that I know of." He closes his fan, sharply tapping the piece of wood that guards its outer edge against his opposite palm. "I would never engage in such things, not even to save my own life. I mention this only so you needn't feel concerned for your safety around me, should you hear of such things from another person."