Jason begins slowly, not that Rosha needs it. In some ways, she is actually more flexible than he is. Rather, as he explains, “This is to allow me to map out how your body reacts.
“While I’m not going to custom-make the exercises, the routine itself needs to be put together based on your body. Besides that, I’m not sure what will work like I expect. Like, I know a dance used by those aligned with wind Qi, but it isn’t the Qi of NeoRealm. Can you make use of it? We’ll just have to try it and find out.
“Or maybe you’d best benefit from a general body remolding flow kata? Like that martial arts for the elderly. Except, you know, closer to that martial arts actual core martial tradition instead of the neutered art that the origin country developed because martial art groups kept attempting to coup the government.
“Though honestly? I don’t really know that many complete sets of exercises which will make this both tougher and easier.”
Rosha frowns as she slowly moves through the forms. “Why would it be easier? I could see harder, you’re lacking a complete foundation to work off of. But what advantages are there to not having a foundation to work with at all?”
Jason, “It isn’t like I don’t have Any foundation. There are a few exercise routines and katas that I remember. But here’s the thing! We aren’t working on the same ground. It would be like trying to build a classic log cabin in a place that floods all the time. You can make it work, but there is a reason some places have houses up on stilts. Different conditions require different foundations.
“So it is much better to judge the ground itself and build up instead of going in with a foundation and trying to change it to the terrain. I know some methods, but I also don’t have anything too solid going into this and I plan to make it work for us.”
Rosha scoffs, “Sounds like you’re just making excuses for not having an encyclopedic knowledge of routines and katas.”
Jason picks up the pace, “I could probably remember more if I bothered. Except? It wouldn’t have any meaning. Do you think I didn’t have time to test these things out irl? While the moves still show signs of being useful, it is like how some languages have the same word, but it means different things.
“I guess there are only so many ways a human body can reasonably move, and so my knowledge isn’t completely worthless. However, the actual order you do them? That needs to be figured out from square one. Worse, unlike cultivation, these things weren’t designed to be so flexible and customizable.”
Rosha continues to match Jason move for move, despite the speed and difficulty ramping up. “Why wouldn’t they be? I would assume a civilization that developed such an open style of cultivating power would also do similar for cultivating the body.”
Jason, “Well, the body is a little more restricted than the mind, soul, and all types of energy out there. A son of a long-standing family of water cultivators can end up restricted almost exclusively to fire. That same son will still be able to use the family body forging manual, even if he might have to ignore the elements directly dealing with water.
“And if he doesn’t want to do that? A quick trip to the market will get you a manual for humans that handle fire. Or just a generic one. That works fine as well and the family likely has one already.
“Oh, sure, if you’re not human, you’ll need your own manuals. Except in that case, you’re either unique to begin with and would have needed to anyway or you have a species behind you who will have developed them already. That or steal human manuals and alter them if they’re close enough.
“Like, there are special physiques? None of us have one of them, well, maybe I do now in NeoRealm, but even then? You don’t necessarily need anything special. That or you fit under the unique category.”
Rosha stops, “Why can’t I have a unique physique?”
Jason stands up and shrugs, “You’d be in a lab being examined or if your father was powerful? I guess maybe you’d be in a luxury lab owned by your family. Special physiques have many origins and is honestly a bit too open-ended of a term if you let it be, but at the basic level? They’d be able to detect it. Your actual body is different and energy flows will be altered around you.
“So all the nonsense that has gone on because I pushed away the corruption irl? Say you had a yin physique. They’d detect energy being repulsed from you. And if it was a powerful enough physique? Physical fire would bend away from you.”
Rosha, “But what about all those stories where the main character has a hidden special physique of unimaginable power?”
Jason shrugs, “I won’t say such things don’t exist. And you know what? Fair enough, you have just as much chance of having one of those as anyone else on the planet. Near zero.
“While they exist, they tend to be the legacy of some ancient powerhouse or the machinations of the heavens or the gods. Basically, a physique that will be gifted or inherited. Well, besides some stealth-focused physiques? But they’re more the exception to prove the rule and we’d know by now since you did start cultivating and Courtney can detect it.”
Rosha shrugs, “Eh, I guess I prefer it this way. I would hate to have a physique from my father’s side of things. That would be supremely awkward.”
Jason nods, “Yeah that happens more than not. Special physiques might be rare, but there is that element of bloodline to them, so you get all that noble bloodline nonsense. Except even worse because there actually is some special element to it. Just consider how bad it would have been irl if bloodline gave someone the ability to throw fireballs?”