Jade Void Breathing Technique

"Our Yutong has always been cold and reserved, not good at expressing herself. I'll speak for her."

"Little Handsome Li, three days ago, we all fell onto this Bronze Ship so vast we couldn't even find our bearings. You'd lost a severe amount of blood and were at death's door, urgently needing a transfusion. Only your Senior Brother and this big sister of yours were willing to draw blood for you."

"But your Senior Brother's blood type didn't match, so it all fell on her!" Qi Shanshan's lips were rosy and lustrous, and a smile always rested on her face, giving her a captivating charm.

A doctor as radiant as she was a prescription unto herself.

Only then did Li Weiyi learn that he had been unconscious for three days.

"Thank you, Senior Sister. Thank you, Doctor Qi."

Li Weiyi tried to brace himself and sit up, but apart from searing pain, his left arm had no other sensation. His right arm, which was receiving the transfusion, could not exert much strength either.

His injuries were even worse than he had estimated.

Qi Shanshan said, "Just lie down properly! The wound on your left arm nearly tore the muscles completely apart. It went deep enough to expose bone, and the bone itself was cracked. We cleaned it and stitched it up, but nearly all the medicine in the Medical Cabin was destroyed. We couldn't find many suitable supplies to use. The fact that you've held on for now doesn't mean there won't be complications later."

"Rest properly. Drink some water."

Cai Yutong did not say much. She handed him an opened bottle of water, then left the Medical Tent with Qi Shanshan.

The Deck of the Bronze Ship was too vast. The vessel alone was five hundred meters wide, and with the fog so dense, it was impossible to see from one end to the other.

Outside the Medical Tent lay the sinister, hazy Sea of Tombs and Forest of Steles. Grave after grave was shrouded in Yin-charged Nether Mist, carrying the chilling atmosphere of a ghostly domain.

It was like a foggy winter morning.

Several nearby burial mounds could still be seen clearly. They stood seven or eight meters tall, like little earthen hills. No one knew what sort of Living Beings lay buried within.

In front of some graves stood tattered, ancient Ghost Flags, fluttering in the wind with bizarre patterns upon them.

The steles were all enormous, each weighing tens of thousands of jin. Their stone surfaces had weathered badly, and the Ancient Script carved upon them had already blurred. Several elderly professors were studying and arguing beneath them.

Elsewhere.

The hundred-meter-long Research Vessel lay capsized on the empty Deck like a steel behemoth, broken into two pieces. Branching and bent steel structures were exposed at the fracture, forming passageways into the cabins.

Large numbers of strong young Research Team Members were inside salvaging supplies, preparing to move out everything that could still be used.

Shouts, the clatter of supplies, and footsteps... intertwined within the fog.

Unlike before, Cai Yutong was not wearing a thick cold-weather coat. Instead, she wore a leather trench coat over a knitted skirt. The curves of her chest and waist flowed smoothly, while her tight jeans showed off the long, straight lines of her legs.

She needed no elaborate, deliberate dressing to draw repeated furtive glances from passing Research Team Members, or distant stares of admiration.

Some gazes also fell upon Qi Shanshan. Her long jade-smooth legs beneath her doctor's uniform were exceptionally eye-catching. In terms of looks, she was only a notch below Cai Yutong.

"Have you noticed the change?" Qi Shanshan looked at the Nether Mist and Ethereal Clouds beyond the Bulwark, smiling faintly as she murmured without drawing attention.

Cai Yutong said, "What change?"

"You've used all your intelligence and wisdom on academics!" Qi Shanshan's expression became much more solemn, and her voice dropped lower. "Haven't you noticed that compared to before, the way they look at us has become bolder, more aggressive?"

"Has it?"

Cai Yutong looked toward the busy Research Team Members, Deckhands, and Security Team Members.

Qi Shanshan seemed somewhat despondent. "Do you think we can still go back?"

"Earth... the macroscopic Earth?"

Cai Yutong thought for a moment. "We do not even know how we fell into this Bronze Ship. Going back will likely be as difficult as climbing to heaven. The microscopic and the macroscopic are worlds apart to begin with. Tell me, where exactly is this Bronze Ship sailing? What sort of shore will it take us to?"

The Nether Mist was too dense to see the sea beneath the ship, but they could feel the Bronze Ship racing forward.

Qi Shanshan had no interest in discussing things beyond her control with Cai Yutong. "If we can't go back, do you think everyone will still be bound by law and morality as they were before?"

Cai Yutong was not foolish. On the contrary, she was exceptionally intelligent; she was simply focused on her work and not as deep-minded as Qi Shanshan.

Since Qi Shanshan had raised the question, Cai Yutong naturally weighed it in her heart. "When human nature loses its restraints, civilization and morality will collapse. Former social identities will lose their meaning, replaced by savagery—or rather... strength. Absolute strength."

"Whoever is stronger will certainly be unwilling to be led or ordered about. They will choose resistance and seize power, accompanied by bloodshed and violence."

"This Bronze Ship has already become an independent little world."

Qi Shanshan added, "And a little world with scarce resources at that. If the Bronze Ship continues sailing without stopping, it won't take long before changes in power and humanity's dark side are laid out in bloody clarity. You and I cannot even truss a chicken, and we also possess the figures and looks least suited for chaotic times. If we do not make plans in advance, our endings may be miserable."

Cai Yutong said, "Are you really that afraid of being coveted?"

"It isn't fear of being coveted. It's knowing clearly that once all knowledge and status are stripped away, I am truly just a weak woman. How do you not have this sense of crisis?"

Qi Shanshan corrected her irritably, then continued, "The strongest person aboard in terms of combat ability is undoubtedly First Mate Zhao Meng."

A smile appeared in Cai Yutong's eyes. "You have someone in mind? Don't tell me you want to..."

Before she could finish, Qi Shanshan shook her head. "Zhao Meng is personally strong, upright to the bone, and has the temperament of a leader. But he is far too unalert to the changing situation. Even now, he is still busy salvaging supplies from the Research Vessel.

"On the other hand, I've secretly observed Second Mate Xie Tianshu. Over the past three days, he has constantly been cultivating ties with the Security Team Members and growing close to the younger members of the research team. Scions of great families like him understand power and human nature better, and they have greater ambition."

Then Qi Shanshan said in a half-joking tone, "I think Xie Tianshu's cousin, Xie Jin, is very taken with you. How about we take one each, use our own methods, divide them fairly, and neither of us fights the other? We can secure these two brothers ahead of time."

Cai Yutong knew Qi Shanshan was not making empty alarms, but she had not the slightest interest in what she called "planning ahead." "When civilization and morality truly collapse one day, why should I continue to scrape out an existence in this human hell? Jumping from this Bulwark would not be difficult."

Qi Shanshan rolled her eyes. "As if I don't know you. Haven't you set your sights on that muscular Junior Brother inside? Let me solemnly remind you: stop being lovestruck. In our current situation, a handsome man is useless."

"Besides... his condition is terrible. Even if the wound on his left arm heals, he definitely won't be able to lift heavy objects in the future. He is practically half-crippled."

"And most animal claws carry viruses. The virus on that Bear-like creature's claws is likely even more dangerous. There is an enormous hidden threat."

"So are you really sure that, in a future where supplies are scarce and unrest may erupt at any moment, you want to choose such a burden?"

Cai Yutong extended fingers as pale and delicate as scallion stalks, speaking with utmost seriousness. "First, I have not chosen anyone. Second, if he had not stepped forward on the Research Vessel and lured away the Bear-like creature, I might already be dead! One matter is one matter. What I owe, I will repay. And you had better stop using the word 'burden.' If he hears it, how much psychological pressure will that put on him?"

Qi Shanshan laughed. "And you still say you don't care? I've never seen you pay this much attention to any man. What was that saying popular at our old school? Senior Sister is passionate, Junior Brother is handsome; first teach him learning, then teach him love... Fine, fine, I won't say it again... Are you really not considering making plans in advance? Don't regret it!"

Cai Yutong ignored her and walked straight toward the open-air Kitchen Tent set up beneath the overturned, broken Research Vessel.

Li Weiyi could not find the Yellow Dragon Sword, and the Dao Ancestor Taiji Fish that should have hung around his neck was nowhere to be found. His body was terribly weak, and only after drinking half a bottle of water did he recover some strength.

But then intense hunger rose within him.

Cai Yutong entered carrying a steaming bowl of Fish Soup.

Its fragrance instantly filled the tin-walled Medical Tent.

Helping Li Weiyi sit up, she said, "I knew you would be hungry, so I grabbed a bowl for you in advance. Cherish this kind of delicacy. The Cold Storage has already broken down, and refrigeration has failed. The meat and fish supplies will probably only last for these next few days. Vegetables and fruit will not keep much longer either."

The reason she added that last sentence was clearly because Qi Shanshan's earlier words had affected her. She was worried about their future circumstances.

Li Weiyi's right arm was still receiving blood, so he could not eat by himself.

Cai Yutong could only feed him spoonful by spoonful.

It had to be said that without the cold-weather coat concealing her beauty and figure, Cai Yutong was unquestionably a peerless beauty. Her eyes were cool yet bright, her skin fine and fair, her lips elegant and pale. Seen through the scant white mist rising from the Fish Soup, she gained an added hazy beauty.

No matter how harsh their circumstances were, having such a Senior Sister carefully looking after him was surely a blessing.

Li Weiyi knew how cold Cai Yutong's temperament was, and naturally felt deeply moved.

So he thanked her again.

Just then, Qi Shanshan and two students entered carrying Fish Soup to visit Professor Xu, whose legs had been broken in the fall.

"Your Senior Brother asked me to make sure I took good care of you. With the injured injured and the dead dead, manpower is scarce. I cannot exactly sit around doing nothing, can I?" As Cai Yutong spoke, she wanted to set down the Fish Soup and let Li Weiyi drink it himself. She always felt the three people passing behind her were looking at her strangely.

At that moment, there was indeed something vaguely intimate between her and Li Weiyi, easily giving rise to misunderstandings.

Professor Xu lay in the hospital bed beside Li Weiyi. His eyes no longer held their former light, and his emotions were unstable. "We definitely can't go back. Since the Cold Storage has been damaged, the food can support us for at most half a month. No, in ten days, something major will happen. Once all the food requiring freezing and refrigeration has spoiled, something major will definitely happen... survival of the fittest, adaptation means survival... I can already see that day... animals will all return to their primal nature..."

Hearing the worries expressed one after another by Cai Yutong and Professor Xu, the delicious Fish Soup in Li Weiyi's mouth gradually lost its flavor. He badly wanted to go outside at once and see what things were really like.

Ten days.

The injury on his arm definitely could not recover by then.

Filled with doubt and confusion, Li Weiyi drank all the Fish Soup. His body gradually warmed, and strength returned to him.

After Cai Yutong, Qi Shanshan, and the two Graduate Student trainees left, he asked Professor Xu about the Buddha's Sarira and the Microscopic World.

After learning the truth, he secretly pondered, The Buddha's Sarira should be the fish eye that had been lost and then recovered on the Dao Ancestor Taiji Fish! Could it be that the Dao Ancestor Taiji Fish activated the Bronze Ship, causing the entire research team to fall into the microscopic world and embark upon this unknown journey?

Microscopic? Is it really the microscopic world described in textbooks?

Li Weiyi found everything utterly inconceivable, completely beyond his understanding. Coupled with his severe injuries, he felt profoundly unsafe. Like Professor Xu beside him, his emotions became unstable, and he gradually grew restless and anxious.

No. This won't do.

Even women like Senior Sister and Doctor Qi could remain calm and composed after enduring such a tremendous change. Could my state of mind truly be inferior to theirs? That would be too shameful a betrayal of Master's years of teaching.

When the heart is in chaos, the spirit drifts; when intent is in disorder, the soul is lost.

The words his master often kept on his lips rang through Li Weiyi's mind. He immediately drew a deep breath and, according to the Jade Void Breathing Technique, inhaled and exhaled the qi of heaven and earth.

Back on Earth, he practiced the Jade Void Breathing Technique for at least three hours every day, never stopping for more than ten years.

Though he had not cultivated any internal force or true qi,

when Breathing and Exhaling, his mind could rapidly grow tranquil and all stray thoughts would vanish.

This was why, when facing danger, he could remain calm and avoid being ruled by fear within his heart. When facing the Bear-like creature, he had actively used the Jade Void Breathing Technique to seek that peaceful state free of distracting thoughts.

Lying on the bed, after Breathing and Exhaling for around half an hour, Li Weiyi had completely calmed down and entered a mysterious state of crystalline emptiness.

The sole of his right foot suddenly became scorching hot, as though it had caught fire.

This had never happened before.

(Thanks to the alliance leaders: 1, Facing the Future_Spring Comes, Flowers Bloom; 2, South One, North One; 3, Taiyi Flying Around; 4, Xiao Linhe; 5, Reader 160605201642819.)

Today is Monday. I'm pushing for the new-book rankings, so please vote with your monthly tickets.