Young Man, You Don't Know How to Breathe

In July, the heat began to wane.

This year, Rongcheng's summer heat had faded far faster than usual.

The morning breeze swept through with a trace of coolness. The air was fresh—perfect for exercise.

"Little Li, heading out to work out again?"

The sky had only just begun to brighten, yet scattered pedestrians had already appeared along the residential community's roads. Most were aunties carrying fans, preparing to go dance to exercise routines.

Compared to young people who had school or work, retired uncles and aunties were far more passionate about exercise.

"Yeah, just getting in some morning exercise." Li Changqing nodded at the passing neighbors one by one.

No sooner had the pleasantries ended than the aunties revealed their true purpose.

"Little Li, you graduated this year and you're still single. Do you have..."

"Goodbye, Auntie Zhang—"

Sure enough, no matter the era, aunties who loved playing matchmaker were always the main melody of the times.

After running all the way out of the residential community, Li Changqing arrived at the fitness park beside it.

If the public square was the aunties' domain,

then the park was the domain of old masters, each concealing unique skills.

Thud, thud, thud—

Leaves fluttered down, carpeting the ground.

The moment Li Changqing entered the park, he was given a harsh show of strength.

An old man built like a giant bear was ramming a large tree with his sturdy, powerful shoulder, sending branches and leaves drifting down.

The cords of muscle all over his body were enough to make even a fierce man with two and a half years of training weep.

A few steps farther on, two ropes tied to high tree branches stretched across the path, leaving Li Changqing staring wide-eyed.

An old man hung suspended in an uncanny hanging posture, his chin hooked over the ropes while his legs swung back and forth as though he were running.

"What peerless divine art is that?" Li Changqing could not understand it, but he was deeply shaken.

Seriously, if an ordinary person tried practicing that, they would one hundred percent hang themselves to death.

But that was only the beginning.

As he left the landscaped woods around the park's outskirts and formally entered the exercise grounds within,

the sight before him finally showed him what it meant for every person to possess unique skills.

"Sir, what are you...?"

Li Changqing truly could not make sense of it.

What had he just seen?

An old man had both feet hooked over a horizontal bar, his entire body spinning like a windmill as he performed 360-degree Thomas flares.

The speed was so great and the Aura so fierce that Li Changqing worried the old man might soar into the sky at any moment.

"Yo, young man, I'm exercising."

The old man's voice was full and powerful, the deep resonance from his chest carrying its own echo.

"Want to join me?"

"Ah, sir, you carry on. I won't disturb you." Li Changqing hurriedly declined the old man's invitation to team up.

He dodged left and right, finally finding an open patch in this park where immortals seemed to roam freely.

An old man who did not look quite so muscular, wearing sunglasses, was squatting on the ground and fiddling with flowers and grass. He was probably taking a mid-session break.

"Young man, you're new here, aren't you?"

This park was the old men's private plot, so a young unfamiliar face like Li Changqing stood out sharply.

"I just moved here. I live in Dongguang Residential Community next door."

"A college student? Just graduated?"

When Li Changqing nodded, the old man's gaze swept over him.

"Not bad. Your vitality is deep and enduring. Keep training for a while longer, young man, and you'll definitely pass the Martial Arts Academy assessment."

Li Changqing was somewhat curious.

"Sir, how did you know I was going to take the Martial Arts Academy assessment?"

"There aren't many college students like you with such deep and enduring vitality. If you weren't going to take the Martial Arts Academy assessment, would you really be content to go look for a job?"

Li Changqing's heart jolted. Even now, he could not judge someone's level of vitality with the naked eye.

Unless...

"Well, this whole area—including the Dongguang Residential Community where you live—was housing assigned by the government to old bones like us after we retired."

"A retired serviceman?" Li Changqing quickly asked, "Sir, were you a Martial Artist before?"

At the mention of his glorious days, the old man, whose back had been somewhat hunched, subtly straightened his spine. A light called pride gleamed in his eyes.

"When I was young, I was a noncommissioned officer in the Qingzhou garrison. Sadly, I was just one step short of accommodating Psionic Energy and becoming a High-Rank Martial Artist. Now I'm old, and my vitality has declined."

A Mid-Rank Martial Artist from the military!

Blue Star's soldiers were different from those of the past.

Other than civilian staff and the small number of researchers who had yet to give up,

one had to be at least a Lower-Rank Martial Artist to enter the military.

At that thought, Li Changqing's mouth twitched.

If his residential community was housing for retired military personnel,

did that mean he was actually the weakest person in the community?

"What a pity." Mentioning his past caused the old man's thoughts to drift.

"We've all grown old, yet those damned alien mongrels still haven't come. They locked down our planet's technology—why are they hiding their faces like garlic-headed turtles?"

He turned to Li Changqing, deeply emotional.

"Young man, the future will still depend on youngsters like you. Work hard."

The old man slapped Li Changqing on the shoulder.

"Strive to become a Martial Artist, become a Psionic User. When those alien mongrels come, smash their eggs to pieces! Let's see if they still dare blockade our planet!"

"Don't worry, sir. When those aliens come, I'll smash their eggs to pieces for you!"

Li Changqing laughed loudly.

He had never forgotten that point. Otherwise, when he had possessed neither his current ability nor any exceptional physical talent, he would never have applied to Qingzhou Psionic University.

Climbing to the end of the martial path was Li Changqing's dream.

Likewise, on the road to realizing that dream, he hoped to smash the eggs of those aliens peering at them from beyond the depths of space.

And now,

it was time to practice martial arts!

The immense vitality sleeping within his body awakened.

Under Li Changqing's control, it shot into the sky like a hidden dragon.

Bang!

His feet rooted themselves as though connecting him to the earth.

His fist forms flowed smoothly, driving every muscle throughout his body as immense vitality propelled his movements.

Faster, stronger.

Li Changqing's breathing was deep and sustained. With every exhale and inhale, his movements were graceful.

In the blink of an eye, he swiftly completed the first twelve fist forms, and his vitality remained abundant.

"Can I succeed?"

The instant that thought arose, Li Changqing swiftly suppressed it.

Only with a mind free of distractions could one see things through to the end.

The thirteenth form!

From this moment onward, every move's consumption of vitality suddenly doubled.

Yet Li Changqing did not panic in the slightest. Glycogen in his muscles rapidly metabolized, flooding him with ample energy and keeping his vitality deep and sustained.

The fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth forms.

He performed three consecutive forms in one fluid chain, the force of his fists stirring the fallen leaves on the ground.

Looking closely, within the area where Li Changqing's legs had rooted themselves, not even a speck of dust remained on the entire concrete surface.

It was spotless, as though brand new.

The seventeenth form!

Boom!

His vitality boomed. A faint light flickered in Li Changqing's pupils. Thanks to the increased dexterity he had gained from learning the Tai Chi Throwing Style last night,

his control over his body rose to another level. He forcibly mobilized his muscles, preventing the sudden massive expenditure of vitality from causing him to lose strength.

Continue!

The eighteenth form!

From this moment onward, the pressure multiplied.

Li Changqing's expression was no longer relaxed as he sped up his movements.

The nineteenth and twentieth forms.

His vitality churned, and his face had visibly turned pale, yet Li Changqing still slowly but resolutely executed the next form.

The twenty-first form!

He held his breath, trying to forcibly control his muscles and complete the final four forms.

However, his movements grew slower and slower. A distance of mere millimeters had become a heavenly chasm.

He was only a little short of bringing every muscle in his body into place under the guidance of the fist forms.

But he was short by that little bit.

His breath gave out.

Bang!

Li Changqing collapsed onto the ground. He had been only a little short of success!

"Young man, you don't know how to breathe."

"Hm?"

Li Changqing abruptly raised his head and saw that the old man from earlier had returned and was standing before him.

"Breathe?" Li Changqing did not understand.

"Sir, wasn't my breathing rhythm disrupted?"

"What do you mean, disrupted or not?" The old man waved a large hand. "You don't know how to breathe at all."

Seeing Li Changqing's eyes full of confusion, the old man let out a long breath.

"Watch carefully."

Hiss—

A sharp explosive crack rang out, as though the tip of a soft whip had lashed through the air.

Under Li Changqing's horrified gaze, the old man's chest visibly swelled.

No!

It was not just his chest.

Li Changqing's pupils contracted. What kind of martial art was this?

The withered old man suddenly expanded in an instant. With every breath he took, his shirt was torn apart by bulging muscles, and a muscular brute burst forth.

Ha!

The old man, now transformed into a muscular brute, no longer looked withered and thin. He threw a punch at a birch tree as thick as an adult's waist.

A fist of flesh and blood rivaled refined steel.

A deep fist imprint was branded into the center of the trunk.

Wisps of white smoke still rose from it.

The old man turned his head, the sunglasses on his face reflecting the blazing sunlight.

"Young man, this is what breathing is called."

"What you were doing was just panting."