Martial Path Perception

Martial Path Perception

Zhou Leng walked to the living room sofa, sat down, and looked towards the electronic calendar with its faded edges.

July 6th, Friday.

June 7th had been the academic exam for the College Entrance Examination, June 22nd had been the physical fitness test, and seven days later, on July 13th, would come the final of the three College Entrance Examination tests—the Martial Arts Examination.

Zhou Leng took out his phone and looked at the spiderweb crack in the lower-right corner of the screen.

It was covered by the screen protector, so it did not affect much.

He entered the class parents' group and checked the messages left by teachers of every subject, along with all sorts of materials about the Martial Arts Examination.

As he read, night fell.

Zhou Leng rose and was about to head out for his evening training when he remembered Uncle Li's words.

These past few nights might not be peaceful.

Zhou Leng looked at the green wristband on his left wrist.

He hesitated for quite a while. Training at home would be less effective, but if he encountered danger again...

Zhou Leng laid out his training mat, warmed up a little, and performed a set of Wave Palm...

After training his external techniques, Zhou Leng rested briefly. He took out a basin of beans—mung beans, red beans, and soybeans mixed together—spread a large bedsheet across the living room, and hung a sheet of white paper covered in dots on the wall.

Zhou Leng continuously took beans from the basin, used true qi to control his fingers, flicked the beans out, and struck the dots on the white paper, training his ability to control true qi.

After training, he stretched, then washed up and went to sleep.

Dawn was barely breaking.

Zhou Leng walked into the kitchen.

Zhou Leng took out a bag of basic Morning Training Powder, tore it open, poured it into a shaker cup, and added cooled boiled water.

The shaker cup's surface was covered in scratches.

He screwed on the lid tightly and shook it hard for twenty seconds. Then he flipped up the cap over the drinking spout, but it did not budge.

Zhou Leng raised the shaker cup and examined it. It was broken. He unscrewed the entire lid, tilted the bottle opening to his mouth, and drank mouthful by mouthful.

After finishing the Morning Training Powder, Zhou Leng picked up his phone and keys and pushed the door open.

A faint scent of meat and medicinal herbs drifted through the stairwell.

After leaving the residential complex, Zhou Leng warmed up on the jogging track.

Thin overcast clouds scattered across the sky.

As he approached Longyou River Park, there were more and more people.

With light leaps, children jumped onto aerial monkey bars two meters high, running across them with giggles.

Teenagers practiced their fists with every movement precise and deliberate, their gazes focused.

Young adults tempered their bodies using equipment such as dumbbells, barbells, and stone locks marked with different weights: "100 kilograms," "500 kilograms," "1,000 kilograms," and so on.

Middle-aged people meditated in secluded places with earplugs on. Some even meditated while fishing.

The elderly gathered together, either discussing the great Dao of martial arts or talking about major events across the Ten Realms.

From the side of Longyou River Park Plaza came a majestic voice, and Zhou Leng looked over.

Light shot from a demonic projection device, intertwining in the sky to form the image of a vast land.

Between a white river and green farmland lay the ruins of an enormous city. Thick smoke rose, and the ground was blackened.

Countless Demonic Beasts ran and leaped through the city ruins.

Several decades ago, during the age of technology, Blue Star had somehow overlapped and connected with nine other worlds.

The Ten Worlds War erupted.

Within the projection, an aged voice rang out.

"...Behind us, our children's desks are burning..."

The original projection dispersed, transforming into the figure of Martial Ancestor Yu Zhimin. Dressed in a Zhongshan suit, his hair entirely streaked with white, he stood upon a rally platform.

"...We must ensure that the desks before our children remain quiet and peaceful."

After Yu Zhimin spoke his final sentence, the projection slowly changed.

Martial Ancestor Yu Zhimin did not know martial arts.

Nor had he lived during the era of Martial Path Civilization.

Yet in the final year of the technological age, he led the warriors and, wielding the might of Myriad Cores Detonation as though carrying a blazing sun on his back, perished together with all his enemies and claimed first place in that War of the Ten Worlds.

However, in the great decisive battle that followed, the Human Race was defeated and forced to begin the age of Martial Path Civilization.

The overlap of the Ten Realms had birthed countless wondrous treasures and powers.

The spoils from that War of the Ten Worlds became the cornerstone of humanity's Martial Path Civilization.

Thus, through a United Nations vote, humanity revered Yu Zhimin as the Martial Ancestor.

Zhou Leng raised his head and glanced eastward. Overcast clouds concealed the sun. Then he turned and swept his gaze across the couplets on the stone pillars on both sides of Ruge Park Plaza.

Scarlet backgrounds, golden engraved characters.

To win a marquisate is not my wish; I pray only for calm waves upon the sea.

Zhou Leng stared at the two lines again and again, a faint glimmer flickering in his eyes.

Zhou Leng took out his phone, started the timer, deepened his breathing, mobilized all his true qi, and stepped onto the red sprinting track. His body shot forward.

Zhou Leng ran wildly, circulating his qi all the way.

"Phew..."

Zhou Leng pressed the stop button. As he walked towards the pedestrian path, he looked at his phone screen.

03:10:22.

Three minutes and ten seconds.

This meant that once he fully mobilized his true qi and fought at full strength, he could sustain it for three minutes and ten seconds.

One second better than yesterday.

He was another step closer to getting into Ru Da Affiliated Martial Arts Hall.

Zhou Leng walked onto the jogging track and raised his head to look ahead.

Rugao Mountain stood directly before him. Amid its embrace of green trees and white rocks, Rugao Mountain Park stretched from the foot of the mountain to its halfway point.

To the front right stood rows of teaching buildings and several large martial arts arenas.

That was where Rugao City Martial Arts University's Rugao Mountain Campus and the Ru Da Affiliated Martial Arts Hall were located.

In the woods to the front left lay the inconspicuous Xiaoru Village.

Zhou Leng lived on the outskirts of Ru City, very close to Rugao Mountain. Xiaoru Village was the endpoint of his daily run.

Zhou Leng's Father had been born in Xiaoru Village.

When Zhou Leng was little, he often stayed in the ancestral home in Xiaoru Village. He went there less after growing up, but he still visited at least twice a month.

That was because the back mountain behind Xiaoru Village was quiet and well suited for training.

Zhou Leng looked doubtfully in Xiaoru Village's direction.

A thin white mist spread through the air, shrouding the mountain village and the western side of Rugao Mountain as well.

When he had come yesterday morning, everything had been fine.

Zhou Leng tried hard to remember. There had been heavy fog throughout the city in his memories, and there had been times when an entire mountain was cloaked in fog, but fog covering only the western side of Rugao Mountain had never appeared before.

"It should just be a coincidence..."

Zhou Leng lowered his head to look at the green wristband and continued running.

As usual, Zhou Leng did not stop until he reached the foot of Rugao Mountain.

Looking up, he saw that the entirety of Xiaoru Village was shrouded in mist. Only the dim silhouette of the great mulberry tree at the village entrance could be seen.

On the concrete road ahead, an Old Man full of vigor walked over and shouted, "Little Leng, have you seen Big Yellow?"

"Big Yellow still hasn't returned to the village?"

"He ran off somewhere the day before yesterday, and I didn't pay much attention. He often stays away from the village for a few days anyway. But the fog started yesterday, and I was afraid Big Yellow might get lost, so I've been searching. I asked in the group, but no one has seen him."

"Have you searched Yamagami?"

"The fog is so thick that it's hard to go up the mountain."

"He loves running around, so he should be fine. If the fog clears tomorrow, I'll go up Yamagami to train and look for him while I'm at it."

"If he still hasn't been found tomorrow, I'll let you know. Aside from you, there's no one in the village who's so quick on his feet."

"Then I'll head back. I'll contact you before going up Yamagami tomorrow." Zhou Leng said goodbye to the Village Chief.

"Big Yellow didn't raise you for nothing." The Village Chief walked away slowly and contentedly.

Zhou Leng had long grown accustomed to the villagers' teasing.

Big Yellow was an ordinary-looking Chinese Rural Dog who had played with Zhou Leng ever since they were young.

Big Yellow was also the dog that had saved Zhou Leng's life.

When Zhou Leng had gone swimming in the river as a child, his leg had cramped and he had begun drowning. The other village dogs merely barked wildly, but Big Yellow took the lead, jumped into the water, bit Zhou Leng's arm, and dragged him ashore.

There had also been a period when Zhou Leng was sick, during which Big Yellow would occasionally carry fish over and toss them to Zhou Leng, making the adults and children in the village especially envious.

Back then, someone in the village had joked that without Big Yellow, this family would fall apart.

Big Yellow was a famous social butterfly throughout the area. Forget cattle, horses, cats, and sheep—even wild animals such as squirrels, wild boars, weasels, magpies, and raccoons often played with Big Yellow.

Big Yellow was very smart. Back then, a dog thief had spotted Big Yellow at the village entrance, gotten out of his vehicle, and tried to catch him.

Big Yellow limped along, pretending to be injured. He controlled his pace and lured the dog thief into the village.

Big Yellow suddenly barked loudly. Cats and dogs from the whole village poured out, and when the villagers saw what was happening, they came running with hoes and shovels, frightening the dog thief away. The tale became something the villagers never tired of discussing.

Zhou Leng glanced at the thick fog, turned, and ran back, still thinking about Big Yellow in his heart.

Other dogs were one thing. Big Yellow was different.

He had always been different.

No matter what, Zhou Leng had to go up Yamagami tomorrow and search. He could train on the mountain as well and prepare for the Martial Arts Examination.

Zhou Leng continued running along the road.

Without an ample supply of true qi, sweat rolled down in torrents, soaking his entire body.

When he ran back to Longyou River Park once more, more than half of the overcast clouds had dispersed. Sunlight pierced the scattered cracks in the clouds and flooded the city.

Zhou Leng narrowed his eyes and looked eastward.

Two suns, one large and one small, hung in the eastern sky.

The Little Sun was the size of an infant's fist, hanging below and to the left of the larger sun.

After entering the park and finishing his fist, kick, and external technique training, Zhou Leng ran home.

After rinsing off, he habitually sat down before his desk.

Zhou Leng extended his hand, his fingertips slowly sliding over the polished engraving on the left side of the desktop.

To win a marquisate is not my wish; I pray only for calm waves upon the sea.

Those words had been carved there stroke by stroke by Zhou Leng as a child.

Zhou Leng withdrew his hand, pulled a thick notebook from the small bookshelf, and opened its cover.

The first page bore the same poetic lines, arranged on either side like a couplet.

Between the two lines was a printed photograph.

Atop Mount Tai, the bright red words "The Five Sacred Mountains Stand Supreme" were carved into a huge boulder.

Before the boulder, three spirited young men stood with their arms around one another's shoulders.

The three were Wu Duanxiong, Wan Yumin, and Zhao Dongjun.

Everyone in Dragon Country knew this photograph. It was also known as the Three Saints of Mount Tai Diagram.

All three were Martial Saints.

Zhou Leng's gaze returned to the first page of the notebook. Above the photograph were the four words, "Martial Path Diary."

This had been mandatory homework assigned by every teacher throughout elementary school, middle school, and high school. All students had long formed the habit.

Zhou Leng flipped through the notebook and stopped at yesterday's Martial Path Diary entry.

July 6th.

Overcast.

I. Realm.

Qi and Blood Realm.

Qi Nourishing Stage.

II. Divine Abilities.

1. Tribal Divine Ability: Seed of True Qi.

2. National Divine Abilities: Perpetual Legacy. Martial Path Perception. United Will Forms a Fortress. Medicinal Supplement.

III. Martial Arts:

1. Internal technique: Mysterious Tide Art—Minor Accomplishment First Heaven.

2. Fist technique: Mountain Charge Fist—Mastery Second Heaven.

3. Palm technique: Wave Palm—Minor Accomplishment Ninth Heaven.

4. Leg technique: Flying Cloud Leg—Mastery Fourth Heaven.

5. Footwork: Eight Trigrams Steps—Minor Accomplishment Eighth Heaven.

6. Movement technique: Flowing Cloud Movement Technique—Mastery Sixth Heaven.

IV. Four Wonders Body.

Qi: Mortal Qi.

Blood: Mortal Blood.

Physique: Mortal Physique.

Strength: Mortal Strength.

V. Martial Will.

No perception.

VI. Combat Awareness.

No perception.

Zhou Leng looked at the Tribal Divine Ability and National Divine Abilities.

The final spoils of that Myriad Cores Detonation were a Golden Light Crystal.

After humanity activated it, it formed a Tribal Divine Ability: the Seed of True Qi.

The Seed of True Qi allowed Innate Realm experts to directly plant the power of true qi within every human, enabling people to swiftly reach the Entry Level of the Qi Nourishing Stage.

Martial Path Perception was a power unique to the people of Dragon Country.

Among Blue Star's many nations, only Dragon Country possessed the National Divine Ability known as "Martial Path Perception."

This divine ability allowed the people of Dragon Country to sense the finer details of cultivation more easily than people from other nations when practicing the Martial Path.

The circulation of true qi, changes in the body, breakthroughs through bottlenecks, and more could all be sensed.

Martial Path Perception was the foundation of the Martial Path Diary.

It was also a National Divine Ability gained through the sacrifice of Martial Saint Wan Yumin.

Zhou Leng clicked his ballpoint pen and wrote today's Martial Path Diary.

Its contents were exactly the same as yesterday's.

After finishing it, Zhou Leng took out his phone to photograph it, then suddenly stopped.

Ever since elementary school, he had been used to writing his Martial Path Diary in the morning, taking a picture, and uploading it to the parents' group. But starting today, this assignment was over.

Zhou Leng put down his phone.

He felt strangely lost.

After sitting silently for a while, Zhou Leng rose and walked into the living room, his gaze flashing past the digital photo frame on the TV cabinet.

Zhou Leng went to rest on the sofa. Before long, he took out his phone.

"I won't wait until tomorrow. I'm going to find Big Yellow today."

Zhou Leng opened the Xiaoru Village group chat and searched through the chat history.

There were either strings of voice messages over fifty seconds long, packed together densely, or rows upon rows of thumbs-up emojis.

Zhou Leng could not find which voice message mentioned Big Yellow and could only give up.

Zhou Leng opened his phone album. Aside from daily Martial Arts Notebook entries and other study materials, it was almost entirely filled with photos and videos of Big Yellow.

After closing the album, Zhou Leng looked up the prices of some portable martial artist food, then silently closed it.

Zhou Leng opened the freezer and took out ten meat sausages, placing them in the steamer.

He stir-fried a plate of greens, boiled six pieces of duck breast, and finished breakfast with freshly cooked multigrain rice before beginning to pack his hiking bag.

He packed the steamed meat sausages, four packs of compressed biscuits, two boxes of chocolate, and six bottles of water.

He checked his windbreaker, flashlight, first-aid medicine, thin thermal blanket, secondhand entrenching shovel, multifunctional military knife, and more.

There were also camping supplies at home, such as a one-person tent, but remembering Uncle Li's warning, Zhou Leng gave up on camping overnight.

Once everything was ready, Zhou Leng changed into a long-sleeved shirt and long pants, shouldered a hiking backpack half his height, and stopped at the door.

He turned back for one look at the digital photo frame, then went downstairs under his load and strode toward Xiaoru Village.

Upon reaching the village, he asked the old Village Chief and learned that Big Yellow still had not returned. Without another word, Zhou Leng began climbing the mountain.

As he entered the back mountain, Zhou Leng looked at the faint mist ahead, unease stirring within him.

Xiaoru Village had never seen this kind of localized fog before.

Zhou Leng glanced at the green wristband on his wrist.

Ever since the demon attack had nearly taken half his life, Zhou Leng had become increasingly cautious in his actions.

Going into the mountain now was not a good time.

But when he thought of Big Yellow, Zhou Leng's gaze gradually cleared.

"I've climbed mountains in the fog before."

Zhou Leng sent Uncle Li a message explaining what had happened, then contacted Mo Hai from the Martial Path Committee to request leave. Taking a deep breath, he stepped up the mountain.

At Guoyun Development Company, Li Linhan looked at Zhou Leng's text message and smiled in gratification.

If he did not even dare climb a mountain in the fog, how would he brave the Sea of Blood?

Within the mist, green mountains and white stones stood amid lush forests.

Zhou Leng climbed according to the route he knew well.

Whenever he reached a place Big Yellow liked, he shouted Big Yellow's name at the top of his lungs.

With true qi in his body, Zhou Leng walked as if on level ground.

He searched for an hour without any result.

Zhou Leng stopped, his brows knitting slightly.

To guard against mosquitoes, he wore long sleeves and long pants despite the height of summer.

Yet not only was there not a trace of sweat on him, he even faintly felt cold and wanted to put on another layer, his windbreaker.

After walking for a while longer, a group of wild boars suddenly darted out ahead.

Behind one Big Black Wild Boar followed six small, patterned wild boars.

All seven wild boars stared at Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng remained calm.

With his true qi at Minor Accomplishment, he could not unleash its full power. The true qi could only reach close to his skin and could not be projected any farther outward.

But no matter how hard a wild boar's head was, it could not withstand repeated blows from Wave Palm.

Suddenly, the large wild boar gave Zhou Leng a soft grunt, without seeming hostile.

Zhou Leng's heart stirred. After the Ten Realms overlapped, all kinds of changes had occurred on Earth.

A new power had appeared between heaven and earth, allowing humanity to cultivate quickly.

Among humans, this power was called spiritual energy.

Benefiting from Blue Star's changes and the spiritual energy spilling out from Demon City, incidents of animals becoming intelligent had become increasingly common over the past few years.

Ignoring how absurd it seemed, Zhou Leng asked loudly, "Do you know Big Yellow? The one that goes bark bark... Big Yellow. You should have heard us calling for him before."

The large wild boar remained motionless, then grunted.

Zhou Leng was helpless.

Suddenly, the large wild boar puckered its snout and rooted its nose toward a certain direction.

"Are you saying Big Yellow went that way?" Zhou Leng pointed to that direction and asked, half believing and half doubting.

The large wild boar seemed not to hear him. It continued rooting its nose toward that direction, grunted a few more times, then turned and left.

The little wild boars turned to look at Zhou Leng, gave two soft grunts, then, like kindergarten children, lined up in a neat formation and followed the large wild boar into the woods.

Zhou Leng looked in the direction where the large wild boar had rooted its snout, suspicion on his face.

Zhou Leng memorized that direction, took several photos with his phone, and then continued toward the places Big Yellow often visited.

By noon, he had searched many places, yet still saw no sign of Big Yellow.

Zhou Leng took out water, compressed biscuits, meat sausages, and multivitamin tablets from his backpack. After hastily eating some and resting briefly, he continued searching.

Not until three in the afternoon, when his throat had gone hoarse from shouting, did he still fail to see Big Yellow.

The thick fog spread everywhere. Zhou Leng knew Rugao Mountain extremely well and remembered distinctive rocks and trees clearly, so he had never gotten lost.

"It's three o'clock. If I don't go down the mountain now, it'll be too late."

Having climbed mountains many times, Zhou Leng had always followed the adults' teachings and tried not to spend the night deep in the mountains.

He had searched every familiar place.

The remaining places were ones Big Yellow rarely went.

Zhou Leng sighed as he retraced his path, racking his brains all the while.

"Today makes three days. Big Yellow rarely stays out for three days in a row. He won't have been..."

The more Zhou Leng thought about it, the worse he felt, and he hurriedly cut off those bad thoughts.

Zhou Leng slowly walked back, unwilling to return to the village for a long while, when his gaze suddenly shifted.

This was where the large wild boar had appeared.

Zhou Leng looked towards the direction the large wild boar had indicated.

The sun was setting, and the fog was like thick gray cloth. The darkness deep in the mountain forest was so dense it could not be dissolved.

A cold wind swept past, raising goosebumps all over Zhou Leng's body.

Zhou Leng looked up ahead.

He still remembered that warm, sunny summer afternoon.

Dappled tree shadows fell across the woman. She crouched on the ground, her long hair cascading down.

She gently stroked Big Yellow's head.

"Xiao Huang, you must protect your big brother."

"Woof..." The tiny Big Yellow wagged his tail vigorously, stuck out his tongue, and grinned.

After that summer, her figure disappeared from all of Zhou Leng's springs, summers, autumns, and winters.

The following year, Big Yellow saved Zhou Leng, fulfilling the promise of that summer.

Zhou Leng took off the green wristband and stuffed it into his backpack.

He was going to find Big Yellow.

And that summer.