Genius?

After eating, Zhou Yi arrived at the training ground early. Several youths were already there, holding their stances as they trained.

Zhou Yi silently found a spot and assumed the stance as well. Unlike that morning, his movements were much smoother. Whenever his body felt tired, a special force would rise from his lower abdomen, circle through his body, and erase the fatigue.

Xie Tong entered the grounds and spotted Zhou Yi at once. Unlike the others, Zhou Yi's movements had already crossed the threshold.

Xie Tong's eyes lit up, and he hurried over to Zhou Yi's side.

"What's your name?" Xie Tong asked softly.

"My name is Zhou Yi. Steward Wu recommended me," Zhou Yi answered, neither servile nor overbearing.

"When did you cross the threshold?" Xie Tong asked.

"Just now, while holding the stance, a force suddenly surged through my body." Zhou Yi did not hide his experience.

"What? How did he cross the threshold so quickly?!"

"How is that possible? Is this what a genius is?"

Hearing the hushed murmurs of the youths nearby, Zhou Yi smiled inwardly. He understood that he was no genius.

He was a cheat even more monstrous than a genius. In this dangerous world, hiding his talents was no good thing. He had to use every resource available to safeguard his life.

Aptitude was merely the first step toward obtaining resources.

As Zhou Yi pondered this, Xie Tong had already happily grabbed his hand and begun pulling him outside.

Coming back to his senses, Zhou Yi asked in confusion, "Instructor Xie, where are you taking me?"

Instructor Xie turned to Zhou Yi and said, "Don't call me Instructor Xie anymore. If you don't mind, call me Brother Xie."

Zhou Yi naturally agreed, changing his address to Brother Xie. Then he asked again, "Brother Xie, you still haven't told me where you're taking me?"

Xie Tong slapped his forehead and said to Zhou Yi, "Look at my memory. Your talent is too high. I'm taking you to see our captain now. If nothing unexpected happens, he should be the one teaching you from now on."

Upon hearing Xie Tong's words, every youth on the training ground grew jealous, wishing that Xie Tong were taking them to see the captain instead.

"Right, you all train properly. I'm taking Zhou Yi out for a while," Xie Tong instructed the youths in the training ground.

"Yes, Instructor Xie!" the youths answered loudly.

After Zhou Yi was led away, the youths on the training ground trained even harder, all hoping to cross the threshold soon as well.

Zhou Yi followed Xie Tong to a bamboo house. Looking up, he saw that it was made from Green Bamboo Village's specialty green bamboo.

Upon entering the bamboo house, Zhou Yi immediately saw Patrol Team Captain Qu Yong. Two elderly men stood beside Qu Yong. Zhou Yi recognized one of them as Qingzhu Village's village chief, but he did not know the other. Still, both Qu Yong and the village chief treated that man with considerable respect.

After observing them for a moment, Zhou Yi lowered his head and silently stood behind Xie Tong.

"Master Talisman Maker, Village Chief, Lord Qu, I found a fine prospect for martial training!"

With a broad smile, Xie Tong spoke to the three men before him.

"Oh? Let me see. His Primordial Pile has already reached minor accomplishment? The assessment only began today, didn't it? Could this kid have trained in martial arts before?" Qu Yong's eyes were far sharper than Xie Tong's, and he saw at a glance that Zhou Yi's stance had reached minor accomplishment.

"Lord Qu, I have never practiced martial arts before." Zhou Yi shook his head as he answered, while thinking inwardly that this stance was called the Primordial Pile.

"Mm, there truly are no traces of prior martial training on this boy. With such aptitude, even the favored sons of great cities would not outshine him. Perhaps only those monsters within the Demon Suppression Division could hold him down by a head."

It was the talisman maker standing beside the village chief who spoke.

As Zhou Yi secretly pondered what kind of place the Demon Suppression Division was, Qu Yong beside him spoke up. "Which person who enters the Demon Suppression Division isn't a genius among geniuses? Getting in is harder than climbing to heaven! Enough. I'll take charge of this boy."

"Then Captain, I'll head back first. There's still a pack of little brats at the training ground."

Qu Yong nodded. After Xie Tong left, the two elderly men in the room also took their leave one after another, leaving only Zhou Yi and Qu Yong behind.

"Zhou Yi, do you know why humans can harm the strange beings?"

Zhou Yi shook his head. "I don't."

Qu Yong paused before saying, "In Great Gan, martial arts are divided into four great realms: the Strength Channeling Realm, the Vitality Realm, the Core Embracing Realm, and the Core Condensation Realm. They say there are higher realms beyond Core Condensation, but I have never seen such figures. Perhaps there are some in the Demon Suppression Division.

"Strange beings are likewise divided into four forms: Soul, Crimson, Essence, and Aberration, corresponding respectively to the four martial realms. But because strange beings possess peculiar abilities, human martial artists are generally at a disadvantage when fighting them at the same realm.

"The reason we human martial artists can harm strange beings is that, in the Strength Channeling Realm, we chiefly rely on the Vital Energy within our bodies, using it to slowly erase the strange being's origin bit by bit."

After speaking, Qu Yong extended his right hand before Zhou Yi.

Zhou Yi saw red, blood-colored light radiating from Qu Yong's right hand.

"This is Vital Energy. Even among ordinary people, those capable of awakening Vital Energy are few and far between. Thus, most members of the Patrol Team are merely ordinary people with somewhat vigorous blood and qi and a little more strength."

Qu Yong explained the Vital Energy in his hand to Zhou Yi.

"In the Strength Channeling Realm, the degree to which one develops the fleshly body determines one's future potential and the quality of one's Vital Energy. When I was young, seeking a breakthrough, I advanced to the Vitality Realm too early. It wasn't that I could no longer break through, but the difficulty increased enormously. You crossed the threshold in the stance art within a single day. Even in some large cities, that would make you a genius. Don't follow my example and break through too early, only to become trapped at the mid-stage of the Vitality Realm.

Zhou Yi nodded gratefully. "I understand."

Seeing Zhou Yi nod, Qu Yong continued:

"Upon reaching the Vitality Realm, Vital Energy becomes even purer. At the perfected Vitality Realm, Vital Energy becomes formless and without appearance. We call this Vital Energy, condensed to the utmost extreme, Origin Energy."

"Enough. You haven't even awakened Vital Energy yet, so saying more is useless. Starting tomorrow morning, you will study martial arts with me.

"Yes, sir," Zhou Yi said with a nod.

"Alright, go rest first." Qu Yong smiled and waved his hand.

Zhou Yi turned and walked toward the door. Just as he was about to step outside, he suddenly heard a voice.

"Zhou Yi, are you willing to become my disciple?"

Zhou Yi halted, turned toward Qu Yong, and called out, "Master!"