Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self

"You little spendthrift! Of all places to stab, you pick the wall. Do you have any idea how much it costs to redo this?" After a long pause, Mother Chen's slightly shrill voice rang out in the dining room.

"Mom, what did big brother do now?"

Just then, Chen Xingyue came back too.

Her words made Chen Shouyi's face darken with anger. What did she mean by what did I do now?

Sure, he'd been a bit careless this time, but who could have guessed he'd actually stab into the wall?

"Take a look at the fine mess your brother made." Mother Chen gestured, huffing.

The wooden chopstick was still stuck in the wall, not yet pulled out. Chen Xingyue took a closer look and said in surprise, "Big brother did this?"

"Who else? He said he'd demonstrate a Forward Lunge Stab, but his head wasn't screwed on straight, and he stabbed it right into the wall."

Chen Xingyue was both puzzled and shocked. To an outsider, it looked like just a show, the kind you see all the time on TV—like anyone who practiced martial arts could do the same.

But the people who went up to perform were hardly ordinary.

She had no idea how hard it was to drive a wooden chopstick into a tiled wall. It wasn't just about strength and speed.

The angle had to be perfectly perpendicular to the wall. If it was off by even a hair, the chopstick would snap instantly. Even she, a Quasi-Martial Apprentice, would struggle to pull it off once in ten tries.

So how could her brother, who had no real martial talent, manage it?

In truth, even Chen Shouyi himself didn't know. The middle-aged Martial Arts Teacher whose swordsmanship experience he'd absorbed in the memory space was only a Martial Apprentice in strength, someone who might never advance to a true martial artist. He seemed incomparable to a promising Martial Prodigy like Chen Xingyue.

But that Martial Apprentice had practiced day in and day out for over a decade—nothing to scoff at. Especially since he only taught the Forward Lunge Stab from swordsmanship at school. That single move had been honed through countless repetitions, tens of thousands of times, far beyond what a green Quasi-Martial Apprentice like Chen Xingyue could match.

"Alright, alright! It's just a hole. Tomorrow morning, I'll call someone to come swap out the tile." Chen Dawei said cheerfully. Compared to the cost, he was happier about his son's change.

"I'll make the call this time. If you want to go to the Martial Arts Cram Class, then go. Tell me how much you need, and I'll have your mom transfer it to you."

The family's finances were all in Mother Chen's hands. His own pockets were even emptier than Chen Shouyi's.

"You're playing the big spender, but it's still my money." Mother Chen shot him a look but didn't argue.

She hadn't said yes, but Chen Shouyi knew the deal. He quickly said, "I want to sign up for the Advanced Swordsmanship Class. One session is twenty lessons, about six or seven thousand."

His family wasn't rich, but they were comfortably well-off.

Their shop was their own property, no rent to pay. Annual income was around two hundred thousand, plus interest from private loans—a decent sum. Financially, they were fairly comfortable.

"I'll transfer you seven thousand, but you won't get any living expenses this month." Mother Chen snorted.

Chen Xingyue stayed unusually quiet, her big eyes flickering as she watched Chen Shouyi, her mind clearly working on something.

At dinner, Chen Shouyi quietly opened his Status Panel and was thrilled to see that Energy Accumulation had finally broken past one. He wolfed down his food, eager to head back to his room, but as he opened the door, Chen Xingyue blocked him.

"Big brother, when did you learn the Forward Lunge Stab?" she asked, her voice syrupy sweet.

"A few days ago. What's it to you?" Chen Shouyi said impatiently. "Anything else? I've got homework to do. I'm not like you—already guaranteed admission. I still have to work hard."

"Oh! Nothing. Just curious."

"Then I'm going to my room." As soon as the words left his mouth, he shut the door.

Chen Xingyue stared at the closed door and gritted her teeth. "A few days ago? Yeah, right!"

Once he was sure Chen Xingyue had left, Chen Shouyi locked the door.

His heart pounded. He quickly summoned the Book of Knowledge.

Name: Chen Shouyi

Strength: 10.5 Agility: 10.5 Physique: 10.4 Intelligence: 10.3 Perception: 10.3 Will: 11.0

Knowledge: Chinese Language (Proficient 6); Physics (Skilled 12); Chemistry (Skilled 11); Biology (Skilled 10); Mathematics (Skilled 9); English (Skilled 6); Computer Science (Beginner 6); Culinary Arts (Beginner 5); Thirty-Six Body Tempering Forms (Skilled 2); Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self (Not Started); Swordsmanship (Beginner 8); Archery (Not Started)

Energy Accumulation: 1.05

Over the past few days, not only had his physical stats clearly increased, but even his knowledge skills had improved. English, for example, had gone up by one point.

But the biggest progress was in martial arts.

Thirty-Six Body Tempering Forms had gone from (Beginner 5) to (Skilled 2), and Swordsmanship had jumped from not started to (Beginner 8). And that was just from mastering a single sword move. If he only counted the Forward Lunge Stab from swordsmanship, its level was at least Skilled or higher.

He stared at the Status Panel, hesitating over which knowledge skill to optimize next. Knowledge-based subjects were ruled out immediately—he still had plenty of time before the college entrance exam. Even optimizing a month or two before the test wouldn't be too late.

Besides, deep down, he was still more into martial arts.

Next, he ruled out Swordsmanship.

He only knew the Forward Lunge Stab, so optimizing it wasn't cost-effective. Plus, he could still learn quickly through the memory space. Unless he hit a wall and couldn't improve, he wouldn't waste energy points on it.

As for Archery, it wasn't even at Beginner level, so there was no need to consider it.

Chen Shouyi felt his physical stats were still far from the standard for a Martial Apprentice, so he decided to keep optimizing Thirty-Six Body Tempering Forms.

"The Thirty-Six Body Tempering Forms, already this powerful after one optimization—another round would only make it even better."

Sharpening the axe never delays the chopping. Only when his physical foundation was solid could he consider other paths; otherwise, no amount of training in other areas would matter.

But just as he prepared to optimize, the Book of Knowledge fed back a message: insufficient energy.

"A second optimization costs even more energy?"

Chen Shouyi froze, hesitation creeping into his mind.

"Should I wait for the Book of Knowledge to finish its Energy Accumulation, or optimize Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self?"

The former had an unknown timeline; the latter offered immediate results. Without much deliberation, Chen Shouyi chose the latter.

He couldn't afford to waste time now. Rather than wait, he'd take what he could get right away.

Besides, Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self was critically important—it helped him gain easier control over his body, command every muscle, and wield every ounce of strength.

For many, swordsmanship was incredibly hard to start, and even harder to improve once begun.

The main reason was the inability to finely control the body's muscles. But for someone who had initially completed "Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self—Muscle Refinement," it was as simple as learning on the first try, with no difficulty at all.

At the same time, it was one of the key markers of a true martial artist.

If grueling effort and decent comprehension could still make one a Martial Apprentice, then to become a true martial artist, one had to refine every muscle in the body through Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self.

Without hesitation, Chen Shouyi selected Entering Tranquility to Refine the Self and chose to optimize.

The next moment, the familiar dream reappeared. In it, he sat cross-legged with his palms facing upward, practicing tranquility over and over. At first, his mind raced like a wild horse, thoughts surging chaotically, but gradually, the ripples smoothed into stillness.

As he practiced and attempted countless times, his mind grew quieter and quieter, thoughts hovering between existence and non-existence, like sinking into a realm of utter silence.

All external interference was completely blocked. Only the sounds of his own body were sharply amplified.

His breath was long and distant, his heartbeat like a heavy drum, his stomach churning like sloshing water. He could even faintly hear the flow of blood through his vessels.

But in the dream, a sliver of clarity always remained in his mind. He gathered his focus, blocked all sound, and concentrated on the four extremities of his body.

He began by sensing his toes. At first, they were vague—he could feel them easily, but had no concrete shape, like a patch of chaos.

The reason was that his thoughts had nearly ground to a halt, leaving only subconsciousness. Imagination and past memories were cut off.

Here, he seemed stuck, practicing over and over again.

In the dream, his mind grew ever quieter, gradually sinking into the deepest tranquility. Then, suddenly, a change occurred.

In a daze, a speck of matter seemed to emerge from the dark void. Countless gray, crisscrossing lines appeared, weaving into several strands that tangled with each other, like the complex texture of muscle—beautiful and breathtaking.

As if a signal, the lines slowly began to spread outward. The shape of a complete toe was gradually constructed. Soon, the entire foot, then the legs. Then the whole body.

Gradually, shifts between light and shadow appeared among the lines. The dry, flat lines became full and three-dimensional, as if transforming from a two-dimensional drawing into three dimensions.

At the same time, more and more details emerged. Chen Shouyi saw the tiny blood vessels between muscles, the various nerve endings, and the lymphatic tissue.

By the end of the dream, the range of sensation began to spread across his entire body. He saw the heart and lungs, the bones and spine...