Realization

"Xiujuan, we've been neighbors for so many years. Would I lie to you? Things are in complete chaos out there!" It was the brightly dressed woman from the end of the alley.

She held a stack of colorful flyers and tried to stuff them into Zhang Xiujuan's hands. "Look at what the flyers say. The Abyss is getting closer and closer. If you don't believe in the True God, disaster is coming! Your husband is still working in the Safe Zone, right? How dangerous is that place? Who knows what's lurking in the Abyss? Only by believing in my Lord can you ensure your husband returns home safely..."

At the mention of the mining site, danger, and protection, Li He's calm expression turned icy in an instant.

"Get lost!"

His sharp voice cut through the air.

The brightly dressed woman had been talking so excitedly that spittle was flying. Now she felt as if a ferocious beast had fixed its gaze on her. The hair all over her body stood on end, and the words caught in her throat.

Li He stepped over to his mother. "If you dare come near my home again and curse my father with talk like that, I'll break your legs. Get lost!"

When the woman saw the martial arts uniform Li He was wearing and sensed his undisguised killing intent, she was so terrified that she nearly lost her soul. She didn't dare linger. Scrambling to pick up the flyers from the ground, she fled in a panic.

"Xiao He." Zhang Xiujuan looked at her son's straight back. "Do you think you were a little too harsh? She used to... be pretty good to our family. She's just been acting a little strange lately."

Li He reined in his aura. "That was then. Dad's job is hard enough as it is. She used this to scare you and pressure you into believing her crooked nonsense. Her intentions were malicious. I didn't lay a hand on her—that's already me showing consideration for our past relationship."

Zhang Xiujuan opened her mouth, but in the end, she sighed and said nothing. She knew her son was right. The woman's words had indeed made her uncomfortable, but she was used to keeping the peace with the neighbors.

"All right, Mom. Don't think about it anymore. I'm hungry. Let's go home and eat." Li He softened his tone and led his mother back inside.

The meal was already laid out on the table.

Among the dishes was one with an appetizing color and a rich, meaty aroma: Iron-Armored Earth Dragon meat, which his father, Li Jianguo, had sent back through someone.

Meat from a third-tier demon beast.

As soon as Li He took a bite, he felt his body fill with energy. Even four or five hours later, that energy was still nourishing his bones and sinews. Its effects were extraordinary, nothing like the first-tier exotic beast meat he'd eaten before.

And that was only a small piece.

Martial arts students could take on assignments from the Federation and apply to hunt exotic beasts in the Abyss. They had to hand over thirty percent of the meat they obtained to the Federation and could keep the other seventy percent.

If he could eat meat like this every day, why would he need to worry about his poor natural endowment?

"I still need to get stronger as soon as possible and earn the right to apply for expeditions. Then I can get my parents somewhere better to live, so they won't need to go out and take risks."

Li He made up his mind and ate the last bite of meat.

Three days later.

Yellow Mountain Martial Arts Hall, training ground.

Lin Feng stood at the edge of the training ground, his gaze sweeping over the students. In only three days, practicing the Ape Standing Stake had brought subtle changes to everyone's posture.

Sun Ao's breathing was deep and steady, and his stance was as solid as a boulder. His movements were textbook-perfect, every detail precise. He already had the air of someone who had reached the proficient stage.

His rate of progress was astounding.

Yuan Shan occasionally walked by with his hands behind his back. Whenever his gaze fell on Sun Ao, he would give a slight nod, his expression gentle.

By contrast, Jin Yongsheng, Shi Lei, and several other students were still struggling at the entry level.

Li He hadn't noticed any of this.

He was immersed in his insights into circulating qi and blood and flowing inner strength.

[Proficiency +1]

[Proficiency +1]

[Proficiency +1]

[Proficiency +1]

[Proficiency +1]

[Ape Standing Stake: Beginner (99%) → Proficient (0%)]

[Vitality: 11.4 → 11.9]

A warm current flowed with his breathing, rising from the ground and winding up through his legs to nourish his bones, sinews, skin, and membranes.

Between each inhale and exhale,

a faint tiger-leopard sound seemed to rise from within him.

Lin Feng heard it. "Junior Brother, have you reached the proficient stage in your stance technique?"

"I was lucky enough to have a bit of an insight."

"Lucky? My good junior brother, there's no need to be so modest. You reached the proficient stage in the Ape Stance Technique in three days. How could you explain that with just luck?"

Lin Feng looked at Li He, then at Sun Ao nearby, who was progressing just as rapidly.

"Good, good, good! Heaven has truly blessed Yellow Mountain Martial Arts Hall! We have two exceptionally talented students in the same generation. Junior Brother Sun Ao has a solid foundation and outstanding talent, while Junior Brother Li He has astonishing comprehension and is advancing at an incredible pace. With you two here, the future of our hall looks bright."

Li He smiled and continued his practice.

When it was time to rest,

Li He was getting some water when Sun Ao walked over.

Li He was about to make room for him, but Sun Ao had no intention of getting a drink.

"You... are pretty good. I hope you can keep up with me." After saying that, Sun Ao didn't linger. He turned and went back to his spot, then resumed his stance.

Li He watched him walk away, his heart as still as a calm well.

"Keep up with you?" Li He murmured to himself. "I'm the only one who can walk my path."

A rustling sound suddenly came from a corner of the training ground.

Everyone instinctively looked over. A few White Apes had slipped in and were crouching in the shadows, watching the humans in the training ground with curiosity.

One of the apes was somewhat larger than the others. Its gaze shifted back and forth between Li He and Sun Ao as it leaned forward slightly and turned its feet inward. It was actually imitating their Ape Standing Stake.

Or rather,

it had simply adopted a fairly comfortable posture that happened to resemble the Ape Standing Stake.

After holding it for a while, the ape seemed to find the pose uncomfortable. It shifted its bottom and leaned forward a little.

"Huh?"

Li He let out a quiet exclamation.

The instant the monkey changed its posture, a line of blurry text appeared on his system panel.

He tried to imitate it, but couldn't get the hang of it. The text didn't change at all.

"Gah gah gah gah!" The White Ape burst out laughing at his attempt, pointing at Li He as it cackled.

"Pfft." Yuan Lingling couldn't hold back. She covered her mouth and giggled. "Why are you imitating a monkey? Look, it's laughing at you!"

Li He ignored her teasing and closed his eyes to ponder.

The White Ape had only shifted its bottom and changed into a more comfortable pose. Its movements had been natural, without the slightest affectation, even a little lazy. Yet at that tiny shift, a line of blurry text had appeared on the system panel.

Why would a monkey changing its sitting posture trigger a reaction from the system? And why had his own imitation done nothing, only making the other monkey laugh?

One thought after another flashed through Li He's mind. He felt as if he'd touched a thin veil. Something more fundamental lay behind it, but the veil was tough, and he couldn't pierce it just yet.

He looked at the old ape again.

The old ape was sprawled on a wooden board, lazily basking in the sun and occasionally scratching an itch.

"Hmph!" Someone snorted coldly.

It was Sun Ao.

My natural endowment is already inferior, and he's still letting himself get distracted. What a waste of his comprehension! Sun Ao thought.

He had only just told Li He to do his best to keep up with him, and now Li He was off studying a monkey's sitting posture. If he carried on like this, how could he build a solid foundation and become Sun Ao's rival?

It was plainly a sign of contempt for him.

"Forget it." Sun Ao shook his head. Rather than meddling in someone else's business, he might as well focus on improving himself. He walked over to a punching bag and settled into a stance.

Thud!

Sun Ao's fists flew like the wind, his movements swift and fierce. His training uniform was soon soaked with sweat.

Li He found Sun Ao's cold snort and angry glare at him rather baffling, but he had no interest in meddling in other people's business either. He continued observing the old ape.

Just then, Yuan Lingling walked over.

"Hey, Junior Brother, what are you doing? What's so interesting about that monkey?"

"Nothing. I just think its movements are very natural. They're a little like our Ape Standing Stake, which is pretty interesting." He didn't explain further, since he himself hadn't fully sorted out his thoughts yet.

"Natural?" Yuan Lingling tilted her head. "Aren't monkeys always like that? They eat when they're hungry, sleep when they're tired, move when they feel like it, and lie down when they want to..." As she spoke, her eyes lit up. "Ah! Just like us when we practice stances. Master always says we should relax and sink naturally. Is this what he means?"

Li He's thoughts stirred.

The ancient martial art he'd practiced first, Old Ape Stretches Arms, wasn't it all about relaxing and sinking naturally?

The core inheritance of Yellow Mountain Martial Arts Hall was the Ape Arm Mountain Crushing Fist.

The name alone conveyed its power. The words "Mountain Crushing" were so domineering. Yet the foundation stance for such a forceful fist technique, the Ape Standing Stake, was taught by Hall Master Yuan Shan with an emphasis on exactly the same thing: relaxing and sinking naturally.

Li He hadn't forgotten.

The official martial arts website clearly stated that the Ape Arm Mountain Crushing Fist was an advanced martial art derived from Old Ape Stretches Arms.

"Steady as a boulder, moving like thunder."

Senior Brother Lin Feng's instruction still rang in his ears.

Thinking about it now, being steady as a boulder was only the outward appearance. At its core was a solid foundation brought about by relaxing and sinking naturally. Moving like thunder, meanwhile, meant instantly unleashing the power accumulated in that natural state.

That was why, when he had beaten up those thugs, his Old Ape Stretches Arms had been especially powerful. One punch had been enough to blow someone's head apart.

Perhaps there was more to practicing the Ape Standing Stake than he'd thought. Stance techniques were said to be about stillness, but monkeys were restless by nature. They were normally in motion, agile, and constantly changing from moment to moment.

A bold thought arose in Li He's mind: Was the steadiness the Ape Standing Stake sought not absolute stillness in the literal sense? Could it instead be a state of seeking stability in motion and stillness amid change?

Like that old ape just now. It had adjusted its posture, which seemed to be movement and change, but its center of gravity had shifted with remarkable fluidity. The feeling of steadiness hadn't disappeared. On the contrary, after adjusting, it had settled into a more comfortable and stable position.

The more he thought about it, the more it made sense.

As he immersed himself in this new insight, preparing to explore further,

"Cough."

A quiet cough sounded.

Hall Master Yuan Shan had appeared at the entrance to the training ground without anyone noticing.

With his hands behind his back, he swept his gaze over the students before it came to rest on Li He, who was deep in thought. A hint of approval flashed in his eyes, but he quickly returned to his usual inscrutable expression.

"Stance techniques are the foundation of martial arts. They require perseverance, like water wearing away stone, and the patient work of a slow grind."

His gaze swept over everyone, lingering on Li He for a moment with a hint of warning.

"Only a firm foundation can support a towering structure. Don't try to bite off more than you can chew or rush your progress. Above all, beware of... aiming too high."

The heat in Li He's heart cooled at once, and he suppressed his eagerness to try.

He understood what Yuan Shan meant.

He'd gained those insights thanks to his experience with the Turtle-Crane Health Stance, but his Ape Standing Technique had only reached the proficient stage. It truly wouldn't be wise to change his approach recklessly.

"Keep practicing." Yuan Shan left with his hands behind his back. A few sleeping monkeys stood up and yawned, then followed him out.

Li He settled back into his stance. He found the feeling of relaxing and sinking, calmed his mind, and returned to practicing the stance technique.