New Martial Arts · Battle Qi [Seeking Follow-up Reads]

No matter how anxious Chen Heqing felt inside, he dared not defy Lu Jing'an at this moment.

After the meal, Lu Jing'an personally saw the two masters off.

The courtesies were impeccable, giving them more than enough face.

Situ Yiyun, having received his reward, did not forget to show off to Chen Heqing, which made Chen Heqing grit his teeth in secret once again.

Once the two had departed, the courtyard returned to silence.

Chen Xuan did not ask Lu Jing'an why he had specifically told Chen Heqing to return tomorrow. Between master and disciple, such tacit understanding was a given.

Not mentioning this matter, however, reminded Lu Jing'an of something else.

"Some of what Situ Yiyun said today was indeed reasonable." Chen Xuan's voice was calm and unhurried. "But you need not take it too much to heart. While New Martial Arts may seem novel, its limitations are many. There are indeed foreigners who follow the extraordinary path of New Martial Arts, but those methods are ultimately incompatible with our foundations."

Hearing this, Lu Jing'an's expression shifted slightly. He poured a fresh cup of hot tea for Chen Xuan and asked, "Master, can the path of New Martial Arts truly reach the realm of martial cultivation?"

Chen Xuan nodded, taking the teacup. "Such a path does exist, but it is completely distinct from our own martial cultivation."

Lu Jing'an couldn't help but lean forward, curiously pressing for more: "Master, what are the foreigners' martial cultivators like?"

Seeing Lu Jing'an's interest, Chen Xuan offered a few more words of explanation: "The greatest difference between the foreigners' so-called martial cultivation and our own lies in the origin of their 'Qi'. We cultivate internal Qi and true Qi, which originate from the stimulation of our own blood and Qi, nurtured within the Dantian. It is a process from the inside out, endless and self-sustaining. They, however, cultivate something called Battle Qi."

"Battle Qi?" Lu Jing'an was stunned, almost thinking he had misheard. A bizarre image of Battle Qi manifesting into a horse flashed inexplicably through his mind.

Chen Xuan did not notice Lu Jing'an's momentary lapse in focus and continued to explain: "The generation of Battle Qi, it is said, relies on specific secret techniques and, more importantly, is triggered under extreme emotions. The more intense and high-spirited the emotion, the stronger the Battle Qi becomes. Conversely, if one's state of mind is broken and their momentum falls, the Battle Qi will dissipate, leaving less than a tenth of its original power. It is precisely for this reason that New Martial Arts places such heavy emphasis on combat techniques and seizing the initiative. If one cannot gain the upper hand in a single burst, the power of their triggered Battle Qi will be weak."

Lu Jing'an was listening with great interest, pondering this peculiar cultivation system, when the sound of light footsteps came from outside the door.

Lanhua, the personal maid, walked into the hall on tiptoe and reported in a low voice:

"Young Master, the items sent by the Second Master have arrived."

Chen Xuan saw that Lu Jing'an had matters to attend to, so he rose and took his leave.

Lu Jing'an escorted his master to the courtyard gate.

Upon turning back, he saw a heavy wooden chest, a foot and a half long, already placed upon the rosewood desk in the study.

The sandalwood chest gleamed with a somber luster, secured by a brass latch.

Lanhua handed him the key, and Lu Jing'an opened it himself.

As the lid was lifted, a dazzling golden light immediately spilled out.

It illuminated a corner of the study, making it several shades brighter.

Inside the chest, gold bars, each the length of a palm

and two fingers wide, were stacked in neat, orderly rows.

On every single gold bar, the stamp of the Lu Family Silver Bank was clearly imprinted.

Lu Jing'an reached out, his fingertips brushing against the cold, hard metal surface.

Even as someone who had lived two lifetimes, this was his first time seeing so much real gold and silver piled before his eyes, and he couldn't help but subconsciously rub his fingers together.

"One, two, three... forty bars?" Lu Jing'an finished counting and raised an eyebrow slightly.

"Second Uncle is quite thoughtful; fearing I wouldn't have enough to spend, he prepared ten extra."

He closed the wooden chest.

Turning around, he moved the Phonograph onto the desk.

He chanted silently in his heart, and a prompt appeared before his eyes once more:

[Refinable/Repairable item detected. Please select?]

This time, Lu Jing'an chose [Repair].

[Incomplete Treasure Tool Phonograph. Repair requires 35 gold bars and 1 Energy Point. Begin repair immediately?]

"Thirty-five bars?"

Five more than he had estimated, which caught Lu Jing'an slightly off guard.

But fortunately, Second Uncle had provided ten extra, so it was more than enough.

With his mind made up, he confirmed [Repair].

As the selection was finalized, the Phonograph on the desk and the thirty-five gold bars were instantly enveloped in an invisible radiance, then vanished from sight.

[Repair initiated. Time required: 1 hour...]

Looking at the illusory text prompt before him, Lu Jing'an whispered to himself:

"I hope that in an hour, you can give me a surprise."

These thirty-five Big Yellow Fish were worth fourteen thousand silver dollars.

Enough to purchase over a dozen decent courtyard houses in Shangjing.

An hour passed quickly, and Lu Jing'an saw the prompt:

[Repair complete]!

Lu Jing'an felt a surge of energy and immediately retrieved the Phonograph.

He saw that the Phonograph was now brand new, its overall structure appearing more compact and fluid.

The horn, originally made of brass, had now turned a brilliant, shimmering gold.

He carefully inspected the interior.

He discovered that all the critical metal components, such as the gears and springs, had also turned gold.

The extra five gold bars must have been used here.

After confirming everything was in order, Lu Jing'an couldn't wait to test the utility of this Treasure Tool.

According to what Wen Ling had said, one only needed to input the name of the person one wished to eavesdrop on.

Written upon the record.

If this person is within a ten-zhang radius of the Phonograph.

No matter where they are, their voice can be heard.

Lu Jing'an pondered for a moment and wrote down the name of Lanhua.

Lu Jing'an did not have any malicious intent.

It was just that within a thirty-meter radius at this moment, Lanhua was the most likely candidate.

He placed the record securely.

Lu Jing'an slowly cranked the handle on the side of the Phonograph.

The mechanism emitted a subtle, smooth clicking sound.

The Golden Horn vibrated slightly.

Immediately, Lanhua's somewhat lively voice rang out clearly:

"You didn't see how amazing the Young Master was today."

"With just one punch, he knocked back Situ Yiyun of the Zhengxin Martial Hall!"

After saying this, the horn fell silent for a moment.

Only the rustling sound of the rotating record remained.

A moment later, Lanhua's voice sounded again.

Her tone was noticeably higher, carrying a hint of urgency and protectiveness.

"So what if Situ Yiyun was going easy on the Young Master?"

"How long has the Young Master even been practicing martial arts!"

"Besides, Situ Yiyun admitted it himself—he is no match for the Young Master!"

"By the time the Young Master reaches Situ Yiyun's age."

"Ten Situ Yiyuns, no, a hundred Situ Yiyuns won't be the Young Master's match!"

Another brief silence followed.

Then, Lanhua's voice became even more agitated, even carrying a touch of a young girl's stubbornness:

"So what if I like the Young Master?

The Young Master is handsome and powerful; don't you like the Young Master?"

Silence descended once more, and after a moment, the voice sounded again.

"If... if the Young Master takes me, I'll be his bedchamber maid!"

Hearing this, Lu Jing'an.

The corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl into a smile.

He hadn't expected that Lanhua, usually so meek and mild-mannered.

Would be so open when gossiping with her friends in private.

Still, this little girl's heart was always directed toward him.

Lu Jing'an let go of the handle, the record stopped spinning, and the voice cut off abruptly.

Although the Phonograph had been successfully verified, the results were somewhat unsatisfactory.

The drawbacks of the Phonograph were all too obvious:

First, the monitoring range was limited; one had to be close to monitor effectively.

Yet the Phonograph was a bit too large and conspicuous.

Second, it could only monitor the voice of the person whose name was written down.

Who they were speaking to, or the content of the other side, remained unknown without a name.

"It seems I thought things were too simple before."

Lu Jing'an gently stroked the cold Golden Horn, his brows furrowed.

Just then, his palm touched the Phonograph once more.

That familiar prompt appeared yet again:

[Detected item capable of Refining/Repairing, please choose?]

Lu Jing'an's gaze sharpened, a thought flashing through his mind instantly.

Perhaps it was worth another gamble.

[Refining]

Lu Jing'an made a new choice.

Since the repaired Treasure Tool still had its limitations.

Might as well try to see what valuable Affix can be extracted from it.

[Refining in progress, estimated completion time: 5 hours.]

This was Lu Jing'an's gamble.

He was betting that this Treasure Tool Phonograph could yield a useful Affix.

Perhaps it could resolve his current predicament.

Even if he lost the bet.

It would only mean the loss of an item.

One that was already difficult to use for monitoring the Lin Family directly.

It would not hinder the big picture.

He had already made it clear to his father, Lu Huaiqian, that this was merely an attempt; failure would be of no consequence.

Having died twice, his will had long since been tempered into something resilient.

He would never get hung up on temporary gains or losses.

Lu Jing'an did not intend to waste these five hours, so he went out into the courtyard.

The moonlight was hazy, and the tree shadows danced.

He took his stance and began to practice his fist techniques, one move at a time.

Sweat gradually soaked his training clothes.

There were less than fifty hours left until he obtained his first red Affix.

Lu Jing'an's heart was filled with anticipation.

After finishing a set of punches, his breathing was long and steady, but the technique itself showed no significant breakthrough.

Lu Jing'an knew clearly that his aptitude was originally mediocre.

Given his previous life of debauchery, it had likely degraded to poor.

Now, he relied entirely on Extraordinary Physique to pull it back somewhat.

Expecting to make rapid progress through a few hours of hard training.

Was no different from a pipe dream.

True transformation would have to wait for the arrival of that red Affix.

After practicing his punches, it was time for the medicinal bath as usual.

Cui Jieyi had already prepared the medicinal soup.

After informing him of the precautions, she took her leave.

Steam billowed in the bathhouse, and the scent of herbs was pungent.

Lanhua was still kneeling behind the bathtub.

Using just the right amount of force, she massaged the acupoints on Lu Jing'an's head and the muscles of his shoulders.

Only this time, her fingertips seemed to tremble slightly.

Every time she touched the young master's warm skin.

The roots of her ears could not help but turn red.

Presumably, the bold words she had spoken to her little friends that evening were still ringing in her ears.

Serving him now, her state of mind was inevitably turbulent.

Lu Jing'an took in all these subtle reactions.

He found it somewhat amusing, but he did not point it out.

Forty minutes later, the medicinal power was fully absorbed, and the water temperature began to cool.

Lu Jing'an stood up from the tub, water droplets sliding down his sturdy muscles.

Lanhua hurriedly picked up a dry, soft cloth.

Blushing and keeping her head low, she carefully wiped Lu Jing'an down.

"Yo-young master, it is done." Lanhua's voice was like a mosquito's hum; she hardly dared to look up at him.

Lu Jing'an put on his sleeping robe and said in a casual tone:

"Mm, you've worked hard today.

Go find the steward and draw ten silver dollars as a reward for you."

Lanhua looked up abruptly, her eyes filled with disbelief and surprise.

It soon turned into excitement and joy, and she quickly curtsied: "Thank you, young master! Thank you, young master!"

Watching the little girl's back as she almost skipped away.

Lu Jing'an had originally intended to tease her a little.

However, a notification appeared, interrupting Lu Jing'an's thoughts.

[Refining complete]!