Rock Heart Method (Please Follow)

Rock Heart Method (Please Follow)

His "currying favor" with Chang Ji had indeed been purposeful, but... wasn't Chang Ji repaying him a little too quickly?

Academician Su's repayment had only come after Xu Xing personally begged for it.

Chang Ji...

"Time is short. Listen first."

"Don't rush to answer."

"Remember, do not let anyone surnamed Wu discover that you are cultivating internal energy. Otherwise, it won't just be this official who suffers. You... forget it. You're a scholar; you already have more than enough schemes in that head of yours."

After speaking, Chang Ji glanced at Academician Su, who had drawn closer upon hearing the commotion. Only after seeing him retreat awkwardly did he continue. "This internal art is called the Rock Heart Method, passed down through generations of my Chang Clan. Listen carefully... Sit cross-legged and calm your mind, relax naturally, gently close your lips and teeth, gather your spirit's radiance, and reach the heart of Heaven..."

"Clack your teeth thirty-six times, embrace Kunlun with both hands, sound the Heavenly Drums left and right, hear them twenty-four times..."

The Rock Heart Method contained more than five hundred characters in total.

At first, Xu Xing believed his memory was fairly good, yet memorizing it still proved difficult. Left with no choice, he used the Kunlun Mirror to solidify his [Broad Learning and Strong Memory] destiny.

After strengthening his memory, he finally committed the entire method to heart after Chang Ji recited it twice.

"Thank you, General Chang."

After memorizing the technique, Xu Xing rose and thanked Chang Ji.

The two spoke quietly, and Chang Ji's cell was already at the end of the Celestial Prison's corridor. Thus, Chang Ji's transmission would not easily be discovered by others. Other than Academician Su, who was adjacent to Xu Xing...

However, Academician Su held high status and possessed decent character. He would not go informing over such a trivial matter.

"Do you know why this general managed to survive three years in the Celestial Prison without dying?"

"And remain alive even today?"

After accepting Xu Xing's thanks, Chang Ji sneered, his face filled with resentment.

Though he had avoided battle when the Tatars invaded southward, that had been an unavoidable choice when his troops were few and his strength weak.

Afterward, he had also cooperated with the court's army in besieging the Tatars.

Yet because of that minor fault, Chongming Emperor had thrown him into prison for questioning...

Exiled to the Celestial Prison, abandoned and ignored.

"Because of this Rock Heart Method?"

Xu Xing's heart stirred.

He had seen Old Li bring Chang Ji meals. There were only sparse grains of rice in the food, little more than a bowl of clear soup.

If an ordinary person ate such meals, they would likely starve to death within days. Yet Chang Ji had stubbornly endured, barely surviving until now.

Although Chang Ji no longer possessed the robust build he had three years ago, reduced to skin stretched over bones without a trace of flesh, he still looked far from death.

"Correct."

"It was the Rock Heart Method that sustained me."

Chang Ji nodded and continued, "The Chang Clan has produced generals generation after generation, steadfastly loyal to the court, yet we never expected such an ending. Beyond the halls of power, there may be the martial world, but those so-called wandering knights, heh, are not worth mentioning beside military households. Most follow crooked paths and do not even possess a complete inheritance of inner methods."

Xu Xing found nothing strange in this.

For the court to become the court, the greatest institution of violence, it surely possessed strength far more formidable than the martial world. If one could enter court as a general or minister, why become a wandering knight tossed about by the world?

The human heart always sought peace and stability.

That military households were stronger than martial sects was beyond doubt.

"During your first seven days in prison, you wore the face of a dead man, muddled and dazed."

"But ever since that Zhao Yunniang came..."

Chang Ji chuckled. "You look as though your days are numbered, but in truth... you have found the desire to live. This general does not know where that desire came from."

"But this general need not concern himself with such matters..."

Chang Ji's penetrating insight startled Xu Xing.

He had considered himself no shallow schemer, yet this "rough brute" Chang Ji had instead guessed the truth.

Then again, Chang Ji came from a family of generals. Even if his learning could not compare to Academician Su's, after so many years of warfare, his eye for people could not be poor. Moreover, unlike Academician Su, he had been trapped to die in the Celestial Prison and had long since lost all hope.

A person who had lost all hope would either abandon himself completely or refuse to relinquish even the slightest chance of survival.

With that thought, Xu Xing calmed down.

He began to consider matters seriously.

Chang Ji might not necessarily have discovered anything unusual about him. More likely, he was deliberately using this as an excuse to cast a wide net.

Just like the girls in brothels casting wide nets among scholars taking the imperial examinations.

If they caught even one successful candidate, it was a huge profit.

"General Chang, you wrong this subordinate."

"Yunniang is carrying this subordinate's child. For the child's sake, I am desperately writing books, hoping to leave behind a little fame in this world, thereby reducing the pressure he will bear as the son of a convicted official..."

"When parents love their child, they make plans for him far into the future."

Xu Xing sighed and began his performance.

He would not casually hand others leverage against him.

He had accepted Chang Ji's favor today, and he could repay it in the future.

There was no need to place his weakness directly into Chang Ji's hands.

Chang Ji: "..."

"They say you civil officials are black-hearted..."

"At first, this general truly believed you had been wrongfully thrown into the Celestial Prison. But now it seems, Lord Xu, you did not skim any less during your time at the Imperial Stud Directorate. Shortages of warhorses are a longstanding ill of the dynasty."

"But your hands are definitely not clean!"

Chang Ji raised a brow, his words blunt and impolite.

Seeing that Xu Xing was still young and had not served as an official for many years, he had assumed the man was no seasoned old hand. Yet after speaking with him, he discovered that this brat was slippery as an eel and difficult to get a grip on.

"Near vermilion, one turns red; near ink, one turns black..."

"Hemp growing among hemp stands straight without support; white sand cast into black mud turns black with it."

"His Majesty is wise and enlightened, personally guiding the realm. We minor officials are naturally incorruptible..."

Xu Xing did not answer directly, instead fobbing him off with ambiguous words.

After three hundred years, the dynasty had long since become rotten from top to bottom.

Sometimes, taking money was a matter of choosing a side.

After becoming an official, Xu Xing had set his sights on becoming a chief minister, standing below one man and above ten thousand. Why would he start plundering wealth the moment he entered office...

At the very least, he would wait until there was no hope of promotion... then start taking money.

"Heh!"

Chang Ji closed his eyes and ignored Xu Xing.

When it came to scheming, he still could not outmatch these civil officials.

About half a quarter-hour later.

Clerk Wu returned to Cell D-24.

The moment he entered the cell, he saw Xu Xing writing furiously. He stepped forward and complained in a low voice, "Lord Xu, I know you were pretending to sleep just now. Please do not make things difficult for this lowly one, all right? At worst, I'll bring you something good to eat and drink from now on..."

"One braised pork elbow and one roast chicken."

"I do not have much time left. Before I die, I just want to eat something good."

Xu Xing stopped writing and made his demand.

The "him" in the instance world could still live a simple, normal life after leaving Xu Xing's consciousness. But after he descended into the instance world, the real-world him was practically "dead," as though his soul had been lost.

However, just as the Ancient Bronze Mirror's panel stated, his soul had descended.

Therefore, before returning to the real world, he truly had not intended to make things difficult for Clerk Wu. But after hearing what Commander Liu said afterward, he realized that it was better for him to remain unconscious than awake, so he simply pretended to sleep.

Yet merely pretending to sleep was already more than Clerk Wu could bear.

Commander Liu was an enormously important figure. If he felt even the slightest dissatisfaction toward Clerk Wu, lightly speaking, Clerk Wu would lose his clerk's post; heavily speaking, perhaps... his family would be destroyed and his household wiped out!

"Yes, yes..."

Clerk Wu nodded repeatedly and agreed.

"And..."

Xu Xing pondered.

"Sir?"

"What else do you want?"

Clerk Wu's face crumpled miserably.

"Also, get me a different chair. This long bench is crushing my backside."

Xu Xing made another demand.

He wanted wine and meat because the Celestial Prison guards were all fucking corrupt. The ingot of silver Zhao Yunniang had left was at least seven taels, yet after buying him food and drink for three days, almost none remained.

Prices in the Phoenix Creek Kingdom were not high, and silver was valuable. Seven taels of silver was enough to cover a family of three's expenses for two months.

Asking Clerk Wu for meat would also ease some of Zhao Yunniang's burden.

How is the writing? Please leave some comments.

The author is so nervous.

It's going to flop again.