Brain Disorder

The autumn mountain forest was quite tranquil, with only the sounds of Ruan Su lighting the stove next door reaching his ears.

Qin Yi stared at the two characters he had translated for a long while, then set down his brush and lowered his gaze to his own body.

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Before his eyes,

was a body thin from malnutrition and a lack of exercise.

From the swaddling clothes at the start of his transmigration to the child's body he now possessed.

This body's strength, reflexes, and rate of growth all fell within the range of ordinary people. There was nothing unusual about it.

Yet this ancient book called "Disrupted Scripture" forced Qin Yi to reexamine it, because he was certain he did not know this script.

He had known it neither in his previous life nor this one.

But his body—or rather, his brain—could directly break down this script into something recognizable, then summarize and render it in other writing.

It seemed innate, as natural as breathing.

And in that regard,

it was somewhat similar to certain "Calamity Seeds" Qin Yi had once picked up while traveling south.

Thinking of this, Qin Yi took the "Disrupted Scripture," hopped down from his little stool, and headed for the kitchen.

There was nothing to agonize over. Based on the clues at hand, Qin Yi instantly arrived at the only two possibilities that could explain this.

First, it was because of his brain disorder.

Second, he too was a Calamity Seed.

And deciphering this writing was an ability every Calamity Seed possessed, since Meng Peijiu also seemed able to read it.

He only needed to ask his older sister to verify it.

Pulling aside the curtain over the small doorway,

Ruan Su wore an apron and stood on a little stool by the earthen stove. Standing on tiptoe, she held a spatula in one hand while sprinkling fine salt into the iron pot stewing meat and greens with the other.

Catching Qin Yi running in from the corner of her eye, Ruan Su immediately turned around. Her little face was still smudged with charcoal ash from adding firewood as she asked with a smile,

"Hungry...?"

Qin Yi did not answer. He raised the ancient book in both hands and thrust its title page before his older sister's eyes.

"Sis, take a look. Can you understand it?"

"..."

Standing on the stool with her spatula raised, Ruan Su stared at the strange writing for several breaths. Then she tilted her head, peered around the book with one eye at Qin Yi, and curiously wondered what Xiao Yi was doing.

"Don't... understand. What's... wrong?"

"Look more carefully."

"Mm..."

Ruan Su did not understand what Qin Yi wanted, but since Xiao Yi had asked her to do it, he surely had his reasons.

Her willow-leaf brows furrowed as she studied it earnestly for a long time. Only when the pot began bubbling and gurgling did she come back to herself. She shook her head, looked into Qin Yi's eyes, and gave an embarrassed smile, afraid he would be disappointed.

"I still... can't understand it."

Qin Yi showed no particular emotion and simply smiled.

"Sis, this should be a cultivation method. Our family has a complete cultivation method now."

"Huh?"

The narrow corners of Ruan Su's eyes twitched slightly. There was no joy on her little face; instead, she looked somewhat stiff.

Every time Xiao Yi had made her practice cultivation, it had hurt terribly, and she had coughed up so much blood...

Now, whenever she heard the words cultivation method, she felt a little afraid.

Qin Yi saw the fear in his older sister and smiled with curved eyes.

"I'll try it first this time. If nothing happens, I'll translate it for you. Then you can practice it, Sis."

"No!"

Hearing that, Ruan Su visibly panicked and jumped straight down from the stool.

In her mind, cultivation was dangerous. It was the same as vomiting blood.

"I'll... practice first!"

"..."

Qin Yi did not refuse. He merely nodded along with her.

"Al... right. Then you practice first, Sis."

"You're not allowed... to practice in secret."

"Alright."

"...Mm."

Only then did Ruan Su breathe a sigh of relief. She nodded, turned around, and continued cooking.

After leaving the kitchen, Qin Yi took off his shoes and climbed onto the bed, with absolutely no intention of keeping the promise he had just made. He directly opened the "Disrupted Scripture" to a page.

Under heaven, martial arts were divided into two kinds: external arts and internal arts.

External arts involved tempering the body day after day through all manner of methods, then using medicinal stones and remedies to repair it, gradually raising the body's limits little by little.

They were somewhat like Ruan Su's, except she grew stronger automatically after a night's sleep, followed by intermittent explosive surges. Those who practiced external arts, meanwhile, had to train until they were like dead dogs just to improve a little.

Internal arts, however, were somewhat special.

They were entirely different from external arts. One could not begin cultivating simply by obtaining a method and striking a pose; one first had to undergo a rather complicated "Qi-Induction Ritual."

According to the cultivation method's records, one first consumed pills or medicinal soup brewed from the corresponding ingredients, then inserted anywhere from several to over a hundred silver needles into the acupoints specified in the method. After guiding the medicinal power and breaking through a certain barrier within the human body, one could proceed with subsequent "Inner Vision cultivation."

According to Uncle Peng Jun, the process was actually quite dangerous.

People's constitutions could not be lumped together, and the constitutions required by different internal cultivation methods also varied. If one got it wrong, the Qi-Induction Ritual would backlash. At best, one would vomit blood and suffer internal injuries; at worst, one would be paralyzed.

Those aristocratic clans did possess secret methods for testing the talents of their descendants, but for people of humble origins like them, even if they happened upon a complete internal cultivation method, they still had to gamble with their lives on whether they possessed the talent to practice it.

Unless what one obtained was an ancient copy from several hundred years ago.

Cultivation manuals from that era generally recorded methods that allowed readers to determine whether they had the aptitude to cultivate them.

Qin Yi did not know whether the "Disrupted Scripture" in his hands counted as an ancient manual. He did not even know whether it counted as an internal cultivation method.

The book was indeed ancient, originating from the Great Qin of more than a century ago, but it was not a cultivation method—or at least, most of it was not. It contained several thousand characters of sprawling text, most of which consisted of obscure daily notes and miscellaneous records.

Even with Qin Yi's ability to condense information, the useful information he could extract from it was limited.

The book contained neither the acupoints recorded in ordinary internal cultivation methods nor instructions to prepare any precious medicinal ingredients. It had only a description of a breathing method and the four words "Illumination Ascension Seal."

Illumination Ascension Seal...

Qin Yi thought back for a moment.

He did know this one.

A cultivation method that had once made Ruan Su vomit blood had recorded this type of hand seal.

After a moment of silence, Qin Yi began adjusting his breathing according to the method recorded in the Disrupted Scripture, then formed the Illumination Ascension Seal with one hand.

One breath.

Ten breaths.

A hundred breaths...

In the stillness, the direct sunlight gradually slanted, spilling over the wooden hut and casting a broad shadow from the conical wooden stake still hanging on the doorframe.

Nothing happened until the sounds from the kitchen next door gradually ceased and Ruan Su emerged carrying a large basin of greens stewed with meat.

Setting the basin on the table, Ruan Su casually wiped her damp little hands on her apron and cheerfully called Qin Yi to eat. It had been a long time since she had eaten with an awake Xiao Yi.

"Time... to eat, Xiao Yi."

Seeing this, Qin Yi got up and sat at the square table.

Ruan Su brought out another large bowl of rice and a bowl of beans. She pushed the rice toward Qin Yi, sat down, picked up some greens with her chopsticks, and began eating with hearty bites.

Looking at the girl, Qin Yi deliberately spoke with a hint of heartache.

"Sis, there's no need for you to be so frugal. How much could a little meat and rice possibly save?"

Ruan Su raised her eyes from beneath the backlight, cheeks puffed as she chewed. She smiled indistinctly.

"No matter... how little, it still... costs... money. We'll talk when your... brain disorder... gets better. Hmph, hmph."

Maintaining his breathing, Qin Yi sighed softly and did not try to persuade her further.

If he ate less, his older sister would naturally eat what remained.

He switched the hand forming the seal, picked up his chopsticks in his right hand, and put a piece of meat into his mouth. It did not taste particularly good; after all, his older sister seemed to have put all her talent points into strength and speed.

It was enough. Qin Yi's only requirement for food was survival.

After swallowing the meat, Qin Yi recalled Granny Meng and was about to speak when he suddenly noticed faint blue halos appearing in his vision.

They were scattered, like colored gas diffusing through the air, continuously drawn into his body along with his breaths.

It worked?

Noticing this blatantly unscientific sight, Qin Yi's emotions remained placid, without the slightest ripple. He carefully sensed the changes in his body, but the gaseous substance he had drawn inside produced no immediate effect.

Slowly withdrawing his gaze, Qin Yi said softly,

"You need to be more careful around Granny Meng from now on. She definitely isn't from the capital of the Later Tang Kingdom. I saw her during the refugee tide, and not just once. I suspect she was following..."

"..."

At those words, Ruan Su's eating motion paused slightly. She raised her eyes with a touch of vigilance, but what she saw next made her pupils abruptly contract.

In her vision,

Xiao Yi's body, which had been sitting upright in his chair,

suddenly collapsed to one side without warning.

What happened?

Her body moved before her thoughts could.

"Xiao Yi!"

"..."

The shout rang by his ears, yet it seemed to come from the edge of the sky.

Qin Yi also did not know what had happened.

He only knew that an unprecedented agony, as if ten thousand fine needles had pierced his skull, suddenly swept through his head and instantly robbed him of control over his body.

As his body fell, his vision tilted upward,

and then,

he saw the square table being flung into the air...

He instantly realized Ruan Su was trying to rush over and catch him, but right now, he hoped his older sister could control her strength a little.

Don't crush him to death outright.

His eyes closed, and his vision turned black.

Before his consciousness completely sank into darkness, Qin Yi silently thought with a mind gradually sinking into a mire.

Sure enough, it was because of his brain disorder.

But there were still things left unfinished...