Night deepened, and the lanterns beneath the corridor eaves lit up one by one.
After dinner, Lu Sui returned to his room on crutches.
"Perhaps I'm a martial arts prodigy, one in ten thousand."
He lay quietly on the bed, letting Xiaohuan work on his two legs, thin as hemp stalks.
The incense stick reflected in his eyes had burned out, and the two lines of tiny, tadpole-like writing had become a single passage.
-["Turtle-Snake Stance" (Mortal) recorded]
Had Xiaohuan's presence not made it inconvenient, Lu Sui would already have sunk into that ancient temple to see whether the "Turtle-Snake Stance" he had learned from Uncle Wen fell under [Arts] or [Methods].
"Young master, has something good happened? Ever since you came back from Chief Steward Dou's courtyard, the corners of your mouth haven't come down."
Xiaohuan looked at the beaming Lu Sui as she diligently massaged him, utterly puzzled.
She only ever looked as happy as the young master did now when she found money outside.
Looking at the young maid, fine beads of sweat seeping from her forehead, Lu Sui suddenly lowered his voice.
"I've just learned an earth-shattering secret. Want to hear it?"
Xiaohuan nodded instinctively, then shook her head hard.
"Don't get me into trouble, young master! Aunt Zhou, who taught me needlework, said not to go poking around for news from the inner household. Talk less, work more."
The little girl was rather cautious.
Lu Sui could not help smiling and added:
"Relax. It's not about the master or his concubines, and it won't cost you your little life."
"Then I want to hear it! Hurry and tell me, young master!"
Xiaohuan gazed eagerly at Lu Sui, even slowing the movements of her hands.
"As for your young master here~"
Lu Sui deliberately drew out his words, thoroughly whetting her appetite before saying:
"I'm actually a martial arts prodigy, one in ten thousand!"
Xiaohuan silently lowered her head, struggling to keep her little face straight.
A maid could not roll her eyes at her master. That earned a beating.
"Oh, you're right, young master. You're the best."
Little brat, that's awfully halfhearted!
Lu Sui curled his lips upward. The great stone weighing on his heart seemed to have grown lighter.
Don't break out the victory wine too soon. Stay calm and steady!
Whether the ancient temple recording the "Turtle-Snake Stance" meant he had "fully mastered" it remained uncertain.
He would have to wait and see.
As usual, Xiaohuan massaged him for a full two hours. Lu Sui felt a faint warmth in his legs; they were no longer as stiff and cold as before.
There's still a long way to go before I can walk as swiftly as flight, run, and jump.
A hundred days is too long. Who knows what trouble might crop up...
Lu Sui lay flat, a thick, soft mattress beneath him. The bedding had just been warmed over a brazier and was warm and fragrant, its scent even soothing his mind.
He could not help remembering the arguments among silly netizens in his previous life about who lived more comfortably: modern people or emperors...
Hard to say who has it better, but having people around you every day to see to your food, clothes, housing, and travel, serving you attentively, really does save you worry. You don't have to think much about anything.
Lu Sui sighed inwardly. No wonder landlords so often had foolish sons. Raised like this from childhood, how could they know the dangers outside?
Once Xiaohuan blew out the candle and withdrew, the inner room went pitch-black and fell completely silent.
He closed his eyes and focused his intent slightly. The next moment, his consciousness was dragged into that ancient temple.
The pitch-black wooden tablet enshrined in the tall central alcove had changed.
[Lu Sui] [Arts: "Turtle-Snake Stance" (Mortal)] [Methods: none recorded] [Talent: none]
It really is an [Art]. If I get the chance to learn a [Method] someday, could I actually become an immortal?
Lu Sui indulged in a brief flight of fancy before reining in his thoughts.
Even with cheats, he had to keep his feet on the ground and advance steadily. Reaching beyond his grasp would not do!
He stood quietly inside the temple, pondering:
What does recording the "Turtle-Snake Stance" do? Increase proficiency, or directly impart it to me?
A point of radiance suddenly lit up in the dim ancient temple.
Lu Sui looked over. Within a palm-sized hollow in the stone wall to his right, an illusory figure appeared in a tiny shrine.
It was actually a little turtle with an ink-black shell and short limbs, lying motionless!
This is the "Turtle-Snake Stance"?
Lu Sui was astonished. Then his vision blurred, and tadpole-like writing emerged in succession.
[Turtle-Snake Stance (Mortal)] [Aptitude: high-grade] [Imprint: Diligence Rewarded] [Appraisal: even the foolish shall become enlightened; even the weak shall become strong.] [Guidance: this art has a one-track mind. Practice once, and it remembers once. Do not slack off.]
What's that supposed to mean?
Before Lu Sui could grow puzzled, a torrent of information surged forth like floodwaters through opened gates!
"The temple holds a thousand shrines; the shrines house ten thousand methods!"
"Whatever you learn is recorded upon sight; once an art or method is recorded, it develops intelligence of its own!"
"Follow its nature, and progress shall come..."
Lu Sui kept his eyes closed for a long while, silently digesting it all.
Only when his concentrated intent dispersed did he open his eyes.
His eyes shone brightly, filled with joy.
So after all that, it's a raising sim!
The ancient temple's shrines record [Arts] and [Methods], awakening their spirituality for my use...
Once he understood how to use his golden finger, Lu Sui sprang into action, immediately beginning the breathing method Uncle Wen had taught him.
He expanded his belly as he inhaled and drew it in as he exhaled, striving to make the rise and fall of his breath continuous.
After seven or eight repetitions, a subtle, profound sensation gradually arose within him.
[Deep in the night, seeing you still practicing, "Turtle-Snake Stance" feels deeply gratified.] [Thus, it regulates the breath, sensing Qi...] [After tireless effort, you have finally reached the beginner stage!]
Uncle Wen instructed me for so long, yet I couldn't find that "feeling" he described.
Now that "Turtle-Snake Stance" has been recorded, I've gained some understanding instead.
As lines of text flickered, Lu Sui felt as though he had sat in solitary practice for seven or eight months, all stray thoughts cleared away, his mind properly aligned, guiding his breath hundreds upon thousands of times.
Somewhere within, he sensed a thread of warmth arise and flow, slowly sinking from his chest into his lower abdomen, settling three inches below his navel.
So this is Qi Sensation?
Lu Sui felt somewhat astonished.
Isn't this a little too fast?
[Seeing your stunning talent and how easily you grasped Qi Sensation, "Turtle-Snake Stance" is greatly encouraged and refuses to fall behind!] [It guides the breath once more, striving to complete a full circuit...]
Before he could rejoice, Lu Sui felt that hair-thin thread of warmth three inches below his navel split in two and rush toward the soles of his feet.
"Hss!"
He sucked in a cold breath.
His stiff, cold legs felt as though red-hot silver needles had pierced them.
All ten toes clenched hard, and his withered muscles twitched as though being stretched.
Pain means it's working! It means the training is hitting the mark!
Lu Sui gritted his teeth without making a sound, allowing the two faint currents of warmth to wash through his legs again and again.
In less than half an incense stick's time, his knee suddenly tightened, and his limp, powerless right leg actually lifted half an inch.
That thread of "Qi" flows throughout my body. It can stimulate my legs and speed up their recovery!
Lu Sui was deeply excited. Only someone who had spent long bedridden, unable to move, could understand how great a blessing it was to walk freely, sprint, and leap.
With "Turtle-Snake Stance" providing a model, he breathed in and out endlessly, following the route of the flowing breath again and again.
Compared with Uncle Wen's guidance, this experience, as though he had personally practiced countless times, was easier to understand and grasp.
Only after staying up well into the latter half of the night did Lu Sui's eyelids grow heavy, and he fell asleep exhausted.
The next day.
By the time Lu Sui woke, the sun was already three poles high. He had risen an hour later than usual.
The first thing he did upon opening his eyes was move his toes.
He counted from one to ten, then back from ten to one.
With each count, a toe moved.
It wasn't a dream. Turtle-Breathing Tuna really works.
Propping himself upright, Lu Sui pulled up his trouser legs and poked his legs, thin as dry sticks.
Previously, each poke had left a small dent in the skin of his legs that would not recover for ages.
According to Doctor Lu, this was because his blood had pooled and stagnated, unable to circulate freely.
With such blockages, his joints had also become stiff, losing their original flexibility and strength.
At this rate, perhaps I'll be walking normally in ten days or half a month.
Lu Sui pinched his calf. Though still thin as a hemp stalk, it was gradually gaining some spring.
That thread of "Qi" grew so much in just one night?
Closing his eyes to sense it, he found that the breath lodged three inches below his navel had actually grown from hair-thin to as thick as his little finger!
[Seeing you sound asleep, "Turtle-Snake Stance" resolved to battle through the night by lamplight!] [Its breathing never ceased, completing a full twenty-seven circuits...]
Such a grind? I love it!
Warmth stirred in Lu Sui's heart. With "Turtle-Snake Stance" working so hard, how could he fail to advance by leaps and bounds?
Keep it up. When I become a peerless master someday, you'll deserve a share of the credit!
He silently painted a delicious-looking pie in the sky, encouraging "Turtle-Snake Stance."
[The sun is three poles high. Seeing that you have yet to practice, "Turtle-Snake Stance" feels disappointed.] [Thus, following your example, it retreats into its shell...] [Qi Sensation immediately vanishes. Progress stops at the beginner stage.]
If I don't practice, "Turtle-Snake Stance" slacks off too?
Lu Sui was stunned. So he could not simply lie back and idle after all.
He closed his eyes and looked again. Before that palm-sized shrine burned a stick of white incense, burning extremely slowly.
It seemed to represent progress.
The little turtle had withdrawn its limbs into its shell, looking thoroughly lazy.
Lu Sui was heartbroken.
Little turtle, if you won't strive diligently, when will I ever become a master?
Helpless, he could only silently adjust his breathing and begin his morning breathing practice.