The Fist Manual and the Heavy Snow

The curtains were drawn, and the room was dark.

The blankets on the bed were flat, but suddenly sank slightly.

A gentle breeze stirred the air around him as Chu Tianshu sat up on the bed.

"Hey, you're back!"

Chu Tianshu stretched lazily and suddenly realized that the room temperature was quite low.

His gaze shifted, and he saw that the little water he had left in the glass on the bedside table had frozen solid.

"Wow, what month is it? How long have I been gone this time?"

Chu Tianshu walked to the window and pulled back the curtains.

The cement ground in front of the gate, the vegetable garden, the bridge, and the small river.

Further out, vast stretches of farmland were all covered in a blanket of white.

The ground was already covered with a thick layer of snow, and fine snowflakes were still falling from the sky.

Every now and then, a few snowflakes would drift down and cling to the windowpane.

Chu Tianshu turned around, found his phone, plugged it in the charger, turned it on, connected to the internet, and checked the date.

Thirty-nine days have passed since he left home.

It seems that the time flow in the Great Tang world is roughly two to one compared to this world.

However, if you calculate down to the exact hour, you'll find that there are slight differences in the flow of time between the Great Tang world and the Republic of China world.

"It's only October in the Gregorian calendar, and there's already this much snow?"

Strictly speaking, the lunar calendar is a lunisolar calendar.

However, in Chu Tianshu's hometown, people are used to calling the "Gregorian calendar" the solar calendar, which is the official calendar.

The lunar calendar is called the Yin calendar.

According to the Gregorian calendar, in the Jianghuai Greater Region, it usually doesn't snow until the end of November.

Sometimes, it's not until January of the following year that there is noticeable snow accumulation.

Chu Tianshu walked to the living room on the second floor, opened the window, and felt the cool breeze and snowflakes blowing in.

He was dressed in thin clothes, but he was in good health and was immune to both heat and cold.

The cold wind and flying snow only made him feel refreshed and curious.

"When I was a kid, there were a few times when the ice was solid enough that I could go ice skating with my friends. Now that I'm this heavy, I can't go anymore."

Looking at the river surface covered with snow, Chu Tianshu knew that it must have frozen over first, allowing the snowflakes to remain white on top.

He spread his arms and braced them against the window frame, then summoned the token screen while gazing at the snowy scene before him.

[The Evil Spirit materials have been mixed...]

The materials for the cultivation technique have been selected...

In progress...

Deduction complete:

"The Storming Shaolin Heart Fire Fist Manual"

A person possesses fourteen hearts, all of which, when cultivated to the point of being like a furnace, reach a state of perfect mastery. Their attacks are akin to the power of fourteen furnaces, capable of shattering iron and breaking stone wherever they touch...

The fire of the heart can distinguish between light and heavy, and its rise and fall follow strict rules. The gushing spring boils with the heat of the heavenly spirit, Three United in One Body.

Arhats have reached this point where their foundation is solid, and ordinary beings are beginning to enter the Vajra Samadhi.

With perfect balance of lightness and heaviness, one can grasp the true essence, and subtly achieve the Samadhi Power!

The Shaolin Fist manuals cover a wide range of topics, yet they are all connected by a common thread.

It also includes many speculations and conjectures collected by Yu Dayou from that world, thus possessing immense potential.

This time, Chu Tianshu chose to deduce this set of boxing manuals again, and as expected, he gained a lot.

The boxing manual that flooded his mind was clearly a detailed analysis and refinement of the original manual's conjectures.

As a result, the amount of content in this boxing manual has increased by 70% to 80% compared to before.

Chu Tianshu closed his eyes, recalling the contents of the entire boxing manual, and a very fulfilling feeling gradually rose in his heart.

It wasn't the fulfillment that came from strength, but from vision, insight, direction, and incisive analysis.

His original strength had increased due to his single-minded hard work, but although he was focused, his results were somewhat unclear.

This boxing manual gave him a deeper understanding of why Aperture Opening and training strength could enhance physical fitness.

If one understands the underlying principles, when practicing, one can better avoid what is useless to oneself, according to one's specific circumstances.

Only when you practice your boxing to this extent can you be said to have begun to truly understand it.

The biggest difference between kung fu and skill lies here.

In the past, even though Chu Tianshu put in a lot of hard work practicing boxing, he was only at the level of a craftsman, merely passing the time in exchange for payment.

Now that he understands the principle, he can think and verify while practicing, and draw inferences from one instance to another. Even when he doesn't seem to be practicing, he may still gain some insights.

As the legend goes, Mendeleev things during the day and dreamed about them at night, finally grasping the framework of the periodic table in his sleep.

If one comprehends the path of a martial artist to this level, it becomes possible to achieve lasting merit in the Human World solely through achievements in this field, without relying on any other profession.

Even if it's only a tiny, slight possibility, it's still a different path from before.

The highest virtue is to establish moral character; the next highest is to establish merit.

"Ha!!"

Chu Tianshu opened his eyes, closed the window, and felt a sense of fulfillment, so he wasn't in a hurry to do anything.

He returned to his room, first changing into a shirt and trousers, with the Sanqi Divine Sword still tied around his waist like a somewhat unique belt, and then draping a beige trench coat over his shoulders.

Such snow is rare in the south.

It's the perfect time to go out and have a stroll.

Chu Tianshu went downstairs, took out a black umbrella, and walked away, stepping into the five or six centimeters of snow.

The martial arts flow gently in my heart, while the scenery accompanies me leisurely.

Chu Tianshu felt comfortable both physically and mentally, and strolled leisurely.

Before he knew it, he had arrived at the bridge outside his second grandfather's house.

The river surface here has been blasted open, leaving a hole about half a meter in size.

My second grandfather, wrapped in an old army-green cotton coat, sat on the porch sheltering from the snow, with a tin wood stove that he had found somewhere next to him.

He lowered his eyes, holding a fishing rod, a slender, modern work of art, extending from the snowless area onto the river surface.

A fishing line dangled into the ice hole.

On the other side of the old man's small stool, there was a radio playing a play called "Double Defection to Tang".

"My dear brother, you have misspoke. Listen carefully to my analogy: In the past, Han Xin plotted to establish his state."

A life was lost in the Weiyang Palace!

"It was Wang Mang who poisoned Emperor Ping."

"He was originally a true dragon descended from heaven!"

The two voices, one deep and the other bright, one gave an example, the other a rebuttal, both singing at the most brilliant moment.

Grandpa suddenly opened his eyes and slapped his thigh.

"The lines are mixed up! Wang Mang should have been executed by being cut into a thousand pieces, the next line is that Li Yuan was also a minister who plotted against his lord, and then the real dragon descended from heaven!"

My second grandfather shook his head, his face full of regret.

"With such good singing skills, how did you manage to mix up the lyrics?"

"Your singing is indeed excellent, but how about your fishing skills?"

Chu Tianshu walked onto the small bridge, talking and laughing loudly.

Grandpa looked closely and then noticed who it was.

"Oh, Tianshu, you're finally back."

Second Grandpa clipped the fishing rod to the stool, got up with a smile, went over, and patted Chu Tianshu on the shoulder.

"They seem even firmer now. Great, I've had quite a haul: two crucian carp and three yellow catfish."

"Kill it as soon as you catch it, and cook it after you kill it."

Chu Tianshu followed and saw a pot on the tin stove, specifically for making soup, emitting a fragrant aroma.

The fish trembled as it simmered in the boiling broth, with ginger slices and knotted scallions tumbling inside.

"Come on, go into the kitchen and get a bowl to add salt."

Second Grandpa blocked the stove's vent, picked up the pot, kicked it, and the sheet metal covered the top of the stove opening, extinguishing the fire naturally in a while.

Chu Tianshu closed his umbrella and followed him into the courtyard, where the kitchen was located to the side.

Grandpa carried a pot into the kitchen, but there was a noise from the front door of the living room, and someone came out.

"Teacher Qiao!"

Chu Tianshu recognized him and greeted him.

Teacher Qiao Xing, dressed in a black down jacket and beaming, said, "Tianshu Shu, I heard you went on vacation and only just got back today?"

Chu Tianshu nodded. "It's not a holiday, why is Teacher Qiao here? Does she have some business to discuss with Second Grandfather?"

"No."

Teacher Qiao cleared her throat and straightened her chest. "Look at me now, is there anything different?"

Chu Tianshu was a little puzzled.

Thinning hair, slightly chubby face, beer belly—nothing special.

Those eyes... hmm?

Chu Tianshu had a sudden inspiration. "Teacher Qiao, you 'Aperture Opening?"

"Yes!"

Teacher Qiao was overjoyed. She stomped her foot, walked out, and gave Chu Tianshu a big hug.

"I 'Aperture Opening! Damn it, at my age, I've finally Aperture Opening! After all these years!"

Chu Tianshu was also very happy for him.

When Teacher Qiao was young, he studied under Chu Tianshu's grandfather, but he never quite Aperture Opening the art.

Later, although he gave up, he did know the complete method of visualization and contemplation, and when he had time, he still wanted to try it again.

When Chu Tianshu was in school, he witnessed Chu Tianshu secretly trying to seduce someone several times in the teachers' office.

Now, we have finally crossed that threshold.

Getting started is the most crucial step. Once you overcome this hurdle, even though the pace of cultivation varies, you'll at least learn a few basic techniques.

"Teacher Qiao, when did this happen?"

It's been almost a month.

When Teacher Qiao mentioned this, her expression showed a hint of amazement.

"After I Aperture Opening, my first thought was to visit your home and share this with the old man's photo. I never expected that before I even left the school, the principal would come looking for me."

"He's actually an expert."

Chu Tianshu asked in surprise, "Principal Li, is he an expert?"

"It's not Principal Li, it's a new principal who was transferred here two months ago."

Teacher Qiao explained, "He claims his cultivation is not deep, but I think he knows far more than I do."

"I heard that people like them who aren't good at fighting are assigned to universities and high schools, and they're even given special magical artifacts, kind of like radars, which are used to find newly Aperture Opening people like us and register us."

Teacher Qiao laughed and said, "He was mainly focused on the students; he didn't expect me to be one of them."

Chu Tianshu pondered, "Since you were originally a high school teacher, wouldn't it be natural for you to be included in the official talent pool?"

"Yes, we usually just do our job. Unlike the Special Investigation Bureau, we don't have to go around investigating cases. We only need to help maintain order in urgent situations."

Teacher Qiao said, "Even this has benefits? Besides a raise, I also received a really powerful Mind Power cultivation method. It's a pity I only have the first level so far. I can only get the rest after I master this."

Judging from Teacher Qiao's statement, at least at the beginner level, his method of Mind Power cultivation is clearly superior to the Annotations on Ghost Gate Witch Medicine.

However, the Annotations on Ghost Gate Witch Medicine focus on medical skills, and the quality of their Mind Power is not their strength.

"I know you're happy, but don't just stand in the snow all the time."

Grandpa called from the kitchen, "Come quick, have some fish soup!"

(End of this chapter)