In a spacious courtyard filled with numerous slender wooden stakes.
A handsome young man in a gray, short-sleeved training uniform was leaping back and forth between the posts.
His steps were light, his figure as graceful as a swallow.
A closer look revealed that he even had sandbags tied around his ankles.
This was none other than Jiang Che, practicing his Qinggong at home.
Half a month had passed since his return from the escort mission.
Jiang Che had meticulously read the Qinggong Secret Manual titled *Flying Swallow Step*.
Following its instructions, he had planted wooden stakes in the courtyard and begun his training.
In the beginning, Jiang Che constantly fell off the stakes.
He just couldn't reach the Entry Level.
But as his movements became more practiced, he was able to enter the Heart Stream State, and things improved significantly.
"HUFF—"
Jiang Che leaped down and removed the sandbags from his ankles.
[Flying Swallow Step: Entry Level (1/100)]
A line of text flashed before his eyes.
'I've finally reached the Entry Level!'
Jiang Che's heart leaped with joy.
He looked at the surrounding wall, about two meters high, and an idea struck him.
With a powerful push from his legs—SWOOSH—he easily vaulted over the wall.
A tan cat in the corner was so startled its back arched, and it hissed furiously.
'I can jump this high just at the Entry Level. What will it be like when I reach Perfection?'
Jiang Che was stunned by the power of the Flying Swallow Step.
'Now to test my speed…'
He set the corner of the alley as his target, estimating the distance to be about one hundred meters.
He took a deep breath, circulated the Qi Blood in his body, and then forcefully pushed off the ground.
His figure shot out like a bolt of lightning—WHOOSH—so fast it almost left an afterimage.
A woman who had just stepped out of her house carrying a bamboo basket froze.
'Huh? What was that just now? Was I seeing things?'
She rubbed her eyes, wondering if she hadn't slept well last night.
Just as he reached the corner, Jiang Che tapped his foot lightly and came to an instant stop.
'About ten breaths… less than ten seconds! Around eight seconds!'
Jiang Che made a quick calculation and was shocked himself.
His current speed had already surpassed the world champion sprinters of his previous life!
And by a huge margin!
'Cultivation Techniques… Qi Blood… This world is incredible!'
Jiang Che's eyes shone with excitement.
This experience of constantly growing stronger, of surpassing human limits, felt amazing.
After all, in his previous life, Jiang Che had been nothing more than an office-bound otaku with thick glasses who would get winded after a short jog.
The feeling of running freely and unleashing his body's power was something he had only ever experienced in video games.
But now, it had become his reality.
Although a large part of his motivation for getting stronger was to find his parents, protect his sister, and simply survive, a desire to climb to the Peak of the Martial Dao was slowly growing in the depths of his heart!
'Power is freedom!'
"Brother, time for dinner!"
Jiang Ling opened the main door and leaned out to call into the courtyard.
She was wearing an apron, and a fine sheen of sweat beaded her forehead from the heat of cooking.
"Huh? Where'd he go?"
Seeing no one in the courtyard, Jiang Ling was puzzled.
'He was just here a moment ago.'
Suddenly, a figure leaped over the wall with a THUD.
"Ah!"
Jiang Ling jumped in fright. Taking a closer look, she saw it was Jiang Che.
"Brother! Why'd you jump in like a frog!"
Jiang Ling giggled.
"A frog?" Jiang Che's face twitched. "Wasn't that cool? This is the Qinggong your big brother has been practicing!"
"So cool, so cool. Now hurry up and eat before it gets cold!" Jiang Ling said as she went back inside.
Jiang Che shook his head. 'This sister of mine is getting more and more like Mom!'
'Not only has she started running the house, but she also doesn't worship me like she did when we were kids!'
Jiang Che then went inside.
On the large, mahogany Eight Immortals Table, there was a plate of stir-fried lettuce stem with pork, a plate of stir-fried green peppers with egg, a plate of pan-fried tofu, and a tureen of lotus root and pork rib soup.
The staple food was fluffy, distinct grains of white rice.
Jiang Che picked up a piece of the stir-fried lettuce stem and pork with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
The lettuce stem was crisp.
But the pork was a bit tough.
And it seemed a little too salty.
He then tried a spoonful of the soup.
It seemed to have no salt at all.
"Delicious... really delicious!" Jiang Che said.
He didn't want to crush his sister's confidence.
When the family was poor, they would just throw meals together without much care.
Now that their circumstances had improved, she was cooking dishes they didn't usually eat, so it was natural for her to be inexperienced at first.
"I asked the auntie next door to teach me. She's super nice!" Jiang Ling smiled, revealing a dimple.
As their living conditions had greatly improved, her face had gradually filled out, and her complexion had become much rosier.
Jiang Che nodded. 'I hope that auntie is actually teaching her properly…'
He shoveled a mouthful of rice and began to eat with his head down.
'No matter what, it's better than Exotic Beast Meat…'
As Jiang Che ate, his mind mulled over recent events.
Ever since returning from Hengsha City, he couldn't stop thinking about the Young Servant from Li Yuanwai's Mansion.
For the past half-month, he had appeared normal on the surface.
But inwardly, he had been under immense pressure.
He was afraid they would uncover something and send assassins after him.
Fortunately, all had been quiet, and his fears had not materialized.
He breathed a sigh of relief because of this.
During this time, he had also found opportunities to ask Zhang Xiong and Escort Sun about Li Yuanwai's Mansion.
But they clearly knew nothing.
They even found it strange that Jiang Che was asking about it.
Jiang Che then understood: Li Yuanwai's Mansion was hiding its secrets well.
Although he didn't know who they were or what they were plotting, Jiang Che had a persistent, uneasy feeling.
Before they knew it, the two had finished their meal.
Jiang Ling immediately began clearing the table, taking the dishes to the back kitchen to wash.
Watching Jiang Ling's busy figure, Jiang Che's mood gradually calmed.
This kind of life with family, though simple, was the most comforting.
This was the life Jiang Che had always longed for.
His gaze gradually grew determined.
This happy, peaceful life—he would not allow anyone to destroy it!
「In the following half-month.」
Every day, after finishing his Cloud-Stacking Fist practice at the Martial Arts Hall, Jiang Che would return home early to practice the Flying Swallow Step.
As the days accumulated, his Skill Level in the Flying Swallow Step steadily increased.
Meanwhile, his Cloud-Stacking Fist had also finally reached Minor Achievement.
「White Cloud Martial Arts Hall, Disciple Courtyard.」
[Cloud-Stacking Fist: Minor Achievement (1/200)]
Looking at the line of small text that appeared, Jiang Che breathed a sigh of relief.
After reaching Minor Achievement, he felt that his Fist Technique had entered a completely new Domain.
Not only was his power generation smoother, but he could even use less force to produce a stronger effect.
'There's less wasted effort…'
Jiang Che mused.
'I wonder what it'll be like when I reach Great Success?'
Jiang Che was curious.
But in the following days, no matter how much Jiang Che practiced, his Skill Level wouldn't increase at all.
During this period, through his master's lectures and discussions with Zhang Xiong, he crammed a great deal of knowledge about cultivation.
And he finally understood the root of his problem.
Simply put, his Qi Blood hadn't kept up.
It turned out that to continue improving the Cloud-Stacking Fist from the Minor Achievement level, one needed Qi Blood that had broken through to the Stone Skin Realm.
Without the corresponding Qi Blood of the Stone Skin Realm, many of its effects could not be produced.
It was like a four-wheel-drive toy car that needed two batteries.
If you only put in one battery, it wouldn't run.
Of course, this situation was unique to Jiang Che.
Because he, at merely the Bull Skin Realm, had mastered a Fist Technique to the level of the Stone Skin Realm.
For anyone else, this was simply impossible.
'Looks like I'll just have to wait until I've fully cultivated my Qi Blood.'
Jiang Che sighed.