Could he proceed to the next training?
Chen Chuan's spirits rose. It was not hard for him to realize that each training exercise he underwent was connected to the others; only by meeting the conditions of the previous one could he proceed to the next.
Yet it would undoubtedly be even more difficult.
However, only training like this could truly improve him.
He Xiaoxing said, "The bottoms of some of the shafts here are not sealed off; they connect with one another. Since you already possess the ability to stay submerged underwater, what I require of you next is to swim rapidly between the shafts.
"I will lower markers to the bottoms of most shafts without telling you beforehand which ones have them. You need to gather a sufficient number of markers within a set time limit."
Hearing this, Chen Chuan grew far more serious. The difficulty had surged drastically in an instant. Movement was entirely different from remaining still. Not only would it multiply his physical exertion, but navigating unfamiliar underwater passages would also bring many unforeseen hardships and dangers.
Furthermore, judging by the fact that there was a time limit, his speed could not be slow either. Even he could not be sure how far he could manage.
Chang Ba swallowed hard. Submerged swimming already? Back then, he had plucked up the courage to give it a try too, but gave up very quickly.
Because swimming through deep, long underwater tunnels with unknown origins and destinations meant that with just one slip, you might fail to find the way out. If your physical stamina ran out or your internal breathing faltered just as you entered a narrow passage, there would be virtually no hope of making it back to the surface. It caused severe psychological pressure.
Back then, after trying it briefly and climbing back out, he felt as if he had returned from hell—he had never felt the world of the living was so wonderful.
Fighting arts, family wealth, girlfriends—none of that mattered to him anymore. At that moment, he only wanted to lie down quietly, breathe the air smoothly, and be bathed in warm sunlight. Before that, he had never imagined that the everyday things he encountered were so wonderful.
And that had only been about ten minutes of swimming down there. Given Chen Chuan's performance just now, there was no telling how long he would stay down. Chang Ba truly didn't dare to imagine it.
He Xiaoxing said, "I'll give you another half hour to rest and adjust."
Chen Chuan nodded solemnly. He checked his watch, went over to the side, sat cross-legged, and began adjusting his condition. This time, he coordinated both his internal and external breathing techniques, doing his best to recover his stamina.
Chang Ba thought, *Good grief.* He finally understood—the reason He Xiaoxing had called Chen Chuan out just before he reached his limit earlier was precisely to leave a margin of reserve so that he could proceed with the next phase of training.
It had all been calculated in advance.
This was truly cranking up the intensity.
Still, this was not the hardest part yet; as for that most difficult hurdle, he didn't even think it was possible.
Half an hour later, Chen Chuan checked his watch, stood up slowly, and said, "Teacher He, I'm ready."
He Xiaoxing pointed toward a pit ahead. "Start from there. I'll give you one hour. The more markers you find in an hour, the better. Pay attention; when the time is up, I'll signal for you to come up."
Chen Chuan nodded. He walked to the edge of the pit and leaped in without hesitation.
This time, after swimming all the way to the bottom and feeling around briefly, he located a passage and swam forward.
However, these underwater tunnels were not smooth or straight. Instead, they wound and twisted, rising and dipping unevenly. Passing through quickly all at once was practically impossible; doing so would inevitably lead to bumps and scrapes.
Brute force was out of the question. Throughout the process, he had to focus his mind on sensing the direction and speed of the current, while simultaneously maintaining his internal breathing and resisting the invasion of foreign matter. It was grueling right from the start.
Above ground, He Xiaoxing stood watching, yet his steps were moving as well. If anyone could have seen Chen Chuan below at this moment, they would have noticed that He Xiaoxing was moving almost directly above him, never far away.
Presently, he held out his hand. Chang Ba hurriedly passed over a metal marker attached to a rope. With a toss, He Xiaoxing threw it down into one of the pits. Once it sank and pulled the rope down with it, he tossed another into a nearby pit.
Chen Chuan felt himself pass through a tunnel, but from down below, he could not intuitively determine whether the opening above led to the surface or was merely a channel heading upward.
He swam around the vicinity, and his hand suddenly brushed against a rope. Tracing it, he found a metal object. His mind settled at once, and he realized that these markers also served as guideposts—they indicated that an opening to the surface lay above. If he could no longer hold out, he could head straight back up through it, subtly reducing some of the danger.
He didn't need to carry the object with him, so he tugged on it twice to signal that he had found it, then quickly swam toward another waterway.
The greatest danger of navigating here was that he had no idea of the waterways' lengths. If his strength gave out halfway through or his internal breathing faltered for an instant, trouble could strike immediately. He had to keep his mind taut with focus while doing his best to memorize the paths he had taken.
Generally speaking, navigating in such a lightless place made it very easy to lose one's sense of direction. However, for one thing, the markers bore raised numbers, so touching them gave him a rough idea of whether he had encountered them before.
For another, likely under the influence of his mutated tissues, he possessed an uncanny intuition; without relying on conscious judgment, his body memory alone seemed able to clearly tell whether he had swum through his current location before.
Next, he found several more markers in succession. By now, he had completely lost all sense of time, knowing only to keep swimming, to keep heading to the next spot.
After touching yet another marker, he suddenly felt ripples of tugs trembling down the rope and knew it was the signal to surface. He climbed and floated up along the rope. When he saw light appearing above, he kicked hard with his legs, broke through the surface, and pushed himself up onto the rim of the pit, sitting there.
He wiped his face, caught his breath for a moment, and then dragged his heavy body to his feet, breathing deeply of the fresh outside air.
At this moment, he had never felt the world to be so vast, so wonderfully refreshing.
He Xiaoxing waited until he had recovered somewhat before speaking: "One hour and seven minutes. You went over by seven minutes, and you touched four markers in total. That can only be considered barely passing. Rest for a while; we'll go again in half an hour."
Chen Chuan drew a breath and nodded. This time, he had not used it either.
Half an hour later, he leaped into the pit once more. This attempt went better than the last; he retrieved two more markers and surfaced ahead of time within the hour.
Seeing that there was still ample time, after resting for another half hour, he went for another round.
This actually indicated that his condition was already declining, and the training's effectiveness was waning as well.
He Xiaoxing stopped things decisively and said, "Within three days, you must retrieve twelve markers within an hour. Only if you can manage that will we enter the final stage of training. That will be all for today. Go back, use medicine to repair your injuries, and don't do any extra training. Rest well and we will continue tomorrow."
Chang Ba breathed a sigh of relief as well. He had been pacing around up top, yet it felt even more nerve-racking than being down below. By now, his attitude toward Chen Chuan had changed completely. "Brother Chen, take a rest. I'll go bring the car around," he said.
With that, he dashed off, returning a moment later with the vehicle. By now, Chen Chuan had taken off the diving suit and changed back into his previous clothes. Once inside the car, he leaned back against the soft cushion.
To be honest, he was thoroughly exhausted today—a long-unfelt fatigue, yet deeply fulfilling.
He felt as though he had returned to the days when he knew nothing at all and was just beginning to learn fighting techniques under Yu Gang, with a novel sense of starting anew and a feeling of urgency.
Back then, he needed to pass the second-round entrance exam; now, he needed to face the pressure coming from the Mutual Aid Society. Though the goals were different, both undoubtedly concerned his future and destiny, and both were things he had to carve out for himself.
After returning to the inn, he went to wash up, checking his condition in passing.
It indicated there was considerable damage, but he didn't remove it directly. This was the key to supercompensation, so natural rest would suffice; as for any hidden injuries that truly couldn't be eliminated, he would leave them to be dealt with later.
Coming out, he took some medicine to aid his body's recovery. Because He Xiaoxing had instructed him, he did not train any extra, only doing some simple exercises—rehearsing his blade forms and Orthodox Sanshou to keep his body memory fresh.
By now, night had fallen. After settling into a chair, he switched on the radio sitting on the desk.
Initially, he only wanted to relax, but he soon discovered that many of the programs here were related to Luoya Ancient City, and some people had even spun adventure stories based on past events, blending fact with fiction.
He felt as though he had struck treasure and listened in one breath until around nine o'clock. Only then did he turn the dial off and head to bed.
A night passed, and another day arrived.
Chen Chuan opened his eyes and checked the time by the dim light; it was exactly four o'clock.
To him, it felt as though he had only just closed his eyes. Even in the past, he had rarely slept so deeply, which showed he had indeed been utterly exhausted yesterday.
Yet he felt fully recovered now, his spirits high. He checked his condition; after a night of sleep, all the damage to his body had been repaired.
He got out of bed, washed up, ate a tube of nutritional paste, and walked out with his things. The moment he reached the door, he saw Chang Ba had already parked the car there and waved a hand to greet him. "Morning, Brother Chen. Hop in."
Chen Chuan wished him a good morning in return and got straight into the car. At just past four in the morning, the town remained quiet and still. The headlights illuminated the road ahead all the way up the mountain. After picking up He Xiaoxing, the vehicle turned back down the mountain and once again approached the area of the pits from yesterday.
Curiously, however, the car did not stop this time. Instead, it continued driving forward, finally arriving at a place enclosed by wooden stakes and barbed wire.
Chapter 167