As soon as the young woman left, Ding Jiao darted over from behind. He clapped Chen Chuan on the shoulder and said with exaggerated excitement, "Chen Chuan, Brother Chuan! Here I thought you were keeping quiet for nothing, and all along you were just waiting to set off such a massive firecracker!" He looked even more thrilled than Chen Chuan. "Wuyi College! That's Wuyi College!"
Chen Chuan shook his head. "I haven't passed the retest yet."
"Even if you haven't passed the retest, you've already tested into it!" Ding Jiao bellowed. "When I brag about this later and say my buddy goes to Wuyi College, who's gonna dare talk back?"
By this point, the rest of the classmates in the room had grown remarkably warm, and people began coming up one after another asking for his contact information. Chen Chuan politely declined, using the excuse that he would soon be moving out of his uncle's home and it wasn't convenient to share his details right now.
He needed to step up his training in the days ahead and truly had no time to waste on these social pleasantries.
Even the classmate who had been fawning over Han Shu a moment earlier eagerly sidled up to chat with him, never once returning to his original table.
Han Shu sat alone at his seat. After hesitating for a long while, he finally stood up, walked over with a stiff expression, and said, "Chen Chuan, I really didn't expect you to test into Wuyi College. Congratulations. Let's keep in touch often from now on."
Chen Chuan shook his head. "Let's hold off on staying in touch for a while. We can talk about it later."
Han Shu assumed Chen Chuan was deliberately targeting him and secretly gritted his teeth, but on the surface, he could only squeeze out an unnatural smile. "Right, sure."
After dealing with several waves of classmates who came by in turn, Chen Chuan was finally able to sit in peace and eat. His appetite had grown enormous since starting his training; no sooner was a plate of food set down than he finished it off smoothly in just a few breaths, leaving Ding Jiao completely dumbfounded.
Chen Chuan had a feeling that the conversion efficiency of ordinary food was very low, incapable of meeting the demands of his training.
No wonder Yu Gang had said that nutritional paste was the mainstream staple at Wuyi College. It supplied the necessary nutrients without wasting too much time on eating. Its only drawback was the lack of flavor, which became sickening after eating too much of it, though Chen Chuan didn't mind that in the least.
The gathering lasted until around seven or eight in the evening before finally drawing to a close. Aside from the classmates living near the city center who had planned further activities, those living a bit farther out all decided to head back early. After nine at night was when gang members were most active, and combined with all kinds of bizarre urban legends, being out late was never particularly safe.
After saying their goodbyes to the crowd of classmates at the hotel entrance, Chen Chuan and Ding Jiao walked out together. Ding Jiao said, "I came on my two-wheeled motor vehicle—the one I modified with my own hands. Runs like a beast! How about I give you a ride?"
Chen Chuan replied, "I rode my bicycle, and my place isn't far. You'd have to take a detour to drop me off. It's better for you to get home early tonight."
"All right then." Ding Jiao remained thoroughly energized. He patted Chen Chuan and said, "Man, how did you manage to get into Wuyi College? That's Wuyi College! Once you pass the retest, you have to treat me to a meal no matter what, so I can show off in front of my buddies."
Chen Chuan smiled and agreed. Bidding Ding Jiao farewell, he crossed the street to the shed where he had parked his bicycle. Looking back once more at the lights outside the hotel and the classmates gradually dispersing, he pushed down on the pedals and rode toward home.
By this hour, pedestrians and vehicles were sparse, leaving the streets open and empty. In less than twenty minutes, he was back home. Entering the front courtyard, he saw a glowing spark flickering in the dark. A silhouette sat smoking on the rear rack of a bicycle. He said, "Uncle?"
Nian Fuli gave a grunt. "I read the note you left. Go ahead, tell me what happened."
Chen Chuan had suspected the business with Mr. Qi might have wider implications, so he had mentioned it in passing on the note he left during the day. He parked his bicycle first, then recounted the course of events right there in the courtyard.
After listening through, Nian Fuli took several deep drags, stubbed out the cigarette, and said, "It's fine. You can keep studying under Yu Gang. Don't ask about anything else. If that Mr. Qi shows up again, just steer clear of him. Yu Gang will handle him for you."
"All right, Uncle. I'll head back to my room then," Chen Chuan said.
"Go on," Nian Fuli said.
Once Chen Chuan had stepped inside, Yu Wan came out carrying a jacket. Nian Fuli said, "The boy has shaped up a lot compared to before."
Yu Wan said, "Oh, you. Chan'er has always been good; he's just more sensible now."
Nian Fuli stood up, holding the handlebars with one hand. "All right, Xiao Wu is holding down the fort at the bureau. I need to get back right away. Those resistance groups have started making trouble again lately. They never give us any peace."
Yu Wan hurriedly handed him the jacket. "Take this with you. The chill runs deep at night."
Nian Fuli took it, stuffed it into the front basket of his bicycle, and waved a hand. "Head back inside, don't stand out here." With that, he wheeled the bicycle out of the front courtyard.
Yu Wan listened until the sounds faded down the lane, then went forward to latch the gate securely. After checking it once more, she returned to the house.
Though Chen Chuan had walked into the inner rooms, he could still clearly hear their conversation in the front courtyard. He guessed his aunt must have seen the note and called Nian Fuli home, and his uncle had waited quite a while for him.
He paused for a brief moment until he heard the sound of Yu Wan returning inside and bolting the door. Only then did he return to his own room. Changing out of his coat, he grabbed a set of clothes, went to the bathroom to take a shower, and returned to flip through a book for a while. Seeing that it was about time, he turned off the light and went to sleep.
The next morning, he left early and jogged all the way to the House of Fists. The moment he stepped inside, he saw Lu Ke stretching out his body. Chen Chuan greeted him, "Morning, Brother Lu. Everything all right after yesterday?"
Lu Ke shook his head, hesitated for a moment, and said, "Thank you."
Chen Chuan said, "For what?"
Lu Ke replied, "I know Master didn't actually want to accept Mr. Qi's offer. If you hadn't stood up then, Master would have been forced to agree."
Chen Chuan said frankly, "I had my own reasons for doing so, and Mr. Yu still ended up agreeing to their terms in the end anyway. I didn't make much of a difference."
"That's different!" Lu Ke insisted. "Regardless, you were willing to stand up for Master yesterday, so I owe you my thanks."
Seeing his solemn demeanor, Chen Chuan nodded and asked, "Is Mr. Yu upstairs?"
"Master is in," Lu Ke said. "You can go straight up."
Chen Chuan said fine and headed up to the second floor, walking to the end of the veranda corridor. He knocked on the door. "Mr. Yu, it's me, Chen Chuan."
With a creak, the door was pulled open from inside, revealing Yu Gang's burly figure. "Come in," he told him.
After entering, Chen Chuan first placed the prepared fifty yuan into his hand, then said, "Mr. Yu, I'd like to ask you a question."
Yu Gang gestured for him to sit. "Have a seat. What do you want to ask?"
Chen Chuan waited until Yu Gang was seated before taking his own seat. "Mr. Yu, are there many people who know how to use jin?"
Yu Gang gave an "mm" of acknowledgment. "Not really that many. If a breathing technique is something anyone can master through rigorous training, then out of ten people who know a breathing technique, not even one might be able to use jin. Complete jin, in particular, is exceptionally hard to master. Sometimes fighters have no choice but to settle for minor forms of jin that are easier to grasp."
Chen Chuan said, "Like Ding Shuo yesterday?"
"It wasn't necessarily that Ding Shuo couldn't master it," Yu Gang said. "It's more likely he was anxious to build his own fighting system and develop combat capability quickly, so he mastered minor jin first and plans to refine it gradually later. That happens quite often among fighters outside the academy system."
Chen Chuan asked again, "Then Mr. Yu, during my entrance retest, is it possible I might run into upperclassmen who have mastered jin?"
Yu Gang answered slowly, "Although such students haven't appeared often in past examinations, the possibility can't be ruled out."
Chen Chuan straightened his posture and humbly asked, "Then how should an examinee defeat an opponent like that? Mr. Yu, you mentioned that some students, even if they've trained from childhood, haven't mastered breathing techniques before entering the school. Going up against an upperclassman like that would seem to leave them with no chance at all."
Yu Gang said, "Knocking down your opponent in the retest is the surest route, as it results in an immediate pass. But after all, it operates on a scoring system. If you face a student who has mastered jin, the academy will grade with discretion. If you aren't aiming for a high score, an examinee can even wear protective gear. Besides, don't view people who know jin as untouchable. In the final analysis, it's just a combat tool. It has flaws and drawbacks, and there are ways to counter it."
While Chen Chuan didn't know the exact grading criteria of Wuyi College, settling for a low score was certainly not what he was after. He continued to ask, "Mr. Yu, if I encounter an opponent as tough and resilient as Ding Shuo during the retest, how should I go about winning?"
Yu Gang said, "While breathing techniques can enhance one's durability, the vital core lies entirely in the breath itself. If the breath cannot be maintained, that durability drops accordingly.
"And when jin hasn't been mastered to a high enough level, every application still requires the coordination of a breathing technique. Therefore, if you can disrupt and break your opponent's breathing rhythm—even if only causing them to momentarily lose the support of their breathing technique—you'll have an opening."
Chen Chuan mused inwardly, *Disrupting the rhythm...*
Yu Gang said, "Don't overcomplicate it. In combat, most people who get knocked down are struck the very instant they launch a move. So if you can land a blow on your target one step ahead, right at the instant the opponent releases their jin, you can shatter their breathing rhythm—or even take them down in a single strike.
"It's just that this requires extraordinarily fast reflexes and pinpoint precision, which is generally hard to pull off. Still, given your talent, I don't think it's out of reach."
At this point, he emphasized, "In truth, the most proper way to take down an enemy will always come down to delivering a powerful blow. As long as your strike is powerful enough, there is no need to worry about anything else. That is the orthodox path."
"Yet Mr. Yu, I seem incapable of doing that right now..."
"It isn't entirely impossible," Yu Gang said. "It all depends on the price you're willing to pay. The human body isn't incapable of exerting greater power; it's merely restricted by self-preservation mechanisms. I can teach you a method that uses the breathing technique to briefly unleash greater speed and power. You can think of it as an unrefined form of 'jin.' The cost is that your body will suffer corresponding damage."
Hearing this, Chen Chuan's eyes lit up. With the existence of his Second Self, he didn't need to worry overly much about such physical damage. He said earnestly, "Please instruct me, Mr. Yu."
Yu Gang stood up and walked over to a heavy sandbag chained to the wall. He said in a deep voice, "Watch closely."
He sank his center of gravity slightly and suddenly let out a low bark, throwing a punch at the same instant. It looked like nothing more than a plain, straightforward punch, yet with a resounding thud, it punched clean through the sandbag! As he drew his fist back, the shredded padding, cotton, and sand all came pouring out.
Chen Chuan couldn't help thinking: *If a punch like that landed on a person...*
Just as the thought crossed his mind, Yu Gang spun around without warning and drove a fist straight toward Chen Chuan's face!
...
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Chapter 18