Intuition

Yue Hong pondered for a moment and offered a suggestion. "I think we could perhaps give him a comprehensive physical examination. That way, we can determine what kind of jin would be best to choose for him." Hearing this, Cheng Zitong immediately voiced his objection. "No! I don't think that's appropriate!" Master Gao asked, "Your reason?" Cheng Zitong said, "Do you have any idea? Today, he not only grasped the Aperture Breathing Technique, but he also managed to master 'transmutation' along the way." He looked around at the others in the room. "I never mentioned a word about it to him beforehand, nor could I have. He intuited it entirely on his own. That is no easy feat—how many students have that kind of comprehension? "Of course, that isn't the main point. The point is that this clearly shows he belongs entirely to the intuitive school! He isn't one of you rationalists! You cannot use rationalist thinking to bind him!" Master Gao and the other two fell silent for a moment. As combat arts saw extensive practical use, they inevitably developed defined systems and synthesized their own theories. Setting aside specific combat techniques, when it came to the overarching direction of cultivation, philosophies diverged, branching into numerous schools of thought. Broadly speaking, however, they were divided into the intuitive school and the rationalist school. The rationalist school believed that cultivation was quantifiable. By utilizing various auxiliary tools to present the body's capabilities in a clear, straightforward manner, one could better master one's own body. The intuitive school, on the other hand, held that the chief joy of martial cultivation lay in the unknown. Exploring the unknown was the most captivating and anticipated aspect, for it represented infinite possibilities; once everything was measured and understood, one became confined by boundaries. Cheng Zitong emphasized, "For the intuitive school, self-will is paramount, and it is also the most precious. They brook no constraint. If he undergoes a physical exam, that sense of the unknown will be shattered!" Bian Feng said in a deep voice, "If that is the case, then no physical exam for now." He knew that for those of the intuitive school, it was not merely the conclusions drawn from an examination; the mere act of being examined could make them feel the unknown had been spoiled, potentially diminishing their drive to train martial arts from then on. Moreover, mutated tissue truly could be influenced to some extent by emotion and will. Detriments of that sort had to be avoided. Yue Hong said, "But without an examination, it will be hard for us to know what kind of jin suits him best." Master Gao looked at Cheng Zitong. "What do you say?" Cheng Zitong replied, "My thought is, since he belongs to the intuitive school, let's solve it the intuitive way. Let him decide for himself. He knows himself better than we do. I can tell this boy has a strong mind of his own; I believe he can make the right choice." Yue Hong worried slightly. "What if he chooses wrong...?" Master Gao said, "Let it be. Even so, it will be his own choice. We can manage heaven and earth, but can we manage him better than he manages himself?" Bian Feng then said, "I think we could perhaps let him look at that jin booklet Old He left behind." Master Gao was silent for a moment before saying, "Agreed." "All right, then that's settled." Cheng Zitong picked up his briefcase and stood up. "I'll head back and get ready, then." "Wait a moment." Master Gao picked up a document from the desk and tossed it to him. "Since you're here today, take this back with you. You're his advising instructor; figure out between yourselves whether he should sit for it." Cheng Zitong caught it, glanced at it, and said, "Understood." With that, he shoved it into his briefcase, offered a greeting to the group, and left. After he left, Yue Hong said, "Master Gao, is Director Cheng truly reliable here? Shouldn't we try to persuade Teacher He to return sooner?" Master Gao said, "I will keep calling him. If there's nothing else, you two may leave as well. I still have matters to attend to." "Yes, Master Gao." The two stood up, bowed slightly to him, and departed. *** Over at the dormitory building, as it was already mealtime, Chen Chuan had a rare free moment, so he went to the school cafeteria to eat with his neighbors, Feng Xiaoqi and Luo Kaiyuan. Over the past few days, the two of them knew Chen Chuan had been training with his advising instructor, so they hadn't disturbed him, and interactions had been sparse. But being young men, they quickly hit it off. Only now did Chen Chuan learn that Feng Xiaoqi's family ran a martial gear shop. Luo Kaiyuan was his usual self, rarely speaking on his own initiative, though he answered earnestly whenever addressed. Chen Chuan asked, "Is Dormitory 1 still empty?" Feng Xiaoqi said, "I haven't seen him today either. Maybe he doesn't stay in the dorms." Chen Chuan nodded in understanding. That was quite possible. In any case, it was a privilege granted to Class A students; even if left unoccupied, the room would not be reclaimed. He asked again, "By the way, have you both found your advising instructors?" Feng Xiaoqi said, "Luo Kaiyuan had great luck—he's studying under Teacher Sun Yunchun from the Sanshou Division. I went with Teacher Ni Xiaolin from the Joint-Locking Division." "A female teacher?" Chen Chuan was surprised. Female instructors generally did not accept male students, especially in disciplines like joint-locking or wrestling and grappling, which required close-quarters grappling and could get rather awkward at times. Feng Xiaoqi laughed. "Teacher Ni is over eighty! I could be her great-grandson. She doesn't care about that sort of thing at all. Plus, she has her own assistants and team. You didn't think I was her only student, did you? She has quite a few, both male and female. It was pure luck that I managed to get in under her." He added, "By the way, our first monthly exam is at the end of the month. Are you ready for it?" Luo Kaiyuan merely said, "Preparing." "What about you, Chen Chuan? Oh right, your teacher only has you as a student, doesn't he?" Feng Xiaoqi said enviously. "There's no way he won't let you pass the monthly exam." Chen Chuan knew that failing the monthly exam would lower one's school rating, but the most crucial assessments were actually the midterm and final exams. The monthly exam was merely an evaluation between advising instructors, whereas for both the midterm and finals, school administrators and even commissioning clients would attend to assess the students' caliber. If someone failed those, they would be demoted directly to Class B students—something no one dared take lightly. After finishing lunch, the three headed back to the dormitory. Just as they reached the stairway, they saw three people walking out of the elevator. The one in the middle was tall and burly with a righteous countenance; another wore a hat that cast a shadow over his face, giving off a thoroughly unsettling feeling; and behind them trailed a massive fellow whose face still looked boyish, though in stature he was scarcely smaller than Zhong Wu. Once they walked past, Feng Xiaoqi whispered to Chen Chuan, "Those guys live opposite us. The leader is Zhuang Zhi, that sinister fellow is Feng Sheng, and the big brute is Zhuang Zhongshan." Chen Chuan looked over and asked, "Are there only three of them as well?" Feng Xiaoqi said, "I heard another student lives off-campus for now and has been hauling stuff into the dorm all this time. I've only caught glimpses of his back a few times." Chen Chuan felt a stir in his mind. Something about this style felt oddly familiar. Just as the three were about to step into the elevator, the dormitory manager called out to him, "Student Chen, telephone call for you. Someone's asking for you." Hearing this, Chen Chuan answered and told the other two to go ahead. He walked over to the public telephone, thanked the manager, and picked up the receiver. "Hello?" Wei Chang'an's voice came through the line. "Junior, how have your first few days of school been?" Chen Chuan smiled. "Brother Wei. I've learned quite a lot." "Good to hear you're making progress. Tomorrow is a rest day—do you want to head home for a visit? I happen to be going back tomorrow to see my dad as well. How about I give you a ride?" Chen Chuan considered it. Since they lived close to each other anyway, he agreed, "Sure." "Great. I'll pick you up tomorrow. There's also something else I wanted to talk to you about; we can discuss it then." After finalizing the plans, Chen Chuan hung up. Returning to his room, he first placed the prepared Initiation Powder into his satchel, then continued consolidating the Aperture Breathing Technique without neglecting his basic breathing technique either, only going to bed when the hour arrived. The next day, around eight in the morning, he received a call from Wei Chang'an, so he gathered his belongings and went downstairs. Seeing the other's Tuotu sedan already parked outside, he greeted him and climbed into the car. As soon as he fastened his seatbelt, Wei Chang'an casually handed him an envelope. "Here." Chen Chuan took it and pulled out a stack of Jianyuan notes. "What is this...?" Wei Chang'an said, "The commission fee from tracking down Chou Huzi last time." Chen Chuan was somewhat surprised. "This much?" Wei Chang'an said, "Much? Not at all. We took a commission to retrieve a person right from the Blood Mark Gang's turf. If an accident happened, there'd be no compensation. We bore all that risk ourselves, and on top of that, the others took seventy percent while we only got thirty. What remained was split fifty-fifty between you and me. But once your Brother Wei becomes a Senior Commissioner, we won't have to get shortchanged like this." As he spoke, he started the engine and drove toward the campus exit. Chen Chuan noticed there were also receipts and official stamps inside the envelope to certify the origin of the money. Putting it all away, he said, "Thanks, Brother Wei." "Hey, like I said, we both come from constabulary families. Your Brother Wei will definitely look out for you." As the sedan exited the school gates, Wei Chang'an said, "By the way, that matter from last time isn't actually over. Chou Huzi confessed that all his previous dealings with Fang Dawei were handled by his bodyguard, Scarface; he never showed his face in person. All of his illicit drugs were kept with Scarface as well. The constabulary is currently searching for Scarface, but there's no trace of him yet. The trail basically went cold there. "My guess is the constabulary won't bother exhausting themselves over it. In the end, they'll almost certainly issue a commission. Since we were the ones following up on it previously, they might come looking for us again. So your Brother Wei has been hunting for clues these past few days too, and I might lay low for a while." Chen Chuan said, "Be careful, Brother Wei." Wei Chang'an smiled. "Don't worry, your Brother Wei knows what he's doing."