Chapter 14: Solution
He Qingqing dragged her weary body back home. Inside the house, a big man sat cross-legged with closed eyes, but he opened them as she entered.
This man was He Jianyong, the leader of Chashan Outpost and He Qingqing's father. He Jianyong had a tall and imposing figure, with muscular arms covered in various scars. His hair, tied in a ponytail at the back of his head, gave him a somewhat wild and rugged appearance, similar to a swordsman in the wind but shorter and messier. However, upon seeing He Qingqing, his stern face softened, revealing a hint of tenderness.
"Qingqing, where were you running off to? Why are you so tired?" he asked.
He Qingqing suddenly smiled mischievously and said, "It's a secret. I won't tell you."
He Jianyong couldn't help but burst into laughter at He Qingqing's playful demeanor.
Suddenly, He Qingqing remembered something and wrinkled her nose as she said to He Jianyong, "Dad, the answer you gave is completely wrong! I won't ask you any questions anymore."
He Jianyong looked puzzled and asked, "What answer?"
He Qingqing gestured and said, "You know, the answer to the question about someone being sick and not needing to see a doctor."
He Jianyong became interested and said, "Oh, is it wrong? What's the correct answer then?"
"The answer is a blind person!" He Qingqing replied.
He Jianyong was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized it and burst into laughter, clutching his stomach. "Hahaha! That's funny! Indeed, it's a blind person, you're right."
He Qingqing stomped her foot in anger and said, "Dad, you're still laughing! Wu Xiang said that only idiots can't answer that question. He doesn't play with idiots."
He Jianyong laughed again and said, "Your little brother's son is quite interesting. Qingqing, you should play with Wu Xiang more often."
"Hmph! You can't even answer this question, so why should I listen to you?" He Qingqing said, frustrated.
He Jianyong scratched his head awkwardly.
...
Su Hao dragged his tired body back home and as soon as he entered, he saw a bowl of vegetable and egg soup handed to him by Wu Yuntian.
Su Hao didn't hesitate and quickly finished the soup in a few sips.
Wu Yuntian took the bowl back and pointed to the arranged cushions, saying, "Sit here and feel the changes in your body."
After saying that, he went out and closed the door behind him.
How to feel it? Su Hao didn't know. He could only try to explore slowly. He cleared his mind, allowing himself to enter a state of blankness where his spirit would be at its highest, similar to meditation. And then...
And then Su Hao fell asleep.
He was just too tired, and couldn't resist falling asleep. It was a mistake.
Checking the log and the time, an hour had passed. During that time, his father had come in once, saw Su Hao sleeping, and left with a smile on his face.
Standing up and stretching his sore legs, Su Hao began to reflect on himself.
"How could I fall asleep when it's such an important matter? Su Hao, your willpower is too weak. You want to cultivate martial arts like this? Dream on!"
He made up his mind to control himself and not fall asleep next time.
But when he thought about the fact that he would have to exhaust himself completely before each meditation session, Su Hao couldn't help but wail in despair, "Being an athlete is so tough."
Early the next morning, the sound of rhythmic running echoed on the training ground.
Originally, Su Hao ran alone, but since He Qingqing and her two intelligent followers knew the secret, they joined Su Hao's group. The four of them jogged together energetically.
To add credibility, Su Hao gave He Qingqing a question, "There are three fish in a creek. One of them is caught, how many fish are left?"
He Qingqing answered eagerly, "Two!"
"Correct! You see, after just one day of running, Qingqing can already answer the questions correctly! She's amazing!" Su Hao praised.
He Qingqing was delighted, and her two followers also gained confidence.
...
Back at home, Su Hao drank the vegetable and egg soup and suddenly asked, "Father, why do we drink vegetable and egg soup?"
"Because it's quickly absorbed by the body," his father replied.
That made sense to Su Hao, so he didn't have any further thoughts and focused on sensing his own body. However, he still didn't achieve anything today. The good news was that he managed to control his desire to sleep.
One month later...
Su Hao opened his eyes after meditating, but shook his head in disappointment. It still didn't work. Over the past month, he had exhausted himself every morning, then drank the soup and meditated, but no matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't sense the blood energy his father had mentioned. He began to doubt if his father's method was flawed.
However, during this month of running and meditating, he did make some progress. His body had become more solid, and the flesh on his hands and feet was no longer soft and weak. His physical strength had greatly increased. Unlike in the beginning, where his legs would tremble after running for a short while, he now had much more endurance. But as his physical strength increased, exhausting himself completely every day became a challenging task.
Through meditation, Su Hao cleared his mind of many distractions. He was no longer like in the beginning, where he would think about what he would have for dinner the next day as soon as he closed his eyes.
Now, during meditation, he could quickly rid his mind of distractions and focus solely on one thing. His thinking became clearer, and he enjoyed the feeling of sitting quietly alone.
In other words, he enjoyed daydreaming.
However, daydreaming didn't help him find the blood energy.
One day, Su Hao sought out Wu Yuntian and expressed his doubts, "Father, I have been following your instructions, exhausting myself and meditating to sense the blood energy. But after a month, there hasn't been any change. Am I doing something wrong?"
Wu Yuntian shook his head and said, "Xiangwu, you're doing it right. But finding the blood energy is not as easy as you imagine. It's the threshold for ordinary people to become martial artists. This threshold can only be crossed by yourself. No one can help you find your own blood energy. That's why not everyone in our human race becomes a martial artist. Every year, countless people are blocked by this threshold and cannot enter the realm of martial arts."
Su Hao furrowed his brows and asked, "So what should I do now?"
Wu Yuntian consoled him, saying, "Don't worry, take your time to comprehend it fully, immerse yourself completely. If one month is not enough, try half a year, and if that's not enough, try a whole year. You will find it."
Su Hao suddenly became curious and asked, "How long did it take you to find your own
blood energy, Father?"
Wu Yuntian didn't want to answer. Could he tell his talented son that it took him a year and a half to barely find his own blood energy? No, he couldn't, because if he did, and his son suddenly found it tomorrow, where would he put his face? The best course of action was to remain silent and let his son guess. After all, his son had given him so many surprises in the past year. Even if he came tomorrow and said he had found the blood energy, Wu Yuntian wouldn't be surprised, right?
Seeing Wu Yuntian's prolonged silence, Su Hao thought that his progress was too slow and that his father didn't want to discourage him. He resolutely said with a determined face, "Alright, Father, don't worry. I will work hard and find the blood energy as soon as possible."
Wu Yuntian nodded and said, "I have something to attend to, I'll be leaving for a while."
Saying that, he left without looking back.
Left alone, Su Hao felt a sense of melancholy. "What should I do? What exactly is this blood energy? It's so mysterious..."
After pondering for a while, Su Hao suddenly raised his head, his eyes shining brightly.
"I have a solution! It will work for sure!"
(Translated by begs)