While the little fox was feeling restless, a program called The Tide of World War II was playing on the TV beside her. A solemn, serious voice announced, "In the year 1941, Hitler launched the Second World War; Germany launched a blitzkrieg against Poland..."
Su Chan started, turning her head with wide, startled eyes toward the television. She was both shocked and fascinated, seemingly unable to comprehend why a human voice was emanating from the screen.
Curiously, she crept up to the television set, tapping and knocking at it.
When the little fox was cultivating in the mountains, she had heard snippets about the world below—things like carriages that moved without horses and metal birds that flew—but she had never encountered a television before.
After knocking and poking for a while without discovering any profound mechanisms, Su Chan grew listless again, her mind inevitably drifting to the matters between herself and Li Yundong.
Just as she was lost in thought, a scene suddenly appeared on the screen: a tank slowly raising its barrel. The muzzle rose higher and higher, then—BOOM!—a cannon fired.
The little fox jumped violently, and in a surge of rage, she slammed a fist directly toward the television.
With a loud BANG, Li Yundong, who was in the kitchen, heard the noise, rushed out to look, and instantly froze!
The television, mounted on the wall, had fallen from its bracket, snapping into two pieces, with electrical sparks still sizzling at the break!
Li Yundong stood speechless, stammering, "Wh-what in the world happened here?"
Su Chan pointed at the ruined set, furious, "Someone inside was trying to scare me!"
Li Yundong nearly fainted, his face a mixture of exasperation and amusement. "That’s a television, Your Highness! You really don't know what a TV is?"
Su Chan looked utterly blank. "I don't..."
Li Yundong felt so depressed he thought he might cough up blood three times over. He inwardly fumed: This stubborn girl is just playing dumb. All she wanted was a kiss, was this retaliation necessary? Now look, this TV cost at least five thousand dollars, and it’s gone without a trace!
Seeing Li Yundong’s dark expression, Su Chan asked cautiously, "Are you angry?"
Li Yundong looked at her timid, almost childlike demeanor, as if she had done something wrong. All the anger and vexation he felt melted away; he couldn't utter a harsh word. He forced a strained smile. "N-no."
Li Yundong, thoroughly dispirited, dragged the broken television to the doorway, intending to discard it when he went downstairs later, then find time to buy an identical replacement before the landlord noticed.
After that incident, the rest of the meal was subdued. Although the little fox still ate without a care in the world, Li Yundong picked at his food, which tasted like chewing wax.
Seeing Li Yundong’s mood, even the little fox knew she had caused trouble again. Overcome with guilt, she retreated to the bedroom early.
After cleaning up the room, Li Yundong lay on the carpet, his eyes fixed on the chandelier hanging from the ceiling, staring vacantly while his mind replayed the day's events.
Recalling how he had kicked Zeng Qing flying and punched Zhao Yujian across the room, Li Yundong felt as if he had just woken from a dream. In the past, these were things he wouldn't dare even imagine.
Over the next few days, Li Yundong realized he must have undergone some sort of change—certainly not just unlocking potential. Who could continuously push their potential every single day?
Li Yundong knew that the world's top special forces operatives could generate pressure reaching over a thousand kilograms with just their thumb and forefinger, enough to crush a piece of ice the size of a thumb!
But this required intentionally controlling adrenaline secretion—squeezing out one’s limits to do what ordinary people absolutely could not. Moreover, this came at the cost of depleting one's lifespan and reserves. Use it too often, and one could even face death!
Li Yundong considered how many incredible things he had done recently. If all that stemmed from draining his reserves, he’d likely be dead by now!
Yet, he felt robust and vigorous. This proved that something fundamental had happened; his body had undergone an alteration, though he couldn't precisely name what that change was.
What Li Yundong could be certain of, however, was that this change had to be a good thing!
Lying on the carpet, Li Yundong felt an intense surge of emotion, his whole body buzzing with restless energy, desperate to release it somewhere.
The more he thought, the more excited he became. He abruptly sprang up and threw a punch into the air. WHOOSH.
With that punch, it felt as though a valve had opened throughout Li Yundong’s entire system, causing all his meridians to boil with hot blood. He felt as though his entire being was about to ignite, an inexplicable power like constantly expanding and fermenting dough, filling every blood vessel, every muscle, every strand of hair!
Li Yundong stepped into a low stance and snapped out another punch. As the strike flew, his hair instantly stood on end with a shhhhwip.
However, Li Yundong was completely focused on savoring the feeling of strength in his hands and failed to notice this strange phenomenon.
The little fox, hiding in the room, heard the commotion outside and quietly pulled the door open a crack. The moment she saw Li Yundong’s state, her heart instantly brightened: Good! Has he finally sensed the Golden Core Divine Power within him?
Especially when she saw his hair standing wildly on end, a smile of pure delight spread across her face, like a farmer admiring his thriving crops!
The little fox knew this was the manifestation of the body’s vital energy (Xue Qi) reaching its absolute peak, like steam venting from a pressure cooker, the most supreme, potent energy surging out from the Baihui acupoint on the crown of his head.
In the Taoist schools the little fox was familiar with, practitioners believed the human body contained three essences: Jing (Essence), Qi (Energy), and Xue (Blood). The body also housed three Dantians: the Lower Dantian below the navel, the Middle Dantian at the heart, and the Upper Dantian in the brain.
The Lower Dantian stored Essence, the Middle Dantian stored Energy, and the Upper Dantian stored Spirit (Shen). Taoist cultivators believed that as the blood circulated, the Essence and Energy from the upper and middle Dantians were transported with the fresh blood to the Upper Dantian in the head, thus achieving the "Three Flowers Converged at the Crown" (San Hua Ju Ding).
This process of guiding Jing, Qi, and Xue to the top of the head and refining the Three Flowers into Spirit was what was commonly known as the "Lesser Heavenly Cycle" (Xiao Zhou Tian) cultivation.
Su Chan’s application of the "Three-Pronged Flower Examiner" massage technique to Li Yundong’s three major head points was passively inducing him into this Lesser Heavenly Cycle cultivation. But anything done passively never yielded results as good as those achieved actively.
Although Li Yundong was currently just throwing punches, this unconscious boiling rush of systemic blood, leading to the convergence of the Three Flowers, was unknowingly aligning with the principles of the "Lesser Heavenly Cycle."
The little fox chuckled secretly. She knew that only when all Three Flowers were fully converged at the crown could the practitioner cultivate the "Spirit" (Shen). This Shen was not the spirit of an immortal, but the spirit of consciousness itself—the cultivator's most profound True Essence, also known as "Mental Power."
Once Li Yundong cultivated the Three Flowers Converged at the Crown to a certain degree, the resultant "Spirit" could be used to internally observe his own five organs. Then, Li Yundong could begin the deeper cultivation of the "Five Energies Returning to the Origin" (Wu Qi Chao Yuan), the Greater Heavenly Cycle!
Upon completing both the "Three Flowers Converged at the Crown" and the "Five Energies Returning to the Origin," Li Yundong would be able to officially proceed with Foundation Establishment and become a true cultivator!
And once Li Yundong successfully established his Foundation, the little fox could finally practice Cai Yang Bu Yin (drawing on Yang to supplement Yin)!
Thinking of this, the little fox couldn't help but beam with joy. But after only a moment of delight, she recalled how kind Li Yundong had been to her, and somehow, a faint ache bloomed in her chest, a choked feeling.
Su Chan quickly began to chant repeatedly in her mind: He stole my Human Essence Golden Core, he stole my Human Essence Golden Core. After repeating this dozens of times, her heart finally began to feel a little better.
Li Yundong was completely unaware of what the little fox Su Chan was thinking. He only felt a trembling excitement coursing through him; this unprecedented sense of power made him feel as if he were about to swell, ignite, or perhaps even explode!
Recalling the various kicks Zhao Yujian had launched during their earlier spar, Li Yundong suddenly felt the urge to imitate one of Zhao Yujian’s high kicks.
The moment this thought arose, the blood and Qi throughout Li Yundong’s body instantly surged toward his right heel, causing the tendons in his foot to contract and stretch sharply. The entire leg’s sinews were instantly pulled open!
He balanced on his toes, and with a snap, he kicked his leg straight up, executing a perfectly positioned high kick!
Even a ninth-dan black belt Taekwondo grandmaster couldn't find a single fault with that move.
Li Yundong was both excited and ecstatic. In the past, he couldn't even do a proper splits, let alone execute a kick that went from heel to head with such crispness! At that moment, Li Yundong experienced an illusion: he was omnipotent!
He glanced up at the chandelier hanging from the living room ceiling, acted without thinking, sprang up, and delivered a flying kick. His toe struck the light fixture, over two meters high, making it swing wildly with a clang.
Li Yundong had just done it on impulse, wanting to see if he could reach such a high light, never expecting that he actually could! The mixture of satisfaction, accomplishment, and exhilaration caused Li Yundong to roar out in wild joy: "Yeah!!"
But the shout had barely ended when he heard a creaking sound from above. He looked up and saw the chandelier swaying violently before crashing down directly onto him with a K-THWANG!
Li Yundong was hit squarely, falling backward while clutching the chandelier, letting out a sharp cry.
The little fox Su Chan, watching from the doorway, was doubled over with laughter. Li Yundong sat up, rubbing his head, and shot Su Chan a glare, which only made her laugh harder.
Li Yundong’s face flushed red from her amusement. He pretended to look ferocious and lunged toward Su Chan. With a startled laugh, Su Chan quickly shut the door with a bang.
Rubbing his forehead and nose at the doorway, Li Yundong trudged back to the carpet, looked down at the fallen chandelier, then up at the gaping hole in the ceiling. He forced a wry smile: "Now this is just great—misfortune never comes singly! The TV broke, and now the chandelier is broken. Could today be my day for losing money?"
================================================================= Yesterday my mother-in-law came to Suzhou for a follow-up consultation, so I accompanied her all day. Two updates as scheduled today~