"It's a good thing we caught this early. This kid..."
Li Cunxin shook his head. The meaning was obvious: if they had discovered it any later, even he would have been powerless.
Zhao Rui nodded. Although Li Cunxin hadn't taught him medical arts, he would sometimes bring him along for consultations to broaden his horizons.
He'd seen plenty of cases where someone's Meridians were thrown into chaos from taking a potion.
Did people really think that just because the Martial Dao was common knowledge, Martial Artists were roaming every street?
Out of billions of ordinary people, how many actually practiced Martial Arts?
And how many of them had any talent for the Martial Dao?
The single step of achieving Qi Sensing was a barrier that stopped countless aspiring young martial artists in their tracks.
Take Zhao Rui's own First High School, for instance. Out of more than two thousand students, a mere two hundred or so were Martial Arts Students.
That alone showed you just how rare Martial Arts Students were.
Since so many people wanted to practice Martial Arts but couldn't achieve Qi Sensing, it was only natural that some would try to find ways to change their circumstances.
Powerful Martial Artists and scientists alike racked their brains, searching for a solution.
So far, there were four known methods on the market that could work miracles, granting ordinary people the aptitude for Martial Arts.
One was an initiation by an expert at the Grandmaster level or above, who would use their formidable Inner Strength to constantly stimulate the recipient's Qi Acupoints. Over time, this would allow their body to achieve Qi Sensing.
The method was both time-consuming and draining. Almost no expert was willing to do it.
Another method was practicing certain Demon Sect Techniques. These techniques were rejected by mainstream society, and the cultivator had to endure all sorts of inhuman torment.
It was said to be akin to Bone Shifting. Zhao Rui didn't know the specific Cultivation details; he had only read about it in a few online posts.
A third method was to take a semi-finished potion developed by scientists.
The success rate was one in a thousand.
Meaning out of a thousand people, maybe one would succeed.
Many who took the potion ended up with disordered Meridians and their life force utterly depleted!
Not only did they fail to guide the Qi, but they also threw their lives away for nothing!
As for the final method, it was purely hearsay. Even the online "gurus" spoke of it only in cryptic terms, and it remained unknown to the general public.
According to these online gurus, the method was considered a "miracle" and required an item of cosmic, world-altering power.
Most people thought this was pure fantasy. The Martial Dao had flourished for nearly a century, yet there were no historical records of any such cosmic treasure ever appearing.
"Master Li, thank you, thank you so much! If it weren't for you, I don't know what would have happened to Xiaoke!"
Seeing his son's condition improve slightly, Zhao Jincheng let out a sigh of relief and hurriedly thanked Li Cunxin.
"Think nothing of it."
"Please, come to the living room for some tea. I've been meaning to visit you at the Medicine Hall. I knew Rui was having a get-together in a few days, so I was planning to invite you then..."
Zhao Jincheng made small talk with Li Cunxin as they walked to the living room.
Back in the room, Xue Wenhui sat by the bed, wiping away tears. She looked at her son's haggard face, sick with worry.
"Mom, don't worry," Zhao Rui said reassuringly. "Now that Master has stepped in, he'll be fine. He just needs to rest for a while. I'll help him with some Qi-guiding therapy, and he'll make a full recovery."
"I know, I know. My heart just aches for your brother. He's always been so competitive... Why on earth did he have to buy that blasted potion? So many people live perfectly fine without Martial Arts..."
Listening to his mother's worried ramblings, Zhao Rui felt a sense of helplessness.
He had little room to comment on his younger brother Zhao Ke's nasty habit of comparing himself to others, because he himself was the object of that comparison.
It was understandable, really. When they were kids, his younger brother had been the smart, clever one, praised by all their friends and relatives. Then, in middle school, he suddenly discovered he had no talent for the Martial Dao.
Meanwhile, his older brother—the one who'd never measured up—turned out to have a decent talent for it. The contrast created a deep sense of injustice in him.
The fact that everyone around them held Martial Arts Students in high regard only made him feel the unfairness more keenly.
'I don't know where he got the money for the potion this time, but it couldn't have been through legitimate means. Once he's better, I have to get to the bottom of this.'
Li Cunxin didn't stay for long. After Zhao Ke was fully awake, he drove away.
As for Zhao Ke, he was awake but silent, his expression utterly dejected. He was physically drained, his eyes staring blankly at the ceiling, and no one knew what was going through his mind.
Xue Wenhui was so worried that she had Zhao Jincheng bring a blanket and sleep on the floor beside his bed.
Zhao Rui stood off to the side, saying nothing. As the source of his brother's "allergic reaction," he figured it was best to keep a low profile.
「The night passed peacefully.」
The next day, Zhao Rui rose early to practice as usual. After finishing his Cultivation and performing the Qi-guiding therapy for his brother, he hurried to the Martial Arts Hall.
'I spent a lot yesterday. I have to earn it back today.'
Besides, he had almost finished copying the martial arts of two students, with the progress for each nearing ninety percent. If they still wanted to spar today, he estimated he could add another two percentage points.
At this rate, he should be able to accumulate fifteen years' worth of Power before university started.
Power being calculated in years was actually quite easy to understand.
It represented the total Inner Qi Amount an average Martial Artist would accumulate after a full year of diligent, non-stop training.
It was a measure of quantity, not quality.
Of course, the depth of one's Power wasn't just a matter of accumulated time.
There were two other factors. First, as a person aged, the rate at which they accumulated Inner Strength didn't increase, but rather, slowly decreased.
Simultaneously, as the body declined, their Qi Acupoints and Dantian would begin to "leak" Inner Qi in an inexplicable way.
The small amount of Inner Strength generated from daily practice and meditation would then be used just to compensate for this loss, merely maintaining their current level.
There was naturally no way to increase it further.
Of course, not all Martial Artists faced this problem, which was where the quality of one's Cultivation Technique came into play.
Ordinary people practiced rudimentary Martial Arts, making these problems unavoidable. The older they got, the more their abilities would decay.
But Martial Artists who possessed secret manuals for Top-level Techniques had no such worries.
For them, age-related problems like the leaking of Inner Qi would be significantly delayed compared to ordinary people.
In some cases, they might never experience these problems at all.
Moreover, the purity of the Inner Strength generated by a Top-level Technique was far beyond what ordinary Inner Strength could match, and even the Cultivation speed was on a different level.
This explained why someone who obtained a secret manual could surpass many famous experts after only three to five years of Cultivation.
The details were incredibly complex, but that was the gist of it.
Zhao Rui had checked the purity of his Inner Strength, and it was the same as before.
'In other words, the Inner Strength added by the system only matches the current normal state of the Inner Strength in my Meridians. It doesn't get a qualitative boost or reduction out of nowhere.'
This was precisely why Zhao Rui was so determined to obtain a Peak Martial Arts technique.
「Wende Martial Arts Hall」
After finishing a sparring session with a little kid, Zhao Rui hopped off the platform, took a sports drink from the coach, and GULP, GULP, GULP, chugged it down.
'Sparring with kids like this is the most draining,' he thought. 'I have to hold back not only my Inner Strength but my physical strength too.'
It felt more like babysitting than training.
It was tiring, but the results were good. Zhao Rui had finished copying the boy's Eight Trigrams Palm, achieving the Master Level.
"Thanks, big bro!"
"You're welcome. Keep practicing hard. I see great potential in you!"
Zhao Rui gave the little guy a word of encouragement. The boy wasn't quite on the level of the genius he'd met on his first day, but he was still a very promising young martial artist.
At the best school in the city, he'd easily rank in the top fifty.
'Even though my Level 4 Martial Artist rank made me one of the top students in my class, at a first-rate school, I'd probably only be ranked twentieth or thirtieth.'
'This kid's talent is way better than mine was before I got the system panel.'
At such a young age, his Eight Trigrams Palm was already at the Master Level. He also had an impressive leg technique that the system identified as the Wind Chasing Leg.
It was at the Master Level, too.
"Yeah, I will! My goal is to become a Grandmaster!"
The boy clenched his fist, psyching himself up with fighting spirit.
"Alright, you can go. Replay the sparring session in your head and think about what you need to improve..."
The coach gave the boy a few instructions before turning to speak with Zhao Rui.
"Hong Fei hasn't been around in a while."
The coach's tone was somber, his eyes holding a hint of helpless resignation.
"Yeah, I know."
"In their line of work, you're making a living on the edge of life and death. You never know when you're just going to... disappear."
The coach said grimly, "Over a decade ago, I had the same idea. But by some twist of fate, I didn't go through with it…"
"I know you got into university, but let me give you a word of warning: don't get mixed up in those underground fight circuits. It's a murky world."
"Yeah, thanks, Coach. I understand."
"It's August already. Your acceptance letter should be arriving soon, right? Which university did you apply for? Feeling confident?"
"It should be fine. I think I've got it."
The two of them chatted for a little while longer before Zhao Rui packed his bag and rode his bike home.