For ten consecutive days, it was as if Qin Fan had an internal biological clock. Every dawn, he would sprint from his home to Qingling Lake. The time it took to absorb Spiritual Energy and saturate his Dantian had also increased from one hour to three. Previously, one hour had been manageable, and he would finish digesting the energy by around six o'clock. But as the duration grew, he was finishing later and later, first at eight, and then at ten.
His daily, hours-long, cross-legged posture had become a spectacle for the elderly morning exercisers, who saw it as meditation. A teenage boy coming to the lake to meditate? It was a sight that truly baffled many of them.
"Young man, wait up!" Just as Qin Fan was about to leave with a contented look, an old man practicing Tai Chi Fist suddenly called out to him.
"Are you calling me?" Qin Fan turned and asked the old man, who was dressed in a white practice uniform.
"Is there any other young man here besides you? Haha!" the old man laughed heartily, his voice robust.
"True enough!" Qin Fan nodded lightly as he glanced around. "Is there something I can help you with, sir?"
"It's nothing, I'm just very curious. I've been watching you for a few days! You sit here every day, cross-legged and still, for hours on end. If it were men or women in their sixties or seventies, that would be one thing, but for a teenager like you, it's quite unusual! Forgive my boldness, but could you tell me what you're doing?" the old man asked with a carefree smile. He claimed to be curious, but his face showed no trace of it.
"And what do you think I'm doing, sir?" Responding with a poise uncharacteristic of a sixteen or seventeen-year-old, Qin Fan faced the man, who was at least in his seventies, with a tone and demeanor that resembled someone weathered by a lifetime of tribulations.
This took the old man by surprise. It wasn't Qin Fan's words that astonished him, but his mature air and tone. How could a teenager possess such a disposition?
He didn't dwell on it, however, maintaining his kindly smile as he replied, "My guess is you've read too many novels and think that Cultivation truly exists, so you're trying to absorb the Heaven and Earth Essence! Haha!"
"You're right! That's exactly it! My goal is to ascend to the Immortal Realm and join the Immortal Class! Haha!" Qin Fan snapped his fingers, revealing the truth with a worldly, carefree laugh.
His words, however, left the old man speechless.
Ascend to the Immortal Realm and join the Immortal Class? That's ridiculous!
He shook his head and laughed, taking Qin Fan's words as a joke. "Even if you want to achieve Cultivation to Immortal, you need a strong body first! Looking at your frame, you're still a bit frail! How about this? From now on, you can follow me and practice Tai Chi Fist. It'll strengthen your body and cultivate your character. It would be nice for me to have a companion so I'm not so lonely. What do you say?"
Strengthen my physique with Tai Chi Fist? Does the Shura Venerable really need something like that to cultivate his spirit? I certainly don't have the spare time for that.
Qin Fan inwardly smiled bitterly. But faced with the old man's kind smile and sincere goodwill, he couldn't bring himself to refuse outright.
He replied diplomatically, "Me absorbing the Heaven and Earth Essence over there, and you practicing Tai Chi Fist nearby—isn't that a form of companionship in itself? Haha! Alright, sir, I won't keep you. I've got to go!"
Without waiting for a response, Qin Fan started jogging past the old man. As he did, he deliberately glanced at an Audi A6 parked nearby, a playful smirk touching the corner of his lips.
Watching Qin Fan's departing figure, the old man flicked his sleeves and muttered to himself with a smile, "Interesting. This kid is interesting...!"
"Commander, should we run a check on him?"
Suddenly, a steady voice spoke from behind the old man. A middle-aged man with a strong, sturdy build appeared, speaking respectfully.
The old man let out a soft breath and shook his head. "None of that. This is fine as it is! Heh, that kid has some spark!"
He glanced once more in the direction where Qin Fan had disappeared and let out a light chuckle. A teenager who could sit still and meditate for several hours at the crack of dawn. Forget a teenager; how many middle-aged or even elderly people in the world possessed such focus?
"Yes, Commander. I was overthinking things," the middle-aged man said with a bow.
The old man waved his hand and changed the subject. "Wang Lu, is Xiaoxuan coming back today?"
"Commander, the young lady's flight is this afternoon," the middle-aged man replied.
"Good. You go and pick her up then. Since that boy doesn't want to practice Tai Chi Fist with me, I'll have that little rascal Ruohan come keep this old man company with some stances. Haha! Let's go, time to head back!"
With that, the old man waved his hand and strolled toward the Audi A6. As he did, several young men with slightly bulging temples emerged from various concealed positions. They formed a protective cordon around him, escorting him safely into the car.
「Back to Qin Fan」
Upon returning home, his mother, Wei Shuying, immediately started staring at him with a peculiar expression.
"Mom, what's with that look? What's going on?" Qin Fan asked with a helpless, wry smile.
"First, you tell me what's going on with you. You've been rushing out every day before the sun is even up, and you're coming back later and later. What in the world have you been doing?" his mother asked, laying her cards on the table. She had been observing him for several days, holding back her questions until now.
"Mom, if I told you I was doing morning exercises, would you believe me?" Qin Fan said with a smile, not at all surprised by his mother's perceptiveness.
"Morning exercises?" Wei Shuying was clearly skeptical.
"Didn't I say I was going to turn over a new leaf? I'm starting with exercise, to build a good physique first!" Qin Fan, who had already mastered the art of bluffing, effortlessly repurposed the old man's words. His relaxed expression showed no trace of anything amiss.
Morning exercises? Wei Shuying blinked, looking at him with suspicion. But as someone who would one day build a fortune worth hundreds of millions, she was clearly a woman of high emotional intelligence.
She said, "Xiaofan, Mom doesn't ask for anything else. As long as you are safe and sound, that's my greatest wish."
"Mom, don't worry! I told you, I won't let you down again. Trust me!"
The excuse of exercising at four in the morning had an obvious flaw he couldn't explain away, and Qin Fan knew his mother would never believe it. But what could he do? Tell her the truth? That he was absorbing Spiritual Energy to break into the Qi Refinement Realm of Cultivation? His mother would immediately take him to a hospital for a psychiatric evaluation.
"Mom trusts you. Just be sensible. I've made you breakfast, but I have to go out for a bit. Your dad is already waiting at the bank so we can take care of some business." Wei Shuying ruffled his hair, then picked up her handbag and left.
Handle business?
According to his memories from his past life, the government's demolition notice had just been issued around this time. Seizing the opportunity, his parents used their property and land deeds to secure a bank loan and start a business.
At this thought, Qin Fan couldn't help but think of his so-called Second Uncle and the Du Family—the people who had brought ruin upon his family.
A towering rage surged from beneath his suddenly chilling smile.
Second Uncle. The Du Family. In this life, I, Qin Fan, swear that if I don't play with you until you wish you were dead, until your families are utterly ruined, I will be unworthy of being called a son!