As he entered the hall, he saw his master—who moments before had been fuming with disappointment—now engrossed in his phone, having the time of his life.
"Master!"
"What?"
Li Cunxin didn't even lift his eyes, his gaze fixed on the screen.
The colorful, flickering light from the screen reflected off the glass behind him, forming the image of a sultry woman dancing energetically.
"I'm thinking of becoming a sparring partner. I wanted to run it by you!"
"Permission, my ass."
Li Cunxin paused after speaking, then asked curiously, "A sparring partner for what? Are you giving up on the college entrance exams?"
"It's for after the exams. I was just worried about you losing face."
"What made you want to be a sparring partner?"
"Only by drawing from the strengths of many can one..."
"Stop. You need money, don't you?"
"You're brilliant, Master. But I really am going with the intention of learning. Only by sparring with experts can I discover my own weaknesses."
"Fine, fine, go ahead. Just don't forget to pay the apprenticeship fee you owe me once you get paid!"
Li Cunxin waved him away, quickly snatching his phone—which was playing a video of a beautiful woman dancing—off the table and resuming his viewing.
Zhao Rui rolled his eyes. 'What an unreliable, greedy master.'
'No wonder none of his disciples ever amount to anything.'
Half an hour later, Zhao Rui was back home from the Martial Arts Hall. He ducked into his room and carefully examined the messages on his system interface.
"Taihang Thirteen Palms, Progress: Twenty-one percent!
Cloud Hand Star-Picking, Progress: Ten percent!"
Cloud Hand Star-Picking was his master Li Cunxin's signature skill, and it was the Martial Arts he taught to his few disciples.
This set of Martial Arts integrated its techniques and Heart Method, forming a complete martial arts system.
The execution of its techniques was coordinated with a corresponding breathing method.
Zhao Rui had practiced it for five years and had achieved a minor level of mastery.
'This system doesn't give any hints. What are its functions, anyway? What will happen when a copy is complete?'
Zhao Rui frowned in thought.
'The fastest way to test the system's function right now is to spar more with my senior martial brothers. That's the quickest way to reach a one-hundred-percent copy rate.'
'Then, it will be obvious what kind of changes will occur.'
Reining in his thoughts, Zhao Rui sat cross-legged on his bed in the "five hearts to heaven" posture, his palms lightly covering his Dantian and his eyes half-closed. His body became as still and unmoving as a stone sculpture lost in meditation.
The True Qi within him rose from his Guan Yuan Acupoint, flowing backward along the Ren Meridian. It passed Shanzhong to reach the Jade Hall, then, like a stream flowing into a great river, surged past the Purple Palace Acupoint and rushed into his limbs and throughout his body.
Zhao Rui pressed his tongue to the roof of his mouth and silently recited his sect's Heart Method: "Let your qi sink like the abyss, your intent move like the clouds. The heavens are clear and vast, your heart true as the blazing sun."
Cloud Hand Star-Picking was a moderately well-known Cultivation Technique in Lincheng City. While not a top-tier art, it wasn't some dime-a-dozen technique either.
If mastered, one could certainly make a name for themselves.
Unfortunately, this fact only made the old Zhao Rui feel all the more pathetic.
To have a decent Cultivation Technique but be unable to grasp its essence.
That was even more infuriating than knowing nothing at all.
After meditating like this for three Minor Circulations, Zhao Rui slowly ended his session and got off the bed.
In this world where the Martial Dao flourished, scientists and martial arts masters had worked together to develop small gadgets for Concentrating and Calming the Mind, designed to prevent ordinary people from accidentally suffering qi deviation during their practice.
Once they were released to the market, they proved to be quite effective.
The only problem was the high price tag.
Zhao Rui naturally couldn't bear to buy one, but for the sake of his son's college entrance exams, Zhao Jincheng had gritted his teeth and spent twenty thousand to get one.
Its effects only lasted for six months.
However, even with the support tool for concentration, his family wouldn't knock on his door and disturb him without permission.
This was all common knowledge.
Pushing the door open, he saw his parents watching TV in the living room.
Hearing the sound, Xue Wenhui said, "Dinner's on the table. Heat it up if it's cold. The congee is in the pot."
"Okay, got it, Mom! Where's my brother? Is he not back yet?"
"He just called. Said he'll be here in a bit. You go ahead and eat!"
"Okay!"
Zhao Rui grunted in acknowledgment and turned toward the dining room.
To call it a dining room was a stretch; it was really just an extension of the living room. Their apartment wasn't very large. Despite being designed as a three-bedroom, two-hall unit, the dining room was practically nonexistent.
The dining table itself had to be placed in what was technically the living room.
On the table were a few vegetable dishes and a large pork knuckle, prepared specially to build up Zhao Rui's strength for the upcoming college entrance exams.
Zhao Rui simply heated it up and started eating.
Halfway through his meal, his younger brother Zhao Ke came home from school.
He wasn't a Martial Arts Student, so he had to attend evening self-study sessions to focus on his academic subjects.
In this world, academics, technology, and the Martial Dao coexisted, each with its own purpose and path of development.
"Why are you back so late today?"
Zhao Rui asked as his brother walked over.
Zhao Ke replied with an annoyed look, "I was on cleaning duty."
Zhao Rui frowned at him, confused. "Didn't you just have your turn the day before yesterday?"
"It's none of your business. Just worry about yourself. I'm not eating!"
With that, Zhao Ke turned and went into his bedroom.
Zhao Rui's brow furrowed. He shook his head slightly. 'Looks like he's hit puberty, and now his rebellion is aimed at me.'
After eating, Zhao Rui was about to go downstairs for a walk when his phone rang.
He checked the caller ID—it was Bai Xuening.
"Hello?"
"Zhao Rui, Sun Boran from the Kunlun Sect is coming to Lin City on Sunday for a promotional event! Are you going?"
"Sun Boran? You can get tickets?"
"Yeah, my master knows his master. I can take you with me."
"I should warn you, I'll sell my skills, but not my body!"
"Pfft! Go or don't, see if I care!"
Bai Xuening huffed and hung up the phone in a fit of pique.
Zhao Rui put away his phone, and information about Sun Boran surfaced in his mind.
He was a Martial Dao prodigy, but also a massively popular young celebrity.
Just like the sports stars from his past life who had both looks and talent—a crossover hit in both athletics and entertainment.
'He wondered if he'd get a chance to get close to the guy and copy something.'
The night passed uneventfully, spent entirely on studying and Cultivation.
The next day, a warm spring breeze was blowing and green buds clung to the branches. Zhao Rui followed behind his younger brother, walking unhurriedly onto campus.
Just as he stepped through the school gate, he saw two boys approach his younger brother Zhao Ke from the left and right.
One of them slung an arm around Zhao Ke's neck in what looked like a very friendly gesture.
'My brother's classmates?'
Zhao Rui followed silently for a bit. Seeing the three of them chatting and laughing, he stopped paying attention and turned toward his own academic building at a fork in the path.
The academic building echoed with the familiar sound of students reading aloud, their voices loud and full of passion.
The few students in the hallways walked with purpose, hurrying on their way.
No matter the era, the college entrance exams were always the most direct and obvious path for the poor to change their destiny.
Zhao Rui still slipped in through the back door. As a student in the "arts" track, this was one "special skill" he had thoroughly mastered.
"Zhao Rui, here!"
The moment he sat down, the girl in the front row, Tian Tian, handed him a shredded pork sandwich, much to the heartbroken despair of his deskmate, Yang Fan.
"I've already eaten!"
Zhao Rui said, thanking her.
"Then eat it for lunch. I can't eat this much."
After saying her piece, Tian Tian turned back around.
Zhao Rui sheepishly picked up the sandwich from the corner of his desk and tucked it inside.
"If you're not going to eat that, I will!"
Seeing this, Yang Fan's eyes widened, and he stared at the inside of Zhao Rui's desk like a tiger eyeing its prey.
He looked ready to snatch it away at the slightest provocation.
"Zhao Rui, don't you dare give it to him!"