Immortality Begins With Internal Breathing-Chapter 85: Rootless Duckweed (II)

"Come, come. Sit down and rest for a while. Little Cui, pour some tea," said Xu Qinyi with a cheerful smile, inviting everyone to sit and drink tea.

Lin Zheyu was someone his father valued greatly, almost already bearing the Xu Family's mark. If he could marry Xu Yuxiang, he would one day be part of the Xu Family entirely. The higher Lin Zheyu's natural talent and the stronger his strength, the happier Xu Qinyi felt.

When they returned to the pavilion, Xu Yuxiang's heart was racing. She kept sneaking glances at Lin Zheyu from the corner of her eye, and the more she looked, the more pleasing he appeared.

"Falling for him already?" whispered Ren Qingying teasingly into Xu Yuxiang's ear.

"No, I'm not!" said Xu Yuxiang, protesting softly. Her voice was a little louder than intended and it drew everyone's attention which made her cheeks flush crimson.

"Haha! Brother Lin, your strength is truly admirable. I am impressed. Let me offer you a toast with tea instead of wine!" said Xu Qinyi with a laugh.

The atmosphere became lively again, and Xu Yuxiang stopped fidgeting, instead sitting quietly with her cheeks still red.

After a long while, Chen Mu finally couldn't hold back his question and asked, "You've really been training for less than half a year?"

Chen Mu was starting to question his life. He had trained in martial techniques for seven or eight years, yet he was no match for someone who had trained for only half a year? No, not even a full half year.

Chen Mu knew his natural talent wasn't particularly outstanding. His achievements came from relentless training and countless battles. But Lin Zheyu's natural talent was far too extraordinary... so extraordinary that it made him feel a pang of envy. 𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

"Yes." Lin Zheyu nodded.

"Less than half a year... Ha. I actually lost to someone who's been training for less than half a year," murmured Chen Mu, almost mockingly at himself.

His gaze turned distant for a moment, then slowly grew resolute. That was his nature: relentless, obsessive, and never willing to admit defeat.

"It must be that I haven't worked hard enough. I'll push myself harder—ten times harder than before!" Chen Mu clenched his fists, his eyes burning with unwavering resolve.

He had never considered himself a genius, but he surpassed geniuses through sheer hard work and relentless effort. But now, an even greater genius, Lin Zheyu, had appeared. However, Chen Mu would not admit defeat. He would work twice as hard, and one day, just as he had surpassed other geniuses, he would surpass Lin Zheyu too!

"Brother Lin, let's fight again after I train for a while!" said Chen Mu solemnly.

"Alright!" replied Lin Zheyu with a nod. He had deep respect for Chen Mu, who was a hardworking type of genius.

"By the way, that Berserker Art technique you used just now—can it be passed on?" Lin Zheyu couldn't help but ask.

The technique contained momentum within it, and the essence of that momentum was somewhat similar to the fist momentum of the Barbaric Ox Fist. It might offer him some valuable insight.

"Brother Lin, are you interested in the Berserker Art? Unfortunately, the Berserker Art is a Chen Family ancestral technique and cannot be passed on. But if Brother Lin wishes to learn it, you could marry into the Chen household. Would you consider it?" said Chen Xihong with a teasing smile. After this battle, even he couldn't help but take an interest in Lin Zheyu.

"Get lost! Now even you want to poach talent from my Xu Family?" said Xu Qinyi as he rolled his eyes at him.

"Exactly. There's such a thing as first come, first served. I already planned to make Brother Lin my brother-in-law... Ah! Ow, ow, ow! Sis, not so hard!"

Halfway through his words, Ren Qingfeng felt a soft hand pinch his waist. Though he was tough-skinned, he still yelped, earning an exasperated eye-roll from Ren Qingying.

"Don't talk nonsense!" said Ren Qingying as she glared at him.

"Hahaha." The others couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Xu Qinyi looked at Lin Zheyu and said, "The Berserker Art has major limitations. It's powerful, yes, but as you saw just now, in prolonged combat the killing intent can invade the mind and cause loss of reason.

"Many who practice the Berserker Art don't die at the hands of others, but rather of exhaustion. They go mad in battle, lose their senses, can't stop, and eventually collapse and die."

Ren Qingfeng nodded and said, "That's true. Chen Mu, you need to be careful in the future. Don't lose your reason in the heat of battle."

"Don't worry. The family elders have already come up with countermeasures. Chen Mu won't repeat the same mistakes," said Chen Xihong.

The Berserker Art could only be mastered by those who were born for battle and were ruthless enough to be merciless even toward themselves. The harsher they were on themselves, the deeper their understanding of the Berserker Art's essence.

But such people were also more prone to going berserk and losing their reason. As a result, most Chen family members who had cultivated the Berserker Art in the past died on the battlefield.

What a pity, thought Lin Zheyu to himself. Since it was an ancestral technique that could not be passed on, he could only let the matter go.

The duel just now was only a brief interlude. The group returned to listening to the opera and playing a few simple games.

By the time Lin Zheyu returned home, night had already fallen. He practiced the Barbaric Ox Fist in the courtyard, replaying in his mind the scenes of today's battle with Chen Mu.

The fist momentum of the Barbaric Ox Fist was filled with unstoppable dominance, carrying the will of 'none can stand before me.' Chen Mu's momentum, on the other hand, was saturated with blood and slaughter. It was the madness born from battling amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood, a powerful conviction forged in countless life-and-death struggles. That conviction was drenched in blood, yet it was far more grounded.

"I always felt something was missing. Was it the tempering of battle? Only by fighting again and again, by surviving life-and-death battles and building unshakable conviction, can one forge a truly invincible conviction," murmured Lin Zheyu to himself. At that moment, he saw the path forward to elevate his fist momentum.

He would have to fight without end. Through repeated life-and-death battles, he would have to accumulate invincible conviction and unshakable confidence. He had fought too few battles. The fist momentum he cultivated through comprehension was indeed overwhelming and brimming with invincible belief, but it was like duckweed without roots—powerful yet somewhat hollow.

***

Xu Family residence.

Xu Qinyi and his father, Xu Jingwu, were seated together playing chess.

Clack!

Xu Jingwu placed a piece on the board and asked softly, "How was today's gathering?"

"Today, Xu Yuxiang invited Chen Mu over, and he sparred with Lin Zheyu," replied Xu Qinyi, placing a casual move in the corner.

"Chen Mu didn't go too hard on him, did he?" asked Xu Jingwu.

"No. Chen Mu lost," said Xu Qinyi with a smile.

He watched his father closely and saw shock and amazement flash across his face.

As expected, even father didn't imagine Brother Lin would be this remarkable! thought Xu Qinyi.

"This is truly unexpected. It started as a whim, but I never imagined it would bring us a young man with such astonishing natural talent," said Xu Jingwu with a laugh.

The affairs of the world were always unpredictable. Back then, he had simply been bored and thought Lin Zheyu was a good storyteller, so he invited him to speak. He never expected to discover such a martial arts prodigy with astonishing natural talent.

"How did Yuxiang react? Is she still resistant to the marriage?" asked Xu Jingwu as he placed another piece.

"Yuxiang grew quiet later on and kept sneaking glances at Brother Lin. I think it should be fine. As for whether it will happen, that depends mainly on whether Brother Lin is interested," replied Xu Qinyi.

"Raise Lin Zheyu's monthly stipend to 15 taels of silver. In a few days, the guard rotation at Baishi Mountain will take place. Assign Lin Zheyu to lead a small squad on his own and defend the southern sector. The terrain there is steep but not too dangerous," said Xu Jingwu.

"Yes, Father."

"Now, tell me in detail everything that happened this afternoon..."