Chapter 2

"Starting from tonight, you must focus entirely on cultivating your inner strength." Lü Zhong hardened his heart and said sternly. He had always been very indulgent with Lü Cheng, afraid of dropping him if he held him in his hands, and afraid of melting him if he kept him in his mouth.

Since the age of five, Lü Zhong had required Lü Cheng to cultivate his inner strength. However, at that time, Lü Cheng was still a child, and Lü Zhong was afraid of tiring him out, so he chose the hanging leg sitting posture for Lü Cheng. There are two sitting postures for cultivating inner strength: the cross-legged sitting posture, which is further divided into double cross, single cross, and free cross.

The double cross involves placing the left foot on the right thigh and the right foot on the left thigh, with both hands joined in front of the abdomen. This posture is only to ensure stability and is difficult to achieve without considerable skill. The single cross involves placing the left leg on top of the right leg, with the hand gesture as before. The free cross is the general sitting posture that most people are accustomed to, but Lü Zhong felt it was not suitable for Lü Cheng, so he chose the hanging leg sitting posture for him.

The hanging leg sitting posture involves sitting on a chair of appropriate height, with the thighs kept horizontal when seated. The calves are vertical, the feet are parallel on the ground, and the knees should be about two fists apart. Even so, after several months, Lü Cheng made no progress. Later, he tried the free cross, single cross, and double cross, but Lü Cheng always failed to make any progress.

As a result, after a few years, many people believed that Lü Cheng was a waste of martial arts talent. But Lü Zhong did not give up. He believed that his excessive indulgence had instead harmed Lü Cheng.

"I have already told you many times about the precautions for cultivation. I will emphasize them again today." Lü Zhong had Lü Cheng sit on the bed in the double cross posture.

"Dad, don't say it again. Isn't it just about the mouth, eyes, ears, and breath?" Lü Cheng immediately said. Sometimes his father's nagging was a form of torture.

"First, swallow the saliva, then focus inward, pay attention to your breathing, and do not use your mouth." Lü Zhong still instructed.

When cultivating inner strength and entering a meditative state, there are requirements for the five senses. For example, the mouth should be naturally closed, with the tip of the tongue lightly touching the upper palate. When saliva is secreted, lower the tongue and slowly swallow it, which is called "swallowing saliva." The eyes should be closed and focused inward, focusing on the part being cultivated. If the mind wanders during practice, open the eyes and look at the void or the tip of the nose for a short time to break the train of thought, then close the eyes and sit again. This is called "the wise sword cutting through tangled threads."

Next, the ears should be used to pay attention to one's own breathing, maintaining a calm and natural state without rough sounds. Finally, breathing is the key issue in the method of inner strength cultivation, becoming more important as one progresses. It is essential to breathe naturally, without intentionally taking deep breaths or breathing too fast or too slow. Special attention should be paid to exhalation, while inhalation should be left to its natural course. Most importantly, one should not breathe through the mouth.

Lü Zhong had been instructing Lü Cheng on these matters for ten years. Seeing Lü Cheng follow his requirements, with his eyes slightly closed and breathing naturally, he quietly left the room. Cultivation requires a quiet environment. Although he could not provide a private room like the Song family, he would do his best to create a relatively quiet environment for Lü Cheng. While Lü Cheng was cultivating, he sat at the door, waiting for Lü Cheng to finish.

In fact, Lü Zhong did not know that as soon as he left, Lü Cheng suddenly opened his eyes. It was not because Lü Zhong had disturbed him, but because it had become a habit. He slightly raised his head and, through a gap in the corner of the room, slanted his gaze outward. The night sky of Tianhua was filled with stars, but Lü Cheng was not looking at the stars or the moon; he was looking at the night sky!

Actually, since the age of five, Lü Cheng had enjoyed looking at the sky alone. At first, he was very interested in the stars in the night sky, especially those that twinkled, feeling as if they were greeting him. But one time, out of boredom, he deliberately forgot about the stars and the moon and focused on the darkest parts between the stars. This led him to find his own interest.

Between the stars is boundless darkness. When most people look up at the sky, they see only the shining stars and the moon. But if these luminous objects are blocked out, a new world appears. Looking at the darkness in the night sky, the deeper one looks, the deeper it becomes, leading to a sense of eternity.

Lü Cheng did not know what changes such daily gazing would bring to him. But the more he gazed, the more interested he became. Interest is always the best teacher. Even when his father asked him to cultivate inner strength, he would quickly shift his attention to night vision. For this reason, he even made a small gap in the roof so that he could gaze at the night sky from his bed.

At the age of six, Lü Cheng felt a mysterious force in the center of his forehead, but he did not know what it could do or what effect it would have on his body. He only did what he liked, and by now, this force had grown somewhat, but he had not yet discovered any special function.

An hour later, the rain that had stopped began again, and it grew heavier. The clouds were thick tonight, and lightning occasionally flashed across the sky, followed by thunder. This affected Lü Cheng's night vision, but he had already entered a meditative state. The rain, lightning, and thunder were great disturbances to him, but at that moment, his gaze seemed to penetrate the rain and meditatively gaze at the night sky in a strange way.

Suddenly, Lü Cheng felt the force in the center of his forehead burst out, following his gaze, passing through the gap in the roof, and piercing through the water droplets in the air, shooting toward the boundless night sky!

After a long time, Lü Cheng slowly withdrew his gaze. The force in the center of his forehead also returned to his body. Previously, Lü Cheng had only vaguely felt this force during meditation. But now, he could clearly feel it. Closing his eyes, Lü Cheng's consciousness tried to focus on this force, and soon, he found that he had formed a connection with it.

When Lü Cheng focused all his attention on this force, he discovered that he could slowly communicate with it. When he brought this force out from the center of his forehead, it suddenly drilled into the wall in front of him. When the force entered the wall, he felt as if he had also entered it, seeing the soil inside the wall clearly.

Lü Cheng felt as if he had suddenly found his favorite toy. He kept withdrawing this force and then releasing it. He did this with the wall, table, bed, bedding, and even his own body. He did not know what this force was, but he gave it a name: Sensory Force. He did not know if it could be used to defeat enemies, but it could sense everything. Although the range was not far, at most about ten feet, it was like having an invisible hand and eye.

Even more, Lü Cheng could sense Lü Zhong sitting outside the door. He felt very guilty and remorseful. His father had given him everything, but he had strayed from the right path. For ten years, he had not even broken through the first level of inner strength. His childhood friends had mostly already cultivated inner strength, and a few had even broken through to the second level.

As soon as Lü Cheng came down, Lü Zhong, who had heard the noise, immediately stood up. He had been sitting at the door the whole time, unmoved even by the rolling thunder outside. But when there was movement inside, he immediately stood up.

"Cheng, how is it?" Lü Zhong pushed open the door, grabbed Lü Cheng's wrist, and a surge of inner strength entered. But soon, he sighed silently and let go.

"Father, don't worry. Perhaps I am different from others, and maybe I will break through one day." Lü Cheng saw his father's expression and knew he had disappointed him again. But because of the new sensation, his confidence had greatly increased. If before he thought he would only be a servant for life, now he at least hoped to be the most powerful servant.

"I hope so." Lü Zhong's eyes showed a despair he had never shown before. He knew that it was his own kindness that had made it impossible for Lü Cheng to become a martial artist.