Chapter 2

"Xiaochao is indeed smart; he’s bound to be the top scholar." Aunt Lin said. Of course, this wasn’t entirely flattery; Xiaochao was very sensible. At a young age, he didn’t cry or fuss. When he was three months old, he would make a clumsy 'goose' sound when hungry. As he grew a bit older, he would play by himself and never caused trouble. Even when he was sick, he wouldn’t cry out randomly, and he never wet the bed or had accidents.

"My body!" Qin Chao sighed inwardly.

The women chatted, while the children watched the martial arts practice with excitement. Qin Chao also looked over. In his previous life, he had practiced basic sword techniques for five years in 'Heavenly Dragon.'

This game, 'Heavenly Dragon,' used virtual reality, directly connecting to the corresponding nerves in the human body. The sword techniques, knife skills, boxing, and all martial arts settings, except for internal energy and true qi, were based on real-world settings. The martial arts in the virtual world were equally effective in the real world, as long as the body could keep up and the movements could be performed, they would be just as good as in the game.

"Hmm? This sword..."

Qin Chao was most familiar with swords and was now watching someone practicing sword techniques. In the martial arts field, 70% of the practitioners were practicing knife skills, and only 13 were practicing swords. The sword practitioners were all at least 30 years old. The sword light they wielded was like water and waves, enveloping their entire bodies, making it look dazzling—this was definitely very high-level swordsmanship.

But Qin Chao’s brow furrowed slightly.

"What’s wrong, Little Qin Chao? Do you think they’re not performing well? Why is your brow so furrowed?" A hearty laugh echoed, and a tall, robust old man with a tiger-like back and broad waist walked over, and the people around him greeted and bowed to the old man.

Qin Chao turned around and called out, "Grandpa!"

Qin Yue Dao’s father had passed away, and the oldest and most respected member of the clan was his eldest uncle, Qin Shuwen. Qin Shuwen liked Qin Chao very much, thinking he was sensible, and often liked to tease him.

"Good, good." Qin Shuwen picked up Little Qin Chao and teased him with a smile, "Come, tell Grandpa, are they performing well? What’s on your mind at such a young age? Your brow is furrowed like an old man’s."

"Grandpa," Qin Chao’s eyes darted around, "I don’t know if they’re performing well, but I know they’re performing too many moves."

"Too many?"

Qin Shuwen was taken aback, and the women around him also looked over.

"Like that uncle, he’s been practicing for so long, and I haven’t seen the same move... that move," Qin Chao pointed to a man in his forties practicing nearby.

"No same moves?"

Little Qin Long tilted his head and asked curiously. He only knew the moves looked good but couldn’t understand them, let alone recognize if there were any repeats. The other children also gathered around curiously.

"Are you talking about... the moves?" Qin Shuwen asked, half in doubt.

The women were even more stunned. Without the same moves, these dazzling techniques, even adults who hadn’t practiced martial arts, couldn’t recognize the moves.

Could this little boy really see and recognize that there were no repeats?

"Um, anyway, every move is different," Qin Chao nodded his head.

For those who didn’t understand martial arts, the moves were just a blur. If they tried to remember, they would forget the previous ones as they learned new ones. To steal a move, seeing someone perform a set of boxing, remembering three or four moves was already good. But Qin Chao was a prodigy. Not only was he from the highly advanced 23rd century, but he had also practiced basic sword techniques for five years in the virtual world. How could he not remember the moves?

Qin Chao not only noticed that they had many moves but also clearly knew that since he entered, the man had performed 309 moves, and none of them were repeated.

"How did you see that?" Qin Shuwen looked at Qin Chao strangely.

"Anyway, that’s just how I feel," Qin Chao said. For a child, having some strange feelings and remarks was normal.

Qin Shuwen laughed after a moment of surprise and asked curiously, "Xiaochao, is it bad to have many moves?"

"Of course it’s bad!" Qin Chao sniffed and said seriously, "Although I don’t understand much, I can see that they are practicing these moves, just like I learned to walk. If there are too many moves to learn, it’s not good. Everyone says I’m smart, but I didn’t learn to walk faster than Xiaolong and the others. It took me days and many falls to walk well. Grandpa, if I learned to walk and then ran after just a few steps, and then jumped without running steadily, wouldn’t that take more time, and I wouldn’t walk steadily, run without falling, and jump without falling?"

Although Qin Chao’s words were childish, everyone understood.

"Ha ha, Xiaochao, are you saying they’re greedy and can’t digest it all? What an interesting child," Qin Shuwen laughed heartily. Aunt Lin also smiled and teased Qin Chao, "Xiaochao, you’re really smart."

The principle of being greedy and unable to digest it all, though simple, was not something a three-year-old child could see. The women around him looked at Qin Chao differently.

Dao Yufeng squinted and smiled, "Don’t listen to the child’s nonsense."

"Ha ha, this isn’t nonsense," Qin Shuwen interrupted with a laugh, though he wasn’t particularly concerned. The principle of being greedy and unable to digest it all, and having a weak foundation, might apply to the young, but Qin Lebin had practiced knife skills for decades. How could he have a weak foundation or be greedy and unable to digest it all when he started practicing sword skills?

"Come, Xiaochao, Grandpa will take you to the ancestral hall. It’s almost time," Qin Shuwen happily carried Little Qin Chao through the martial arts field toward the northern door.

Qin Chao sighed inwardly.

Lao She once said, "A year for the knife, a month for the staff, a lifetime for the spear."

The knife emphasizes momentum, focusing on direct and straightforward movements, with chopping being the most important. Other moves like blocking, slashing, and thrusting are also simple. The Qin family village was famous for its knife skills, and it didn’t take long to get started. But the spear and the sword were different.

The spear is the king of weapons, flexible and versatile, with a myriad of force variations. It can be used like a staff, a whip, or a dagger. Ancient martial artists spent a lifetime mastering the spear, just like they did with boxing.

The sword is a smaller version of the spear and is even harder to master.

This is why Qin Chao and Jia Daren practiced basic sword techniques for years. Jia Daren, after mastering the first level of basic sword techniques, defeated the 73rd-ranked bandit 'Don’t Mess with Me' in his first battle.

No matter how skilled the Qin family’s knife practitioners were, and no matter how solid their foundation in knife skills, once they switched to the sword or the spear, they would need to practice the basic sword and spear techniques.

But who would believe a child like Qin Chao?

As they approached the ancestral hall of the Qin family village, Qin Chao suddenly felt a shock.

The door was narrower at the top and wider at the bottom, not a common rectangle but a trapezoid. The door frame was red, and the door itself was a bright, bloody red. Although they were far away, Qin Chao knew the red wasn’t paint but blood.

"Xiaochao, our Qin family doesn’t produce cowards," Qin Shuwen pointed to the red door of the ancestral hall, "Look at this door, covered in fresh blood. This blood comes from enemies and our own, from secular families and royal nobles."

"Remember!"

Qin Shuwen’s face suddenly became serious, and he said sternly, "Our Qin family produces men who can kill and dare to kill, who are ruthless to their enemies and even more ruthless to themselves. Those who dare not kill and are not ruthless to themselves, our Qin family would rather cut them down and feed them to the dogs."

He said the word 'kill' several times, his voice dark and ominous, his aura menacing.

The children nearby, who had liked the kind old grandpa, were now crying in fear, even the usually brave Qin Long was pale.

Qin Shuwen coldly scanned the children, satisfied with the effect. But when his gaze fell on Qin Chao, he paused. Qin Chao’s big, bright eyes darted around, still the same as always. Qin Shuwen frowned, unsure if Qin Chao was really brave or just lacking in fear. He coughed, the dark clouds on his face dissipating, and he resumed his kind and gentle demeanor, smiling, "Of course, being able to kill and daring to kill doesn’t mean killing indiscriminately. Only those who kill with righteous cause are true Qin family members. Otherwise, they are no different from beasts. Ha ha..."

They soon reached the ancestral hall, and the fresh blood on the trapezoidal door was clearly visible, and the smell of blood seemed to fill the air.

Entering the ancestral hall.

The children’s eyes widened again. The spacious hall was paved with neat blue bricks, measuring about seven or eight ordinary bedrooms in length and width. The ceiling was very high, about three stories, with a white tiger hunting scene carved on it.

"Ladder, memorial tablets!"

Qin Chao’s first glance was at the long staircase in the middle of the hall, made of red cedar and red hemp rope.

"It hasn’t changed at all."

"In my previous life, our Qin family’s ancestral hall was the same." Qin Chao knew without counting that the long staircase had 33 steps, made of 33 red cedar logs. Walking on it would cause it to sway violently, and one would fall if they didn’t grab the ropes on the sides. "The high platform above is where the memorial tablets of our deceased ancestors are placed." Qin Chao’s eyes were inexplicably moist.

"Lan, you’re here."

"Yufeng, Chao, come here."

A call came from the open ground below the staircase, where a group of men were chatting. Among them was Qin Chao’s father, Qin Ledao, wearing a single-layered shirt.

Qin Chao also saw a large piece of red wood next to the men. He knew it was definitely red cedar, and from its appearance and the cut marks, it had just been cut from the mountain.

"Chao, your father went to the deep mountains last night to cut this wood. It has a great use," Dao Yufeng said to Qin Chao with a smile.

"Um!" Qin Chao nodded.

A group of women and children walked to the center of the men, and the ancestral hall became increasingly crowded.

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