Chapter 2

The sky was still dark, but Tang Tian got up on time. He washed up casually, turned on the light, sat down at the table, and spread out a sheet of paper, bending his head to write with a scratchy pen.

"Qianhui: How are you doing recently? I miss you a lot. I'm doing well, don't worry. The new semester has started, and I'm still serving as the assistant instructor for Mr. Cen's swordsmanship class. Without you, I feel a bit bored. They look down on me, and I don't like them either. Mr. Cen's health isn't too good lately, but he's a good person, and I hope his health remains good. How is Uncle Yu? Please say hello to him for me. I really want to see the Perseus Nebula waterfall you mentioned; I wonder how magnificent it is. I'm still practicing, and it might take a long time, but I don't want to give up..."

He wrote a lot, all about the small things in his daily life. Carefully, he folded the paper, put it in an envelope, and sealed it.

He carefully wrote the address: "Perseus Constellation, Baihong Star, Baihong City, 15th Avenue, Baihong Academy, Grade 3 Class A, Shangguan Qianhui (Recipient)."

After writing, he picked up the skyway stamp he had prepared and stuck it on the envelope.

After finishing all this, he got up again and went to the courtyard.

The morning air was chilly, and Tang Tian stretched his limbs until his muscles gradually loosened up. He then assumed a stance and began his daily practice.

He practiced the basic boxing techniques.

After nearly a year of practice, his basic boxing techniques were almost perfect.

The basic boxing techniques consist of three moves: straight punch, jab, and hook. The straight punch is powerful and heavy, the jab is light and swift, and the hook is a combination of both, emphasizing the angle of the strike.

The seemingly simple basic moves were full of beauty in Tang Tian's hands, a beauty of simplicity and harmony after countless repetitions.

Tang Tian was focused, and the tedious practice did not show any signs of fatigue on his face.

Soon, he was drenched in sweat, his clothes soaked through, and large drops of sweat trickled down his neck.

It looked as if a faint mist was rising from his body.

He practiced repeatedly, occasionally stopping to ponder, but quickly resumed his practice. Time passed, and the sun rose, dispelling the morning chill.

Tang Tian was completely absorbed in his practice.

Suddenly, a shrill bell rang, and Tang Tian stopped. Time was up!

Panting heavily, he leaned on his knees, large drops of sweat sliding down to his chin and dripping to the ground. During practice, he was too focused to notice, but after stopping, he felt utterly exhausted.

Five minutes later, Tang Tian regained his composure, straightened up, and, with his weak legs, moved toward the pool in the corner of the yard. The pool was full of water, and as Tang Tian splashed into it, the cold water made him shiver.

He grimaced, looking somewhat pained, as he had to slowly adapt to the cold water. After about two minutes, his body had adjusted to the cold, and he sat cross-legged, beginning to circulate his mind method.

After five years at Ande Academy, his basic mind method was already perfected. The basic mind method does not require good bone structure; with persistence, one can achieve perfection in one or two years. Tang Tian's bone structure was average, but he was not lazy, and his basic mind method was already perfected. He quickly began to search for a second-level mind method, but Ande Academy only taught the basic mind method. To learn a second-level mind method, one needed to enter the academy.

However, Tang Tian did not want to waste time, so he sought ways everywhere. When Mr. Cen heard about Tang Tian's situation, he invited Tang Tian to be his assistant, paying him a second-level soul general card, the "Qi Nourishing Technique," as compensation.

Tang Tian then began to practice the second-level technique.

The "Qi Nourishing Technique" is suitable for martial artists with poor bone structure, and its only advantage is its long-lasting qi. Now, Tang Tian's "Qi Nourishing Technique" was also almost perfected. Low-level techniques are relatively simple, emphasizing persistence rather than technique.

Warm and continuous qi spread throughout his body, dispelling the cold and quickly restoring his exhausted body.

An hour later, Tang Tian opened his eyes.

He was once again full of energy, and the fatigue was gone. He did not get up immediately but lay half in the pool, gazing at the blue sky.

I wonder what Qianhui is doing now...

His eyes softened, but he quickly snapped back to reality and took off the copper plaque hanging from his neck. The plaque was tied with a red string, several red strings intertwined, one of which was woven by his mother, and the others by Qianhui. When Qianhui was in Xingfeng City, she would reweave a new red string for Tang Tian's copper plaque every year.

The copper plaque was about the size of a coin, slightly old, with an irregular cross-shaped pattern on the front. Tang Tian flipped the plaque over, and on the back was a winding river, with countless tiny stars seemingly twinkling in the river. Tang Tian's gaze fell on the river, where a row of gray numbers was almost invisible.

Tang Tian had worn the copper plaque since he was a child, but he only discovered the numbers a few years ago.

The discovery of the numbers piqued Tang Tian's curiosity.

Although he was carefree, he was not stupid. He quickly found the pattern in the numbers' changes. Every time he completed a qualified basic martial technique, the numbers would jump.

From that day on, he realized that his seemingly ordinary mother might not be so ordinary. He suddenly discovered that he knew very little about his mother's past.

And that bastard who abandoned his wife and child...

Tang Tian's heart was filled with a strong desire to know everything, to unravel all the mysteries.

The copper plaque was his only clue.

He began to practice basic martial techniques fanatically, watching the numbers change every day. When he perfected his basic swordsmanship, the numbers stopped jumping. Tang Tian began new experiments, trying to practice second-level martial techniques, but the numbers did not move. Only when he switched to basic palm techniques did the numbers start jumping again.

Only basic martial techniques made the numbers jump.

Year after year, he practiced one basic martial technique after another, and the numbers increased from ten thousand, twenty thousand... The copper plaque showed no reaction. The looks around him gradually changed, and various taunts and ridicule filled his ears. Tang Tian, once a student at Ande Academy, became a repeat student and then a super repeat student.

For five years, Tang Tian remained consistent.

The numbers kept changing.

99,9400.

Tang Tian put the copper plaque back around his neck, not noticing that the gray numbers suddenly glowed faintly. He jumped out of the pool, dried himself, put on clean clothes, picked up the letter he had written to Qianhui, and walked out of the house.

His home was quite far from Ande Academy, and there were few people on the streets in the morning.

The skyway mail service in Xingfeng City had only one location, the Xinfeng Post Office in the south of the city. Tang Tian's speed was not slow; his basic lightness technique was already perfected. His upper body remained still, while his legs moved in a unique rhythm. Each large step was followed by three small steps, alternating repeatedly.

Since it was too early, the Xinfeng Post Office was not open, so Tang Tian put the mail in the mailbox at the entrance.

The Perseus Constellation is so far away; Qianhui will probably receive this letter in three months.

He looked up at the blue sky, feeling clear and bright, a smile on his lips, and turned to walk toward the school.

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When Tang Tian was almost at the school, a large crowd was gathered at the school gate, blocking the entrance. Tang Tian frowned; today he was responsible for the swordsmanship class practice, and being late would not be good. He was grateful for Mr. Cen's help and care, so he worked very diligently, never being late or leaving early, a stark contrast to his own class behavior.

"Move aside!"

He pushed through the crowd, and the students who were about to scold him immediately backed off when they saw it was Tang Tian.

"Gu Xiaoyu, just bow to me today, and I'll let you off!"

A smug boy, his nose almost pointing to the sky. The boy's clothes were well-made, and the material was quite good, indicating a good family background. He was surrounded by several strong and muscular boys, all with mocking expressions. In front of them, a thin boy was lying on the ground, his body arched, and his face in pain.

"Bow! Hurry up, class is about to start!"

"Damn, it seems we haven't beaten him enough!"

...

The thugs shouted and cursed.

Tang Tian's face showed disgust. Although he was a bully at Ande Academy, he never bullied the weak. More importantly, these people were blocking the school gate, and class was about to start in a few minutes.

"Newcomers?" Tang Tian stepped forward, his expression unfriendly. "Move aside!"

"Hey, you've got the guts to meddle in my affairs?" The leading boy sneered.

Tang Tian knew that if he lingered, he would definitely be late. He didn't bother with words, his body flickering, and with a precise side step, he rushed to the front of the boy. In the boy's terrified gaze, Tang Tian's hand suddenly grabbed the boy's neck.

He lifted the boy as if he were a chicken.

The boy's brain went blank from the lack of oxygen.

"Stop! How dare you—"

"You're finished!"

The strong boys immediately panicked and tried to rush forward. Tang Tian, with his extensive fighting experience, swung the boy in his hand and smashed him into the others.

In a moment, they were all knocked down.

"Indeed, Tang Tian is ruthless!"

"Of course, he's the old school bully! Every year, it's the same; if we don't teach these newcomers a lesson, they won't know their place!"

"Speaking of which, our school's atmosphere is quite good, and Tang Tian the bully has a lot to do with it! He keeps the school in line!"

...

Tang Tian didn't even look at the guys on the ground and hurried to the training ground.

He had just arrived at the training ground when the bell rang.

Phew!

Tang Tian sighed in relief and scanned the students in the swordsmanship class. After yesterday's gossip, his bad reputation had spread, and the students were all cautious.

He pretended to cough lightly and waved his hand. "Start practicing!"

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