Xiao Wu

Han Li lowered his voice, as if recounting a bizarre tale:

“I've known Brother Xiao for over two months, and I've seen with my own eyes how treasures seem to grow legs and jump into his arms wherever he goes.”

“He can find dropped silver just walking down the street. If he sees an injustice and steps in to help, killing some local thug on a whim, a search of the body is guaranteed to turn up a cultivation manual or some miraculous healing medicine.”

“Last month, Brother Xiao Wu wanted to celebrate the birthday of another friend of his, Brother Ji. He specifically invited me into the Dali Mountains to hunt a Precious Beast so he could skin it and make a coat as a gift.”

“On our way back, he took a misstep and fell into a cave. Not only was he completely unharmed, but he actually found the skeleton of a sword cultivator from the previous dynasty inside.”

“The stone wall was carved with his last words, stating that he was from the Dayang Dynasty and had been pursued here by the soldiers of the current dynasty. With his resources exhausted and critically injured, he was on the verge of death. He only had his spiritual sword and sword techniques with him. He wrote that a destined person could inherit his legacy, or if their affinity was insufficient, they could find a successor for him...”

“Brother Xiao uses a spear, and I already have my own inheritance...”

“It just so happened that Brother Ji also uses a sword, so Brother Xiao gifted the spiritual sword and the inheritance to him...”

Han Li finished his explanation and shrugged.

“In short, Brother Xiao's luck is bafflingly good. He can stroll through a ruined temple or an abandoned estate with his eyes closed and stumble upon a stroke of fortune.”

“So tell me, if we let him look for the 『Tongbei Stance』, how could he possibly fail to find it?”

This miraculous description left Song Huatang dumbfounded. He couldn't help but mutter,

“To think there is actually... someone so deeply blessed by fortune in this world? Truly a wonder under heaven. If I ever get the chance, I must meet this Brother Xiao Wu in person...”

Beside him, Han Huiwan did not follow up on her son's words.

Her brow was tightly furrowed as if she had recalled something. Her lips parted slightly as she murmured to herself,

“Fortunes arriving on their own... turning danger into safety... avoiding death and prolonging life... a natural martial constitution...”

A moment later, her eyes suddenly went wide, and her body surged with an uncontrollable shudder.

Noting her strange reaction, Han Li and Song Huatang both turned to look at her, their eyes filled with surprise.

Han Li couldn't help but ask, “Aunt, what is it...?”

Han Huiwan took a deep breath to suppress the storm raging in her heart. She stared at the two of them with burning eyes, enunciating every word clearly:

“In my early years at the main family estate in Xinyi Prefecture, I once read a description in an ancient scroll that was extremely similar to what you just said...”

“If I remember correctly, the ancient scroll referred to such people as—”

“‘Children of Destiny’!”

...

The Outer City.

The Bai Family's West Hill Mine.

The mine shaft was deep and cramped, and the air was incredibly foul.

Pine resin torches were thrust into both sides of the tunnel walls. The flames crackled, casting flickering, swaying shadows against the uneven rock face.

A shirtless young man stood in an open space within the cave, holding a stance.

He had a rugged appearance, with thick eyebrows like blades, and a resolute, steady gaze. There was an innate air of heroism between his brows.

As his stance work grew increasingly rapid, his bones and muscles chimed in unison, emitting crisp popping sounds.

Just then, footsteps suddenly echoed from outside the mine shaft.

Xiao Wu's ears twitched slightly. He slowly withdrew his stance, grabbed a waterskin, and took two large gulps.

Before long, Xiao Wen crawled into the mine shaft, drenched in sweat. He reached back to block the entrance with a wooden board, then quickly walked over to Xiao Wu.

“Big Brother, it's done. Brother Han has successfully rescued them.”

There was no look of surprise on Xiao Wu's face.

He handed the waterskin to his younger brother, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

“As long as it went smoothly. This was merely a small favor for Brother Han... Let's not talk about them. How is your stance work coming along?”

Xiao Wen took the waterskin, gulped down some water, wiped his mouth, and said with some excitement:

“Big Brother, I can already feel a wave of heat coursing through my body. I think I'm just one step away from breaking into the Blood Tempering Rank!”

Xiao Wu shook his head and said calmly,

“Too slow.”

The excitement on Xiao Wen's face instantly froze, replaced by a helpless, bitter smile.

“My aptitude is dull to begin with. How can I possibly compare to you, Big Brother? Besides, how many people in this world can match your talent?”

Xiao Wen's words were by no means an exaggeration.

Xiao Wu's martial talent was truly terrifying.

Over two months ago, the two brothers were just bottom-tier coolies in this Bai family mine, facing the constant threat of being crushed to death or dying of exhaustion. Xiao Wu's physique had been as thin as paper due to years of hard labor.

But ever since he accidentally dug up a mysterious jade plaque deep in the mine shaft and obtained an inherited cultivation technique from it, his entire being seemed to have undergone a complete transformation, and his cultivation had progressed by leaps and bounds.

“Watch closely. I'll demonstrate it for you one more time!”

Xiao Wu paid no mind to his brother's flattery.

He stood up, shifted his feet, and planted them firmly on the gravel ground, his feet rooting like an ancient tree.

Immediately after, he arched his spine backward, and his ten fingers curved into claws, thrusting forward violently.

A gust of wind whipped up from the flat ground, causing the torches on the cave walls to flicker wildly.

Xiao Wu's chest expanded and contracted, his breathing as heavy and powerful as a bellows. With every breath, the blood qi throughout his body surged like a roaring river.

A fierce, overbearing aura, resembling a soaring eagle pouncing on its prey, erupted from him!

The Great Perfection of the 『Mystic Eagle Stance』!

Xiao Wen was dumbfounded.

He had never taught Xiao Wu this stance technique.

Because of his poor aptitude, his practice had been clumsy and his progress painfully slow. Xiao Wu had simply asked him to perform the stance movements in front of him a few times.

As a result, with just a few glances, Xiao Wu had perfectly engraved the complex movements into his mind.

Even more unbelievably, by observing the rhythm of Xiao Wen's breathing transitions, he had actually reverse-engineered the breathing technique that accompanied this stance!

In a mere ten days or so, he had trained the 『Mystic Eagle Stance』 to Great Accomplishment, and now, after another seven or eight days, he had actually stepped into the realm of Great Perfection.

Xiao Wen swallowed hard, the shock in his heart beyond words.

When he was at the Mei Courtyard, he had personally witnessed the talent of his senior brother, Shen Xiuhan.

Shen Xiuhan had sensed his blood qi in sixteen days while simultaneously training the 『Mystic Eagle Stance』 to Minor Accomplishment. Even their master had sighed in admiration, claiming his talent was not inferior to their First Senior Sister.

But compared to his big brother's monstrous comprehension of "reverse-engineering a technique after just a few glances"...

Xiao Wen felt that even the incredibly brilliant Brother Shen fell short by a wide margin.

“Sink your qi into your dantian, focus your intent on your fingertips. Your stance work just now was far too hollow!”

Xiao Wu instructed him as he demonstrated.

Watching Xiao Wu's smooth, flowing movements, a spark of inspiration flashed in Xiao Wen's mind. Several difficult points he had struggled to understand suddenly became crystal clear.

“Big Brother! I understand now!”

Overjoyed, he didn't even have time to say goodbye before eagerly rushing out of the mine shaft.

Watching Xiao Wen dash off like a gust of wind, Xiao Wu withdrew his stance, shook his head, and laughed.

“This boy is still so reckless at his age. How is he going to achieve great things?”

He put on his clothes and fished a palm-sized, disc-shaped object from a crevice in the rocks.

It was an ancient jade plaque.

The surface of the plaque was entirely translucent and lustrous, without a single blemish. Complex cloud patterns were carved upon it, the lines so vivid they seemed to be alive.

Xiao Wu stroked the jade plaque, silently gazing down at it with a calm expression.

A faint rustling sound came from outside the mine shaft.

A fist-sized gray rat with a long, pale-gold tail shot out from a crevice like a bolt of lightning.

The little fellow expertly scrambled up Xiao Wu's trouser leg onto his shoulder, affectionately rubbing its furry head against his cheek.

Immediately after, its two front paws waved wildly in the air as it squeaked incessantly.

Xiao Wu was amused by its antics.

Slipping the jade plaque back into his robe, he stroked the Gold-Tailed Rat's fur with his index finger and smiled.

“What's the matter? Who made you so angry?”

“Squeak! Squeak squeak!”

“Oh... Are you saying that the person who stole your treasure outside Mount Li last time has returned?”

“Squeak!”

“Hahaha, you little miser...”

“Squeak squeak squeak!!”

“Alright, alright, don't be mad. The next time we run into him, I'll definitely teach him a lesson on your behalf. How about that?”

“Squeeeak~”