My bizarre resurgence: My price is the ability to trade everything.

The area behind the General Administration is a place that few people visit.

It is said that this place was once a training ground for martial arts practitioners, but it was later incorporated into the headquarters due to urban expansion. The headquarters built a training ground here for members with martial arts backgrounds.

I followed Chen Xuan along a winding mountain path, flanked by dense forests. Sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled shadows on the ground.

"Your father used to run on this road when he was a child," Chen Xuan said. "He was young then, and he would get up at five o'clock every morning to run from the foot of the mountain to the top, and then run back down."

"every day?"

"Every day." Chen Xuan nodded. "Rain or shine, without fail. He said there are no shortcuts in martial arts training; only through unwavering perseverance can one achieve something."

I was silent.

From childhood to adulthood, I have never been so persistent in anything.

"arrive."

Chen Xuan stopped, and I stopped as well.

Before me lay a wide-open space, paved with bluestone slabs, surrounded by several old pine trees. In the center of the space stood a stone platform, upon which were carved two large characters: "Guiyuan" (meaning "Return to Origin").

"This is the birthplace of Tai Chi Guiyuan Gong." Chen Xuan walked to the stone platform, reached out, and gently stroked the two characters carved on it. "These two characters were carved by your great-grandfather, and they are now eighty years old."

"My great-grandfather?"

"Lin Yuanshan, the fourth patriarch of the Lin family," Chen Xuan said. "He created the Tai Chi Guiyuan Gong, laying the foundation for the Lin family's martial arts."

"Then this martial art..."

"It was founded by your great-grandfather, perfected by your grandfather, and expanded upon by your father." Chen Xuan looked at me. "Now, it's your turn."

Chen Xuan did not teach me the moves immediately.

He simply had me stand in front of the stone platform with my feet shoulder-width apart and my hands hanging naturally at my sides.

"Wuji Stance," he said. "This is the first movement of Tai Chi Returning to Origin, and the foundation of all the techniques."

"Is it that simple?"

"It's that simple," Chen Xuan said. "But the greatest truths are the simplest. The simpler something is, the harder it is to master."

I stood in the position as he instructed.

At first, I thought it wouldn't be difficult at all. It's just standing, right? Anyone can do that.

But after a minute, my legs started to ache.

After three minutes, my thighs started to tremble.

After five minutes, sweat was already dripping from my forehead.

"Hold on," Chen Xuan's voice came from the side. "Don't move."

I gritted my teeth and persevered.

Ten minutes...

Twenty minutes...

Half an hour...

Finally, Chen Xuan said, "It's okay."

I plopped down on the ground, panting heavily. My legs were completely numb, as if they didn't belong to me.

"How are you feeling?" Chen Xuan asked.

"I'm tired," I said. "Extremely tired."

"That's a normal reaction." Chen Xuan handed me a bottle of water. "You've never practiced martial arts before, so being able to hold a stance for half an hour on your first try is already quite good."

"Where's my father?" I took the water and gulped down a large mouthful. "How long can he stand?"

Chen Xuan thought for a moment: "It was his first time practicing Zhan Zhuang (standing meditation), and he stood for two hours."

I was stunned.

Four times the amount in two hours?

Is the difference that big?

"You don't need to compare yourself to others," Chen Xuan seemed to see through my thoughts. "Everyone starts from a different point, and their rate of progress is different. Your biggest advantage right now is your youth; your body hasn't reached its full potential yet, and there's still a lot of room for improvement."

"but--"

He paused, then changed the subject: "You are indeed somewhat inferior to your father was back then."

My heart sank.

"However..." Chen Xuan's lips suddenly curled into a smile, "I just noticed something."

"What is it?"

"When you practice standing meditation, you feel energy flowing through your body."

I was stunned.

"Energy? What energy?"

"I wasn't sure at first either." Chen Xuan walked up to me, extended his finger, and tapped my lower abdomen. "It's here. When you practice standing meditation, you feel a slight warmth in this area."

I looked down at my lower abdomen and felt nothing.

"That's the dantian," Chen Xuan said. "The core of martial arts cultivation is the nurturing of the dantian. Ordinary people need a long time to activate their dantian when practicing martial arts. But those with a foundation in martial arts are born with their dantian in a semi-activated state."

"You mean... my dantian has been activated?"

"It's being activated," Chen Xuan corrected, "and very quickly."

He looked at me, his eyes filled with complex emotions: "Your father took three months to activate his dantian. You only took half an hour."

"this......"

"This is the power of a solid foundation in martial arts." Chen Xuan sighed. "You not only inherited what your father possessed, but you've surpassed him."

I don't know what to say.

Surpassing one's father?

I never thought about this.

"However—" Chen Xuan's tone suddenly turned serious, "this is also a dangerous matter."

"Danger?"

"Back then, your father attracted a lot of...unnecessary attention because he progressed too quickly," Chen Xuan said. "Some people were jealous of him, some wanted to use him, and some...wanted to gain his power."

"Are those people from Guixu?"

Chen Xuan did not answer.

He simply turned around, looked at the distant mountains, and fell silent.

Just then, my phone rang.

It was a message from Su Mingyue.

I took out my phone, opened the message, and my expression immediately changed.

"What's wrong?" Chen Xuan noticed my unusual behavior.

"Su Mingyue said that the Night Raven is showing unusual activity at the third node." I quickly skimmed through the message. "The energy fluctuations in the formation are three times stronger than before."

"Three times?" Chen Xuan frowned. "How could the energy fluctuations increase so much in just a few days?"

"Su Mingyue said there might be two reasons," I continued reading the message. "First, Night Raven is forcibly catalyzing the array, completing the setup ahead of schedule. Second..."

"What's the second one?"

"Someone is providing the Night Raven with extra energy support."

Chen Xuan's expression changed.

You mean—

"The Void," I said, "is helping the Night Raven accelerate the Seven-Pointed Star Ritual."

Chen Xuan remained silent for a long time.

"If that's the case..." he muttered to himself, "then what they want to do might be faster than we think."

"What is it?"

"I don't know," Chen Xuan shook his head, "but one thing is certain. Once the Seven-Pointed Star ritual is completed, they will be able to open the passage to the 'Origin'."

"What is the origin?"

"The source of all rules," Chen Xuan said. "All the bizarre rules in this world originate from this source. Controlling the source is equivalent to controlling the world."

"So Night Raven and Ruins want—"

"I want to become a god in this world," Chen Xuan's voice was cold, "or at least, I want the power to destroy this world."

A chill ran down my back.

To become a god?

Destroy the world?

This sounds like the delusions of a madman.

But I dare not disbelieve it.

Because I know that there are indeed crazy people in this world.

"Old Lin!"

A familiar voice came from the mountain road.

I turned around and saw Zhao Tiezhu running up quickly. His face was covered in sweat, clearly he had rushed over.

"Instructor Chen." He first bowed to Chen Xuan, then turned to me, "I heard there's been some activity from Night Raven's side?"

"You received the message too?"

"It was Su Mingyue who sent it," Zhao Tiezhu said, panting. "She said the energy at the third node surged, and asked if we wanted to go check it out."

"Yes, of course I'll go," Chen Xuan said. "But—"

Before he could finish speaking, Zhao Tiezhu suddenly moved.

His body shot out like an arrow, his right fist whistling through the air, heading straight for my face.

"Watch out!" I shouted instinctively.

But I didn't hide.

Because I know Zhao Tiezhu won't hurt me.

Sure enough, his fist stopped three inches from my face. The force of the punch sent my hair flying backward.

"What is this?" I asked, looking at his fist. "What are you going to do?"

"A test." Zhao Tiezhu withdrew his fist, his face bearing an expression I had never seen before. "I want to see if you can withstand this move."

"Catch it?"

"Yes." He nodded. "When you were practicing standing meditation just now, there was an aura about you. That aura... it's very similar to a type of person my father described."

"Who is it?"

Zhao Tiezhu and Chen Xuan exchanged a glance.

Then, Chen Xuan spoke up: "Tie Zhu, what's the name of your family's martial art?"

"The Iron Family Cloud-Shattering Fist," Zhao Tiezhu said, "is a type of Northern-style boxing."

"The Iron Clan's Cloud-Shattering Fist..." Chen Xuan murmured the name, "The Iron family is indeed connected to the martial arts world."

"Instructor, do you know the Tie family?"

"I know a little," Chen Xuan said. "The Tie family is one of the largest martial arts families in the north, with a history of three hundred years. Their Cloud Collapse Fist is a top-tier internal martial art, on par with the Lin family's Tai Chi Returning to Origin Technique."

"Northern style boxing..." I murmured. "Are you from a martial arts family?"

Zhao Tiezhu scratched his head, somewhat embarrassed: "I guess so. But I left home when I was young and rarely go back."

"Then why—"

"Because I also want to protect this world." Zhao Tiezhu looked at me sincerely, "Just like Lao Lin, just like the instructor, just like everyone who is willing to stand up."

I was silent.

Zhao Tiezhu usually seems carefree and easygoing, but I never expected him to have such a story behind him.

Born into a family of martial arts practitioners, he chose to join the General Administration to take on the most dangerous missions.

Such a person is more worthy of respect than I am.

"Iron Pillar," Chen Xuan suddenly spoke.

"exist!"

"How much force did you use in that punch just now?"

"The third level," Zhao Tiezhu said. "I was afraid of hurting Lao Lin, so I didn't dare use my full strength."

"The third level..." Chen Xuan turned to me, "Xiao Fan, what did you just sense?"

I thought about it carefully.

"Soon," I said, "but it's not like we can't dodge."

"What if he uses the fourth layer?"

"There's probably no way to avoid it."

"The fifth floor?"

I was silent.

The speed on the fifth floor is beyond my imagination.

"What about the sixth floor?" Chen Xuan continued to ask.

"The sixth level?" Zhao Tiezhu's expression changed. "Instructor, I haven't reached the sixth level yet..."

Where is your father?

Zhao Tiezhu did not speak.

But his expression said it all.

"The head of the Tie family, Tie Tiesheng, has already mastered the Collapsing Cloud Fist to the seventh level," Chen Xuan said slowly. "And he is one of the Four Great Dharma Kings of Guixu."

Zhao Tiezhu's face turned pale instantly.

"Your father is the Dharma King Guixu?" I asked in surprise.

"I...I don't know." Zhao Tiezhu's voice trembled. "I've been cut off from my family since I was a child. I have absolutely no idea what they did..."

"I believe you," Chen Xuan said, "but this matter needs to be clarified sooner or later."

He looked into the distance, where the setting sun was slowly sinking behind the mountains, turning the horizon a blood red.

"The Night Raven's ritual is accelerating, and the Dharma King of Guixu has already begun his actions," he said. "We don't have much time left."