Chapter 23: Won a Chance to Spin the Lottery

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"The Five Elements Fist comprises Chop, Bore, Collapse, Cannon, and Cross... The basic principle of the five elements is that Metal generates Water, Water generates Wood, Wood generates Fire, Fire generates Earth, and each element gives rise to the next... When practicing, one must follow the sequence of Chop giving rise to Bore, Bore to Collapse, Collapse to Cannon, and Cannon to Cross for the elements to nourish one another, thus achieving the effect of health and physical cultivation, and to practice with twice the result for half the effort."

Du Ruo did not stop, nor did he bother explaining to Qiangzi; he simply recited the essentials of Five Elements Fist cultivation while practicing. Qiangzi, separated by the low picket fence, stared fixedly at Du Ruo’s movements, silently replaying Du Ruo’s words in his mind. For a moment, he could find no reason to refute them.

It seemed… it seemed Du Ruo was entirely correct; whether in theory or practice, there was simply no room for contradiction. Especially watching Du Ruo’s form—there was no rushing wind from his fists, nor any fierce momentum, everything appeared so natural, even somewhat pleasing to the eye.

"Sigh... let’s go, let’s go, if we don’t leave now we’ll have to queue for tickets soon."

Qiangzi’s schoolmate, seeing his face alternate between pale and flushed, immediately understood his predicament, and dragged him toward the edge of the village. Du Ruo paid no heed to their departure, continuing his practice. He had only spoken out because Qiangzi meant well, and he felt yesterday’s words were perhaps a bit harsh; sharing the essentials of Xingyi Fist was a small token of compensation.

Don’t underestimate a few words; as the saying goes, ‘true teaching lies in a single sentence, false teaching fills ten thousand books.’ This one phrase was worth as much as the thousands Qiangzi paid in tuition.

Du Ruo had stayed at the guesthouse for over a week, practicing morning and evening, helping Yang Ling with guests during the day, and in the evenings, meeting Xiang Yuan-yuan at the tavern for a drink—a carefree existence. Yang Chen-guang was endlessly envious; managing village affairs and shuttling his children to and from school, he always met Du Ruo with a mix of admiration and jealousy.

Today, Du Ruo wasn’t staying at the guesthouse—the tourist season had begun, and the three detached rooms were booked out. Naturally, he wouldn’t stand in the way of profit, so he packed up and vacated the room, returning to his own home.

Tonight was significant: both his Xingyi Fist skill and Nature School skill were ready to advance. Du Ruo wanted to know whether every skill upgrade brought a new ability, or if only specific upgrades granted new skills.

With two skills advancing simultaneously tonight, if he could gain two new abilities at once, it was clear upgrades automatically yielded new skills—future plans would need to be adjusted.

Du Ruo hadn’t actively practiced the Nature School technique, not even mountain running in recent weeks.

He refrained from mountain running for safety; after all, he was at home, not elsewhere. In the past, he would only share good news with his family, bearing any hardship alone.

But now, living at home, if anything happened and word reached his parents, it would inevitably worry them.

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As for the Nature School technique, Du Ruo had avoided practicing it actively; his experience had increased passively for a reason.

Qinggong sounds impressive, mysterious even, especially in martial arts fiction, but in reality, traditional qinggong had long been abandoned.

The reason is simple: none of the renowned modern qinggong masters—those who could leap across rooftops—were tall or robust.

"Swallow Li San" was reportedly only 1.65 meters tall; Du Xinwu’s teacher from Nature School, also a qinggong master, was nicknamed "Short Xu," and according to records, he barely exceeded 1.4 meters in height. He was unremarkable in appearance, but his qinggong was unparalleled.

This isn’t to say practicing qinggong stunts growth, but that a slender, short stature is more suited to training qinggong. Moreover, training qinggong requires sustained leg strength, which could indeed impact height.

Du Ruo understood this well. At 1.78 meters and 150 pounds, forcing himself to train qinggong would be a waste of effort. He preferred passive practice; besides, Xingyi Fist also trains leg strength. Once his physique improved, combined with the Nature School’s techniques, traversing rooftops wouldn’t be a problem.

"Clap, clap, clap—Uncle’s so good!"

Du Ruo finished a set of Xingyi Fist. Huang Ya-mei, seated nearby on a little stool, applauded enthusiastically. She’d been following Du Ruo these past days; previously, during holidays, she would stick with her grandmother, but since Du Ruo’s return, she gravitated toward him, as he fished and cooked for her.

Du Ruo ignored Ya-ya and opened his panel. Last time Xingyi Fist upgraded, he gained a new skill. This time, Nature School should be ready to advance—he wondered whether he’d gain a new ability.

Name: Du Ruo

Age: 31

Essence: 9.06

Qi: 9.08

Spirit: 9.40

Attribute Points: 0.03

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Skills: Xingyi Fist LV2 (2/500)

Nature School Technique: LV1 (0/200)

You have one chance to draw for a new skill. Would you like to draw?

"Only one chance? So, since I haven’t actively practiced Nature School, there’s no upgrade reward?"

Du Ruo contemplated the panel, seeking reasons, and concluded this was the most likely explanation. No matter; he was clear by now—skills weren’t the priority, attribute points were. Physical strengthening was the foundation of everything.

"My essence, qi, and spirit attributes are all above nine now, but there doesn’t seem to be any remarkable effect; I eat more, have better stamina, recover faster, and remain more alert, but beyond that, there are no other advantages. Maybe I should try mountain running again to test my current strength."

Du Ruo mused, rather self-satisfied. In truth, his physical changes in recent weeks had been significant. Now, clad only in sports shorts, his physique was fully revealed.

His body lacked the bulging muscles common from gym training; his frame was slender, his abdomen round without visible abs, and his arms had no pronounced muscle definition—only his thighs bore distinct muscle lines. Overall, he didn’t leave a striking impression, exuding a relaxed aura, not one that drew attention.

Only Du Ruo himself knew how astonishingly resilient his skin had become, and how, during martial practice, his muscles would tense with exertion.

"Begin skill draw."

Du Ruo disregarded the martial experience gained from leveling up, his heart filled with the anticipation of a lottery, eyes fixed on the virtual panel only he could see, waiting eagerly for the next skill to appear.