Measuring the earth with one's feet, refining the heart in the mortal world.

Leaving the Yuanfang Driving School, Chen Jue entered a wondrous state: speaking little, asking less, observing more, walking farther. He measured the earth with his steps, observed the mortal world with his eyes, and comprehended life with his heart.

With continuous strides, his backpack slung over his shoulder, Chen Jue strolled through the towering skyscrapers and bustling streets of Beijing, stepping into the tens of thousands of pedestrians, gazing into the faces of strangers.

There were busy vegetable vendors in the farmers' market, housewives waking early to shop for groceries, students with schoolbags laughing and playing on their way to school, construction workers covered in dust beginning their labor, sanitation aunties sweeping fallen leaves from the roadside, hurried urban white-collar workers rushing to work with breakfast in hand, a busy couple running a breakfast stall, and courier and delivery riders zipping through the streets on electric bikes.

Chen Jue was using his state of celestial-human communion to perceive the myriad facets of sentient beings drifting through the mortal world.

Instead of heading to the high-speed rail station to take a train back to Wenzhou, he walked southward all the way, transitioning from the bustling Beijing urban agglomeration into the gradually thinning suburbs.

When hungry at noon, he would stop at a roadside diner for a bowl of lamian or topped rice; when thirsty from walking, he would buy a bottle of energy drink to replenish his stamina.

The autumn sunlight felt gentle rather than scorching, a cool breeze brushed past, pores relaxed, slightly yellowed leaves drifted near his feet, distant mountains were lush and verdant, the sky was blue with white clouds, and birds sang in the distance.

Chen Jue noticed that wherever he went, traces of human life were everywhere.

Along the way, he saw the small-time owner of a roadside convenience store sitting inside looking listless, urban families on an outing playing joyfully on suburban lawns, suburban farmers drying harvested rice and swinging rakes, occasionally wiping sweat from their brows with towels draped around their necks, truck drivers in suburban logistics parks transporting daily supplies for the great metropolis of Beijing, and endless streams of heavy trucks rumbling ceaselessly along highways leading from Beijing to everywhere.

These were the faces of all living beings, and they were you and me in the vast mortal world.

As the saying goes, emotion is ever-present, and enlightenment occurs in a flash.

After hearing that old song, Chen Jue suddenly realized that the so-called emotional resonance he had been pursuing all along was actually hidden within the seemingly mundane and ordinary days of the past.

By the time he completely snapped out of his trance, he found that he had unconsciously walked more than two hundred kilometers, traveling all the way from Beijing to neighboring Cangzhou.

Drawing on his previous experience of trekking deep into the Gongshan forests, Chen Jue discovered that walking over two hundred kilometers in a single day did not make him feel exhausted at all; instead, it left him feeling profoundly fulfilled.

Pulling out his phone to check the time, he saw it was past nine o'clock at night. Having left home at six in the morning, he had walked for a full thirteen hours. He glanced at WeChat and saw an apology message from Cheng Wei.

Back then, that dorm buddy of his had been single-mindedly focused on reuniting with his ex-girlfriend, utterly intoxicated by love, and had completely left his good roommate Chen Jue behind. Only when he finally came to his senses did he realize that Chen Jue had wandered off God knows where.

Chen Jue smiled slightly at the message, tapping out a teasing reply: "Warmest congratulations to the stray dog for escaping the single club!" Then, putting away his phone, he found a hotel in the bustling streets of Cangzhou to stay for the night.

A full day of intense hiking had rewarded him immensely. Although he had not yet truly penetrated the essence of his own cultivation path, he had gradually come to understand where his own emotional resonance was concealed.

After taking a hot shower in the hotel bathroom to wash away the accumulated dust of the day, and heading downstairs to a roadside eatery for a donkey-meat fire-surt and two Cangzhou flaky sesame flatbreads, Chen Jue returned to his hotel room to sleep and rest.

That night was exceptionally restful. Waking up the next morning feeling spirited and refreshed, he checked out of the hotel, took a walk through the streets of Cangzhou, and had a breakfast of cornmeal steamed buns, fried dough sticks, and sheep-gut soup.

Accustomed as he was to the lighter flavors of the south, occasionally tasting northern fare was a wonderful change of pace.

Pulling out his phone, he booked a rideshare, and half an hour later, Chen Jue arrived outside a walled villa in the suburbs of Cangzhou bearing a plaque that read "Authentic Bajiquan."

It was still early morning, and from within the courtyard came the exhaling and inhaling sounds of internal organ conditioning accompanied by guttural "heng" and "ha" noises. Chen Jue pricked up his ears—it was none other than Master Li Xiang practicing his morning routine in the courtyard.

He knocked on the heavy iron courtyard gate, and it was pulled open from the inside. Li Xiang appeared, dressed in a black martial arts uniform, looking at Chen Jue in astonishment. "Master Chen! What brings you here?"

Li Xiang was somewhat curious. The news of Chen Jue taking top honors at the Grand Tournament had already spread through all the martial arts circles by yesterday. Although he had withdrawn early and left the scene, he had caught wind of it.

After all, having won the top spot in ten consecutive grand tournaments, Li Xiang was already considered peerless across the land, finding hardly any rivals; naturally, suffering a defeat at the hands of a sudden upstart left a deep impression on him.

Yet, seeing Chen Jue again after just a few days, Li Xiang noticed that the young man before him no longer harbored inner confusion, nor did he possess that ethereal, transcendent immortal aura. Instead, he seemed completely transformed, like a living person of flesh and blood, giving off an approachable vibe without the slightest sense of distance.

This feeling was extremely subtle. Had Li Xiang's martial arts and boxing not reached the Huajin stage, coupled with his wealth of life experience, he truly would not have discerned this subtle shift in Chen Jue.

"I happened to be passing through Cangzhou, so I wanted to pay a visit to Master Li!"

"Are you welcoming?" Chen Jue smiled faintly.

"Of course I am!"

"Is it not a joy to have friends come from afar?"

"Master Chen, please come in!" Li Xiang laughed heartily, pulling the iron gate wide open to invite Chen Jue into the villa courtyard.

Inside the courtyard stood a four-story rural villa. The ground was paved with concrete, and arranged about were weapons of the eighteen varieties such as sabers, spears, swords, and halberds, alongside a row of wooden-shafted red-tasseled long spears and heavy iron lances. On the ground rested several stone locks and barbells of varying weights, as well as modern gym dumbbells and a barbell.

There were no flashy plaques or silk banners, merely a simple and unpretentious training ground.

Beyond this, at the back of the courtyard lay a sizable open-air swimming pool filled with water, evidently used by Li Xiang for underwater martial arts training.

Adjoining the courtyard wall was a well-tended flower bed planted with various vibrant flowers, grasses, melons, and fruits, kept in immaculate order.

"What a wonderful place for cultivation!"

"No wonder Master Li's martial arts are so formidable!"

"Such a treasured ground for practice, undisturbed and thoroughly tranquil—even I am a bit envious looking at it," Chen Jue remarked as he surveyed the courtyard environment.

Flattered by the praise, Li Xiang smiled and said, "My wife helps tidy everything up. Over the years, I've also taught some wealthy students who came by seeking instruction, making a bit of pocket money. We get by well enough."

Guiding Chen Jue into the villa's living room and setting down his backpack, Li Xiang went over to the tea table to brew some tea.

Chen Jue stood and gazed at the living room walls, which were hung with numerous family vacation photos and children's award certificates, radiating an atmosphere rich with the flavor of everyday life.

In Chen Jue's eyes, perhaps only a training environment so deeply rooted in ordinary life could nurture a genuine, bold Huajin grandmaster like Li Xiang.

Today's guaranteed first chapter is delivered!

I must have caught a cold yesterday; when I woke up from my afternoon nap, I felt dizzy and my mind wasn't in the right state for writing.