Chapter 21: Daily Spear Training (Requesting Follows)

Lin Qi stared at the bank account balance of over thirteen thousand, his emotions complicated.

Since childhood, his account had never held more than three thousand yuan.

This was the first time he had ever possessed so much money.

“I haven’t seen over ten thousand yuan in over a decade,” Lin Qi thought to himself.

Of this thirteen-thousand-yuan balance, three thousand came from part-time work as a training partner.

The remaining ten thousand was a scholarship.

“My scholarship has arrived!”

Jiang Tao beside him also smiled; thirty thousand yuan was a substantial sum for him too.

Although he had received a million Xiaoguo yuan from the Genius Loan, not all of it was for his own use.

He had a younger sister who also needed funding—she required early resource investments to build a solid foundation, so every yuan mattered.

Lin Qi understood this well.

“After lunch, let’s go to the supermarket—we need to buy new resources,” Lin Qi suggested.

To prepare for the minor test, he had purchased large quantities of Qi-Blood capsules and Qi-Blood tonics, all consumed within a week.

“Good, I need to buy some resources too—let’s go together.”

“By the way, Qi-ge, you should replace your phone—the screen is cracked so badly you can barely see it.”

Jiang Tao pointed at Lin Qi’s smartphone.

Lin Qi looked at the antique device in his hand—his father Lin Zhen’s old phone—its screen now covered in spiderweb cracks, the case faded, yet he had never replaced it.

“It’s definitely time to replace it,” Lin Qi nodded.

…

Ten minutes later

Chiqiong Martial Arts Supermarket

Lin Qi stood in the tonic section, taking box after box of Qi-Blood capsules from the shelves.

“My body is growing at an astonishing rate, and my daily training load keeps increasing.”

“To maintain my progress, I need sufficient nutrition, tonic supplementation, and Qi-Blood enhancement.”

“So I need to buy more Qi-Blood capsules and tonics.”

Thinking this, Lin Qi grabbed twenty boxes of Qi-Blood capsules, then moved to the Qi-Blood tonic shelf.

“Previously, due to lack of funds, I only bought two bottles of Qi-Blood tonic—now I can afford one per day.”

Lin Qi grabbed a row of Qi-Blood tonics and placed them in his cart—ten bottles total.

After briefly purchasing a few other resources, he joined the checkout line.

“Ding!”

“Total: 7,826 yuan!”

“Payment successful!”

Lin Qi paid via his phone—the remaining balance of over ten thousand yuan vanished by more than half.

“If I could become a contracted genius at Chiqiong Martial Arts Gym, even with a 20% discount, I’d save a lot.”

With a sigh, he packed his items into his backpack and waited near the cool entrance.

A few minutes later, Jiang Tao emerged, his backpack stretched to its limit.

“Haha, I accidentally bought a bit too much.”

“Besides my own resources, I bought a lot for Miao Yin.”

“Our family was poor; to support my martial path, Miao Yin sacrificed herself—she’s been malnourished.”

“Now I need to properly nourish her and build her foundation.”

Jiang Tao scratched his head, grinning as he explained.

Lin Qi nodded—Jiang Tao’s parents were dead; even with government aid and relentless part-time work, he could barely afford basic living expenses.

It was clearly unrealistic for both of them to pursue martial arts.

So Jiang Tao’s younger sister, Jiang Miaoyin, had sacrificed herself—Jiang Tao used every yuan on his own resources, leaving her malnourished and her Qi-Blood stagnating, placing her at the bottom of the class in martial strength.

Lin Qi had every reason to believe Jiang Tao’s million Xiaoguo yuan would mostly go toward his sister Jiang Miaoyin.

“Let’s go buy a new phone.”

“Alright!”

The two went to a nearby phone store and emerged moments later.

In Lin Qi’s hand was a brand-new smartphone, black and glossy.

“Qi-ge, you should at least get one over a thousand yuan—five hundred yuan models don’t perform well,” Jiang Tao complained beside him.

“It’ll do for now—I don’t have much money left. I’ll upgrade after the college entrance exam.”

“Besides, you’re using a secondhand phone worth five or six hundred too.”

Lin Qi operated his phone, transferring files without concern.

“Heh, caught me,” Jiang Tao chuckled.

The two returned to school, fully loaded.

…

Afternoon, Martial Arts Class

“I know some of you have hired martial artists stronger than me as tutors—you don’t need my guidance.”

“You’re free to train in your own martial rooms.”

Zhang Cheng, a muscular man, stood in the center of the classroom, arms crossed, speaking loudly.

Hearing this, several students gathered their gear and left—among them were the top three students: Li Zhou, Qi Yuelin, and Yu Jing.

In moments, over a dozen students were gone—mostly the top ten in grade, fitting the stereotype: wealthy students always had strong martial foundations.

“The rest of you—train freely. I’ll assess your levels.”

Over thirty students scattered, each finding a spot to begin training.

Lin Qi, dressed in his martial uniform, took a strip of Qi-Blood capsules from his backpack, squeezed out three, swallowed them, then drank a bottle of Qi-Blood tonic.

He glanced around and chose not to train with weapons like the others.

Instead, he began practicing fist techniques.

“Huh-huh~”

His footwork steady, Qi sinking into his dantian, strong as an untoppable old man.

Motion and stillness combined—stillness held the crouching tiger’s posture, motion moved with the agility of a cat.

“Bang-bang-bang!!”

Crisp sounds echoed as his tiger claws struck, the Heng Fist unleashed, power driving to his fingertips.

!

Lin Qi focused entirely, his body heating up as if on fire, Qi-Blood surging, strength flowing endlessly.

The key points of the Tiger Form Fist surfaced in his mind.

【Through practicing Tiger Form Fist, you’ve gained new insight into fist techniques; your bodily control has improved; Fist Technique +1%】

【Fist Technique: Stage One 91% → 93%】

…

Lin Qi ended his stance, steam rising from his body, sweat beading on his forehead.

Feeling his body properly warmed, he retrieved his training spear.

“Shu-shu!”

He swung the spear, yet practiced only the basic spear techniques—each flick of the shaft produced swirling spear blossoms.

“With my fist technique breakthrough, spear technique is improving even faster—efficiency doubled.”

“Practicing weapons simultaneously also consumes far more energy than pure fist training.”

Minutes later, Lin Qi stopped, drenched in sweat. He wiped his brow, drank a bottle of water, then resumed training the “Crushing Mountain Spear Art.”

“Start posture, lift the clouds, crushing thrust…”

“When practicing spear, the spear must never leave your grasp; your body hides behind the spear. Train with root guiding tip.”

“Use the root joints—waist, hips, shoulders—to guide the tip. When wielding the spear, tip and root exchange roles, like a python coiling around the body, swift and adaptive.”

“When training, move slowly and fully; your body acts like an air pump, fully charged, expanding and contracting like a tube. Spear techniques twist, coil, drill, and flip—your body follows the spear, the spear follows your movement…”

Zhang Cheng’s loud voice echoed throughout the martial arts classroom.

Lin Qi swung his spear while listening, a quiet understanding forming in his mind—his spear technique now flowed more smoothly.

“Stage One spear technique is basic—it’s all about mastery. Is it profound? Not really. Just practice more…”

“Practice enough, and your spear realm will naturally rise.”

Zhang Cheng finished speaking and turned to Lin Qi.

His words had clearly been meant for him.

“Shu-shu~”

“Bang!”

Lin Qi continued practicing Crushing Mountain Spear Art—Zhang Cheng’s thoughts aligned perfectly with his own: just practice more.

Each repetition raised his mastery.

【Through instruction from teacher ‘Zhang Cheng,’ your understanding of spear technique has deepened; Spear Technique +1%】

[Spear Technique: Rank 1, 70% → 71%]

……

Yang Lei, waving his spear in the distance, looked displeased.

“Why does Mr. Zhang always coach Lin Qi? What am I lacking compared to him?”

……

9:30 PM

Lin Qi and Jiang Tao headed home together.

Both lived in Rongshan Community, a large neighborhood known as one of Tianhai City’s poorest districts.

Lin Qi lived in Building 4, Jiang Tao in Building 3—their homes were not close.

On regular days, Lin Qi never waited for Jiang Tao, because Jiang Tao had to care for his younger sister, Jiang Miaoyin.

“Big Brother Qi, see you tomorrow!”

“Alright!”

They parted at the intersection, each heading toward their own home.

……

Apartment 301, Lin Qi stepped through the door.

Unlike usual, a cool breeze rushed against his face.

In the living room, a standing cubic air conditioner hummed as it blew cold air.

“The air conditioner arrived!”

Lin Qi smiled. His parents, Lin Zhen and Fang Huiyi, were already enjoying the cool air on the worn-out sofa.

……

(End of Chapter)