Chapter 11: Father's Surprise

Chapter 11: Father's Surprise

Time slipped away, unnoticed, amid sweat and mechanical repetition.

For most students at the Limit Martial Arts Hall, these two weeks had been monotonous, exhausting, and filled with confusion.

But for Qin Feng, they were the most fulfilling fifteen days of his life.

Simply because his efforts could yield results!

Visible results!

No longer plagued by the old ailment that had haunted him before.

Night fell over the "Silver Gull" Community, on the seventeenth floor.

Qin Feng sat in his cramped room, the lingering warmth of training still radiating from his body.

He did not immediately fall asleep as usual. Instead, he activated the personal terminal on his wrist.

The can of spiritual energy potion gifted by Sun Chantang—its vast and gentle power—had been completely exhausted during yesterday's training.

From today onward, every cycle of "damage-recovery-improvement" would rely solely on his own regenerative ability and ordinary food from the outside world.

The efficiency of his cultivation would undoubtedly decline.

So before that, he needed to take a comprehensive inventory of the past half-month's achievements.

He called up his personal information interface.

A pale blue light screen floated in the air, rows of data clearly listed upon it, silently recording the fruits of his fifteen days and nights of arduous training.

[Name: Qin Feng]

[Vitality Index: 0.89]

This number had already firmly surpassed the minimum admission threshold of 0.8 for ordinary middle schools.

Only one step remained before reaching the 1.0 mark required by key martial arts high schools.

He closed the personal information and opened the physical function test records.

This was the result of a test he had paid for at the martial arts hall today.

[Punch Strength Test (Right Hand): 498 KG]

[100-Meter Sprint Speed: 10.2 seconds]

[Nerve Reaction Speed: 0.09 seconds]

Every single figure far exceeded the average for a fifteen-year-old student.

In this world, a Vitality Index of 1.0 marked the official threshold for a first-rank martial artist, with physical qualities roughly equivalent to breaking through the physiological limits recognized by humanity in the old era.

And all of Qin Feng's current data were approaching that critical point with relentless closeness.

Finally, he turned his gaze to the panel deep within his consciousness—visible only to himself.

[Heaven rewards diligence; unceasing toil bears fruit.]

[Host: Qin Feng]

[Vitality Index: 0.89]

[Mastered Cultivation Methods:]

[Empire Basic Body-Tempering Method (Entry Level)]

[Proficiency: 72/100]

[Hint: When proficiency reaches 100, it can be elevated to the Minor Achievement stage.]

Fifteen days, maintaining a daily increase of 4 proficiency points, for a total gain of 60 points.

Adding the original 12 points, the proficiency had now reached 72 points.

Twenty-eight points remained before "Minor Achievement."

At most, seven more days were needed.

Qin Feng shut off all the light screens, and the room returned to darkness.

He sat on the edge of the bed, his fists unconsciously clenching.

The feeling of power surging through his limbs and bones was so real, so intoxicating.

Just then, the door to his room was gently pushed open.

"Still awake?"

It was his father, Qin Dahai's voice. He didn't turn on the light, only walked to Qin Feng's bedside by the faint glow filtering in from the living room.

"Dad."

Qin Feng stood up.

In Qin Dahai's hand was something.

He held it out to Qin Feng.

It was a white metal canister with no label.

Qin Feng's pupils contracted sharply.

This metal canister—he knew it all too well.

In size, shape, and material, it was identical to the one Sun Chantang had given him half a month ago.

"This is..."

Qin Feng's voice carried a hint of uncertainty.

"Primary spiritual energy potion."

Qin Dahai's voice was as steady as ever. He pressed the metal canister into Qin Feng's hand; it felt cold and heavy.

"Martial arts training isn't just about hard work and eating. The body's recovery and evolution require vast amounts of spiritual energy as fuel. This spiritual energy potion is the most basic, most universal fuel."

He paused, then continued to explain: "The standard potions circulating on the Empire's market are mainly divided into three grades—primary, intermediate, and advanced—based on concentration and purity. They correspond to the needs of the first three ranks of martial artists. The one in your hand is primary."

Qin Feng looked down at the metal canister in his hand, and his thoughts turned to Sun Chantang. Only now did he realize that the seemingly rough-hewn hall master had casually gifted him something so precious.

He immediately raised his wrist, activated his terminal, and entered the Empire's official certified online marketplace. In the search bar, he typed the words "primary spiritual energy potion."

The search results quickly popped up.

Among the dazzling array of products, the familiar white metal canister stood out.

And beneath it, a glaring blood-red number was marked.

[Price: 10,000 Empire Coins/Can]

Ten thousand!

Qin Feng's finger froze in midair.

His father's monthly salary was only ten thousand Empire Coins.

After seven or eight years of treating his illness, and then enrolling him in the martial arts hall, the family had exhausted its savings. His uncle had even contributed ten thousand.

Now, where had his father scraped together ten thousand yuan to buy this potion for him?

He jerked his head up, looking at his father, his lips moving slightly, countless questions lodged in his throat.

Qin Dahai seemed to read his mind; before he could speak, he said first, "Don't worry about the money. I prepaid several months' wages from the factory, gave the boss my word."

"Your only task now is to train. Don't think about anything else. Go all out, prepare for the high school entrance exam. As long as you get into a martial arts high school, it'll all be worth it."

He patted Qin Feng on the shoulder, his one-armed hand heavy and strong.

Qin Feng looked at his father's face, its features sharp in the darkness, at his calm yet unyielding eyes, and swallowed all his questions.

He took a deep breath, nodded solemnly: "Dad, I understand."

With that, he lit up his personal terminal again, bringing up the string of numbers that represented half a month of his hard work, and placed it before his father.

"Dad, look."

[Vitality Index: 0.89]

[Punch Power Test (Right Hand): 498KG]

[100-Meter Sprint Speed: 10.2 seconds]

[Neural Reaction Speed: 0.09 seconds]

Qin Dahai's gaze fell on those numbers.

The air around them seemed to freeze at that moment.

This man, who held up the whole family with silence and tenacity, swayed almost imperceptibly after seeing that number.

His breathing suddenly grew heavy.

He reached out his right hand, calloused and rough, his fingers trembling slightly, wanting to touch the floating light screen, as if to confirm it wasn't an illusion.

"Zero... point eight nine?"

He forced out these words from his throat, one by one, his voice hoarse as if scraped by sandpaper.

Qin Dahai was stunned.

He had once served in the military and ranked as a third-level martial artist. Though his physical functions had greatly declined due to the "Flame Demon" injury, his insight remained!

Half a month.

Just half a month.

From a frail youth with a vitality index of only 0.41, deemed by doctors to have damaged foundations and no future, to now a quasi-martial artist with a vitality index soaring to 0.89, just one step away from a key martial arts high school.

What kind of progress was this?

It could no longer be described as "lightning speed."

It was nothing short of a miracle!

Qin Dahai jerked his head up, his eyes burning as he stared at Qin Feng. Those eyes, usually as calm as an ancient well, now churned with disbelief and ecstasy.

"Good... good! Excellent!"

He said "good" three times in a row, his voice growing louder, until it was almost a roar.

It was an emotion suppressed for too long, bursting forth at that moment.

"A genius! My son is a genius!"

Qin Dahai grabbed Qin Feng's shoulder, shaking him hard, unable to hold back his smile, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes smoothing out from sheer joy.

"I knew it! I knew my son's talent wasn't bad! It was that damned illness holding you back! Now that it's gone, your talent has fully erupted!"

In the empire's martial arts theory, a person's cultivation speed, besides effort and resources, the core factors were "spiritual energy utilization rate" and "comprehension."

Comprehension aside, it had little effect on the first three levels of martial artists.

As for spiritual energy utilization rate, its impact was enormous!

For example, take the same basic spiritual energy potion, containing 100 units of spiritual energy.

An ordinary person's body might have an absorption and conversion efficiency of only 10%, ultimately turning only 10 units into personal growth.

But a genius—their body had a natural, ultra-high affinity with spiritual energy, with an absorption efficiency of 20%, 30%, or even higher.

With the same resources and effort, a genius's progress was several times that of an ordinary person.

In Qin Dahai's view, the terrifying progress Qin Feng had made in the past half month had only one explanation—his son was born a martial arts genius with an extremely high spiritual energy utilization rate!

"Drink it!"

Qin Dahai pushed the can of spiritual energy potion further into Qin Feng's arms, his tone filled with unshakable excitement.

"With this potion, maybe before the exam, you might even have a chance to hit 1.0 and become a true first-level martial artist!"

"Son, our efforts haven't been in vain!"

Qin Feng took the heavy potion, feeling the warmth of his father's hand, and nodded solemnly.

"Yes, Dad."

(End of this chapter)