Chapter Fifty-One: Betrayed

Chen Jin looked at Chen Lan with a puzzled expression, listening to her words and thinking: Could my little sister be a genius?!
Yet reality proved that cultivation is not achieved overnight, and not everyone is born a prodigy...
The energy Chen Lan sensed was false—it was merely a lingering illusion caused by the low-level energy sphere Chen Jin had released in her room the previous night.
Her constitution had indeed improved, but she had not yet set foot on the path of cultivation.
"You're still one step away. What you're sensing now isn't your own energy; it's just the primordial energy of heaven and earth contained within your blood. First you need to practice mental visualization to keep your spirit vigorous, then break through to the state of focused mind," Chen Jin shook his head.
"Also, you need to strengthen your body. If your physique isn't robust and your essence insufficient, you won't be able to gather primordial energy. Do you understand?" he continued.
"Alright..." Chen Lan nodded, feeling a bit dejected.
"You were able to sense energy so quickly; that's a talent in itself. Keep at it," Chen Jin didn't want to discourage her further, so he offered some comfort.
"Mm..." Chen Lan wasn't a child; she couldn't simply shake off her disappointment with a few words.
Chen Jin ruffled her hair, turning her short locks into a messy nest, then headed upstairs.
"Brother, can I join you in your morning exercise?" Chen Lan hurried after him to the rooftop.
"If you can keep up, then do. But don't force yourself if you can't," Chen Jin nodded.
He then began practicing the Yu Step, silently reciting the Metal Qi Formula.
He had experimented with it yesterday and found it quite effective; at the very least, his skin felt smoother...
That was due to the way the skin channeled primordial energy from heaven and earth into the body, which cleansed it.
Chen Lan tried to follow Chen Jin's Yu Step, but she couldn't get the movements right. Chen Jin moved at a brisk pace, so by the end she was utterly exhausted and out of breath, while Chen Jin remained unaffected—his foundation was solid, after all.
More importantly, the longer Chen Jin practiced, the more invigorated he became. In the pale golden light of dawn, he seemed almost divine, mysterious beyond compare.
Panting, Chen Lan could only sit and watch as Chen Jin continued his Yu Step.
He practiced for half an hour before stopping.
"Aren't you going to school?" Chen Jin asked.
"It's only six forty-five... there's no rush," Chen Lan waved her hand dismissively.
"Brother, was that Yu Step you were doing just now?" Chen Lan, putting aside her sense of time, seized the moment to ask.
"Yes, but not the version you found online. It's similar, but for it to truly work, you need to sense the orientation of heaven and earth's magnetic field. Your steps must match the inspiration you catch from your senses; otherwise, there's no effect. That's why you couldn't keep up and ended up exhausted," Chen Jin confirmed, adding further explanation.

These insights came from Xin Yang's memories, though he described them using modern terminology.
"Oh," Chen Lan replied, looking convinced.
"So study hard. Otherwise, you might not even know how to use some of the techniques in the future. This isn't a game; you can't just press a button and conjure something," Chen Jin lectured again.
"Got it, got it," Chen Lan nodded quickly.
Chen Jin then taught Chen Lan a few body-strengthening methods he had learned from Xin Yang's memories, letting her observe and learn.
They practiced until about seven twenty, when Chen Lan finally thought of going to school. This time, Chen Jin drove her there.
From then on, he would handle all her drop-offs and pick-ups.
After sending Chen Lan to school, Chen Jin drove to a village beside Mist Lake.
He was searching for the ancestral cultivation method Wu Quan had mentioned.
Wu Quan claimed his family had migrated from the Central Plains, primarily during the Southern Song dynasty, and that one ancestor had even served as a guest advisor to Wang Anshi—quite impressive, to say the least.
Moreover, according to him, a certain ancestor had participated in the evolution of current cultivation methods, making his lineage truly extraordinary.
After hearing all this, Chen Jin decided it was worth a try, so he resolved to retrieve the method.
However, Wu Quan seemed to have followed his brother-in-law to that village and might not return, and since there had been no contact, Chen Jin felt he should retrieve the cultivation method immediately before unforeseen complications arose.
Wu Quan's family resided in Qi Lang Village outside Mist Lake County, about five kilometers from the county town and seven kilometers from Chen Jin's house. The three locations formed a triangle.
Chen Jin arrived at Qi Lang Village quickly. The village was well developed, filled mostly with small villas funded by a prosperous local businessman, which had caused quite a stir in Mist Lake County when they were built—many people discussed it at the time.
Of course, all this happened when Chen Jin was in high school.
Wu Quan's was among these households.
Chen Jin maneuvered through a few turns in Qi Lang Village before arriving at Wu Quan's villa.
It was much smaller than Chen Jin's own, but looked decent enough—after all, it was a gift.
A small car was parked at the villa's entrance.
With a local Mist Lake license plate, naturally—it wasn't from out of town.
Feeling the heat radiating from the car, Chen Jin realized it had just arrived.
So there was someone inside—someone had beaten him to it.

But who else had Wu Quan dealt with?
Chen Jin leapt lightly onto the second-floor balcony, then tiptoed inside.
There was definitely someone else in the villa.
Judging by the footprints near the car, it seemed there was only one other person inside.
As soon as he reached the second floor, Chen Jin's keen senses detected another presence on the third floor, though that wasn't where Wu Quan had said the cultivation method was hidden.
Wu Quan's ancestral cultivation method was stored in the basement, which he had dug out himself—it hadn't existed when the villa was first built.
Wu Quan had probably hidden many things down there.
From Chen Jin's senses, the person on the third floor was physically weak—far inferior even to a novice cultivator—so he could safely assume they weren't a practitioner.
To avoid unnecessary complications, Chen Jin didn't try to deal with them directly, but instead went to search for the manual in the basement.
He descended to the first floor, found the entrance to the basement, and entered.
The first thing to greet him was six mechanical arrows—he must have triggered a trap.
Chen Jin dodged deftly, then released several streams of primordial energy to destroy the mechanical crossbows.
These minor traps were meant to ward off ordinary people, but since there were such defenses, there must also be ones targeted at practitioners.
And then—boom! The entire basement exploded in an instant.
Chen Jin quickly shielded himself with primordial energy, for the blast came too suddenly for him to cast a protective spell in time.
Rumble...
The explosion grew louder, engulfing Chen Jin completely.

...