Chapter 81: Three-minute Hero
Translator: TYZ Editor: Lis
Senior Mingxiu’s bandaging technique surprised Ai Hui. She had said before that her limited medical knowledge came from her brother who was an exceptional doctor.
However, the way he saw it, her medical knowledge was not little at all, but rather, quite detailed.
She started by wrapping the bandage diagonally across the top half of his body, then down his shoulders and arms to his wrists. Lastly, the blood bandage was tied to a knot on each of the Sword Rattan Gloves; this way, the bandage wrappings on both left and right arms were symmetrical to each other.
The blood bandage was surprisingly long, enough to wrap around the necessary body parts.
Ai Hui became acutely aware of his clumsiness after taking more than ten tries to get it done.
Finishing, he felt a change had taken place.
Chilly killing intent from the bandage entered his body, exerting a calming influence on the elemental energy mass. Ai Hui immediately felt his body relax, and the feeling of being as lithe as a swallow returned to his body once more. It seemed the blood bandage’s tight wrapping did not limit his body’s movements but made him more agile instead.
"Now try untying the knots on the gloves," Mingxiu encouraged.
All eyes were trained on Ai Hui, especially the old man’s who looked on somewhat nervously.
Taking a deep breath, Ai Hui untied the knot on his right wrist.
The elemental energy mass in his natal residence shuddered before a strand of elemental energy swam out from it and rapidly entered his right palm.
Despite the elemental energy strand’s weak nature, it was extremely pure. It swam through his body with lightning speed, reaching Ai Hui’s right palm in no time. Just as it was about to penetrate through the Sword Rattan Gloves, it unexpectedly stopped in its tracks, blocked by an invisible wall.
The gloves woven by a master weaver were indeed extraordinary!
Joy coursed through Ai Hui, and realizing he could control this strand of metal elemental energy, he became even more excited. With a jolt of his body, he appeared like a phantom before the trunk of a large pine tree in the corner of the courtyard.
It had been a while since he last practiced [Arching Fish Back], but now it activated instinctively, ferociously slamming him backwards.
Crack!
The pine tree, as wide as two men together, shattered, the point of impact spraying countless wooden shavings. The top half of the tree snapped and flew through the air.
Rumble!
It smashed into the courtyard wall, filling the air with dust and dirt. The wall remained standing, thickly dotted with numerous wooden fragments.
Everyone was dumbstruck with terror after witnessing such a ferocious strike from Ai Hui.
"Is this guy a bear?" the old man muttered.
Ai Hui stared with similar astonishment at the tree stump, unable to believe the sight before his eyes. Was this truly the [Arching Fish Back]?
"Now you can feel the power of it, right?" The old man returned to his senses and spoke with excitement, "Even though it’s just a small strand, the high-quality elemental energy can generate far greater power than what is generated by low quality elemental energy. This is also one of the reasons for training. The elemental energy you are able to wield now far surpasses your base level. The benefits are already quite obvious. Your fighting capabilities will improve immensely, and you will gain a stronger tempered body.
"So why, then, do we need the Sword Rattan Gloves? With these, you’ll be able to direct the elemental energy to your palms. This will be useful in activating the palaces in your left and right hands. It feels good to be an expert, right? Now since we’ve finished talking about the benefits, let’s talk about the drawbacks."
Ai Hui pricked up his ears.
Seeing Ai Hui’s calm countenance, rather than ecstasy, after obtaining stronger powers, the old man subtly nodded.
Ai Hui truly deserved to be his disciple. His maturity at such a young age was rarely seen!
"The problem is that there will be a heavy strain on your body. Does this sound confusing? There’s actually nothing complicated about this. When this strand of elemental energy slowly revolves in your body, it will help in your training. However, in combat, the elemental energy will revolve very quickly around your body—the higher the level of elemental energy, the faster its revolution speed. This is what will strain your body greatly. When the pressure gets too great, your body will sustain irreversible damages."
"How long can I fight?" Ai Hui asked calmly.
The old man held out three fingers and answered, "Given your current physical status, it is considered safe to fight for no more than three minutes."
"That’s quite good; at least I can be a three-minute hero," Ai Hui quipped.
When Han Yuqin and Ming Xiu heard the phrase "three-minute hero", they broke out in laughter.
"You’re right. However, during this period of time, as your body becomes stronger, the duration will increase as well. Your main objective is to activate the palaces in your left and right hands; once you do, not only will you be able to use more elemental energy, it will be much safer for you as well. You have to keep in mind that although you have the blood bandage, that mass of elemental energy remains in your body as a ticking time bomb. If anything goes wrong, your body will explode into countless pieces with a bang," the old man chimed in.
This result was within Ai Hui’s expectations. He remained unperturbed as he knew that this was inevitable. He was not someone born under a lucky star. You win some, you lose some, there was nothing to be surprised about.
Everyone present thought Ai Hui was joking when he mentioned the phrase "three-minute hero," but that was not the case, and he was fine with it. Although three minutes were short, it was still enough for him to accomplish many things. A real battle could be decided in an instant. With a whole three minutes of immense powers, Ai Hui would not waste a single second. With a straight face, he asked, "How should I train?"
"You won’t need to go to the Suspending Golden Pagoda for very long," the old man teased before a solemn look overtook his face and he continued, "There’s a crucial problem with your training—the strand of elemental energy cannot return to the natal residence. If it does, it will only be absorbed back into the elemental energy mass once more."
Hearing these words, the previously calm Ai Hui lost his composure, and he asked, "How should I train then?"
The basis of training was to direct elemental energy using the Circulatory Cycle Revolution of which the natal residence was both the starting and ending point. If the elemental energy could not return to the natal residence, how could he train?
The old man revealed a smirk, replying, "I have already come up with a solution for this problem. It’s simple—we won’t use the Circulatory Cycle Revolution."
"Not using the Circulatory Cycle Revolution?" Ai Hui thought he misheard.
Han Yuqin and Mingxiu revealed surprised expressions as well.
"That’s right! No Circulatory Cycle Revolution!" the old man replied without hesitation. "What’s the purpose of the Circulatory Cycle Revolution? To purify and absorb elemental energy. Currently, the elemental energy in your body does not need to be purified since it is already extremely pure in nature. Furthermore, there is an abundance of it. What you need to do now is toughen your body, especially your palms.
"To activate the palaces in your left and right hands, there are two conditions. The first is to make sure your hands are sensitive to elemental energy. The second condition is to make sure there is enough elemental energy. The elemental energy you have is pure in nature, but the amount you control is far too little; it is far from enough to activate the palaces in your hands."
Ai Hui felt that what his master had said made sense, and he could not help but ask, "What do I need to do specifically?
"For this, you will have to depend on your mistress." The old man smirked.
"Depend on me?" Han Yuqin was baffled. Suddenly, her eyes lit up as she thought of something. "Are you talking about…"