Since my daughter Du Heng was born, the family has become much more lively.
Everyone was revolving around little Du Heng, including Du Ruo.
This made Du Ruo feel human again.
As time slowly passed, Du Ruo's family lived in their own world. Even though the outside world was changing with each passing day, it seemed to have nothing to do with this small village. It was always so quiet and peaceful.
Only occasionally would villagers reveal in conversation which village's child was a martial arts genius and had won a scholarship.
Or a kid from a village was admitted to a good school by virtue of his talent in martial arts.
Another thing is that someone has completed the ninth-grade warrior assessment and finally got a salary increase.
Martial arts training has begun to be integrated into daily life.
Many people have discovered that this seems to be a shortcut, because there are too many ordinary people whose fate has been directly changed by practicing martial arts, which has given ordinary people a shot in the arm.
It brought a glimmer of light to the road ahead, which had previously been invisible to them.
Of course, the international situation is still turbulent. In the absence of any force to stabilize the order, many countries are facing new challenges.
The increase in personal power has brought about violence and chaos, just like the last straw that broke the camel's back, leading some already precarious countries to a different end.
But no matter what happens outside, this land is still peaceful.
In other regions, a multi-country melee broke out, and in China, an economic war over the trillion-dollar medicinal materials market also began.
All factors conducive to martial arts training were snapped up, with medicinal liquor, tonics, and pills being the hardest hit.
Of course, the huge profits have created new chaos, and a large number of scammers are rampant. Even if the country already has a systematic practice method, one can steadily improve by just practicing step by step.
There are always people who believe in the so-called quick methods of learning martial arts, or the so-called long-standing heritage.
But these had nothing to do with Du Ruo. At this moment, he was lying on a recliner, basking in the sun, with his eyes closed and his mind wandering.
Next to him, there was a small crib, which was empty.
But on the ground, Tiger Vanguard was lying next to Du Ruo's recliner, sleeping soundly with his big head resting on his paws.
When a tiger sleeps, its tongue sticks out. As it breathes, a low roaring sound comes from its chest and abdomen. It's quite noisy, but not annoying.
Even Du Heng quite enjoyed this feeling of vibration. At this time, little Du Heng was lying on Hu Xianfeng's belly in her open-crotch pants. As his belly rose and fell, her little body also rose and fell.
The two men and the tiger quietly enjoyed the afterglow of the evening sun.
Du Heng, who was sleeping on Tiger Vanguard's belly, slowly moved his body. Because the tiger's belly was smooth, his body unconsciously slid to the ground with this movement.
The sliding of the body made all the saliva that little Du Heng shed while sleeping rub onto his face, making it wet, but this was not the most important thing.
Little Du Heng was about to slide off Tiger Pioneer's belly and fall to the ground.
The Tiger Vanguard, who was still snoring, stopped snoring, retracted his tongue into his mouth, then raised his head from the ground, and then rubbed his big head against his abdomen, just in time to stop the slowly sliding down of Little Du Heng.
Little Du Heng had no intention of waking up, nor did she realize that she was about to fall to the ground. It was just that when Tiger Pioneer's big head hit her, out of the instinct of a little baby, little Du Heng grabbed Tiger Pioneer's beard.
“Wow???”
The tiger pioneer, who had not yet woken up, was stunned instantly after his beard was grabbed. His eyes widened and he tried to move his big head, but his beard was held tightly by the little guy and he did not dare to use force.
Even when I wanted to call for help, I didn't dare to shout too loudly for fear of waking the little guy up.
So, Tiger Vanguard just bent his head, curled up his body, and looked at Xiao Duheng with wide eyes, waiting for her to let go.
As for a baby, once she clenched her fists, she would never let go unless there was something more attractive to her. And when she was asleep, she would be even less likely to let go on her own initiative.
"Huh? Tiger Vanguard woke up?"
Xiang Yuanyuan, who was originally on the first floor, practicing Tai Chi with Li Qiyao, asked in confusion after not hearing the tiger's snoring for a while.
"I haven't heard the snoring for a while. I'll go up and take a look."
Li Qiyao put away her attitude and listened carefully for a while before confirming it.
Tiger Pioneer's snoring is not harsh, but it is low and powerful. Once you get used to it, you won't think it's anything, but you can still notice it if it stops suddenly.
"Let me go. Little Du Heng should be getting up for milk."
Xiang Yuanyuan smiled and asked Li Qiyao to continue practicing martial arts while she went upstairs.
When I arrived at the balcony, I saw little Du Heng lying on Tiger Pioneer's curled up body, grabbing Tiger Pioneer's beard with one hand. Not only that, he also put his little head close to his hand and sucked his thumb.
Tiger Vanguard had his beard pulled and was almost in tears.
As for Du Ruo, he was lying on the recliner with a smile on his face, showing no sign of waking up.
"Hey, Tiger Vanguard, please bear with it for a while. I just got out of bed. I'm going to take a shower."
Xiang Yuanyuan was both angry and amused. Finally, she sighed, whispered something to comfort Hu Xianfeng, then turned around and went back to her room.
"???"
Tiger Pioneer was stunned. He blinked twice, then watched Xiang Yuanyuan turn around and go back to the room.
Fortunately, it didn't take long for Xiang Yuanyuan to change her clothes and come out.
But before Xiang Yuanyuan could go and wake up little Duheng and pick him up, a noise on the wall woke him up.
"Meow~~"
The clouded leopard suddenly appeared on the wall, barked, and then ran quickly to the balcony.
When little Duheng heard the cry, she opened her eyes dazedly, then kicked her legs, turned over and looked in the direction of the clouded leopard. As she turned over, a soft "pop" sound was heard, and a thick and long tiger whisker appeared in little Duheng's hand.
"Woo~~"
The tears that Tiger Vanguard had been holding back for a long time finally flowed down. He looked at the tiger whiskers in Xiao Duheng's hand and let out a whimper.
"Clouded Leopard, you still remember to go home, huh? Look how long it has been since you came back."
Xiang Yuanyuan held little Du Heng in her arms, ignored Tiger Vanguard, and instead began to scold Clouded Leopard with a stern face.
At this time, more than half a year has passed since little Du Heng was born. Not only can she roll over, but she also seems to have started to learn to crawl.
During this period, Tiger Vanguard would stay at home and stay by Du Ruo's side all the time unless Du Ruo drove it away. Not only that, it seemed to like little Du Heng very much and was like a babysitter to her. Whenever Xiang Yuanyuan had something to do, she would just let it take care of the child.
As for the clouded leopard, it seldom goes home. This time it only came back once in a month. No wonder Xiang Yuanyuan scolded it. However, it is not afraid of Tiger Vanguard now.
"Meow~~"
The clouded leopard ignored Xiang Yuanyuan and jumped directly onto Du Ruo and barked, but its eyes also fell on little Du Heng in Xiang Yuanyuan's arms.
"This little guy is pregnant. He probably came back to take care of the baby."
At this time, Du Ruo opened his eyes and looked at the clouded leopard in his arms, but his hand touched the Tiger Vanguard lying on the ground. At the same time, a wisp of spiritual energy flowed into the Tiger Vanguard's body as a compensation for it.
"It? Is it pregnant with a baby?"
When Xiang Yuanyuan heard this, her expression immediately changed. She was no longer stern, but instead full of curiosity.
"Wow~~"
Xiang Yuanyuan originally wanted to go over to take a look, but little Du Heng in her arms was obviously hungry after waking up. She pretended to cry and fumbled in Xiang Yuanyuan's arms with her little hands, looking for something to eat.
"Oh, oh, oh, baby, be good. I'll give it to you right away. Honey, how do I do this?"
Xiang Yuanyuan first comforted little Du Heng, then took the tiger whisker that was nearly 20 centimeters long and dropped from her hand and asked Du Ruo.
"Keep it. Collect more and make it into a necklace or bracelet for little Du Heng."
Du Ruo smiled and looked at the Tiger Vanguard lying on the ground. However, the Tiger Vanguard was still enjoying the spiritual energy that Du Ruo had just passed on to it and did not notice Du Ruo's gaze at all. "Then I'll keep it for now."
Xiang Yuanyuan nodded. Since Du Ruo said so, she had no objection. The tiger's whiskers were very long, particularly thick, and very tough. If she collected more, she could really make them into jewelry.
Moreover, there has always been a folk legend that tiger whiskers can ward off evil spirits. The ancient royal family even used tiger whiskers to make toothpicks, which shows how tough they are.
More than half a year has passed in the blink of an eye.
I watched little Du Heng grow up from such a tiny baby. From being wrinkled when he was born, he now has smooth skin and big eyes. He can turn over by himself and is no longer a baby who can sleep twenty hours a day.
During this period, Xiang Yuanyuan has regained her figure and picked up martial arts again. Although she has not made great achievements, she has returned to the level before giving birth.
You know, Xiang Yuanyuan has already practiced Hunyuan Qigong, and has also started to learn Shangqing Gongfa, and has also mastered the art of breathing and gathering qi.
So after resuming her martial arts training, in this world where spiritual energy is becoming increasingly rich, she has become a sixth-rank warrior. She can already drive the "qi" in her body to attach to weapons, making her a considerable master.
As for Du Ruo, it’s a bit hard to say.
For more than half a year, the most he did was to close his eyes and rest in a recliner. At least, in the eyes of outsiders, he always looked like this.
It was also thanks to the fact that little Du Heng particularly liked Du Ruo. As long as she stayed with Du Ruo, the little girl would lie quietly, either sleeping next to her father or looking at her father with her eyes open.
Only when he is hungry will he seek Xiang Yuanyuan for milk.
This saved Xiang Yuanyuan a lot of worry. She also had time to practice martial arts with Li Qiyao, or go shopping. Occasionally, when the two girls were in the mood, they would go hiking together. It was quite comfortable.
As for everyone else, they are busy with their own lives.
Because little Duheng is unexpectedly easy to take care of, his parents don't have to look after Xiang Yuanyuan or take care of the children. They can even find time to travel occasionally. Their life is so carefree.
The only thing that remains unchanged is Du Ruo.
Ever since his Golden Elixir progress reached 10%, his life has become more regular.
I got up early in the morning, changed little Duheng's diaper, had breakfast, made a pot of tea, and then lay down on the recliner. Although I was still lying on the recliner, my mind had already started traveling.
After a tour, he played with little Duheng for a while, had lunch, and then started to take little Duheng to a nap. Basically, he would regain his focus when his daughter woke up.
In the afternoon, I would accompany Xiang Yuanyuan for a stroll around the village. In the evening, I would play with my daughter and then go to bed.
This kind of life, let alone outsiders, even Xiang Yuanzhang would smack his lips in envy.
But there is no way, the feeling of traveling to Beihai in the morning and Cangwu in the evening is indeed easy to make people addicted.
It is a feeling of transcending time and space and observing the world from a God's perspective that ordinary people cannot understand.
Of course, as he met more and more people and things, Du Ruo's heart began to change a little bit. Many things could no longer cause too much ups and downs in his heart.
Moreover, as time went by, Du Ruo gradually discovered a change, that is, the spiritual energy attracted was no longer increasing with the increase of practitioners.
Perhaps because the base number of practitioners is already large enough, in the past month or so, Du Ruo has discovered that the number of people attracted by spiritual energy has stopped skyrocketing.
This was a bit abnormal, so in the past month, he spent more time observing and speculating the reasons for this.
If this world was like a dry land a year ago, the spiritual energy now has begun to accumulate like a small pond. Even if Du Ruo just observes everywhere with his mind, he can see wisps of spiritual energy floating in the air everywhere.
Of course, the fact that the world's spiritual energy has become richer does not mean that everyone can absorb it. It can only be said that living or practicing in such an environment can more conveniently absorb the spiritual energy into the body. As for how much can be absorbed in the end, it depends on the individual.
However, according to Du Ruo's observation, as he inhaled and exhaled spiritual energy, he could absorb less than one tenth of it. What he absorbed more was the subtle increase and harmony of spiritual energy in this spiritual environment in life.
Then even ordinary people can absorb some of it, and it is inevitable that the body will be strong and the cultivation will be accelerated. It just requires a process of accumulation over time.
"Honey, you said you were looking for something last time. It's been almost a month. Have you found the reason?"
At the dinner table, Xiang Yuanyuan was eating. He glanced at little Du Heng who was sitting on the ground playing with the clouded leopard, but was communicating with Du Ruo.
A month ago, Du Ruo closed her eyes and rested for nearly eighteen hours every day, and this lasted for nearly a month. Today she just asked casually and didn't have any big objections.
"I'm looking for the reason why the spiritual energy drawn in is no longer increasing, but I think I've found the reason."
Du Ruo ate a piece of fish meat rich in spiritual energy, first explained that he was not looking for something, and then casually said that Du Ruo had not been wandering around the world for nothing during this period.
When he sees some fruits rich in spiritual energy, or encounters some fish rich in spiritual energy in the sea, he will use his sword to bring some of these things back.
In addition, foxes would occasionally send some over, and his family, even Xiang Yuanyuan's parents, his father, his mother, and his sister Duna's family, never ran out of these foods rich in spiritual energy.
"what is the reason?"
Xiang Yuanyuan knew the importance of spiritual energy from what she had seen and heard, so when she heard Du Ruo say that, she hurriedly asked. Even Li Qiyao next to her stopped eating and listened curiously.
They knew that this was related to Du Ruo's cultivation.
"The full-scale promotion has almost reached a bottleneck. The reason why it is no longer being increased is probably due to quality issues. Although the entire nation is practicing, they are all ordinary people.
There are too few truly gifted practitioners. Even geniuses only practice the most basic methods. If we follow the rules, I don’t know how long it will take.”
This is the reason why Du Ruo has been looking for it for the past month.
"How to solve it?"
Xiang Yuanyuan knew that since Du Ruo had found the reason, he would definitely be able to find the reason.
"The cultivation method I mentioned before is a bit outdated. I have recently developed some new cultivation methods. Fox will be here tomorrow, so I will ask her to do some experiments with them."
Du Ruo smiled, he had already thought of a solution.
Of course, he didn't just play every day for half a year, so he definitely had some insights.
The cultivation methods he had given before were indeed very basic. After all, they were the cultivation methods summarized when the spiritual energy had just revived.
It now seems too basic, and the use and absorption of spiritual energy is too inefficient. Now is the time to launch version of the technique.
"What about us?"
Xiang Yuanyuan's eyes immediately lit up when she heard this. She was still practicing the method that Du Ruo had taught her before, so naturally she also wanted to learn new cultivation methods.
"I can't do without you. I'll teach you tomorrow."
Du Ruo just smiled. Now Li Qiyao and Xiang Yuanyuan are both sixth-grade warriors.
The reason why they can progress so quickly and reach this level in such a short time is certainly not because they practice so hard or have such good talents.
All of this was due to the spiritual energy that Du Ruo transmitted to the two of them. In fact, that is to say, although they did not have any new martial arts, their absorption of spiritual energy was unmatched by any new martial arts.
Of course Du Ruo didn't say it out loud, because he had already discovered that now only he could manipulate and absorb spiritual energy so casually.
He can even capture spiritual energy and infuse it into others at will.
He had observed the old antiques who were enshrined in special departments in Kyoto. When those people breathed in spiritual energy, they could only absorb two or three tenths of it.
It is even more impossible to plunder spiritual energy on a large scale like him.
"Perhaps, this is a privilege bestowed upon me by heaven and earth."
Du Ruo already had a guess in his mind, perhaps this was the biggest golden finger of the man of destiny.
……
The next day, the fox came as Du Ruo said, and brought with it some grains containing spiritual energy that had been researched and cultivated.
When the fox left, she was so excited that her fingers turned white from holding a big box in her hands.
Not far from Du Ruo's house, a large number of top masters came to escort her to carry the box to Kyoto.
(End of this chapter)
