Chapter Fifteen: The Art of Subtle Glances

Before 1:30 in the afternoon, Leng Bingtong and the other three women left home one after another—some heading to work, others to school.

Leng Bingtong was the last to leave. Just before she walked out, Yan Tian grabbed her and asked, “You’re just leaving like this? What if you lose control while you’re at work or school?”

Suddenly remembering, Leng Bingtong slapped her forehead. “Oh right, how could I forget that?” She reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a watch-like device, handing it to Yan Tian. “You wear this.”

Yan Tian took it and chuckled dryly, “Don’t joke around. A cartoon digital watch... You’re giving me a cartoon watch, and I’m a grown man.”

With a straight face, Leng Bingtong replied, “On the surface, it looks like a cartoon digital watch, but it’s actually a positioning alarm.” She pressed a button next to the watch, and the screen changed to display something like a map, showing four green dots blinking. Three of them were very close together, moving in the same direction.

She patiently taught Yan Tian how to use this “cartoon” watch. “This positioning alarm stores a world map. We’re currently in Crane City, so it displays the map of Crane City. The map can switch anytime, and if we go elsewhere, it automatically updates to our location.

“The maximum detection radius of this device is 200 kilometers. If you’re more than 200 kilometers away from us, you won’t be able to see our positions.

“See these four green dots? They represent me and the other three—Tian Ling, Ya Qi, and Jing’er. The white light dot is you.

“Although there’s always a risk of us losing control, we each have a buffer period before that happens because we can sense it coming.

“My buffer is the shortest—only five minutes. Tian Ling and Ya Qi each have ten minutes. Jing’er is a doctor and has a special method to control her body temporarily, preventing her brain from directing it, so her buffer is the longest at fifteen minutes.

“When we’re close to losing control, we try to get to a sparsely populated area within our buffer period. When we lose control, the green dots gradually turn red and emit an alarm sound. The alarm is very loud; with your ability, you’ll hear it even if you’re asleep.

“When the green dot turns deep red, it means we’re completely out of control. You must find a way to reach us as quickly as possible.”

Yan Tian quickly learned to operate this high-tech gadget and asked curiously, “Where did you get such advanced tech?”

Leng Bingtong answered, “Tian Ling and the others brought it from the experimental base. It was originally used by the organization that created the artificial gods to monitor them, but Tian Ling modified it.”

“Oh,” Yan Tian said, then asked, “By the way, I still don’t understand what powers Tian Ling and the others have. Knowing your enemy is key to victory. If I don’t know their limits and try to stop them from losing control, I might accidentally get killed by them instead, right? Also, you said I’m some kind of ‘born god.’ What does that mean?”

Leng Bingtong glanced at her watch. “Not much time. If we keep talking, I’ll be late. I’ll explain it all when I get back tonight and have Tian Ling and the others show you their abilities.”

With that, she jumped into her car, started the engine, and sped out of the courtyard.

Yan Tian called after her, “Gongsun Jing always has a stern face. Can you tell me what makes her laugh?”

From the car, Leng Bingtong shouted, “Give her a red envelope…”

“Ha!” Yan Tian waved the dust off his hand and muttered, “I knew it. Worrisome, really.”

Once the four women left, the large house grew quiet again, leaving only Yan Tian and Shi Kexin. Seeing no one else around, Yan Tian began scheming. He had memorized the so-called “Eyebrow and Eye Dual Cultivation Divine Skill” inside and out. Maybe it was time to put it to the test.

Though Yan Tian felt the “Eyebrow and Eye Dual Cultivation” was strange—he never copied it down himself, and it seemed to have appeared inexplicably—every word in the notebook was in his handwriting, making it a great mystery. But now that Yan Tian had a deep understanding of martial arts, theoretically, this dual cultivation technique was entirely feasible.

This set of skills could be used by both men and women. If the man practiced it, he should lead; if the woman practiced it, she should take the lead.

For Yan Tian, the greatest advantage of this technique wasn’t that it could turn a complete novice into a master quickly, but that it gave him a legitimate, justifiable reason to train Shi Kexin for her own good.

Humming a tune, Yan Tian headed toward the front door of the main house. Shi Kexin usually took a nap in the afternoon and was currently asleep in her room. In Yan Tian’s heart, she was already his lawful wife, so naturally, she would be the first to practice this dual cultivation with him.

Starting right away was unrealistic—Shi Kexin knew nothing at all. At least she needed to understand all the acupoints and meridians in her body first. This dual cultivation wasn’t about one person leading alone; both partners had to practice the same method. Otherwise, the true energy (qi) the other transmitted wouldn’t stay inside.

To avoid mistakes, teaching her the acupoints and meridians would require hands-on guidance, carefully exploring her body—a perfect opportunity for Yan Tian to take advantage.

Yan Tian didn’t plan to practice this dual cultivation with many women. Though the true energy stored in the Celestial Fallen Jade was abundant, it was still finite. Using the dual cultivation technique to rapidly become masters meant transferring the true energy—only Yan Tian could absorb it—from the jade into his partner. The total amount remained unchanged; the more he gave to others, the less power he retained.

Put simply, if it weren’t for Shi Kexin, even if Yan Tian were willing to teach someone martial arts, he would never give an ounce of his own true energy to another.

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