069: Never in My Life Will I Become a Fisherman

While the owner of the guesthouse was enjoying a joyful family reunion, Chen Jue had actually returned to his own villa a step ahead of the dark-skinned young man.

After a hot shower to wash away the salty sea water, Chen Jue changed into dry clothes and began practicing the Muscle-Tendon Change Classic in the living room. Relying on this meditative exercise to invigorate his blood and stretch his tendons, he gradually regained the strength he had expended at the bottom of the sea.

He switched on the television and put on a documentary about the rise and fall of historical dynasties, letting his mind drift as he trained. Once his stamina had somewhat recovered, he resumed practicing the Thirteen Guardians’ Iron Body Technique. Now and then, the living room echoed with sharp cracks—the sound of force reverberating through his bones and tendons as his body slowly underwent transformation.

Since leaving the old house in Chen Village, his thirty-two teeth had been loose for several days, yet still showed no sign of falling out; it must be because his internal energy had not truly penetrated to the marrow. That previous metamorphosis, though dramatic, had only brought him halfway, and it was only with the breakthrough in the Muscle-Tendon Change Classic that he barely managed to accomplish it.

But if he wished to drive his energy into the very marrow and complete the transformation described as “Changing the Marrow” in the boxing manuals spoken of by online masters, his skills would have to reach a new level entirely.

Glancing at his free attribute points, which had accumulated to 0.42 over two days, Chen Jue saw that the points he’d previously spent improving his skills had been replenished. The efficiency of practicing underwater was astonishing—one session yielded as much as 0.2 points, and even the lowest gains hovered between 0.15 and 0.19, a vast improvement over his progress in the reservoir.

“If I dive again tomorrow, morning and evening, I should be able to break through in Tai Chi and the Thirteen-Posture Stance!” Chen Jue looked over his skills panel with growing anticipation.

…

After a night of practicing the Thirteen Guardians’ Iron Body Technique, Chen Jue woke the next morning to find the previously cloudless seaside weather had changed. Ominous, heavy clouds crept in from the horizon, the wind outside grew louder and more mournful, and the air felt increasingly humid.

These were the signs of an approaching typhoon. After so many days of clear skies, the weather was finally turning gloomy and rainy.

Taking advantage of the quiet morning, Chen Jue once again climbed down to the back cliffs, grabbed the stone ball wedged in the rocks, and dove underwater to continue his training.

But this time, he found the undercurrents much more violent than the previous night, and the waves above had grown fiercer. The swirling water surged and lashed against his skin like supple whips. It felt as if he’d been tossed into a giant washing machine, churned relentlessly by the sea. Had he not tempered his body with two forms of hard qigong, even these currents would have left his flesh bruised and battered.

In this drastically altered underwater environment, Chen Jue found breath-holding and training exponentially more difficult. This time, he could only manage eight or nine minutes before having to surface and return to his villa.

The increased difficulty, however, sped up his accumulation of free attribute points, and his proficiency in Tai Chi and the Thirteen-Posture Stance soared, nearly reaching the threshold for advancement.

For this authentic Daoist skill, Chen Jue was determined not to use attribute points to break through; he wanted to master it step by step, relying on his own perseverance and genuine effort. With every improvement in his Tai Chi stance, his understanding of internal force in parts of his body beyond his limbs became clearer, no longer the muddle it once was.

“Victory is within sight! One more dive tonight and I should break through!” Chen Jue looked forward eagerly to the changes that would come when internal force permeated his entire body.

After rinsing off the saltwater, he headed to the kitchen and prepared a pot of fish maw stew using the method taught by the guesthouse auntie. The fish maw had soaked overnight, and he’d changed the water again in the morning, eliminating the fishy odor. He added yellow wine and old ginger bought in town, brought the pot to a boil, then left it to simmer as he made his way to the first villa for breakfast.

Upon entering, Chen Jue greeted the guesthouse owner, who had just returned from grocery shopping, and noticed a new young face at the table. The young man’s dark complexion and facial features bore a clear resemblance to Uncle Yu. Chen Jue quickly deduced that this must be the eldest son, often mentioned by Uncle Yu, who worked at sea.

A life at sea inevitably darkened the skin, so Chen Jue wasn’t surprised. He greeted him, and after exchanging a few words, learned that the young man’s name was Yu Yue. Chen Jue made a note of the name, added him on WeChat, and sat beside him to enjoy the steaming bowl of homemade seafood noodles prepared by the auntie.

“Chen Jue, my dad said you hauled up a wild large yellow croaker at the back cliffs. Want to go fishing there again today? I’ve called a few friends to join us—we can take a fishing boat out and have some fun,” Yu Yue suggested.

He’d shared the story with his friends over supper the previous night, and they’d all been green with envy, clamoring to dig up the waters off the back cliffs in hopes of finding another big croaker.

As for the red blip they’d seen on the sonar last night, everyone dismissed it as a false alarm—surely the device had mistaken a large fish for a “person.” Now that they’d heard Chen Jue really did catch a big one there, it seemed even more likely, and no one gave a second thought to the idea of someone diving there at night.

“With this wind today and the waves so rough, maybe we shouldn’t go?” someone said.

“I feel like catching that big yellow croaker used up all my luck for a lifetime! I doubt I’ll land anything good if I try again,” Chen Jue laughed, making a self-deprecating joke to politely decline.

Fishing?

He knew better than anyone how that fish had been brought up. Besides, he could barely handle a fishing rod, let alone fish in these seas.

In fact, he didn’t even own a proper fishing rod! The only reason Uncle Yu hadn’t suspected anything was that each villa came equipped with fishing gear for guests’ entertainment. When Chen Jue had brought a bucket to ask for help, Uncle Yu simply assumed he’d used one of the room’s rods and hadn’t thought much about it. If he’d looked closer and checked the fish’s mouth, he’d have noticed there wasn’t even a hook mark.

As for the bucktoothed Sun who bought the fish, he was even less likely to question how it had been caught. Chen Jue hadn’t said whether it was fished or netted; after it was hurriedly slaughtered, it was probably already on a refrigerated truck to Wenshi, destined for some tycoon’s lunch.

Chen Jue turned down Yu Yue’s offer because, in his view, the time spent fishing would be far better used honing his skills at home.

Yu Yue wasn’t offended by the refusal, knowing Chen Jue was a guest and unwilling to insist. Instead, he said, “Alright then! We’ll go fish for a bit and set up a barbecue in the yard at noon. You have to come for grilled sea fish!”

“Absolutely! If there’s good food, I’ll definitely be there!” Chen Jue replied with a bright smile.

It was just as he thought—someone his own age knew how to have fun. After days of homestyle cooking, he was eager to try something fresh and lively.