As the medicine simmered on the stove, Mei Yanran held a fan but was lost in thought. She had been guiding An Jiu in practicing Mei Boxing and had guessed An Jiu’s reasons for learning it, but after all this time, there hadn’t been much progress.
Mei Boxing was an external martial art. Most people believed that the most important aspect of external martial arts was physical conditioning, but Mei Yanran had a vague feeling that this wasn’t the case. Taking herself as an example, while her body was indeed strong when facing skilled opponents, she relied more on spiritual energy than physical strength.
As a direct descendant of the Mei family, Mei Yanran had thoroughly mastered Mei Boxing, yet she hadn’t achieved the legendary destructive power. She had always believed it was due to insufficient spiritual energy, but after teaching An Jiu, she discovered that despite An Jiu’s powerful spiritual energy, she couldn’t utilize it as effectively as Mei Yanran herself.
The secret manual of Mei Boxing that the Mei family had withheld – Mei Yanran knew its contents, but this wasn’t the reason for An Jiu’s lack of progress.
“The Heart Sutra of Mei Boxing,” Mei Yanran murmured.
She recalled something she had heard many years ago when she still held some power within the Mei family. Legend had it that the Mei family’s ancestors originally practiced internal martial arts, and even Mei Boxing was initially an internal cultivation technique. Later, when the ancestor was about to break through to a higher realm, he was ambushed and lost all his inner power. One step away from ascending to heaven, he fell to hell instead. Filled with resentment, the ancestor spent ten years honing his skills and created Mei Boxing. He achieved his revenge, but the powerful spiritual energy also took its toll. On his deathbed, he had a moment of enlightenment and wrote a hundred-character Heart Sutra for his descendants.
Later, someone in the Mei family’s history had successfully practiced it, and from that point on, the Mei family rose to prominence.
For some unknown reason, the Heart Sutra had since disappeared. Mei Yanran knew that Elder Zhi had only broken through to the transformation realm in recent years, and the reason he was unaffected was that his body had been tempered to withstand powerful spiritual energy, not because he had practiced the Heart Sutra.
After the medicine was ready, Mei Yanran brought it to Chu Dingjiang and then went to Mo Sigui’s room.
The diagnosis and treatment had already been completed there. Mo Sigui asked Sui Yunzhu to prepare the medicine while he rested against the pile of medicinal herbs.
Seeing him about to get up, Mei Yanran stopped him, “Stay seated. I came to ask you something.”
“Please, Aunt, go ahead,” Mo Sigui said.
Mei Yanran sat down, “If there were a Heart Sutra that could harmonize spiritual energy with the body, would it benefit Ah Jiu?”
Mo Sigui suddenly sat up straight, “Of course! It’s not just her problem now. If she and Wei Yuzhi could practice together, their connection might diminish or even disappear.”
“Mei Boxing has another Heart Sutra, but I’ve never seen it. No one in the Mei family has practiced it for a hundred years,” Mei Yanran had been thinking about where to find it. “I suspect it’s in the secret realm.”
“Secret realm?” Mo Sigui, despite living in Meihua for many years, wasn’t a Mei by birth and naturally didn’t know about any Heart Sutra or secret realm of the Mei family.
Mei Yanran nodded, “Yes, I know the entrance to the secret realm, but the paths inside are intricate and complex. Entering rashly could result in being lost forever. Moreover, the key to opening the secret realm has been kept by successive family heads. I’ve never seen it either.”
Mo Sigui asked, “Does Aunt mean that Sixth Uncle knows?”
“Zhengying was groomed to be the next family head from a young age. He entered the secret realm as a child and could navigate it. Now that he’s the current family head…” Mei Yanran sighed, “However, due to the sudden upheaval in the Mei family back then, we don’t know if the key was lost. But it doesn’t hurt to ask.”
“If what Aunt says is true, and the Mei Boxing Heart Sutra can help spiritual energy and the body integrate, that would be wonderful!” Mo Sigui pondered for a moment. “Let’s inform Chu Dingjiang and let him handle it.”
After all, if even Mei Yanran didn’t know about it, there must be reasons why it couldn’t be revealed. Even if they asked, Mei Zhengying would certainly not give it to them.
Mei Yanran said, “I’m just a bit worried. If the Heart Sutra is truly beneficial, why would the Mei family choose to hide it, preventing even their members from practicing it?”
“We’ll only know once we get the Heart Sutra. Don’t worry, Aunt. If I see it, I believe I can judge its merits and drawbacks,” Mo Sigui said.
Mei Yanran nodded, “As it happens, the Mei family recently asked a favor of Mr. Chu. If I meditate, we should be able to obtain the Heart Sutra.”
If Chu Dingjiang were to ask for it, Mei Zhengying might be unwilling to give it up. But Mei Yanran was a direct descendant of the Mei family, so it wouldn’t be considered sharing with outsiders.