59: Chapter 59 State Secrets

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua looked at the notebook and the inconspicuous black memory card on the table, falling silent for a few seconds.

He did not flip through them directly, but instead looked up at Cheng Jian.

The look in Cheng Jian's eyes was one he had seen countless times in the military: firm, unflinching, and carrying a certain calmness that showed he had already thought through all the consequences.

"Old Company Commander, if I say it directly, you definitely won't believe me."

Cheng Jian pushed the notebook toward Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua. "You should take a look first."

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua opened the notebook.

The first page was the table of contents.

Basic Standing Post training, Mental Perception cultivation, core of the Human Breathing Method, precautions, and effects.

The handwriting was neat, as if it had been traced from a dictionary.

He flipped through it page by page, his gaze lingering on the description of the force application routes for every movement.

He paused for a longer time on the section about "Rhythm of synchronization between breathing and muscles."

His gaze stopped on the line, "Actively absorbing Spiritual Qi, efficiency is about ten times that of passive reception."

He looked up, his expression already uncontrollable.

"Where did this come from?"

"August 2nd, the day after the country announced the Spiritual Energy Revival," Cheng Jian said. "Someone handed this to me."

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua's pupils constricted.

August 2nd.

The country had announced the Spiritual Energy Revival on August 1st.

In other words, just one day after the whole world had learned of the existence of Spiritual Qi, this manual, which had already fully detailed the active absorption method, had been shoved into Cheng Jian's hands.

He continued flipping to the back, to the very last page, which contained supplementary findings about Spiritual Qi: all Spiritual Qi within the area was uniform, the concentration was consistent, and the concentration was slowly increasing.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua's fingers clenched slightly.

"This conclusion... the country only officially confirmed it on August 12th."

Cheng Jian did not respond.

"Is this true?" Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua's voice was very low.

"Yes, it is all true."

Cheng Jian said, "I couldn't believe it when I first received it. Later, I watched the video and tested the movements above, and then I believed it."

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua did not hesitate.

He picked up the military telephone on the table, dialed an internal number, and had someone send over a player that was not connected to the internet, while also calling technical personnel to the office.

In the few minutes of waiting, he did not speak, simply flipping through the notebook from beginning to end again.

After the player arrived, Cheng Jian inserted the memory card and pressed the play button.

The screen lit up.

A valley deep in a dense forest. Surrounded by mountains, the light was dim.

A man with a huge build and a completely unfamiliar face stood in the center of the screen.

Over two meters tall, with shoulders abnormally broad, his voice was hoarse. "Hello, Cheng Jian. I have been observing you for a long time."

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua moved his gaze away from the screen and looked at Cheng Jian. Cheng Jian nodded, signaling him to continue watching.

"...After successfully Cultivating through this method, one can allow the human body to actively absorb Spiritual Qi and open the true evolution. The speed of absorbing Spiritual Qi is more than ten times that of passive reception. This can allow humanity, allow the Xia Country, to stand at the very forefront of evolution."

Then Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua saw those trees.

He saw the person in the video turn and walk toward the fir tree in the center of the valley.

He saw him lift his arm, twist his waist, and rotate his hips. He saw the fist strike the trunk, and the fir tree, as thick as a person's embrace, shattered and broke as if hit by a cannonball.

In less than ten seconds, a patch of forest was cleared.

Then there was the speed.

The figure blurred into an afterimage on the screen.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua pressed pause.

The screen froze at the moment the stranger returned to the camera.

"Have the technical personnel arrived?" he asked.

"They have, they are at the door."

"Come in. Check this video from beginning to end. I want to know if there are any traces of editing, special effects, or post-processing."

The technical personnel took the player and began working.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua stood up and picked up the notebook.

"Cheng Jian, come with me to the training ground."

The training ground was empty.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua held the stopwatch in his hand, standing at the edge of the track.

Cheng Jian warmed up simply at the starting line.

The movements were not large, and every joint was loosened up.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua noticed that his way of warming up was different from before; every movement carried a kind of Force Multiplier Rhythm he had never seen before.

"Start running when you are ready. I will time it myself."

Cheng Jian squatted down, his hands supporting the ground.

His body remained still on the starting line for a few seconds, then exploded.

The track under his feet flew backward.

The amplitude and frequency of his arm swings were extremely high, every frame of the arm swing was in a straight line, without any redundant movements.

The force application of his legs formed a complete conduction chain from the hip joint to the ankle joint, and every time his sole touched the ground, it was like taking a bite out of the track.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua stared at his running posture, his finger pressing on the stopwatch, his breathing pausing for half a beat.

Crossing the line.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua pressed the stopwatch.

He looked down at the dial, his pupils shrinking suddenly.

Nine point zero four seconds.

This result was enough to explain everything; an Armed Police Detachment captain had run a time exceeding the current world record.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua held the stopwatch in his hand, silent for several seconds.

"Cheng Jian, how long have you been practicing?"

"One and a half months."

"You only practiced the first part?"

"Yes."

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua put the stopwatch back in his pocket.

He did not say "This is impossible," because he had seen it with his own eyes.

He also did not say "Why didn't you say so earlier," because if it were him, he wouldn't have said so earlier either.

"Back to the office."

In the office, the technical personnel's inspection report was already out.

The video file had no traces of editing or splicing, no special effects overlays, and no post-processing frame anomalies.

The physical destruction in the footage was real.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua placed the report on the table and picked up the military telephone.

He did not hesitate.

The content of this manual was already beyond the scope of his decision-making.

The strength of the person in the video was also beyond the scope of what he could evaluate.

This was something that had to be reported immediately.

"Connect me to the Division Commander. Encrypted line."

After the call connected, Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua spoke twice as fast as usual.

He did not say "possibly," "maybe," or "suspected," but stated the facts directly: a manual that could allow ordinary people to actively absorb Spiritual Qi.

A video demonstrating extraordinary power, an Armed Police Detachment captain who had already verified it for a month and a half, with his 100-meter time improving from eleven point seven seconds to nine point zero four seconds.

The Division Commander was silent on the other end of the phone for about five seconds, then said one sentence: "Stand by where you are. I'll be there immediately."

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua hung up the phone and dialed a private number.

It rang twice, and the other side answered.

"Dad, I'm at the base office. Something has come up, and I need you to come over in person."

On the other end of the phone was a steady and brief voice: "I'm coming over immediately."

Cheng Jian stood to the side, and hearing Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua call out "Dad" to the phone, his heart stirred.

He knew that the Old Company Commander's father worked in the military region, but there had never been any definite news.

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua put down the phone and turned to Cheng Jian.

"My father, Su Qing, is the Commander of the Xia Country Central Military Region."

Two-plus hours later, a military helicopter landed on the base parade ground.

When Su Qing walked into the office, the Division Commander and the Political Commissar had already arrived early, both standing next to the desk, their expressions as serious as if they were waiting for combat orders.

Su Qing's rank was three general stars.

He was not tall, but his shoulders and back were extremely broad, his hair was gray, but his gaze was sharp enough to seem as if it could see through people.

"Where is it?"

Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua handed over the notebook, memory card, and inspection report together.

Su Qing first looked at the inspection report; the video was real, with no editing and no special effects.

Then he opened the notebook and flipped through it page by page.

His reading speed was extremely fast, skipping the details of the movements, looking specifically at the conclusions, Force Multiplier, Mental Perception, breathing Rhythm, ten-fold absorption efficiency, and uniform distribution of Spiritual Qi.

Then he watched the video.

From beginning to end, watched once.

No one in the office spoke.

Su Qing closed the notebook and tapped his fingers on the cover twice.

"Cheng Jian."

Cheng Jian stood at attention, saluted, and replied, "Here."

"Tell me everything, from the moment you got this thing until now, from beginning to end. Do not leave out any details."

Cheng Jian started from watching the live broadcast on the morning of August 1st, to going on a mission to help an old person move, to hearing someone call his name, to chasing out the door and only seeing a black shadow, to picking up the things placed on the stone slab.

Then to practicing the movements in the dormitory with the windows closed every night, running a 100-meter time of nine point one seconds, and finally making up his mind to come and find Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua.

He spoke very slowly, with the time, place, and people for every step all included.

After Su Qing finished listening, he looked at him for a long time.

Then he turned to Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua and issued an order.

"This manual, as well as the video, is classified as top secret from this moment on. Everyone who has come into contact with these Materials is temporarily restricted from external communication. Leakers will be investigated for treason."

He paused.

"Report to the Military Commission. Report to the highest level."

Late that night, a military transport plane took off from the Yi City military airport.

In the cabin sat Cheng Jian, Senior Colonel and Chief of Staff Su Hua, Su Qing, and a fully armed security detail.

Cheng Jian looked through the porthole at the city lights below gradually shrinking.

He knew he would never return to the Yi City Armed Police Detachment again.

In Jing City, the emergency meeting of the Military Commission and the highest level lasted for two full days.

The content of the manual was analyzed page by page, the video was repeatedly verified, and Cheng Jian's own test data was re-measured; this time, it used calibration equipment from a full-specification sports science laboratory.

100-meter time: nine point one one seconds.

All doubts disintegrated in the face of the data.

The final resolution when issued consisted of only a few short lines:

1. The manual is officially named "Human Breathing Method" and is classified as top secret.

2. The person in the video is classified as top secret; any form of pursuit is prohibited.

3. Immediately form a special task force to test the first part of the training content on a small scale, with Cheng Jian assisting in training testing and teaching promotion.

4. The entire army will implement the breakdown movements in batches to prepare for subsequent national promotion.

5. Form a scientific research team to analyze the subsequent content, with a deadline to submit a feasibility report.

Cheng Jian was incorporated into the Spiritual Energy and Evolution Investigation Bureau, becoming one of the first batch of special testers.

His task was to organize his training insights from the past month and a half into a standardized lesson plan, and then cooperate with researchers to teach the first batch of selected officers and soldiers.

Everything was proceeding in secret.

And thousands of kilometers away in the North Sea, Chen Mo surfaced from the bottom of the lake, climbed onto the cliff, and shook the water from his hair.

He picked up his phone and scanned it.

There was no news about the Human Breathing Method.

But he knew.

From the moment he placed the manual on that stone slab, he knew that day would come.

He did not need to see Cheng Jian's actions with his own eyes; he had handed the manual to the right person, and the right person would hand it to the right place.

He turned off the screen and put the phone back in his bag.

Then he turned and walked to the edge of the cliff to continue his closed-door training.