“Mother, I want to tell you something!”

Adam Thompson wanted to give her twenty taels of silver, but Sarah Parker was simply too tired. She waved her hand and said, “Whatever it is, tell me tomorrow. I can’t even keep my eyes open.”

“San-niang, you should eat something!” Mary Wood asked.

“I’ve already eaten, don’t worry about me, I’m going to sleep.”

“I’ll boil some hot water for you to wash your feet!”

Sarah Parker waved her hand and went back to her room to sleep, barely exchanging a few words.

Adam Thompson sat in his room, waiting for time to pass. He was both expectant and nervous, truly tormented.

The first watch is from 7 to 9 p.m. During the Tang Dynasty, ordinary people went to bed very early, resting at sunset, sleeping as soon as it got dark, and getting up at four or five in the morning.

Of course, the wealthy who sought pleasure and entertainment would just be starting their nightlife at this time. Over in Pingkang Ward, laughter would ring out all night, and the lights would be dazzling.

The note mentioned the usual time. Adam Thompson thought seven o’clock was unlikely; it should mean eight o’clock. When people said the first watch, they all meant eight in the evening.

As time gradually reached the first watch, it was almost eight o’clock at night. Adam Thompson quietly slipped out.

Chapter 10: The Mysterious Man

Adam Thompson arrived at the wasteland behind the community temple and saw a tall, thin man standing by the river with his hands behind his back, facing away from him, a long sword hanging at his waist.

Adam Thompson was truly amazed—this man must be at least 1.9 meters tall!

“I’ve been away for half a year. Have you been slacking off?” The man’s tone was cold, filled with strong dissatisfaction.

“Who are you?” Adam Thompson made no attempt to hide his amnesia.

The man suddenly turned around. He was in his thirties, with a thin, pale face and a long scar that was quite shocking. His gaze was as sharp as a knife, as if it could pierce through a person. Adam Thompson immediately felt as if all his secrets had been seen through.

“You really don’t remember who I am?” The man narrowed his eyes.

Adam Thompson shook his head. He pointed at the river and said, “The river was probably frozen, so I couldn’t practice!”

“Probably?”

The man sneered, “You sound as if you’re talking about someone else.”

Adam Thompson still shook his head. “I’ve forgotten everything from before, I don’t even remember my own mother.”

The man’s eyes suddenly lit up. “I see. No wonder you made a breakthrough. Only by forgetting oneself can one return to unity; only by forgetting oneself can one achieve harmony between man and nature…”

The more the man spoke, the more excited he became. He couldn’t help but laugh up at the sky. “It’s truly fate!”

“Who exactly are you?”

The man stopped laughing and looked at Adam Thompson calmly. “We’ve practiced polo together for ten years. You’ve never asked who I am. I hope you won’t ask in the future either. One day, you’ll know.”

“Does my mother know about you?”

The man nodded and smiled. “She knows, but she pretends not to. But don’t misunderstand—I’m not your father.”

Adam Thompson nodded. “If you were my father, she would have smashed your head in with a hammer long ago.”

The man gave a wry smile. “You really do know her well!”

Adam Thompson no longer cared about his identity. He remembered something and asked, “Was it you who repaid the thirty taels of silver?”

The man smiled and said, “Don’t bother with these trivial matters. Let’s talk about polo. How did you make your breakthrough?”

Adam Thompson thought for a moment and said, “When I swing the mallet, I get a certain feeling—a sense of control over power and accuracy. When it suddenly disappears, I try to capture that feeling and make it appear again and again, until it becomes second nature. When I need it, it arises naturally.”

“Show me. Hit the left eye!”

The man kicked up a small stone, which shot toward Adam Thompson like lightning. Adam Thompson reacted even faster, stepped back two paces, and swung his mallet. ‘Pa!’ The stone shot out like a shadow, hitting the left eye of the clay statue and embedding itself there.

“Good!”

The man gave a thumbs up and praised, “Even better than I expected!”

Adam Thompson smiled. “Does that mean I’ve graduated?”

The man shook his head, speaking meaningfully. “I’ve taught you polo for ten years. What do you think I’ve really been teaching you?”

Adam Thompson glanced at the long sword at his waist, and a thought struck him. “You’ve been teaching me martial arts!”

“A teachable child!”

The man praised, “Strength, speed, sensitivity, precision—these are the foundations of all martial arts. Your foundation is solid. Next, you must reach a higher level and begin to glimpse the martial path…”

Adam Thompson didn’t interrupt, listening as he continued.

“The great Dao of the world, though different in form, leads to the same end. All can be seen as yin and yang. Martial arts are the same—returning to simplicity. All martial arts in the world boil down to two words: attack and defense.”

Adam Thompson grinned and asked, “So what does it mean to attack while seeming to defend, to defend while seeming to attack, to be neither attacking nor defending, or to combine both?”

The man glared at him. “Three years ago, I tested you once, and you disappointed me. Today, I’ll test you again. I hope you won’t let me down this time!”

The man took the sword from his waist and suddenly swung it upward. The sword flew from its scabbard, shooting straight into the sky, soaring more than ten zhang high. Suddenly, the sword’s radiance turned downward, as swift as lightning, like a rainbow piercing the sun. A cold gleam, with an incomparably fierce momentum, shot down from above.

The man held the scabbard, unmoving as he watched the sword light shoot toward him, like a boulder that had stood for eons, or an iron tree taking root. In an instant, the sword returned to its scabbard, and the sword’s radiance vanished.