There was no response; Unknown Elder didn’t even move a finger. If Edward Brooks couldn’t clearly hear his breathing, he would have rushed over to check if he was still alive. Edward Brooks thought Unknown Elder had fallen asleep. He smiled lightly, not in any hurry.

He simply brought over two bottles of Laobaigan, opened one and placed it beside Unknown Elder, while he drank from the other himself. Originally, Edward Brooks had wanted to sit down, but the sight of that messy pile of straw made it impossible for him to bend his legs, so he had no choice but to stand in the room.

Perhaps the bottle was placed a bit too close, and the alcohol’s pungency was too strong—Unknown Elder’s large, wine-red nose suddenly flared twice. Very soon, those cloudy eyes opened. Edward Brooks had been watching Unknown Elder all along, and at that moment, he seemed to catch a flash of brilliance in Unknown Elder’s clear eyes, but it vanished in an instant, quickly returning to that perpetually half-awake look.

“You’re here?” Unknown Elder took a big swig of Laobaigan before noticing Edward Brooks in the room.

“What’s wrong, not feeling well today?” Edward Brooks asked with concern. Although Unknown Elder wasn’t related to him, over this period, even if he didn’t want to admit it, he had already come to regard him as family in his heart.

If Edward Brooks felt this way, so did Unknown Elder. The reason he was willing to reopen old memories was to help Edward Brooks solve the problem of his overly sensitive hearing.

“After a night of deep thought, I’ve finally come up with a solution for you,” Unknown Elder said, taking several big gulps of liquor and burping before speaking slowly.

“What solution?” Edward Brooks asked casually. Right now, he was wondering if he should go to the hospital for a checkup. As for Unknown Elder, since he wanted to help, Edward Brooks couldn’t very well refuse his kindness.

“I’ve decided to tailor a simple practice method for you, based on my improved version of the Turtle Breathing Technique,” Unknown Elder said.

“Wait, wait, what do you mean tailor-made? And what’s this improved Turtle Breathing Technique of yours?” Edward Brooks was completely confused. Had he really misjudged Unknown Elder? Did he actually have some real skills?

“The Turtle Breathing Technique is a profound internal skill of my Wudang sect. It’s also known as ‘Xuanwu Meditation’ or ‘True Turtle Breathing Skill.’ After my improvements, it’s become even more formidable,” Unknown Elder boasted proudly.

“You, a Wudang disciple? That must have been decades ago, right?” Edward Brooks didn’t believe a word of Unknown Elder’s “tall tales.” If he really was a Wudang disciple, how could he have ended up like this?

“I really was a Wudang disciple back then, but because I was too lazy, my master ‘let me leave the mountain early’ to make my own way,” Unknown Elder admitted, blushing for once.

“Oh, so you’re a Wudang dropout. With you sleeping or drinking all day, it’s a miracle you even learned the Turtle Breathing Technique, let alone improved it. I’m honestly worried about you,” Edward Brooks said, genuinely concerned. He hadn’t even mastered the authentic Turtle Breathing Technique, yet dared to improve it—he was lucky he hadn’t messed up his own body.

“Don’t underestimate me. Precisely because I’m lazy by nature, I’m the most suited to practice the Turtle Breathing Technique. My master used to praise me for it. Unfortunately, it’s the only thing I learned. And after my improvements, I can go up to seven days and nights without eating—impressive, right?”

“Hearing you say that, I almost believe it. Without this Turtle Breathing Technique, you’d probably have ‘ascended to immortality’ long ago.” So the old Taoist used the Turtle Breathing Technique to stave off hunger—only he could come up with such a method. To be so lazy in life was almost an achievement in itself.

“I’m not bragging. When it comes to the Turtle Breathing Technique, I have decades of cultivation—definitely worthy of being called a grandmaster,” Unknown Elder said, full of pride. The reason he was so proficient in the technique was because, after practicing it, not only could he sleep more and eat less, but it also slowed aging—exactly the skill he’d always dreamed of.

“All right, you’ve pitched it for so long, I can’t refuse. As long as it won’t harm my body, I’ll give it a try,” Edward Brooks said, reluctantly agreeing.

“You…!!!! Like a dog biting Lü Dongbin, unable to recognize a good person’s heart!” Unknown Elder gnashed his teeth in frustration, but there was nothing he could do about Edward Brooks. It seemed that no matter what you were selling, you needed not just reputation but also image—his own image really didn’t inspire confidence. Realizing this, Unknown Elder grumbled a few times, but in the end, he still explained the cultivation method to Edward Brooks in detail.

Actually, practicing the Turtle Breathing Technique was quite simple: just pay attention to your sleeping posture and control your thoughts. But while it sounded easy, doing it was another matter—otherwise, people everywhere would be practicing the Turtle Breathing Technique.

The original Wudang Turtle Breathing Technique had already been “improved” by Unknown Elder without permission. The reason he liked practicing it was because it could slow down metabolism. In his decades of life, the Turtle Breathing Technique had helped him a lot. Sometimes, when he went ten days or half a month without food, it was this technique that kept him alive.