“The methods of Cultivation in ’Qiankun’ are extremely profound, and Wang Sheng didn’t particularly understand the principles within, so he could only practice according to the descriptions of the martial arts.
’Qiankun’s momentum…’
The practice of ’Qiankun’ is a set of movements, which extend from the same foundational action whether for saber, spear, sword, or halberd, before seizing and restraining the opponent.
Wang Sheng chose to practice both the fist and spear together so that in the future he would be able to use Qiankun for both boxing and spear techniques.
The practice went quite smoothly, and Wang Sheng quickly grasped the basics. A new entry also appeared on his progress bar.
’Qiankun: 1 (1%)’
Since it was an extraordinary martial skill to begin with, just by learning it he could already bring forth its corresponding effects. Wang Sheng immediately sought out Big White and Yun Xiao to test its efficacy.
One had great strength and the other, high speed; they were rare subjects for experimentation.
’Big White, you go first!’
With his spear moving with his body, and once Qiankun was released, it seemed to stir something. Big White, who hadn’t been paying much attention, found that it couldn’t move.
It couldn’t even blink and could only watch helplessly as Wang Sheng’s spear stabbed towards it.
Of course, Wang Sheng wasn’t going to truly stab down. The spear passed by Big White’s side, not inflicting any harm.
But this time, Big White suffered a psychological blow. Watching the attack come towards itself and being utterly unable to do anything, that feeling of powerlessness was truly terrifying.
Moreover, it seemed that Wang Sheng didn’t plan on just letting it off the hook.
’Let’s try again. This time, try to escape using your greatest strength.’
There truly isn’t any invincible martial skill. ’Qiankun’ had methods to break it otherwise, in battle, the victory would basically be decided by a single skill.
Whoever could execute Qiankun first would be the ultimate winner.
Those who didn’t know Qiankun in the Martial Artist World were simply targets for unilateral beatings.
Simply put, it was a dilemma, akin to disseminating an invincible martial art through the Martial Artist World, with the condition being castration, and an irreversible kind at that.
Now the interesting question arises.
Would you dare to practice it?
If not, there will always be ruthless ones willing to learn, and once such an invincible skill is acquired, should you truly offend one of these ruthless individuals, your death would be certain.
That’s the dilemma.
If Qiankun were invincible, it would mean that all martial artists would desperate try to learn it.
Yue’s Qiankun martial skill naturally also offered a way to break it.
Strength. Only with sufficient strength can one break free from its constraint.
Wang Sheng used it again, allowing Big White to try escaping with all its might.
Sure enough, Big White broke free.
Under its tremendous strength, Qiankun couldn’t keep it bound for long, and soon it regained its freedom.
However, the time it took for it to break free was enough for Wang Sheng to have killed it several times over.
Of course, this was due to the large gap in strength between man and tiger. If their strengths had been similar, it surely could have broken free in an instant.
But that didn’t matter.
Wang Sheng had only just learned it, merely reaching a beginner’s level. Given time to practice, one day the effect of Qiankun could become terrifying. The key point was the possibility of a Breakthrough.
After a Breakthrough of Qiankun, he found it hard to imagine what kind of formidable effects it would have.
’Sigh!’
After testing it on Big White, it was Yun Xiao’s turn.
Strength wasn’t Yun Xiao’s forte; it was more skilled in speed. Wang Sheng had it use all its speed to see whether it could avoid being bound by him.
Clearly, Yun Xiao couldn’t achieve that and was easily trapped.
After the test, the fear in Yun Xiao’s eyes was even deeper than that of Big White. Qiankun, this kind of martial skill, was like its natural nemesis.
Seeing the state of the two beasts, Wang Sheng gave them some food as comfort before ending the test.
After the research on the martial skill was over, Wang Sheng put down his Black Dragon Spear.
He had just reached the Refining stage and could take it easy for a day.
His first order of business was to take a soak in a hot spring, which had now become a daily necessity for him, and seemingly, it also enhanced his control over Qi Blood Power.
…
The next morning, Li Yi and Zhou Anping came earlier than usual. Although they did not understand why, they promptly arrived as Wang Sheng had requested.
Both had been learning blacksmithing with Wang Sheng for three months, and Wang Sheng felt they were ready to graduate and forge on their own.
’Try forging a blade. If you do it well, you’ll be ready to graduate.’
’Yes!’
The two did not call him Master, which was also by Wang Sheng’s request; using the title would imply a different meaning, and Wang Sheng did not want such complications.
Since there was only one set of tools, they took turns working.
After setting them up with the test, Wang Sheng went to cultivate. The Refining stage needed a long time to accumulate.
They spent quite some time forging.
However, both successfully crafted a precious blade, of course, yet to be sharpened.
’Overall, there are many deficiencies. For instance, Li Yi, your blade is uneven from the hammering of the metal, leading to spots on the blade with inferior quality, and Zhou Anping, your blade…’”
Wang Sheng’s blacksmithing skills hadn’t reached full level yet, but he was already considered to be at a Master Level, so he could immediately see the deficiencies in their work.
The two apprentices’ faces grew increasingly sheepish; they had thought their skills were quite impressive.
“But still—”
“All these are the accumulation of experience, not a problem of technique, so congratulations, you are both ready to graduate.”
The three-month crash course had come to an end.
They had both learned the basics of blacksmithing.
“Here are your graduation gifts, some insights into blacksmithing. You don’t need to come every day from now on. You can study these on your own and come find me if there’s anything you don’t understand.”
These insights were a summary of Wang Sheng’s own experiences, which included some techniques for making mechanisms like the bed crossbow.
For a novice, this was an impressive boon.
Li Yi and Zhou Anping hadn’t expected they could graduate already, and even more so, that they would receive graduation gifts.
Both immediately knelt down, with great sincerity.
“Thank you, Teacher, for your guidance.”
Wang Sheng did not allow them to call him Master, so they followed the example of those in academic halls and called him Teacher.
Imparting knowledge and teaching skills, what great grace.
Their bow was purely out of respect for their teacher.
Wang Sheng did not stop them.
“All right, get up. Both of you go see the village chief. He should be very willing to prepare a blacksmithing space for you.”
Li Yi and Zhou Anping stood up, their faces aglow with joy.
Although aware of their shortcomings, the excitement of graduation thrilled them nonetheless.
Eventually, they both left with their belongings.
The quiet in Wang Sheng’s home returned, and the routine of daily cultivation resumed.
Suddenly without daily visitors, he was somewhat unaccustomed to the silence.
“Come to think of it, isn’t Yue teaching in the school now?”
It wasn’t just Yue; Xu Qu was also teaching there.
The small village school with twelve students boasted four teachers.
One regular person, three Martial Artists, and even a Grandmaster Level Martial Artist, a privilege not even children from large families could enjoy.
Teaching was something Yue had wanted to do.
Wang Sheng had given him the choice to cultivate quietly or to ask the village chief for some chores to do.
In the end, he chose to teach.
Now, in the school, Scholar Jiang was teaching literacy, benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and trust among a series of subjects.
Xu Qu and Zhang Ze were responsible for the basic training of Martial Artists, which meant improving their physique.
Yue was in charge of imparting basic Martial Artist knowledge. As a Grandmaster Level Martial Artist, his deep understanding of Martial Arts was profound. Not just for the schoolchildren; when he lectured, Martial Artists from the village gathered to listen.
Of course, with Yue’s instruction, the strength of the village Martial Artists improved even more rapidly.
Having been a Third Grade Martial Artist, Xu Qu had crossed into the threshold of the Fifth Grade just two days prior.
Li Yongfeng had reached Third Grade a little over a month ago, while the other four were top contenders among the Second Grade.
Through cultivation techniques, Zhang Ze had also reached the Second Grade, and it was said he cried the day he made a breakthrough.
What he had dreamed of for decades but never achieved was suddenly realized in a small village, with hope to progress further. How could he not cry?
This was tears of immense joy!
Moreover, Li Yongfeng was getting married to Zhang Ze’s daughter, Zhang Xue.
The two were already mutually attracted, and having thought they were destined to be apart, they unexpectedly met again in such a coincidence. So, it was no surprise to Wang Sheng.
Li Yongfeng frequently visited Zhang Ze’s house, occasionally bringing gifts like game from his patrols for Zhang Xue.
These past few days he took leave from patrols and went hunting in the mountains instead.
The reason was simple: to prepare a dowry for his marriage proposal.
Living in the village, there was nothing more substantial than game.
A few days later, Li Yongfeng came back with two deer.
He gave one to Wang Sheng as a token of gratitude, for without him, his relationship with Zhang Xue might not have progressed so smoothly.
Having brought back the deer, he didn’t propose right away because as Wang Sheng had mentioned, the three counties were mostly at peace. So, he made another trip to Lushui City, where he purchased many items, and it was said that he even acquired a large roll of red fabric—a rare commodity.
Finally, under the guidance of Li Wenguang, carrying a large array of goods, he went to Zhang Ze’s home to propose.
The two families had already made arrangements, and the marriage proposal process went extremely smoothly, with the wedding date set.
As for who set the wedding date… of course, it was Yue.
There couldn’t be a more suitable divination master for this task.
In fact, because Yue had never revealed his background, Li Yongfeng initially didn’t know Yue’s status and had sought Wang Sheng, as he seemed to be all-capable.
But Wang Sheng was truly inexperienced in divining auspicious dates for a wedding, a matter so joyous he dared not make a rash decision, and thus referred the task to Yue.
For Yue, it was nothing more than a minor matter, and he easily calculated an auspicious date for the wedding.
The date was set for the middle of next month, just over twenty days from now…