Chapter 110 Speed Surpasses the Perfected Copper Skin Realm
Chapter 110 Speed Surpasses the Perfected Copper Skin Realm
Outside Tianshui City, at the Wind Chasing Martial Arts School, in a quiet room.
Lu Beichen returned, his face filled with barely suppressed excitement and a hint of mystery.
He dismissed his attendants and sat opposite Song Jing.
"Brother Song, I returned to the inner city the day before yesterday to report back, and I have already informed the Commandant of your matter." Lu Beichen got straight to the point, a smile in his eyes. "The Commandant praised you highly, saying that you are decisive and chivalrous, and even said that if you can pass the Pingtian Gate's assessment and enter the outer sect, he has a surprise for you."
Song Jing's heart stirred slightly. Chen Yanzhou was the Inner City Commandant, a high-ranking and powerful official. To receive a promise of "surprise" from him was no small matter. He clasped his hands and said, "Thank you, Brother Lu, for speaking kindly on my behalf, and thank you, Commandant, for your kindness. I will certainly do my best to live up to your expectations."
"We're brothers, no need for formalities." Lu Beichen waved his hand, but his expression became more serious. "There's something else. I know that while your martial arts have their unique aspects, the inheritance from the outer city is ultimately limited, especially in movement techniques, where there may still be room for improvement. So, based on this merit, I exchanged the Nine Shadow Steps, one of the school's signature movement techniques, with the Kuangfeng Martial Arts Academy, and petitioned the Commandant, earnestly requesting permission to pass on the essence of this movement technique to you."
He paused, then looked at Song Jing: "According to the rules of the martial arts school, such core movement techniques cannot be taught lightly without personal instruction. However, the Commandant, considering your meritorious service in suppressing the Blood Lotus Sect and your commendable character, has made an exception and tacitly approved it. Brother Song, this is a kind gesture from the Commandant, and also a token of my own goodwill. I hope you will make good use of it."
Upon hearing this, Song Jing felt a surge of warmth in his heart. He had also heard of the Nine Shadow Steps, a top-tier movement technique of the Gale Martial Arts School in the inner city, swift as the wind, leaving illusory traces, and extremely difficult to master.
Lu Beichen not only exchanged his own merits for it, but also took risks for him and pleaded with the Commandant on his behalf. This friendship was truly profound.
He stood up and bowed solemnly to Lu Beichen: "Brother Lu, I am deeply grateful. I will remember this kindness and righteousness forever."
""
Lu Beichen quickly helped him up and said with a smile, "Why say such things? You call me 'Big Brother,' so of course I have to think of you."
However—” His expression turned serious as he cautioned, “The Nine Shadow Steps is a closely guarded secret of the Gale Martial Arts School, profound and difficult to master. Even I need to spend considerable time and effort to even begin to understand it.”
Your immediate priority is to prepare for the upcoming martial arts competition and strive for the best possible ranking to qualify for the Pingtian Gate's assessment. As for the Nine Shadow Steps, I suggest you wait until after the competition to calmly study and practice them, lest you try to do too much at once and end up neglecting your main task.
He spoke earnestly, completely from Song Jing's perspective.
He knew that Song Jing had extremely high talent and comprehension, but even the most talented person had to follow the common sense of martial arts.
How can one grasp the essence of a top-tier movement technique in a short time?
If one is distracted by practicing the new technique and misses the martial arts competition, it would be a greater loss than gain.
Song Jing heard this and, appreciating the good intentions, naturally nodded in agreement: "Brother Lu's considerations are thorough, I understand."
"The martial arts competition should be the priority; this technique will be studied further after the competition."
However, what he was thinking was completely different from what Lu Beichen was thinking.
Heaven rewards diligence. You can ignore conventional bottlenecks. As long as you put in enough effort and time, you can achieve success naturally and directly enter the field!
No matter how difficult the Nine Shadow Steps are, for him it's just a matter of spending more time "getting used to" them.
Seeing that Song Jing readily agreed, Lu Beichen was pleased. He then explained some key points and taboos of cultivating the Nine Shadow Steps before leaving behind a silk scroll containing the introductory mental and physical techniques. He then took his leave. He needed to hurry back to the inner city to handle the backlog of official business and begin his own cultivation.
Heaven rewards diligence; one can master the basics in an instant and refine them in a moment.
In the quiet room, only Song Jing remained.
He picked up the seemingly ordinary but actually priceless silk scroll and slowly unrolled it.
On the silk scroll, densely packed mental cultivation techniques and diagrams of human body energy circulation were written in special ink. Next to it were annotations in tiny regular script left by Lu Beichen, detailing the key points of cultivation and his own insights.
"Nine Shadow Steps, taking nine as the ultimate number and shadow as the illusion of form." It emphasizes the flow of breath and the variation of footwork. True energy circulates through specific hidden meridians in the feet, combined with unique breathing techniques and muscle exertion skills, allowing for swift and ghostly movement within a small space. It can also create afterimages at extreme speed to confuse the opponent. Beginners can create one to three shadows; with minor mastery, four to six; with advanced mastery, seven to eight; and at the pinnacle, all nine shadows appear simultaneously, blurring the lines between reality and illusion, making them indistinguishable to the naked eye.
Song Jing was completely absorbed in the process, silently reciting the mental cultivation method while simulating his footsteps in his mind. Unconsciously, his internal energy began to try to impact and circulate those subtle meridians that he had never touched before, as described in the silk scroll.
At first, it was difficult and obscure, the flow of true energy was sluggish, and even the steps were quite awkward.
But Song Jing was not discouraged; he had plenty of patience and "capital".
A day passed, and he had memorized the key points of the mental technique and was familiar with the trajectory of the true qi. However, when he actually tried it, he could only take a few steps in a shaky manner, without any of the elegance and speed of the "Nine Shadows".
Two days later, he was able to complete a full cycle of the Nine Shadow Steps basic footwork in the quiet room. His steps were becoming more stable, but his speed was average, not to mention the ability to create afterimages.
"It seems that understanding and memorization alone are not enough; proficiency needs to be 'honed' through real practice." Song Jing was not anxious at all; instead, he became even more calm and focused.
On the third day, he no longer confined himself to practicing in the quiet room. During the day, in a secluded spot on the back mountain of the martial arts school, he alternated between the Nine Shadow Steps and the Wind Chasing Leg Technique and the Wind Step, experiencing the subtle differences in speed and power generation between different techniques and looking for the possibility of integration.
At night, he would continue in the quiet room, tirelessly circulating his inner energy, stepping and feeling the true energy flowing through the newly opened, subtle meridians.
Sweat soaked through his clothes, then was evaporated by his inner energy.
The muscles ache due to the high-frequency, unusual way of exerting force, but recover quickly under the mental cultivation method.
On the third night, when the moonlight shone through the window and onto the floor of the quiet room.
With a clear mind, Song Jing followed the mental technique and took a step forward.
This step seems no different from the hundreds or thousands of previous practices.
But just as his foot touched the ground, "whoosh!"
He seemed to transform into a wisp of smoke, instantly appearing at the other end of the quiet room!
His speed was so fast that he left a clear but slowly fading pale gray afterimage where he had been standing! Then, he moved again, his footwork changed, and a second and a third afterimage appeared in the same spot, each with a slightly different posture. Although not as solid as the first one, they were still clearly discernible!
The three afterimages lingered silently under the moonlight for about a breath before slowly dissipating.
Song Jing stopped and stood in the center of the quiet room, his eyes flashing with astonishing brilliance!
"Done! Nine Shadow Steps, beginner level! Three afterimages!"
He carefully sensed the changes in his body. With that single step, the true energy within him surged and roared along the unique meridian pathways of the Nine Shadow Steps, as if a strange power had been injected into his legs, making them feel light and agile, increasing his speed several times over in an instant!
That pure burst of speed was completely different from the feeling he got when he pushed the Wind Chasing Leg Technique to its limit.
The Mastery of the Chasing Wind Leg Technique, while also excelling in speed, places greater emphasis on the offensive and agile variations of the leg techniques, making it a combat skill that integrates offense and defense.
The Nine Shadow Steps, on the other hand, is a pure and extreme technique of speed and evasion!
It pours all its potential into "speed" and "illusion," sacrificing some of its aggressiveness and stability in exchange for unparalleled bursts of speed and unpredictable movement!
"As expected of the signature movement technique of the top martial arts school in the inner city! Even at the beginner level, the speed boost is so terrifying! If I could combine the agility of the Chasing Wind Leg Technique, the unpredictability of the Wind-Stepping Step, and the extreme speed of the Nine Shadow Step—" Song Jing's heart surged with excitement, as if he had seen a broader path ahead.
He tried to use it again, his figure appearing and disappearing in the quiet room, three afterimages flashing from time to time. Although they were not as solid as the first time, their speed was indeed far greater than before.
He estimated that, in terms of short-distance bursts and straight-line sprints, the speed brought by the Nine Shadow Steps is now comparable to the mastery of the Chasing Wind Leg Technique!
In terms of maneuvering, changing direction, and creating afterimages to confuse opponents within a small area, it far surpasses them!
"If only I had learned this footwork earlier—" Song Jing couldn't help but recall the frustration of being chased by Qin Yue and Li Wei and forced to flee.
If we had that speed back then, even if we were outmatched, we could have easily maneuvered around the opponent and even slowly worn them down with our speed advantage!
No matter how strong Qin Yue's fists and palms are, it's all in vain if he can't hit them.
"If one were to master it, or even perfect it—" Song Jing's eyes shone even brighter. According to the description of the technique, mastering the Nine Shadow Steps would allow one to create seven to eight afterimages, increasing speed several notches. At that point, even ordinary martial artists in the Body Refining Realm might not be able to catch up with him in terms of pure speed!
As for Qin Yue and Li Wei, if I were to encounter them again, I could easily outmaneuver them with my speed alone, and it wouldn't be impossible for me to wear them down to death!
"Inner City—Pingtian Gate—" Song Jing clenched his fist, his desire for higher-level power and resources stronger than ever before.
The Nine Shadow Steps technique, merely a legacy from the inner city's martial arts schools, had already given him a qualitative leap in strength. What other divine skills and wondrous techniques must the Pingtian Sect possess?
"The Martial Arts Competition, the Pingtianmen Assessment—I must pass!" Song Jing's eyes were resolute. With the Nine Shadow Steps as his new trump card, he was even more confident about the challenges ahead.
He sat down cross-legged and began to regulate his breathing, consolidating the Nine Shadow Steps he had just learned. At the same time, he pondered how to better integrate this new movement technique with his original Wind Chasing Leg Technique, Thunder and Lightning Leg Technique, and even the Golden Bell Shield, to form a unique combat system of his own.
Outside the quiet room, the moonlight was as cool as water.
Inside the quiet room, the young man's aura was deep and still, but his internal energy surged like an undercurrent, flowing through his newly opened meridians, brewing greater power and faster speed.
In an instant, it was refined and transformed into three shadows.
If this news gets out, even the most arrogant geniuses in the inner city will probably take notice.
And Song Jing's martial arts path, thanks to this Nine Shadow Step, quietly embarked on a faster, more illusory, and more unpredictable track.