Peng Shizhong also possessed numerous sword techniques here.
He had three, but none were particularly impressive, except for a book titled "Thirty-Six Paths of Swift Sword," which barely met his standards.
The other two sword techniques were quite ordinary.
Besides these, Chen Jie then examined the spear and staff techniques, immediately dismissing the staff skill.
The staff was primarily for control and lacked lethality, whereas Chen Jie needed a technique that could urgently enhance his strength.
Thus, he turned to the spear techniques, these two books, or rather, one and a half.
Because, of these two spear techniques, only one was fully recorded, the other contained only three moves.
Chen Jie observed that the fully recorded one was titled "Dong Family Spear," an orthodox technique, yet due to its thorough documentation, it should be of the same level as "Five Tigers Breaking Door Saber" and "Thirty-Six Paths of Swift Sword."
However, Chen Jie’s attention was ultimately drawn to the book that only contained three moves.
This spear technique?
Chen Jie saw it was a very tattered secret manual, with much of the latter part torn away, leaving only a few front pages and the cover damaged by insects.
He could barely make out the words "*Thirteen Tribulations Spear."
The first character was already torn and unrecognizable.
Chen Jie reviewed these thirteen spears and found only three moves left, and each move was accompanied by a verse.
"Exquisite dice with red beans, bone-deep longing, know it or not, the first spear is Longing!"
"Dream shattering at dawn’s fifth watch, horn sound blows off the moon, the second spear is Wandering Soul!"
"The setting sun on the river, the lonely smoke rises straight, thousand-mile flying geese remember old friends, the third spear is Separation!"
Although brief with just three moves, Chen Jie was deeply engrossed, especially by the second move which, for some reason, when recited and its move sequence tested, always stirred his "Yang Chun Skill."
Chen Jie was deeply curious, what exactly is this?
"Dream shattering at dawn’s fifth watch, horn sound blows off the moon," Chen Jie seemed to have read this poem before, apparently by Su Dongpo.
It was supposedly written by Su Dongpo when he was away from home on official duty in Zhenjiang and coincidentally it was during the Qingming Festival, unable to return home for the ancestral rituals, thus inspired, he wrote this poem.
A sharp light flashed in Chen Jie’s eyes.
Could this be related to Qingming?
The "Chang Chun Skill" was derived from the "Four Seasons Celestial Phenomenon Technique."
And the "Four Seasons Celestial Phenomenon Technique" evolved from the "Twenty-four Solar Terms," within which the "Chang Chun Skill" documented the six seasons of spring.
And each season corresponds to a martial arts technique.
For example, "Yang Chun Skill" corresponds to Li Chun.
"Water Manipulation Palm" corresponds to Rain Water.
And the six solar terms of spring are [Li Chun][Rain Water][Jingzhe][Spring Equinox][Qingming][Grain Rain]
And Qingming is one of these six major solar terms.
The fact that this spear move could stimulate the movement of the inner strength of the "Yang Chun Skill" as if encountering an old friend, illustrates that this move from the spear technique could very likely be based on Qingming adapted from the "Four Seasons Celestial Phenomenon Technique" left from the "Twenty-four Solar Terms Valley."
And undoubtedly, this move is powerful because while the "Water Manipulation Palm," which evolved from Rain Water with twenty-four moves, required so many to represent the term, this single move clearly represents Qingming, indicating its might is far greater.
Although incomplete, based on this one move alone, Chen Jie felt this damaged spear technique was more suited for him than any other.
Understanding this, Chen Jie, holding the tattered book, directly addressed Peng Shizhong, who was sipping tea nearby, "Stepfather, I’ve made my choice. It’s this one."
Upon hearing this, Peng Shizhong glanced at the book and then said, "These three spear moves are indeed strong, but they are incomplete. Practicing them might lead to some inconsistencies. Why not reconsider the ’Five Tigers Breaking Door Saber,’ or the ’Thirty-Six Swift Swords’? They are quite good."
"If you desire to learn spear skills, the ’Dong Family Spear’ isn’t bad either. This set of techniques has a good pedigree, supposedly adapted from the spear techniques left by Dong Ping, the Shuangqiang General of the Qian Song East Ping Prefecture Army and Horse Director, and its practiced mastery can be quite astonishing!"
After hearing this, Chen Jie said, "Stepfather, I want this damaged book. It’s better to have one exquisite move than a bunch of rubbish."
Listening to these words, Peng Shizhong looked at Chen Jie, thinking how ambitious this young man was.
Peng Shizhong had seen many people in his life, some with even greater ambitions than Chen Jie, but ambition didn’t necessarily correlate with capability or achieving greatness.
These three spear moves were indeed exquisite and if the thirteen moves were complete, Peng Shizhong felt they could be above the Energy Transformation level.
But with only three moves and without coherence, if mishandled, they would not work, and improper improvisation could spoil the artistic conception of these techniques.
Peng Shizhong had seen many driven by great ambition who, facing a choice, would opt for even a flawed technique, believing they were different and could master the ultimate Divine Technique, only to blend into the crowd in the end.
But how would Chen Jiusi fare?
Peng Shizhong considered, this after all was a young man he esteemed highly, perhaps a little advice would help.
He explained the pitfalls of learning incomplete manuals without subsequent techniques or corresponding cultivation methods, that it could lead to mediocrity or even a lifetime of unremarkable achievement.
Chen Jie, hearing this, knew Peng Shizhong meant well.
However, Chen Jie didn’t think so, for the grand plan he was contemplating, Peng Shizhong had not understood.