"Of course, whether you can succeed or not still depends on you.
Logically speaking, your strength is already sufficient. In the Sunburst Gang Branch in Qinghe Town, there is no one who can compete with you.
However, to be on the safe side, I have decided to teach you a martial arts technique for self-defense, just in case."
Liu Dong’s face showed a hint of seriousness.
"What martial arts technique?"
Bai Ziyue couldn’t help but reveal a hint of anticipation on his face.
"Celestial Entwining Hand!"
Liu Dong smiled slightly and waved his hand, with remnants of shadows appearing in the void.
It seemed very fast, but in reality, his palm had gone through at least seven or eight changes.
Bai Ziyue’s eyes lit up, feeling delighted in his heart.
Celestial Entwining Hand is his master’s famous technique, and externally, Liu Dong is also known by the title of Celestial Entwining Hand.
Even though his main focus was on sword techniques, he still longed for this martial art.
"Celestial Entwining Hand consists of seven forms and eighty-four movements. It is a martial art that focuses on speed, borrowing force to counterattack and leveraging the situation. It revolves around entangling, sticking, adhering, and striking. Though it appears complicated, its power is boundless."
Liu Dong spoke, then waved his hand again. A teacup filled with tea was drawn over by him. One hand skillfully rotated around the teacup agilely and freely, without spilling a single drop of tea.
Suddenly, his hand pecked lightly. The outer part of the teacup remained intact, but the tea inside splashed out suddenly, forming a layer of mist that scattered around.
"Martial arts are killing techniques. Although Celestial Entwining Hand is named with the character ’entangle,’ what matters most is the character ’strike’..."
While speaking, Liu Dong gradually began to demonstrate each move of Celestial Entwining Hand in front of Bai Ziyue, explaining in detail the application techniques and methods between the moves.
Bai Ziyue held his breath and focused, starting to learn seriously, not missing a single movement or explanation from his master.
Especially concerning the method of utilizing power in Celestial Entwining Hand, he memorized every bit, not daring to make any mistakes.
Once the explanation was nearly complete, Liu Dong would have Bai Ziyue practice on his own while guiding him from the side.
This way, Bai Ziyue’s learning progress naturally advanced much faster than if he were practicing alone. He quickly memorized all seven forms and eighty-four movements of Celestial Entwining Hand. Though he was still somewhat unfamiliar with the power application, he could sometimes perform it smoothly.
What he lacked was just long-term practice.
"The biggest difference between having a master and not having one is the entry-level time.
Given the complexity of Celestial Entwining Hand, if I were to practice alone, it would take at least ten days to half a month to become proficient. Now, it might only require three to five days."
Returning to his residence, Bai Ziyue felt he had gained a lot.
Celestial Entwining Hand is different from ordinary martial arts, being exquisite and powerful. He could feel that even at the entry level, it was much stronger than some martial arts at small success.
Not to mention, it was a martial art that could still be used when cultivating inner qi.
The last form of Celestial Entwining Hand requires inner qi to activate during execution. Although his master had not demonstrated it in front of him, from his master’s description, Bai Ziyue could imagine the power of this strike.
In the following days, it was rainy, so Bai Ziyue did not go to Chongyan Mountain.
Instead, he stayed at his residence, diligently practicing Celestial Entwining Hand, finally mastering this martial art completely.
Of course, he still needed a bit more to reach the entry level. Naturally, he couldn’t fully demonstrate its power when used against an enemy.
On the third night, the moonlight was bright, and the stars were dense. Sensing that the weather would clear, Bai Ziyue got up early and directly went to help Master Li in the Sunburst Gang Branch’s kitchen, slaughtering livestock.
Although his sword techniques had already reached a very high level and he no longer needed to hone his killing intent by slaughtering livestock, he still reported to Master Li for a stable daily income of soul energy.
Today, he slaughtered a two-hundred-pound white pig and a sturdy cow that had been raised for three years.
Without needing Master Li to do anything, Bai Ziyue single-handedly and effortlessly gutted and processed the meat of the two livestock.
When he left, the sky outside was still gray without any light.
Unconcerned, Bai Ziyue proceeded directly to Chongyan Mountain as usual.
Whether practicing martial arts or immortal techniques, persistence is most important.
Even though he had soul energy, making it easier to improve his strength than most cultivators, his soul energy was limited. He could improve through his effort as well, so he wouldn’t give up.
Each time he absorbed and transformed Sunrise Purple Qi into five strands of spiritual power during his cultivation, it would take five hundred points of soul energy to condense if he used soul energy for transformation. It was a considerable number, and he wasn’t willing to waste it.
Soon, he arrived at the foot of Chongyan Mountain.
Scaling the stone steps, Bai Ziyue climbed swiftly, covering three to four meters with each step. In the blink of an eye, he reached the mountain peak.
Looking toward the direction of the sunrise, he could see some dim light, though the sun had yet to fully rise.
But at that moment, Bai Ziyue’s heart skipped a beat, his body tensed slightly, and his face showed a hint of uncertainty.
There were people present and more than one.
Though they were hiding in the dark, Bai Ziyue was familiar with the peak of Chongyan Mountain. Coupled with his perception far superior to a typical martial artist due to his heightened spirit attribute, he detected something amiss almost instantly.
After a moment of thought, Bai Ziyue stepped back slightly.
He wasn’t certain if he was their target, but recklessly entering could lead to ambush, so he didn’t want to take the risk.
Just then, his face changed, and he moved sideways a few meters like lightning.
Immediately, he saw a dagger, like a sharp sword, flying from a distance and striking a large rock with a thud, embedding deeply into the soil.
"The opponent’s target is indeed me."
Bai Ziyue’s gaze turned sharp as he looked towards the direction the dagger came from, sighing inwardly.
But it made sense. Early in the morning, he was the only one who would climb Chongyan Mountain. If someone wanted to harm him, knowing this routine made it easy to execute...
"Quite alert, aren’t you?"
A somewhat mocking voice sounded. Then Bai Ziyue saw a tall man with inverted triangle eyes reveal himself from behind a rock.
In another direction, a pale-faced, thin middle-aged man with small, narrow eyes filled with cold light also revealed himself.
"Wang Jian, Zhang Bo..."
Bai Ziyue’s heart sank. These two were former acquaintances, though they had some unpleasant interactions.
Of course, it hadn’t reached the point of killing.
However, now that they stood before him without concealment and had ambushed his path, their intentions were clear.
They didn’t intend to let him leave alive.