Druid Fairy

Chapter 54 The Art of Using an Elbow

The spring breeze blows warmly.

Amidst the swaying shadows of green trees, a black-feathered bird stands atop a coiled branch. Its plumage is glossy, and it spreads its wings, soaring straight into the sky.

Little Black is now twelve or thirteen years old, but he doesn't look old at all. He proudly surveys his territory and bullies the rooster at the village entrance.

This rooster is no longer the same one it used to be.

After making its rounds, it flew back to the Li family compound and perched on the corner of the eaves, acting as an auspicious beast. Its dark pupils reflected the fighting movements of the two brothers, Li Pingfu and Li Pingcan.

"Oh!"

Seeing his elder brother's fist coming straight at him, Li Pingcan neither dodged nor avoided it. His wrist moved like a snake to deflect Li Pingfu's fist, and he lowered his body and fiercely slammed back with a swinging punch.

His fist was deflected by gravity, a result of overwhelming power.

The two brothers leaped and tumbled, exchanging blows, their movements sometimes fast and sometimes slow, raising a light dust cloud over the field.

Both are at the Qi and Blood Realm, but Li Pingcan has just entered the "First Transformation" realm, and his Qi and Blood are like smoke; while Li Pingfu has already reached the peak of the "Third Transformation" realm, and his Qi and Blood are like a long dragon!

Soon, Li Pingcan's energy and blood were depleted. He was hit by Li Pingfu's feint attack followed by a "Black Tiger Strike the Heart" strike. In a hasty dodge, Li Pingcan could only slide out of the fighting circle to dissipate the force, and was defeated.

"Big brother, why are you launching a sneak attack again?"

"Haha, all's fair in war." Li Pingfu wrung out two clean towels with cool water, one for himself and one for his younger brother. The stream water was icy cold, and wiping away the sweat felt incredibly refreshing. He said, "You've improved a lot lately; your punches are quite powerful."

Today, Li Pingcan's moves were decisive and ruthless. He did not rely on the White Crane style of "guerrilla warfare" but went straight and forceful, which was initially a bit unusual for some.

"That's because I haven't hit you yet."

Losing to his own older brother is not shameful, Li Pingcan said casually, but his mind was still on the battle just now.

He changed his usual guerrilla tactics and adopted a head-on approach. At first, his eldest brother's movements were noticeably slower.

This leads to the conclusion that variations are important in combat.

The martial arts schools in Pantao Town teach their students set routines, which is both low-cost and easy for students to learn, leading to better training results.

Martial arts schools have several fixed routines for dealing with different situations and techniques.

But following a set routine also means being rigid.

Learn to vary your approach; once your opponent is caught off guard, you can throw them into disarray.

True martial arts skills are always "hidden" by the master, and are not taught to non-core disciples.

"Then I'll teach you a trick, maybe that will help you beat me."

Li Pingcan's eyes lit up, and he urged, "Big brother, tell me quickly, don't keep me in suspense."

“What Master Zhou taught me was how to judge ‘qi’.”

"Qi mechanism?" Is that so mysterious?
Seeing his younger brother's puzzled look, Li Pingfu explained in detail: "The so-called 'qi' is actually momentum and opportunity. First, observe the opponent's momentum and see what they are good at. Whether they are fighting bare-handed or hiding weapons, you can defend and deal with them. These are the opportunities to win, so 'seeing' is very important."

Li Pingcan seemed to be deep in thought.

Li Pingfu added, "In actual combat, the more you see, the more chances you have of winning, and the more confident and powerful you become, making decisive moves. This is also a way of building momentum."

Li Pingcan had a sudden realization: "In other words, whoever has more cards up their sleeve and whoever can predict the future has a greater chance of winning."

The principles are the same. When dealing with the Black Snake Gang, and when his father and elder brother were hunting down Wang Li, they first observed the enemy's situation, constantly increasing their own trump cards and weakening the enemy to achieve victory. He suddenly felt an urge to fight, and with a white crane-like flight, he cried out, "Brother, let's fight again! A full-on battle, no limits!"

“Alright.” Li Pingfu was about to throw a punch to exchange blows with his younger brother when he saw the other party change his fist into a palm, secretly holding a tree branch about the length of a forearm in his palm. With a slight turn, the branch thrust straight at him.

"What's the use of this little twig?"

Li Pingfu said this, but he knew in his heart that his younger brother had endless tricks up his sleeve. He focused his attention and slapped the tree branch, trying to break it.

With his mastery of Black Tiger Fist, wouldn't a mere twig be easy to catch?

The branch slipped after being struck, but showed no signs of breaking. Its momentum continued, twisting and turning like a snake's head, aiming for the chest.

Li Pingfu exclaimed in surprise, "So hard?"

"Hehe, of course."

Li Pingcan smiled slyly. This was a Druid skill: [Rubber Cudgel Technique]!
[Rubber Club Spell: You infuse the power of nature into a short or long club you hold. While using this weapon for melee attacks during the spell's duration, it strengthens the weapon and amplifies damage. Furthermore, if the weapon was not originally a magical weapon, it will become one.]

In other words, the small twig under the Oak Stick Technique has become a low-level treasure, and how could the elder brother's slap easily shatter it?

This is one of the skills he gained after upgrading to LV4 Druid.

Li Pingfu frowned slightly, sensing the predicament. If he couldn't deal with the weapon, then he could only deal with the hand holding it.

He unleashed his Black Tiger Skill, his bones creaking and his blood surging through his fists. With immense power and force, he struck Li Pingcan's wrist, knocking him out of his grip!
The small branch blessed by the [Rubber Stick Technique] flew far away, fell to the ground, and returned to its original ordinary appearance.

"Without this strange branch, let's see what tricks you have up your sleeve."

"Brother, you're relaxing too early."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Pingcan closed in on Li Pingfu, his fingernails suddenly growing longer, forming five-centimeter-long claws that gleamed with green liquid.

Unable to dodge in time, Li Pingfu had no choice but to face the attack head-on, meeting force with force. However, he noticed with his sharp eyes that the dripping green liquid was corroding the floor tiles, making a "hissing" sound. In the blink of an eye, the surface became uneven and pitted.

Ouch, this acid!
"I concede." Seeing that the acid was about to corrode him, he said from the bottom of his heart, "My little brother has no martial ethics, he even used acid."

In fact, even a martial artist at the peak of Qi and Blood wouldn't have much of a chance against a serious druid, let alone this spellcaster who was "dual-cultivated in martial arts and magic" and had almost no weaknesses.

Li Pingcan withdrew his skill [Primal Strike], triumphant and beaming with pride.

I get beaten up by my older brother every day, so I have to win once in a while!
The reason he was able to win was naturally because the eldest brother didn't know about his new "trick," which indeed matched the theory of "qi".

He looked at the panel for instructions.

[Primal Strike: Your teeth or nails grow long and sharp, preparing you to unleash an acidic strike. Deliver a melee spell attack to a creature nearby. If it hits, the target suffers continuous acid damage. After you deliver this attack, your teeth or nails return to normal.]

"You need to practice a lot to get used to your strange moves."

Li Pingfu cautioned, "However, apart from me and your father, remember not to use these unusual tactics against anyone else, unless the opponent is a dead man."

“I understand.” Li Pingcan nodded; he thought so too.

The two brothers chatted about their martial arts experiences for a while, when Li Pingcan suddenly looked out over the wall.

The next moment, Li Pingfu also looked over and saw Li Yuan hurriedly push the door open and enter.

Seeing two pairs of eyes staring at him, Li Yuan was startled before anxiously saying, "Brother Pingfu, something bad has happened! Killer bees have appeared in the mountains!"

(End of this chapter)