Physical enlightenment begins with Xingyi Quan

Chen Jianghe leaped up from the stone, flipped in mid-air, and landed on top of the man in black, shaking out the last bit of the Bone-Corroding Powder with his left hand.

The man in black closed his eyes and dodged, causing his blade to momentarily halt.

Taking advantage of the moment, Chen Jianghe landed and rolled away, his butcher knife severing the old vine beside him—the instant the vine broke, the black-clad man's ankle was already entangled in the vines buried in the fallen leaves, and the other end of the suspended rock crashed down!

The man in black roared and smashed the rocks, but was knocked back by the impact, tripped by the vines, and lost his balance.

Chen Jianghe sprinted along the ground, his left fist striking the blade with tremendous force, blood splattering from his shoulder, while his right hand stabbed towards his opponent's abdomen.

The man in black parried with his knife, but Chen Jianghe thrust his left fist forward again, the hidden force aimed straight at his ribs!

"Click."

With a cracking sound, the man in black coughed up blood and reached out with his claws to grab, but Chen Jianghe had already retreated, and the blade flashed past his neck.

Don't stay here for long.

The fight just now was quite loud; if it had attracted the attention of other Azure Dragon Guards, they would have been doomed.

He strode over to the two corpses and crouched down to search them.

Liu Qi only had a dozen or so taels of silver, a bottle of wound medicine, and a Qinglong Guard waist token on him.

The man in black had quite a haul: fifty taels of silver, a silver note with a face value of one hundred taels of gold, and a thin book carefully wrapped in oiled paper.

The cover bears the three characters: "Phantom Step".

This is a secret manual of footwork!

He didn't have time to look at it closely and quickly put the booklet away along with the other items.

He didn't linger any longer and left quickly.

.......

Yilin County.

When Chen Jianghe pushed open the wooden door of the courtyard, it was almost dawn. He closed the door behind him, leaned against it, and slowly exhaled.

Chen Jianghe walked to the stone table in the courtyard, put down his backpack, and took out the thin booklet carefully wrapped in oil paper from his pocket.

"Phantom Step".

Chen Jianghe turned to the first page.

The opening doesn't contain lengthy mental techniques; it goes straight to footwork diagrams and mantras.

He read it silently, word by word, his mind gradually sinking into it.

This "illusory step" is not about pursuing speed, but rather focuses on "the interplay of reality and illusion" and "the guidance of Qi".

Footwork is divided into three stages: beginner level "shadow walking", minor level "light splitting", and advanced level "no trace".

Those who "tread on shadows" move their feet in unison with their bodies, like a shadow following its form, and can maneuver and move swiftly within a small space.

Those who use "light splitting" have extremely fast footwork, capable of splitting into several afterimages in an instant to confuse the enemy's eyes;

Those who have achieved "great mastery" integrate their footwork into their breathing, and their walking, sitting, and lying down all contain the intention of footwork. They do not need to deliberately perform these movements; they will naturally sense danger and avoid it as if it were an instinct.

"If one can master the Shadow Step to a minor level, and combine it with methods like lime powder and bone-rotting powder..." A glint of light flashed in Chen Jianghe's eyes.

He recalled the life-or-death battle in Black Wind Ridge.

If the Shadow Step had been learned at that time, even if it was only the basics, the battle situation might have been completely different.

He continued to flip through the booklet, the latter half of which contained detailed footwork formulas, qi and blood circulation routes, and dozens of footwork combinations.

A moment later, he stood up, lifted his right foot slightly, and slowly took his first step.

The movements were slow, even somewhat sluggish.

He carefully felt the sensation of his feet touching the ground, how to shift his weight, how to twist his waist and hips, and how to coordinate his shoulders and back...

With a single step, his body shifted slightly to the side, and his weight subtly moved to his left foot.

Chen Jianghe stopped, frowning in thought.

In the previous step, although the weight transfer was in place, the twisting range of the waist and hips was insufficient, resulting in a slightly stiff posture and failing to fully utilize the wonderful effect of "seemingly moving straight forward, but actually shifting to the side".

He stepped back to his original position and then stepped out again.

This time, he deliberately increased the range of his waist and hip twists, while relaxing his shoulders and back, like an old ape stretching its arms, naturally causing his body to shift to the side.

It went much more smoothly after all.

Chen Jianghe remained calm and patient, repeating the first step over and over again.

Ten times, twenty times, fifty times...

They only stopped when the movements were fluid and natural, like flowing clouds and water.

This seemingly light and agile movement actually requires a very high level of control over qi and blood, as well as coordination of muscles and bones.

Each step requires engaging all the muscles and tendons of the body, coordinating with breathing strength, in order to achieve a state of "interweaving reality and illusion, making it difficult to discern one's whereabouts."

[Current Skill: Three-Body Stance (Mastery)]

Progress: 95%

Current skill: Five Elements Fist (Mastery)

Progress: 62%

[Current Skill: Shadow Step (Beginner)]

Progress: 1%

[Effect: Contains internal strength, penetrating the body and disrupting meridians]

He went back into the house, washed his face with cold water, and changed into clean clothes.

He sat back down at the table, his gaze falling on the packets of lime powder on the corner of the table, lost in thought.

"The stronger one is, the more alert one is, and the faster one reacts... Lime powder is ultimately an external substance. It may be effective against obvious force or ordinary hidden force, but its effectiveness will be greatly reduced if one encounters a veteran hidden force or neutral force."

He needs more covert, faster, and harder-to-defend methods.

.......

Su's Escort Agency.

As the morning light just began to illuminate the pair of stone lions in front of the security escort agency, three escort carts staggered into the courtyard.

The wheels were covered in mud, and the shafts were stained with blood.

Zhou Yong jumped off the first vehicle, his left arm, hastily wrapped in a strip of cloth, was soaked with blood. His face was deathly pale, his lips were cracked, and his legs gave way, nearly causing him to fall.

Wang Gui quickly stepped forward from behind to support him, saying in a deep voice, "Hold on!"

"I won't die..." Zhou Yong twitched the corners of his mouth, his smile bleak.

The early risers in the courtyard gathered around, and upon seeing this scene, their expressions changed drastically.

Three caravans, carrying twelve people when they set out, have only five returned, and all of them are injured.

The cargo boxes were scattered haphazardly on the truck, and several boxes had been split open.

"Master Zhou! This, this is..." an old镖师 asked in a trembling voice.

Zhou Yong waved his hand, panting heavily, and said, "First, help the wounded inside... call a doctor... quick!"

In the main hall, Su Jingming had already received the news and rushed over.

"What's going on?" Su Jingming's voice was low, carrying a suppressed anger.

Supported by Wang Gui, Zhou Yong entered the main hall and knelt down with a thud, stammering, "Second Master... this subordinate is incompetent... the goods... have been robbed!"

Su Jingming's pupils contracted: "Explain yourself."

Zhou Yong gritted his teeth and said, "We're taking the northern route this time, delivering a batch of goods to Yongchuan County. Yesterday, when we passed 'A Narrow Gorge,' they ambushed us there with more than twenty men, and attacked without saying a word!"

He caught his breath and continued, "They outnumbered us, and they were all skilled. There were three bodyguards with internal strength cultivation and four with external strength cultivation. We fought desperately, and lost five brothers..."

Su Jingming closed his eyes briefly, and when he opened them again, his eyes were icy cold: "Good, very good."

"Bang!"

He smashed the rosewood tabletop into pieces.

Su Jingming's chest heaved, and after a long while, he slowly said, "Take good care of the wounded, and give generous compensation to the fallen brothers."

"Yes," Zhou Yong said in a low voice.

"You all go and heal your wounds first." Su Jingming waved his hand. "I have my own plans for this matter."

The three bowed and withdrew.

The main hall was empty, with only Su Jingming remaining.

He walked slowly to the window and looked at the indigo flag in the courtyard, which hung limply in the morning breeze.

Has the Su Family Escort Agency really come to this?

The business my father built has now crumbled: the Green Dragon Gang has risen to power and monopolized Black Wind Ridge; old cooperative relationships have cooled; and even the escort routes are now...

Su Jingming felt a tightness in his chest, and his vision suddenly went black.

He reached out to hold onto the window frame, trying to steady himself, but felt the world spinning around him.

"Second Master?!"

A startled cry came from outside the door.

"Quick! Call a doctor!"

"Second Master has fainted—!"

The courtyard was immediately thrown into chaos.