Words Strategize for the World

The trick is simple. The oil in the pan appears to be boiling and bubbling, but the temperature inside isn't actually that high. Most of the oil in the pan is vinegar, with only a thin layer of oil on the surface. The bubbling on the surface is actually due to the low boiling point of vinegar. People just don't understand this and find it amazing.

Fang Wei understood the reasoning behind it, which is why he wasn't afraid of the boiling oil. The man also knew that if Fang Wei actually put his hand in the pot, not only would his source of income be cut off, but he would also have to run away.

"Young man, you're still young. If you burn your hand in the hot oil, your life will be ruined. You need to think this through."

The man wanted to trick Fang Wei into leaving, so he spoke with a worried expression.

"It's alright, let's see my amazing skill of descending from the volcano." Fang Wei said as he walked towards the oil pot.

Arriving at the oil pan, Fang Wei rolled up his sleeves and slowly put his hand into the oil.

Some of the older women and timid onlookers turned their faces away, too afraid to watch, when Fang Wei reached his hand into the oil pan.

Some people even said, "Look at this kid, he's courting death. What a miserable state he'll end up in."

Fang Wei also heard these comments and his playful side was immediately aroused.

Fang Wei slowly dipped his hand into the oil pan, but before it was even halfway in, he pretended to be in excruciating pain and yelled, "Ah..."

Hearing Fang Wei shout, Zhang Nianwei's face turned deathly pale. Fang Yue even dropped her things and rushed towards Fang Wei.

The onlookers pointed and whispered, saying things like Fang Wei was ignorant and arrogant, adding insult to injury.

Seeing everyone's reaction, Fang Wei found it amusing and knew that it was about time, so he quickly took the coins out of the oil pot and raised his hand.

The moment Fang Wei raised his hand, the noisy crowd immediately fell silent.

Moments later, the scene erupted in cheers again.

"I knew this kid was really good."

"Yes, yes, the boy's ability to descend into the volcano is truly amazing."

"Oh, didn't you just say that this young man was courting death?"

"What an amazing young man..."

……

A gong sounded, and the man's voice rang out, "Young man, your skill in descending from the volcano is indeed remarkable. I apologize for being inferior to you; farewell."

After saying that, the man pushed through the crowd and slunk away.

Seeing Fang Wei emerge unharmed from the oil cauldron, Zhang Nianwei burst into tears of joy and rushed to him, saying, "So you really do have the skill to descend into a volcano! You scared me to death just now!"

Fang Yue also said, "Xiao Wei, how come I didn't know you learned the volcano-descending technique?"

Besides Zhang Nianwei and Fang Yue's shock and the discussions among onlookers, some even brought their children to Fang Wei to become his apprentices and learn his volcanic skills.

Fang Wei called out to Fang Yue, then pulled Zhang Nianwei and ran towards the edge of the crowd.

After finally squeezing through the crowd, Fang Wei looked back and saw that the huge crowd had suddenly become crowded and chaotic. If he had been even a little slower, he wouldn't have been able to get out.

The three took advantage of the chaos and continued running until they were completely out of the crowd before stopping.

Zhang Nianwei stopped, her heart pounding, and her face flushed slightly.

Zhang Nianwei had never been held by a man before, but today she not only was her hand held, but she also felt incredibly excited while running.

First, she was startled by Fang Wei, then the situation reversed; Fang Wei was unharmed, and she was pulled away from the crowd and ran. This was something Zhang Nianwei had never experienced in her many years of peaceful life. At this moment, Zhang Nianwei's heart quietly belonged to Fang Wei, but she was unaware of it.

"Oh dear, Xiao Wei, what we bought..."

Just as Zhang Nianwei was looking at Fang Wei, her heart pounding, Fang Yue's voice rang out.

"Oh no..." Fang Wei was speechless. He was so focused on running away that he lost the things he bought.

"It's okay, it's gone, we'll just buy another one next time."

Judging from Zhang Nianwei's clothes and appearance, she was obviously from a wealthy family, but since Zhang Nianwei didn't say anything, Fang Wei wouldn't take the initiative to inquire.

Going back to look for it now is definitely not going to work. Since Zhang Nianwei said so, Fang Wei could only feel a pang of regret.

Fang Wei and the other two continued shopping until they finished lunch before parting ways. Fang Wei and Fang Yue naturally returned to the school dormitory, while Zhang Nianwei left on the street, her destination unknown.

Back at the school building, Fang Wei began teaching Fang Yue calligraphy.

Fang Yue's handwriting is too square and lacks roundness, so Fang Wei is prepared to give Fang Yue the clerical script.

"This calligraphy is vigorous and archaic, emphasizing the 'silkworm head and wild goose tail' and 'three twists and turns in one stroke.' Its structure is flat, neat, and exquisite. When writing, it should be slightly wide and flat, with symmetrical strokes taking a horizontal orientation, especially the combination of the left-falling and right-falling strokes..."

After finishing his lecture, Fang Wei wrote a piece of calligraphy for Fang Yue to copy. Once Fang Yue was in character, Fang Wei took the four treasures to the training ground to begin their practice.

This morning, when Fang Wei was writing the character "定" in Liu style, he noticed a slight increase in the power of the characters, but he couldn't figure out why. Now he has the time to find out.

Fang Yue first wrote the character "定" in the simplest font and found that the rhythm had no fluctuation or enhancement. Then she tried regular script, but there was still no enhancement. It wasn't until Fang Wei used Liu style that she found the rhythm's fluctuation and power to increase.

Fang Wei was puzzled as to why the willow branches had changed. Why could the handwriting of the same person be different?

Unable to understand, Fang Wei had no choice but to write the character "定" in both regular script and Liu style, and the result was exactly the same.

Could it be the font? If we have a suspicion, we should verify it.

Fang Wei began writing the character "定" in other fonts.

First, there's the Yan style. The Yan style is as famous as the Liu style, both being the styles of great Tang Dynasty calligraphers. When writing the character "定" in the Yan style, the variations are similar to those in the Liu style.

Next came Zhao style, with similar variations. Then came Wang style... After Fang Wei had written down all the fonts he knew, he discovered that the more proficient he was with a particular font, the greater the rhythmic fluctuations and the more powerful it became.

The less proficient one is with a particular font, the weaker its power. Moreover, the older and more proficient one is with a font, the more powerful it becomes, almost doubling in effectiveness.

Fang Wei practiced calligraphy from the age of three to sixteen, becoming proficient in various styles, but he wrote best in seal script and cursive script.

The Small Seal script is predominantly round in both structure and brushstrokes, but it also contains angular elements. When writing, any angular or angular strokes are transformed into curved lines, resulting in a naturally elliptical shape.

This rounded yet square feel was Fang Wei's favorite, so he put in a lot of hard work when practicing calligraphy.

As for cursive script, I like it because it looks cool, and also because I can write quickly.

In his later years of practicing cursive script, Fang Wei also diligently practiced seal script and cursive script in order to combine it with seal script.

When Fang Wei used Small Seal script to write the character "定", the rhythmic fluctuations were extremely intense, and the power was increased by nearly double.

When Fang Wei discovered this, he was extremely excited. What did this mean? It meant that Fang Wei possessed a cheat code that allowed him to challenge opponents of higher levels.

Is this a cheat code?

After careful consideration, Fang Wei decided it should be considered a duel. In a duel between two scholars of equal caliber, many factors determine the outcome. These include: writing speed, the rhythm of the characters, and the control over the strength of the writing.

Fang Wei's use of Small Seal script demonstrates his control over the strength of the characters.

Therefore, Fang Wei believed this was his cheat code. He could manipulate words with twice the power of others—how awesome was that?

If the power of Small Seal script has nearly doubled, what about Cursive script?

Fang Wei quickly wrote some characters to test it out. As a result, the rhythmic speed of the seal script doubled.

Upon realizing this, Fang Wei wanted to burst into laughter, but ultimately held back.

What does this mean? It means that when Fang Wei manipulates words, not only can the power and speed be doubled, but the speed of cultivation can also be doubled.

Now that's great! I'm not afraid to compete with other masters of the same level. I have fast rhythm and more than double the power. If I were to fight a higher-level master, as long as I time it right, I could definitely challenge someone of a higher level.

What we need most now is to find someone to have a match with, to test the power of rhythm and manipulation of words.