Swallowing the Stars: Reboot, The Eternal Serpent!

Chapter 16 Specialization!

When hunting monsters, Jiang Zhe might have some tricks up his sleeve.

For example, use a "trump card" to deal with some troublesome beast general-level targets, most of which are snake-type monsters, to avoid close combat with them.

The mentalist's control over accuracy, along with his terrifying tenfold power, makes long-range throwing almost invincible.

But when it comes to training, Jiang Zhe is absolutely meticulous, carrying out the old man's requirements to the letter.

Actually, if you simply flatten the gun tip at a slight angle and then crush the soybeans with the back of the blade like you're swatting a fly, you can complete the task more easily and quickly.

The old man wasn't watching over us, and there were no security cameras in the training room.

But, brother, wake up!

Nobody is forcing you to train. If you don't like it, you don't have to train. Go back to the base city and enjoy the family's support. Why stay in the wilderness and waste your time for the old man?

Since you've decided to become a strong person, even the slightest slackening now could cause irreparable damage in the future.

Perhaps in a life-or-death battle, you missed that crucial thrust, paying the price for your past negligence with your life.

"Block," "seize," and "thrust" are the three fundamental principles of marksmanship.

Before starting specialized training in "Zha", the old man taught Jiang Zhe the most basic things.

In terms of combat theory, Jiang Zhe gets full marks.

He had read through the family's treasured "boxing manual" in the first sixteen years of his life, and had memorized many martial arts proverbs.

The focus now is on practical application.

Similarly, given Jiang Zhe's talent, he also mastered the basics of spear fighting quickly.

The basics begin with gun handling techniques—hold the gun steadily and nimbly, with the front barrel locked from the back, and both hands holding the gun, steady yet not rigid, nimble yet not slippery.

Under the old man's personal guidance, Jiang Zhe followed the right path from the very beginning when he first came into contact with guns.

After learning gun handling techniques, the next step is to practice basic gun handling movements.

There are techniques such as stabbing, thrusting, striking, entangling, circling, blocking, seizing, pointing, deflecting, and spear flourishes, all of which Jiang Zhe quickly mastered and skillfully applied. (He could use them, and his movements were standard, but mediocre and unremarkable.)

Then there are the requirements for footwork—the body movements should be flexible and varied, with a large range of motion, and the footwork should be light, fast, and steady.

His steps are as swift as the wind, as stealthy as a nail!

The old man had reminded Jiang Zhe of these things before he started practicing shooting, and there were also specific stance training exercises to strengthen this aspect.

With someone to teach you step by step, these basic things are not difficult.

The old man was like a master chef, sharing his treasured recipes, which he had kept for many years, with Jiang Zhe without reservation, and preparing the finest ingredients for him. Now, Jiang Zhe only needs to learn how to handle the ingredients and cook the dishes so he can prepare a delicious meal.

After mastering the basics, Jiang Zhe will begin to strive for perfection in his skills.

According to the classification of martial arts skills on Earth, this is the process from "basic - specialized - perfect".

Only when one has reached perfection in technique and achieved flawless skill can one aspire to higher levels of art and method.

For example, artistic conception, domain, and the fundamental laws of the universe!

And, perfect skills that can reach the level of laws.

Just like the "Law of the Blade" that Duan Donghe showed to Luo Feng, it was the latter's enlightenment in the way of the blade, and became his strength in standing among the Lords of Hunyuan later.

These all belong to a higher level of "techniques" and "methods".

Remember, a tall building starts from the ground up.

Returning to the present, the seemingly "ordinary" specialized training—spear thrusting—was enough to give Jiang Zhe a hard time.

Pound soybeans!

During training, only the most basic physical qualities can be used; no power-generating techniques are allowed.

At first, Jiang Zhe couldn't even pierce the soybeans accurately.

Although as a mentalist, his eyesight is incredibly sharp, and he can spot even a mosquito with his naked eye.

However, the problem lies in the arm; it is "unresponsive." With just a slight tremor, the tip of the gun can deviate by a few millimeters to a few centimeters.

It's possible that a blind cat might stumble upon a dead mouse and accidentally prick another bean.

But given Kang Chul's arrogance, he sees this "unexpected gain" as a negative factor.

How embarrassing!

However, Jiang Zhe quickly adjusted to the problem of his unstable arms.

After all, the power multiplier doesn't just represent the amount of damage you can deal; it's actually a percentage of your control over your body.

10 times is 10%.

A hundredfold increase in power amplitude means 100% perfect control over the body.

One-tenth of that is enough for him to tame his body on the surface; the instability of his arms is naturally a minor problem.

Besides these, there are many other problems.

1. The soybeans will be flung away, since they are round and won't stay obediently embedded in the alloy floor.

Solution – Continue to ensure accuracy, use the maximum strength that can be exerted under basic physical fitness, and unleash a faster instantaneous speed, commonly known as: taking advantage of the soybean's inattention;

2. Wear special shoes with hard wooden boards as the soles, and stand still without moving around, otherwise you will be killed by the soybeans if you step on them.

The solution is to use the Two-Element Stance, firmly rooting yourself in place like a tree, and then rely on the flexibility of your waist, hips, and upper body to complete the "stance" training.

……

It wasn't until around 8 p.m. that Jiang Zhe finally crushed all the soybeans and finished the training.

The old man, holding a hand warmer, leisurely walked into the training room to inspect the work.

After cleaning up the soybean residue, the alloy floor, riddled with holes, was revealed.

Jiang Zhe turned his head away somewhat embarrassed, his face flushed, feeling quite ashamed.

"Alright, you've passed. Let's take it one step at a time."

The old man didn't see this as a consolation; he was telling the truth. After all, training had just begun, and the standards couldn't be set too harshly.

"Take this and keep it by your side when you practice your genetic energy tonight."

The old man tossed over a round, metal box, which Jiang Zhe quickly caught with his telekinetic powers, and he could already sense the surging cosmic energy emanating from it.

Is it freshly baked "slag"?

Jiang Zhe sniffed, but couldn't smell the familiar fragrance, so he couldn't help but open the lid to check.

It remains a semi-solid paste.

Unlike the previous colorless crystal balm, this one is deep blue, like a vast starry sky.

Cosmic crystal! ! !

This was the first thought that popped into Jiang Zhe's mind.

Obviously not.

However, their properties are absolutely similar; the deep blue paste is also a kind of primordial energy of the universe that has condensed into a physical form.

The feedback from your body, that feeling of wanting to devour it, is absolutely true!

"Grandpa, what's this?"

"It's the raw material of the 'slag' that I condensed using that alchemy furnace, a highly volatile energy substance. So just keep it by your side when cultivating genetic energy, and it will give you the feeling of taking a bath in cosmic energy."

Jiang Zhe nodded.

I understand now, it's the spirit-gathering formation from cultivation novels.

This inevitably reminded him of the mini-game – Thunder World.

Because the cosmic crystal is buried underground, the concentration of cosmic primordial energy is extremely high, making cultivation twice as effective with half the effort.

Approximate cosmic crystal?

Could that alchemy furnace be guaranteed to be a fifth-tier/realm lord-level item?

That doesn't make sense. How could an inanimate object do something that only a realm lord could do?

Influenced by the original work, Jiang Zhe's impression of the universe was still quite rigid, but now it is subtly changing as he realizes that it is difficult to fully depict the wonders of the universe with only four or five million words.

Jiang Zhe became increasingly curious about the true purpose of the alchemy furnace.

But one thing is certain: its primary purpose is definitely not to coagulate this "slag," because that's too low-end.

Judging from the old man's tone, even with his planetary-level strength, it would be very difficult for him to urge the alchemy furnace to condense this kind of energy substance.

It is clear that the effort and the reward are not commensurate.

Jiang Zhe's desire grew stronger as he pieced together the eight images, personally lifted the furnace lid, and discovered its secret.

late at night.

Cultivating in an environment abundant with primordial energy of the universe, coupled with a top-tier bloodline level, Jiang Zhe felt that by the time he finished this wilderness journey, he should be able to progress far beyond the initial warrior level.

It will take about one or two weeks?

a new day.

The fifth day of formal training in the wilderness.

In the morning, we hunted monsters.

But a subordinate clause should be added before it—"Use the newly learned marksmanship."

Jiang Zhe initially thought nothing of it, but after charging into the horde of beasts in his combat uniform, wielding a long spear, he immediately felt the pressure.

First and foremost, he has no means of defense!

A few days ago, he liked to rely on his extremely high power multiplier to engage in head-on collisions with Beast General-level monsters while wielding his shield.

With one hand he blocked the monster's attack, and with the other he used his golden mace to expand his gains, waiting for an opportunity to smash its skull.

Not anymore.

I'm currently reading the error-free version! This is the first time I've published this novel.

The fighting style can no longer be head-on; we must first rely on agility to dodge attacks, and then use the spear to seize opportunities to make a breakthrough.

Without the protection of a shield, and unable to ignore the attacks from the surrounding soldiers, one must be constantly on high alert, listening to all directions and keeping an eye on everything.

The margin for error has been drastically reduced!

This requires him to make up for it in other areas, such as needing more refined techniques!

Fortunately, while marksmanship may not be exquisite enough, there is still microscopic movement technique.

After adjusting his tactics, Jiang Zhe adopted a light and agile guerrilla warfare strategy.

When it moves, it weaves through the beasts like a butterfly, its spear like a python coiled around its waist, each leap like a venomous snake spitting its tongue, piercing the skulls of the monsters.

In the following battles, he no longer focused on the speed of killing, but began to hone his marksmanship.

Real combat is far better than him gesturing wildly in the training room!

……

Back in the safe house, after practicing the "Blueprint of Life" for two hours, I began my afternoon meditation.

It's still about tying soybeans together.

This time, Jiang Zhe was careful to control his strength, trying to crush the soybeans without damaging the alloy floor underneath.

The result of consolidating power was that the soybeans were sent flying, greatly increasing the difficulty of cultivation.

Therefore, this meditation session ended later than yesterday.

When the old man came to inspect the floor, he nodded slightly as he looked at the alloy floor, which hadn't accumulated many marks.

This child is teachable!

Day .

……

Seventh day.

……

Eighth day.

……

Day 9.

Jiang Zhe's marksmanship is becoming more and more impressive, as if his Ren and Du meridians have been opened, perfectly combining his movement, marksmanship, and power generation techniques.

Combat power skyrockets!

As for himself nine days ago, wielding a mace and shield, he exerted seven times the force... Looking back, Jiang Zhe felt like a child holding a gun back then.

Rough! So rough!

Now, all it takes is a side slap with the gun barrel, and a mid-level beast general will be sent flying, unable to get up after landing, their bones shattered, and their internal organs turned into a pile of mud.

Even high-ranking beast generals couldn't react to his swift and accurate thrusts and would have their skulls pierced.

On the way back to the safe house, Jiang Zhe couldn't help but suggest, "Grandpa, let's go to the city center. I want to try fighting a Lord-level monster."

"Wait a little longer, I'm still a little worried about you."

The old man continued, "Your attacks are strong enough, and you can use your leg strength techniques to achieve considerable speed, but your physical defense is far from adequate; you're like a glass cannon. Those lord-level monsters only need to touch you once for the battle to be over."

Jiang Zhe frowned, but then nodded, deeply agreeing.

He couldn't help but recall Babata's assessment of Earth's secret arts—they could amplify power and speed, but they just couldn't amplify defense.

Jiang Zhe asked, "Grandpa, in your opinion, when would be a suitable time for me to fight a Lord-level monster?"

"After you advance to the level of a junior warrior and possess the cultivation of a senior warrior-level mentalist."

Jiang Zhe didn't speak, but nodded silently. That would probably be tomorrow.

Training proceeded as scheduled in the afternoon.

But there are some differences; Jiang Zhe replaced all the alloy floor tiles in the 5x5 area.

There are spare floor tiles in the warehouse; they have already been replaced once.

The newly replaced alloy floor tiles have noticeably smaller and sparser marks compared to the initial batch.

This is all a testament to his marksmanship.

The old man standing against the wall couldn't help but sigh: "Back then, it took your uncle two whole years to reach your level. It wasn't until the third year that he could 'crush soybeans on the floor tiles without leaving a mark' and 'extinguish incense sticks without the incense burning.'"

Jiang Zhe poured soybeans into the 5x5 area, stepped inside wearing special shoes and holding a gun, muttering to himself, "Grandpa, the data you were lamenting is probably going to be updated again."

Immediately, his hands moved, thrusting out one spear after another, shattering soybeans. His movements were so fast that they left afterimages, and the python coiled around his waist seemed to transform into a hydra.

As a planetary-level martial artist, the old man has excellent eyesight and, having immersed himself in the art of gunplay for many years, possesses a very accurate intuition about gun skills.

As Jiang Zhe made his move, his eyes widened, almost popping out of their sockets.

Damn it!

Is that all?

Five days versus three years, what kind of monstrous talent is that?

Nine minutes later, Jiang Zhe put away his gun and stood up, wiping the sweat that had trickled down his temples.

The old man couldn't wait to come and clean.

Jiang Zhe wanted to take over the broom and do the work, but the old man chased him out of the circle. He wanted to come in person and personally confirm this moment.

A moment later, the old man bent down and gently stroked the alloy floor tiles, feeling the texture of the surface.

He couldn't help but exclaim in admiration, "Not a single detail was off; not a single trace was left. How abnormally controlled are you to be?"

Jiang Zhe shrugged, unsure how to respond.

In fact, he also discovered that he had a great talent for physical training, such as power generation techniques, as if he was born to be a martial artist.

His martial arts talent was roughly equivalent to that of a mentalist with an extremely high brain capacity.

The old man announced that the first phase of training had come to an end.

Then, he went to the storeroom and took out an incense burner and a bundle of incense sticks, lit one of them and inserted it into the incense burner.

"bring it on."

"Begin the second phase of training—extinguish the incense sticks, but the incense must not be broken."

Jiang Zhe felt like he was playing a level-based game; he had just defeated the final boss when he faced the next challenge.

At night, I cultivate my genetic energy.

As Jiang Zhe predicted, he naturally broke through to the fourth level of apprentice, which is equivalent to a junior warrior.

With improved physical fitness, his mental cultivation also reached the sixth level of apprentice, enabling him to easily slaughter high-level warriors and monsters.

The tenth day of formal training in the wilderness.

In the morning, the grandfather and grandson set off for a large city near the mouth of the Taihe River.

Number: 009, Extremely Dangerous!

(End of this chapter)