Chapter 22: Comprehension

Chapter 22: Chapter 22: Comprehension

Of the three Iron-Feathered Pheasants, the leading red-crested Chicken King was the fastest. Spreading its wings like two massive iron fans, it charged straight at them with a howling gale!

"Leave this big one to me!" Ji Zhixing shouted. Making a split-second decision, he tightened his grip on the Breaking Army Rod. Taking a step forward, his eyes locked dead onto the Iron Feather Pheasant King spearheading the charge.

For the others, this wilderness expedition was about gaining combat experience and making money. But for him, there was something much more important. He needed to master the Eight Breaking Army Strikes in actual combat!

"The previous two hunts, whether it was the black-furred hounds or that ordinary Iron-Feathered Pheasant, didn’t give me any pressure at all. The opponents were too weak and were surrounded and killed in a few hits. That kind of battle couldn’t stimulate my potential," Ji Zhixing thought silently. "But this Iron Feather Pheasant King is different."

He stared at the rapidly approaching beast. Its massive two-meter-tall body, metallic gleaming iron feathers, and eyes burning with such fury they seemed ready to spit fire—all of these screamed that this Iron Feather Pheasant King would not be easy to deal with.

"Only with pressure can there be a breakthrough!" he thought, taking a deep breath as every muscle in his body pulled taut.

"Alright!" Liu Qifan immediately replied. "Zhixing, be careful!"

The group didn’t waste any time and quickly divided their tasks. Luo Yongguang raised his heavy shield, charging to meet the Iron-Feathered Pheasant on the left. Meanwhile, Liu Qifan, Zhang Haoceng, and Xie Jia flanked the one on the right.

"SQUAWK!"

The Iron Feather Pheasant King let out an angry cry. Its right wing swept out like a broadsword, kicking up a whistling gust of wind as it slashed straight toward the oncoming Ji Zhixing.

Ji Zhixing did not retreat. Gripping his weapon with both hands, he channeled all his physical strength and surging genetic source energy into the shaft.

Void-Shattering Stance!

The long rod swung out, violently smashing into the iron wing!

BAM!

As the rod and wing collided, a tremendous force traveled down the shaft, numbing Ji Zhixing’s hands and forcing him three steps back.

"What immense strength!" he thought in shock. "It’s far stronger than a normal Iron-Feathered Pheasant!"

After the first strike, the Iron Feather Pheasant King gave him no chance to catch his breath. Its left wing followed up with a shockingly fast swipe. Ji Zhixing hurriedly dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the blow.

"I can’t fight it head-on!" he thought.

He immediately changed his strategy, no longer clashing with the Iron Feather Pheasant King directly. Instead, he used offense as defense, gradually retreating.

Earth-Shaking Stance! The long rod swept horizontally, smashing toward the beast’s legs.

Thunderstrike Stance! The rod thrust forward, aiming straight for its eyes.

Stance after stance, Ji Zhixing executed the Eight Breaking Army Strikes. However, when the Iron Feather Pheasant King blocked with its two wings, they acted like massive shields. No matter how he attacked, he couldn’t inflict any real damage.

Instead, the beast’s offensive grew fiercer. Its wings flapped in rapid succession, occasionally transforming into twin broadswords that forced Ji Zhixing to retreat again and again.

Not far away, Zhao Qing stood quietly. Her eyes were fixed on their battles, especially Ji Zhixing’s, ready to intervene at a moment’s notice.

"This kid..." Zhao Qing thought, secretly shaking her head. Having spent time with him, she understood Ji Zhixing’s situation and knew he was trying to master the Tier One Two-Star Staff Technique, the Eight Breaking Army Strikes.

But a Two-Star Staff Technique wasn’t something you could break through in just a few fights. Even with an innate talent for it, it would likely take months before he had any real hope of success.

"Eight Breaking Army Strikes!" Ji Zhixing focused his mind.

He wasn’t relying on the inherent guidance of the Breaking Army Rod to execute the technique. Instead, he deliberately suppressed that pull, swinging out strike after strike based purely on his own understanding. Executed this way, the technique’s power was merely on par with basic staff arts.

BAM!

The Iron Feather Pheasant King’s right wing swept over again. Ji Zhixing raised his rod to block, the impact sending him stumbling back another two steps.

"Such raw power..." Ji Zhixing thought. His hands felt completely numb, yet he continued to tangle with the beast. "But this is the exact pressure I need!"

Breaking Army Stance!

He spun the long rod and chopped down, landing a heavy blow against the beast’s iron wing with a resounding thud.

"It’s still not enough," he thought. "The Breaking Army Will... how on earth do I grasp the Breaking Army Will?"

He continued to swing his weapon as he retreated. Stance after stance, over and over again. Void-Shattering, Earth-Shaking... pressing forward with indomitable courage, harboring unrivaled invincibility...

He could execute the eight stances with his eyes closed. Yet, the will that was supposed to merge into the rod remained separated by a thin, impenetrable veil.

Nearby, Liu Qifan and the others had already finished off the ordinary Iron-Feathered Pheasant and were now helping Luo Yongguang corner the other one.

Zhao Qing remained perfectly still, her gaze locked on Ji Zhixing. Her physical genetic source energy surged within her; the moment he was in real danger, she would strike.

Ji Zhixing was completely oblivious to all of this. His entire mind was immersed in the battle.

Retreat. Swing. Retreat. Swing.

With every strike, he tried to search for that indomitable, unrivaled will. Yet, he continued to come up empty-handed.

"Huh?"

Just then, he suddenly sensed a bizarre aura.

That aura didn’t come from him, but from the Breaking Army Rod in his hands. It was something that naturally emanated from the weapon when it guided him to execute the technique.

Usually, when he wielded the Breaking Army Rod, this aura would naturally merge with his mind, which would then blend into the staff technique, granting terrifying power to his every strike. But right now, he was deliberately suppressing that guidance, fighting purely on his own understanding of the technique.

Yet, the Breaking Army Rod itself continued to radiate that aura. It was as if the aura was telling him exactly what it meant to press forward with indomitable courage, and what it meant to harbor unrivaled invincibility.

"This is..." Ji Zhixing thought, his heart trembling violently. "The Breaking Army Will!"

He could feel it!

Normally, when holding the Breaking Army Rod, he could only passively accept this guidance without truly trying to understand or comprehend it. But now, by suppressing its pull under the intense pressure of combat, he genuinely felt this will!

"This feeling..." A flash of enlightenment suddenly crossed Ji Zhixing’s eyes as he thought, "The Breaking Army Will isn’t something forced in; it’s born from within the heart!

"Pressing forward doesn’t mean never retreating; it means daring to charge forward even knowing the danger ahead.

"Unrivaled invincibility isn’t arrogance; it’s an absolute belief in oneself and the weapon in one’s hands."

Ji Zhixing took a deep breath and swung his weapon once more.

This time, he didn’t deliberately overthink things. He simply trusted the rod in his hands and poured his feelings from this exact moment into the strike.

The instant the long rod swung out, he suddenly felt as if his will had been ignited, creating a wondrous resonance with the shaft. That conviction of indomitable courage and unrivaled invincibility was no longer an ethereal concept, but something genuinely fused into this very strike.

BOOM!

The long rod smashed into the Iron Feather Pheasant King’s wing with a dull, thunderous roar.

The beast’s massive form actually faltered, staggering a step back from the impact!