Dual Cultivation God Returns - Chapter 1046 - 1046: One is logical, one is passion

NOTE1

“Hmm, it may be even better since it’ll be a clean break from your old identity”, Wu Long finally broke the awkward silence, trying to find a silver lining.

“Ah! Yes, just as you said before, a new life!”, Jin Shenzhi nodded, grabbing onto that dignity-saving straw offered by Wu Long.

“But you still should take the pill right away, I will help you disguise the disappearance of the death aura”, Wu Long added.

Jin Shenzhi widened his eyes, but nodded – if this man was able to so easily produce a Longevity Pill that worked for an Essence Gathering Realm cultivator at the very end of his lifespan, he surely had methods to do this trick.

He adjusted his mind, and took the pill, though contrary to his expectations he didn’t need to circulate its effects, and the adjustment of his condition was not necessary, as it dissolved and began spreading its effects to his Root of Longevity on its own.

“What a miraculous pill…”, he couldn’t help but mutter as the dense aura of death around him began to dissipate.

It was at this moment that Wu Long, who already spread out a few talismans, made hand seals, and complex patterns glowed around Jin Shenzhi, trapping and sustaining the death aura around him.

“This will be enough to fool them when we go out, and then we can sneak you out after a few hours. Just sit in a meditative pose for when someone sees you, and we’ll swap you out with an illusion that sits in that same pose until it’s supposed ‘death’, the timing of which we can adjust for convenience”, Wu Long showed a satisfied look as he inspected the death aura, “I need a bit of time to prepare the corporeal illusion that will last and be able to fool everyone”

“Understood. Ah, the nickname I gave you before, Steel Fist, is something I was called by when I was young… I don’t think many will recognize it, but then again who knows… how about changing it?”, Jin Shenzhi asked.

“What do you have in mind?”, Wu Long raised his eyebrows, not really that worried about it but just curious.

—

The trio led by Zhao Xieren left the Ancestral Peak of the Three Pillars Sect peacefully, while the Sect Ancestor remained in the cave.

Though from that day on, a masked man appeared among Wu Long’s followers, called Steel Hand, who used contact fist techniques and body hardening in combat, which had nothing to do with the Steel Fist Jin Shenzhi, the former Sect Ancestor of the Three Pillars Sect.

—

On the way out, Zhao Xieren noted, “Ah, that little snake Ko Fuan seems to be stalling on the case with his brother. Although his excuses seem to be consistent with the reports that the eldest Young Master of the City Lord Manor is not as active and perhaps even lost interest in the matters of the Silver Wing City”

Wu Long narrowed his eyes upon hearing it, and then chuckled, “Hmm, then forget it, or rather, perhaps it’s better that way. Shift to the second brother instead, leave the oldest one”

“Eh? You mean…”, Zhao Xieren widened his eyes.

“Yes, we’ll not the oldest one as a pawn in the game against City Lord, or rather we’ll explicitly exclude him from any further meddling. I am much more interested in his internal growth, or perhaps, I just want to support it and see what happens”, Wu Long nodded, “We can just use the second son”

“Understood”, Zhao Xieren nodded, inwardly thinking that Ko Gunwen managed to become, perhaps, the luckiest of the whole family, and then shifted topic, “And we finally have some progress on the two outsider Sects. It seems that the Northern Ridge Sect and Pale River Hall were part of a larger cluster of groups from both Sects, all moving separately, but all in the direction of the Wei Dynasty as if in distracting maneuvers, the Disciples and Sect Protectors were not even told there were other groups. Multiple such groups arrived in other places, some were attacked on the way, but one remains unaccounted for”

“Haa~, as I thought”, Wu Long sighed, “Perhaps we’ll hear from the Wei Dynasty soon, so it’s late finding out more – we’ll only use up resources on something we’ll likely confirm in a day or two. Good work on that. You can withdraw most effort in that direction now, this is enough”

“Understood”

—

A few hours after they officially left the Three Pillars Sect, Steel Hand was standing on one of the training fields in the Oak Fortress, marvelling at a Spiritual Land on the continent that no one knew about.

By this time, due to the fact that this Spiritual Land was confined by the Formation, thus limiting its spread in territory, the density of Spiritual Qi inside was better than any other Spiritual Land on the Soft Meadow Continent, and the land over the course of the past year alone was already gradually covered with low-level spiritual plants and common natural treasures of Heaven and Earth.

“Now, show me your techniques, it’s better to give you cultivation methods that match your combat style, perhaps we can make some immediate improvements in your combat style and techniques as well”, Wu Long said standing with Hua Ziyan to the side of the Training Field.

“Yes, Valley Master”, Steel Hand who was totally not Jin Shenzhi made a fist and hand salute, and Profound Qi began swirling around his hands, wrists, and lower arms, gathering in dense vortexes as both his hands began turning darker in color.

He then demonstrated a few moves and fist forms, that confirmed Wu Long’s guess about the defensive technique.

“Um… Wu Long, can I…?”, Hua Ziyan asked with an interested gaze, and Wu Long smiled.

“That would be great, Ziyan. It’ll also be a good experience for you”, he nodded, and then turned to the field, “Ji-… Steel Hand, how about a spar with Ziyan? She is a Spiritual Qi fist and palm techniques user, so it should be a good match. It’ll help me see more about your techniques as well, so it’s a double win”

“Haha… you must be speaking in jest, Valley Master. I may have gotten a bit rusty and weaker with age, but I am still an Essence Gathering Realm cultivator, and after you gave me that pill I feel as good as in my prime. I am afraid to harm such a delicate young la-…”, Steel Hand lightly laughed, truly thinking they were making a joke as Hua Ziyan’s petite figure flew out onto the training field.

But his words abruptly stopped as Hua Ziyan first politely made a fist and hand salute to him, which transitioned into a hand seal, and then took a fighting stance, 30 Spiritual Qi fists, each fist as large as a human head, appearing around her one by one.

Steel Hand’s eyes widened with shock as he felt a tremendous pressure from the delicate-looking lady, who appeared to have a mild good-natured and amicable personality throughout the whole time he saw her, as he realized that she was definitely not a harmless delicate flower.

His gaze turned serious as the currents of Profound Qi around his arms intensified and he made a fist and hand salute to her, subsequently also taking a fighting stance.

The next moment the two shot toward each other, Hua Ziyan unleashed a barrage of strikes as her opening move, as always carefully calculating her movements, to not move all fists at once but in a manner that left about half of them spread around her, ensuring ability to make a rapid response to threats and shifts in the situation, and also to keep up the torrent-like continuity of her attacks.

Jin Shenzhi, meanwhile, started by punching out at the first fist.

He successfully shattered the Spiritual Qi fist, but quickly learned that it wasn’t the best strategy due to the Integral Avalanche Structure Art, as chunks and pieces of the Spiritual Qi fist retained their momentum and lethality when it broke.

Jin Shenzhi intensified the shockwave defense, deflecting the pieces outward, and adjusted on the second strike, as his punch created a shockwave moving forward, that pushed any debris of the Spiritual Qi fist back, and then made a rapid succession of punches with the same effect.

This quick adjustment and countermeasure slightly surprised Hua Ziyan who expected to retain at least a small advantage for the initial few moves due to how uncommon her technique was, but she still had the advantage of mass as new Spiritual Qi fists formed around her replacing the shattered ones.

She was also using a wider space to the sides as her fists flew in long arcs to target the seemingly open sides of the contact fist fighter, but the shockwave trailing defense proved to be more formidable than it looked, as the fists deviated to strike the ground or around the man, pushed by the torrents of Profound Qi that carried the backlash from the punches, as well as the jet thrust from accelerating the punches with Profound Qi, thus carrying about half the strength of each punch.

His compact form at first seemed like a disadvantage against such a large-scale attack, but it soon became apparent that it was Hua Ziyan who had to take the first step back and then begin rapidly retreating, as Jin Shenzhi pushed through the center of her attacks with a singular focus, almost ignoring the attacks that came from the side and rapidly depleting her Spiritual Qi fists in the center.

Each of his strikes carried more weight and intensity, and his practiced form and experience allowed him to accurately target two to three of the attacks with just one of his own as he increased the explosive force of each shockwave he made.

Although Hua Ziyan had precision of movement and volume, she was still less experienced in fist techniques and lost out in terms of pure fighting tactics.

However, she quickly regrouped her defenses, stopping his advance with a slightly stronger barrage while minimizing the ineffective attacks from the sides, allowing her to stop retreating.

Jin Shenzhi instantly knew that those side attacks were going to become more deadly, as she wouldn’t continue making the attack that didn’t work just to pester him – it was far more likely to be an attempt to lull his suspicion and alertness and conceal a powerful attack, and just as the thought crossed his mind, his hyper-sensitive instinct made him evade a side-attack.

Two Spiritual Qi fists combined into one in that attack, making it carry more weight.

Seeing that the attack would be successful if landed, Hua Ziyan combined 10 other outer layer fists into 5, thus leaving 6 enhanced fists on the side, and 18 in the general direction of the center. The six side fists also began shrinking in size a bit to the more human-sized ones, making them denser and more impactful.

“I must admit, I was wrong. I apologize for underestimating you”, Jin Shenzhi spoke sincerely as he saw that this was definitely not an easy fight even if she was an entire Major Realm below.

She would be able to sweep through the Grand Elders of his Sect, who were in the same Cultivation Realm as her, with ease, perhaps able to fight two at once.

They took a moment to readjust their expectations, and clashed again, this time remain quite even as Jin Shenzhi had to contend with the denser fists that did not shatter, but was still able to put pressure on Hua Ziyan, as his body tempering allowed him more speed than her.

Not to mention that increasing the density of the 6 fists on the sides made them slightly slower.

Jin Shenzhi’s fighting style was very simple as he didn’t introduce many new tricks. It was clean and efficient boxing – most cultivators who liked flashy moves would even call it boring.

It also quickly became apparent he was an endurance fighter – specializing in drawing out fights and exhausting opponents.

His Spiritual Qi expenditure was minimal since he offloaded a lot of his power onto physical stamina that was trained with body tempering.

Rather, that was the main point of the Three Pillars Sect body tempering, it built endurance, speed, and stamina, cultivating skin and muscle defenses as well as pure strength was only secondary.

While his use of Spiritual Qi added the explosiveness and shockwaves that didn’t take much. He also precisely controlled the level of it he needed for each specific strike.

However, he met his match in Hua Ziyan who was, in essence, an endurance fighter as well. Or more precisely, she was the ultimate endurance fighter.

She could maintain this level of intensity and sustain her much larger Spiritual Qi expenditure far longer, while her torrent of attacks became incredibly taxing for her opponents.

She also rapidly improved right in the middle of their fight, as Jin Shenzhi began noticing that she began adapting to his fighting style, and even incorporated his fist technique into hers. The rhythm of her attacks started to grow more complex – something she was only in the process of learning from Wu Long but became crucial in dealing with such an opponent as Jin Shenzhi and thus became the catalyst for rapid progress.

But after a while, the fight finally entered into a state of complete deadlock, as Hua Ziyan reached a level at which this fight no longer was as effective for her growth, while Jin Shenzhi maintained his position due to experience and how refined his fighting style was, aided by his hyper-sensitive instincts. It was now a contest of pure endurance, and Wu Long knew Hua Ziyan would win that one.

He also saw everything that he wanted, so he stopped the fight, giving both his praise first, and then feedback.

Jin Shenzhi was shocked to find that Wu Long had a lot to say to both, listing out every single move that could have been improved. Although it was obvious he was speaking much more kindly to Hua Ziyan, who listened with excitement.

“Hmm, that’s about it”, Wu Long nodded, then turning his attention to Jin Shenzhi, “I more or less understand your technique”

He raised his hand, as under the shocked look of Jin Shenzhi, it was covered in dense Profound Qi and turned darker, perfectly replicating his fighting technique.

“It is a good and clean style, efficient, you could even say it’s stripped to its bare bones to streamline and focus everything into one. I suspect it comes from a Mortal Martial Artist who learned to cultivate”

“Y-yes, that is what is written in our Sect’s records”, Jin Shenzhi nodded, “And my family’s records as well”

“Your family records?”, Hua Ziyan asked curiously, since the secret of his family seemed to be closely connected to the Sect.

Jin Shenzhi immediately saw that Wu Long didn’t mind this segway precisely because it was something that interested Hua Ziyan, quickly understanding how he should act around her – not questioning her decisions to refer to him, but taking them as if it was the will of Wu Long himself.

He then nodded, explaining in detail to satisfy the curiosity of the beauty, “I told you before that my descendants helped me keep an eye on the Sect. But the reason I didn’t ask you to allow them to join me in following you, was because it is not just my descendants, but I am one in the long line of that family. Our family’s fate has long been intertwined with the history of the Sect. At some point an ancestor of my family who came from outside of the continent to explore the Great Wilderness, joined this Sect, which is quite ancient despite being so small… as you know our bloodline is a bit special, and it is very suited to practicing this fighting style, which was my ancestor’s initial motive for joining. But while learning it, he fell in love with the secret daughter of the Founder of the Sect”

“How romantic”, Hua Ziyan leaned onto Wu Long who smiled, wrapping his hand around her shoulder and holding her close, giving Jin Shenzhi an approving nod.

The latter, seeing that sign, now spoke more freely, “The fact that the Founder had a daughter had to be kept a secret so that it would not cause political turmoil within the Sect since he wanted her to find happiness – he was a Mortal once, who ascended through cultivation but still had Mortal values, cherishing the idea of a traditional life. Of course,it was also a protective measure for her to not be known to enemies outside, since he just founded the Sect which had to fight for its position among others. My ancestor, becoming the lover and then husband of that secret daughter constituted a dilemma for the Founder. Should he pass on his position to his Prime Disciple as was tradition, creating inner turmoil, or to his secret son-in-law who would be even more loyal and faithfully protect the Sect into the future? That was when my ancestor proposed a secret family line that would protect the Sect and help keep it in the image that the Founder intended for millennia to come. The family took on the name of my ancestor, Yi, blending into the Sect, and occasionally put a descendant to the position of Sect Master to help keep steer it in the time of turmoil. Those descendants entered the Sect ‘from the outside’ under the surname of the Sect Founder, Jin”

“Such dedication…”, Hua Ziyan sighed with a slightly dreamy look that made Wu Long’s heart clench with adoration. She then remembered that Wu Long was in the middle of conversation with Jin Shenzhi that she derailed into history of the Sect because of curiosity, and slightly guiltily looked up at Wu Long, who smiled back to her, patting her head.

And as she parted from him, he reluctantly let her go, once again using the technique that Jin Shenzhi showed, “As I said, although it is well-rounded in both defense and offence, which makes it effective, it lacks the decisive strike that would break a deadlock or help exploit an opportunity, or simply to go against a big move of the opponent, Ziyan, how would you have broken the deadlock at the end?”

“Uhm, like this?”, she made a one-handed hand seal with her left hand, and pushed her right hand with an open palm toward the training field, “Great Wall Palm”

Three human-sized palms made of Spiritual Qi appeared in front of her side by side like a wall, and shot forward with great momentum, kicking up dust and hitting a distant reinforced wall with a loud boom.

“Or like this”, she then changed the hand seal in her left hand and put her right hand up and slightly tilted forward with a spread palm facing down, “Sky Dome Palm!”

An image of her palm appeared above, much larger than the ones before.

And as she pushed her right hand down, the palm plummeted to the ground, crushing into the training field as her hand, stretched out to the front, reached the height of her chest.

It took some time for the Spiritual Qi to dissipate due to its unique quality, but eventually, a big palm imprint was all that remained on the training ground, a web of cracks forming with it as the center.

“Both moves are something I learned to do while pre-setting my regular attacks to go on for a bit without my direct control, but they still take away some concentration. I wasn’t confident in not giving a bit of an opening while performing them, which would be critical in that fight, so I had to wait for a suitable opportunity”, she said humbly as Jin Shenzhi gulped watching the devastating finishing blows that could’ve come his way had he eased his offense even a bit during their spar.

“I saw no readiness from you to unleash a technique that would have that kind of instant impact”, Wu Long commented, “Perhaps you could add the maximum explosiveness to your fist…”

Wu Long punched out toward the training field using the Tree Pillars Sect Fist Technique, and his fist – hitting the air with Profound Qi converging in one spot in the center front of the fist – created the same shockwave punch that Jin Shenzhi used in the spar, only about two times more powerful reaching the maximum output that the latter could make in such a short period of charging, “… but the area of an effective strike remains relatively small due to the force dissipating into a wide area, even if you charge it more you still end up with just a more powerful but localized strike, which loses its Spiritual Qi spending efficiency for effect and doesn’t even really work with your fighting style as every move is timed to take roughly the same time to prepare for you so a longer charge time is not ideal – it will break the rhythm, I also saw you switching it up with this move which is a bit more efficient with force distribution”

As Wu Long punched out again, there were now two separate streams of Profound Qi traveling around his arm to his fist, one converging into a single spot in front like the previous punch, and another one into a ring of pressurised Qi around it, the ring exploding a split moment earlier, and thus creating a vortex that created a channel for the regular explosive shockwave that followed. The spread was narrowed, but it carried the fist strike further.

“But it loses the area of effect, making it another more specialized tool rather than a decisive strike”, Wu Long spoke as he seemed to think of ways for immediate improvements, “Though I suppose you could add an additional one shooting it out with delay, but it’s also more of a tool or trick to add into arsenal…”

As he made the third punch, this time the part that previously converged into a ring, further compressed behind the point of pressure, and exploded, sending the point of pressure – which was now wrapped in a protective film – out forward. The point of pressure then exploded with a delay in some distance, effectively delivering a punch from afar like a projectile.

“Wha-…?!”, Jin Shenzhi’s eyes became completely round as he saw that new technique demonstrated so casually.

“It could perhaps help you corner Ziyan a bit more, but it wouldn’t be decisive, she could block sacrificing one of her Spiritual Qi fists. Though in general against most opponents it is a useful trick, and of course you could expand on that with multiple explosion points, changing up trajectories, and adding delays – it is a flexible tool, but there are also drawbacks since like any projectile it could be intercepted so it would not have the same hit rate as your regular techniques”, Wu Long continued in the same pondering tone of voice, as he shot out first two, then three and then up to 20 smaller and weaker explosive punch projectiles, made them curve trajectories, or made the explosions propelling longer with a chain of them, carrying the final damaging one further and massively accelerating it.

He did all of these manipulations using the precise method Jin Shenzhi used, so it was immediately applicable without changing the core of the technique, just required practice which Wu Long could skip over due to his profound mastery of precise Qi manipulation and deep understanding of its aspects on every level.

It was precisely understanding that he could theoretically do all this if he practiced some time, which made Jin Shenzhi show a more and more bewildered look as he looked at all this variety of moves he could have in his arsenal right away.

Meanwhile, Wu Long continued in the same tone of voice, absorbed in thinking process as he made another move, “You probably already experimented with adding a spin onto the movement of Qi to create a sharp penetrating strike, though I understand why you didn’t use it, it isn’t very effective in a fight against Ziyan since small high intensity penetration attacks do nothing against that kind of volume unless the distance is much closer, it would’ve only shattered the fists which doesn’t help against her”

“Oh, perhaps…”, Wu Long had an idea, and then two rings of pressured Profound Qi formed around his fist, three coils made of Profound Qi connecting the two, and as he punched out, the front ring remained fixed in its position around the fist, while the one behind it was pulled back, or rather was left behind, stretching the coils between them, and then as the fist reached the final punch, stopping in place, the second ring shot to the front.

The result was a double explosive punch one after right after the other, though the second one was a bit smaller in intensity.

“Hmm, I guess that is it for adding a bit of versatility without breaking your form or changes in fighting style… although I would improve that as well since you seem to have hit a wall not reaching Fist Intent, but it is more long-term goals, we can add that later… now about that decisive technique”, Wu Long didn’t look too satisfied with this arsenal but decided it was enough for now. He then went through the fist and palm techniques in his head, and then his eyes lit up, “I know, how about this one?”

He went out to the training field, and demonstrated a perfectly replicated set of moves from Jin Shenzhi to show how the move will mix with the overall style of fighting, gradually adding the variations he just came up with, but there was a visibly growing accumulation of Profound Qi behind his back, like a second outward spine, as he commented, “This would have to be hidden within the spine of course, to not alert your opponent about your move”

As it reached a certain critical point, he seamlessly transitioned into a double fist technique with one fist above and one below, the Profound Qi separating into two streams that went into his shoulders and through his arms.

This was no longer the Three Pillars Sect technique, and the Qi manipulation process was different.

The resulting streams of Profound Qi created a resonance between the fists. Like a clap with invisible hands containing massive amounts of kinetic power. It also looked to Jin Shenzhi and Hua Ziyan who watched from the side as if two massive jaws snapped together at that point, even though there was no visible phenomenon.

This created a shockwave as well, but of a completely different magnitude as it was no longer a result of manipulating the kinetic force of a punch with Profound Qi, it was a pure Profound Qi technique with complex and esoteric principles behind it.

The shockwave also was contained in a single horizontal line forward, effectively creating a slash.

The wind sphere of the backlash spanned the entire training field, pushing Jin Shenzhi and Hua Ziyan a bit back as their hairs and clothes flapped backward.

“It is a technique created when a cultivator watched a powerful Spiritual Beast known as Mountain Snapping Dragon Turtle make a decisive blow, thus named Mountain Shattering Snap. It’s versatile since it works with any double-fist technique, and the angle of the snap wave also changes depending on the position of the two fists. Catch someone with this close-up and you’ll easily cleave them in two, and if an arm or leg gets caught up in there… well you get it”, Wu Long dusted his hands with the tone and demeanor of someone simply advertising a skill like a product in a shop rather than someone who just performed a powerful and complex profound technique, “I will write it on a jade slip along with the improved cultivation method for you”

He took out a jade slip as he talked and walked back to the outside of the field, and after his eyes flashed with profound patterns, the surface of the jade slip also glowed as it became first warm and then hot.

He casually threw the jade slip to Jin Shenzhi who was still looking at the training field with wide eyes and thus caught in somewhat absent-mindedly, only turning his still bewildered gaze to it as he felt the lingering heat with his hands.

“This…”, he asked, receiving a knowing look from Hua Ziyan who knew that Wu Long had that effect on almost everyone who interacted with him on a slightly closer basis than strangers. The fact most of his followers didn’t react like that around him daily was simply from the shock fatigue, and he still found ways to leave them dumbfounded from time to time.

“Ah, right on time”, he heard Wu Long’s voice, as a figure descended from flying from the direction of the Oak Fortress itself.

“Teacher”, Li Weifang cupped his hands.

“Mm, meet your new partner, Ji-… I mean ‘Steel Hand’, who will work closely with you from now on. You’re both newer to join so you’ll have something to bond over”, Wu Long first wanted to say Jin Shenzhi, but the latter instantly woke up from the bewildered state, giving him a look that reminded him that this man had nothing to do with the former Sect Ancestor, “His cultivation is below yours for now, but he’ll have time to catch up since you’ll need an overhaul of your foundation from Spearmanship to Halberd Arts, which will take some time”

“I’m Li Weifang, I am looking forward to our cooperation”, Li Weifang made a fist and hand salute with a genuine smile and welcoming attitude, quite happy to see someone also new join him as partner.

Interacting with the older trio of Old Yen, Nie Guanting and Kwon Qianhong was slightly awkward as he didn’t feel like he fit in. It also didn’t help that the three felt a bit of competitiveness toward him based on the same feelings that Butler Bang felt when Wu Long asked for Chu Ren’s transfer from Song Minfu.

“Likewise, I hope to work well with you”, Jin Shenzhi cupped his hand toward Li Weifang as well, also relieved to be paired with someone who would have a similar experience of getting used to things.

“He uses contact fist techniques putting him in extreme close-contact which pairs nicely with your middle defensive range, and uses kinetic shockwaves which also goes well with your Wind Attribute, so, basically, you two can become an impenetrable fortress together if you manage to find the right way”, Wu Long then gave a short introduction, and then turned back to Jin Shenzhi, “Which reminds me, your hardening technique itself is still a bit lacking, you’ll be injuring hands against a slightly better Spiritual Treasure or someone who knows even basic Weapon Intent, so I will give you a new one”

“Oh~, a body-as-a-weapon user, I cannot wait to have a spar with you, of course on equal grounds”, Li Weifang’s eyes became fiery.

Meanwhile, Jin Shenzhi turned to Wu Long, “I would say I can go against most opponents on this continent and the skill becomes more powerful the higher the cultivation realm…”

“Not enough”, Wu long shook his head, “And it is true that it becomes better with cultivation realms, but no one with that skill reached significantly higher cultivation realms than yours so you didn’t discover that the margin of improvement goes down from here on. By the time you would reach Essence Harmonization Realm, your technique would be significantly weaker overall. It’s better to either improve the technique itself or switch to a better one”

“I-Improve…?”, Jin Shenzhi widened his eyes. After all, it was one thing to know a better technique, it was completely another to improve an existing technique into something better.

“Yes, if this technique holds that much sentimental value, I suppose I can modify it but it will take some time to produce a decent one. I can give you another technique right away though”, Wu Long said, nodding.

“Um…”, at this point, Hua Ziyan raised her hand with a slightly confused look, “Wouldn’t it… be simpler to use… gauntlets… or something~ like that~ I don’t know~…?”

Her tone was reluctant to begin with, but began decreasing in volume and trailing off to the end as it completely lost out to the awkwardness she felt in the air as she saw all three of them staring at her.

Wu Long, Jin Shenzhi and Li Weifang, on the other hand, were collectively a bit puzzled as to how to react as well.

This was the result of pure manly romance of going against a weapon with bare hands that could not be understood with a rational and pragmatic perspective.

At the same time, they couldn’t find any way to refute the logic in her words, putting them into an impasse.

Yes, there was no reason whatsoever to continue using a technique whose only function was to make hands into weapons when one could wear said weapons, but one lit a fire in the eyes of a man, and the other was simply functional.

Eventually, though, Wu Long seemingly found a solution, he simply kindly smiled to Hua Ziyan, “That is an excellent observation. However, we’re still going to brainstorm on it a bit, since gauntlets or no gauntlets, it’s a change of fundamental supporting technique of how to manipulate Qi”

Hua Ziyan tried to say something else when something soft and fluffy landed on her shoulder, and she turned to see Fen Baihu, “Hehehe, Ziyan, have some mercy”

“M-mercy?”, Hua Ziyan widened her eyes since she was sincerely just trying to be helpful.

Meanwhile Wu Long and the two decided that improving the technique was ultimately the choice as it didn’t require complete relearning of the process, thus allowing to make incremental improvements along the way rather than switching to new techniques. It was also a kind of interest in taking a simple technique originating from a small sect and taking it to a higher level where it could rival powerful techniques of ancient sects.

there was a mixup, as Jin Shinzhi referred to his nickname as Steel Hand in the previous chapter, it should be Steel Fist