bookbashuk Page 24
Page 24
On the ancient stone steps in front of the Zixiao Palace.
Zhang Yunyuan and Zhou Sheng sat on the ground, with a dazzling starry sky above them and a surging sea of clouds below.
The mountain breeze was cool and crisp, causing the two men's Taoist robes to flutter.
"...The so-called 'overcoming the strong with the soft' does not mean simply giving in."
Zhou Sheng's voice sounded exceptionally clear in the still night.
"Instead, you must listen to the opponent's force and understand their force. When the opponent's force is about to be released, when their old force has been exhausted and their new force has not yet been generated, you can use your 'roundness' to break their 'straightness' and your 'following' to neutralize their 'opposition'."
He stretched out his finger and drew a circle in the air.
"Tai Chi is a circle. It has no beginning and no end, no deficiency and no regret. By guarding your own center, you can influence the myriad changes of others."
Zhang Yunyuan listened quietly.
Zhou Sheng's understanding of "gentleness" greatly inspired him.
His previous fighting style, whether it was the fierceness of thunder magic or the refinement of golden light spell, was biased towards "hardness" and "toughness".
Even if the Great Ruyi Force has methods for neutralizing force, its essence is still for a more powerful and explosive release.
Zhou Sheng's Tai Chi philosophy opened another window for him.
Being rigid without restraint makes one prone to breaking.
True strength lies in the balance of firmness and gentleness, in the harmonious interplay of yin and yang.
"Been taught a lesson."
Zhang Yunyuan said sincerely.
"Brother Zhou's understanding of the word 'gentleness' has reached a state of perfection. Yun Yuan admires it."
Zhou Sheng shook his head.
"Brother, you flatter me. Your strength, though seemingly fierce, contains a peculiar spiral transformation at the moment of exertion, concentrating the force into a single point. Its penetrating power far surpasses mine. What is the reason for this?"
Zhang Yunyuan smiled slightly and, combining his understanding of the condensation of the Golden Light Mantra with some basic concepts of "concealment" and "release" in the Great Ruyi Force, selected the essential points and elaborated on them.
The two of them talked back and forth, corroborating each other's points, and both felt they had benefited greatly.
Before we knew it, dawn was approaching.
"It's getting late. I've just finished my seclusion and need to report back to my master."
Zhou Sheng stood up, a hint of reluctance on his face.
“Brother Yunyuan, it’s a rare opportunity for you to come to Wudang. Why don’t you stay a few more days so we can have a proper chat?”
"Thank you for your kind offer, Brother Zhou."
Zhang Yunyuan also stood up.
"I have important matters to attend to and cannot stay any longer. However, before I leave, I would like to see the sunrise over the golden roof one last time."
Zhou Sheng nodded.
"Then I'll come find you again later."
After saying that, he turned around and went down the mountain path.
After Zhou Sheng left, Zhang Yunyuan went alone to the highest point of the Golden Summit once again.
He sat cross-legged, facing east.
In the distance, the sky was beginning to lighten with the first hint of dawn.
Soon, a red sun burst forth from the churning sea of clouds, its golden rays piercing the darkness and turning the entire sea of clouds into a magnificent golden hue.
A myriad of rays of light shone forth, and a thousand auspicious clouds drifted by.
Bathed in the first rays of the morning sun, Zhang Yunyuan felt a sense of clarity and peace within him.
[Ding! Check-in location detected: Golden Summit of Wudang Mountain.]
【Check-in successful! 】
[Congratulations, host, you have received the reward: Ladder to the Clouds (Beginner Level).]
A profound understanding of body movement, footwork, and using leverage to leap into the air surged into his mind like a tidal wave.
How to gather your energy, how to land properly, how to turn in mid-air, how to use leverage...
He mastered countless exquisite techniques as if he had practiced them hundreds of times and instantly grasped them perfectly.
Zhang Yunyuan slowly opened his eyes, a flash of understanding appearing deep in his pupils.
He stood up and walked to the edge of the cliff.
He took a deep breath and circulated the Qi within his body according to the "Ladder to the Clouds" method.
With a light touch of the ground.
Without any warning, his body moved several feet to the left as if by ghost, as if the space beneath his feet had been instantly shortened.
It landed silently, its body as steady as a rock.
A hint of joy flashed in Zhang Yunyuan's eyes.
He tried to take another step forward.
This time, he touched the ground with his toes, and then lightly touched the instep of his foot.
Left foot stepping on right foot!
What seems inconceivable to ordinary people is done with perfect naturalness by him.
An upward force suddenly arose, and his body was lifted off the ground, lightly leaping several meters into the air, as if he had escaped the Earth's gravity.
"What a mysterious movement technique!"
Zhang Yunyuan admired it in his heart.
This Cloud Ladder Leap is practically tailor-made for someone like him who excels at close-quarters combat.
Just as he was basking in the joy of his new movement technique, Zhou Sheng returned.
He could see the sea of clouds churning above the Golden Summit from afar, but Zhang Yunyuan was nowhere to be seen.
"Brother Yunyuan?"
He shouted something and looked around.
A calm voice suddenly came from behind him.
Zhou Sheng was startled and turned around abruptly.
Suddenly, Zhang Yunyuan appeared on a rock ten feet behind him, bowing respectfully in the distance.
He clearly didn't sense any movement of any aura just now!
"Thank you for your guidance, Brother Zhou. Until we meet again."
Zhang Yunyuan's voice came through clearly.
Before he could finish speaking, several things happened in quick succession at his feet.
His figure flashed between the rocks and pine trees, each rise and fall as graceful as a weightless feather, yet his speed was astonishing.
In just a few breaths, he completely disappeared into the morning mist that filled the Golden Summit, leaving no trace.
Zhou Sheng was left standing there, utterly horrified.
"What...what kind of movement technique is this?!"
Zhou Sheng's mind went completely blank.
He considered himself to be among the best in his generation in terms of lightness skill, but the unpredictable and supernatural movement technique that Zhang Yunyuan had just displayed was completely beyond his comprehension.
That goes beyond what "lightness skill" can describe.
That's more like... shrinking the distance to an inch, riding the wind!
He was stunned for a long time before he came to his senses and stumbled back to his master's meditation place.
"Master! Master!"
He pushed open the door and excitedly recounted everything that had just happened.
After listening to his description, an old Taoist priest with white hair and beard slowly opened his eyes from the futon.
His eyes were also filled with shock and disbelief.
"Left foot steps on right foot, rising several feet from the ground...the figure flickers like a ghost, disappearing without a trace..."
The old Taoist priest muttered to himself, his voice trembling slightly.
"This...how is this possible..."
"This is clearly... the supreme martial art that Wudang has lost for so long—"
"Soaring Through the Clouds!"
Chapter 27 Seeking Immortals on the Cliff
After bidding farewell to Zhou Sheng and leaving Wudang, Zhang Yunyuan did not linger for a moment.
With his newly acquired "Ladder to the Clouds" technique, he felt that the mountains and rivers beneath his feet had become insignificant.
What used to take several days to trek can now be traversed in just half a day.
He traveled north, passing through Henan province.
This place is currently in the midst of war and chaos, with thousands of miles of fertile land turned into scorched earth, and refugees displaced everywhere can be seen.
Having seen so much, Zhang Yunyuan's heart gradually hardened.
He was not a savior; individual strength is as insignificant as dust in the face of the torrent of history.
All he could do was occasionally take action, without revealing himself, to punish some of the more rampant soldiers and bandits, and to protect the local people for a moment of peace.
More often than not, he was just a silent passerby, etching the scenes of this chaotic world into his heart.
This is what Master meant by "refining the heart in the mortal world".