Chapter 63: Chapter 63

The glutton in Shen Xiuhan’s belly was in full revolt.

He snatched up the roasted fish, and — heedless of the heat burning his mouth — tore and bit into it in great mouthfuls.

One bite of fish down, his eyes went wide; the rhythm of his chewing hitched for just a moment.

The treasure fish’s flesh was tender and rich, all but dissolving the instant it touched the tongue — a full three parts more savory than even the Azure Spike Fowl he had eaten before.

It needed no spice or garnish whatsoever. The meat itself, nourished by pure spiritual energy, was enough to have him wolfing it down like a man possessed.

In no time at all, the last piece of crackling-crisp fish disappeared into his belly like wind sweeping through clouds.

Shen Xiuhan gave his stomach a satisfied pat and exhaled a long, contented sigh.

His gaze focused; his awareness sank into his mind-sea.

The Intelligence point count that had been reset to zero by the Deduction of 『Thousand Lakes Fishing』 had now climbed to twenty-four.

“A second-tier treasure fish lives up to the name! What an enormous essence feedback — far stronger than that Azure Spike Fowl!”

Shen Xiuhan’s eyes flashed with delight.

But after the brief elation, looking at the swollen point total, a thread of hesitation rose in his heart.

He sat down where he was, and carefully took stock of every martial art and method he currently commanded:

Dark Eagle Stance — Perfection.

Iron Bone Art — likewise Perfection.

Thousand Lakes Fishing — just Deduced to Perfection.

Heavenly Dark Eagle Force, after these days of hard drilling, had formally crossed into the introductory stage — but was still short of Initial Mastery. Training the normal way, it would take several more months at least.

Startled Swan, Roaming Dragon was much the same; relying on his own pace of cultivation was simply too slow.

As for the remaining Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs — he hadn’t even crossed the introductory threshold yet.

His current twenty-four Intelligence points, stretched to the limit, would only be enough to Deduce one art.

Shen Xiuhan turned it over and over, and in the end decided to Deduce the Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs.

Two reasons.

First — to fill the gap his combat system most sorely lacked.

He now had Heavenly Dark Eagle Force for hand techniques, Startled Swan, Roaming Dragon for evasive footwork, Iron Bone Art for physical defense. If he could add one fierce, overbearing leg art on top, his close-quarters fighting would have no weak point left.

Second — the leg-work Gao Nian had used had simply left too deep an impression.

Its forms opened wide and struck bold, ferocious beyond compare, and within that ferocity lay cunningly hidden, vicious follow-up strikes.

He could easily picture it: someday, locked in a life-or-death duel with a powerful foe, fighting toe to toe with the tricky angles of Heavenly Dark Eagle Force — then suddenly switching technique mid-exchange, the lower body erupting with savage kicks. The opponent would be caught utterly flat-footed.

“That settles it!”

“Deduce the Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs first. Once I’ve banked enough Intelligence later, I can Deduce the others at my leisure.”

Shen Xiuhan set his resolve; a thought stirred.

【Detected cultivable martial art: 『Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs』. Deduce?】

“Yes! Deduce!”

Hummm!

The familiar pale-gold radiance blazed once more in the depths of his mind-sea.

Countless arcane points of light wove together at speed, forming a golden figure three inches tall.

This time, however, the figure did not sit fishing. Instead its stance dropped low, both legs like twin sky-cleaving axes, striding out through the void.

Light and shadow crossed; years raced by.

【Year One: You drilled the leg art in your courtyard, kicking through countless thick wooden stakes until both legs were swollen purple and red. You discovered you had a modest aptitude for leg-work — in less than three months, you had crossed the introductory threshold of the Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs.】

【Year Two: Day and night you drilled, using your legs of blood and flesh to slam against great mountain boulders. Even when skin split and flesh tore, you did not flinch — tempering sinew and bone through endless pain. The leg art reached Initial Mastery!】

【Year Five: You kicked through boulders and staffs beyond counting. Qi-blood drove through both legs’ meridians in full, and each kick fell like a charging thunderbolt. The Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs — at last, Full Mastery!】

【Year Ten: You felt, always, that your strength fell short — unable to unleash the overbearing, savage might that the word ‘Mountain-Collapsing’ implied. You hit a wall, unable to push the leg art to Perfection. But your spirit was resilient. Undiscouraged, you kept drilling behind closed doors, scrutinizing each form, each technique, again and again.】

【Year Twelve: At last you grasped the true meaning of ‘Mountain-Collapsing’ — fused the leg art into a seamless whole, stripped away the false and kept the true, and Deduced it to the realm of Perfection. On the day the method reached its apex, you swept one leg — qi-blood driving clean through the body — and there was the savage might to split steles, shatter stone, collapse mountains, and sunder peaks!】

【Year Fifteen: Long-gathered force erupted in a flash of inspiration — and, upon the foundation of the original art, you went one step further. You audited the Twenty-Four Paths of Mountain-Collapsing Legs for flaws, poured in your own comprehension of the martial way, and created twelve new paths, twenty-four new moves, and forty-eight new forms, weaving them in. You gave this martial art a new name — 『Thirty-Six Paths of Sky-Collapsing Legs』!】

『Thirty-Six Paths of Sky-Collapsing Legs』 — Perfection!

Swish!

Light and shadow scattered!

A torrent of memory flooded back into Shen Xiuhan’s mind and legs.

His eyes snapped open. Two alarming shafts of light blazed from them.

He rose to his full height.

Both legs were planted steady as ancient trees rooted in the earth; every muscle coiled with a heart-stopping reserve of explosive power.

He drew a deep breath — the itch to test it was more than he could bear.

Swish!

Without shifting his stance, Shen Xiuhan’s right leg lashed out like a venomous dragon bursting from its den — trailing a piercing, ear-splitting shriek through the air!

“Thud.”

A muffled impact.

A head-sized boulder of hard blue reef-rock at his feet — kicked, in one casual sweep, into a cloud of flying powder and shards!

Fragments sprayed like hidden weapons in every direction, peppering the surrounding reeds with a dense rain of “shunk, shunk” sounds.

Looking at the stone — not even grit left behind — Shen Xiuhan’s face stiffened slightly. A touch sheepishly, he rubbed his nose:

“Got a little carried away… didn’t hold back the force…”

But the embarrassment quickly gave way to a blaze of heat in his chest.

He stood and gazed out over the depths of Yunshui Lake, a glint of eagerness flashing in his eyes:

“I wonder… with my strength as it is now, would I stand a chance against a Bone Tempering martial artist?”

“Never mind…”

“Better to train patiently. Once my cultivation climbs a bit higher, I’ll think about that ‘Diaohailou’ business.”

The morning fog thinned away.

Shimmering light danced across the lake.

Shen Xiuhan gathered his things, leapt back onto the little black-canopied boat, took up the oar, and rowed away.

…

The days on a lone island, rising and falling with the tide, were always bone-dry of novelty.

Shen Xiuhan drilled daily, and each day he could feel his cultivation advancing — so the time passed tolerably enough.

In the blink of an eye, ten more days had slipped by.

The thirty-first day after Gao Nian of the Golden Dragon Gang fell.

Through this stretch, Shen Xiuhan had trained Dark Eagle Stance without fail, rain or shine.

The qi-blood in his body had grown as dense and heavy as liquid mercury, reaching the realm of “qi-blood perfection” — one single step from the threshold of Bone Tempering!

By his reckoning, it had now been twenty days since he had taken up his post on Yunyi Island.

Shen Xiuhan stood by the window, gazing in the direction of Changyun County, planning to ask the Garrison Commander for leave tomorrow — two or three days of rest.

For one thing, it had been a long time; he ought to go back and see Ma and Momo.

For another… before he had left Mei Hall, Master had specifically told him: when his qi-blood reached Full Mastery, he was to return to the hall without fail.

Either reason alone was enough to send him back to Changyun County at the first chance.

And yet — that night.

A gale sprang up over Yunshui Lake, lashing the felt curtain outside the bamboo house until it cracked like a banner.

Hurried footsteps sounded beyond the door.

Deng Shan rushed over and knocked, a note of urgency in his voice:

“Patrol Envoy Shen, there’s a situation.”