Chapter 16: Specialization!

Chapter 16: Specialization!

Jiang Zhe occasionally relied on clever tactics when hunting Beasts.

For instance, he’d use "Decisive Strike" to eliminate stubborn Beast Lords—often serpentine Beasts—to avoid close-quarters combat. His precision as a Mentalist, combined with his terrifying Tenfold Power, made long-range throws nearly infallible.

Yet when it came to training, Jiang Zhe was relentless, strictly adhering to Elder Jiang’s demands.

Truthfully, he could’ve angled the spear slightly and used its flat side like a flyswatter to crush the soybeans—simpler and faster.

But Elder Jiang wasn’t watching, and the training room had no surveillance.

Still, snap out of it, buddy!

No one’s forcing you to train. If you hate it, quit and return to the base city to enjoy your family’s privileges. Why suffer in the Wilderness Zone, slacking off for Elder Jiang?

Once you’ve decided to become strong, even a moment’s laziness could lead to irreversible consequences later. In a life-or-death battle, a single misplaced thrust might cost you your life.

"Block", "Grasp", and "Thrust"—these were the three foundational spear techniques.

Before starting specialized "Thrust" training, Elder Jiang had already taught Jiang Zhe the basics.

Theoretically, Jiang Zhe was flawless.

The family’s treasured "Fist Sutra" had been thoroughly studied during his first sixteen years, its martial proverbs memorized.

Now, it was about practical application.

With his talent, Jiang Zhe quickly grasped the spear’s fundamentals.

Training began with proper grip—steady yet flexible, front hand firm and rear hand locked, both hands holding the spear without rigidity or slippage.

Under Elder Jiang’s direct guidance, Jiang Zhe had started on the correct path from day one.

Next came basic movements: Thrust, Pierce, Whip, Wrap, Circle, Block, Grasp, Poke, Deflect, and Flourish. Jiang Zhe mastered them swiftly, executing them flawlessly—though technically sound, they lacked flair.

Then came footwork: agile and dynamic, emphasizing lightness, speed, and stability.

"Move like the wind, anchor like a nail!"

Elder Jiang had emphasized this before spear training began, even assigning foundational stances to strengthen these aspects.

With expert guidance, these basics weren’t difficult.

Elder Jiang was like a master chef sharing secret recipes and premium ingredients. Jiang Zhe now needed only to learn preparation techniques to create a culinary masterpiece.

Once the foundations were solid, Jiang Zhe aimed to perfect his skills without weakness.

Following Earth’s martial arts progression, this meant advancing from "Basics → Specialization → Mastery."

Only by perfecting "technique" and achieving flawless skill could one aspire to higher realms like "Artistic Conception", "Domain", or "Cosmic Source Laws."

Like the "Blade Principle" demonstrated by Duan Donghe to Luo Feng—a foundational lesson that later became his strength among the Hunyuan Lords.

These belonged to the higher realms of "Art" and "Law."

Remember: Even a towering skyscraper starts from the ground up.

Back to the present—the seemingly mundane specialization training: thrusting the spear.

Incense-Head Thrust!

In training, he could use only his base physical strength, no "Striking Art."

Initially, Jiang Zhe couldn’t hit the soybeans.

As a Mentalist, his eyesight was sharp enough to lock onto even a mosquito.

But his arms betrayed him—unsteady, a slight tremor could deflect the spearhead by millimeters or centimeters.

Occasionally, luck struck: a random thrust might hit another bean.

But Jiang Zhe’s pride dismissed such "accidents" as penalties. How embarrassing!

Still, he quickly stabilized his arms.

After all, Power Amplification wasn’t just about dealing multiplicative damage—it reflected bodily control percentage.

10x power meant 10% control. 100x meant perfect mastery.

Ten percent sufficed to subdue his body’s surface rebellions; arm instability was trivial.

Other issues arose:

1. Soybeans rolled away, refusing to stay embedded in the Alloy floor.

Solution: Push precision further, unleash maximum base strength for explosive speed—"hit them before they notice."

2. Standing on hardwood-soled shoes, he couldn’t move lest he slip on soybeans.

Solution: Dual Tree Stance—rooted like a tree, relying on waist and upper body flexibility to execute thrusts.

By 8 PM, Jiang Zhe crushed the last soybean.

Elder Jiang, cradling a hand warmer, entered leisurely to inspect.

After clearing the debris, the Alloy floor lay pockmarked and ruined.

Jiang Zhe turned away, face flushed with shame.

"Not bad. You passed. Progress step by step."

Elder Jiang wasn’t just consoling him—it was genuine praise. Standards couldn’t be too harsh at the start.

"Take this. Place it beside you while refining Genetic Primordial Energy tonight."

He tossed a round iron box. Jiang Zhe caught it with telekinesis, already sensing potent Cosmic Energy radiating within.

Fresh "Slag"?

Jiang Zhe sniffed but detected no familiar fragrance. He opened the lid—half-solid paste, deep blue like a starry sky.

Cosmic Crystals!

His first thought—but clearly not. Yet the substance was undeniably solidified Cosmic Energy, the universe’s essence. His body yearned to devour it.

"Grandfather, what’s this?"

"A raw material extracted using my Spirit Furnace—a volatile energy substance. Keep it beside you during cultivation; it’ll feel like soaking in Cosmic Energy."

Jiang Zhe nodded, understanding. Like a "Spirit Gathering Formation" from cultivation novels.

This reminded him of the Thunder World sub-realm, where underground Cosmic Crystals allowed effortless cultivation.

Near-Cosmic Crystals? Could the Spirit Furnace be at least a fifth-tier/Domain Lord-grade artifact?

Impossible! How could an inanimate object replicate what only Domain Lords could achieve?

Influenced by the original world’s rigid views, Jiang Zhe’s perception of the universe had been simplistic. Now, he sensed change—realizing four or five million words couldn’t fully capture the cosmos’s mysteries.

His curiosity about the Spirit Furnace’s true purpose deepened.

But one thing was certain: Refining "Slag" wasn’t its primary use—it was far too basic.

From Elder Jiang’s tone, even with his Stellar-Level strength, channeling the Spirit Furnace to condense this energy substance was clearly a strenuous task.

The effort and reward were undeniably mismatched.

Jiang Zhe’s desire to piece together the eight diagrams grew stronger. He yearned to lift the furnace lid himself and uncover its secrets.

Late at night.

Cultivating in an environment rich with the universe’s primordial energy, combined with his peak bloodline rank, Jiang Zhe felt confident that by the end of this wilderness journey, he’d advance significantly within the lower-tier Warrior General realm.

About a week or two?

A new day.

The fifth day of formal training in the Wilderness Zone.

Morning: hunting Beasts.

But with an added twist—using his newly learned spear techniques.

Jiang Zhe initially thought little of it, but the moment he charged into the beast pack clad in combat gear, gripping a Long Spear, pressure crashed down on him.

First and foremost—he had no defense!

In previous days, he’d relied on his shield and overwhelming Power Amplification to clash head-on with Beast Lords, blocking attacks with one hand while crushing skulls with his Golden Mace in the other.

Not anymore.

His fighting style could no longer be brute force. He had to dodge first, then strike opportunistically with the Long Spear. Without shield protection, he couldn’t ignore the swarming attacks of lesser beasts. His mind had to stay razor-sharp, alert to threats from all directions.

His margin for error had plummeted!

This forced him to compensate elsewhere—like mastering more refined techniques.

Luckily, while his spear skills lacked finesse, he still had the Micro-Infiltration Body Technique.

Adjusting his tactics, Jiang Zhe adopted a light, evasive guerrilla style.

He moved like a butterfly weaving through the beast pack, the Long Spear coiling like a python around his waist, each strike as deadly as a viper’s strike, piercing through beast skulls.

In subsequent battles, he stopped prioritizing killing speed and focused on honing his spear techniques.

Real combat far surpassed aimlessly practicing in the training room!

...

Back at the safehouse, after two hours of cultivating the Life Blueprint, he began his afternoon training.

Same as before: the Incense Head Thrust.

This time, Jiang Zhe carefully controlled his strength, aiming to crush the soybeans without damaging the alloy floor beneath.

Reining in his power caused the beans to scatter, drastically increasing the training’s difficulty.

As a result, today’s session ended later than the previous day’s.

When Elder Jiang came to inspect, he nodded slightly at the minimal indentations on the alloy floor.

The boy is teachable!

Sixth day.

...

Seventh day.

...

Eighth day.

...

Ninth day.

Jiang Zhe’s spear techniques grew increasingly refined, as if his meridians had been unblocked, seamlessly integrating his body techniques, spear art, and Striking Art.

His combat power skyrocketed!

Comparing himself to nine days prior—wielding a mace and shield with 7x amplification—Jiang Zhe now felt like a child clutching a spear.

Rough! Too rough!

Now, a single side-swing of the spear shaft could send a mid-tier Beast Lord flying, their bones shattered and organs reduced to mush upon landing.

Even Peak Beast Lords couldn’t react to his swift, precise thrusts—they’d be pierced through the skull.

On the way back to the safehouse, Jiang Zhe couldn’t resist suggesting, “Grandfather, let’s head to the city. I want to test myself against Lord-Level Monsters.”

“Not yet. I’m still uneasy about this.”

Elder Jiang continued, “Your offense is strong, and your Striking Art extends to your legs with impressive speed. But your physical defense is lacking—you’re a glass cannon. A single hit from a Lord-Level Monster would end the fight.”

Jiang Zhe frowned but nodded in agreement.

He recalled Babata’s critique of Earth’s secret arts—capable of amplifying strength and speed, but utterly failing at defense.

“Grandfather, in your opinion, when should I face Lord-Level Monsters?”

“When you ascend to lower-tier Warrior General and reach High Warrior General-level Mentalist cultivation.”

Jiang Zhe stayed silent, merely nodding. That’ll be tomorrow.

Afternoon training proceeded as usual.

But with a twist—Jiang Zhe replaced all the alloy floor tiles in the 5x5 area.

Spare tiles were stored in the warehouse, having been swapped once before.

The recently replaced tiles showed far fewer and smaller indentations than the original batch.

This was a testament to his spear skill progress.

Leaning against the wall, Elder Jiang couldn’t help but remark, “Your uncle took two full years to reach your current level. By the third year, he could finally ‘crush soybeans on alloy tiles without leaving marks’ and ‘extinguish incense heads without breaking the incense.’”

Jiang Zhe poured a new batch of soybeans into the 5x5 area, stepped inside wearing special shoes, and muttered to himself, “Grandfather, the data you’re marveling at is about to be shattered.”

With that, he began. The spear flashed, crushing beans with speed so fast it left afterimages. The coiled python around his waist seemed to transform into a nine-headed hydra.

As a Stellar-Level Martial Artist, Elder Jiang’s eyesight was sharp, and his decades of spear expertise gave him an intuitive grasp of spear skill progression.

Watching Jiang Zhe move, his eyes widened, nearly popping out of their sockets.

What the hell?!

It’s already done?!

Five days versus three years—what monstrous talent is this?!

Nine minutes later, Jiang Zhe stood upright, wiping sweat from his temple.

Elder Jiang rushed forward impatiently to sweep the area.

Jiang Zhe tried to take the broom, but Elder Jiang shooed him away—he insisted on personally confirming this moment.

Moments later, Elder Jiang knelt, gently stroking the alloy tiles, feeling their smooth surface.

He couldn’t stop praising, “Not a single mark—your bodily control has reached absurd levels!”

Jiang Zhe shrugged, unsure how to respond.

Truthfully, he’d long realized his innate talent for physical cultivation. Techniques like Striking Art felt like second nature, as if he were born to be a Martial Artist.

His Martial Artist talent was probably akin to a Mentalist with an ultra-wide Brain Domain Width.

Elder Jiang declared the first training phase complete.

Then he fetched an incense burner and a stick of incense from the warehouse, lighting it and inserting it into the burner.

“Let’s begin phase two—extinguish the incense head without breaking the incense.”

Jiang Zhe felt like he’d just defeated a dungeon boss, only to face an even greater challenge.

That night, he cultivated Genetic Primordial Energy.

As expected, he smoothly advanced to the Apprentice Fourth Stage—the lower-tier Warrior General realm.

His physical strength surged, and his Mentalist cultivation reached Disciple Sixth Stage, enabling him to easily slaughter High Warrior General-level Martial Artists and Beasts.

On the tenth day of formal training in the Wilderness Zone, the grandfather and grandson set off toward a major city near the Tahe River estuary.

Code: 009. Extreme danger!

(End of Chapter)

Chapter end