Chapter 16: The Twelve-Step Combo Technique
Chapter 16: The Twelve-Step Combo Technique
On his way back, Jiang Cheng made another new discovery.
During his previous encounter, he gained almost 20 experience points for his Short Stick proficiency.
Before, he only earned 3 experience points for a single combo, and that was when his Short Stick skill was at the Entry Level.
After advancing to the next proficiency level, practicing the same old techniques would yield significantly less experience, much like roasting sweet potatoes.
Now that he had reached the Proficient level in Short Stick, performing the basic combo would only grant him 1.5 experience points, which was still not too bad.
This clearly demonstrated the immense benefits of real combat experience.
Jiang Cheng's gaze shifted to the proficiency panel.
【Short Stick: Proficient (21/800)】
The required experience points to reach the Mastery level had also increased from the previous 300 points to 800 points, more than doubling the requirement.
With the reduced experience gain from basic techniques, Jiang Cheng realized that achieving Mastery might take some time.
However, if he followed his new discovery and focused on real combat, the efficiency could potentially increase several folds. Moreover, he had just obtained over four hundred dollars in cash from the two men, not including the confiscated weapons. This was much faster than his early morning to late-night sweet potato selling routine.
Those thugs he encountered at night were all troublemakers. If he went out to rob them, over time, the slums might become much safer, killing two birds with one stone.
This thought only lasted for a moment before he dismissed it.
As the saying goes, 'If you play with fire, you get burned.'
Even if he reached the Mastery level in Short Stick, there was no guarantee that accidents wouldn't happen. Furthermore, he was still human, and if these thugs were desperate enough to harm the elderly, he might have to kill them.
Therefore, Jiang Cheng decided to quietly develop his strength.
Of course, if any reckless thugs came looking for trouble, he wouldn't hold back, just like he did with the previous two men.
"Those two might hold a grudge and seek revenge. I should be cautious for the next few days," Jiang Cheng thought to himself.
He looked into the distance and could already see the silhouette of the elderly person at the entrance of his home.
As he approached, he realized it wasn't just Grandma Jiang but also Chen Aunt from next door.
Seeing him pushing the tricycle, Chen Aunt smiled and asked, "Xiao Cheng, did you encounter any trouble on your way back?"
She knew he carried a stick, and she was worried he might get into an argument with thugs and end up fighting.
"There were two or three people staring at me, but I walked fast, and they didn't catch up," Jiang Cheng replied with a smile.
"That's good. Grandma Jiang, I told you Xiao Cheng knows what he's doing," Chen Aunt said softly.
Grandma Jiang also heaved a sigh of relief and asked Jiang Cheng to push the tricycle into the house, preparing for dinner.
"Xiao Cheng, our dinner is ready too. Why don't you eat here? But it won't be as grand as yesterday's meal," Chen Aunt offered.
"No, no," Jiang Cheng waved his hands, "By the way, Chen Aunt, I borrowed some money from you when I had a fever a few days ago. I'll return it to you in a couple of days."
Chen Aunt's expression changed upon hearing this, and she spoke with a hint of displeasure, "Why bring this up? Did I pressure you to pay me back?"
"No, no," Jiang Cheng quickly explained, seeing Chen Aunt's slight annoyance, "Today's sweet potato sales were good, and I just feel uneasy keeping this money. I even dreamt about owing money in my sleep."
Chen Aunt couldn't help but chuckle, then realized something and sternly said, "You can return it whenever you have the money, no rush."
After saying this, she turned and entered her house, closing the door behind her.
The elderly woman felt relieved yet also concerned.
Once inside her house, she asked in a low voice, "Xiao Cheng, after repaying Chen Aunt, where will you get the money to buy sweet potatoes? We don't have much charcoal left either."
"
Naturally, Jiang Cheng couldn't possibly speak of what happened on his journey back. He smiled and comforted her, "Then we'll buy less. We used to buy a hundred jin at a time, but now we'll just buy a few dozen. Let's return Chen Sao's money first. It's not easy for her to earn money either."
"Alright, you decide."
The elder nodded in agreement, also thinking it best to return the money first.
Jiang Cheng smiled.
He definitely couldn't speak of what happened on the road.
Including the several hundred yuan they took.
If not for his concern about raising suspicions, he could have returned the money by now.
However, a vague worry lingered in his mind.
What if he took a substantial amount of money from those thugs in the future? It seemed he couldn't spend it as he pleased. After all, explaining the money's origin was an issue. Even if the sweet potato business was booming, they could only roast a few in an hour, earning very little.
Then, he found the situation somewhat amusing.
He was already worrying about how to spend his small fortune, as if he had won the lottery.
Moreover, how did those thugs get their money? Wasn't it also taken from others? Ill-gotten gains.
It was better to quietly sell sweet potatoes. Without the thugs' harassment, he could still earn a little.
Then, Jiang Cheng made an excuse about wanting to drink some vegetable soup. While the elder went out to pick vegetables, he took the opportunity to place the two short sticks and two daggers behind him onto the top of the cabinet.
Including the few hundred yuan they took.
After doing all this, he finally heaved a sigh of relief.
After dinner, resting for about an hour, Jiang Cheng began his training.
Through this real-life combat experience, he started with a few push-ups to warm up, then took out his short stick and performed a triple strike combo.
Experience points increased by 1.
A piece of information appeared on the proficiency panel.
"It's even less than I expected."
Jiang Cheng felt a bit helpless.
Then, an idea popped into his mind.
What if there were more moves?
Four moves, five moves, six moves? And more...
Jiang Cheng felt a glimmer of hope.
This seemed difficult, but it wasn't.
Just thinking about it, a basic combo quickly formed in his mind.
It consisted of three basic moves combined, totaling twelve actions.
Forward strike, backward strike, forward sweep, and its mirror image, backward strike, forward strike, backward sweep.
Forward jab, backward jab, backward sweep, and its mirror image, backward jab, forward jab, forward sweep.
"Next, practice this combo, and the faster you can complete it, the better."
Several pieces of information flashed in Jiang Cheng's mind.
Short stick experts could complete this combo in about 3 seconds.
Master-level experts could execute 12 strikes within 1.5 seconds.
As for the truly powerful, they could finish it within 1 second, literally striking 12 times before their opponent could blink.
Note that these are ordinary people, possibly with slightly better physical qualities than average, but without the absorption of cosmic energy or any other form of body modification. They represent the limits of ordinary humans.
Jiang Cheng first familiarized himself with the moves, swinging the stick a few times.
Due to his slow speed, the entire combo only earned him a little experience.
After feeling somewhat comfortable, Jiang Cheng tightened his grip on the short stick, lifted his head, and glanced at the wall clock. As the second hand approached the 12 o'clock position, he suddenly struck out.
The sound of breaking the sound barrier filled the air.
After completing the entire combo, Jiang Cheng's breathing quickened, and he hurriedly looked at the wall clock.
Time had passed by a little over eight seconds.
"It's three times longer than 3 seconds."
A bitter smile appeared on Jiang Cheng's face.
Of course, for a novice, striking once per second would be impressive.
"I'm probably not yet familiar enough with the combo. If I can complete it within 3 seconds, I'll be at the master level for short sticks."
He lowered his head and looked at the proficiency panel, wanting to see how many experience points he had gained.
(End of Chapter)
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