Continuing Cultivation

When it came to the weapons and martial arts skills of the Five Greats, aside from Wang Chongyang, the others were generally good, but not astonishingly so.

Hong Qi's Dog Beating Staff Technique was praised highly, but whether it was Xiao Feng or Hong Qi himself, they relied on the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms to conquer the world.

More often than not, the Dog Beating Staff Technique was a symbol of leadership.

Although Huang Yaoshi had created the "Falling Blossom Divine Sword," it was the Finger Flicking Divine Skill that made him famous throughout the jianghu.

Ouyang Feng's Spirit Snake Staff Technique was no less impressive than the Dog Beating Staff, and his iron staff contained two venomous snakes. However, compared to his Toad Skill, it was not worth mentioning.

Wang Ming didn't know about Duan Zhixing's weapons.

Combining this information, Wang Ming felt confident comparing his weapon skills with theirs.

Whether it was the Illusion Sword, the Heavy Swordplay, or the Nine Swords of Dugu, any of them gave him the confidence to face anyone.

However, when it came to unarmed combat, Wang Ming was a bit stumped.

Wang Ming recalled all the martial arts he knew and realized he had never practiced any unarmed techniques. When fighting opponents unarmed, he had always relied on his superior internal energy to injure them.

If it was fine to fight weaker opponents, but when facing masters, if he didn't have a sword in hand, his combat power would drop by half.

Therefore, Wang Ming decided to practice an unarmed martial art. After searching, only the Nine Yin Divine Claw and Heart-Shattering Palm from the Nine Yin Manual caught his eye.

Although he had exchanged the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms with Hong Qi previously, it was not complete.

It was fine for fighting ordinary jianghu people, but to contend with masters of the Five Greats level, it still lacked refinement.

Incomplete martial arts had flaws, making it easy for masters to exploit the incomplete moves.

These two martial arts, although recorded in the lower volume of the Nine Yin Manual, were not actually created by Huang Shang.

They were the martial arts of Huang Shang's old enemies, and his loved ones had died by these two techniques, leaving a deep impression on Huang Shang.

Back then, Huang Shang had read through 5,481 volumes of the "Myriad Longevity Daoist Canon" and, after more than forty years of contemplation, finally understood a martial art that could counter the techniques of various schools. The miraculous methods contained within were extraordinary, but they were too neutral and peaceful.

This meant that the killing power was slightly restrained, as the core philosophy of Daoism was freedom and longevity.

Within the Nine Yin Manual, the most potent killing techniques were the White Python Whip Technique, the Nine Yin White Bone Claw, and the Heart-Shattering Palm. These were originally the martial arts of demon sect elders, and their pursuit was not freedom and longevity, but the fastest and simplest way to kill.

The fact that Huang Shang, a martial arts master, left these three techniques in the manual was enough to show their value.

There were two versions of the "Nine Yin Claw Technique": the original version used by Huang Shang's enemies, the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw," and the "Nine Yin Divine Claw," also known as the "Bone-Shattering Divine Claw," which was a modified technique by Huang Shang, incorporating his own martial arts insights.

In the original story, Yang Guo's descendant, the Yellow Shirt Girl, used the "Bone-Shattering Divine Claw" and easily defeated Zhou Zhiruo, as if bullying a child.

Does this mean the "Nine Yin Divine Claw" is more powerful?

Not necessarily.

If the gap between the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw" and the "Nine Yin Divine Claw" was truly that large, why would Huang Shang bother to leave the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw" in the scripture?

Zhou Zhiruo's swift defeat was because she had chosen the accelerated version, naturally lacking a solid foundation.

Furthermore, The Yellow Shirt Girl had been practicing the highest-level martial arts manuals in the ancient tomb since childhood, and she also had the official cheat – the Cold Jade Bed.

This record was quite normal.

Upon careful study of these two techniques, Wang Ming felt that:

In terms of killing efficiency, the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw" was still more powerful. Its moves were extremely sinister and poisonous. In Huang Shang's own words from the scripture: "Killing like grass, without a sound."

The "Nine Yin Divine Claw," on the other hand, had traces and charm of Daoism in every move. It was a retraction and release, an opening and closing, in line with the principles of martial arts.

Simply put, while the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw" dealt high damage, it would also harm the practitioner's body.

The original text recorded: "White Bone Claw Training Mantra: White bones hang above, transforming into two bones. Suspended in the nine apertures, grasped by the left and right hands. Combined into an Yin pearl, absorbing Yin and essence spirits..."

A moment's thought would reveal that practicing in this manner would naturally lead to the fingers being contaminated with corpse poison. While the damage increased, ordinary people would surely die from ingesting large amounts of poison. Although there were internal energy users in this world who could suppress poison, with increased intake, it would eventually spiral out of control.

By the end of the practice, instead of dominating the martial world, one might meet their end prematurely.

Mei Chaofeng did not understand Daoist terminology and did not have the internal energy from the upper volume of the Nine Yin Manual. She could only choose to train externally, from the outside in.

Zhou Zhiruo had weak internal energy and was too eager for quick success.

It was also a last resort.

So, what would Wang Ming choose?

Adults would choose both, of course! Only children make choices.

His internal energy was already quite high, so why bother with the accelerated practice method of the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw"?

Directly learning the "Nine Yin Divine Claw" was actually faster than the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw."

This was the benefit of having sufficient internal energy.

After learning the "Nine Yin Divine Claw," it wasn't as if he couldn't use the vicious moves of the "Nine Yin White Bone Claw."

It was just that his fingernails wouldn't carry poison, which would slightly reduce the killing power.

But none of that mattered; good health was more important than anything else.

Besides, Wang Ming was reluctant to find corpses in graveyards to practice.

Getting ahead of himself, the most important thing at the moment was to learn this martial art.

"Nine Yin White Bone Claw" is a martial art that can be learned quickly, so its process is quite complex, involving grave dirt, coffin planks, bat blood, and arsenic.

The process for "Nine Yin Divine Claw" is much simpler. You just need to open up a few fixed meridians and acupoints, and you're done. However, the prerequisite is that you must possess post-celestial level internal energy.

In half a month, Wang Ming opened up these meridians.

"Nine Yin Divine Claw" allows the user's claws to pierce a skull without shattering it. The palm has a powerful suction that can retrieve objects or absorb others' internal energy from a distance. The claws have a potent penetrating force that can injure others from afar. With each retraction and extension, opening and closing, it adheres to the principles of martial arts.

As for absorbing others' internal energy!

It doesn't increase the user's cultivation like the "North Darkness Divine Skill." Instead, it boosts the user's attack power.

Simply put, "North Darkness Divine Skill" permanently stores absorbed internal energy in the dantian, thereby increasing cultivation.

"Nine Yin Divine Claw" temporarily gathers absorbed internal energy in the palms, making one's attacks stronger.

This is a very cheesy attribute. For those who practice protective divine skills, it directly converts their protective true qi into your own.

It's also quite cheesy in combat. The longer the fight, the more powerful the attacks become, making it the perfect martial art for prolonged battles.

Originally, I wanted to continue practicing "Heart-Shattering Palm."

But after careful study, I found this martial art to be utterly useless, like farting after death.

Although this palm is named "Heart-Shattering," those struck have their internal organs liquefied, yet their bones remain unbroken.

Besides causing a gruesome death, it offers no practical benefits and consumes a lot of internal energy.

Wang Ming doesn't need any palm techniques. With internal energy comparable to "Heart-Shattering Palm," he can directly cave in a person's chest.

After practicing it, aside from not breaking bones, it's only good for showing off, intimidating others, and the moves themselves have some utility.

So, Wang Ming gave up on it. Moreover, it's a wicked martial art that has a certain detrimental effect on bodily functions.

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