Anomaly, Basic Lightness Skill

After a fulfilling day of training, Zhou You looked up to see the sky filled with stars.

He returned to his room from the training grounds, boiled some water for a bath to wash away the grime and relieve his fatigue.

Drinking hot tea, he felt the subtle tearing pain throughout his body, a testament to the significant effects of his training.

Practicing the Wild Goose Formation Fist from the Internal Force level gave him a sense of exhilaration, like a powerful surge from a high vantage point.

As everyone knows, the process of practicing martial arts involves not only improving skill proficiency but also strengthening and enhancing the physical body.

Through practicing the Tiger Subduing Fist to achieve Internal Force, Zhou You's three physical attributes had all increased to 22 points, meaning he had passed the physical body stage.

The remaining task was to familiarize himself with the techniques of the Wild Goose Formation Fist and increase its proficiency.

"Pecking Ground Vertical Step Lv3, Wild Goose Formation Fist Lv2."

In just a single day, he had made initial progress, practicing the Wild Goose Formation Fist with great fluidity.

However, this progress wasn't enough. Zhou You felt a sense of urgency, needing to elevate the Wild Goose Formation Fist to the Internal Force level in a short period.

He needed to deal with Tu Laosan in secret, and for that, he had to use Lu Zhigang as a cover.

"Consume experience points to increase Wild Goose Formation Fist proficiency."

Zhou You soaked in the large wooden tub, warm steam swirling around him.

He raised his hand, pinched his tiger's mouth, and slowly massaged it, feeling the thickness and direction of his muscle fibers. Then, he continued upwards, massaging his arm and shoulder.

Martial arts emphasize the combination of movement and stillness, hardness and softness, often compared to the tension and release of a bow and arrow.

The practice during the day was active and hard, while the evening massage and manipulation of muscles and bones were the corresponding passive and soft techniques.

Many common practitioners and unorthodox styles, by solely focusing on practicing, failed to understand the importance of recovery. They trained their fist muscles to be as hard as stone, capable of breaking tree trunks or punching through stone slabs with bare hands. However, the fine details of their bodies would degenerate, leading to a shortened lifespan.

The training system of the martial arts schools was comprehensive, using massage and manipulation techniques to relax muscles and bones, promote blood circulation, and heal minor injuries.

Ideally, this kind of massage and manipulation work was best done with the help of sparring partners.

After all, the human body has limited joint mobility, and there are blind spots that are difficult to reach.

With the mutual assistance of sparring partners, the effect would be doubled. If any hidden injuries were discovered, they could be promptly addressed.

The establishment of sparring partners by the martial arts school was indeed sensible, but its effectiveness ultimately depended on the people involved.

Sparring partners were expected to be closer than blood brothers, a requirement that many could not meet.

Zhou You and Li Hao were such a pair. Each harbored secrets they didn't want the other to know, and they trained separately.

In the evening, Li Hao also returned to his own room, showing no intention of coming over.

"The Thousand Army Shattering Fist, is it truly that powerful, making him guard it so closely?"

Zhou You shook his head at the thought and continued to massage the sore spots on his body.

At the Internal Force level, the effect of Tiger Bone Paste was minimal but better than nothing. He applied it with his fingertips to the sore areas, slowly absorbing its medicinal properties.

According to the system's feedback, his resistance to the medicine was growing stronger. Ten applications of Tiger Bone Paste could barely increase his attributes by one point.

This progress was too slow.

The next day, Zhou You followed his routine, practicing the Tiger Subduing Fist, followed by the Imperial Strike Hand and the Square Step.

"Imperial Strike Hand Lv9 → Lv10, Experience Points +90."

"Skill perfected. Further practice will no longer grant experience points."

"Square Step Lv9 → Lv10, Experience Points +90."

"Skill perfected. Further practice will no longer grant experience points."

With an additional 180 experience points, two basic skills reached their maximum level, signifying the end of related training.

Zhou You sighed lightly. From now on, he would rely on the Tiger Subduing Fist and the Wild Goose Formation Fist. Suddenly, he heard that there was a follow-up.

"Square Step skill perfected, triggering skill mutation, transforming into Basic Lightness Skill Lv1/Lv?."

This question mark was quite peculiar. Did Basic Lightness Skill not have a level classification?

Or was the Basic Lightness Skill, mutated from the Square Step, an evolving skill without level restrictions?

Zhou You found it strange, guessing that the triggered mutation was likely due to also practicing a second footwork technique, the Pecking Ground Vertical Step.

The Pecking Ground Vertical Step was the foundation of the Wild Goose Formation Fist, and geese were birds, which had a strong connection to lightness skills.

"That's right. If I perfect the Pecking Ground Vertical Step, perhaps the Basic Lightness Skill will undergo further changes."

Zhou You glanced at his experience points, which were already over 900. He decisively ordered the system panel to enhance his skills.

"Pecking Ground Vertical Step Lv3 → Lv4, Experience Points -30."

"Pecking Ground Vertical Step Lv4 → Lv5, Experience Points -40."

"Pecking Ground Vertical Step Lv9 → Lv10, Experience Points -90."

"Pecking Ground Vertical Step perfected, triggering skill mutation, Basic Lightness Skill Lv2/Lv?."

"Name: Zhou You.

Strength: 22."

Speed: 22.

Defense: 22.

Experience: 402.

Profession: Martial Arts Apprentice.

Level: Novice Internal Force.

Skills: Imperial Strike Hand Lv10 (Mastered), Tiger Subduing Fist Lv10, Basic Lightness Skill Lv2/Lv?, Wild Goose Formation Fist Lv1.

Trial Mission 1 (2-Star): Break through the Blood Qi Gate and become an inner disciple of Jianxiong Martial Arts School.

Trial Mission 2 (1-Star): Kill Tu Laosan and eliminate future trouble.

Trial Mission 3 (4-Star): Perfect the Basic Lightness Skill.

The system panel displayed that the two footwork skills, Square Step and Pecking Ground Vertical Step, had transformed into Basic Lightness Skill after reaching mastery.

A new trial mission also appeared: perfect this Basic Lightness Skill. It seemed like a long-term task.

Zhou You guessed that the key to perfecting this skill was to collect more footwork techniques and incorporate the strengths of various schools.

However, the martial arts techniques of different schools were never publicly shared and were guarded closely. Even basic footwork was difficult to obtain.

To acquire the footwork techniques of various schools, ultimately, it would require money, effort, and opportunity.

Secret medicines cost money, and buying skills also cost money. The financial deficit was substantial!

"Two mastered Lv10 footwork skills only yielded a Lv2 Basic Lightness Skill. It shouldn't be a losing deal."

Although the prefix "Basic" sounded a bit low-tier, according to the panel's evaluation, this lightness skill was definitely extraordinary.

Zhou You tried taking a step and suddenly felt his body lighten. His feet felt incredibly smooth, as if greased.

Whoosh, his vision went black, and he vanished from his original spot. When he came to his senses, he was about to crash into the wall.

A distance that originally required four or five steps was now covered in a single stride.

During this process, factors affecting speed, such as wind resistance and ground friction, were significantly weakened.

Zhou You even sensed that as he circulated the Basic Lightness Skill, his body's weight had genuinely changed.

The footprints he left on the ground were much shallower than usual, further confirming his thoughts.

"Amazing!"

Zhou You's heart pounded. This Basic Lightness Skill was an incredible weapon.

Lightening the body and increasing speed – these two auxiliary functions had great practical value, whether in sparring or in handling tasks.

Imagine if he could use the speed of his lightness skill to attack enemies at will, while the enemies couldn't even touch him. Wouldn't that put him in an invincible position?

Who would have thought that cultivating foundational footwork to mastery would result in such a change?

It was highly likely a benefit brought about by the system panel.

The panel in front of Zhou You changed again. A number flickered a few times before finally stabilizing.

"Speed: 30."

This meant that after Zhou You mastered Lv2 of the Basic Lightness Skill, his Speed attribute had increased by a full 8 points.

Skills and techniques, and physical attributes, were indeed symbiotic, co-dependent relationships.