Iron Finger Technique

Zhou Fugui truly lived up to his reputation as a prominent merchant in Anyuan County. In just one day, he managed to gather the silver, grain, clothing, and raw iron demanded by Black Wind Mountain Stronghold. Following the route Xiang Yang had indicated, the goods were transported to the foot of Black Mountain. Once the bandits confirmed the items were correct, they released his daughter. Xiang Yang, of course, was not involved in this process.

The incident caused quite a stir. After all, transporting such a large quantity of supplies out of the city was impossible to conceal. Magistrate Li of the county yamen was reportedly furious, even smashing his favorite inkstone.

However, the yamen was powerless to rescue the daughter. Since Zhou Fugui had secured his daughter's release through his own means, and given Zhou Fugui's wealth and influence, Magistrate Li found it difficult to reprimand him. He could only let the matter slide.

Sunlight streamed down, casting golden circles of light. Xiang Yang sat in his small courtyard, honing his strength. He had upgraded from a 20-jin stone lock to a 40-jin one. After several days of practicing the Iron Crotch Technique, its effects on him were becoming increasingly pronounced.

His senses were sharper, his energy levels were high, and his strength grew daily. Even his manhood had seen improvement, becoming as hard as an iron rod when aroused, its size and length astonishing. He truly felt like a man among men, a fact that often filled Xiang Yang with pride.

With a thud, he set the stone lock down and turned to scoop a ladle of water from the nearby jar, splashing it onto his face. The coolness was incredibly refreshing, easing the heat surging through his sweat-drenched body. "Comfortable," he sighed.

Just then, the Wordless Book flipped open in his mind. A page filled with text appeared, reflected in Xiang Yang's pupils. A surge of joy coursed through him. This was the reward for successfully completing the mission the Book had assigned him, triggered by Zhou Fugui's successful ransom of his daughter.

To be honest, Xiang Yang's current skills were limited. The Iron Crotch Technique only increased his strength, and his basic knife skills were too crude. While they were more than enough to handle ordinary people with no martial arts training, he was unsure of the outcome if he faced someone who had been practicing for years. The reward for this mission couldn't have come at a better time.

"Hua Shan Iron Finger Technique. An external finger-striking art, specializing in training the index and middle fingers. Upon mastery, it can cultivate internal energy from the outside in, making the two fingers as hard as refined iron, and significantly boosting the effectiveness of practicing more advanced finger techniques. Excellent."

Xiang Yang recalled the information about the Iron Finger Technique, a smile playing on his lips, his eyes filled with delight. This was a skill that could rapidly enhance his own power.

Like the Iron Crotch Technique, the Iron Finger Technique was an external martial art, but it was more profound and powerful. Upon reaching mastery, one could cultivate a faint internal energy, capable of shattering a person's skull with a single poke. More importantly, it allowed for surprise attacks.

"Unraveling Knots, Finger Lock, Wooden Man, Stone Point, and finally, Iron Finger Mastery. These are all progressive stages. The cultivation method is complete and flawless. As long as one follows the steps, regardless of innate talent, achievements can be made within two years, or at the very least, the Stone Point stage can be reached.

The technique's final note states that with the assistance of an internal energy master, mastery can be achieved in three months."

Xiang Yang extended his right index and middle fingers, examining them closely. The skin was smooth, possessing the youthful elasticity and vitality characteristic of his age. However, years of practicing with a knife had calloused his fingers, making them unsightly. According to the Iron Finger Technique, upon successful cultivation, these calluses would shed, and the skin would regain its vitality.

"Unraveling Knots involves using a thin rope to train finger dexterity. Finger Lock trains the strength of the fingers. Wooden Man signifies entering the advanced stages, where the two fingers strike vital points on a wooden dummy, turning every move into a killing blow. Stone Point is the stage where the fingers have become extremely tough and strong, used to strike stones, progressing towards the Iron Finger. This is essentially the final stage of cultivation."

The cultivation methods of the Iron Finger Technique flowed through Xiang Yang's mind like water. He gained a deeper understanding of this martial art and, at the same time, began to ponder whether he could master it in a short period to increase his combat effectiveness.

"Before the Wooden Man stage, the Iron Finger Technique has very little killing power. One can only rely on finger dexterity to entangle with the enemy. However, it's not entirely without offensive capability. The eyes are the most vulnerable part of a person. As long as I achieve proficiency in Unraveling Knots quickly and gain finger dexterity, I can gouge out an opponent's eyes with a single strike. My martial arts skill might not have increased significantly, but the danger I pose will have greatly increased.

Even if Hu Qiang possesses natural divine strength, if I blind him, he will be like a lamb awaiting slaughter, at my mercy."

Xiang Yang had been practicing his knife skills during the day and the Iron Crotch Technique at night for the past two days, not daring to slack off. His goal was to possess sufficient strength to seize opportunities when they arose, complete the system's missions, and personally kill Hu Qiang to avenge Xiang Da Niu.

The arrival of the Iron Finger Technique undoubtedly provided him with another trump card. Even if he couldn't master the Iron Finger in a short time, combining finger dexterity with his combat techniques would increase his chances of victory by thirty percent.

"For the thin rope in Unraveling Knots, hemp rope is best. First, tie numerous knots on the hemp rope, then use only the index and middle fingers to untangle them. This trains the dexterity of both fingers. During this process, the friction between the flesh and the rope will also strengthen the hardness and toughness of the skin.

This is a foundational skill, requiring no external aids, which saves me trouble."

Before the Wooden Man stage, the Iron Finger Technique did not require external assistance. Only at the Wooden Man stage would a medicinal oil be needed to rub onto the fingers for protection. Otherwise, if one simply used their fingers to forcefully poke wood, their fingers would be ruined within three days, making it impossible to master the Iron Finger Technique.

Xiang Yang found a hemp rope about as thick as his index finger and over a meter long in his father's room. Following the method described in the technique, he tied tight knots at intervals, just wide enough for a single finger to pass through. In the end, the rope was adorned with over thirty tight knots.

However, tying them was easy, but untying them was difficult. Even with the specialized training method and the small tricks for untying knots from the Iron Finger Technique, Xiang Yang's initial attempts yielded minimal results. It took him a full hour to untie a single knot, and his fingers rubbed raw, becoming red and faintly stinging.

"Prolonged finger movement does indeed train dexterity and toughness, but too much is as bad as too little. I'll rest for a bit and continue."

Sitting in the courtyard, Xiang Yang shook his right hand, his expression calm. He wasn't anxious about his slow progress in practice.

The Iron Finger Technique already stated that once the first knot was untied, one had officially entered the initial stage, and the rest would be manageable through prolonged practice of the Unraveling Knots.

"I have plenty of time. Generally, it takes at least three hours to untie the first knot, but I managed it in one hour, which is already astonishing progress. If this rate continues, ten days should be enough for me to preliminarily master the Unraveling Knots, allowing me to use various finger movements and force conversions with ease. Now, I just need to wait for news from Dachun."

Hu Qiang's descent from the mountain was not fixed, but it wouldn't be later than ten days. With this time, Xiang Yang could make more thorough preparations, increasing his chances of victory through meticulous planning and surprise.