Sun Ningxiang

[Mountain Collapse Fist Initiation (195/200)]

Before Yang Jing's eyes appeared a line of data visible only to him.

"Mountain Collapse Fist Initiation is almost at its limit."

A flicker of excitement rose in Yang Jing's heart.

After all this time of unrelenting effort, he was finally close to maxing out the cultivation progress of Mountain Collapse Fist Initiation.

According to the System Panel's description, as long as he trained a martial art to its limit, he could break through naturally, without encountering the difficult and dangerous bottlenecks that others faced.

At that thought, intense anticipation rose within Yang Jing once more.

Without resting, Yang Jing wiped away his sweat and began practicing his fists again.

Though he had the aptitude for martial arts, that aptitude was indeed quite poor.

Even though he was already one of the most diligent disciples in the entire martial arts school, the speed of his progress still ranked in the lower-middle range.

Some disciples who had entered the martial arts school around the same time as him had already undergone a Breakthrough attempt.

But although Yang Jing was much slower, he was not anxious.

A temporary lead meant nothing. What mattered most was breaking through the bottleneck and succeeding in the Breakthrough attempt.

And that was precisely what Yang Jing looked forward to most now.

If the System Panel's effects were proven true, then although his path in martial arts might be slower, he would surely be able to walk step by step to the highest place he could see.

Half an hour later.

Several figures slowly emerged from the inner courtyard, instantly drawing the attention of many disciples in the yard.

Yang Jing happened to be taking a brief rest. Standing beside Liu Maolin, he too looked toward the handsome men and beautiful women emerging from the inner courtyard.

It had to be said—they were indeed a pleasing sight.

At the front was Third Senior Brother Zhao Wenzheng. Dressed in a moon-white martial outfit with a silver sash at his waist, he walked with steady steps, his brows carrying a gravity beyond his years.

At his side was Second Senior Sister Qi Yun, dressed in an elegant black robe, her long hair pinned up with a silver hairpin.

On the other side was Sun Ningxiang, the daughter of Sun Yong, the school master. She wore a goose-yellow dress, its hem swaying gently with each step. A bright smile hung on her face as she turned her head to speak with the young man beside her.

The young man looked fifteen or sixteen. His face was as fair as carved jade, his gaze proud and aloof. His dark martial outfit accentuated his tall, straight figure. He was Lin Yue, the genius disciple who had joined the Sun Clan Martial Arts School two months ago.

A month ago, Lin Yue had needed only one month to train Mountain Collapse Fist to Minor Achievement and step into the Bright Strength realm.

It was said that over the past month, Lin Yue's cultivation of Mountain Collapse Fist had advanced by leaps and bounds. He was not far from the limit of Minor Achievement, and in some time, he might make another Breakthrough attempt.

Lin Yue's astonishing rate of advancement had earned him Sun Yong's special regard. All his fees had long since been waived, and Sun Yong had even personally provided him with plenty of high-grade meat and precious medicines to assist his cultivation.

The four chatted and laughed in gentle tones, yet they carried an invisible aura that kept everyone else at a distance, as though they formed a small circle that belonged solely to them.

Whenever Lin Yue lifted his eyes and swept his gaze over the sweat-soaked disciples, there was a faint disdain that was difficult to detect.

Many disciples' eyes rested on Sun Ningxiang.

Although Qi Yun was beautiful as well, she never gave ordinary disciples a pleasant look. Back when Yang Jing had followed Lu Yang and the others around, waiting on Qi Yun hand and foot, she had not spared him so much as an extra glance. The slightest disrespect would earn a scolding, her words dripping with harshness.

Sun Ningxiang, however, had a completely different temperament.

Her eyes curved when she smiled, as though starlight had fallen into them. She somewhat resembled the actress Mao Xiaotong whom Yang Jing had seen on television in his previous life.

She never put on the airs of the school master's daughter, treating everyone with courtesy.

Whenever someone's fist technique hit a snag, she would patiently offer a few pointers.

If a disciple from a poor family suffered misfortune at home, she would even secretly report it to the school master and seek some relief for them.

Over time, she became the white moonlight in the hearts of the martial arts school's disciples.

As Yang Jing watched Sun Ningxiang's figure, he recalled how he had sprained his ankle while practicing some time ago. Senior Sister Sun had brought him medicine for his injury and specifically reminded him of several ways to recuperate.

He withdrew his gaze, only to inadvertently glimpse Lu Yang and the other two, who had wanted to crowd around them but were ignored by Senior Sister Qi. The three awkwardly rubbed their hands together, then jokingly made their way to the corner by the wall.

If he had still been the original owner of this body, he might have been just like them at that moment.

But now, he was Yang Jing.

The reason Lu Yang and the other two fawned over Qi Yun so desperately was nothing more than their desire to cling to her thigh. One important reason was that it was very difficult for them to break through into the Bright Strength realm on their own.

But Yang Jing was different. He had the System Panel.

To him, no cultivation technique or martial art had a bottleneck.

He only needed to follow the proper steps and cultivate it to its limit, and he would be able to break through naturally, without the slightest danger.

No matter when it was or whom one faced, personal strength was the foundation of everything.

Lin Yue was a classic example.

He came from an ordinary background, about the same as Zhang Kehan's, and far worse than Lu Yang's or Zhou Lin's.

Yet the school master had judged his martial aptitude to be superior, marking him as someone with limitless prospects. The moment he entered the martial arts school, Qi Yun had sought to draw him in.

As for Lu Yang and the others, even if they knelt and licked Qi Yun's boots with all their heart and soul, in Qi Yun's eyes they were merely beasts of burden to be summoned at will and dismissed with a wave.

Perhaps Lu Yang, Zhou Lin, and Zhang Kehan did not fail to understand this. They simply could not do anything about it. They likely could pour out the blood, sweat, effort, and toil of their entire lives and still never truly enter strength.

Even Yang Jing, without the System Panel, would have found it difficult in this lifetime to cultivate Inner Force and step into the Bright Strength realm.

Yang Jing shook his head, gathered his thoughts, and stopped scattering his energy on other matters. He refocused on martial arts training.

Practicing martial arts was like rowing a boat against the current—if one did not advance, one fell behind.

To travel far along the path of martial arts, one had to make training an indispensable daily habit, just like eating and drinking—and devote far more energy to it than to either.

What he needed most now was to cultivate Inner Force as quickly as possible and become an Inner Force expert.

Yang Jing understood clearly that although the Yang Family seemed to have escaped danger following Feng Lei's death, the crisis had not truly been resolved. It had always remained.

Feng Lei had merely been a thug. The Ning Family behind him was the true enemy.

For some reason, the Ning Family had not continued pressuring the Yang Family for now. But as far as Yang Jing knew, Ning Xuezhi, the Ning Family patriarch, was famously stingy and miserly.

Once Ning Xuezhi freed up his hands, he would sooner or later move against the Yang Family again.

Yang Jing had been able to ambush and kill Feng Lei, but Ning Xuezhi was within the Ning Family Mansion. Killing him would be far more difficult.

In Yang Jing's view, the best—and perhaps only—way to break the deadlock was for him to break through and become a Bright Strength expert who had cultivated Inner Force.

At that level, Ning Xuezhi would absolutely not dare provoke him lightly.

"Break through to Bright Strength!"

Yang Jing clenched his fists.

Yang Jing had nearly filled the progress bar for Mountain Collapse Fist Initiation.

"It will be within these next few days."

Yang Jing narrowed his eyes, intense excitement flashing through them.

He had awaited this day for a long time.