Hidden Strength

Guang'an Ward.

In the courtyard of the Righteousness Gang headquarters, weapons were scattered on the bluestone ground, and several burly men were practicing punches with their chests bare, their shouts making the window paper tremble.

When the triangular-eyed man who had been tailing them lifted the curtain and entered the room, he saw Gang Leader Zhao Meng and Deputy Gang Leader Qian Bao sitting in the main hall, with wine and meat laid out before them.

Zhao Meng was powerfully built, with a ferocious scar on his left arm, and was a master at the peak of Bright Strength. Qian Bao, on the other hand, was as lean as a monkey, with sinister eyes. He too had been stuck at the peak of Bright Strength for many years, and his Iron Shirt skill was quite solid.

"Gang Leader, Deputy Gang Leader!" the triangular-eyed man bowed and saluted, then recounted what he had seen Yang Jing doing at the tea stall. "That kid stood at the street corner of Guang'an Ward for a long time, his expression was off, as if he was sizing up our people."

"Yang Jing?" Zhao Meng put down his wine bowl, his scarred face darkening. "The Bright Strength martial artist who had a conflict with the Great Fortune Gang back then?"

Qian Bao sneered, "It seems our guess was right. He most likely killed Xu Tai. Otherwise, why would he take a detour through Guang'an Ward to go to the Sun Clan Martial Arts School? He must be guilty and trying to scout our movements."

A few days prior, the gang had investigated Yang Jing. They knew he not only had enmity with the Great Fortune Gang but was also a Bright Strength expert, fully capable of killing the severely injured Xu Tai.

When the person sent to Tongyi Ward to scout last night returned without finding anything substantial, hearing that Yang Jing had appeared in Guang'an Ward made them even more suspicious.

Zhao Meng slammed his palm on the table, making the wine bowls jump. "Search! Send people to quietly infiltrate his small courtyard and search thoroughly! Make sure to find that batch of property from the Great Fortune Gang!"

As far as Zhao Meng knew, Xu Tai had once come into a large sum of money, so the Great Fortune Gang's accumulation was not small, at least several hundred taels of silver.

"If we can't find it," Qian Bao licked his lips, a ruthless glint in his eyes, "then don't blame us for being impolite. He's just a young brat, even if he's Bright Strength, can he really turn the world upside down?"

Zhao Meng grinned, revealing yellow teeth. "Which one of us isn't at the peak of Bright Strength? Even if he has some tricks up his sleeve, I could capture him in a one-on-one fight. If we team up, he won't even have room to struggle!"

The two exchanged a glance, seeing certainty in each other's eyes.

In their opinion, a young Bright Strength martial artist was no match for the two of them, veteran masters at the peak of Bright Strength.

"Go, call two quick-handed men to scout Tongyi Ward this afternoon," Zhao Meng waved his hand. "If you don't find the goods, prepare to make a move!"

The triangular-eyed man took his orders and left. The wine and meat in the room still exuded their aroma. Zhao Meng and Qian Bao clinked their wine bowls together, as if they had already completely grasped Yang Jing and were certain of victory.

When Yang Jing arrived at the martial arts school, a few early disciples were warming up and stretching in the front courtyard.

Knowing that Sun Yong was usually still resting in the inner courtyard at this hour, he didn't disturb him. He walked to the stone lock and began warming up, tempering his Qi and Blood.

After warming up, he went to the wooden posts and started practicing the Mountain Collapse Fist.

However, practicing this fist technique now, his state of mind was entirely different.

Hidden Strength flowed through his meridians. Each punch he threw carried a contained, heavy force. When his fist wind swept past, there were no obvious marks on the surface of the wooden post, but a subtle vibration could be felt within.

He became more and more engrossed as he practiced, integrating his post-breakthrough insights into his boxing routine. The familiar moves gradually began to show new variations.

When the sun rose to a height of two zhang, there was movement from the inner courtyard.

Sun Yong walked out, followed by Xu Hong, Lin Yue, and others, all dressed in martial attire, clearly preparing to go out.

Yang Jing stopped punching and was about to step forward to speak.

He saw Sun Yong lead the group out of the martial arts school quickly, presumably to spar with other martial arts schools.

Yang Jing watched their departing backs and swallowed the words that had reached his lips.

He smiled, turned, and continued practicing his punches. They would return eventually, so there was no need to rush.

In the afternoon, in the front courtyard of the martial arts school.

Yang Jing's Mountain Collapse Fist had reached a state of fluid perfection.

His Hidden Strength was contained. The fist wind appeared gentle, but when it landed on the wooden post, it caused the inner wood fibers to break silently. This was the marvelous application of the "penetrating" aspect of Hidden Strength.

Although Yang Jing did not have the subsequent training methods for the Mountain Collapse Fist, he often sparred with Liu Maolin and had some understanding of Hidden Strength.

Just then, footsteps were heard from outside the main gate. Yang Jing's peripheral vision caught sight of them – it was Master Sun Yong returning with the disciples who had gone out to spar.

Sun Yong's expression was calm, with a slight upturn of his lips, indicating he was in good spirits. Behind him followed Xu Hong, Qi Yun, Lin Yue, and others. The group walked directly into the inner courtyard, clearly intending to have a short meeting to summarize the results.

Yang Jing stopped punching and did not immediately follow.

There were too many people in the inner courtyard at the moment, and he didn't want to join the crowd. He stayed in place, adjusting his breathing, and waiting for his opportunity.

Not long after, Xu Hong, Qi Yun, Zhao Wenzheng, and Lin Yue came out of the inner courtyard.

The disciples in the front courtyard immediately surrounded them, bombarding them with questions about the competition.

"Senior Brother, how was the sparring today?"

"Did Senior Brother Lin win again?"

Qi Yun's face held a smile as she announced loudly, "Our martial arts school achieved a great victory today! Especially Junior Brother Lin Yue, who defeated three Hidden Strength experts consecutively, completely subduing the people from Weiyuan Martial Arts School and Iron Fist Hall!"

"Hiss! Three Hidden Strength experts consecutively? Good heavens, that's Hidden Strength! Senior Brother Lin is amazing!"

"As expected of our martial arts school's number one genius!"

Exclamations of admiration rose one after another. Lin Yue stood among the crowd, with a hint of reserved pride on his face. His gaze swept across the onlookers, carrying a touch of self-satisfaction.

Yang Jing paid no attention to this. Seeing that most of the people from the inner courtyard had come out, he brushed the dust off his clothes and walked towards the moon gate of the inner courtyard.

As he neared the inner courtyard, a disciple finally noticed him.

"What is Senior Brother Yang going to the inner courtyard for?"

"Did Master call for him?"

The murmurs were filled with surprise. Even Xu Hong paused for a moment.

Lin Yue and Qi Yun frowned slightly.

Normally, registered disciples were not qualified to enter the inner court. Although Ming Jin disciples had the qualification to enter, they rarely did so, and would not enter unless summoned by their Master.

Only Hidden Strength core disciples who were favored by their Master would frequently enter the inner court.

However, Zhao Wenzheng, Lin Yue, and the others did not think about Yang Jing breaking through to Hidden Strength. They only thought that Yang Jing had something to discuss with their Master.

Yang Jing ignored the gazes around him, his steps steady as he passed through the moon gate, his figure disappearing into the shade of the trees within the courtyard. The clamor of the front courtyard seemed to be cut off by an invisible barrier.

The inner court was serene, with several old osmanthus trees blocking out the sun, casting dappled light and shadow.

Not long after Yang Jing walked a few steps, he saw Sun Ningxiang walking from the corridor with a bowl of medicine in her hands. Her plain dress swayed gently in the tree shadows.

"Junior Brother Yang?" Sun Ningxiang stopped, looking somewhat surprised. "How did you get in? Is something wrong?"

"Senior Sister, I wish to request an audience with Master. I have something important to report," Yang Jing said, cupping his hands.

Sun Ningxiang pondered for a moment, then nodded. "Wait here, I'll go ask."

With that, she turned and entered the main house.

A moment later, she lifted the curtain and said to Yang Jing, "Junior Brother Yang, Father wants you to come in."

Yang Jing thanked her and stepped into the room.

Sun Yong was sitting in a grand chair, rubbing a string of rosewood prayer beads. Seeing him enter, he raised his eyelids. "What do you need me for?"

Yang Jing bowed respectfully, his voice steady but clear. "Master, this disciple attempted a breakthrough last night and fortunately broke through to Hidden Strength."

"Hmm? What did you say?" Sun Yong's hands stopped moving abruptly, and the prayer beads clattered together.

He looked up at Yang Jing, his eyes filled with confusion and astonishment. He wondered if he had misheard. "Say that again?"

"This disciple was fortunate enough to break through to Hidden Strength last night," Yang Jing repeated, his voice neither servile nor overbearing.

Sun Yong heard him clearly this time and stood up with a "whoosh," the chair legs scraping noisily against the floor.

He strode up to Yang Jing, his gaze sharp as he scrutinized him from head to toe. Then, he pointed to a sandbag in the corner of the room and said in a deep voice, "Hit it with a Mountain Collapse Fist, use Hidden Strength."

Yang Jing complied, stood firm, concentrated his energy, and slowly unleashed the move "Stone Splitting."

The fist wind was not fierce at first, but as the fist reached its midpoint, a restrained force quietly emanated from his body, carrying a muffled sound of air being broken as it landed on the nearby sandbag.

There was no earth-shattering impact, and the surface of the sandbag barely trembled. However, the cotton wadding inside suddenly collapsed inward with a "poof," leaving a fist indentation about an inch deep.

This was the sign of Hidden Strength penetrating the body and directly striking the interior, far beyond the brute force of Bright Strength.

"It's really Hidden Strength!" Sun Yong's pupils contracted, and he gasped, staring directly at Yang Jing. For the first time, he examined him so closely.

His heart churned like a stormy sea.

He knew Yang Jing's talent/aptitude. He was merely of low-grade, even mediocre among low-grade talents.

Sun Yong's impression of Yang Jing was that he was steady and willing to work hard. Breaking through to Bright Strength was already difficult enough, but he had never imagined he could break through to Hidden Strength.

The bottleneck after reaching the peak of Bright Strength could no longer be overcome simply by diligent practice.

With poor talent/aptitude, crossing that bottleneck was as difficult as ascending to heaven. Forcing a breakthrough would only injure oneself repeatedly. After many attempts, one's vital energy would be greatly depleted, fundamentally damaging oneself, and even costing one's life.

How many mid-grade disciples had there been in the martial arts school? As far as Sun Yong knew, most of them were stuck at the peak of Bright Strength for years, even decades, and could barely glimpse the threshold of Hidden Strength. Yet this Yang Jing... had quietly succeeded?

"You... how many times did you attempt the breakthrough?" Sun Yong took a deep breath and looked at Yang Jing. He had seen too many disciples stuck at the bottleneck and knew how difficult breakthroughs were.

"Reporting to Master, it was my first attempt."

"Your first time?!" Sun Yong's face twitched, his heart filled with shock and complexity.

In the entire martial arts school, only Lin Yue had succeeded on his first breakthrough attempt. As for the other Hidden Strength disciples, hadn't they all struggled, even needing two or three attempts to touch the threshold of Hidden Strength? This Yang Jing, with his low-grade talent/aptitude, had succeeded in one go?

After the shock, an irrepressible joy surged in his heart.

He slapped Yang Jing's shoulder forcefully, the strength of which made Yang Jing sway slightly. "Good! Good lad! I misjudged you!"

Adding a Hidden Strength disciple to the sect was already a joyous occasion. Moreover, Sun Yong now suspected that although Yang Jing's talent/aptitude was poor, he might have other compensating factors, such as comprehension.

While talent/aptitude was the most important, other factors could also influence martial arts talent, such as comprehension.

Those with high comprehension, even with poor talent/aptitude, still possessed a certain potential.

Sun Yong now guessed that Yang Jing might have poor talent/aptitude, but his comprehension and other factors might be quite good.

Before, when Yang Jing broke through to Bright Strength, he thought it was good luck, a fluke.

Now that Yang Jing had broken through to Hidden Strength again, Sun Yong could no longer attribute it to luck.

It wasn't that such incredibly lucky people didn't exist, but it was impossible for it to happen twice in a row to the same person.

"This kid seems ordinary, but he actually hides potential."

The wrinkles on Sun Yong's face smoothed out, and the admiration in his eyes was undisguised. This was not luck at all; it was clearly a piece of unpolished jade that he had almost buried!

Although his potential couldn't compare to Lin Yue's yet, having a Hidden Strength disciple with some potential in the martial arts school made Sun Yong feel exceptionally pleased.

He paced back and forth a few times and chuckled, "Since you have already broken through to Hidden Strength, I will now teach you the follow-up techniques of the Mountain Collapse Fist!"

Sun Yong walked to the bookshelf and took down a bound ancient book from the top shelf. The cover was inscribed with the three ancient characters "Mountain Collapse Fist."

He placed the fist manual on the table, his fingertips gently tracing the yellowed pages. His tone was no longer as calm as before, carrying a hint of solemnity. "Bright Strength emphasizes 'hardness,' while Hidden Strength emphasizes 'concealment' and 'penetration.' The subsequent training methods of the Mountain Collapse Fist emphasize storing internal energy in the bones and emitting it from the tips. It appears as if a single punch is thrown, but in reality, the force divides into three paths: one strikes the surface, one penetrates the interior, and the third path..."

He suddenly raised his hand and struck the paperweight on the corner of the table with a phantom fist.

No strong wind was visible, yet the green stone paperweight cracked internally with a fine line.

"This is 'Entwine,' allowing internal energy to twist within the enemy's body, with continuous follow-up force."

Yang Jing held his breath and concentrated, his gaze fixed on the diagrams and annotations in the fist manual, afraid of missing a single word.

Sun Yong explained in great detail, from the methods of circulating qi to the subtle changes in the stances, even demonstrating several times how the spine should twist like a great dragon when exerting force.

"Observe this move, 'Severing River.' In Bright Strength, it's a horizontal punch sweeping out like a giant axe cleaving water. When it becomes Hidden Strength, your wrist needs to hook inward by half an inch, letting the energy flow along your forearm. Upon contact, abruptly flip your wrist, the force like a venomous snake striking from its hole..."

As Sun Yong spoke, he guided Yang Jing's arm, correcting his angle of force. The strength in his fingertips was just right, allowing Yang Jing to feel the flow of energy without causing him pain.

This kind of close guidance was something Yang Jing had never experienced before.

In the past, Sun Yong's instructions were usually given from the side with a few key points, rarely involving this kind of hands-on teaching.

At this moment, Sun Yong's tone carried gentle encouragement: "Although your aptitude is low-grade, your comprehension is excellent, you train diligently, and your foundation is deep and solid. Especially your control of internal energy, it's much steadier than that of ordinary disciples who have just entered Hidden Strength. That punch just now, the 'Pierce' technique already has a three-tenths mastery. Given time, you will surely achieve great success."

He gently patted Yang Jing's shoulder and said with a smile, "Disciple, if you have any questions in the future, feel free to come to the inner courtyard to find me. Don't be bound by rules."

"Thank you, Master!"

Yang Jing felt a warmth spread through him, clearly sensing the change in Sun Yong's attitude. It was the genuine care and expectation of a mentor for a junior.

He became even more focused, engraving every word Sun Yong spoke into his heart. The characters in the fist manual seemed to come alive, gradually resonating with the Hidden Strength circulating within him.