True Technique

Meng Chuan's cracked lips twitched. He turned to look at Luo Guanyun.

"Why didn't you discover it sooner?"

Luo Guanyun was silent for a moment before answering.

"Take the Level Four Demon Nest outside the city. If the Demon Nest's master could make it into Yong'an City, it could probably wipe out all but one in ten thousand people here with a single breath."

"But it's precisely because there are people taller than us standing in the way that most of us can catch our breath."

"What happened in Tong Family Alley was just a rare occurrence. Focus on your training. Only after becoming a martial artist will you be able to protect yourself and those around you."

"Your uncle has high hopes for you. He wouldn't want you to sink into despair over this."

After hearing Luo Guanyun's words, Meng Chuan felt a little better. It wasn't that the great powers didn't care about the people below them; they had more important missions.

"Master, if someone breaks through the Eighth Great Limit, can they drive out the Heavenly Demons completely?"

After becoming a martial artist, a person had eight restrictions in all, corresponding to the body's Eight Great Gene Locks. Breaking each one caused their strength to multiply.

The strongest people in the world had already broken through the Seventh Great Limit. They possessed the incredible power to cleave open the heavens and split the earth, and were known to the world as the Great Sages!

Luo Guanyun thought for a while before answering him.

"To tell you the truth, I don't know either. Humanity isn't strong enough to do that yet. But the mysteries of the human body are endless, and human potential is limitless. Man can triumph over Heaven! I believe that one day, someone will step forward and lead us in wiping out the Heavenly Demons for good."

Light flickered in Meng Chuan's eyes. With the Martial Dao Limit-Breaking Panel, as long as he worked hard enough, he hoped to become the one at the front, holding a torch to light the way ahead.

With his new goal in mind, Meng Chuan suddenly remembered that he seemed to have broken through a limit. He focused his thoughts.

The panel surged up before his eyes like a river in flood, its waves slowly taking shape.

Limit-Breaking Trait Acquired: One Proof Eternal Proof (Super)

"Once gained, never lost. Whatever you practice, you will surely master."

Effect One: Trace-less Years. The body's aging slowed dramatically, and its recovery speed increased dramatically.

Effect Two: Any martial arts techniques you master will never be forgotten or deteriorate.

Effect Three: One Step at a Time. As long as you train, you will make progress.

Effect Four: Origin of Xingyi. Your comprehension improves to a certain degree when learning Xingyi martial arts.

[Martial Dao Limit-Breaking Panel]

[Martial Arts]

[National Compulsory Basic Fist Technique: Limit-Breaking (One Proof Eternal Proof) (Super)]

[Stake Technique]

[Taiyi Three Talents Stance: Human Stance (2%) Pending Limit-Breaking]

[Limit-Breaking Trait: Morning and Evening Hearing the Dao (Beginner)]

As he gazed at the super trait he had yearned for day and night—One Proof Eternal Proof—

Meng Chuan couldn't put his feelings into words. Twelve years of wind and snow had battered him, but now the clouds had parted and the sun had emerged.

Only when he saw One Proof Eternal Proof on the panel did he realize how utterly he had changed.

A mysterious power welled up inside him, pouring in through the crown of his head and coursing through his entire body with his blood.

At last, all that energy flowed together like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, converging in his heart and leaving him invigorated.

Each of the trait's four effects began to take hold in his body.

At that moment, every detail of Guoyi Fist rose in his mind, clear as if it had happened yesterday.

Twelve years of insight finally became a crimson shooting star, forever etched into his body.

Meng Chuan understood clearly: this was One Proof Eternal Proof. Once gained, it would never be lost.

At the same time, he thought of Pao Fist, which he had yet to master. More insights flooded his mind, and he couldn't wait to get up and practice it.

Seeing that his emotions had settled, Luo Guanyun reminded him:

"You strained the muscles in your right hand by exerting too much force. On top of that, the Heavenly Demon possessed you earlier and injured your Jing-Qi-Shen. Rest and recuperate for now. Once your body has recovered, you can practice your fist again. Young people recover quickly; you won't be left with any lasting damage."

"I'll treat the strain in your muscles first. Hold out your arm."

With that, Luo Guanyun put out his cigarette and grasped Meng Chuan's raised right arm with one hand. A tingling current surged from Meng Chuan's palm up to his upper arm, and he felt wonderfully comfortable all over.

"All done. Give it a couple of days for the muscles to recover, and you'll be fine."

Meng Chuan looked at his arm. He could feel that it no longer hurt. He had never imagined that martial arts could have such an unusual function—that they could even heal injuries.

He also remembered how Master Luo had saved him just moments ago. With a wave of his hand, thunder had washed over the ground. Luo Guanyun had looked like a Heavenly God descending to earth, and Meng Chuan had come to admire his Thunder Method.

Once the thought struck him, he acted on it. Meng Chuan spoke up:

"Master, I want to learn the Thunder Method from you."

Hearing him, Luo Guanyun smiled and teased him:

"Kid, weren't you only going to practice Guoyi Fist? Why do you want to learn the Thunder Method now?"

Meng Chuan told him that he had already broken through to the Master level.

Luo Guanyun's heart jolted. He didn't quite believe Meng Chuan. Guoyi Fist had been refined through the painstaking efforts of countless generations. It was the best fist technique for the people of Great Chu to build a foundation, practiced by tens of billions across the country. How could a little kid break through and improve it again?

Seeing that the master didn't seem convinced, Meng Chuan declared confidently:

"Once I've recovered, I can prove it to you, Master."

Luo Guanyun suddenly thought of something and asked another question:

"Did you break through just now, when you were facing the Heavenly Demon?"

Meng Chuan said that he had. He wanted to learn Luo Guanyun's Thunder Method: with power that could destroy heaven and earth, and the ability to counter Heavenly Demons, there was no reason not to learn it.

"Come find me once you've recovered. But until then, I suggest you keep this quiet. Your family is ordinary, and there are things you won't be able to protect. You understand what I mean, right?"

Meng Chuan nodded, indicating that he understood. Overall, the world was still a bright place, but there would always be corners the sun couldn't reach. He was still too weak. A sense of urgency took hold of him. He needed to grow stronger quickly, to protect himself and his family.

"As for the Thunder Method, do you know about True Techniques?"

Meng Chuan shook his head, and Luo Guanyun continued:

"True Techniques are martial arts that only martial artists can practice. To learn one, you first need to unlock the corresponding prerequisite martial arts. You also need the support of at least nine Qi-Blood Passes to have a chance of mastering it. Once you master it and refine essence into qi, that means you've broken through the Qi-Blood Passes and become a martial artist."

"That's why True Techniques are incredibly difficult to master. But once you do, they often grant you inconceivable power."

"At the highest levels, Xingyi True Technique can change the sky and reshape the earth with a single thought. Some Xiangxing True Techniques can turn you into a fierce tiger in the forest, or even a hundred-zhang flood dragon."

"The one I practice is one of the finest among the True Techniques. According to my family's records, the Yuanshen Thunder Seed Method was passed down from the heavens. No one in all of history has ever cultivated it to perfection, let alone broken through to the Master level and improved it."

"Other True Techniques might require just three or four prerequisite techniques to be mastered. But my family's True Technique has requirements for fist techniques, movement techniques, and the body itself. It has more than twice as many prerequisites as other True Techniques."

"To be honest, your talent isn't enough. Even the prerequisite martial arts would keep you struggling your whole life. Having you practice it would only harm you."