"Poison Barrier could do more than protect you. It could also be spread over other objects."
"For example, our Tang Sect's specially made Hand Spikes. Covering them with it made them sharper and gave them poison."
"If you didn't have a weapon, you could cover your body with it instead. Like this."
As Tang Jiaren spoke, he raised his index and middle fingers and pressed them together in a sword-finger gesture. Then Poison Barrier gathered over them.
In the end, it formed a purple spike.
"This is Poison Spike. If you train well enough, a spike formed from Poison Barrier can become as sharp as a blade."
"And if your skill is refined enough, you can extend Poison Spikes from anywhere on your body."
As Tang Jiaren spoke, he lifted his foot, and a Poison Spike formed on it. He swung his arm, and another appeared at his elbow.
"Granduncle, I want to learn this move!"
Qin Qi suddenly realized that if he covered his whole body with Poison Barrier and then formed Poison Spikes, wouldn't that be like having natural body armor covered in spikes?
And poisonous body armor at that!
"Of course you need to learn it, but don't rush. I haven't introduced you to the uses of Qi Poison yet."
Tang Jiaren smiled as he spoke. When he finished, the purple Poison Barrier around him turned into green Qi Poison.
The Qi Poison gathered in his hand, then took the shape of a green snake. It looked so lifelike that it even flicked its tongue.
"This is Bamboo Green Snake, one of the most common uses of our Tang Sect's Qi Poison beyond the basic technique of spitting poison."
Tang Jiaren controlled Qi Poison: Bamboo Green Snake and sent it attacking Qin Qi. Its first attack charged straight at him.
Qin Qi didn't dodge. It wasn't as if he could die, and he wanted to experience it firsthand. The Bamboo Green Snake reached him and bit down.
"This is the first way to attack. It can deal damage with its bite and inject a large amount of poison at the same time," Tang Jiaren said.
"Mm."
Qin Qi nodded. Compared to simply spitting poison, turning into a Bamboo Green Snake added a physical attack.
After demonstrating the first attack, the Bamboo Green Snake began to coil around Qin Qi, then tried to squeeze him to death.
"This feels just like being constricted by a real giant python!"
Qin Qi truly felt an enormous force, as though it were about to crush his whole body.
"This is the second way to attack. It isn't only useful for attacking; when necessary, you can also use it to block attacks."
After saying that, Tang Jiaren demonstrated the third attack. The Bamboo Green Snake spat out two poisonous arrows made of venom.
"This is the third way to attack. A Bamboo Green Snake made of Qi Poison can spit out poisonous arrows made from Qi Poison."
"You don't need to hurry to learn it," Tang Jiaren said. "Just remember it for now. You can learn it gradually later."
"Mm. Granduncle, I suddenly have a question."
"If I released dozens of Bamboo Green Snakes at once and attacked from every direction..."
"What difference would that make from releasing dozens of clones?"
Qin Qi had suddenly thought of the question. The Bamboo Green Snakes could spit poison and attack physically. The only difference between them and clones was that they didn't look like Qin Qi.
But he hadn't forgotten that they were made of Qi Poison, which could change shape. What if Qin Qi changed them to look like himself?
"There'd be no difference. If you can multitask, you can use them as clones."
"There was once a kid in the Tang Sect named Tang Jian. Of all the people I've met over the years, he had the greatest talent for Qi Poison: Bamboo Green Snake."
"He developed the Green Hundred Shadows Secret Technique. In an instant, he could release more than a hundred Bamboo Green Snakes."
"He could make one person fight like a hundred. He was best at taking on many opponents alone."
Tang Jiaren thought of Tang Jian. Tang Jian was no longer young, though he was still much younger than Tang Jiaren.
"Granduncle, I want to learn that move too!" Qin Qi immediately said.
"You greedy little rascal. You want to learn this, and you want to learn that. Build a solid foundation first," Tang Jiaren said with a laugh.
"Phew. I want the basics, and I want the secret technique too!"
"Granduncle, start explaining the uses of Qi Poison: Bamboo Green Snake and Poison Barrier in detail."
Qin Qi spoke earnestly. There were many other moves in the Tang Sect that he could learn.
But unlike Qi Poison, Instant Attack and Catkin Step were real skills. Talent alone wouldn't cut it; they had to be honed through hard practice.
"System, activate Epiphany State."
Qin Qi had two hundred study credits now. One epiphany cost a hundred, so he would still have a hundred left after using it.
Tang Jiaren began carefully teaching Qin Qi how to form a Bamboo Green Snake.
Ten minutes passed in the blink of an eye, and the epiphany ended.
"Qi Poison: Bamboo Green Snake!"
Qin Qi held out his hand, and a Bamboo Green Snake as thick as his arm appeared in his palm. It flicked its tongue too, looking remarkably lifelike.
"Good lad. You have a real knack for controlling it. To get results like this on your very first try at using a Bamboo Green Snake is impressive."
Tang Jiaren looked at the Bamboo Green Snake Qin Qi had formed, nodded with satisfaction, and praised him.
"But it's still too big. When you can form a Bamboo Green Snake as small as your finger..."
"Then you can try learning the Green Hundred Shadows Secret Technique."
Tang Jiaren explained that the more concentrated the Tang Sect's Qi Poison was, the stronger its toxicity and the greater its flexibility and extensibility.
That was why the smaller the Bamboo Green Snake, the more powerful it was. The larger it was, the weaker it became.
[Ping! Teacher 'Tang Jiaren''s recognition of the host has reached 40%.] [Ping! The host has learned Qi Poison: Bamboo Green Snake. Reward: 100 study credits and 1 achievement point.] [Ping! Obtained Tang Jiaren's insights on Qi Poison. Study credits +10.] [Ping! Obtained Tang Jiaren's new insights on Qi Poison. Study credits +10.]
Listening to the notifications in his mind, Qin Qi suddenly realized that he'd found a perpetual-motion machine.
He spent study credits to activate an epiphany, quickly learned moves and abilities during it, and then earned study credits in return for learning.
"You can do that? Then I won't hold back!"
"System, activate Epiphany again!"
Qin Qi now had three hundred study credits in total, including the system's reward and the credits he'd earned from listening to Tang Jiaren's lesson. Activating another epiphany cost a hundred.
"Granduncle, I feel great right now. Let's keep learning Poison Barrier!"
Qin Qi spoke with boundless energy.
"Mm... All right."
Tang Jiaren looked at Qin Qi and hesitated. They'd already covered a lot today.
He was worried that if he taught Qin Qi too much at once, Qin Qi wouldn't be able to keep up. But then he looked at the Bamboo Green Snake Qin Qi had formed.
He thought Qin Qi was talented, and figured he'd probably be fine.
[Ping! The host has learned Poison Barrier. Reward: 1 achievement point and 100 study credits.] [Ping! Obtained Tang Jiaren's insights on Poison Barrier. Study credits +10.]
By the time Qin Qi left the Study Space, he'd accumulated four achievement points, and his study credits had risen to four hundred.
"Study credits go fast, but they're fast to earn too!"
"I love studying. Studying makes me happy!"
Qin Qi looked at Notting Academy. Classes at the academy counted as studying too, right? He'd get rewards for that, too!
He was now eagerly looking forward to the official start of school!
"Ah, I'm broke. Dinner's going to be a problem tonight."
Qin Qi suddenly remembered. He'd spent all the money he'd stolen on medicine, and now he had nothing to eat.
"Forget it. I'll head back first and see if I can run into some rich kid at the academy who provokes me."
"Then I can beat him up to test my new moves and take some money."
Now that Qin Qi had learned new moves, he was like a carpenter with a hammer, seeing a nail in everyone he met.
He couldn't help wanting to give them a couple of whacks.