The next moment, his chest rose and fell gently.
It was not breathing.
Nor was it Chakra flowing.
It was the muscles themselves writhing.
First came his abdomen.
Then his chest, shoulders, and arms.
Every muscle seemed to have a life of its own, slowly rising and falling to some peculiar rhythm.
Orochimaru's pupils contracted sharply.
The coarse shirt on Lie Yang's body suddenly loosened on its own.
The front parted, then slipped from his shoulders.
But Lie Yang's hands still hung at his sides. He had not touched his clothes.
As the shirt fell to his waist, the muscles in his back contracted sharply.
The fabric rose as though lifted by invisible hands, climbing back up his arms.
Within a few breaths, the shirt he had taken off was back on.
The front closed by itself.
The belt tightened again.
Lie Yang had not moved his hands once.
Only the muscles inside his body had kept writhing and rippling.
Orochimaru's expression changed.
He had seen the Cell Activation Technique and studied human tissue.
But muscles moving on their own were entirely different from neural control.
This was not simply a matter of controlling the body.
The body itself had gained a higher order of life.
"When Yang Release is developed to its limit, the flesh gains a system that operates independently," Lie Yang said.
"Even without Hand Seals, the body can perform basic movements."
Orochimaru's breathing quickened.
His gaze swept over Lie Yang's shoulders, abdomen, and arms, as though he could see every change in the muscles beneath.
"You made your muscles perform those movements on their own."
"But what about the clothes?"
"When the body can influence things outside it, it can make them change according to its will."
Lie Yang offered no further demonstration.
He looked at