Eternal Life: I Have the Favor System-Chapter 50: Skillful Force

BANG!

Li Yishan parried with his long saber.

The edge of his saber met the spearhead, but the blade was unexpectedly knocked aside. He desperately followed up with a flurry of slashes, but he couldn’t stop the Long Spear from thrusting toward him. In a panic, he retreated rapidly, trying to create distance from Liu Quan.

Liu Quan pressed his advantage.

He unleashed a Whirlwind Slash, smashing it toward Li Yishan’s face.

Li Yishan raised his saber horizontally to block.

CRACK!

This time, the long saber bent, and Liu Quan’s Long Spear nearly struck Li Yishan on the shoulder. Li Yishan failed to block it and lost his balance as he retreated. He landed hard on his butt, as if someone had tripped him.

Liu Quan held his Long Spear, its tip aimed at Li Yishan’s nose. With a look of contempt, he performed a Flower Dance Spear flourish for the crowd before retracting his weapon. He stood tall and cupped his fist at Li Yishan. "Many thanks for going easy on me, Hall Master Li!"

"How dare you sneak attack our Hall Master!"

"Surround him!"

"Stop!"

Li Yishan’s men were furious. Their boss had been defeated on Wine Street; how could they maintain their foothold here now? But Li Yishan stopped them. With a grim expression, he cupped his fist at Liu Quan and said, "Master Tie has taught you an excellent Spear Technique. I will certainly ask for another lesson from Young Master Liu in the future."

"Fine. I’ll be waiting."

An arrogant look on his face, Liu Quan laughed heartily and left with his two senior brothers. He saw Chu Lingguang but, just like before, chose to ignore him, as if he felt they were no longer people of the same world.

"This is my son, a Direct Disciple of Master Tie from Qinghe County."

"My son won."

Liu Lishi and his group followed behind Liu Quan, telling everyone they met that his son had just defeated a Hall Master of the Big Saber Gang. Intimidated by the Big Saber Gang’s power, no one dared to respond.

’Strange,’ Chu Lingguang thought as he slipped away quietly. ’Why could Liu Quan’s spear spin like a Wind-Fire Wheel?’

He was happy to be ignored by Liu Quan again. On his way back, he kept pondering the peculiarity of Liu Quan’s Spear Technique.

He replayed the scene in his mind, picturing himself in Li Yishan’s place. ’If I had faced that spear thrust from Liu Quan, I probably could have only used my Body Technique to dodge. If I couldn’t dodge in time and tried to block it with a Saber Technique like Li Yishan, I’m afraid the outcome would have been the same.’

’Even if I used a Spear Technique just like Liu Quan, if our Long Spears collided, mine would probably be knocked aside by that spinning force in his, just like Li Yishan’s saber was.’

’Master must know what’s going on. I’ll ask him tomorrow. I can also ask why I still haven’t produced a Spear Form even though I’ve practiced the Basic Spear Skill to Perfection.’

’If I could achieve a Spear Form, I wonder if Liu Quan’s Long Spear could still knock mine away?’

Chu Lingguang was filled with questions.

The next morning, Chu Lingguang arrived at the Martial Arts Hall. The moment Hei Hu saw him, he eagerly started talking about what happened on Wine Street last night. Apparently, the news of the Big Saber Gang’s Hall Master, Li Yishan, being defeated by Liu Quan had already spread far and wide overnight.

’For the news to spread this fast, someone must have deliberately disseminated it.’

Thinking about how Liu Quan’s revenge was partly to uphold Tie Zhennan’s reputation, Chu Lingguang had a moment of understanding.

"Junior Brother, you went to watch the excitement and didn’t even call me!"

When Hei Hu learned that Chu Lingguang had been there, he was so annoyed he scratched his head vigorously.

"I didn’t expect them to start fighting so quickly. By the time I thought to call you, it was too late."

Chu Lingguang made an excuse to brush him off.

The two of them went to pay their respects to Guo Wei together.

After breakfast, Chu Lingguang tried to imitate Liu Quan, attempting to make his Long Spear spin violently with each thrust, with enough rotational force to knock aside an opponent’s weapon. Unfortunately, after several attempts, he couldn’t do it. A few times, he even almost dropped his Long Spear.

"Junior Brother, what on earth are you doing?"

Hei Hu asked, confused.

"Last night, I saw Liu Quan’s Long Spear. It could spin on its own and even knock away Li Yishan’s saber."

Chu Lingguang explained, gesturing as he spoke.

"That amazing? What kind of Spear Technique did he learn?"

Hei Hu’s interest was piqued.

"The Fire God Spear."

Chu Lingguang remembered Li Yishan mentioning that Tie Zhennan’s signature skill was the Fire God Spear.

"Hmph!"

A cold snort was heard.

"Master."

Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu hurriedly bowed. The person who had arrived was none other than Guo Wei.

"Bring me a spear."

Guo Wei said, holding out his hand.

"Here!"

Hei Hu immediately ran to the Soldier Landing Platform, retrieved the Iron Spear that Guo Wei often used, and placed it in his hand.

WHOOSH!

Guo Wei brandished the Long Spear.

SWOOSH!

A piercing roar came from the Long Spear. Chu Lingguang’s eyes widened as he saw the spear leave Guo Wei’s palm and shoot toward the wooden training posts in front of them.

PFFT!

The spear pierced through three wooden posts before its tip embedded itself in the courtyard wall.

WOW!

Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu were dumbfounded.

"Making the Long Spear rotate to increase its Penetration Power is not difficult, but it is not the kind of Kung Fu you should be practicing right now."

Guo Wei said seriously.

"Why not?"

Hei Hu was confused.

So was Chu Lingguang.

"Kung Fu must be learned step by step; you mustn’t put the cart before the horse. What I just used was Skillful Force, a special trick within Spear Techniques. Liu Quan has not yet developed a Spear Form. Even if he masters this trick, it won’t have much power in the future. Coupled with his impatient mindset, I’m afraid he will focus all his attention on Skillful Force and neglect the importance of the Formed Spear Technique.

"He doesn’t realize that the Formed Spear Technique is the foundation of all Spear Techniques. As long as you can achieve the ’formed’ state, you will achieve twice the results with half the effort when you study other techniques later on. When you eventually master Skillful Force, its power will far surpass Liu Quan’s."

Guo Wei explained patiently.

"Master, then how can we achieve the Formed Spear Technique?"

Chu Lingguang took this rare opportunity to ask.

"See it through from start to finish, as one!"

Guo Wei spoke an eight-word mantra.

"This..."

Chu Lingguang’s aptitude wasn’t the best, and he wasn’t well-read, so this was difficult for him. Although the principle sounded simple, for some reason, he found it hard to grasp the meaning behind Guo Wei’s eight words.

"Let the ’qi’ in your body merge with the Long Spear in your hands. That flow of ’qi’ must never be broken, no matter what. Even when your Qi Blood is depleted, that ’qi’ must be like the spear itself, held firmly in your grasp."

Guo Wei pulled out the Long Spear. As he explained, he began to move through a Spear Technique. Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu saw that Guo Wei’s every move carried an overwhelming momentum, as if he weren’t wielding a spear, but his own body’s Qi Blood.

"Once you can feel that ’qi’ from your body attaching itself to the Long Spear, when your every move and every breath receives a response from it—that is the Formed Spear Technique!"

BOOM!

Guo Wei slammed the spear into the ground with all his might.

The Long Spear sank into the earth. Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu could both feel the ground tremble, as if a wave of Skillful Force had permeated the ground and traveled up through the soles of their feet.

"The Formed Spear Technique is more important than mastering Skillful Force. Don’t be dazzled by Liu Quan’s momentary glory."

Guo Wei tossed the Long Spear back to the Soldier Landing Platform, where it landed precisely back in its rack.

"Yes, Master!"

Chu Lingguang and Hei Hu both nodded.

The destructive power of Guo Wei’s final strike, which seemed capable of splitting the great courtyard in two, was far more shocking than his earlier use of Skillful Force to pierce the wooden posts. Moreover, he had executed that earlier move on the foundation of having already achieved ’form’.

At the same time, they both understood that Guo Wei’s lesson today was intended to help them stay true to their fundamentals and not be distracted by Liu Quan’s display of power.

(Thanks to Pear Blossom Five Elements for the 100 Starting Point Coins, and thanks to Book Friend 20180119194154065 for the 100 Starting Point Coins!)