Seeing the healing pill do its work, Shen Jian turned his back to Shao and said, “Come on. The sun will set soon, and there’s one last thing I need to teach you.”

“Hey!” Shao shouted at Shen Jian’s back. “I’m still tied up here!”

Without turning, Shen Jian said, “Have you already forgotten that you’re a cultivator? That’s normal rope. Now that your injuries have been healed, you can break out easily.”

Shao looked down at the arm he had already freed from the tight ropes. The fact that he was able to free his arm from the binding without putting much thought into it proved that the ropes could not hurt him. With the small amount of force he used to grab the pill, the ropes were already straining mightily against his body.

In short order, Shao strained against the ropes, and they snapped under the force of his upper body. Without missing a beat, Shao jogged to catch up to Shen Jian’s green-cloaked form.

“So, what else do you have in mind, crazy man?” Shao said once he caught up to the man with a curved sword tied to his waist.

Shen Jian chuckled at Shao’s insolence. “If we were at Shigong Temple, I’d be obligated to beat you for that.”

“Why?”

“It’s all about saving face. If other cultivators know that you can be disrespected without consequences, it’s only a matter of time before you become the target of theft and assault. Basically, if you’re going to disrespect a cultivator, make sure you can take him in a fight.”

“Emperor almighty,” Shao swore. “Does everything revolve around violence in Shigong Temple?”

“Everything in every society revolves around violence,” Shen Jian said with a smile, closing his eyes and holding one hand in front of his face as if in prayer. Though he was approximating a wise monk, he clearly didn’t buy into the image. “Even Bluecrest Village. You don’t steal or murder due to the threat of physical harm by the town guard. The disciples of Shigong Temple are just a lot more upfront about it.”

“You still haven’t answered my question,” Shao said, changing the subject. “Where are we going?”

“In order to help your training, I’m going to teach you a martial art.”

“You’re going to teach me martial arts?”

“No, well, kind of. A ‘martial art’ is a single fighting technique that does not utilize ki. On the other hand, a technique that utilizes ki is called a ‘sacred art.’ At your level, you can only use martial arts.”

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At this point in the conversation, Shen Jian suddenly stopped walking, and Shao almost bumped into his back. Shao looked around at where they had stopped and saw that Shen Jian had brought him to a massive rock face that rose far into the air.

“Here we are.” Shen Jian lightly patted the granite face of the small mountain in front of the two cultivators. “I’ll use this to teach you the Crashing Star of the Southern Heavens.”

“That sounds pretty advanced. You do know that I know basically nothing about fighting or cultivation, right?”

Shen Jian laughed loudly at Shao’s statement, which caused the young man to glare at him angrily. “Sorry, sorry,” Shen Jian said, wiping tears away from his eyes. “I’m sure it sounds advanced, but it really isn’t. Crashing Star is the simplest martial art I know of. Just about every cultivator knows it.”

Embarrassed by Shen Jian’s mockery, Shao asked, “If it’s so simple, then why does it have a name like that? Do all martial arts have such complicated names?”

“Yes, actually. Cultivators like to keep the specifics of their techniques secret while also telling everyone the techniques’ names. Thus, it is important that the names do not give anything away. For example, Crashing Star of the Southern Heavens is a simple punching technique.”

“And you’re going to teach me this martial art?” Shao asked.

“Yes.” Shen Jian nodded. “To begin with, I want you to stand within striking range of the stone wall, take a neutral stance with your knees slightly bent, place your left hand forward, and place your right hand at your waist like you’re about to strike.”

Though he distrusted Shen Jian’s commands, Shao nevertheless followed the man’s instructions as he gave them.

“Now, punch!”

After a moment’s hesitation, Shao punched the stone wall at half strength. He was afraid that throwing a punch at full strength would break his hand. When his fist struck the rock, however, his knuckles hurt much less than he expected. It hurt, of course, but the stone was much softer than Shen Jian’s stomach.

Hesitantly, Shao pulled his fist away from the stone and saw a light indentation in the rock. It was slight, but the rock came away from the interaction with much more damage than Shao’s fist.

“And that’s basically it,” Shen Jian said.

“That’s it!?” Shao asked, shock motivating his expression as he stood up from the horse stance. “How is that any different from normal fighting?”

“Once you become familiar enough with Crashing Star, you’ll figure out how to bring out the full force of the technique. With the correct use, that technique allows you to punch several times harder than normal.”

“How would I become familiar with the technique?” Shao asked, dreading the answer.

“Typically, you’d throw the punch one hundred thousand times,” Shen Jian said casually, and Shao felt queasy, “but I know a shortcut.”