Chapter 37: The Silent Technique |
On the Martial Arena.
Everyone’s attention was drawn to the battle between the two.
At the Ninth Fold of the Inner Origin Realm, their internal energy was incredibly dense, able to cling to the physical body or weapons—and the truly skilled could even extend it to a length of ten feet, though it would dissipate the moment it left the body.
One of them cultivated the Heaven-Shaking Force, the other cultivated the Sea-Overturning Force. Each movement they made carried terrifying power.
Ning Qi watched intently.
Yet a strange feeling gradually rose in his heart.
“Senior Brother and Fifth Senior Brother are both very strong, their internal energy reaches nearly ten feet... but why do I feel like I could fight them?”
He was a bit tempted to challenge the two and test his current strength—but in the end, he suppressed the thought.
Soon after.
The crowd roared with excitement.
Luo Wentian beamed with pride:
“Fifth Junior Brother, from now on, you're the second strongest in the Zhenwu Sect!”
Jiang Baishan waved his hands repeatedly:
“If it weren’t for you, Senior Brother, being distracted by sect affairs, you would’ve broken through to the Qi Origin Realm long ago. I’m ashamed.”
Luo Wentian laughed heartily:
“We’re brothers—no need for such formality. Your strength is my pride!”
Everyone was moved.
Daoist Longshan watched his disciples getting along so harmoniously and smiled with satisfaction.
Next up.
The true disciples sparred among themselves, while the other disciples watched with fascination, even more motivated than before.
They had witnessed the power of superior Fold Energy Techniques. In Zhenwu Sect, as long as you made contributions, there was a chance to exchange for such high-level techniques.
Ning Qi looked at Luo Wentian and felt a wave of emotion. Everyone in Zhenwu Sect was like one big family. If that was the case, what did it matter who was stronger or weaker? Whether he was currently stronger or weaker than Senior Brother and Fifth Senior Brother didn’t matter at all. That sliver of competitiveness he’d had instantly disappeared.
He suddenly realized he’d been a bit childish. Even if Chubby had defeated everyone in Zhenwu Sect back when Divine Sword Sect visited, what difference would it have made?
Silently, he felt his mindset grow more open and mature.
He had learned this from Senior Brother.
...
The year-end competition concluded smoothly, and the unity within Zhenwu Sect was stronger than ever. The disciples' passion for training had reached new heights.
Winter passed, and spring arrived.
Outside the Seeking Dao Courtyard.
A few peach trees had been added.
Ning Qi had transplanted them from Zhenwu Mountain. He’d always felt the courtyard looked a bit plain. Now it felt much better. The blooming peach blossoms carried a certain charm and made him feel more at ease.
Ning Qi was creating a new technique.
After dropping off a few manuals, the White Ape had run off to play.
These days, Ning Qi seldom went to the Scripture Pavilion. Ever since the year-end competition, disciples had been visiting the pavilion in droves, borrowing techniques. It wasn’t as quiet anymore.
So Ning Qi simply had the White Ape fetch the manuals he wanted.
Ordinary disciples were strictly forbidden from approaching the Seeking Dao Courtyard.
Ning Qi looked at the martial arts in his hands.
“Black Turtle Breath Technique.”
“Withered Wood Breathing Method.”
“Breath-Holding Art.”
“……”
“These techniques are all top-tier breathing arts for concealing one’s aura. If mastered to a high level, they can make it impossible for others to sense your depth. Definitely must-haves for wandering the martial world.”
Ning Qi turned the thoughts over in his mind.
His aura had already begun to shift.
Sometimes long and steady, almost imperceptible; other times waning like a withered tree, lifeless as a shadowy pool; and occasionally disappearing completely, leaving only a sense of emptiness...
Clearly, he had already trained these arts to a very high level.
After his last chat with Daoist Longshan, Ning Qi had decided to pay more attention to concealing his aura. Now that his fellow senior brothers and sisters were beginning to notice something odd, he was even more determined to create a powerful aura-concealing technique.
“These breathing methods are good, but they all have flaws. Once activated, even if others can’t gauge your depth, they’ll still realize you’re not ordinary.”
For example, the Black Turtle Breath Technique—once activated, the aura becomes long and calm. If you don’t actively circulate power or show your strength, ordinary people can’t see through you. But the signs of concealment are also clear—people can tell you’re deliberately hiding something.
The other aura-hiding techniques were much the same.
This didn’t meet Ning Qi’s expectations.
He needed something that would make it impossible for others to sense the strength of his vitality—something that could fake an entirely different level of cultivation.
“Maybe... I can draw inspiration from the deathlike state in the Great Dream of Nine Deaths Force.”
A spark lit up in Ning Qi’s mind.
The essence of several aura-hiding techniques flowed through his thoughts.
Soon.
A new technique had taken shape. For Ning Qi, creating technical-based martial arts like this was far easier than developing full cultivation methods.
Silent Technique.
The body becomes still, the life force tranquil.
Ning Qi activated his newly created method, and his vitality immediately dropped. Before long, it had sunk to the level of an ordinary Muscle Refinement Realm cultivator.
He smiled slightly.
Then reversed the flow of the technique—his vitality surged visibly, and in a flash, it had surpassed both Luo Wentian and Jiang Baishan!
“The Silent Technique I created not only conceals vitality, it can also mimic a higher cultivation level. I’ve only seen Master and the Divine Sword Elder at the Qi Origin Realm, so I might not be able to imitate them perfectly—but it’s more than enough to fool ordinary people.”
Ning Qi was in a great mood.
He was confident that with the Silent Technique, even Daoist Longshan wouldn’t be able to see through his real strength.
Even in combat, as long as he didn’t go all out, he wouldn’t reveal his true level.
But he hadn’t yet encountered someone at the Heaven-Man Realm.
He didn’t know what “resonance between Heaven and Man” truly meant. The Silent Technique might not fool them, but he could refine it once he met someone at that level.
For now, it was more than enough.
“Besides aura-hiding techniques, I also need one that can change my physical form.”
Ning Qi pondered. His body was still too young and distinctive. If he ever needed to take action, it’d be best not to expose his identity.
He kept Daoist Longshan’s reminder in mind.
Two days later.
Ning Qi looked at a stack of body-honing techniques and Bone-Shrinking Arts in his hands, satisfied.
Body-Altering and Bone-Changing Technique.
It could change appearances, even reshape the body.
Ning Qi’s proficiency in medicine played a huge role. Now that his martial path had reached the Inner Origin Realm and he had developed internal energy, his medical skills were even more formidable. His control over acupuncture techniques was more precise than ever—Body-Altering and Bone-Changing was just one of the manifestations.
Ning Qi activated the technique.
His face—originally as fine as jade—began to change before the naked eye, becoming plain and ordinary. Then came the sound of cracking bones, and his frame began to grow. In the blink of an eye, he looked like a boy of fifteen or sixteen.
The once delicate little Daoist boy instantly became a completely unremarkable youth.
Ning Qi nodded in satisfaction.
“Not bad at all—but this isn’t the limit of the Body-Altering and Bone-Changing Technique.”
“Techniques like this ultimately need medicinal support to reach perfection. By then, the effects of changing appearance and form will be much better.”
This was different from the various techniques he’d created before. For instance, Iron Shirt—even if he could instantly grasp its essence, it still had to be practiced step-by-step. These kinds of techniques were fundamentally about tempering the body—not something that could be skipped with just insight.
Still.
Ning Qi’s physical body was strong, so his training time would naturally be shorter than others.