Chapter 21

Outside, the snow was falling heavily, but inside the woodshed, it was warm and cozy. A large fire pot was placed in the center, radiating a steady stream of heat. Whoosh! A flash of light, and a small black shadow leaped around the room, jumping from the bookshelf to the bed, desk, window, and walls... It seemed to leap everywhere. "Xiao Ji" had been in a deep sleep for a whole day and finally woke up. Perhaps because he had lived in the mountains before, where he encountered snakes and other animals, "Xiao Ji" showed an unusual curiosity and freshness towards Yang Ji's living place. He wanted to look at everything, even the scriptures on Yang Ji's desk, which he tried to flip through carefully, as if trying to recognize the characters.

Such a "Xiao Ji" was mischievous and lively, making one think of his notorious title, "Emperor of Poisonous Snakes"!

Whoosh! A straight line of air waves appeared in the air, and Xiao Ji's body sprang up, landing lightly on Yang Ji's bed. "...His jumping ability is astonishing, easily reaching over two zhang, and I estimate the maximum can reach four zhang, far exceeding that of ordinary martial artists." Not far from the desk, Yang Ji retracted his gaze, picked up his pen, and wrote a line on the manuscript paper in front of him.

Since bringing "Xiao Ji" back from the deep mountains, Yang Ji had been secretly recording "Xiao Ji's" living habits and nature. After a few days, such manuscript papers were piled up thickly on Yang Ji's desk. According to Yang Ji's observation, although "Xiao Ji" was still in his youth and not very large, his strength was extremely astonishing, capable of matching martial artists of the first and second levels. Moreover, although "Xiao Ji" was the king of all snakes and the "Emperor of Poisonous Snakes," more powerful than the "Heart Devouring Snake" that bit Lü Ling, the water he drank had no toxicity. Yang Ji speculated that this might be related to his saliva. "Where there are venomous snakes, there must be an antidote within seven steps." The antidote for the Heart Devouring Snake was a purple strange grass, while the antidote for the King of Snakes was its own saliva!

In addition, Xiao Ji was different from ordinary snakes; he seemed to be not afraid of the cold and did not need to hibernate. However, what surprised Yang Ji the most was the "wisdom" that "Xiao Ji" displayed. The King of Snakes was the emperor of all snakes, with extremely strong aggression, and its venom was feared even by fierce beasts. Yang Ji had always been worried that it might bite people randomly after bringing it back. However, the facts proved that Yang Ji's worries were groundless. "Xiao Ji" was extremely intelligent and could understand what he said, something that was never recorded in books, and even the old steward liked it because of this. Moreover, after recognizing Yang Ji as its master, "Xiao Ji" was very obedient and would not easily show itself to others in the Yang family, except for Yang Ji and Liang Bo.

The woodshed was silent, with only the crackling sound of the charcoal fire in the pot. Yang Ji silently recorded the habits and behaviors of "Xiao Ji" that he observed, not knowing how much time had passed— "Xiao Ji, come here." Yang Ji bit the pen and suddenly bent down, beckoning to "Xiao Ji" in the distance.

Whoosh! A black shadow flashed, and "Xiao Ji" immediately leaped over several zhang of space, accurately entering Yang Ji's sleeve, then poking his head out, looking up with a loving expression. "It's not early, we need to go up the mountain to practice." Yang Ji smiled, patted "Xiao Ji's" head, stood up, and left the woodshed with Xiao Ji...

...

Days passed, and Yang Ji would go to the training ground to secretly observe martial arts techniques, then take "Xiao Ji" up the mountain, spending half the time practicing the "White Snake Martial Technique" and the other half practicing the "Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method." He repeated this every day, simple but fulfilling. After seven days, the manuscript papers recording the "White Snake Martial Technique" in Yang Ji's woodshed had piled up to several feet high. After that, Yang Ji felt there was nothing more to record, as all the changes were already etched in his mind, so he shifted his focus to "Xiao Ji."

"Only the one who tied the bell can untie it. The 'White Snake Martial Technique' was created by martial arts experts imitating the habits and movements of snakes. To master the essence of this martial technique, I must find the answer in Xiao Ji." Yang Ji thought to himself. During this time, he had discovered many perplexing and confusing aspects while practicing the "White Snake Martial Technique." "A grain of rice can feed a hundred people differently." Yang Ji found that a simple "White Snake Lying in Grass" could produce completely different effects when performed by different Yang family members. Some of these were undoubtedly correct, while others were wrong. Learning from the wrong ones would prevent Yang Ji from truly mastering a martial technique. However, fortunately, when he chose to learn the "White Snake Martial Technique," he had carefully selected it. Although he had no master, "Xiao Ji" was the best subject. For humans, the "White Snake Martial Technique" required hard work to master, but for Xiao Ji, every movement was an instinct. Yang Ji believed that as long as he put in the effort, he could deduce the true "White Snake Martial Technique" from "Xiao Ji."

After that, Yang Ji slowed down his practice of the "White Snake Martial Technique" and spent a lot of time recording and drawing "Xiao Ji's" movements. Although his drawings were not outstanding, they were sufficient to simply mimic the shape of "Xiao Ji's" body and the way his muscles exerted force. Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Yang Ji's eyes were deep in thought as he continuously drew "Xiao Ji's" movements, the papers piling up in his room. It was cold outside, and the ink wouldn't dry, so Yang Ji first wrote on the ground with a dry branch, memorizing it, and then copied it onto the manuscript paper when he returned. In this process of copying, Yang Ji imitated "Xiao Ji's" movements, constantly revising the techniques he had secretly learned, removing the incorrect ones, and leaving only those similar to "Xiao Ji's." In this process of revision, Yang Ji's martial arts skills also improved. Days passed, and everyone was avoiding the cold, celebrating the New Year in their own "small plots of land." At such a time, even the "Madam" seemed to have forgotten about Yang Ji, this "small character." Yang Ji was content, enjoying the rapid increase in his strength in the absence of attention. Half a month later. Boom! Yang Ji was practicing the "Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method" when his body suddenly trembled, and with a boom, he involuntarily exhaled a breath. This breath was as thick as a child's arm, rolling with frost, and extended over two zhang without dispersing. "Eight breaths, exhaling frost!" Yang Ji's eyes were bright, his heart filled with surprise and joy, showing an expression of disbelief. He had been focusing on refining the "White Snake Martial Technique" recently, and the "Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method" had not shown much progress. Unexpectedly, before he could break through in the "White Snake Martial Technique," the "Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method" advanced to the eighth breath, helping him break through. "Ha ha ha, trying to plant flowers doesn't work, but planting willows unintentionally succeeds. I've been focusing on the 'White Snake Martial Technique' without breaking through, but the 'Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method' has broken through first." Yang Ji laughed out loud. However, Yang Ji did not dare to be careless. Exhaling frost in winter was common and did not necessarily mean he had reached the eighth breath. Yang Ji calmed down and exhaled another breath with all his strength. Whoosh! This time, Yang Ji saw clearly that a white frosty air stream as thick as a child's arm shot out of his mouth, gathering and not dispersing, extending over two zhang. In front of him, a small tree was hit, its branches and leaves trembling, as if he had sprayed a strong stream of water. "It really is the eighth breath!" Yang Ji's eyes were bright. Exhaling a breath of hot air that turned into frost in winter was normal, but it could not extend over two zhang, nor could it shake a small tree like a strong stream of water. Only at the eighth breath, with greatly enhanced chest and lung strength, could the exhaled air gather like a stream of water, producing such an effect. "I'm one step closer to my goal." Yang Ji was secretly excited. After the snow melted, it would be February, and the time left for him was not much. Every increase in strength was precious for the current Yang Ji. After that, Yang Ji's practice indeed accelerated. With increased chest and lung strength, he could attract more "tree essence" when practicing the "Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method." Moreover, the increase in strength was also beneficial for learning martial techniques. In a month, Yang Ji's physical strength and power had increased significantly with the improvement in his breathing. However, the progress in the "White Snake Martial Technique" was not very noticeable. "The key to the 'White Snake Martial Technique' lies in the agility and flexibility of the body. My body is still too stiff, and it's all about the bones exerting force..." "The scriptures say, 'soft as if without bones,' referring to snakes. Snakes do have bones, just like humans, but they move as if they have no bones. This is the 'agility' and 'flexibility' of the body!" "It's not the bones exerting force, but the muscles." ... In the deep mountains, the snow was white, and Yang Ji lay under a snow pine, frowning, deep in thought. Beside him were thick piles of manuscript papers filled with drawings. A small black snake was leaping around him. For nearly a month, Yang Ji had been learning the "White Snake Lying in Grass." Although he had put in a lot of effort and learned from "Xiao Ji," perhaps due to his strength, his "White Snake Lying in Grass" leap distance was limited to one zhang six, at most one zhang seven, and he could not break through further. Leaping two zhang easily suddenly seemed out of reach. Yang Ji realized that he had probably reached a bottleneck. Looking at the thick piles of manuscript papers in his hands, many thoughts flashed through his mind, and he was unaware of the snow falling on his head. Yang Ji had no foundation in martial techniques and no master to guide him. He could only rely on himself to explore, but the lack of progress over a month made him somewhat frustrated. "What's the problem? The 'White Snake Lying in Grass' is the first move and the most practical for me among these martial techniques. As long as I master this move, I will have enough to protect myself. I've learned the basic framework and have a good grasp of it, but I always feel something is missing, preventing me from using it flexibly. What is it?" Yang Ji pondered deeply. Martial techniques are different from internal cultivation. Yang Ji's practice of the "Divine Dragon Bone Strengthening Pile Method" would improve with hard work, regardless of his talent. However, if he could not understand the essence of martial techniques, no amount of effort would be useful. It's like going in the wrong direction; you'll never reach your destination. "What's missing?" Yang Ji muttered, lost in thought. "Whoosh!" After an unknown amount of time, a gust of wind caught his ear, and he suddenly came to his senses. Turning around, he saw "Xiao Ji" entertaining himself, about to leap. "Bow!" As his eyes met "Xiao Ji's" body, Yang Ji's mind was suddenly shaken, and the scene before him merged with the image of a large bow. "Bow shape, bow shape... How could I be so stupid! The essence of a bow is not in its shape but in its stored energy. The essence of the 'White Snake Lying in Grass' is the same. I only focused on learning the posture, shape, and movements of 'Xiao Ji,' but I forgot to learn its essence!" At this moment, Yang Ji felt as if he had been enlightened, and a light suddenly ignited in his mind. All the problems and doubts were resolved in an instant. At this moment, it felt as if he had a sudden insight, and Yang Ji slowly stood up, slightly bending backward, then suddenly leaped forward. Boom! The air violently vibrated, and a wave of energy rolled. It was as if a huge python, hidden in the grass, suddenly coiled and leaped, easily covering over three zhang, with the surrounding air rolling like the sea, forming white waves! "Ha ha ha!" Yang Ji stood three zhang away, laughing out loud, all the frustration of the past days swept away: "So that's it, so that's it..." Yang Ji had always thought that the "white" in the "White Snake Martial Technique" referred to the color of the snake, the snake that the martial arts expert who created the technique observed and imitated. Now he realized that he had been greatly mistaken. The "white" in the "White Snake Martial Technique" referred to the essence of the technique. Once the