Chapter 44

Yang Ji sat cross-legged on a mountaintop with a broad view, lost in thought. In the distance, countless white clouds rose and fell, like cotton scattered across the sky.

A gentle spring breeze blew, and a gust of mountain wind brushed past his ears, stirring something in Yang Ji’s heart, making him thoughtful.

"The books say, 'Like sounds respond to like sounds, and like qi seeks like qi. Clouds follow the dragon, and wind follows the tiger. When the sage acts, all things are seen.' All things in the world are interconnected. The movement of the clouds is actually driven by the wind. Since the wind has no fixed form, the clouds have no fixed appearance, and they drift unpredictably."

Yang Ji’s understanding of one thing led to understanding of many others, and a long period of stagnation suddenly broke open:

"I have been practicing the 'Cloud Hands' technique without much progress because I couldn’t grasp its essence of unpredictability. 'Clouds follow the dragon, and wind follows the tiger.' The wind is the opponent. Since the opponent is not a single person, the response is also unpredictable and not limited to a single move. —— Adapting to the situation and responding flexibly, changing as the opponent changes, this is the essence of the 'Cloud Hands' technique."

Thinking to this point, Yang Ji’s spirit was greatly invigorated, and his thoughts flowed like a floodgate opening, pouring out a thousand miles.

"Whoosh!"

Yang Ji leaped up, suddenly standing. Without looking at the clouds in the sky, countless images of clouds naturally formed in his mind, and he began to practice the 'Cloud Hands' technique.

After a long time, Yang Ji continuously practiced drawing, and the room was filled with a large number of sketches of clouds. Various shapes of clouds, with a single thought, could be visualized without needing to look up at the sky.

"Wind has no fixed form, and clouds have no fixed appearance..."

Yang Ji murmured to himself, his eyes slowly closing, and his hands moving gently with the airflow. The thousands of different cloud images in his mind began to fade away as his hands moved.

Yang Ji completely relaxed, his body as pure as nature, treating the surrounding wind as his opponent, and his body changing with the flow.

"Wind has no form or appearance, and even the wind can be treated as an opponent, finding its weaknesses. How much more so for other martial artists?"

A sense of enlightenment arose in Yang Ji’s heart. In the depths of his mind, he imagined himself as a cloud, drifting with the surrounding airflow, without a fixed place, and changing unpredictably.

Under the influence of this state of mind, the thousands of cloud images in Yang Ji’s mind rapidly disappeared, and a new, formless, and unpredictable "cloud" began to take shape in his heart.

Each cloud image that disappeared made the "cloud" in Yang Ji’s heart more solid. In a short time, the thousands of cloud images in his mind were reduced to hundreds, and they continued to decrease at an exponential rate.

"Hum!"

When the cloud images in Yang Ji’s mind were reduced to dozens, a sudden change occurred. Yang Ji’s two arms suddenly became like willow branches, creating many blurry afterimages, and finally breaking through a certain critical point. One arm split into "two," and at first glance, it seemed as if he had four arms.

Yang Ji, however, seemed not to notice these changes. At the moment of breakthrough, his mind suddenly entered a state of spiritual clarity...

He didn’t know how long it had been, but all the cloud images in his mind had disappeared, leaving only a warm, unpredictable "cloud" in his heart.

"Success!"

Yang Ji slowly opened his eyes, knowing that his 'Cloud Hands' technique had finally reached the initial stage of mastery. This level might still be insufficient against martial artists at the Martial Dao realm, but in the Breath realm, no one was his match.

"The 'Cloud Hands' technique still needs to be supported by the strength of the Martial Dao realm. The 'cloud' state, though slow and unpredictable, requires quick movements. My current speed is still too slow, and often my actions don’t keep up with my intentions."

Yang Ji thought to himself.

Before, he hadn’t noticed it, but as his strength improved, Yang Ji increasingly felt that his body’s reactions couldn’t keep up with his intentions. This feeling became even more pronounced when practicing the "Fist and Intent Unity Diagram."

"I finally understand the meaning of the 'Fist and Intent Unity Diagram.' At the Breath realm, the martial artist’s intentions and body are separate, so no matter how much one trains, the body’s reactions can’t keep up with the speed of the intentions. When I practice the 'Fist and Intent Unity Diagram,' my will is scattered and integrated into my body, aiming to completely merge my will and body, achieving the state where the will and the body move as one, and the fist and intent are united."

Yang Ji, well-versed in literature, was already very intelligent.

The "Fist and Intent Unity Diagram" had many unclear points, but now, practicing the 'Cloud Hands' technique and cross-referencing the two, he immediately understood many things he had previously been confused about.

Before, Yang Ji had only felt that martial artists at the Martial Dao realm moved quickly and had great strength, but now, with a sudden understanding, he deeply felt the gap between the two realms.

"I must reach the Martial Dao realm as soon as possible!"

Yang Ji thought to himself.

As the sky grew dark, Yang Ji quickly left the mountain.

It was already late in the evening. Yang Ji changed his clothes and swiftly leaped out of the window, leaving the thatched cottage.

"I wonder what those bandits are up to. Many of them are already asleep, so if they are going to act, it should be about now."

Yang Ji thought to himself, recalling the bandits he had encountered during the day.

These fierce and terrifying figures rarely entered towns, and Yang Ji instinctively felt that something would happen tonight. As the saying goes, "The more skilled one is, the bolder one becomes." With his growing strength, Yang Ji was not afraid of such situations.

"To leave Pingchuan County in the future, I must pass through the areas controlled by these bandits. Getting to know them better will be beneficial in the long run."

Yang Ji murmured to himself.

He didn’t leave through the main gate but flipped over the wall of the Yang family’s compound. After identifying the direction in the darkness, he immediately headed in the direction he had memorized during the day.

There were not many taverns and inns in the market, and they were scattered in various places. Following the direction he remembered, Yang Ji soon saw two inns, one large and one small, not far apart.

"The small inn can’t accommodate them; they must be in the large tavern."

Yang Ji glanced at the tavern, which still had lights on, with some merchants coming and going.

"They will close in about half an hour. If they are going to act, it will be then."

Yang Ji didn’t rush, finding a dark and hidden corner to wait.

After half an hour, a window on the southeast side of the tavern creaked open, and a robust figure jumped out, landing lightly on the ground after a brief push against the wall.

"Come down."

The bandit leader waved his hand, and soon, one after another, more large men jumped out of the window.

"Such skilled movements, at least at the ninth or tenth level of the Breath realm."

Yang Ji’s eyes flashed with a sharp light, quickly estimating their strength.

The window was very high off the ground. If it were a martial artist at the eighth level of the Breath realm, the landing would have been noisy. Only those at the ninth or tenth level could control their strength and land without a sound.

"Go!"

After the seven bandits landed, they waved their hands and immediately headed towards the direction they had scouted during the day. Their steps were light and agile, and they made no sound in the darkness.

"They are about to act... but who is their target?"

Yang Ji remained silent, keeping a certain distance as he quickly followed them.

The seven people moved through the alleys, turning and twisting, avoiding areas with lights. After a short while, they finally stopped.

"Herb Hall? Their target is the Li family’s Herb Hall!"

Seeing the sign under the two red lanterns, Yang Ji was surprised. He had followed these bandits around, never expecting their target to be the "Herb Hall" he had visited just over a month ago.

"These bandits are targeting the Li family!"

A flash of insight crossed Yang Ji’s mind.

In Pingchuan County, the Li family might not have produced as many "martial scholars" as the Yang family, but in terms of economic strength, they definitely surpassed the Li family.

Moreover, because of their business in the "Herb Pills," their shops were extensive, and they often organized merchant caravans to sell to other inland areas.

If these bandits wanted to rob, the "Herb Hall" was clearly a good target.

"Whoosh!"

Just as Yang Ji was surprised, these people leaped up one by one, like hawks, flipping into the "Herb Hall." Among the seven, only the weakest, at the ninth level of the Breath realm, was left outside to keep watch.

"Whoosh!"

In the darkness, a cold flash of light appeared as the man tore open the cloth bag at his waist, revealing a large, white knife that was striking in the darkness.

"Ah! ——"

A woman’s shrill scream suddenly came from inside the courtyard, short and abrupt, and it quickly stopped. Even those who heard it might have thought it was an illusion.

"They have started!"

A thought flashed through Yang Ji’s mind.