Chapter 38

Not going mad, one cannot become a Buddha. Wei Shizhi was well aware of the weight of these six characters. He worked hard, practicing the Mad Stick Technique until he was proficient. However, "madness" did not mean rushing for quick results. He maintained a calm and steady mindset, diligently refining his stick technique. In his spare time, he would look at the sky, the clouds, and Qin Zhen, teaching her a few combat boxing moves. A bow should be unstrung when not in use; he understood this principle even when he was five.

Qin Zhen did not have a natural talent for boxing. However, she had a good memory. After listening to Wei Shizhi hum a few tunes, she could sing them perfectly. She loved the骊song (Lisong) and couldn't put it down, pestering her senior brother to teach her a few more.

"I watched a spectacular fireworks display and accepted your indifferent farewell. Suddenly, I remembered the vows you once made, by the bustling and lively Tamsui River..."

"That is the person I deeply love and think about day and night. How can I express my feelings? Perhaps I will never tell her those words..."

Wei Shizhi racked his brains, barely managing to squeeze out a few lines, just like the Moon Howling Technique inscribed on the beast skin, incomplete and fragmented. Qin Zhen carefully pondered the meaning of the song, completed the lyrics, and sang them for her senior brother. After listening to her sing several times, Wei Shizhi thought about gathering nine long-legged beauties, dressed in mini skirts and crop tops, to sing and dance, to alleviate his worries.

Wei Shizhi did not know that Xun Ye had secretly observed him several times. He believed that a person's true nature was most easily revealed when they were alone, and he wanted to thoroughly understand his disciple.

He spent his days refining the Mad Stick Technique, drinking water when thirsty, eating meat when hungry, and resting when tired. He would tease Qin Zhen and listen to her sing those incomprehensible tunes. He was calm and unhurried, like a stream in the mountains, flowing around rocks and lingering in deep pools, moving when it should and stopping when it should. There was a unique quality about this young hunter that was hard to describe.

He had seen many mindsets of cultivators. Some had hearts as hard as iron, advancing courageously with nothing but immortality in mind, making rapid progress. Others had weak resolve, easily influenced by external factors, sitting in meditation and practicing all day without making any progress. But Wei Shizhi was different. His every word and action was spontaneous, subtly aligning with the foundation of Immortal Capital's "untainted by dust, free from hindrances" Daoist principles.

In Xun Ye's heart, Wei Shizhi was a rarer and finer material than Qin Zhen. The only thing that troubled him was the overly intimate relationship between Wei Shizhi and Qin Zhen, which stirred her springtime emotions and affected her cultivation.

After another half month, Wei Shizhi finally mastered the Mad Stick Technique, achieving a state of mind and stick as one, thoroughly integrated. On this day, he went to Tian Du Peak alone to test his skills. His steps were swift, treating the steep mountain path as if it were flat. With just a light leap, he rose several feet, standing steadily on the cliff, like an ancient pine that had weathered the wind and rain, unmoving.

When he was struggling through the mountains and valleys, hunting for food and clothing, did he ever imagine this day?

Pride was just a fleeting thought. Wei Shizhi reminded himself not to lose himself. The path of cultivation was just the first step. Behind the glory lay countless thorns and bones. He was neither a prodigy nor a privileged child, and everything had to be achieved through his own efforts.

In a short while, he arrived at the Bitter Spring, where no one was around. The water gurgled, and everything remained unchanged. Wei Shizhi bent down to drink a few sips of the spring water, looking at his reflection in the water, both familiar and strange. He reached out to touch the other's face, and his fingertips touched the water, shattering the reflection into countless rippling waves.

His past, his former life, his entire world, were like that reflection, rippling beneath the surface of his memory. A touch, and it shattered into ripples, no longer clear. A wave of melancholy washed over him, then receded, washing over a heart as hard as iron.

"Recently, I've been a bit sentimental. Is it because I'm getting older? Or is it the influence of a heart demon?" Wei Shizhi shook his head, driving the杂thoughts out of his mind. He placed his thumb and index finger in his mouth and whistled sharply, the sound echoing through the treetops. He listened carefully, and in the wind, he faintly heard a low, desperate howl of a wolf. If not for his improved cultivation and enhanced hearing, he would not have noticed it.

"My old friend is in trouble!" Wei Shizhi leaped up and rushed in the direction of the blue wolf, his dantian's energy surging continuously, the whistle cutting through the mountain peak, extending for several miles in an instant.

In the dense forest, the blue wolf was engaged in a life-or-death struggle with a large tiger with a white forehead and black stripes.

The tiger, in terms of strength and agility, was superior to the blue wolf. With one pounce, it pinned its opponent to the ground, opening its blood-stained mouth to bite at the throat. The blue wolf curled its body in time, kicking with its hind legs, striking the tiger's soft abdomen. The tiger, in pain, roared and rolled to the side, rising up with its tail raised, striking the blue wolf's waist with a lightning-fast slash.

The wolf's waist, known as the "copper head, iron feet, and reed waist," was its weakest point. The blue wolf, severely injured, whimpered and lay on the ground, ready to be killed. The tiger, triumphant, was about to bite its opponent to death when it suddenly heard heavy footsteps behind it. A person, like a galloping horse, appeared in an instant.

The tiger did not turn around, pressing its front paws to the ground and lifting its waist. Wei Shizhi, prepared, suddenly stopped, leaning forward, his feet firmly planted on the ground. The tiger's attack narrowly missed him, passing by his side.

"Whoosh!" A sound, and an iron rod smashed down on the tiger's head. The tiger's fur bristled, and it roared, raising its front paws to meet the attack, but they were broken by the force of the blow.

"Ah!" Wei Shizhi was surprised. The tiger with the white forehead and black stripes was clearly no ordinary creature, able to withstand his full-force iron rod attack.

With its front paws broken and its bones bent, the tiger, now fearful, its eyes wide and bleeding, opened its mouth and roared, feigning a fierce appearance. It then kicked with its hind legs and turned to run.

Wei Shizhi was momentarily stunned, but the tiger had already fled over ten yards. It moved through the forest like a fish in water, turning and dodging, hiding behind trees to avoid its opponent's sight.

"Coward!" Wei Shizhi, seeing the tiger's robust build, weighing several hundred pounds, was suddenly motivated. The earth qi from his acupoints surged out, all infused into the iron rod.

He took a few steps forward, clearly seeing his target, and with a loud cry, he swung his arm, using the "Heaven and Earth Throw" from the Mad Stick Technique, hurling the iron rod with all his might. The iron rod flew out, turning into a streak of black light, piercing through three trees, and striking the tiger's hindquarters. The force was extraordinary, piercing through the tiger's intestines from its anus.

No matter how much the tiger had trained its body, it could not train its anus. It roared in pain, jumping three feet high, and fell heavily to the ground, breathing its last.

Wei Shizhi rushed forward, stepping on the tiger's hindquarters, pulling out the remaining short iron rod, and beating the tiger's head until it was dead.

The blue wolf, lying on the ground, gasping for breath, struggled to stand up and slowly moved to Wei Shizhi's side, sniffing the iron rod and turning its head in disgust.

Wei Shizhi laughed heartily, saying, "Blue, you're really a wimp. You can only bully a few rats, and you can't even beat a tiger!" The blue wolf bared its teeth, looking very不服气 (unconvinced).

Wei Shizhi casually swung the iron rod, feeling more confident about his journey to the Ghost Gate Abyss.