Chapter 15

"No matter what, let's go back first. The mysterious force behind it is likely still focusing on tracking that demoness and has no time to deal with other matters."

Wei He thought for a moment, gritted his teeth, and turned around again.

In the mountains, he used the moonlight to quickly return to the original spot, where he saw a pack of wolves feasting on the corpse.

From a distance, he could only see that the body had been torn apart and was being devoured by the hungry wolves.

Each of these wolves was over a meter long, with glowing green eyes and a coat of black fur, making them look quite terrifying.

Wei He watched until the wolves carried away the remains of the corpse, and a group of mole-like animals rushed to lick the blood on the ground.

Only then did he quietly turn around and head down the mountain.

When he returned to the escort team, the group was just beginning to gather, preparing to return quickly.

Although it was dark, which made it more dangerous, the group moved much faster without the cargo.

Without the cargo, the likelihood of being robbed was also much lower, and the escort team members were visibly more relaxed.

Wei He pretended to have been out for a walk, and although his whereabouts were unknown, few people paid attention to him.

The older escort team member, however, noticed but deliberately pretended not to know.

These days, everyone only cared about their own problems and not others'. Sometimes, caring too much just brought trouble.

The team lingered for a while before slowly making their way back with torches.

What puzzled Wei He was that it was rare for a team to travel at night, and even more strange was that Feiye City didn't close its gates at night.

The escort team made their way back, chatting and laughing, as if the cargo they had previously transported was quite troublesome. Now that it was unloaded, they felt much lighter.

The journey was uneventful, and they arrived at the foot of Feiye City.

The city gates were indeed closed, and the only thing visible in the darkness was the torches moving along the city walls.

But soon, someone in the team shouted a few words.

The city gates slowly opened a crack, allowing the team to enter slowly.

Wei He suppressed his surprise and remained silent until they entered the city gates, then he let out a sigh of relief.

"How about it? Do you find it strange?" Chen Shiniu asked with a smile. As they were about to disband, he didn't hide his curiosity and asked directly.

"A bit," Wei He nodded. Wasn't it said that wild beasts roamed at night, making it very dangerous?

"There's a saying that there are many wild beasts at night, making it easy to be attacked, so one should travel during the day. This is true, but it depends on the place," Chen Shiniu said with a smile.

"Our escort this time was mostly near the city, with few bandits and even fewer wild beasts. So this job was actually quite easy."

If that was the case, why did someone pay to hire an escort for such a short distance? Wouldn't it be the same to deliver it themselves?

Wei He kept this doubt to himself.

No matter how strange this escort job was, he would still get paid in the end.

Soon, the team leader announced that everyone should go to the main office the next day to collect their pay.

Then they dispersed.

Wei He didn't delay and hurried home.

He still vividly remembered the people from the Sato Sect he encountered that night.

At home, he quickly washed up and lay down, falling into a deep sleep.

He woke up at dawn, got up, and instead of going to the Hui Shan Quan courtyard, he went to the escort office early to collect his share of the pay.

He then hid it at home, changed into different clothes, and headed to the Hui Shan Quan courtyard.

Peng.

Wei He deflected Cheng Shaohou's punch, lowered his head, and countered with a right hook.

The punch was easily deflected.

The two exchanged blows, their fists pausing and then suddenly attacking.

Driven by their qi and blood, their movements were much faster than those of ordinary people.

Before long, Wei He couldn't keep up and was lightly hit by a hook, stumbling back two steps, almost falling.

"Alright, why are you so excited today? Your punches are much stronger than usual," Cheng Shaohou said, wiping the sweat from his forehead.

Today, Wei He's punches were more cunning and decisive than usual.

If it weren't for his practice in the small group, he might not have been able to keep up with Wei He's reactions.

Many times, he thought Wei He would use the third move of Hui Shan Quan, but Wei He suddenly jumped and used the fifth move.

This lack of rhythm made Cheng Shaohou quite uncomfortable.

Wei He stepped back and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

He recalled his fight with the tracker, who, despite being blinded and nearly exhausted, could still hold on for so long.

"Third Brother, how do you deal with real combat? What if you encounter an opponent much stronger than you?"

He suddenly asked.

"Ha... Well, come to my training ground later, and I'll explain in detail," Cheng Shaohou said, slightly surprised by the question.

But from Wei He's recent actions, he realized that his junior brother had reached a certain stage.

Every martial artist, after mastering their techniques, would start to think about how to fight in real combat.

"Although Master Zheng has explained how to deal with various opponents, environments, and situations, there are some things that can't be fully understood just by talking. I'll explain in detail later," Cheng Shaohou said mysteriously.

Wei He nodded, realizing that in this courtyard, many of his fellow disciples had their own secrets.

These secrets, or personal techniques, were usually the result of years of practice and experience.

But few chose to teach them to others.

If Third Brother was willing to teach him, perhaps...

Wei He's heart stirred, and he began to drink water, rest, and then switch to practicing with others.

He no longer mentioned the request for guidance.

Cheng Shaohou also acted as if nothing had happened and went to practice with other, stronger seniors.

Eldest Brother Zhao Hong was also there, so he went to practice with Zhao Hong.

Throughout the day, Wei He's mind was preoccupied with the fight with the tracker.

He knew that although his qi and blood were inferior to the tracker's, there was no reason why the tracker, who was both qi and blood depleted and blind, couldn't be quickly defeated.

He only won by ambushing the tracker.

At noon, after eating and resting, he couldn't sleep and stood in front of the wooden stakes, pondering the matter.

In the afternoon, after the training session ended, Cheng Shaohou took him and they continued to ride in a carriage to the Cheng residence.

They took off their coats and stood in the training ground, with no one else around.

Cheng Shaohou then smiled and said, "I see you've been distracted all day, thinking about this?"

"Yes," Wei He nodded, seeing no reason to hide it. "To be honest, I took a job at Changfeng Escort Office to familiarize myself with the situation. When I arrived at the destination, I wandered around and encountered bandits. I realized I lack a lot in real combat."

"Of course, just being taught by a teacher won't make you a good fighter," Cheng Shaohou said, lightly stomping his feet to warm up.

"I've learned a key point in the small group recently," he said with a smile.

"What key point?" Wei He blurted out but then felt it was inappropriate to ask about the small group's experience.

Seemingly understanding his thoughts, Cheng Shaohou shook his head, "Don't worry, this is something I figured out myself and doesn't require anyone else's approval."

He slowly walked around, not speaking for a while, as if warming up.

Wei He waited for him to explain, but seeing him walk back and forth with a smile, he didn't speak.

He knew from his time with Master Zheng that the old man enjoyed waiting for others to ask questions.

He loved seeing people get anxious and not speaking until they were desperate.

The more anxious people got, the happier he was.

This was a rather unpleasant habit.

Sure enough, after a while, Cheng Shaohou, not as patient as Master Zheng, couldn't hold back.

"Ah, since you're so eager to hear, I'll explain in detail," he sighed, pretending to continue naturally.

"Thank you, Brother," Wei He immediately followed, bowing.

Cheng Shaohou, feeling a bit annoyed, but not wanting to be petty, said, "In real combat, the most important thing is your eyesight."

"Eyesight?"

"Exactly, it's about observation, first and foremost."

Cheng Shaohou clarified, "Observe your opponent, judge their type."

"First, roughly determine their type: are they good at punches, kicks, or weapons? If they use weapons, what kind of weapons?"

"You need to understand that those skilled with weapons are much more dangerous than ordinary people. No matter how hard our punches are, we would be at a disadvantage against sharp weapons. So, you must predict."

"But the prediction I'm talking about isn't just this. The more you practice, the more you'll understand. The key point I want to emphasize is intimidation."

Cheng Shaohou's expression became serious.

"I've heard from my father and brothers that true experts pay great attention to qi and opportunity during combat."

"Qi and opportunity?" Wei He felt a bit abstract.

"Exactly, it sounds mysterious, but in simple terms, it's about momentum and opportunity," Cheng Shaohou smiled. "Imagine if I had dozens of servants with crossbows behind me, would you dare to use your full strength against me?"

Wei He suddenly understood.

"Is this what you mean by qi and opportunity?"

"Exactly, this is momentum. I'm not entirely clear about it, but when my father and brothers gave me examples, they used this one. I'm repeating it to you verbatim."

"The stronger your eyesight, the more details you can see about your opponent, the better you can grasp the combat, and the less likely you are to make mistakes."

"Qi and opportunity, in essence, is about making your opponent unable to use their full strength, while you try to use your maximum strength. Strike the weak with the strong, and you will win!"

"Strike the weak with the strong..." Wei He's eyes lit up, as if he had grasped something.

He had always been doing this.

That's why he won.

When he killed Chen Biao and the tracker at Mingde Temple, it was the same.

The tracker was stronger than him, and if they faced each other directly, he would have died.

But the tracker ended up dead because he weakened the tracker first.

So, the winner is the one who uses any means necessary to weaken the opponent and strengthen themselves.

Wei He suddenly understood.

He bowed deeply to Cheng Shaohou in gratitude.

"Thank you, Brother!"

"You understand?" Cheng Shaohou smiled, clearly not knowing what his junior brother had grasped.

"I understand," Wei He nodded.