Chapter 19: The Soul Jolting Strike

An extreme sense of danger rushed through Chen Chuan’s entire body. His eyes flew wide open, and he felt as if electricity had just traveled down his spine. Everything seemed to have slowed down.

Then, before his body could react and just as the punch was about to touch his skin, Yu Gang stopped.

“Remember that feeling, and remember how your body reacted. Then, use your breathing technique to try and stir up the cycle of your qi and blood until they reach that state. Once you learn it, you’ll be able to land a stronger blow than usual,” Yu Gang said.

Chen Chuan calmed his breathing and heart rate. Just then, he noticed that his back was a little sticky from sweat. Even if he knew that his second self could absorb all injuries and Yu Gang would not actually hit him, his body had instinctively gone into fight-or-flight mode. The punch had been so fast that even if he overlapped with his second self, he would not have been able to dodge it.

Chen Chuan exhaled slowly and looked up. “Got it. By the way, what’s this attack called, Mr. Yu?”

“In old martial arts, this is called the Soul Jolting Strike. You can shock your own and other people’s souls with it. In new martial arts, this is called the Limit Breaking Strike. This attack isn’t limited to a straight punch. It can be delivered in any form. But remember: If you’re going to put real power into your attack when you’re practicing it, never strike empty air. You must have something to hit, or you’re going to dislocate a joint. Whether or not you master this attack depends on you. I’m only responsible for telling you about it. Alright, go practice. Remember to close the door behind you.”

“Okay,” Chen Chuan replied.

When he was about to shut the door, Yu Gang said, “Also, you need to pay for the torn punching bag.”

Chen Chuan froze for a moment. “Alright, Mr. Yu.”

He did not think he was shortchanged for being asked to pay for the punching bag. After all, he learned a powerful technique. He even considered it a steal.

Chen Chuan went to the first floor and headed straight to a practice dummy. Once he stood in front of it, he quietly recalled the feeling he had earlier.

That technique could not be honed through incremental training. It was an explosive strike, triggered by delivering a violent shock to oneself.

Chen Chuan had just experienced the attack, so his memory was still fresh. It was the perfect time to test it.

But just remembering the feeling was useless. He had to use his breathing technique to kick his qi and blood into overdrive and throw all caution to the wind when he struck.

Chen Chuan stared at the practice dummy for a while before he suddenly kicked it. The practice dummy trembled violently.

He lowered his leg slowly. Even though he managed to get into the right state, it was hard to use the breathing technique to push his qi and blood into overdrive. It felt as if there was a wall pushing him back.

Since this amount of strength could only be triggered in a life-and-death situation, his body rejected summoning so much strength without actual danger.

Chen Chuan could not help but remember Mr. Wen asking the constables to stand on one leg when he visited the Constabulary. Just like the constables back then, Chen Chuan had to fight against himself.

He decided to try one more time.

He first stood silently and motionlessly. After a while, his neck and face suddenly turned red. He then stomped forward and executed a Coiling Palm Lift. With a thud, the heavy practice dummy jumped up. It even startled Lu Ke, who was training nearby.

Chen Chuan took a step back and exhaled, but he still felt that something was missing.

It didn’t matter, though. As long as he became familiar with how to use the breathing technique to get to that state and had the willpower to do so, he was sure that he could break through the resistance in his mind.

When he wanted to try again, Yu Gang spoke up. “Don’t practice it every day. Not only will it put a strain on your body, but it might also negatively impact your other attacks. Stop for now. It’s better for you to not master it than to rush into it recklessly and fail.”

Chen Chuan could not tell Yu Gang that he was not worried about getting injured, so he decided to set aside practicing the technique for the time being. He would do it after he went back home.

Lu Ke could sense that Chen Chuan’s attack had been stronger than any of his attacks before. He ran over to check on the practice dummy before he looked up and said, “It’s okay.”

“If it gets damaged, I’ll just ask him to pay for it,” Yu Gang deadpanned.

Lu Ke scratched his head.

Chen Chuan didn’t dwell on the attack any further and decided to continue with his regular training, only to find all parts of his body aching. He seemed to be in a slightly worse condition.

This was likely due to him pulling his muscles and putting a strain on his organs.

His second self could absorb damage, but it did not automatically absorb what Chen Chuan dealt to himself. That was because his mind was his alone, and only he had the authority to decide how to take care of his own body, even if he decided to injure it.

After realizing this fact, Chen Chuan willed for his injuries to be transferred, and his body became lighter again.

Once the afternoon training ended, he packed up, bade goodbye to Yu Gang and Lu Ke, and left the Domain of Fists.

On the way back, he tried to use the breathing technique to push his qi and blood into overdrive again. In truth, during the training in the afternoon, he had attempted it repeatedly, but it had been a while since his last attempt. When he tried it again, he felt as if he came into contact with something, and all that was left for him to do was to throw the punch.

But he needed a suitable target, and he might even need to try it a few times, since he was finally in the correct state. He considered going back.

It would not do, though. Yu Gang was not going to let him.

Suddenly, he remembered that there was a Heroic General School ahead of him. Even though it was not the one advertised on the flyer Liang Tong gave him, it should be the same. The important part was that it was close.

Chen Chuan ran towards it.

It only took him around six minutes to find the martial arts school. The place was located in the middle of the only commercial street in the western part of the city. A large billboard with the words “Heroic General” hung above the door. There were neon lights on both sides of the door, making the place really eye-catching.

But this place was an old neighborhood in the western part of the city. The road was old. Pedestrians and cars often walked or drove down the road all crammed together. A chaotic mess of bicycle bells and horns filled the air.

Chen Chuan went in through the door and immediately saw a flight of stairs leading up. When he arrived on the second floor, he walked past a lighted partition with a huge training center behind it. A bright highbay light hung on the ceiling. The walls looked rough and had no paint or plaster on them, but they had all sorts of recruitment posters portraying people executing various cool moves on them. The place was also cleaned up nicely. At that moment, a dozen people were working out inside. Some of them wore martial art uniforms and protective gear while they sparred.

A young man in his twenties was munching on a drumstick while sitting on a tire. When he saw Chen Chuan’s unfamiliar face, he quickly swallowed the food, wiped his hands, and asked, “Here to learn how to fight, kid?”

“I saw your flyer and heard that you offer the first week of lessons for free so that I can see what it's like here. That’s why I came here to take a look,” Chen Chuan replied.

“Sure. Take a look around. I’m Liang Fang, but everyone calls me Liang. If you want to use any of the equipment, you have to tell me first. Don’t misunderstand. I’m just worried that you’ll get hurt using it by yourself, so I need to keep an eye on you.”

Chen Chuan took a look around before pointing at a punching bag by the side. “Can I use that one?”

“Sure. Use it to your heart’s content,” Liang Fang said generously.

Chen Chuan was about to go over when he stopped. “By the way, if I accidentally tear it, I’ll pay for it.”

Liang Fang looked at him like he had cracked a bad joke. He glared at him and said, “We’re a proper martial arts school, kid, not a scam. We opened up to satisfy our customers. Let me put it this way: Hit the punching bag however you want. As long as you’re not here to cause trouble, we’ll accept the loss even if you really end up tearing it.”

“Thanks, then.” Chen Chuan nodded. He went to a corner and tried punching the bag a few times.

Liang Fang watched him for a while, but did not take him seriously. The business of the martial arts school was pretty good. Many office workers and students nearby learned martial arts in it. Some also came for opportunities to watch the internal sparring sessions in the evening.

Liang Fang could tell that Chen Chuan had come out of curiosity to see what the fuss was about. Even if he did not end up learning martial arts at their school, they would not turn him away. No matter what, he could increase their popularity, even if it was only by a little. While if he started to come often, he might even end up becoming a real customer.

Since the school was going to get an influx of customers soon, Liang Fang needed to fill up his stomach and went to the side to continue eating his drumstick.

Chen Chuan stood in front of the punching bag and breathed repeatedly with his eyes shut as he recalled the feeling from before. When he felt that he was in the fight-or-flight state again, he opened his eyes and threw a punch.

Half an hour later...

“Damn it! Someone must have punctured this! They'd better pray that I don’t catch them!” Liang Fang cursed up a storm.

A small part of the punching bag in front of him was torn. It was easy to overlook the tear just by looking at the punching bag. If the sand had not started spilling out when a customer used it, no one would have noticed it.

Right then, an instructor came closer. He had not been paying much attention to this in the beginning, since this was just a tiny matter, but when he saw the sand under the punching bag and heard what Liang Fang said, he observed the punching bag carefully. Suddenly, he thought that something was off and walked over.

“Mr. Gu,” Liang Fang greeted him upon seeing him.

Gu Mao turned the punching bag around and saw a fist-sized hole, its edges torn and jagged. This was the reason for the sand spilling out.

“What the...”

Liang Fang was quite shocked. He could tell that the punching bag had exploded from within, which meant no one had punctured it.

As Gu Mao scrutinized the hole, his expression became stern. Only people who had managed to learn refined force could pull off such an attack. But why did they do that? It did not seem like a challenge.

“Who used the punching bag?” he asked.

Liang Fang thought about it and patted his head. “The first one was a pretty handsome teenager. He even said that he would pay if he tore the punching bag. Yes. It should’ve been him!”

Gu Mao thought,

A student? Could he be from Martial Valor University?

“If he comes back, tell me, and be polite,” he said.

Liang Fang agreed. “You know me, Gu Mao. I’m always polite to our customers.”

Chen Chuan had already returned home. He was still pretty excited, because he had finally delivered a successful Limit Breaking Strike.

He also realized that he had only managed to pick it up so quickly because he did not have to fear any sort of consequences due to his second self. He was not lying to himself either; this was a fact. The continuous practicing in the afternoon had allowed him to make his body move according to his will.

Unfortunately, he was unable to tear the punching bag in the martial arts school, like Yu Gang had done in the Domain of Fists. The punching bag had to be of high quality, and Chen Chuan probably still lacked strength. It seemed like he needed to increase the intensity of his training even further.