Xiao Jin hurriedly shook his head. “Not at all, not at all.”
The two stood there like that; for a mont, the surroundings were sowhat quiet.
Lu Fengmian glanced at the patch of ground Xiao Jin had flattened with his training and said,
“I watched your punches for quite a while just now.”
Xiao Jin froze, his cheeks instantly growing warm.
Had Senior Brother seen his clumsy, amateur technique?
“There are a few places,” Lu Fengmian withdrew his gaze and looked at him, “that could be improved.”
Xiao Jin was stunned.
Lu Fengmian stepped forward two paces, standing on the clearing, and raised his hand in demonstration.
“When throwing a punch, the force originates from the waist. That part is correct. But when retracting the punch, you withdraw your spiritual qi too quickly, which causes the next strike to lack follow-through.”
He demonstrated slowly, but each key point was crystal clear.
“Here, here—and this wrist rotation—these movents are all slightly sluggish.”
Xiao Jin stared at his every motion, his eyes gradually widening.
When practicing punches, he had always felt those specific spots were the most awkward.
He had trained for so long, always sensing sothing was off, yet unable to articulate it. Now, with a few words from Lu Fengmian, realization dawned on him.
So that was it. It should have been like this.
“How did you know…?” he blurted out.
Lu Fengmian turned his head. Seeing the shock and confusion on Xiao Jin’s face, he smiled gently.
“The flow of spiritual qi never lies.”
Xiao Jin looked at him blankly.
The flow of spiritual qi?
He could barely even sense the spiritual qi within his own body clearly, yet Senior Brother had seen through everything at a glance?
Was this the Golden Core stage?
Or was this simply… Senior Brother?
Lu Fengmian observed his expression, his smile deepening slightly.
“It’s evident you practice very diligently,” he said.
Xiao Jin’s eyelashes trembled.
“Diligence is not a bad thing,” Lu Fengmian continued, “but if you only bury your head in training without reflection, it’s easy to reach a bottleneck. Sotis, stopping to think is more useful than throwing another hundred punches.”
He closed his fan and gave Xiao Jin a small nod.
“Continue practicing.”
After saying that, he turned and walked out of the forest.
“Oh, right.”
He turned back.
Xiao Jin was still standing there, staring at him blankly.
Lu Fengmian’s gaze lingered briefly on the faded outer disciple robe Xiao Jin wore; the cuffs were already frayed.
“You can go to the Affairs Hall and receive a few more sets of outer disciple robes.”
Then he resud fanning himself and leisurely disappeared into the shifting tree shadows.
Xiao Jin stood there, watching the direction he had left, unmoving for a long ti.
Lu Fengmian strolled out of the forest unhurriedly. Only after he was certain Xiao Jin could no longer see him did he slow his steps.
His performance just now had been approachable without seeming deliberate, gentle yet elegant.
He had offered martial guidance and casually displayed concern for daily matters.
Full marks.
He scored himself internally.
This should count as Xiao Jin getting to know him.
The next ti they t, he would no longer be a “stranger encountered by chance,” but “that Senior Brother who gave guidance.”
Lu Fengmian fanned himself in a pleasant mood.
Next, both fronts needed to advance simultaneously.
On one hand, he would gradually build goodwill: occasionally passing by, occasionally offering pointers, occasionally exchanging a few words—letting everything appear natural.
On the other hand, he would inquire about news of the Chaos Sky Crystal.
Since that object was the key to activating the Primordial Myriad Manifestations ridians, it would surely leave behind certain traces.
What he needed to do was beco soone trustworthy before the clues appeared.
That way, when the ti ca and he said, “I know of a thod that can help you,” Xiao Jin would believe him.
Rather than suspect ulterior motives.
Lu Fengmian nodded, satisfied that the plan was thorough.
Sunlight filtered down, spilling across the mountain path, warm and pleasant.
*
In the following days, Lu Fengmian’s life remained busy.
Morning greetings, patrols at the martial arena, surprise inspections of the dining hall, coordination between various peaks, and occasionally dealing with Elder Shu’s ambushes and Elder Sun’s overly enthusiastic interceptions.
But in his daily route, one more path was added.
The secluded trail leading to the small forest.
Walking this path was not solely for the sake of “chance encounters” with Xiao Jin.
The more direct reason was—recently, there were simply too many rumors about him within the sect.
The Beast Taming Sect incident had barely subsided, and now the matter at Enlightennt Cliff had spread as well.
Nowadays, when he walked along the main peak’s path, it was like strolling through a garden; wherever he went, people stared. In the dining hall, he had not even sat for half a stick of incense before being surrounded by onlookers.
Outwardly calm and indifferent, inwardly Lu Fengmian only wished to find a quiet place to hide.
This small path was just right.
Remote, tranquil, rarely traveled.
It allowed him to avoid those overly fervent gazes—and conveniently see whether he might run into Xiao Jin.
Killing two birds with one stone.
Thus, he began walking this route daily.
Out of ten tis, he encountered Xiao Jin perhaps three or four.
After all, outer disciples had classes to attend.
They could not miss lectures from the Transmission Elder, had to participate in foundational swordsmanship lessons, and needed to prepare for the monthly assessnts. The ti Xiao Jin could spend practicing punches in this forest was actually limited.
But whenever he ran into him, Lu Fengmian would stop.
Sotis he rely cast a distant glance before continuing on his way.
Sotis he walked closer, nodded, said “Still practicing?” and then moved on.
At first, Xiao Jin had been tense and reserved, but gradually, he was able to respond normally.
“Senior Brother.”
“Mm. Good afternoon.”
The exchanges were brief, yet with increasing frequency, Xiao Jin grew less flustered than during their first eting.
Once, when Lu Fengmian passed by, he happened to see Xiao Jin puzzling over a newly learned move. He executed it several tis, always feeling sothing was off, frowning and adjusting repeatedly.
Lu Fengmian stood there for a mont before suddenly saying, “Relax your wrist a bit more.”
Xiao Jin froze, turning to look at him and hastily attempting to salute.
Lu Fengmian waved his hand, signaling him to continue.
Xiao Jin tried relaxing his wrist and threw another punch.
“Still too tense,” Lu Fengmian remarked.
Xiao Jin loosened it further.
This ti, the movent suddenly beca smooth.
He lowered his head to look at his hand, then raised his eyes toward Lu Fengmian.
Lu Fengmian had already turned away, leaving only a single sentence behind:
Practice more.
Another ti, Lu Fengmian passed by and saw Xiao Jin sitting on the ground drinking water, drenched in sweat, clearly having trained for so ti.
He took sothing from his sleeve and casually tossed it over.
Xiao Jin instinctively caught it. Looking down, he saw it was a spiritual fruit. It was small, but its peel shimred with spiritual light; at a glance, it was clearly not the common fruit served in the dining hall.
“Replenish your energy,” Lu Fengmian said without turning his head, rely waving a hand behind him.
Xiao Jin held the spiritual fruit, wanting to say sothing but unsure how to begin.
By the ti he regained his senses, the figure had already gone far away.
He looked down at the fruit in his hand, stared at it for a long while, then took a small bite.
It was very sweet.
On another occasion, the weather was poor, and it looked as though it would rain.
When Lu Fengmian passed the forest, he saw Xiao Jin still throwing punches there, with no intention of leaving.
He paused and looked up at the sky.
“It’s going to rain.”
Xiao Jin stopped punching as well, glancing up at the sky and nodding. “Mm.”
But he did not move, clearly intending to practice a while longer.
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