pertwk Chapter 69 Mutual Affection
Chapter 69 Mutual Affection
I don't know how much time passed.
It could be a fleeting moment, or it could be a very long time.
Lin Mu's fingers were finally able to move.
The fingertips regained sensation first, then the wrists, then the forearms. The body-strengthening technique slowly circulated within the body, dispersing and expelling the residual internal energy from the meridians bit by bit.
He took out a porcelain bottle from his pocket, flicked the stopper with his thumb, and swallowed two Qi and Blood Pills together.
The medicinal power exploded in my stomach, and the scalding heat flowed through my meridians into my dantian.
He slowly stood up, supporting himself on the old locust tree trunk. His legs were still trembling, and every step felt like stepping on a knife's edge.
The palm print on his chest had turned a deep purple with bluish-black edges, and every breath he took was excruciatingly painful.
Ling Feng was also moving amidst the fragments of the boundary marker.
He braced himself on the ground with one hand, trying to stand up, his right arm hanging limply at his side, the lingering force of the punch still raging through his meridians.
He looked up, and Lin Mu's figure was reflected in his dark pupils.
Lin Muzheng limped toward him.
Lin Mu walked up to Ling Feng and stopped.
Then he raised his right foot and crushed Ling Feng's chest cavity with one stomp.
Ling Feng's body jolted violently, and the light in his pupils quickly dimmed.
……
When Lin Mu staggered and pushed open the courtyard gate, a faint bluish-gray tinge had already appeared on the horizon.
He sat cross-legged under the old pear tree and put the last two Qi and Blood Pills from the porcelain bottle into his mouth.
As the medicine took effect in his stomach, he leaned against the tree trunk and closed his eyes.
The body-strengthening technique circulated slowly within the body, gradually dispersing the residual energy in the meridians.
In today's battle with Ling Feng, Lin Mu discovered that his punches were not as powerful as he had imagined.
With Yan Hua's talent, once he reaches the Transformation Realm, he will be much stronger than Ling Feng.
To defeat him, we need to improve further.
......
The next day, the gong sounded again in the drill ground.
Lin Mu's opponent was a rogue cultivator with the Ming Jin skill.
The referee waved his hand, and he dodged the opponent's punch by sidestepping, sending the man out of the ring with a swift and clean shove.
After that, he would sit in front of the Zhenhe Gang's gate to observe, but he no longer easily replicated it.
Space is limited and should be reserved for the best martial arts.
All the battles today proceeded as planned, and all the seeds advanced, but the atmosphere was very tense.
It was just like a harbinger of an impending storm.
......
As evening approached, a junior disciple ran breathlessly into the courtyard, saying that the master had asked him to return to the martial arts school.
After greeting his second uncle, Lin Youfu, Lin Mu headed towards Changfeng Martial Arts School.
When he pushed open the door to the main hall, the scene inside was much grander than he had expected.
Master Hu sat in a grand chair, holding a cup of tea in his hand, which had already cooled down considerably.
Zou Wanruo stood on the left, her hands tucked into her sleeves, her lips pressed tightly together.
Yan Hua stood on the right, dressed in white as snow, and the moment his gaze was fixed on Lin Mu, he brought a powerful sense of oppression.
That was the result of breaking through the barrier of internal energy transformation.
Liu Qing stood in the corner, her head bowed low, her hands twisting in front of her, as if she wished she could shrink into a crack in the wall.
Master Hu set down his teacup, the sound of it tapping softly on the table. "Lin Mu, I've called you here today because of a private matter."
He paused, then said, "It's as if we're mutually in love, is that really true?"
"Really," Lin Mu answered quickly.
Zou Wanru lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembled slightly, and a faint blush rose to the base of her ears.
To an uninformed person, this would undoubtedly be seen as the embarrassment of a young woman having her secrets exposed in public.
Master Hu nodded and turned to Yan Hua.
Without saying a word, Yan Hua threw a punch.
The white-clad figure left a trail of afterimages in the candlelight of the main hall, his right palm slashing straight towards Lin Mu's throat.
This palm strike was delivered without any restraint; the edge of the palm was wrapped with the force of neutralizing internal energy, and the air was torn apart with a sharp hissing sound.
Zou Wanruo gasped in surprise, Liu Qing leaned back against the wall, and the teacup in Master Hu's hand suddenly stopped in mid-air.
Lin Mu slammed his left foot into the ground, unleashing a burst of speed with his sudden wind steps, propelling him backward like an arrow released from a bow.
He slammed the door of the main hall open with his back, and amidst flying splinters of wood, he retreated to the front yard.
Yan Hua followed him like a shadow.
The white-clad figure traced an arc in the moonlight, his right palm relentlessly pursuing Lin Mu's chest.
Lin Mu used his Wind Steps to dodge left and right on the blue brick ground in the front yard, narrowly avoiding Yan Hua's palm strike with each change of direction.
His palm swept across the old locust tree trunk in the front yard, causing the bark to crack and wood chips to fly everywhere.
The weapon rack was overturned by the strong wind generated by the two people, and the swords and spears were scattered all over the ground.
Several blue bricks in the corner of the courtyard were crushed, and the fragments splashed and crackled on the pillars.
Zou Wanruo stopped at the door, her hands gripping the door frame, her knuckles turning white.
Behind her, Liu Qing looked even worse than her, her lips trembling as she tried to say something, but the night wind that had been forced into her mouth blocked her words.
Lin Mu suddenly noticed a detail while dodging.
Every time Yan Hua caught up with him, it was when they were within three steps of each other.
Within three steps, Yan Hua's palm strikes could sweep across his clothes, and his fists and kicks would force him to block.
If Yan Hua takes more than three steps, he must close in before making a move, and that brief gap is enough for him to create distance again.
He recalled the unexpected punch Ling Feng threw last night.
The neutralizing force seems to have a certain range of effect, probably only a few feet in front of the body.
The thought flashed through his mind, and he made his decision.
When the Wind-Stepping Technique is pushed to its limit, the whole person is like a leaf swept up by a gale, drifting aimlessly on the blue brick ground in the front yard.
Yan Hua's palm strikes followed him like a shadow, each time narrowly missing his clothes, tearing several rips in the fabric on his shoulders, but never managing to leave a solid mark.
The two chased each other from the eaves to the moon gate, and from the moon gate to the center of the courtyard. Along the way, three weapon racks were overturned, and a water vat in the corner of the wall was cracked by the force of the palm strike, with water gushing out from the crack.
When Yan Hua closed to within three steps again, Lin Mu did not retreat.
He pushed off the ground with his right foot, and his left palm pierced the air to meet the attack, with a punch and a palm striking each other in the air.
The muffled sound was like the beating of a drum. The palm force of the neutralizing energy penetrated into his body. Lin Mu used the force of the shock to float back five steps. His heels rubbed two white marks on the blue brick ground. The remaining force of the neutralizing energy was scattered layer by layer on the air membrane.
Yan Hua frowned slightly and caught up with him again.
Lin Mu used another gust of wind to push back, widening the distance between them once again.
He was like a spider coiled on its web, quietly waiting for the next attack.
The third palm strike, the fourth palm strike, the fifth palm strike...
In each exchange, Lin Mu deliberately controlled his stance to use leverage rather than forcefully retaliate.
He also wanted to see just how wide Yan Hua's neutralizing force range was, how long it could last, and whether it would change as his strength was depleted.
This discovery is crucial for all the powerful opponents he will face next.
The two entangled in the front yard for dozens of breaths, and the debris on the blue brick floor accumulated more and more, making it dazzling to behold.
Master Hu glanced at the mess in the courtyard and lightly tapped his teacup against the door frame.
The sound wasn't loud, but it felt like an invisible hammer striking everyone's heart.
Taking advantage of the momentum, Lin Mu retreated several steps, slamming his left shoulder against a pillar to steady himself. The fabric of his clothes on his shoulder was already torn, revealing large patches of purplish-blue skin.
Yan Hua's right palm hovered in mid-air, with a lingering trace of internal energy still remaining on the edge of his palm.