Chapter 58: The Waters Run Deep

After Li Chongjun finished speaking, he reached out and tore open the clothes of a corpse, pointing to the calluses on its shoulder and forehead. "See here? Only those who wear helmets and armor year after year are marked with such calluses. Ordinary martial artists may wield blades and spears daily, but it's unlikely they'd parade through the town clad in armor. That's how I recognized these men as border troops."

Zi Wuzhu pondered for a long while before saying slowly, "Jun'er, since even the border army is entangled in this affair, you must be cautious when you return to Chang'an."

Li Chongjun bowed. "Thank you for your guidance, Master. I will be vigilant. Still, once I return to Chang'an, I am my father's rightful heir. They won't dare act recklessly."

"Yes, caution brings lasting safety. Do not underestimate the situation. If matters become unmanageable, return to Tianshan," Zi Wuzhu advised.

Li Chongyuan added, "So, the masked man must also be from the imperial court. His swordsmanship was astonishingly swift."

Zi Wuzhu replied, "All martial arts, whatever their school, emphasize speed. The saying goes: 'No move is unbreakable, only speed is unbreakable.' If you are fast enough to outpace your opponent's reactions, he cannot deploy even the most ingenious techniques. But the interpretation of speed differs between internal and external schools. Internal styles focus on explosive inner strength, external styles on the power of sinew and bone. Though the paths diverge, ultimately, it all comes back to agility. Yet that man, while swift, was not quick in movement, but in footwork!"

Li Chongjun and Li Chongyuan exchanged glances, uncertain of the difference between agile movement and clever footwork. Zi Wuzhu smiled. "That man surprised me greatly; I hadn't expected anyone in the world to possess such extraordinary lightness skills. However, after exchanging over a dozen sword moves, I discerned his secret. His swordsmanship and agility are both superb, but still not enough to achieve such an illusory effect. As I said, internal speed is about inner force, external speed about physical strength, but his speed belongs to neither school—it has another mystery entirely. It's not mere lightness skill, but a technique derived from the art of Divination and Evasion, enabling him to shift and create illusions. In fact, it’s not that his movements are fast, but his footwork is unusual, always landing just outside the line of sight, in blind spots. This creates the illusion that his lightness skill outpaces the eye. Such footwork is unlike any martial school. Fortunately, my own skills have improved over the years; otherwise, pure movement speed would not match his footwork, and I would have been at a disadvantage throughout."

At this point, Zi Wuzhu suddenly paused, then said, "This reminds me: that man may have some connection to Tianshan."

Li Chongjun asked, "Master, I have never heard of such a figure in Tianshan. Why do you say he might be related to Tianshan?"

Zi Wuzhu gave a bitter smile. "This goes back a hundred years. There was a remarkable man named Zhi Li Yi, originally the chief astrologer of Northern Zhou, deeply versed in Divination and Evasion. In the chaotic final years of Northern Zhou, his vast learning was of little use—he was but a scholar incapable of wielding a blade, and could only watch helplessly as his family was slaughtered and his estate destroyed by marauding soldiers. Yet he was truly gifted. He had never mingled with martial artists, but for his health, he had learned a few basic moves from palace guards. In his anguish, he glimpsed the whole from a part and ingeniously derived a martial art from Divination and Evasion. Lacking any foundation in martial arts, he abandoned inner power, relying solely on technique. His palm methods targeted blind spots, impossible to defend, and his footwork moved beyond the eye’s reach.

He created this art with vengeance in mind, never naming it. Perhaps for him, its name was unimportant—what mattered was that he used it to slay several enemy generals and avenge his family.

Afterward, he retired to Tianshan and later took on two disciples: Zhu Pingman, the elder, and Shan Qianjin, the younger. Both were diligent, but this art was rooted in profound Divination and Evasion, requiring wit and insight rather than mere effort. Sadly, their talents only allowed them to grasp half of their master's skill.

The elder mastered the palm technique, the younger excelled in footwork. The elder believed that with such an unpredictable palm, he could defeat any foe, and that footwork was only useful for escape, of no value. The younger insisted that with ever-changing footwork, no opponent could harm him, and he could find openings to strike fatal blows, even with the simplest palm technique paired with such footwork. Both had points, but the brothers were deeply at odds, stubborn and proud, neither yielding. After Zhi Li Yi's death, they fought in the mourning hall to prove their superiority, both suffering grave injuries.

Afterward, Zhu Pingman secluded himself on Tianshan, never leaving, while Shan Qianjin departed in anger, wandering the world and never returning. When Zhu Pingman grew old, the fledgling Tianshan School cared for him in his later years.

Zhu Pingman, unwilling to let his master's legacy die and grateful for Tianshan's kindness, passed the palm technique to the Tianshan School.

The palm technique itself was brilliant, and combined with Tianshan's inner power, its force increased severalfold. Because it was so fierce and strange, scholars named it the Ten Directions Paramita Formless Palm, seeking to use Buddhist philosophy to temper its aggression. As for the eminent monk Master Tan Jing of Shaolin calling it the Jieli Maha Soul-Shattering Hand, that was decades later.

As for Shan Qianjin, he vanished without a trace, believed dead and his footwork lost. Yet today, we have seen that footwork again—proving that Shan Qianjin has another disciple and his legacy endures. A cause for celebration!"

Li Chongyuan sighed, "When I heard the name Ten Directions Paramita Formless Palm, I thought it was derived from Buddhist scriptures. I never imagined such a story lay behind it."

Zi Wuzhu said, "At the time it was named, all the major martial schools were embroiled in a struggle between good and evil. Divination and Evasion is difficult to classify—if acquired by the virtuous, it aids kings and cultivates the people, ushering in peace; in the hands of the wicked, it brings disaster and chaos. If word got out that this art was based on Divination and Evasion, it would have stirred upheaval in the martial world. So it was claimed that this skill was created through meditative study of Buddhist scriptures—a convenient way for Shaolin, as the martial world's pillar, to avoid condemning it as an evil art. It was, in truth, an expedient response from our predecessors."

Li Chongjun asked, "Do you know the origin of that man, Master?" Zi Wuzhu shook his head. "His martial arts are excellent, and his skill is first-rate, but I have never seen him before. It is strange—there are few in the world with such prowess. He cannot be unknown, so why have I never met him?"

Li Chongjun said, "Could he be one of the Four Famous Swords?"

Zi Wuzhu replied, "You have all fought Ghost Sword Han Qinghua. If it were him, you would surely recognize him. I know Chen Jin well; it can't be him. As for Zhao Sishen, I have never met him and do not know him. It is said that he never leaves opponents alive, so I know nothing of his skills. His ruthless methods place him among the evil schools, but as a government official, he is feared in the martial world and never discussed. But now, with elite border troops involved, if that man were Zhao Sishen, it would not be surprising. Jun'er, when you go to Chang'an, you must take extra care. His sword technique and inner power are not so threatening, but his footwork is difficult to guard against. If you understand its principle, you can avoid it. When I fought him, it was very difficult at first, but later I discerned the pattern—it's the Gang Step from Divination and Evasion, and so I could gradually counter him. You have studied Daoist classics on Tianshan and should be familiar with hexagrams. Divination and Evasion deals with Rest, Life, Injury, Crossing, Scene, Death, Shock, and Opening, known as the Outer Eight Trigrams, and the Inner Eight Trigrams are Qian, Kan, Gen, Zhen, Xun, Li, Kun, Dui. Knowing the Eight Trigrams means understanding Divination and Evasion. The two are deeply connected; you should reflect on them in your spare time."

With that, they walked back, Zi Wuzhu giving a concise account of the interplay of Divination and Evasion with the Five Elements and Eight Trigrams, their cycles of birth and destruction.

Li Chongyuan, having secretly practiced the Ten Directions Paramita Formless Palm, instantly grasped the key points—it was merely a matter of converting palm technique to footwork. Li Chongjun, however, was utterly confused.

But his mind was elsewhere. He would not remain a hero of the martial world, but become a royal prince. The palace's intrigues were won not with the sword, but with cunning. Though there is no flashing steel, the cruelty and bloodshed are far greater. That is the true art of killing without a trace.

Li Chongyuan could not help but wonder, "Ghost Sword Han Qinghua and Master are equally renowned, their skills matched. When I fought him, though I couldn't defeat him, we were not far apart. Senior Brother Li Jiu also faced Ghost Sword and was not overwhelmed, so perhaps Ghost Sword did not fight at full strength? But he has no reason to hold back—he has no ties to us. How strange!"

P.S.: My apologies, dear friends. I have been accompanying my daughter to a robotics competition in Zoucheng these past few days, so there have been no updates for two days.