Chapter Twenty-Three: You Know Absolutely Nothing About Power

Lan Tian had intended to take a short rest, but the situation was dire. Gravely wounded, he watched as the wild beasts closed in on him with swift steps, not giving him a moment to catch his breath.

Seeing their relentless aggression, Lan Tian's own ferocity was ignited. With a furious roar, he advanced instead of retreating, forcing himself to endure the pain as he charged at the beasts.

With a single punch, a wolf dropped dead instantly. Without hesitation, he struck again, sending a tiger flying a dozen meters with a whimper; it crashed to the ground and never moved again.

The more Lan Tian fought, the more his own savagery was unleashed. He ignored the pain the beasts inflicted on him, and disregarded his own agony. As long as a beast remained alive before him, he struck it down with his fist. Only when not a single living creature was left did he finally stop.

He then noticed plenty of rubble on the ground. He picked up a stone, gripped it in his hand, and fixed his gaze on an eagle circling overhead. With all his strength, he hurled the stone at the bird.

A piercing whistle cut through the air as the stone, propelled with great force, flew straight toward the eagle—only to miss its mark.

Lan Tian was speechless.

Though frustrated, he was not discouraged. He refrained from throwing blindly and instead waited with the stone in hand. When an eagle swooped down, he seized the opportunity and flung the stone at close range.

At such a short distance, the eagle had no chance of dodging the stone, which now carried tremendous force. One after another, the eagles fell, becoming casualties at Lan Tian’s hands.

"Mission complete. Time used: thirteen minutes and twenty-one seconds!" The synthetic voice finally sounded again.

By the time Lan Tian had slain all the beasts, there was not a single unscathed spot on his body; he looked for all the world like a man soaked in blood.

As he relaxed, the intense stench of blood assailed his senses, making his stomach churn. He immediately doubled over, retching violently.

Bai looked at Lan Tian, who was vomiting uncontrollably, shook his head, and snapped his fingers.

To Lan Tian’s astonishment, his wounds began to vanish rapidly. In moments, his body was restored to its condition before the battle, even his clothes returning to their pristine state—completely unscathed!

“Pathetic! Absolutely pathetic! You couldn’t have done worse!” Bai grinned wickedly. “You know nothing about strength.”

“Can you stop with the sarcasm? You didn’t even warn me, just sent them all at me at once. If they’d come one by one, I wouldn’t have been in such a miserable state!” Lan Tian complained.

Bai snorted. “If you really encountered an enemy, do you think they’d warn you? Do you think they’d fight you one at a time?”

Lan Tian fell silent.

“Fine, you’re right… but I still managed to kill them all,” he protested.

Bai shook his head. “With your current strength, speed, and reflexes, you should have slaughtered all those beasts without so much as a scratch. Look at you! Covered in wounds—I’d be embarrassed to admit I even know you!”

“That’s impossible! With so many beasts attacking at once, how could I have come out unscathed?” Lan Tian refused to believe it.

“That’s why I say you know nothing about strength.” Bai chuckled. “Strength isn’t just about brute force. It includes strength, speed, reflexes, even vision, touch, and hearing. In that last battle, you used only your strength. How much did you use of the rest?”

“Uh… but… fine, you’re right again…” Lan Tian hung his head in frustration.

With a wave of his hand, Bai conjured another Lan Tian beside him.

“What the—?” Lan Tian exclaimed in shock.

“I scanned your body and created a duplicate. He has no thoughts of his own, but his strength, speed, and everything else I mentioned are identical to yours,” Bai explained calmly. “However, I’ve implanted in him only the combat instincts of an ordinary cultivator from the Yuanlan Empire—no fighting skills, just pure instinct. Watch how he completes the battle.”

All the slain beasts were reset. Lan Tian and Bai stood at a distance, watching as “he himself” took on the challenge.

When the battle began, the duplicate did not stand foolishly in place as Lan Tian had. Instead, he charged directly into the pack. With a punch, a beast fell dead. The beasts’ attacks never so much as grazed his body—each time, he evaded with split-second precision. The eagles overhead never even came close, for he spotted them from afar and struck first when they approached.

“Mission complete. Time used: fifty-seven seconds!”

Lan Tian was stunned. In less than a minute, his duplicate had finished the battle. Every beast was slain without exception, and aside from a few bloodstains splattered on his clothes, he was completely unharmed.

“How is that possible? Does he really have the same strength as I do?” Lan Tian was truly shocked. The same power, the same opponents, yet the results were worlds apart. He struggled to accept it.

“Of course! Do you think I’d lie to you?” Bai arched an eyebrow and scolded, “See the difference? If you don’t know how to use your strength, you can’t fight, no matter how much you have.”

“Uh… Then how do I actually use my strength?” Lan Tian, at a loss for words, could only ask humbly.

“Two words: practice!” Bai replied at once. “Through countless repetitions, make the use of your strength instinctive, until instinct becomes second nature. Only when you can truly wield your strength as second nature will you be ready to learn the basic combat techniques left for you by the master. Otherwise, even if I teach you, it will be pointless.”

“Alright… I’ll practice,” Lan Tian agreed resolutely, his fighting spirit reignited by the chasm he had just witnessed.

So, for the rest of the night, Lan Tian fought the beasts tirelessly. With each cycle of battle and reset, his practical experience grew steadily.

By dawn, he could finish the fight within three minutes, and he was rarely touched by their attacks. Though he was still not as proficient as his duplicate, and there was some gap between them, he had finally mastered how to use his strength.

“That’s enough for now. The sun’s up,” Bai nodded at last, signaling the end of training. “Not bad. Continue tonight, and after one more night of practice, you’ll be ready to learn the basic combat techniques.”

Lan Tian was filled with renewed determination. He had heard from Bai that, despite their plain name, these basic techniques held astonishing power.