Chương 28: Luoyang Is Proud of Me!

"I am ready," Xiao Xuan said, bracing himself, his boots shifting against the packed dirt. Su Ming didn't waste time with formalities. He moved with a fluidity that Xiao Xuan could only envy, a grace that made the Commander seem less like a man and more like a shadow cutting through the humid afternoon air. To Xiao Xuan, it looked like in one second Su Ming was standing ten feet away, and the next, he was already inside Xiao Xuan's guard.

The first strike was a simple, palm-open jab aimed squarely at Xiao Xuan's chest. Xiao Xuan attempted to activate the Falcon Dash, drawing on the rhythm he had perfected just moments ago, but his brain was a full step behind his reflexes. He tried to pivot, routing the Qi down his legs, but his left foot caught on an uneven patch of dirt. He lurched awkwardly to the right, desperately bringing his arms up to shield his torso. Thwack. Su Ming's palm connected solidly with Xiao Xuan's shoulder.

The impact wasn't a push; it was a shockwave that sent him spinning off his axis. He stumbled back, his boots dragging through the dirt, nearly crashing into the thick stalks of the bamboo grove before catching his balance with an ungraceful scramble.

"Your foundation is brittle," Su Ming remarked, dropping his hand. His voice was devoid of malice, yet sharp enough to sting.

"You are thinking about the technique as a series of disconnected actions. Pivot. Dash. Strike. You are pausing between them, giving your opponent a window to sever your head."

"My apologies," Xiao Xuan gritted, his breath already turning ragged. He wiped a bead of sweat from his stinging eyes and forcefully reset his stance.

"Again." This time, Su Ming didn't step in with a jab. He began to move in a tight, predatory circle around the courtyard, forcing Xiao Xuan to continuously adjust his center of gravity just to keep the Commander in his line of sight. As Su Ming paced, Xiao Xuan felt the atmospheric pressure in the courtyard change. Su Ming was projecting his Qi, designed to physically stifle Xiao Xuan's movement and induce panic. Xiao Xuan clamped down on his rising anxiety.

He closed his eyes for a fraction of a second and channeled his amateur psychic focus. He felt something on his left side. He opened his eyes just in time to see the subtle shift in Su Ming's shoulder. Xiao Xuan pivoted hard, pushing off his back foot with an explosive burst of Qi. He felt the Falcon Dash engage, the familiar rush of wind tearing at his robes as his body surged forward, but in his desperation to escape the projected pressure, he pushed far too much power into his right leg.

His dash went wide, his trajectory veering sharply off course, carrying him dangerously close to the weathered stone bench. Su Ming was already there. The Commander hadn't even looked like he sprinted, yet his hand was already raised, casually blocking Xiao Xuan's exit path. As Xiao Xuan blew past him, a light, precise tap to the back of Xiao Xuan's knee caused his leg to buckle instantly. His momentum betrayed him. Xiao Xuan hit the dirt chest-first, the wind knocked out of his lungs in a rush.

"You look at where you intend to go before you move. Your eyes are a map for your enemy. Stop looking at your feet. Feel the air displacement," Su Ming said, his shadow falling over the gasping youth. Xiao Xuan groaned, planting his hands into the dirt and pushing himself up on shaky arms. His palms were scraped raw, bits of gravel embedded in the skin, and his pride was taking a worse beating than his physical body.

"Again," Xiao Xuan said, his voice firm, refusing to let the Commander see how badly his hands were shaking. He rose. He stood. He breathed. For the next two hours, the isolated bamboo courtyard became an absolute crucible. Every time Xiao Xuan tried to execute the Falcon Dash, Su Ming was there to correct the trajectory, block the path, or ruthlessly exploit his lack of balance. The Commander never struck to break bones, but his reprimands were physical. Xiao Xuan was repeatedly sent sprawling into the dirt.

His crisp blue main family robes were stained a muddy brown, his skin was mottled with fresh bruises, and his internal energy reserves were flickering like a dying candle in a windstorm. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. Duck. Pivot. Push. Xiao Xuan threw his weight forward, tightly regulating the Qi flow. He successfully cleared a five-foot gap, but forgot to keep his guard up. A boot lightly clipped his ankle mid-dash, and he was eating dirt once more.

He charged the Qi into his soles again. This time, he didn't look at his destination. He kept his eyes locked firmly on Su Ming's collarbone. He pushed off, the sound barrier popping softly around his ears. He moved fast, but the moment he decelerated, his stance was too narrow. Su Ming simply stepped aside and let Xiao Xuan's own unstable momentum carry him face-first into a patch of soft moss near the bamboo stalks.

"You are fighting the technique," Su Ming's voice drifted over.

"You are trying to command the Qi with brute force. Guide it. Let the momentum do the heavy lifting." Xiao Xuan spat out a mouthful of moss. He dragged himself back to the center of the courtyard. With every brutal fall, Xiao Xuan's adjustments became smaller, faster, and far more precise. He stopped thinking about the literal, step-by-step 'diagram' of the footwork painted on the scroll. He began to feel the shift in his own weight. Su Ming shifted his weight slightly to the left. Xiao Xuan didn't think.

Xiao Xuan instantly dropped his center of gravity, routed a perfectly measured, microscopic thread of Qi into his calves, and pushed. Whoosh! He crossed eight feet of space in a fraction of a second, his boots gliding over the dirt rather than tearing into it. He came to a halt in a low, perfectly balanced crouch, instantly pivoting on his heel to face the Commander, his guard raised.

Su Ming had been forced to shift his own stance, his heavy boot sliding backward an inch, his hand raised to track Xiao Xuan's new position. The courtyard fell dead silent, save for Xiao Xuan's ragged, desperate panting. The Commander's eyes narrowed, a glint of approval flashing in his dark pupils.

"Better," Su Ming noted, though his posture remained as flawlessly guarded as ever.

"Your weight distribution is improving. You are finally learning to trust your own momentum instead of fighting it." Xiao Xuan slowly stood up, bending over slightly with his hands resting heavily on his knees, his lungs burning as if he had swallowed hot coals.

"Again?" Su Ming asked, though the steady, unrelenting tone of his voice made it clear there was no actual question being asked. Xiao Xuan straightened his back. A wild, deeply exhausted grin spread across his dirt-caked face.

"Again." … Meanwhile, in a distant, elevated wing of the main estate, a young woman stood quietly by a carved rosewood window. From her vantage point on the second floor, she had a clear view over the sloping tiled roofs and directly into the isolated bamboo courtyard. Su Luoyang remained still, her pristine white and blue robes cascading elegantly to the dark hardwood floor. Her delicate hands were clasped loosely in front of her.

But her sharp eyes were fixated on the struggling youth holding his ground against the ferocious trainer. She had been standing there for nearly an hour. Her initial intent had simply been to review the monthly ledger reports in the quiet of her private study, but the echoing sounds of a body repeatedly hitting the dirt had drawn her attention.

When she realized it was her own husband being casually battered around the courtyard by a Commander of the Su Clan, she had fully expected the session to last no more than five minutes. Yet, he hadn't quit. Su Luoyang watched as Xiao Xuan was sent sprawling into the dirt for what had to be the twentieth time. She saw the heavy rise and fall of his chest, the exhaustion radiating from his slumped shoulders. But then he pushed himself up, wiped the mud from his face, and reset his stance.

As she watched the youth refuse to stay down, unbeknownst to her, the frost in her dark eyes melted, replaced by a sharp, undeniable spark of martial pride. … Su Ming was pushing the pace, stepping forward with a rapid succession of palm strikes designed to force Xiao Xuan into consecutive, linked dashes. Xiao Xuan routed the Qi, dodging backward, then sharply to the right. Amidst the suffocating pressure of Su Ming's aura, Xiao Xuan's mind snagged on a completely different sensation.

In between dodging a sweeping low kick, Xiao Xuan suddenly looked up, his eyes darting away from Su Ming, across the sprawling estate roofs. His gaze locked onto a carved window on the second floor of a distant wing. Even from this distance, he could clearly make out the elegant, unmistakable silhouette of a woman in white and blue silk. Unconsciously, a mild smile curved onto his dirt-smudged lip. Luoyang is proud of me!

Sensing his direct gaze, the woman instantly stepped back, disappearing into the shadows of the room.

"Concentrate!" Su Ming shouted, his voice cracking like a whip. Xiao Xuan's head snapped back to the front just in time to see the Commander's palm rapidly expanding in his vision.

"Sorry—" Xiao Xuan managed to blurt out, before he narrowly missed the heavy strike that closed the remaining distance. Su Ming didn't even blink. Using the rotational momentum of his missed sweep, the Commander seamlessly pivoted on his planted foot, driving his other palm upward, preparing to strike squarely at Xiao Xuan's descending jaw. No… something's wrong… Xiao Xuan's movements slowed. But Su Ming was not letting him go.

"I said concentrate!" Su Ming warned. But there was no response. Realizing the danger, Su Ming's eyes widened. He drew out his internal Qi, attempting to abort the strike mid-air. The muscles in his arm bulged against his sleeves, and his heavy boots gouged deep trenches into the packed dirt to kill his momentum. But even for a veteran, the strike was already committed; Su Ming's fist was in an inescapable trajectory. How did I get to the dining hall?! Finally, Su Ming roared, "Xiao Xuan!"

The echoing scream forcefully dragged Xiao Xuan back to his senses. In the fraction of a second before the collision, his vision locked onto a single, agonizing frame. The Commander's face was locked in a ferocious roar, devoid of emotion. The majestic fist, supercharged with violent Qi, eclipsed his entire vision, descending with the exact same inescapable terror as the purple lightning from the heavens. BOOM!