Chapter 126: A Loss is a Loss
Visualize. Punch.
BANG!
Tang Wen slammed his fist into the metal wall.
The underground secret chamber, along with the entire house above it, trembled in unison.
It let out a low, humming tremor.
Shocking Fist!
THUD.
Before the tremor had stopped, he completed his visualization once more and threw another punch with his right hand.
CLANG.
The moment it struck the wall, he frowned.
The collision between the Shocking Fist’s impact and the wall’s own vibrations meant the second punch didn’t make the wall shake more violently.
Instead, it partially canceled out the previous vibration.
It was like a child pushing waves at the edge of a lake. If you push twice in a row, the waves don’t stack. Instead, the second push just creates a new wave.
The new wave would snuff out the one before it!
’No, that’s not quite right. Using waves as an analogy for Vibrating Force doesn’t feel perfect.’
But the general idea was the same.
Tang Wen was trying to figure out how to make the Fist Force of his Shocking Fist strikes stack.
This was the force-application technique for the final form of the Mountain-Opening Cannon Fist—the Mountain-Shattering Cannon.
This wasn’t just Tang Wen’s own speculation.
He had asked General Zhou about it last night.
General Zhou had said, "You can’t shatter a mountain with one punch. Forget a mountain; you’d have trouble smashing a fifty-ton boulder. The Mountain-Shattering Cannon isn’t a single punch. It’s layers upon layers of force—a stacking of Vibrating Force!"
After speaking, he threw a punch at the sky.
A fierce wind erupted from level ground.
In the clear air, a shockwave, almost tangible, surged toward the sky.
Like the contrail of a jet, it formed a transparent white plume!
Tang Wen watched, dumbfounded, for a long moment.
Then, the two of them went back inside to continue drinking.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Tang Wen unhurriedly unleashed one Shocking Fist after another.
With his Experience Panel, he knew that once the experience bar for Expert-level Cannon Fist was full, he would naturally understand the Mountain-Shattering Cannon, the Fist Technique Profound Technique.
But as he trained, he still wanted to figure things out for himself.
For one, it could speed up the process of grinding experience.
For another, if he didn’t think things through, how could he ever have the confidence to face the world’s greatest masters and say, ’The strength I have today, I earned through my own hard work, bit by bit!’
’Experience Panel!’
’Breakthrough...’
"You’re looking for my little brother?"
Tangtang’s eyes narrowed slightly as she sized up Bai You Ruo and the two women with her.
She muttered to herself, ’That little brat isn’t two-timing Sister Bing, is he?’
’How am I supposed to keep this under wraps?’
’This woman doesn’t look like someone to be trifled with.’
’What if a fight breaks out?’
After explaining her reason for visiting, Bai You Ruo looked at the almost impossibly youthful Tangtang and couldn’t help but ask a question.
"How old are you this year, Miss Tang?"
Tangtang found it strange, not understanding why this woman would ask her age right after walking in the door, but she answered truthfully, "Seventeen."
"Seventeen?"
Even Bai You Ruo, with her noble background and worldly experience, couldn’t help but gasp.
Behind her, Bai Ying and Bai Xue exchanged a look and blurted out questions at the same time, though each asked something different.
"Then doesn’t that mean Tang Wen isn’t even seventeen yet?"
"Commander Tang Wen, are you and him twins?"
Hmm?
Tangtang narrowed her eyes, starting to catch on. She nodded at the two women. "Yes, you’re both right. Why don’t you come in and sit down?"
She was so warm and magnanimous that the three women felt it would be improper to press the issue, so they began to recount how Tang Wen had saved them.
They chatted for a bit, but seeing that Tangtang was dressed in martial attire and looked ready to head out, they felt they shouldn’t impose. They bid farewell and left the Tang Family residence.
"Looking for Commander Tang Wen, are you?"
At the entrance of the General’s Mansion, Qian Sanduo welcomed the three women inside.
He ordered someone to pour them water while sending another to find Tang Wen.
Of course, Tang Wen couldn’t be found.
It was an unwritten rule in the camp: you don’t disturb someone in secluded training unless it’s an emergency.
He chatted and laughed with Bai You Ruo and her two companions, discussing the local region and Sanlian City.
"The Flame Camp’s strength is quite impressive. You have not only a King but several Generals as well! In the Northwest, you can definitely be considered a first-rate power!"
Bai You Ruo offered a flattering remark.
Qian Sanduo brushed it off, saying there were many powers far stronger than them.
Bai You Ruo continued, "You’re being too modest. According to our intelligence, the Flame Camp is unequivocally the greatest power in the region. I was wondering, do you have any plans to organize a large-scale merchant caravan?"
"A large-scale merchant caravan?" Qian Sanduo’s expression shifted; he sensed something was amiss.
’This Miss Bai seems to be after something, doesn’t she?’
’You can’t be too careful.’
Qian Sanduo grew suspicious.
As they spoke, his mind raced.
First, there was the matter of this Miss Bai’s identity.
He himself had been to both Sanlian City and White Stone City.
He understood the basic situation in those places.
He knew the Bai Family was a major clan and that its Patriarch had many children—over a hundred, according to rumor.
This Miss Bai had said she was the thirteenth in line, meaning the thirteenth among the daughters.
Her identity seemed to check out.
The Silver Firearms she had gifted to the camp were exquisitely crafted and immensely powerful.
Qian Sanduo had traveled far and wide, but he’d never seen their like.
With this in mind, he began to chat about the wines, inns, and delicacies of White Stone City, intentionally making two errors as he spoke.
However, she corrected him both times.
Bai You Ruo seemed to sense what he was doing and took the initiative to mention her family’s Ice Soul Technique.
She even performed a small secret art, Freezing Water into Ice.
After this, Qian Sanduo was about eighty to ninety percent certain that the woman calling herself Bai You Ruo was indeed a Miss Bai.
Faced with his subtle probing, not only was Bai You Ruo not offended, but she was inwardly impressed by the Flame Camp’s caliber.
A mere Martial Artist Commander of a caravan had traveled to Sanlian City, thousands of miles away!
Now that he had confirmed her identity, Qian Sanduo racked his brain but still couldn’t figure out her intentions.
Finally, he decided to ask directly:
"Commander Tang is currently in secluded training. Does Miss Bai have some urgent business with him?"
Bai You Ruo answered vaguely, "Of everyone in the camp, I’m most familiar with Commander Tang Wen. I just wanted to meet with him for a chat."
’Most familiar?’
Qian Sanduo, being a middle-aged man, thought he’d grasped the keyword. He chuckled, "In that case, I’m afraid you’ll have quite a wait."
"Oh?" Bai You Ruo arched a delicate eyebrow. "When Martial Artists go into seclusion, it’s normally just for a few days, isn’t it?"
"Normally, yes. But our Commander Tang Wen has always been a training maniac." He refilled Bai You Ruo’s teacup as he spoke and shared an anecdote.
"When Commander Tang Wen first became a Martial Artist, everyone praised him as a genius. Do you know what he said?"
Bai You Ruo was intrigued. "What did he say? Was he modest about it?"
Qian Sanduo chuckled. "He said, ’What genius? I just use the time other people spend drinking tea for my martial arts training!’"
"Ah?" Miss Bai the Elder, who had just lifted her cup, glanced down at the tea in her hands. She felt an urge to laugh, yet she also sensed a profound meaning in the statement.
"Then how long will he be in seclusion?"
"Hard to say. If it’s a long session, it could take two or three months."
"Two or three months?" Bai You Ruo glanced back at her two attendants but said nothing more. They stayed and made small talk until noon, finally leaving after sharing a meal.
Back at their residence, the three women closed the courtyard gate behind them.
Bai Ying said, "This complicates things!"
"The original plan was to have the Miss... *convince* Tang Wen to help us."
Bai Xue playfully put heavy emphasis on a certain word, earning a sharp rebuke from Bai You Ruo. "We’re discussing business! Stop spouting nonsense!"
Bai Xue stuck out her tongue before composing herself with a serious expression.
"If Tang Wen were willing to accompany you to Ganshan City, the Flame Camp would surely not let a genius like him travel alone. At that point, if we could mobilize their top masters, we would have a chance to get our hands on the item."
"And the price we’d have to pay would be much smaller that way."
"But who could have guessed that Tang Wen would just go into secluded training without a single word?"
"Should we just lay our cards on the table with their General?"
"Let’s not be hasty. We still have time. We’ll rest and recover for a few days first," Bai You Ruo decided.
However, five full days passed, and there was still no sign of Tang Wen.
If she weren’t so sure that she hadn’t revealed any of her intentions beforehand, Bai You Ruo might have started to suspect he was deliberately avoiding her.