Under one person: I, Zhang Zhiwei, the arrogant Zhang.

After explaining the important matters to everyone and recounting the details of subduing the Quanxing bandits, the Imperial Advisor version of Zhang Zhiwei wanted to say something, but when he opened his mouth, he felt at a loss for words.

After all, he was just a demon in his heart. Generally speaking, a demon in one's heart is the opposite of the original self. As the opposite, he naturally did not inherit Zhang Zhiwei's talent for big mouth.

In fact, he was extremely taciturn. He would hardly speak unless Zhang Zhiwei called him. The fact that he could say so much in one breath was already an extraordinary performance.

He was indeed a very good actor, just as he had told Zhang Zhiwei. But no matter how good the acting is, you still need to have substance. Now that he has nothing left to say, he has nothing left to say.

He can't just start talking about his past on his own. Big Face Thief might talk about these things, but only if someone asks. If no one asks, he can't just talk about it on his own... That's not in Big Face Thief's style.

So the Imperial Advisor was suddenly caught in a dilemma. What should he do next? If it were the real Big-Faced Thief, what would he say and do? ...

The Imperial Preceptor pondered for a while, and suddenly a flash of inspiration struck him. The real Big-Faced Thief usually took on the responsibility of teaching on behalf of his master, so he often gave guidance to others.

Should I offer some pointers? Big-faced Thief is usually talkative and not imposing at all, but when it comes to giving pointers, he does it perfectly. And if you're going to play a role, you should play it thoroughly; you can't overlook these details.

The Grand Tutor glanced at Liu Mang; this commander-in-chief was undoubtedly unsuitable. He then looked at Wang Ai, his most loyal subordinate. Although Wang Ai had gained many benefits over the years by acting as the archbishop of the Big-Faced Thief, and his own strength had increased rapidly.

However, this kind of strength, which is improved through willpower, is not very useful for guidance. At the most crucial moment, this underling doesn't believe in this kind of thing, and even if you offer to give him guidance, he probably won't agree.

The Grand Preceptor finally looked at Lü Ci, who was standing to the side with his arms crossed and a thoughtful look in his eyes. This kid and that kid named "Lu Mang" are typical examples of brave but reckless. If he offered to give him some guidance and test, he probably wouldn't refuse!

With this thought in mind, the Imperial Advisor, mimicking Zhang Zhiwei's demeanor, scrutinized Lü Ci from head to toe with a slightly critical gaze, and slowly spoke:

"Lu Ci, have you made any progress lately?"

Lu Ci was taken aback by the question and felt a little strange. Although Senior Brother Zhang would occasionally give him guidance, he rarely asked questions on his own initiative. It was usually Lu Ci who had to ask for advice. Moreover, why did Senior Brother Zhang not call him Er Bi, but his formal name? Er Bi was so much more affectionate!

Although he had some doubts, Lü Ci did not consider the possibility that the Senior Brother Zhang in front of him was a fake.

He answered honestly, "Senior Brother Zhang, I have made some progress during this period, but overall, it is still as you said before, everything is a matter of slow and steady progress, and it is difficult to make any major breakthroughs in a short period of time."

"Is that so... Talk is cheap. Come on, let me try you!"

Zhang Zhiwei waved his hand, signaling Wang Ai, Liu Mang and the others to step back. He then took a step forward and stood there casually, exuding an aura of profound and unfathomable power. The air in the entire room seemed to freeze slightly.

Lu Ci's heart sank. He sensed an extremely terrifying aura emanating from Zhang Zhiwei opposite him. Since Zhang Zhiwei's realm had risen and he himself had reached the realm of Daoist naturalness and emptiness, he had not felt Zhang Zhiwei's Qi aura for a long time.

The Imperial Preceptor also noticed this, but he couldn't imitate it. He couldn't empty his own Qi like the Big-Faced Thief. He could only suppress his Qi so that others couldn't detect it.

If one does not use Qi, for some people with a large difference in strength, the difference between the two is actually not significant, and they cannot distinguish the difference between emptiness and deliberately suppressing Qi. Wang Ai, Lü Ci and others could not perceive it.

But once they start to act, you'll be able to tell.

"In order to better test you, I have suppressed my strength to the same level as yours. Now, make your move and let me see how good your Ruyi Zhenjin is."

Zhang Zhiwei looked at Lü Ci, and even though he had already revealed a flaw, he showed no panic and spoke calmly.

Lu Ci had no doubts. His eyes sharpened instantly, and his Qi began to surge. The opportunity to spar with Senior Brother Zhang was rare. Although he would be badly beaten, he would also benefit. Most importantly, Senior Brother Zhang had invited him this time, which was very rare.

He said in a low voice, "Please enlighten me, Senior Brother Zhang!"

“Go ahead and show me what you’re made of!” Zhang Zhiwei said.

Then, Lü Ci made his move. He stomped his foot, causing the ground to tremble slightly, and his figure shot out like an arrow. He clenched his right fist, and a condensed, fierce, and invisible Ruyi Vibration Force burst out of his body, striking straight at Zhang Zhiwei's central palace!
He used all his strength in this punch, tearing the air apart and leaving spiderweb-like white marks along his fist.

These white marks resembled cracks around Lü Ci's fist, but as they spread outwards, they dispersed and eventually dissipated as a shockwave.

But this is just the spillover of the fist's power. The area where the cracks are most concentrated is extremely powerful, and that is also the point where Lü Ci's fist power is concentrated.

When Lü Ci threw the punch, Liu Mang, Fan Pengju, and the others were secretly amazed. They thought to themselves that if this punch landed, it could even pierce through a steel plate. They wondered what kind of clever way the little celestial master would use to neutralize it.
However, facing this ferocious punch, "Zhang Zhiwei" neither dodged nor avoided it, but instead threw a punch in return, landing it on Lü Ci's fist.

Lu Ci's punch was as powerful as collapsing clouds, while Zhang Zhiwei's punch was unremarkable and lacked any frightening special effects, but the power it contained was not to be underestimated.

"Boom!"

With a dull, resounding crash like the sound of breaking leather, Lü Ci felt as if his fist had struck an indestructible steel block! The force of the rebound caused his entire right arm to ache and go numb instantly, and he staggered backward uncontrollably.

Each step left a deep footprint on the solid ground until his back slammed against the wall with a "thud," bringing him to a barely stopped stop.

Immediately afterwards, he felt a sweet taste in his throat, and a trickle of blood oozed from the corner of his mouth.

He struggled to stand up straight, but felt his blood surging and his strength dissipating, making it difficult to gather his power for a moment.

Zhang Zhiwei, with his arms hanging naturally at his sides as if nothing had happened, calmly looked at Lü Ci, who was leaning against the wall with blood trickling from the corner of his mouth, and said indifferently:

"Although I have suppressed my strength to a level comparable to yours, we are completely on different levels in terms of control over our own power and our own lives." "You have no idea about my current strength. When I fight, especially against an opponent I can't see through, I use all my strength in the first move. To put it nicely, that's going all out; to put it bluntly, that's just being a brainless brute."

"Although sometimes you need to rely on a burst of energy and recklessness to do things, you also need to be smart. No matter what, as long as it's not a desperate attack, you should leave yourself some room for maneuver."

"If I were an opponent of similar strength to you, I would have been able to throw that punch by using some means to forcibly enhance my strength in a short period of time. Or, it could have been a trump card that cannot be used repeatedly."

"If you were to have your Qi temporarily dispersed by my punch like you have now, I wouldn't even need to use any more killing moves. I could just follow up and, before you can recover, a casual strike would be enough to take your head off."

"But if you hadn't used up all your strength in that last strike, and had saved some for later use, and if you found that your opponent was not as strong as you, then you could have used that saved strength to completely overwhelm them."

"If you find that your opponent is evenly matched with you, or even stronger than you, and you can't win by fighting head-on, you can use the remaining strength to adjust yourself, use the momentum to retreat, create distance, and wait until the opponent's three powerful attacks have passed before you make your move."

"This is the art of fighting. Some classic examples of the weak defeating the strong are all from this. Although I have never had the chance to use these techniques, I still keep them in mind."

"You should be more proficient in this aspect of Ruyi Jin. Although you are practicing Ruyi Zhen Jin, don't blindly pursue the Zhen Jin aspect and forget the essence of Ruyi Jin. Otherwise, you will lose more than you gain."

The Imperial Advisor looked at Lü Ci with the same eyes as Zhang Zhiwei, and spoke in a calm yet penetrating tone, giving him a series of pointers. He even perfectly imitated the certainty in his tone and the shift in his manner of criticism.

However, this time the guidance was not on Lü Ci's confusion about cultivation, but on the application of techniques in battle.

Zhang Zhiwei rarely taught this kind of knowledge before, because he rarely used techniques. With Zhang Zhiwei's strength, few people could withstand even a single move from him. Therefore, he focused more on the use of momentum, overwhelming others with overwhelming force.

The Imperial Advisor is different. He is more meticulous and in this respect, he is more like the bandit Zhang Huaiyi, who pays more attention to the application of skills.

Upon hearing this, Lü Ci was jolted awake, as if struck by a sudden enlightenment. His strength hadn't improved rapidly in a long time. It was unlikely that he would make leaps and bounds in a very short period of time in the future. Instead, it would be more about accumulating strength through gradual, persistent effort, relying on years of honing his skills to improve his life force, so as to achieve a qualitative change through quantitative accumulation.

During this period, it is meaningless to blindly pursue the power of Ruyi Zhenjin's fist, because your realm is already there, and the strength of the extraordinary person cannot exceed his life cultivation.

It's just like working out. If you don't increase your muscle mass or break through your limits, lifting weights 10,000 times is meaningless.

At this point, it might be more helpful to train your neural recruitment ability and improve your skills.

After listening to "Zhang Zhiwei's" guidance, Lü Ci's breathing became rapid, and she reached up to wipe the corner of her mouth, but her eyes became even more intense.

He harbored no resentment, only a yearning for greater power and a clear understanding of his own shortcomings. He knew that Senior Brother Zhang was trying to awaken him in the most direct way.

Lu Ci, panting heavily, struggled to regulate his breathing and said in a trembling voice, "I will always remember Senior Brother Zhang's guidance!"

Hahahaha... That's the feeling... That's the feeling! It's so great to be the real person! This is much more enjoyable than instructing him in the sect's space...

Although the Grand Tutor appeared serious on the surface, he was inwardly laughing wildly. He had been tormented by Zhang Zhiwei's big mouth before, but now he was finally enjoying himself.

He had intended to end the guidance, but since it was so enjoyable...

"Saying you remember is not enough. Come on, let's do it again."

Zhang Zhiwei emphasized again that when he took a step, it was just an ordinary step, but the whole room seemed to tremble slightly. It was not a physical tremor, but a sudden increase in a sense of pressure on a spiritual level!
Wang Ai, Liu Mang, and the others standing at a distance felt a tightness in their chests, but Lü Ci was not so cowardly as to call a halt.

"Ho!"

He gritted his teeth, let out a low growl, took a step forward, and once again unleashed astonishing speed, his figure instantly closing in on "Zhang Zhiwei." His left fist, like a venomous snake emerging from its hole, struck straight at "Zhang Zhiwei's" ribs! This punch was tricky in angle and faster in speed, yet he only used seven-tenths of his strength, leaving himself a backup plan!
"boom!"

Another muffled sound!
Lu Ci's left fist was blocked by Zhang Zhiwei's outstretched right hand. The huge recoil force from Zhang's palm caused Lu Ci's left arm to feel sore and numb.

Using the remaining strength, he quickly adjusted himself, and then his right leg swept out like a steel whip, aiming directly at Zhang Zhiwei's lower body!
Zhang Zhiwei glanced at it, seemingly casually raised his foot, but the speed was as fast as lightning, kicking at Lü Ci's kicking leg.

The moment their legs collided, Lü Ci's leg was pushed back by a supple yet irresistible force. He was kicked by the skillful force contained in the kick and rolled away, crashing into the corner of the wall. He completely lost the ability to move, and every part of his body was in excruciating pain.

"You've improved, kid. Most people might actually fall for this underhanded trick!"

Zhang Zhiwei withdrew his foot, stood with his hands behind his back, looked at Lü Ci, who was covered in sweat as if he had been pulled out of the water, and said calmly, "That's enough for today. Remember how you felt just now. In the future, you can't act recklessly again."

After saying that, he ignored Lü Ci, who was lying on the ground, and turned to Liu Mang and Wang Ai, who were staring in disbelief, and said: "Tomorrow's matter shall proceed as planned."

Then, with the same steady steps he had taken when he arrived, he left the room.

Wang Ai quickly stepped forward to help Lü Ci up and exclaimed, "Erbi, how are you feeling? Senior Brother Zhang's guidance is still so... profound and brutal!"

He had seen everything that had just happened, and he had never doubted the identity of the "Zhang Zhiwei" in front of him.

Not only him, but even Lü Ci, who was competing with "Zhang Zhiwei", did not notice anything unusual.

After all, besides Senior Brother Zhang, who else possesses such strength, presence, vision, and the ability to impart profound benefits with even a casual word of guidance? (End of Chapter)