What do you mean I'm a ghost story?

Chapter 16 Tai Chi
Although the upgrade of the Money Dart Technique is somewhat bizarre, it is still traceable. It has not deviated from, or at least not yet deviated from, dart throwing and lethal techniques.

Tai Chi, once upgraded, will at least retain its effects on self-cultivation, physical fitness, and overall health, thus supplementing his basic mental and physical qualities.

If it could also have some of the realistic combat effects seen in movies and novels, it would be absolutely perfect.

"Hasn't Grandpa Zhang come yet today?"

Xia Qing looked around but couldn't find Grandpa Zhang. It seemed he hadn't come today.

He had no choice but to settle for second best and set his sights on the old man who was crashing into the tree.

Iron Head Kung Fu.

It sounds so third-rate, it probably wouldn't even make it into a minor role in a martial arts novel.

But this sounds like a martial art that enhances defensive capabilities!

And it's the head, the most dangerous part. Even a concussion or brain hemorrhage can be fatal, let alone a broken or injured head.

If you master it, wouldn't you directly eliminate a fatal weakness?
Who knows, it might even advance to something like the Golden Bell Shield or Iron Shirt, making it physically invincible!
Thinking of this, Xia Qing didn't hesitate. He found a similar camphor tree directly opposite the old man who was hitting the tree and started hitting it too.

There's really no skill involved in practicing this; you just bump into things and that's it.

Hmm, it hurts a little.

The camphor tree has rough bark and a hard trunk; even the slightest pressure will cause excruciating pain.

However, compared to the pressure brought by supernatural and bizarre things like nightmares, these pains are nothing.

I hit!

I hit!

I'm crashing!

"Young man, is something bothering you?"

Finally, even the old man who had run into the tree couldn't stand it anymore.

"No."

Xia Qing denied it and continued ramming the tree.

The old man hesitated, then asked, "So... is your head feeling unwell?"

"No, I just saw you practicing Iron Head Kung Fu, and I wanted to learn from you."

Xia Qing told him the truth, and that the tree crash hadn't stopped.

The old man fell silent.

Xia Qing continued to ram the tree, increasing the force, making the tree rustle.

The old man remained silent, but also increased the intensity of his movements.

"Is the old man giving me a demonstration?"

Xia Qing understood immediately, and although she felt a little pain, she still increased the pressure slightly.

However, the old man increased the force of his blows, causing the tree trunk to thud loudly.

Xia Qing tried it herself and winced in pain.

He sighed inwardly at the old man's vigor and profound skill. Having just begun to practice and already feeling a bit dizzy, he dared not challenge the old man any further and decided to take a break.

However, thinking that he couldn't waste time, he took off his clothes, wrapped them around his hands, and started punching the tree trunk in front of him.

boom! boom! boom!
He tried throwing a few punches and actually got the hang of it.

Although the Money Dart technique is a throwing method, it also involves integrating and concentrating the strength of the whole body and the power of the arms.

After a slight adjustment and adaptation, I applied the technique to my punches. Although there was no particular method or technique involved, the power was not lacking at all.

boom! boom! boom!
Punch after punch, making the tree trunk creak and groan.

The old man who had been banging his head against the tree seemed to have gotten excited too, and he hit it harder, making a loud thud.

The commotion the two made grew louder and louder, attracting a lot of attention, and the old man who was hitting the tree did so even more vigorously.

Then an older woman walked up to the old man, puzzled, and asked, "Old Li, what are you doing? Are you trying to fight this young man's fist with your head?"

"Fist...fist?"

The old man who had been banging his head against the tree looked up when he heard the sound, and then glanced at Xia Qing across from him.

Seeing Xia Qing pounding the tree trunk with her clothes wrapped around her.

He touched his bleeding forehead, then pointed a trembling finger at Xia Qing, nearly fainting from anger: "You, you brat, didn't you say you were practicing Iron Head Kung Fu?" Young man, you have no martial ethics!

"Hey, the old man is actually quite competitive."

Xia Qing then realized what was happening.

So, the old man was actually challenging himself when he was banging on the ground so hard?

He couldn't help but feel happy.

Of course, this can't be shown on the surface, otherwise it would be a huge sin if the old man really fainted from anger.

He immediately clasped his hands in a gesture of respect and said, "Sir, your skill is profound. I was in so much pain after a few blows that I had to switch to boxing."

A single flattering compliment immediately soothed the old man's brow, which was still bleeding from his head.

"Practicing hard skills requires perseverance. Young people recover quickly, so they can practice more in the future."

Finally, Grandpa Li gave a word of advice in a serious tone, then stopped pursuing the matter, turned around and left with his hands behind his back.

As expected of someone who practices martial arts, he didn't lie on the ground and try to extort money from me.

Xia Qing felt extremely fortunate.

However, after this incident, he lost interest in hammering the tree.

Looking around, he still couldn't see Grandpa Zhang practicing Tai Chi. After thinking for a moment, he took out his phone, found an instructional video, and started learning from it.

In the internet age, there are already countless video tutorials for martial arts and similar skills.

By practicing step by step following the disassembly movements, he quickly mastered some of the Tai Chi routines.

However, after practicing all day, as he became more and more proficient, his heart sank.

Nothing changes.

I've practiced the boxing technique until I'm familiar with it, but there's no notification or prompt like when I throw a dart.

"The worst-case scenario has occurred..."

Xia Qing's heart sank to the bottom.

His biggest worry was that other martial arts skills couldn't be upgraded like dart throwing.

Previous half-hearted attempts could be explained by not having practiced enough or not having fully mastered the skill.

But now I've been practicing all day.

I wouldn't say I'm an expert, but I'm at least more skilled than the old man in the neighborhood who I played darts with a few times.

If that special prompt message still doesn't appear, it means that either the Money Dart Technique is unique and it's impossible to acquire other similar martial arts as expected.

Or perhaps acquiring that anthropomorphic martial art requires some unknown special condition.

Either way, it blocked his way of acquiring other martial arts skills to make up for his shortcomings.

Fortunately, the experiences he has gone through since the nightmare have made him more mentally resilient, and he has not lost his composure.

I just kept practicing while silently thinking about solutions and problems.

He practiced until evening, when a group of elderly men and women returned to continue their evening exercise, and only then did he decide to go back to eat and rest.

However, just as I was about to leave the small fitness park, I spotted a familiar figure in the crowd.

Grandpa Zhang who practices Tai Chi.

"Maybe the online tutorials are missing something, or maybe you really have to learn from a real person?"

Xia Qing had a sudden thought and, with the intention of comparing them, walked over to observe.

As soon as they got close...

Two notification messages popped up instantly.

"Your Tai Chi Chuan technique sensed the presence of the nightmare and suddenly awoke."

"Your [Golden Dart Technique] has detected a very faint, unfamiliar nightmare aura."

Xia Qing was startled and glanced around in alarm.

Then, I had some realization.

"It turns out...that's it."

(End of this chapter)