Wild cultivation begins with wielding the Taiyin talisman.

Zhao Yunshuo spoke at length, in long, difficult, and obscure passages, filled with words Ning Che had never heard of before, making him wonder how Xia Wen could have arranged things in this way.

Fortunately, he was fond of teaching, and Ning Che asked him questions carefully without getting annoyed. After a while, Ning Che finally understood the differences between the three types of methods.

Heaven and earth have their constant laws, and all things have their own principles. The ironclad laws governing the operation of this world are what practitioners call the Way of Heaven.

If one can comprehend even a little of this, one has grasped the "principle." If one can integrate this principle into one's own spiritual intent, forming one's own "legal principles," then one's magic can borrow the power of heaven and earth, like riding the wind and flowing water, and its power will be incomparable to what it was before.

Generally speaking, a law with a legal principle is at least a fourth-grade law, and a third-grade law must have a legal principle. Those who can master these laws ahead of time are either extraordinary geniuses or have received profound and comprehensive inheritances.

Zhao Yunshuo advised Ning Che not to be overly ambitious, as thinking about such things all day would only harm him.

Ning Che readily agreed, exchanged for the "Cicada-Chasing Steps" and went to copy it down himself.

This book was relatively thin, and he quickly finished copying it. He then left the library and headed towards the barracks.

Unexpectedly, before he even returned to the barracks, he saw someone loitering near his room. The man had his neck hunched, hands tucked into his sleeves, and kept glancing towards the alley entrance. The moment he saw Ning Che, he froze for a moment, then took off running.

Ning Che immediately realized something was wrong. He stuffed the copy into his robes, instantly activated the Moon Rabbit Breathing Technique, and with a burst of speed, chased after it.

The man was also a cultivator and ran quite fast; even though Ning Che was sprinting at full speed, he couldn't catch up immediately. In just a few breaths, the camp was almost in sight, and sounds could be heard from within.

The dull thuds of fists and feet striking flesh, the clanking of knuckles against knuckles, were mixed with a gruff shout: "Stand still! Don't dodge! Dodge once, and you'll get ten lashes!"

The next instant, Ning Che rushed past the barracks and saw six people standing beside it. Four were beating someone, while two stood upright, being beaten.

The ones who got beaten were Zhao He and Chen Mu.

They stood side by side against the wall, their backs pressed against the carved stone, and in front of them were four armored soldiers. One of them, a bearded man, was swinging his hand, his knuckles stained with blood.

He rubbed his hands on his trouser leg, leaving a dark red mark: "A few ignorant newbies dare to curse the old man behind his back, they really don't know..."

His voice abruptly stopped.

Because Ning Che arrived.

Seeing him stop, the mountain guard who had almost been caught felt as if he had been granted a pardon and disappeared in an instant.

Ning Che stood at the boundary between light and shadow, motionless, breathing evenly, coldly watching them.

The speaker paused, recalling many rumors about this man. It was said he had extraordinary connections, was personally brought in by Commander Mu, and possessed incredibly powerful magic; even an eighth-rank cultivator was no match for him!

The three people beside him also looked over, one of whom still had anger on his face.

Ning Che withdrew his gaze and was about to look past them at Zhao He.

The person moved.

Taking advantage of his size, he grabbed at Ning Che's throat, his movement slow and deliberate. Ning Che raised his right hand, waiting for a moment.

He seemed to have handed his wrist to Ning Che himself, his expression instantly changing, but it was too late. Ning Che precisely gripped his wrist joint and pulled it aside as if casually tossing away a piece of trash.

The man stumbled and fell to the ground.

"What are you doing!" another man shouted sternly. "Attack a colleague is a serious crime! What are you doing? Hey, don't come any closer, do you hear me?!"

Ning Che didn't look at him. He calmly walked up to Zhao He and Chen Mu. The three people who were still standing stepped back and made way for him.

His gaze swept past the unfamiliar faces and landed on Zhao He and Chen Mu.

Zhao He was still standing, his back against the stone wall, his knees trembling, but he didn't fall.

Chen Mu had a cut on his lip that stretched down to his cheek. The blood had stopped flowing and congealed into a dark red line that ran from his chin to his clothes. Several dark red stains were visible on his clothes, some dried and some still wet.

He stared at Ning Che. Something was swirling in his pupils, but he didn't let it fall.

"Brother Xing," Chen Mu said softly, "I fell myself, so let's just leave it at that."

Zhao He remained silent.

Ning Che turned his gaze back to the man discussing the charges: "What's with this talk of newcomers and veterans? Who laid a hand on a colleague?"

The man opened his mouth, but his body was trembling, and he couldn't speak.

The bearded man who spoke first said, "So what if it is? Two newbies, only been here a few days, and they dare to talk badly about the veterans behind their backs. Saying that the veterans control the resources and leave no way out for the newbies."

We're all sensible people, do you think we should say that? We're just teaching them a lesson. As time goes on, you'll understand our good intentions, just like we do.

Ning Che raised an eyebrow and glanced at him: "Which of these statements is wrong?"

The man with the big beard paused.

Ning Che didn't wait for his answer and continued, "What kind of tasks are left in the Personnel Hall? Don't you so-called veterans know? How arrogant! You've taken the stuff and you won't let anyone say anything. Anyone who didn't know better would think you're a squad leader—who do you think you are, daring to order my people around?"

He was ruthless, forcing the bearded man to retreat repeatedly.

"If you answer correctly, you'll be beaten. After that, the person has to stand up straight to take the beating; if they dodge, they get ten more lashes." His gaze shifted from the man's face to the other three: "Who gave you the guts?"

No one answered.

After a moment, the bearded man took a deep breath, lowered his posture, and said as if advising, "Captain Xing, you're a newcomer too, so you probably don't know the rules of our camp."

We're all brothers in this battalion, so naturally we can't favor one over another. But good jobs and good resources are always limited. That's why we give priority to the older members, so that every brother can get a turn. Over the years, this has become the rule.

After he finished speaking, he looked at Ning Che with an expression that showed he was trying hard to be sincere.

Ning Che understood that he was telling him this because of his status and power. But he must genuinely believe in this so-called rule. Otherwise, why would he think he could be swayed by just a few words?

"Rules." Ning Che emphasized the word clearly, as if weighing its significance. "You call this the rules?"

The bearded man nodded.

Ning Che didn't reply. He turned around and walked up to Zhao He.

Zhao He was still standing, his back pressed against the stone wall, his body no longer trembling. But it was as if he was being sucked into the stone wall, pressed tightly against it, pressed with all his might, gritting his teeth as he held on.

"Alright, sit down for a while, I'll take care of things here," Ning Che said, helping him sit down.

Chen Mu was still able to hold on, and after a couple of staggering steps, he returned to the barracks.

The four people were walking out.

Ning Che barked, "Did I say you could leave?"