Tongling pondered for a moment, looked at her own fingers, and parted her lips slightly.
"Judging from the residual aura left in the cage, it should be a soul beast. But I cannot be certain, as I have never seen one with my own eyes. Over the next few days, I will set up more traps around the village. If we can catch one, we will know what kind of creature it is!"
"Right! Everyone should be more careful from now on. The situation is unclear right now, so one person will keep watch at night, and report to me one by one each day."
Having learned the whole story, the crowd dispersed one by one. Since the village was built on a mountainside, there was only a patch of flat ground at the entrance, while everywhere else could only accommodate one or two courtyards built separately. Therefore, everyone here lived in their own courtyard. The Village Chief's courtyard was at the very front, which was also the closest to Fujiang. Ever since he was a child, Granny Zi had lived with Fujiang, and fearing that her enemies might track them down, she protected him very well.
When Granny Zi returned and saw that the barrier was normal, she waved her hand to dismiss it. The barrier slowly vanished beneath the moonlight like melting snow and ice. Walking into the house, she saw Fujiang sleeping soundly, and then she went back to her own room to sleep with a peace of mind.
Seeing that everyone had dispersed, Zhuixing approached Tongling and said earnestly with a sincere attitude, "Tongling, can you teach me that method of setting up spiritual traps? We can talk about the price, and I can also trade things with you!"
Hearing Zhuixing's request, Tongling looked surprised. She hesitated for a moment, turned her head, and said slowly, "Setting up spiritual traps requires formidable spiritual power. Have you cultivated your spiritual power?"
Zhuixing thought for a moment, took out his long bow, and with his right hand gripping the bow, a golden feathered arrow condensed upon his left hand. He drew the bow and shot the arrow, aiming at a giant tree ahead. As the bowstring was pulled to its limit, the golden feathered arrow pierced through the air and instantly struck the trunk. The trunk was pierced through in an instant by the golden feathered arrow, which then struck another tree behind it and exploded instantly with immense power. At that moment, Zhuixing asked, "Does this count as having cultivated spiritual power?"
Tongling gently nodded, and said in a melodious voice, "Just the moment you released the arrow, I felt spiritual power fluctuations. You used spiritual power when shooting the arrow, but your application of it is rather crude. You can practice for a period of time; perhaps your spiritual power will grow much stronger, and by then the power of your arrows will be even greater!"
After speaking, Tongling stood quietly in place, looking very calm and exuding an ethereal aura. Zhuixing thought for a moment and continued to ask, "Then you mean I can set up these spiritual traps?"
"Whether you can set them up depends on the strength of your spiritual power. Your spiritual power must be controlled with utmost precision before you can complete the setup of a trap. Right now, you can only be considered a beginner. I have a book on training spiritual power here that I can lend you to read; it might be useful. Just make sure you don't lose it, as this is the only copy I have!"
Hearing this, joy blossomed across Zhuixing's face, and then he said, "Since I'm taking your item, do you have any requests? I will help you with whatever I can do!"
"I need to set up more traps around the village, but the materials are not enough right now. I will make a list, and you can help me gather these materials."
"Alright! No problem!"
Immediately afterward, Tongling handed a book and a list to Zhuixing. After receiving them, Zhuixing expressed his gratitude and vanished into thin air.
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, Fujiang got up early and sat cross-legged on the giant boulder at the village entrance, facing east to begin practicing breathing and meditation techniques. Yufeng had told him that the early morning air is the freshest and most nourishing, and facing the sun can increase the *yang* energy within the body. Practicing it to the ultimate level can keep all ghosts at bay, refresh the mind, prolong life, and replenish the body's innate breath.
When the sun was high in the sky, Fujiang was practicing saber techniques under the shade of a tree. At that moment, Wukong, who rarely went out, came over to the tree shade. With a benevolent expression and a joyful smile, he said, "Jiang'er, yesterday I saw you learning three kinds of weapons, but you didn't learn staff techniques. How about I teach you a set of staff techniques today?"
Hearing that there was a new cultivation technique to learn, Fujiang immediately jumped up with excitement and said earnestly, "Uncle Wukong, I'm free right now. Teach me right away!"
Looking at the overjoyed Fujiang, Wukong smiled slightly and handed over a staff he was holding.
"The single saber you practice is known as the commander of all weapons, and practicing it emphasizes boldness and strength—the saber is like a fierce tiger. The spear is the king of all weapons, the sword is the gentleman of all weapons, and the staff is the ancestor of all weapons. All these weapons evolved on the basis of the staff; once you master staff techniques, learning those others will be much easier!"
Fujiang took the staff, nodded heavily, and beamed happily. "Uncle Wukong, I remember! Let's begin!"
"The spear thrusts in a single line, while the staff strikes a wide area. The name of this staff technique of mine is the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique. Watch closely, it has a total of nine forms, and within those nine forms are nine moves. When these nine forms and nine moves are combined, they can yield eighty-one moves with infinite variations!"
As soon as Wukong finished speaking, he waved his arms, moved his feet in quick succession, and began to demonstrate. As the staff kept swinging, fierce winds swirled around his body, and his footsteps fluttered continuously. The open space seemed filled with thousands of staff shadows. By the end of the performance, the staff shadows resembled a coiling dragon. Then Wukong leaped high into the air, let out a loud shout, and fiercely smashed the staff down onto the ground. The ground trembled violently, instantly splitting open with a dull, thunderous roar. When the dust settled, Wukong slowly walked over.
"Jiang'er, did you see this staff technique clearly?"
Although Fujiang hadn't memorized it completely, he had still kept most of the moves in his mind. He thought for a moment, nodded, and answered truthfully, "Uncle Wukong, I remembered a large majority of it!"
Wukong originally just wanted to test Fujiang's memory—being able to remember even a small fraction would have been enough. But hearing Fujiang say he had already memorized a large majority, joy flooded Wukong's face, and he secretly gasped in amazement in his heart, wanting to see just how much he had actually retained.
"Jiang'er, you mustn't lie. Since you remember a large majority of it, demonstrate it for me to see!"
Fujiang gripped the staff, shouted loudly, "Alright!" and began to earnestly execute the staff technique Wukong had just demonstrated. Although there were no sky-filling staff shadows or raging gales, every single move, turn, and dodge already bore the shadow of the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique. This made Wukong's eyes light up, and he sighed inwardly: another legendary figure would soon emerge in the martial arts world. He hoped that Fujiang's future achievements would not fall short of the Village Chief's. Difficult though that might be, Wukong figured that with such a photographic memory and so many formidable masters, he should still have a chance.
When Fujiang finished performing the Coiling Dragon Staff Technique, he walked up and asked earnestly, "Uncle Wukong, did I perform it correctly?"