220: Chapter 217 Three Levels of Listening Skill

Just as the voice fell, bang!

Another sound of a heavy object hitting the ground rang out.

"What happened again?!"

Freddy was somewhat annoyed. What was going on? Could it be that someone else had died?

"It's Sithke, he..."

Bang!

Immediately followed by another dull thud of something hitting the ground.

"What on earth is going on?"

Freddy was almost going crazy. What was happening? Why did they only say half of what they meant?

"It's Hal, he died too, Boss, don't..."

Bang!

Before the words could be finished, there was another heavy crash to the ground.

"What exactly is going on? Who is the enemy? How many people are there?"

Freddy's manic voice roared.

However, at this moment, no one responded to him. The group of underlings was already looking at the bar area in terror.

How could they dare to answer now? Basically, every one of them who responded to Boss Freddy had died one after another.

Replying to the boss was like the Grim Reaper calling roll!

Freddy, hiding behind the thick gambling table, had no idea what the situation was outside, his mind filled with all sorts of questions.

And this unknown brought with it an invisible fear.

Cesar, who was hiding with him, was already regretting it to death.

Playing cards, what a load of nonsense. Now look, they'd played themselves into trouble.

The enemies Freddy had provoked were now implicating him.

Facing this situation, Li Changsheng naturally had quite a bit of experience.

He had used this tactic before when dealing with that group of mercenaries. Because the opponent's firepower was too intense, popping his head out to fight definitely wasn't realistic. This method of using sound to identify position and conducting precision strikes was quite good; he only needed to hear the sound, and he would shoot quickly.

"It seems I can also practice Listening Energy!"

As he fought, Li Changsheng simply immersed himself in it, discovering that this state was very good for practicing Listening Energy.

And among all martial arts, Taiji explained Listening Energy the most thoroughly!

In ancient times, the traditional character for "Listen" ( listen) had an ear on the left, and a "heart" ( Heart) component at the bottom right, so true "listening" relied on the perception of the heart.

Taiji Listening Energy, on the other hand, allowed one to examine everything about an opponent in that instant of "being in contact yet not in contact," relying on the skill of the heart and intent; even the movement of an opponent's hair could be perceived.

Taiji Listening Energy is mostly divided into three stages: Bone-Sensing Listening Energy, Skin-Sensing Listening Energy, and Subtle-Sensing Listening Energy.

"I remember that the steps to entering the Transformation Realm in Taiji emphasize Listening Energy first, and then advancing to Transformation Realm. If the principle is the same, Listening Energy might be one of the prerequisites for other boxing styles to enter the Transformation Realm, just like how my eyes could previously see through an opponent's next move by observing the subtle changes in their muscles.

Similarly, just like 'stepping as if drawing silk,' it is the same, representing the Major Achievement of Dark Energy.

The changes in footwork, whether it is light or heavy, how force is exerted, whether the hand skill is there or not—footwork is the most critical.

After 'stepping as if drawing silk,' even if Dark Energy hasn't spread throughout the entire body, it has reached the Realm of Major Achievement in Dark Energy at the application level."

Li Changsheng pondered slightly in his heart. After Meridian Guidance, his Dark Energy had almost been trained throughout his entire body, but achieving 'stepping as if drawing silk' with his leg and hand techniques meant he had reached the level of Major Achievement.

"As for Listening Energy, I should currently be at the Bone-Sensing and Skin-Sensing Listening Energy levels, already able to understand the enemy's movements and the laws of their muscle movement through forms of 'being in contact yet not in contact' and identifying positions by sound.

Once I master Subtle-Sensing Listening Energy, perhaps when my Dark Energy is completely at Major Achievement, the Transformation Realm will not be far off!"

"But what is Subtle-Sensing Listening Energy?

Looking at the boxing classics, it says that for a Grandmaster at the Taiji Transformation Realm, Listening Energy relies on spirit, intent, and the energy field. Reaching this level means training to form a Taiji circle or energy field centered on oneself.

Once an opponent steps into it, it is like standing on the edge of an abyss; they cannot leave or escape, and the moment they make contact, it is as if they are stuck to a magnet. A Transformation Realm expert possessing this kind of Listening Energy only needs a movement of their spirit and intent to knead the opponent like a pellet."

Li Changsheng recalled the ancient boxing classics he had seen; it seemed that only the likes of Yang Luchan had achieved this step. It was said that when Yang Luchan was practicing in those years, the surrounding fallen leaves would rotate, and the dust would be swept up like a spiral.

His palm wind was several feet above the ground, but he could direct the force of the palm wind to the ground, and when he raised it again, he could sweep up sand, wind, and fallen leaves into his palm.

Under the application of force, he had indeed reached the Realm of Major Achievement in the Transformation Realm.

"Could Subtle-Sensing Listening Energy be using a kind of ethereal perception to sense the opponent's position, so that even without making contact or listening to sounds, one can still have a clear understanding in one's heart?

Isn't this similar to Wang Chongyang's Living Dead Realm?"

Li Changsheng suddenly understood why Elder Zhang had told him to learn about the Great Corpse-Sprawling Method and the Living Dead Realm.

So that was what it was waiting for here.

"The Daoist Living Dead Realm emphasizes a further understanding of 'having form but no substance, having substance but no form,' and comprehending the principles of Yin and Yang generation and transformation.

Could this be a kind of ethereal sixth sense?

Seeing through life and death, being able to feel the existence of the surrounding space, and transforming on the basis of perception, like a feeling of great enlightenment—could the ability of 'the cicada senses the breeze before it moves' be evolved from this feeling?

Avoiding danger will form an instinct?"

Li Changsheng's face showed a thoughtful expression.

He didn't think for too long; he began to try it over and over again. Even if there was no movement over there, he would throw an iron bead every so often.

It was like a blind man feeling an elephant; he would close his eyes and shoot.

He didn't know how much time had passed. When he opened his eyes again, Li Changsheng was stunned to find that all the iron beads on his person had been exhausted.

He listened and discovered that even the sound of breathing in the room was pitifully scarce.

"Hmm? Could they all be dead?"

Looking at the glass shards on the floor, Li Changsheng's eyes suddenly widened.

He saw that the floor of the room was littered with corpses; dozens of people had all collapsed on the ground, with no sound left.

He got up and looked around, and Li Changsheng discovered that except for a few iron beads that had occasionally missed, all the others had hit their targets, and they had struck straight for vital points.

"Just now I was like in a Daoist state of meditation, my mind empty and clear, but I didn't have that feeling of perceiving the space in all directions. It wasn't Subtle-Sensing, but I did touch upon a few edges and corners of it."

Li Changsheng rubbed his chin, feeling that this trip had not been in vain.

"Come out!"

Just at this moment, Li Changsheng spoke indifferently, and he heard the faint sound of clothing rubbing coming from behind the gambling table.

"I... I... I'm not coming out! You can beat me to death, and I still won't come out!"

— —

...

Walking out of the recreation room, Li Changsheng's clothes were still neat, except for a few glass shards on his elbows, which were caused by supporting himself on the ground for too long.

"Why were you inside for so long?"

Zhou Guoli's slightly confused voice came through the headset.

"It took a bit of time."

Li Changsheng checked the time; he had been inside for about three minutes.

"Is everything inside resolved?"

"Resolved." Li Changsheng nodded at the corridor surveillance camera.

They were indeed taken out. Both were scum, but they were also spineless. After killing them, his thoughts were clear, but it just felt quite boring.

It was even more boring than Master Guo's side; Master Guo at least had one Dark Energy thug.

"Be careful, it seems they just called for reinforcements from inside, and now a large number of people are gathering towards this side."