162: Chapter 42 Guo Jing and Yang Kang's Talents

After parking the Dream Travel Residence, Meng Li said to Huang Rong, "Call Guo Jing and Yang Kang outside together."

Saying this, he got out of the front of the carriage with Mu Nianci and found an open space to stand.

A short while later, Huang Rong led Guo Jing and Yang Kang over, and Yang Tiexin and Bao Xiruo followed out of curiosity.

Meng Li wasted no time and spoke directly to Guo Jing and Yang Kang: "You two will spar twice. For the first round, only compare your Moves; no Internal Energy is allowed. For the second round, only compare Internal Energy; no need to use too many Moves."

Yang Kang and Guo Jing knew from Huang Rong that Meng Li was going to instruct them in Martial Arts, so they readily agreed and walked to an open space not far away to stand.

After signaling each other, the two began fighting as required.

Since they had no weapons, they could only compare their fist and foot Moves.

Guo Jing used the South Mountain Palm Move he learned from Nan Xiren, while Yang Kang used the Three Flowers Gathering at the Top Palm taught by Qiu Chuji.

The two exchanged blows, and initially, they seemed evenly matched.

But after more than ten exchanges, Yang Kang saw through Guo Jing's routine, and his responses became noticeably awkward, putting him at a disadvantage.

Meng Li immediately called a halt and had them proceed to the second round.

Since this round primarily focused on Internal Energy, the two exchanged a few simple Moves before pitting their Internal Energy against each other. The result was that neither could gain an advantage.

The spar ended, and Yang Kang had a slight edge, wearing a smile.

Guo Jing, however, was somewhat dejected.

Meng Li asked Yang Kang, "How old were you when you started learning Martial Arts from Daoist Master Qiu?"

Yang Kang replied, "Seven years old."

"What Martial Arts did he teach you?"

"Quanzhen Internal Skill, Three Flowers Gathering at the Top Palm Move, and Golden Goose Skill."

"How long have you practiced these Martial Arts?"

Hearing this question, Yang Kang's eyes flickered slightly, but he still said, "I've been practicing since I learned them, for about ten years."

Meng Li nodded, then turned to ask Guo Jing, "How old were you when you started learning Martial Arts with the Jiangnan Seven Heroes?"

Guo Jing lowered his gaze slightly: "Six years old."

"What Martial Arts did they teach you?"

"Grand Master taught me the Demon Subduing Staff Move, Second Master taught me the Tendon-Separating Bone-Dislocating Hand, Third Master taught me the Golden Dragon Spear Technique, Fourth Master taught me the South Mountain Palm Move. Fifth Master passed away early and didn't get to teach me. Sixth Master taught me the Hu Yan Spear Technique, and Seventh Master taught me the Maiden Yue Sword Technique."

"How long have you practiced these Martial Arts?"

"Over eleven years."

"How long have you practiced your Quanzhen Internal Skill?"

"That was taught by Daoist Master Ma, and I have practiced it for two years."

Meng Li turned his head to ask Huang Rong, "Do you see the problem?"

Huang Rong nodded: "Brother Jing practicing Internal Skill for two years resulted in Internal Energy comparable to Yang Kang's ten years of practice. This indicates he is better suited for practicing Internal Skill."

Yang Kang: "..."

You can say what you want, but why drag me down?

Meng Li said, "Not accurate enough. To be precise, Guo Jing is suited for Martial Arts that are easy to start but require arduous effort to Master."

"Because his Heart-Nature is pure, allowing him not only to settle down for diligent practice but also to remain focused while cultivating."

"The Martial Arts of the Jiangnan Seven Heroes, individually, are suitable for him. These Martial Arts aren't bad, but they can't be called profound."

"If Guo Jing had only learned one or two of these Martial Arts over the years, the results would certainly be several times better than they are now."

"But he learned all of them and practices all of them, advancing equally in each. This is too complex for him to adapt to, making his cultivation yield half the result with double the effort. Although he knows every technique and has put in the effort, none of them are satisfactory."

"Conversely, his results in Internal Skill are extremely good."

"Firstly, the Quanzhen Internal Skill perfectly aligns with his Heart-Nature and Aptitude."

"Secondly, he has only practiced this one type of Internal Skill, focusing solely on it."

"Therefore, two years of his practice yields results comparable to Yang Kang's supposed ten years."

"Elder Brother Meng, is what you said true?" Guo Jing asked with shining eyes.

Since learning Martial Arts from the Jiangnan Six Monsters, he had received too much denial and discouragement, even developing self-doubt, blaming himself whenever the results were unsatisfactory.

Now, Meng Li was saying that it wasn't his Aptitude that was lacking, but that he had chosen the wrong path. This instantly made him see a glimmer of hope.

Meng Li smiled, "Do I get candy if I lie to you? Besides, don't you know the results of your own practice?"

Guo Jing was speechless, then scratched his head with a foolish smile.

Huang Rong and Mu Nianci couldn't help but laugh when they saw this.

Yang Tiexin and Bao Xiruo also smiled faintly.

Afterward, Yang Tiexin asked Meng Li, "What about Kang'er then?"

As soon as this question was asked, Yang Kang and the others instantly focused their gazes on Meng Li.

Meng Li glanced at Yang Kang and commented, "His Aptitude isn't bad, but his mind is cluttered, his Heart-Nature is restless, and he cannot settle down. The ten years he mentioned just now has too much padding; calculated by the basic standards of a general martial artist, three years would be considered generous."

Yang Kang's face stiffened, and he glanced at Bao Xiruo but offered no rebuttal.

Others might not know the situation of his past Martial Arts practice, but Bao Xiruo was aware of it.

Bao Xiruo sighed, "It's my fault; I spoiled him too much before."

Yang Tiexin stroked his beard, his eyes thoughtful.

Yang Kang's eyes flickered a few times, and finally, he gathered his courage and said to Meng Li, "Elder Brother Meng, I remember you previously said that the Quanzhen Sect Internal Skill is not suitable for me."

"Do you have any powerful Internal Skill that is suitable for me?"

Seeing this, Yang Tiexin frowned, wanting to speak but stopping himself.

Meng Li looked at Yang Kang, pondered for two seconds, and countered the question instead: "When did I ever say the Quanzhen Internal Skill was unsuitable for you?"

Yang Kang was stunned, then said, "Previously, I heard that Ancestral Master Chongyang was the number one expert under heaven, and I wondered why the power of Quanzhen Martial Arts was only average..."

Before he finished speaking, Meng Li cut in: "My exact words were: The Quanzhen Sect belongs to the Daoist school, and the Martial Arts they Cultivate emphasize self-cultivation and nurturing temperament; most are static exercises. Take the Quanzhen Internal Skill as an example; its nature is upright and harmonious, with almost no risk of Qi Deviation, but it requires grinding effort, accumulating over many years to release power slowly."

"You are young and impetuous, with an unsettled mind. Furthermore, Daoist Master Qiu is not by your side to supervise you constantly, so the cultivation effect is naturally poor."

"Coupled with insufficient age to form enough accumulation, its power when displayed seems mediocre."

"If you could settle your mind and Cultivate diligently, in about ten years, becoming as formidable as Daoist Master Qiu would not be a problem."

Meng Li repeated his words verbatim, paused, and then continued, "The key point of that statement was 'your mind is unsettled and you cannot focus.' The problem lies with you, not that the Quanzhen Internal Skill is inadequate."

"On the contrary, the Quanzhen Internal Skill is an excellent skill for newcomers like you and Guo Jing who have weak Foundations."

"Because it is simple to start with, and its nature is upright and harmonious; as long as you practice step-by-step, nothing will go wrong."

"As for requiring grinding effort..."

"Which Martial Art in the world can one achieve success in without diligent practice? Cultivating Internal Skill to gain Internal Energy requires accumulation over days and months to achieve profound depth. External offensive Moves also require practice until they are skillful to achieve technical dexterity."

"The Nine Yin White Bone Claw you learned is already considered rapid training, but the power you display is far inferior to the person who taught you."

"Besides her having deeper Foundations than you, the main reason is that she practices more diligently than you."

"Compared to you, she can be said to practice day and night."

"And those so-called powerful Internal Skills..."

"Which builder constructs walls directly without laying a proper Foundation? Can such a house be built without collapsing?"