After all, the strength of his followers is a reflection of his own overall strength.
"Okay, thank you, boss."
Jia Zhengyi happily accepted the manual and began to peruse it as if it were a priceless treasure.
The two sat together, engrossed in studying martial arts skills. Xiao Linlin, who was not far away, saw this scene and was somewhat surprised, but she did not come to disturb them.
Time passed by, minute by minute, until three hours later.
Jia Zhengyi finally couldn't help but raise his head. Su Lin, with his keen senses, immediately looked up and asked in a deep voice, "Is someone trying to approach us?"
"No, boss, the target we're lying in ambush on has just set off; they haven't gotten close yet."
Jia Zhengyi shook his head, took a deep breath, and said with a bitter tone, "It's me... I can't understand this thing. I don't seem to have gained much in these past few hours. I understand the words on it, but it doesn't understand me."
"ah?"
Su Lin was taken aback upon hearing this, and quickly took the manual from Jia Zhengyi's hand to examine it carefully.
The C-level "Willow Leaf Maze" manual wasn't wrong; it's not some obscure, difficult-to-understand high-level stuff.
Su Lin opened the manual again, frowned and flipped through it for a moment, then looked up with great surprise: "It's not difficult. There are three main points: remember the frequency of footwork, the traces of internal energy, and the 108 subsequent footwork variations in the 9 core footwork moves."
"You couldn't even understand something this basic?"
Su Lin's sincere inquiry, though unintentionally offensive, still sent a jolt through Jia Zhengyi, leaving him deeply shaken.
"Boss, you make it sound simple... I know what this is about, but I can't remember the steps! 9+108, that's over a hundred steps! And you have to use them flexibly, and pay attention to the details and quantity of internal energy regulation!"
Jia Zhengyi couldn't help but complain bitterly: "This book also says that you can't just memorize it by rote, you have to have your own understanding... No, how am I supposed to understand it? What should I understand?"
"What...what have I come to understand? It's just these things!"
Su Lin was also somewhat confused. He stood up and demonstrated in front of Jia Zhengyi.
"Look, this is the Kunbu step, and the subsequent changes are like this."
"And here is a little tricky point. Pay attention to stepping off Kan, then moving towards Gen, changing direction towards Qian, and ending with Kun."
Even if you can't remember them, you can use directions like east, south, west, and north to replace them.
Su Lin explained carefully, his footwork as swift as clouds, his movements graceful and elegant, demonstrating the exquisite nature of this light-body technique.
Even a layman could tell at a glance that this was the real deal.
"Even if you don't have internal energy, you can first memorize the footwork, and then slowly learn internal energy cultivation later. That kind of thing requires patience and perseverance, it can't be rushed..."
Su Lin was still explaining when Jia Zhengyi interrupted him, asking, "Boss, have you studied this book, 'The Willow Leaf Maze'?"
"I haven't studied it."
Su Lin stopped, paused, and answered honestly, "I just read it, but I haven't fully grasped it yet."
You just watched it and you already know how to do it?
No, you've only flipped through it a few times! It hasn't even been a minute, has it?
Boss, you cheated!
Jia Zhengyi stared blankly, his defenses crumbling. He suddenly realized something: it wasn't that these martial arts manuals were of poor quality or too simple, but that the boss was too monstrous!
Damn it, he can master it with just one glance!
This isn't genius? This is foolishness.
"boss..."
After holding back for a long time, Jia Zhengyi slowly said, "I just realized that you are also a genius, just like Linlin."
"Is there?"
Su Lin touched her hair and smiled, "I'm not as smart as her. Your flattery didn't quite hit the mark."
"It's not a matter of being smart or not. You really are the kind of person who is very special... how should I put it, a martial arts genius, you know?"
Jia Zhengyi raised his hand, stating a fact with a look of despair: "Just like the superpowered geniuses I knew before, they can destroy the world with a wave of their hand. How are others supposed to compete with that?"
The boss felt the same way. He thought learning martial arts was difficult because he started by reading A-level martial arts manuals, which were based on the foundation of martial arts masters. Moreover, it wasn't that he couldn't understand them, but rather that he felt he was learning too slowly.
This is roughly equivalent to someone trying to tackle a new research topic at the level of an academician. Regardless of the person's own abilities and background, just being able to understand this stuff is already quite extraordinary.
"I'm not as good as you say. I haven't even learned that boxing technique. My aptitude is actually quite ordinary."
Su Lin's modest question prompted Jia Zhengyi to press further: "That fist technique, the one that shoots fire... Boss, what level have you reached?"
"I haven't reached the pinnacle yet; I'm still one step away from perfection. So I want to explore other martial arts to see if I can further enhance my understanding of martial arts."
Su Lin spoke softly, telling the truth. He felt there was no need to hide so much from his followers.
But to everyone's surprise, his honest answer only made Jia Zhengyi look despair again: "Fine, fine, you haven't reached the pinnacle, have you!"
"In your eyes, learning something means mastering it to a high degree, right?"
"Okay, okay, I understand, I get it."
As Jia Zhengyi nodded, he slowly got up, rubbing his sore knees and calves.
"Old Jia, what's wrong?"
Su Lin stepped forward to help him up, but Jia Zhengyi pushed her away, saying, "Boss, I'm fine. I'll go somewhere else."
What's wrong with you?
"I'm fine, I just realized one thing: I should focus on researching my own superpower first."
Jia Zhengyi left and went to a more distant place to continue his reconnaissance.
As Su Lin watched his retreating figure, she suddenly sensed a sense of loneliness and escapism beneath it, like a child fleeing math class, filled with fear.
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