Plunging into the pool, Tang San felt the refreshing water envelop him and deliberately relaxed his body as much as he could. He knew this brief moment of relaxation was all he would get. What kind of training method would his father subject him to next?
The object in his hands was no longer a wooden mallet the size of a forging hammer, but a super-sized one with a hammerhead cross-section two meters in diameter. Yet, despite this massive head, the handle was only as thick as a man's arm.
One could imagine that simply lifting this wooden hammer normally might cause the handle to snap under the weight. But Tang San had managed to complete the eighty-one strikes beneath the waterfall using masterful control of his strength.
The force of the water was tremendous. Without such an enormous hammer, how could he possibly have made the entire waterfall reverse its flow for ten meters? By now, his Chaotic Wind Hammer Technique had been refined to its absolute limit.
Just as Tang San had anticipated, when he returned to the bank, his father was already waiting there. But unlike before, as he prepared to climb out, his father's rough, large hand appeared before him.
After a moment of stunned hesitation, Tang San extended his right hand and grasped his father's. With a powerful tug from Tang Hao, Tang San's body burst from the water and landed before him.
Having been here for a full year, Tang San had grown noticeably taller. Now nearly sixteen, he had the physique of a full-grown man—and a large one at that. He looked more and more like his father in his youth. Though not yet sixteen, the resolute determination on his face was something ordinary men in their twenties or thirties could not possess.
Steadfast, decisive, tenacious—the outstanding qualities direct descendants of the Clear Sky School possessed were clearly evident in him.
Tang Hao was very satisfied with his son's progress, though he would never show it.
Without needing Tang Hao to act, Tang San proactively tossed the oversized wooden mallet aside. "Dad, what's next?"
After a year, he had adapted to this special training and could clearly feel his own improvement within it. His application of strength had now reached the pinnacle. He could even precisely control the direction and flow of every ounce of his power.
Once out of the pool, even the most subtle fluctuations of force around him could not escape his perception. In his hands, without any Soul Power, even a single blade of grass could become a lethal weapon.
Tang Hao raised his hand and pointed toward the waterfall on the other side of the pool. "Rest today. Starting tomorrow, while you train, I do not want to see the waterfall able to fall directly into the pool from more than thirty meters up. The Chaotic Wind Hammer Technique can be used forwards or backwards—just like when you blocked Xiao Fengtian's Gale Demon Wolf Thirty-Six Consecutive Slashes from Wind Chaser Academy."
Tang San looked at Tang Hao in confusion. "Dad, I don't understand."
Tang Hao said calmly, "All this training is to help you better master the Clear Sky Hammer and better utilize your own strength. But if you always train with an external object, you will never truly feel what the Clear Sky Hammer can offer you. So, starting tomorrow, the hammer you use beneath the waterfall will be your own Clear Sky Hammer. You may use Soul Power. Let me see what degree you can truly reach."
As he spoke, Tang Hao tapped a point on Tang San's left shoulder. Tang San felt a tremendous force and his body turned involuntarily. Immediately after, a searingly hot hand pressed against his back. A dense flow of scorching energy pierced through his body, surging instantly into his dantian. Before Tang San could even react, the internal energy within his dantian erupted like a volcanic explosion.
The force pressed down, and Tang San involuntarily sat under Tang Hao's control.
"Calm your mind and cultivate your Soul Power." These eight simple words were Tang Hao's instruction. The thought that he could truly rest for a day vanished from Tang San's mind. He immediately gathered his spirit, guiding the sudden, turbulent surge of internal energy to circulate along the pathways of the Mysterious Heaven Skill.
The Mysterious Heaven Skill was originally a gentle internal energy, but at this moment it had become violent. Under Tang San's slight guidance, it rushed forth like floodwaters breaking through a dam, scouring his extraordinarily tough meridians.
With the internal energy entering his body, Tang San gained much understanding. The first thing he felt was how his mental strength controlled the energy. Under the influence of his vast mental power, even though the surging internal energy possessed a tremendous impact force, he could still barely control it. The second thing he felt was the transformation within his meridians.
Although a full year had passed since they had last carried the complete flow of internal energy, his meridians seemed to have been widened and had become incredibly resilient. No matter how the massive internal energy surged, it was compelled to follow the path of his meridians.
The scouring beneath the waterfall was a tempering of Tang San's entire being—his body, his meridians, his will, and his spirit. A year of monotony had brought an unprecedented elevation.
Sounds of cracking resounded continuously within Tang San's body. It was not the meridians breaking open, but blockages being forcibly cleared. After just three complete circulation cycles, among the eight extraordinary meridians, including those already opened, six were now clear. Only the Ren and Du meridians still held their barriers.
With six meridians open, an even more massive internal force joined the circulation. That sensation of being a smelting furnace returned, but this time, Tang San was the one who had brought it upon himself.