Water Ink Panel: Starting with Bow Technique to Hunt the Sun and Patrol the Skies

Chapter 193: Chapter 19 Annotations on Talismans, Sky Flipping Seal

The next day.

After inspecting the defense area and ensuring there were no errors, Shen Qing once again arrived at the Martial Arts Hall.

Following a day's struggle, there remained several hundred Martial Arts books in the study hall of the Martial Arts Hall. He intended to use the next couple of days to transcribe all of them into his mind.

"Has Shen Chasi arrived?" The instructor at the door, seeing Shen Qing again, became much friendlier and even skipped the routine inspection, "You're a bit late today."

Shen Qing smiled, "Martial Arts are indeed important, but I still need to do my primary job well. Otherwise, if something goes wrong and demons cause trouble, that would be troublesome."

"That makes sense," the old coach said as he glanced at Shen Qing and stepped aside for him, "Go on in by yourself, I won't lead the way."

Shen Qing bowed and, following the route from the previous day, entered the study of the Martial Arts Hall, filled with a fighting spirit as he looked at the rows of bookshelves.

"I finished the Martial Arts over here yesterday; might as well finish the rest today. Knowledge is power, time is money. Let's get to work!"

Shen Qing walked up to a bookshelf, pulled out the outermost Martial Arts book, and began flipping through it.

As he continued to read, the progress of his skill in "recognizing characters and reading" kept increasing, and the speed at which his brain "imprinted" Martial Arts also increased.

As time trickled by, Shen Qing had reviewed nearly all of the remaining Martial Arts books.

Among these books, Shen Qing unexpectedly discovered two interesting ones.

One was a long-neglected old book that had been forgotten for a long time; the other looked ordinary on the outside but contained great secrets and was deeply connected to him—a Martial Arts Secret Manual.

Shen Qing picked up the old book in front of him and examined it closely.

When Shen Qing took out this book, he found it had become damp and stained, and many of its pages were moldy and stuck together.

Had it not been for the four ancient characters on the cover, "Annotations on Talismans," clear and decisive, he might have thought it was a casual notebook written by some martial master.

The reason this old book intrigued Shen Qing was not because of its ancientness, but because it recorded rarely seen content.

It documented long-lost annotations on talismans, and Shen Qing even found several familiar talismans within.

"If the record in this book is correct, then the three talismans I possess are respectively the Divine Power Talisman, the Featherweight Talisman, and the Revitalizing Talisman," he said.

"Unfortunately, it only contains the methods of use and lacks the method of making talismans. This tradition must have declined."

Shen Qing's expression grew solemn as he carefully memorized the content of the book and then returned it to its place.

He then turned his attention to the other Martial Arts Secret Manual.

The cover of the manual was simply outlined with a rustic seal, and in the middle, "Sky Flipping Seal" was written in a flamboyant style, carrying an extraordinary aura.

Shen Qing picked it up, his expression complex.

This Martial Arts manual was considered fateful to him because he recognized traces of the Wind Defying Finger technique from a few moves described within.

At first, he thought he had misread, but upon carefully reviewing it a second time, he truly found several moves that matched the style of the Wind Defying Finger exactly.

He was almost certain that the Wind Defying Finger originated from this Imperial Martial Arts manual known as the Sky Flipping Seal.

Why it was so could no longer be investigated.

Perhaps, in the past, some martial master learned the Sky Flipping Seal and it inadvertently leaked outside, eventually evolving into Li Linfeng's Wind Defying Finger under fortunate circumstances.

Perhaps someone had surreptitiously learned it, and then transmitted it to Li Linfeng's hands.

Either scenario was possible.

Shen Qing had no particular interest in researching the route of its transmission; rather, his interest in this martial art was profound.

According to this specific record of Sky Flipping Seal, when cultivated to its utmost limits, reaching the supreme realm, it was said to be able to shake heaven and earth, reverse the polarity of the universe, and even, with a single thought, overturn mountains and rivers, plunging the sun and moon into darkness.

Shen Qing was still somewhat skeptical of such claims, suspecting that the author had exaggerated, but he believed that reaching the highest level of practice could indeed achieve feats like shattering mountains and splitting the earth with a single palm strike, though perhaps not to the extent of darkening the sun and moon.

It was without a doubt that this martial art was many times more complex and sophisticated than Wind Defying Finger, which could at best be considered merely one of its techniques.

If Wind Defying Finger were a child, then Sky Flipping Seal was a mighty adult in his prime.

There was simply no comparison.

Another critical point was that Sky Flipping Seal included training methods beyond the Qi Hai Realm, which perfectly suited his situation.

Shen Qing read through it several times more to ensure there were no omissions or errors, firmly memorizing it. After that, he set down the martial art book and proceeded to "imprint" all the remaining martial arts books before he stopped.

After putting down the last book, he suddenly felt a sense of satisfaction akin to a person with OCD, observing a block fitting perfectly into a slot.

Stepping out of the study, the old coach, who was occupied with molding clay, glanced at him and smiled, "Shen Chasi, have you decided which martial arts book you want to pick?"

Shen Qing thought for a moment and replied, "Sky Flipping Seal."

The old coach paused, expressing surprise, "You want to study it?"

"Is there something inappropriate?" Shen Qing asked.

"Shen Chasi, listen to my advice, it would be better for you to choose another martial art," the old coach urged.

Shen Qing questioned curiously, "Is this martial art by any chance a false one?"

"It's not fake, it's just very difficult to practice," the old coach explained. "Sky Flipping Seal has immense power, but such strength is not easily attained. Cultivating this martial art requires exceptional talent, determination, and opportunity. Most who train in this martial art get stuck halfway, unable to progress or retreat, ultimately wasting their years. That's why I suggest you choose another martial art."

Shen Qing earnestly sought advice, "Could you suggest some better martial arts?"

The old coach listed them like an inventory, "Burning Sky Technique, Three Elements Body Refining Technique, Mixed Element True Technique, are all decent martial arts."

Shen Qing took careful note and expressed his thanks, "Thank you for your guidance. I still feel that Sky Flipping Seal suits me better."

"Eh… everyone to their own. If that's what you like, then so be it," the old coach responded without any hint of sarcasm but felt that his previous words with Shen Qing were somewhat wasted.

After all, he had only met Shen Qing twice, and they had no real friendship to speak of. As someone responsible only for guarding the doors, he was too lazy to meddle in others' affairs, and offering a few words of advice was all the duty he felt he owed.

Shen Qing bowed slightly, "Sorry to have troubled you, I take my leave now."

The old coach hummed softly in response, paying no further attention to Shen Qing.

Shen Qing strode out, leaving the Martial Arts Hall.

Standing at the entrance of the Martial Arts Hall, he turned back for a glance.

All the martial arts inside the hall had now been etched into his memory, eliminating the need to return the following day, freeing up time for other, more important tasks.

Shen Qing withdrew his gaze, took a large stride forward, and suddenly felt a jolt in his mind as if realizing something urgent, and quickly summoned the Water Ink Panel.