All Chapters of The Art of the Invisible Strike: Chapter 1
- Chapter 10
10 chapters
Chapter 1
The sun hung high over the Azure Cloud Sect, but it brought no warmth to Han Feng. It only made the sweat sting his eyes. He stood on the dusty Training Square, his legs shaking. His breath came in ragged gasps. Around him, the air smelled of dry earth and the bitter scent of crushed herbs.In front of him stood the Iron-Wood Golems. These were not living things. They were massive, heavy training machines carved from wood as hard as steel. They moved on internal gears and weighted pulleys. Every time a golem swung its heavy arm, the air hissed.Han Feng was not there to train. He was a "Shield." In the Azure Cloud Sect, disciples with Broken Roots were seen as less than human. Their internal nerve clusters, the pathways that allowed a person to move their biological energy, were shattered at birth. Because they could never become masters, the sect used them as living targets for the elite disciples."Keep your head up, trash! If you drop the shield, I’ll break your legs myself!"Th
Chapter 2
The darkness of the Discard Pit was no longer silent. It was filled with the sound of a man being rebuilt.Han Feng lay in the freezing mud, but he did not feel the cold. His entire world was narrowed down to the inside of his own body. Every bone had been shattered by the strange vibration from the jade pendant. He should have been dead. A human body cannot survive such trauma. But the pendant was doing something impossible.It was acting as a pump.The silver light, the Primal Oxygen, was flooding into the spaces where his bones used to be. It was hot, like molten lead, yet it didn't burn his skin. It felt like a sculptor was reaching inside him with hands made of fire, reshaping his very foundation.He felt his humerus, the bone in his upper arm, knit back together. But it wasn't the same bone as before. It felt heavier. Denser. The Celestial Bone-Forging Scripture was not a book of words; it was a series of rhythmic pulses that burned into his brain.“The first secret of the Heav
Chapter 3
The air in the Discard Pit was thick with the white dust of the lime powder. It looked like a ghostly fog. Through that fog, Han Feng launched himself.He didn't move like the old Han Feng. The old Han Feng was slow, dragging his feet because of his damaged nerves. This new Han Feng moved like a released spring. His feet pushed off the soft, rotting trash with such force that a small crater appeared where he had been standing.Enforcer Tie was a man of the Third Realm of Body Tempering. His skin was tough, and his muscles were like thick ropes. He had spent twenty years bullying disciples. His reflexes were fast."You little rat!" Tie roared. He didn't know how the "Null" had jumped so high, but he didn't care. He raised his heavy iron mace. The mace was a brutal weapon, covered in blunt studs meant to crush bone.Tie swung the mace in a horizontal arc. He expected to hear the sound of Han Feng’s ribs shattering again.But Han Feng did something impossible. In mid-air, he twisted his
Chapter 4
High above the sect, there was a place called the Howling Falls. It was a massive waterfall that dropped three hundred feet into a jagged stone basin. The water was freezing, and the pressure was so great that it could break a man's shoulders. No one went there because the mist made the rocks slippery and dangerous.This was Han Feng’s new training ground.He stood at the base of the falls. The roar of the water was like a constant scream. He stripped off his shirt, revealing his lean, corded muscles.He didn't go into the water to meditate like the other disciples did. They sat in quiet ponds, trying to feel the "spirit of the water."Han Feng walked directly under the heaviest part of the waterfall.SLAM!The weight of the water hit him like a falling building. His knees buckled instantly. He was pressed down into the jagged rocks at the bottom of the basin. The cold was so sharp it felt like needles stabbing every inch of his skin."Stand... up..." he hissed.He used the "Internal
Chapter 5
The hunger was the first thing Han Feng felt every morning. It wasn't the normal hunger of a boy who had missed a meal. It was a deep, gnawing ache that felt like his stomach was trying to eat his own spine.His Copper Skin transformation was progressing, but it had a high price. His body was like a furnace now. To keep his muscles vibrating and his bones hardening, he needed massive amounts of energy. The watery porridge the sect gave the servants was no longer enough. If he didn't get concentrated nutrients soon, his body would start to break down its own muscle for fuel. He would wither away before the Culling even began."I need Vitality Pills," Han Feng whispered to himself.Vitality Pills were not magic. They were essentially power food, highly concentrated spheres of meat protein, herbal fats, and mineral salts, compressed under high pressure. One pill could provide a man with enough calories for a week. For a cultivator, it was the fuel for their internal engine.The problem
Chapter 6
"No! Wait! It must be a mistake!" Gao stammered, his fat face sweating. "The supplier... they must have tricked me!"But the damage was done. The wealthy disciple slapped Gao across the face, grabbed his money pouch, and stormed off. The other shoppers began to jeer and mock Gao. His reputation was ruined in a single moment.Han Feng stood there, calm. "Now, about those Vitality Pills. I think three silver is a very fair price for a jar. Don't you?"Gao looked at Han Feng with pure, unadulterated hatred. His hands were shaking. But with everyone watching, he couldn't attack. He reached under the counter, grabbed a dusty jar of black pills, and slammed it down."Take them," Gao spat. "And get out of my sight. If I ever see you in the Under-Alley again, I’ll have you skinned alive."Han Feng took the jar, tucked it into his cloak, and turned to leave. He had won, but he knew he had made a dangerous enemy.As he moved away from the stall, a hand reached out and grabbed his shoulder.Han
Chapter 7
The two thugs holding the wooden clubs were shaking. They were grown men, nearly twice the size of Han Feng. They had spent years refining their muscles. They had cracked the ribs of dozens of "Nulls" before. But today, they felt like they were hitting a wall of solid iron."What... what are you?" one of the thugs stammered. His knuckles were white from how hard he was gripping his club, but the wood wouldn't budge. Han Feng held both clubs in his bare hands as if they were made of straw.Han Feng didn't answer. His silver eyes were focused on the vibration of the wood. He could feel the tiny grains of the timber humming against his palms. He didn't just feel the clubs; he felt the fear in the men holding them. Their heartbeats were erratic. Their breathing was shallow."I told you," Han Feng said. His voice was quiet, but it seemed to echo off the damp stone walls of the alley. "I’ve had a very long day."With a sudden, violent twist of his wrists, Han Feng used his "Internal Resona
Chapter 8
Han Feng stopped his hand an inch from the man’s Adam’s apple. The vibration of Han Feng’s "Copper Skin" was so intense that the leader could feel his own teeth rattling just by being near him."Talk," Han Feng commanded."I... I have a letter," the man gasped. He reached into his inner pocket with shaking fingers. He pulled out a crumpled piece of parchment and handed it over.Han Feng took the paper. He didn't let go of the chain. He kept his silver eyes locked on the man while he glanced at the writing.It was a simple note, written in elegant, cold calligraphy. “Regarding the trash known as Han Feng. His survival is a mistake that must be corrected. Do not wait for the Culling. Ensure he never leaves the mountain alive. Payment will be rendered upon proof of his remains.”At the bottom of the letter was a seal. It wasn't Merchant Gao’s merchant stamp. It was the seal of the hall of justice, the personal office of the Great Elder of the Azure Cloud Sect.Han Feng felt a coldness in
Chapter 9
The night of the New Moon Festival was the loudest night of the year in the Azure Cloud Sect. From his position on the high rafters of the outer wall, Han Feng could see the thousands of paper lanterns rising into the sky like glowing jellyfish. The sound of drums and flutes drifted up from the lower valleys. The air was filled with the smell of roasted pork, sweet wine, and burnt gunpowder.Everyone from the lowest servant to the highest disciple was celebrating. The guards were drunk on rice wine, and the elders were busy receiving guests from neighboring sects.It was the only time the Forbidden Library would be vulnerable.Han Feng adjusted the dark cloth wrapped around his face. His "Copper Skin" had reached a new level of density. Even in the cool night air, he felt warm. His internal furnace was burning through the Vitality Pills he had stolen, turning them into raw, concentrated power.He didn't run toward the library. He moved like a shadow. He used a technique from the Cel
Chapter 10
The world was shaped like a massive, tapering tower. The land where the Azure Cloud Sect sat was at the very bottom, the First Heaven. It was a place of thick air, low gravity, and muddy biology. Above them were other layers, each one smaller but higher in altitude.The Ninth Heaven wasn't a paradise; it was the peak of the world, where the atmospheric pressure was so high and the oxygen so pure that a normal human from the First Heaven would be crushed instantly."It's not magic," Han Feng realized, his voice trembling. "It’s altitude. The Gods are just people who have the biology to survive up there."He saw a symbol on the map,the same symbol as his family’s jade pendant. It was located at the very top, in the Ninth Heaven.Next to the map, there was a scroll made of a material that looked like silver skin. He unrolled it. It was a genealogical record.The Bloodline of the Perfects, the scroll began.It described a race of humans who had achieved 100% "Nerve Efficiency." They didn