Gao Wu: A centenarian old man, many children and good fortune! Chapter 031

In the office, Xiao Yan pulled his attention away from the training ground outside the window and refocused on the electronic data pad in front of him. Lin Wei’s mission details swirled in his mind, especially the task for the Special Operations Brigade to clear out areas outside the city. Although it deviated from his initial expectations, nine months of free time had long since dispelled any lingering displeasure.

Now, the most urgent matter was to find a combat technique that could perfectly match and fully unleash the power of his newly acquired “Emperor-tier Tai Chi Art”!

He skillfully opened the Alliance’s internal network’s [Resource Exchange Center] once again. This time, his target was precisely locked on the [Combat Techniques] section.

Filter conditions: [Combat Technique Level: General or above], [Compatible Cultivation Art/Energy Trait: Tai Chi, Strength, Heavy Strike].

The light screen flickered, and countless combat technique icons surged forth like stars, then quickly filtered, leaving only over a hundred choices.

Xiao Yan carefully browsed the introductions of these combat techniques.

The true essence condensed by the “Emperor-tier Tai Chi Art” had a core characteristic, as he had come to understand: “long and strong.”

“Long” meant the true essence was enduring and profound, possessing astonishing stamina, far surpassing other cultivation arts of the same rank. It could sustain long-duration, high-intensity combat consumption.

“Strong” represented the heavy and fierce nature of its power. Every wisp of true essence seemed to contain the might of a mountain, unstoppable once unleashed.

However, this energy characteristic also brought a clear drawback: “clumsy and slow.” This didn’t refer to Xiao Yan’s own speed, but rather that the energy circulation and move variations were relatively less agile and swift, leaning more towards a straightforward, power-over-all style.

Thus, choosing a combat technique presented two distinct directions:

One was to “compensate for weaknesses.” Choose combat techniques that excelled in movement, speed, and agile variations to make up for the “clumsy and slow” shortcomings, making himself more flexible and harder for enemies to catch.

The other was to “maximize strengths.” Push the “long and strong” advantage to its extreme! Choose fierce combat techniques that could unleash power to the maximum, even stacking power, to follow a path of overpowering skill with brute force, and overwhelming all with a single strike.

Xiao Yan’s gaze lingered between the two types of combat techniques, falling into brief contemplation.

“If…” he murmured to himself, “if I were still that cannon fodder soldier struggling to survive in the beast tide, without any support, then survival would be the top priority. ‘Compensating for weaknesses,’ choosing combat techniques that enhance agility and evasion, would undoubtedly be the smarter choice. If I couldn’t win, at least I could run away.”

His eyes sharpened: “But now, it’s different.”

He was now the Special Operations Brigade Captain, a commander, the core and sharp edge of the team! He was no longer fighting alone; he had the entire Special Operations Brigade supporting him!

“In team combat, my duty is to overcome challenges, tear through enemy formations, and slay powerful foes! With my teammates providing support, distraction, and harassment, my ‘clumsy and slow’ shortcomings can largely be compensated for by the team, or even ignored!”

“Since that’s the case, why not push my advantages to the extreme?!”

A hint of dominance flashed in Xiao Yan’s eyes! He would walk the fiercest, most direct path!

“Maximize strengths!”

He immediately adjusted the filter conditions, excluding all combat techniques that leaned towards agility and skill, leaving only those purely focused on power and destructive force.

Among the remaining combat techniques, several different schools emerged:

There was the “Charge-up school,” which emphasized accumulating power to its peak for a single, decisive strike, like a volcanic eruption. Its power was immense, but it had a long wind-up time and was easily interrupted.

There was the “Berserker school,” which gained explosive power boosts for a short period by burning true essence or vital energy. However, it had clear side effects, harming oneself while harming the enemy.

And there was the “Incremental school,” where the power of each attack would stack on top of the previous one, growing stronger with each strike, like a tsunami building wave upon wave, ultimately forming earth-shattering power. This school demanded extremely profound and persistent true essence.

“Incremental school…” Xiao Yan’s eyes lit up. “This is practically tailor-made for the ‘Emperor-tier Tai Chi Art’!”

His “long and strong” Emperor-tier true essence could fully support this continuous, incrementally increasing power burst mode!

The filtering range narrowed again, and finally, a name, like a thunderclap, firmly caught his attention—

[Combat Technique: “Nine Waves of Startling Thunder”]

Next to this combat technique’s icon was that familiar endorsement symbol representing the Alliance’s highest certification—[Recommended and Detailed by God of War Luo Feng]!

It was God of War Luo Feng again!

Xiao Yan no longer hesitated! In his opinion, anything recommended by this legendary God of War was definitely top-tier within its rank! Moreover, since both the “Emperor-tier Tai Chi Art” and this combat technique were recommended by Luo Feng, their compatibility must be the highest!

He immediately clicked on the details page for “Nine Waves of Startling Thunder.”

[Combat Technique: “Nine Waves of Startling Thunder”]

[Type: Weapon-based combat technique (compatible with heavy striking weapons such as sabers, swords, staves, rods, hammers, etc.)]

[Core: Incremental Power, Armor Penetration]

[Description: Drawing upon Emperor-tier true essence as its source, it emulates the nine-fold might of heavenly thunder. With cleaving and smashing motions, it layers energy wave upon wave, surging like a tempest. The power of each strike surpasses the last! Nine waves merge into one, shaking heaven and earth!]

[Cultivation Difficulty: Extremely High!]

[Exchange Requirement: 1000 Special Merit Points.]

[Accompanying Teaching: [God of War Luo Feng’s Detailed Explanation – Startling Thunder Chapter (Beginner)], Exchange Price: 100, 000, 000 Credit Points.]

[Note: This combat technique is extremely difficult to master. Beginners can only barely manage to unleash ‘Three Waves.’ The second wave increases power by approximately 10%, and the third wave increases power by another 10% on top of the second. Its initial power might even be inferior to some excellent-grade ordinary combat techniques. However, once mastered, its power will explode exponentially, with infinite potential!]

When he saw the exchange requirement, Xiao Yan first breathed a sigh of relief. The authorization fee for the combat technique itself only required 1000 Special Merit Points. He still had 2900 points left, more than enough.

However, when his gaze fell upon the price of the “accompanying teaching,” he froze completely, then couldn’t help but curse under his breath:

“Damn it! This is too much!”

One hundred million credit points?!

And this was just the “beginner chapter” of the teaching?!

It was ten times more expensive than the “Emperor-tier Tai Chi Art” teaching!

Xiao Yan quickly calculated his assets. The thirty million credit points awarded by the Social Security Bureau, minus the ten million spent on the “Emperor-tier Tai Chi Art” teaching, left him with only twenty million.

Twenty million versus one hundred million—the gap was not small!

“This isn’t just robbing money…”

However, he also knew that God of War-level teachings were indeed invaluable, especially for top-tier combat techniques like this. Without the guidance of a renowned master, it would be incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to figure out how to get started on one’s own.

But he truly didn’t have the money right now.

What to do?

Xiao Yan quickly considered his sources of income. As a Special Operations Brigade Captain, a General-level officer, his annual salary, along with various subsidies and mission performance bonuses, could reach up to ten million credit points a year if he performed exceptionally well.

At the same time, the Alliance had a welfare policy for General-level officers: they could apply for an interest-free loan of up to one hundred million credit points for a five-year term, to be used for purchasing cultivation resources or handling urgent matters.

An interest-free loan of one hundred million… just enough to buy this beginner teaching.

Xiao Yan’s fingers tapped lightly on the desk as he weighed his options.

Loan? To go into one hundred million in debt for a beginner teaching, even if it was interest-free, was still a burden. What if there were even more expensive advanced teachings later?

“Or perhaps…” A flicker of confidence and… unwillingness flashed in Xiao Yan’s eyes. “I don’t believe it! This ‘Nine Waves of Startling Thunder,’ maybe I can learn it on my own?”

“I won’t buy the teaching yet!” Xiao Yan made up his mind. “I’ll exchange for the combat technique authorization first and try it myself! If I really manage to get started through my own comprehension, I’ll save one hundred million! Wouldn’t it be better to save that money for my child’s resources?”

If he truly couldn’t learn it, he could always consider taking out a loan for the teaching later.

With that thought, Xiao Yan no longer hesitated and decisively chose to only exchange for the combat technique authorization.

[Confirm payment of 1000 Special Merit Points to obtain personal cultivation authorization for “Nine Waves of Startling Thunder”?]

“Confirm!”

[Exchange successful! 1000 Special Merit Points have been deducted. Your current Special Merit Points balance is: 1900 points.]

[“Nine Waves of Startling Thunder” authorization activated.]

As the notification sound faded, another combat technique icon, adorned with a lightning wave symbol, appeared in Xiao Yan’s cultivation art library.