When Li Zhonglou heard the words behind him, his impression of the woman plummeted. If his strength had not been lost, he would surely have turned back and 'reasoned with her' properly.
After leaving the woman's line of sight and confirming she wasn't following, Li Zhonglou couldn't help but lean against the wall, gasping for breath.
He had indeed been pretending to be strong earlier, but not for the reason the woman mentioned, to show off. It was to prevent her from noticing too much that he had endured until now.
As he relaxed certain muscles, the intense pain felt like a drill boring into his bones, making him grit his teeth.
"Xiao Li, quickly use your Tai Chi to stabilize your injuries. Otherwise, with your weakened body, there might be lingering problems."
The voice that suddenly echoed in his mind belonged to Old Lin. Although his words were filled with concern for Li Zhonglou, they were quickly exposed by someone else.
"Old Lin, if you want to learn, just say so. Don't talk about injuries. With Xiao Li's abnormal body, such minor injuries will leave problems? You must be kidding."
"You know nothing! The curse doesn't just seal strength, you think Xiao Li's body is at its peak? Am I right, Xiao Li?"
"Heh, a stubborn mule."
"Get lost! You're the one with a sick brain! Can you actually say you want to learn something? Hmph, I, Old Lin, am stating it plainly now: I want to learn Xiao Li's Tai Chi, so what!"
Seeing that they were about to quarrel fiercely in his mind, Li Zhonglou quickly cut off some of his connection with the Soul Bottle, and only then did he quiet down.
At the same time, he immediately sat down and regulated his internal energy.
After a while, his complexion returned to normal. He then lifted the restrictions on the Soul Bottle and said into it.
"A set of Tai Chi, if you want to learn, I'll teach you."
Li Zhonglou smiled and slowly stood up.
Actually, the Tai Chi he practiced was different from the traditional one. His was developed and tailored to his own body condition. To put it bluntly, it might not suit anyone, which was why he had modified it to teach Hei Dao a half-Tai Chi.
He had already told Old Lin and the others about this. Since they were still interested, it was clear they were looking for inspiration.
Therefore, Li Zhonglou held nothing back. After looking around and confirming no one was present, he began to perform.
The starting stance was White Crane Spreads Wings, followed by the right half of Tai Chi and the left half of drawing a circle. The moment he started, his entire demeanor underwent a completely different transformation.
This was something the souls in the Soul Bottle could keenly feel, and they couldn't help but communicate secretly within the bottle.
"Isn't this the legendary state of calm? This guy can enter it whenever he wants!"
"Heh, anything from Xiao Li is good stuff."
"This is talent! Think about how many martial artists in the world dream of entering such a state, but this guy, Xiao Li, can do it casually just by doing Tai Chi. No wonder he's so strong."
At this moment, Old An suddenly spoke, "Those who want to learn, pay close attention. If I'm not mistaken, the essence of this Tai Chi isn't any particular move, but the way he circulates his energy throughout the entire sequence. Missing one point is like missing the entire process."
Hearing this, the souls immediately fell silent. They began to watch Li Zhonglou's movements and carefully perceive the circulation of energy within him.
It was hard to imagine that these were souls who were supposed to be reincarnated after being freed, yet they were still observing Li Zhonglou's Tai Chi with such a desire to learn.
As for Li Zhonglou himself, as he executed each move, his state quickly became completely immersed. He entrusted everything external to his subconscious and instincts, while his will was completely immersed in a subtle state.
This state was somewhat akin to returning to the womb, making him feel as though his entire soul was enveloped by something warm, bringing him comfort and warmth.
In reality, as his movements unfolded, warm currents flowed continuously from his acupoints. These currents not only cleansed his damaged body but also evaporated impurities through his skin into the outside.
As the movements continued, Li Zhonglou's skin began to emit white smoke. Even Old An in the Soul Bottle couldn't help but exclaim in surprise.
"This guy actually broke through again? He didn't have this effect when he performed Tai Chi before!"
"Monster, this guy is truly a monster! Breakthroughs for him feel like drinking water, damn it, is there any justice!"
"I really can't imagine, if not for the curse, who could possibly defeat Xiao Li?"
Surprise, shock, curses – the Soul Bottle was in chaos, seemingly all struck by Li Zhonglou's almost monstrous growth speed.
After a while, Old An slowly recovered and saw a glimmer of insight.
"It shouldn't just be about his talent, but also opportunities! After all, I've never seen anyone with a curse force a breakthrough through their own abilities. Xiao Li's breakthrough this time is likely related to this."
Upon hearing this, the other souls gradually quieted down. It was as if something that was initially unacceptable suddenly had a plausible explanation, and everyone's hearts found a sense of balance.
Unbeknownst to them, around a corner, the woman from before was staring at Li Zhonglou's movements with a look of utter shock.
Although she couldn't feel any internal energy or threat from Li Zhonglou, how could an ordinary person produce smoke from their body by doing Tai Chi?
"Am I dreaming?"
The woman suddenly pinched her fair thigh fiercely. The next second, the intense pain made her gasp in cold air, and then she looked up again.
The white smoke was still there, and it was still pouring out of Li Zhonglou's body ceaselessly, almost engulfing him.
"I'm not dreaming!"
The shock on the woman's face deepened, and a profound sense of doubt arose.
How on earth did this guy achieve this?
Besides the white smoke, what shocked the woman even more was that Li Zhonglou had clearly taken her kick just now, but he was now like someone who was completely fine, still doing Tai Chi. Did this make any sense?
Because of this, the woman did not step out from the corner but hid there and watched secretly. She wanted to know what would happen next.
A person from whom no internal energy could be felt, who took her kick and was still doing Tai Chi like nothing happened, and could produce white smoke from his body – she was anticipating Li Zhonglou's 'transformation'.