Wei asked Yan whether Withering Torrent made him inexhaustible. The two stood beside the raised bench while students put the practice dummies back on their marks.
“I reverse the method’s harmful feedback,” Yan said. “Each use still spends qi and takes my attention. If I repeat it without planning, I can run low on energy or miss an opening.”
Wei asked the students to watch the next exercise for that difference. He placed three flags across the yard, each marking a path Yan might overlook while focusing on a stronger strike.
Yan walked the route once without cultivation. Wei moved one flag while Yan looked the other way. The change was small but opened an unexpected angle.
The apprentices suggested that Yan repeat the Torrent until the flags moved. He said the exercise was about control, not maximum force.
“A real opponent won’t wait while you choose the perfect path,” Wei said.
“Then let the opponent move the markers.”
They agreed to a second match with feints and a shifting floor formation. The students moved the dummies beyond the new line. Qinghe checked that the yellow flag could be seen from every observer position.
