That day was spent largely around Su Kim and the newborn child. Something that almost certainly stirred a small silent jealousy within Jin Mulan. Though she would never admit it aloud.
She carried herself with her usual composure, spoke normally and showed no outward displeasure. But Luo He knew her well enough to notice the slight coolness in her tone and the sharper precision of her silence.
So the next morning, before dawn had fully broken, Luo He rose at the first pale light of day and left the chambers without disturbing anyone.
The estate was still half asleep, wrapped in mist and morning quiet. Dew clung to the grass, and the distant calls of birds echoed faintly over the rooftops. He gathered his two disciples in the training grounds.
Jin Mulan arrived first, spear in hand, face calm but eyes alert. Fei followed soon after, rolling his shoulders and flexing bruised knuckles already eager for punishment.
Luo He stood before them with his hands behind his back. "Today," he said evenly, "is your last lesson here. By tomorrow, I intend to leave for the Yue capital. So learn everything you can while I am still generous enough to teach you."
Fei straightened immediately. Jin Mulan narrowed her eyes. "Generous?"
"Extremely," Luo He replied. "Most masters would charge gold for wisdom this valuable." "You insult us for free," she said. "That is bonus motivation." Luo He said as he actually ment it.
Fei nearly laughed, then stopped when Luo He looked at him. "There are two great parts to combat," Luo He continued, pacing slowly before them. "The body and the mind."
He tapped Fei once on the chest. "I have trained your body. Endurance. Pain tolerance. Power. Tequenicks." Then he tapped Jin Mulan lightly on the forehead.
"But higher combat belongs to the mind.
Prediction. Adaptation. Control. Discipline. Deception." He turned, cloak shifting in the morning wind.
"Technique must live in muscle memory. If you need to think before striking, you are already late." Both listened closely now. "The more methods you know, the more paths you can see. The more knowledge you master, the stronger you become."
"A truly strong martial artist," Luo He said, pacing slowly before them with his hands behind his back, "finishes the fight here" He tapped the side of his temple. "before it ever begins."
The morning wind moved through the training yard, carrying dust across the worn stones. Neither Fei nor Jin Mulan spoke.
"I know enough about both of you now," he continued calmly, "that I can build mental simulations of our battles before we ever clash." He stopped and turned toward them.
"In my mind, I have already fought you dozens of times. Hundreds, if I wish. I test your habits. Your pride. Your impatience. Your fear." His gaze settled on Fei first. "You rush when angered."
Then to Jin Mulan. "You commit harder when challenged." She frowned slightly, knowing it was true. "I create separate paths to victory for every likely choice you make," Luo He said.
"One begins with you attacking first. One with you retreating. One with deception. One with hesitation. Different openings. Different rhythms." He lifted a finger.
"Same ending." He lowered it slowly.
"Your defeat."
The words were not boastful. They were spoken with the cold certainty of a man describing weather. Fei clenched his fists unconsciously. Jin Mulan narrowed her eyes. "And if we do something unexpected?" Luo He smiled faintly.
"Then I create new lines faster than you can understand the old ones." He picked up a training sword and pointed it between them. "It is like chess… except the pieces bleed."
He drew lines in the dirt with the blade.
"Position. Pressure. Sacrifice. Traps. Tempo. False weakness. Forced movement." Then he erased them with one sweep.
"Most fighters think combat is strength against strength. That is why most fighters remain ordinary." He stepped closer, voice lower now. "The superior fighter enters battle having already decided how it ends."
A silence followed. Even the birds beyond the wall seemed distant. "After today," he said, "I will begin training your minds." Fei exhaled slowly. "How?"
Luo He's expression turned almost amused. "By making you lose before you even throw a punch."
He stopped before Fei. "Congratulations." Fei blinked. "For what?" "You awakened your metal element yesterday." The blacksmith's eyes widened.
"When you struck me," Luo He said, "your fist moved faster than before, and your hand took no damage from the impact. That was not luck." He circled him once like a judge inspecting a weapon.
"That was Metal Body an instinctive reinforcement technique. It hardens structure, increases force, and protects the user." Fei looked down at his own hands as if seeing them for the first time.
Jin Mulan crossed her arms. "You did not tell him yesterday." "I prefer results before praise." Then Luo He smiled faintly. "To improve further, your body must be broken and rebuilt stronger."
Fei frowned slowly. "When we reach the Yue capital," Luo He continued, "you will be beaten regularly. Hard. To your limits. On my orders." Fei stared.
Jin Mulan smirked. "Congratulations."
Luo He ignored her. "You have the travel time to prepare yourself mentally. Accept pain now, or remain weak forever." Fei inhaled deeply then nodded.
"I understand, Master." "Good. Yet you'll still cry." Luo He said with absolute confidence.
Then Luo He turned to Jin Mulan. "Mulan." She lifted her chin. "You must refine your second technique Illusion of Spears." He picked up a wooden spear from the rack and spun it once with effortless control.
"The stronger the illusion, the stronger you appear. Fear and hesitation kill as effectively as steel." He thrust forward sharply. Three afterimages followed the strike like phantom copies.
Jin Mulan's eyes sharpened instantly.
"Your enemy should not know which spear is real until one is already inside them." She gave a slow smile. "That what I like."
"I know," he said calmly. "It is cruel." So you adore it. Then he stepped back and pointed between them. "Now fight."
Fei cracked his neck. Jin Mulan twirled her spear. Luo He raised one finger.
"Rules. Fei you may use only fists. No special techniques." Fei groaned.
"Mulan you may use only the spear. No fire." She frowned. "That favors him."
"It favors neither of you. It reveals weakness." He lowered his hand.
"Begin."
Fei charged first, driving forward with heavy footwork and brutal intent. Jin Mulan pivoted aside smoothly, spear shaft striking his ribs before he could turn. Thwack. He grunted. "Too direct," Luo He called lazily.
Fei lunged again with a first. Faster this time. Jin Mulan barely redirected it and answered with a thrust toward the throat. Fei twisted away, the spear grazing his shoulder.
"Better," Luo He said. Their exchange quickened. Punches like hammer blows.
Spear arcs like cutting wind. Dust rose around them as the morning sun climbed higher.
Then suddenly Fei slipped inside her range. One clean strike to the body.
Jin Mulan staggered back. A second punch landed against her shoulder guard. She lost footing. The spear dropped from her hand. Silence.
Fei stepped back immediately, breathing hard.
Jin Mulan stared at the ground, stunned.
It wasn't the first time he had beaten her.
Luo He smiled. "Excellent." Jin Mulan looked up sharply. "You lost," he said to her, "which means you discovered truth."
Then he looked at Fei.
"You won, which means you discovered expectation." He folded his arms. "Defeat is often the beginning of victory. Pride learns nothing. Loss teachers quickly. Remember these words. They are not just for show they mean something."
Jin Mulan slowly stood and picked up her spear again. Her face was unreadable.
But in her eyes fire had returned. Luo He saw it and was pleased. "Never back down," he said softly. "Now you are now weak." She glared at him. "And that doesn't mean you will be tomorrow as well."