Elephant Hide Art

1,114 words

Han Li recalled this and a faint knowing smile crossed his face.

During the past six months or so, he and Zhang Tie had naturally become close friends due to similar temperaments and backgrounds.

Han Li slowly loosened his crossed legs and rubbed his calves. Long hours of seated meditation had left his legs numb and his blood circulation poor. After a few more rubs, when full sensation returned, he rose from the cushion, habitually brushed the dust from his clothes, and pushed open the stone door to step out.

He glanced back at the stone chamber where he cultivated and indulged in a moment of self-mockery.

This room was entirely hollowed from solid granite. The door was a single slab of bluestone. An ordinary man trying to break in would need to chop at the door with a mountain-cleaving axe for a good while before succeeding. Such cultivation chambers were reserved for the sect leader, elders, and hall masters who held high status within the Seven Mysteries Sect—even core disciples of the Seven Peaks Hall could not casually claim one. These chambers were specifically built for those practicing advanced internal arts, to prevent external interference and avoid qi deviation. Doctor Mo had somehow convinced several elders to approve the construction of this chamber inside Spirit Hand Valley, a privilege ordinary disciples could not enjoy.

As soon as the chamber was finished, Doctor Mo designated it for Han Li’s exclusive use. This decision made Han Li feel both flattered and uneasy.

Doctor Mo had been exceptionally good to his disciple. From the day Han Li became his formal disciple, Doctor Mo had him take several different medicines every day and soak him in decoctions of unknown medicinal herbs. Although Han Li did not recognize the names and effects of these medicines, he could tell how precious they were from the reluctant expression that flickered across Doctor Mo’s usually impassive face whenever he used them.

These external aids proved effective. Han Li’s cultivation speed increased noticeably, and not long ago he finally broke through, completing the first layer of the Nameless Oral Formula.

However, during the breakthrough, several meridians nearly ruptured, leaving him with moderate internal injuries. Fortunately, Doctor Mo’s medical skills were outstanding, the damaged meridians were not too severe, and he was generous with good medicine, so no lasting damage remained.

After Han Li was injured, Doctor Mo was more anxious than Han Li himself. He was restless throughout the entire treatment process. It was only after seeing that the injury was truly healing that he let out a long sigh of relief.

Doctor Mo’s concern far exceeded the ordinary bond between master and disciple. A vague unease settled in Han Li’s heart. If it weren’t for the fact that no one from his family had ever left their remote mountain valley except his third uncle, Han Li might have suspected Doctor Mo was some distant relative.

Han Li stepped out of the stone chamber, stretched, and slowly walked toward his residence. After becoming a formal disciple, both he and Zhang Tie had moved out of their previous quarters and each now had their own private hut.

When he passed by Zhang Tie’s hut, Han Li glanced casually inside.

Sure enough, Zhang Tie was not there; he had probably gone to train under the waterfall at Red Water Peak again.

After taking them as formal disciples, Doctor Mo still had Han Li practice only the Nameless Oral Formula, without any intention of teaching him other martial arts. Perhaps to compensate, Doctor Mo taught him medical knowledge without reservation, personally guiding his hands. He answered every question Han Li raised about medicine to his satisfaction and allowed him to freely browse all the medical texts in his room.

As for Zhang Tie, Doctor Mo followed his earlier words and taught him a very practical martial art.

The martial art Zhang Tie practiced was quite peculiar. According to Doctor Mo, it was a rare technique called the Elephant Hide Art, seldom seen in the martial world. Many people had never even heard of it, let alone practiced it.

Unlike the ordinary martial arts circulating in the jianghu today, which progress from easy to difficult—the higher the level, the harder to train, with exponentially increasing effort—the Elephant Hide Art had nine layers. The first three layers were easy, comparable to ordinary martial arts. Starting from the fourth layer, it suddenly became extremely difficult and required enduring unimaginable pain and torment. Many who practiced it could not bear the inhuman suffering and stopped there, their cultivation stagnating. The fifth and sixth layers were several times more painful.

However, once one broke through the sixth layer to the seventh, the path became smooth again all the way to the ninth, except that each month there would be a few days of extreme agony that felt like dying and coming back to life.

These factors deterred most would-be practitioners, which was why this technique was nearly lost.

But the power at the higher layers was truly astonishing. It was said that someone who reached the ninth layer was like wearing a suit of magical armor—immune to blades and fire, impervious even to palm strikes, punches, and even precious swords and sabers could not inflict serious harm.

Even more enviable, the practitioner gradually acquired the strength of an elephant. At higher layers, they gained infinite power, able to capture ferocious wolves alive and tear apart tigers and leopards with their bare hands—truly fearsome.

Those who knew of this technique both feared and coveted it. Apart from the original master who created it, no one had ever cultivated it to the ninth layer. Legend had it that the master was born without the ability to feel pain, which allowed him to create such a monstrous technique and push it to its limits.

Doctor Mo fully explained the pros and cons of the technique to Zhang Tie. Zhang Tie, having no personal experience of the harm, did not take it seriously. He was only attracted by the formidable power of the Elephant Hide Art and agreed to practice it without hesitation. The technique seemed well suited to him; in just two months, Zhang Tie had reached the peak of the first layer.

Recently, to break through the first layer of the Elephant Hide Art, Zhang Tie followed Doctor Mo’s advice and trained every afternoon under the tens-of-meters-high waterfall at Red Water Peak, enduring the tremendous impact of the falling water.

According to Zhang Tie himself, this method was quite effective. He was only a paper-thin barrier away from the second layer and would break through the bottleneck with a little more effort.

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Reading Guide Decoding

The Price of Power: Elephant Hide Art

Cultural / Xianxia Notes

Elephant Hide Art belongs to the “hard external” tradition common in Chinese wuxia and xianxia, where practitioners endure extreme physical suffering to gain near-invulnerability. This mirrors real-world martial arts like the Iron Shirt or Golden Bell Cover, which historically involved conditioning the body through repeated impacts. However, the novel exaggerates the pain-reward ratio into a near-supernatural level. The concept of a technique that becomes smooth after the sixth layer but retains monthly agony adds a cyclical curse mechanic, making it less like a simple power-up and more like a lifelong burden. This reflects the “mortal stream” theme: every shortcut carries a hidden cost, and even the greatest power is never free.

Chapter Overview

This chapter weaves together Han Li’s recollection of his deepening friendship with Zhang Tie, the quiet progress of his own cultivation, and the detailed introduction of a brutal martial art. Han Li successfully completes the first layer of the Nameless Oral Formula but suffers internal injuries in the process. Doctor Mo’s excessive concern unsettles him, planting seeds of suspicion. Meanwhile, Zhang Tie eagerly takes up the Elephant Hide Art, a technique famous for its agonizing middle layers and terrifying peak power. The stark contrast between Han Li’s cautious wariness and Zhang Tie’s blind enthusiasm lays the groundwork for the different paths they will walk.

Key Plot Points

Han Li recalls his friendship with Zhang Tie, forged from shared backgrounds and temperaments.
The stone cultivation chamber is described as a privilege obtained by Doctor Mo, highlighting his influence in the sect.
Han Li breaks through the first layer of the Nameless Oral Formula but nearly ruptures several meridians, suffering moderate internal injuries.
Doctor Mo’s reaction to Han Li’s injury is unusually anxious, far beyond normal master-disciple concern, making Han Li uneasy.
Doctor Mo teaches Han Li medicine generously but refuses to teach him any martial arts beyond the Nameless Oral Formula.
Zhang Tie is taught the Elephant Hide Art, a rare and painful technique with nine layers: first three easy, middle three excruciating, last three powerful but with monthly agony.
The technique’s originator was allegedly born without pain, allowing him to master it fully.
Zhang Tie, attracted by the power, ignores the risks and reaches the peak of the first layer in two months.
To break through to the second layer, Zhang Tie trains daily under a high waterfall at Red Water Peak, following Doctor Mo’s advice.

Reading Guide

Pay close attention to Doctor Mo’s behavior: his emotional investment in Han Li’s cultivation and recovery is disproportionate, hinting at ulterior motives. Han Li’s unease is the reader’s cue to remain suspicious. Zhang Tie’s choice of the Elephant Hide Art, driven by short-sighted greed for power, foreshadows future suffering or exploitation. The detailed description of the technique’s pain thresholds is not just worldbuilding—it will likely become a critical plot element later. The waterfall training also establishes a classic xianxia training trope, but the novel may subvert it with darker consequences.

Elephant Hide Art

The Elephant Hide Art is a rare external cultivation technique that emphasizes physical toughness and immense strength at the cost of excruciating pain during the intermediate stages. Its nine-layer structure—easy start, brutal middle, then smooth again with periodic agony—makes it a high-risk, high-reward choice. In the context of the Seven Mysteries Sect, such a technique is considered nearly lost because few can endure the suffering required to advance past the fourth layer. The technique’s originator, said to have been born without the ability to feel pain, represents an extreme outlier. For a normal cultivator like Zhang Tie, the lack of firsthand experience with severe pain leads him to underestimate the long-term toll. This technique starkly embodies the “mortal stream” principle: every power gained comes from a precise trade-off, often paid in flesh and spirit.