Chapter 12: On the Combination of Expectation Management and the Practice of Magical Combat

Wang Rongyuan's earth-escape technique looked crude, but it was full of subtleties—subtleties that even many sect disciples might not understand.

The Wang family's secret transmission of magical combat, Rule One—run first!

Running first may seem cowardly, but it's actually a kind of brilliant wisdom.

If the opponent is strong and you can't win, running lets you seize the speed advantage in advance, greatly raising the odds of a successful getaway.

When evenly matched, running first lets you feign weakness to the enemy; by feigning weakness and then suddenly turning back to strike, you seize the initiative.

If you're overwhelmingly stronger, running first can also test whether there are other hidden opponents lurking about.

The peeping opportunist who'd been waiting for the right moment sees you flee and very likely reveals himself to give chase—doesn't that keep you from capsizing in a ditch?

If there's no lurker, running a couple steps ahead doesn't stop you from turning around and catching up to the poor sap on the other side.

In short, running first is a decision whose gains outweigh its risks no matter how you look at it.

That's why this strategy was elevated to Rule One of the secret transmission of magical combat.

But if Yulou were the one doing it, with a modern person's way of thinking, he'd see even more underlying logic in it.

For instance, running first and feigning weakness to the enemy is actually a special form of expectation management.

In modern workplaces and life, expectation management—of yourself and of others—is an extremely profound and complex discipline, practically the bible of workplace scheming.

But the logic of expectation management also applies when plugged into the run-first combat strategy.

Running first, feigning weakness—that's managing the enemy's expectations!

The Miaofeng Mountain cultivator who shouted 'A mid Qi Refining cultivator still dares to run' was clearly managed successfully by Wang Rongyuan.

Anticipating the enemy in advance is hard to pull off, because in chance encounters you can't predict the enemy's strategy or special tricks ahead of time.

You know nothing—how can you anticipate the enemy?

But by actively guiding the other side, by using your own controllable actions to dictate the enemy's behavior, you can, based on the expectations you've shaped, guess what the enemy's next move will be.

This is the practical application of expectation management in magical combat—through proper expectation management, achieve anticipation of the enemy!

Half a step ahead is still ahead!

Cultivators' reactions and speed are both extremely fast; half a step ahead can be the difference between life and death!

The three bandit cultivators, seeing mid Qi Refining Wang Rongyuan burrow underground with earth-escape, quickly closed in from all sides, each employing their own methods to track his trail.

Underground, Wang Rongyuan first popped a Spirit-Opening Pill—one against three, popping mana before the fight even starts, that's the difference between having a family inheritance and not!

Then he activated the wooden puppet he'd already deployed when crashing down from the sky, exposing it in the direction opposite his own position.

Run first, lure them in, then use the wooden puppet to sell a flaw!

"There! Quick, cut him off, don't let him get away!"

The Miaofeng Mountain cultivator at Great Perfection of Qi Refining was the first to notice the wooden puppet's presence, pointed toward it, and alerted his two companions.

The three of them swiftly flew toward the wooden puppet's position.

Because of the gap in cultivation and their initial angles of entry, the formation they naturally fell into while piloting artifacts through the air had the Miaofeng Mountain cultivator in front, the Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator in the middle, and the Qi Refining Layer Eight bandit cultivator at the rear.

A perfect moment to strike had presented itself—how could Wang Rongyuan possibly let such a good opportunity slip?

"Careful!"

Two thick wooden vines burst up from the ground, lunging straight at the Qi Refining Layer Eight bandit cultivator flying at the back.

This was the Swift Vine Art commonly used by wood-root cultivators at the Qi Refining stage—built on speed, accuracy, and ruthlessness; if one's defense or fire-technique response isn't fast enough, one hit and you're done for.

That Qi Refining Layer Eight cultivator reflexively cast two Flying Fire techniques, shielding them in front of himself.

But the Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator ahead of him instinctively summoned a round defensive magic artifact, intending to shield his little bro as well.

This—this was the real opening!

The ground exploded with a 'Boom', dust flying everywhere.

Before the sound even reached the Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator's ears, a green-and-red Medicine King Pestle slammed into him from below.

The Wang family's secret transmission of magical combat, Rule Seven—if you absolutely must one-on-three, kill the one in the middle first!

The strongest is obviously the hardest to kill; going for him wastes the opportunity, and in magical combat every opportunity matters.

In a one-against-three situation, the meaning of 'seize the moment' becomes painfully concrete.

A single slip-up could mean disaster—body destroyed and Dao gone!

The weakest one knows he's the weakest, so he's definitely the most wary—he's afraid of being the easy target.

When the opponent is constantly on guard, and there's no huge gap in strength, going for the weakest might still get you nowhere.

Therefore, killing the one in the middle becomes the relatively high-success-rate option.

Wang Rongyuan's choice was clever: first use the Swift Vine Art to attack the weakest, Qi Refining Layer Eight.

Once he spotted the Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator trying to save his companion, he made a snap decision to go all in!

Going all in is a kind of wisdom—and even more, a kind of courage!

Uncle Rongyuan is never short on wisdom, and never short on courage!

"Shit, Qi Refining Layer Ten!"

By the time the Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator—the second brother—realized Wang Rongyuan was at the same cultivation level as him, it was already too late!

To be precise, far too late.

A top-grade magic artifact, the Medicine King Pestle, forged primarily from eighth-grade Green-Flower Agate, paired with a ninth-grade Blood-Wood handle, refined with a full twenty-one restrictive formations, built to break through techniques with raw force—among its peers, virtually indestructible!

A Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator, while piloting two magic artifacts, simply couldn't block Wang Rongyuan's pestle strike in time!

Under the horrified gazes of the two bandit cultivators, the green-and-red Medicine King Pestle punched straight through their companion's chest; when it came out, it was already dyed entirely blood-red.

The Qi Refining Layer Ten bandit cultivator glanced down at his own hollow chest and cursed.

"Swindler!"

Then, the flight artifact and defensive artifact, now cut off from their master's control, plummeted to the ground along with their owner, whose body was still warm.

"Fellow Daoist, we were only joking with you—who on earth are you?"

The Qi Refinement Great Perfection cultivator from Wonderful Peak Mountain was both shocked and furious; he truly could not have imagined that his three brothers would suffer a setback today!

The Speed Vine Technique was a decoy, the wooden puppet was also fake, and the Qi Refinement Fifth Layer was even more fake.

What Red Lantern Illumination, Water Drop Cave—all of it was fake!

That wooden puppet that had burrowed out from the earth, having already completed its mission, had no expression on its wooden face, yet the Wonderful Peak Mountain cultivator seemed to see it smiling.

Smiling at his three brothers, calling them three great idiots!

If Wang Rongyuan had paid any heed to the Wonderful Peak Mountain cultivator's nonsense, he too would have been a great idiot.

He not only did not answer the Wonderful Peak Mountain cultivator's words, he did not even have the intention of emerging from the earth.

He was determined to play the burrowing style—if you have the guts, land and fight this Earth and Wood dual spiritual root against me!

Either don't make a move, or wipe them all out!

Retracting the Medicine King Pestle, Wang Rongyuan flipped his hand and summoned two Special Low-Quality magical artifacts—Donkey Mane Sachets.

The Wang Shi were skilled at raising donkeys; relying on wood-attribute spirit donkeys, their lineage had continued for a thousand years without breaking.

Naturally, they had developed the various spirit materials from spirit donkeys to the extreme.

Clearly, the Donkey Mane Sachet was merely a Low-Quality Crafted magical artifact with five layers of restrictions, possessing no offensive or defensive effects whatsoever; even decent mortal iron could destroy it.

But as long as different filling materials were added inside, its effects became a different story.

As the two sachets flew swiftly, hugging close to the ground, a pale yellow Desire-Luring incense began to spread across the battlefield.

Put in a game, this thing would be called soft crowd control; it might seem to have little effect, but as long as enough stacks are piled on, the opponent would be affected!

"Fine, you want to fight to the end, then don't blame me for holding back!"

The Qi Refinement Perfection tribulation cultivator from Wonderful Peak Mountain was experienced; catching a glimpse, he read Wang Rongyuan's play.

He summoned a white cloud kerchief of the Mid-Quality Technique level; the cloud kerchief flew in the air, and water droplets fell densely.

You use incense to control me, I use the Use Water Technique to break your Desire-Luring incense!

"Luo Laosan, let's hit him with fire thunder together—if he won't come out, we'll blast this earth rat to death!"