I began to understand the myriad things by chopping wood

Chapter 15: Strengthening the body with standing exercises, and bringing qi and blood into the Tao
The previous one is quite impressive, but the last analogy...

Doesn't that mean you have no status?

Xie Yuan secretly complained in his heart, but he certainly didn't dare to say it out loud.

After all, among the three martial arts schools in Panlong Town, Tieyi Sect ranks third.

Most people who want to learn martial arts have an restless heart. Compared to the iron vest that can withstand beatings, boxing and swordsmanship are definitely more popular.

However, Xie Yuan also understood what his disciples meant. The Iron Clothes Sect had many disciples and a great reputation, and was quite influential in Panlong Town.

The Prajna Temple is considered a major force in the entire Dali Dynasty and is a top sect.

He noted the name, and it was his first glimpse into the higher powers of this world.

The disciple who was welcoming guests was still talking nonstop:

"...Master Liu has a deep connection with the Prajna Temple, so he learned the iron vest with Buddhist connotations, made a name for himself, founded a martial arts school, and recruited many disciples.

"Brother, if you learn the Iron Cloth Shirt of the Iron Armor Sect, you will also learn a little bit of the Golden Bell Cover of the Prajna Temple. Entering the Iron Armor Sect is almost the same as entering the Prajna Temple!"

... can you do the equation this way?

It makes my blood boil!

Xie Yuan felt that this disciple had great eloquence, and arranging him to greet guests at the door was a sign of the Tieyi Sect making good use of his talents.

"What origin, what Buddhist rhyme, most of them are just bragging. If the Liu Sect Master is really a disciple of the Prajna Temple, even if he is just a lay disciple, he can be admitted to the top sect. It is impossible for him to be just a second-level practitioner and open a martial arts school in this remote place.

"But it doesn't matter how he brags. He can open a school and accept disciples, so his kung fu must be quite good. The beginning of martial arts training starts with training the skin, and the Iron Shirt Kung Fu may be a good start. Anyway, I have made up my mind."

Xie Yuan thought to himself.

He had almost asked all the questions and had already made plans, so he bowed to his disciple:

"I wonder what the process is if I want to join your sect to learn martial arts?"

The gray-robed disciple's eyes lit up when he heard this:
"Easy, follow me!"

He led Xie Yuan into the courtyard. Inside the courtyard was a large open space used as a martial arts training ground. At this time, many disciples were practicing martial arts.

Xie Yuan and the gray-robed disciple walked from the martial arts arena to the courtyard. He was looking at the practicing disciples curiously. The gray-robed disciple asked:
"Brother, my name is Cao Shan. What's your name? Where are you from?"

"Hello, Senior Brother Cao. My name is Xie Yuan, and I come from Xiaoshi Village."

"Xiaoshi Village, that's not far away."

Cao Shan took Xie Yuan into a study, asked the accountant to register the account, and collected eleven taels of silver.

When Xie Yuan gave the big silver ingot, he felt quite sad, but he let it go thinking about the opportunity to get in touch with martial arts.

The purpose of saving money was to learn martial arts in order to change one's destiny.

"Okay, Brother Xie, you are already a disciple of my Iron Clothes Sect. The process is not difficult, right?"

Cao Shan patted Xie Yuan and said with a smile.

"It's...it's really easy."

Xie Yuan said. He originally thought there would be some kind of apprenticeship ceremony, but he didn't expect that all he had to do was pay the money. It was so convenient that it even made him nervous, as if he had been cheated.

Cao Shan seemed to know what he was thinking and explained:
“Xie Junior Brother, our Iron Clothes Sect disciples are divided into three types: registered disciples, core disciples, and personal disciples.

"People like you who pay 11 taels of silver to become my disciples are all registered disciples. You know, it's just paying money to learn martial arts, and there are actually no big restrictions, so there are not many rules.

“Core disciples also have to pay, but not too much. It’s mostly for daily food expenses, to support the expenses of the martial arts school, and money for medicinal baths and tonics. Learning martial arts doesn’t require a lot of money.

"Core disciples are those who have been selected by the master, have a certain talent, and are willing to practice in the Iron Clothes Sect. Once they enter the sect, they will share the joys and sorrows of the martial arts school. I am a core disciple.

"There are also direct disciples. Needless to say, they are all the direct disciples of the sect master. They are the master, not the master. They will inherit the sect master's legacy and provide for the sect master in his old age and death. They are equivalent to his descendants. The master will take care of martial arts, food, and medicine baths. Not to mention the sect master's real kung fu, which is only taught by the direct disciples.

"But if you want to be a direct disciple, both cultivation talent and personal character are indispensable. In fact, more than that - the talent and personality must also suit the taste of the sect master."

There was a lot of sighing in Cao Shan's tone, and his envy was self-evident.

Xie Yuan nodded. This organizational structure was very clear and reasonable.

If I could become a core member, or even be personally taught by someone, I would save a lot of money...

But everything has a price. Although the core and personal disciples can learn martial arts for free, they also have more responsibilities. He didn't think about it anymore and asked Cao Shan:

"Brother Cao, when can I start practicing martial arts?"

"Come back the day after tomorrow. There will be a group of newly-minted disciples the day after tomorrow. It would be a good opportunity for you to come together."

Cao Shan said.

Xie Yuan nodded, clasped his fists and said:
"Okay. Then Senior Brother Cao, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave now."

"Thank you, Junior Brother. See you the day after tomorrow."

After sending Xie Yuan to the door and waiting for him to leave, Cao Shan stood at the door and thought:

“This Junior Brother Xie is polite and good-looking. He doesn’t look like someone who grew up in a mountain village at all. He makes people like him very much.

"But with a background like that, it's a slim hope to turn things around by practicing martial arts... Learning martial arts isn't an easy thing, but the martial arts school relies on them to generate income, so I can't say much... Seeing him rummaging through the small change, eh, I won't recommend the wing room medicine soup.

"I just hope that after three months, when Junior Brother Xie leaves the martial arts gym, he won't force himself to practice without thinking and injure his body. I will explain it to him then."

Two days later.

Xie Yuan arrived at Tieyi Gate early in the morning and was excited to see four people still in the training ground.

The four men were also dressed very ordinary, not much different from him, and the best one looked like someone from an ordinary family.

Xie Yuan understood that these were all new registered disciples.

I wonder how many of them got what they wanted in the end after they emptied their family savings?
In addition to the five of them, Cao Shan and another strong man were also standing on the parade ground.

The sturdy man was wearing a black suit, which was not thick and even looked a little thin in the winter morning. But his face was ruddy and he seemed to be completely unaware of the cold weather.

When Cao Shan saw that everyone was present, he said loudly:
"Hello new disciples, let me introduce you. This is our Iron Clothes Sect's senior disciple, Brother Huo Da Huo. He is Master's direct disciple, a master of leather training and a martial artist. Master will provide regular guidance for your future training, but most of the time, it will be Brother Huo who teaches you."

One practice, warrior!
The man in front of him, who didn't look very old, was actually a warrior.

Several people looked serious and greeted:
"Meet Senior Brother Huo!"

Hoda looked a little serious. He nodded and spoke in a booming voice:

"All of you junior brothers are new here, so you probably don't know much about martial arts.

"In the entry stage, warriors temper themselves, nourish their essence, and then strengthen their skin, flesh, tendons and bones, from the outside to the inside, and then strengthen their qi and blood, repeating the cycle over and over again, and constantly climbing.

"You may not understand what I am saying now, but it doesn't matter. Martial arts are learned through practice, not through explanation. Let's practice first and then explain. If you have any questions later, you can always ask Brother Cao or me.

"Now, I will teach you how to practice my Iron Cloth Shirt. It starts with the standing practice, three static and three dynamic, a total of six routines. I will demonstrate it first, so you can see it clearly."

Huoda got into position, twisted his waist, and made various poses.

Some people stand still on a hard bridge or a hard horse, while others raise their hands and feet and keep turning.

Xie Yuan and several other disciples quickly followed suit and memorized them carefully, while Cao Shan watched from the side and helped them raise their hands and kick their legs from time to time to prevent them from getting the postures wrong and hurting themselves.

By the time Huo Da finished his rehearsal, several of his disciples were already sweating profusely, panting and sighing:
"It's so difficult!"

"I can't do this pose at all!"

"My waist is twisted..."

Xie Yuan also felt awkward the first time through, and shared the same feeling:
"This body has never been trained before, it's too stiff. It might be difficult to get started in a short period of time.

"To practice Iron Shirt, I thought I would have to hit a tree or get hit by a stick or something, but it turns out that I'm using the Stance Training to get started. Using the Stance Training to strengthen the body and blood, and then as he said, using the blood to strengthen the body, training the skin, flesh, tendons and bones? Getting hit is just an external skill, and the latter is the true path of a warrior?"

He was lost in thought and had a basic understanding of martial arts.

At this moment, words appeared before my eyes.

【Qi and blood strengthen the body, enter the martial arts, and you will understand something in your heart. 】

[Iron Shirt·Beginner: (1/100)]

【Practice external skills horizontally, and the Buddhist rhythm will be hidden. 】

(End of this chapter)