Playing with fantasy beasts in the martial arts world

Chapter 120 The dragon fights in the wild, its blood is black and yellow
Upon hearing this, Xiao Feng took a swig of wine but did not respond, clearly indicating that he did not want to agree to the matter.

Xiao Feng's current mentality is very similar to that of the Mohist disciples in the pre-Qin period, who advocate universal love and non-aggression, only more radical. To put it bluntly, he helps whoever is weak and whoever is in the right.

He naturally did his utmost to help the Han people defend Xiangyang, but he was unwilling to go to the rear of the Mongols to stir up trouble, or even to restore the Liao Dynasty.

Seeing that Xiao Feng did not answer, Cha Nan did not force him. It was just an experiment. In fact, as long as he was given enough time, with the backing of the Fantasy Beast World, even if the entire Song Kingdom was conquered by the Mongols, Cha Nan could still guarantee the relative independence of Xiangyang City.

However, this meant that Guo Jing and Huang Rong were left empty-handed, and this outcome was obviously difficult for them to accept.

After all, what they were protecting was not just the city of Xiangyang, but countless innocent people throughout the south.

If the people cannot defend it, what is the point of having this city?
"Let's not talk about that for now. I'll teach you the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms!" Xiao Feng said, then got into a fighting stance and started fighting.

Although he didn't use much internal energy in each move, he released a powerful and domineering aura, like a raging dragon surveying the sky, which captivated Cha Nan.

Xiao Feng's Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms were largely the same as Cha Nan's, with only minor adjustments. This was not surprising, as it is normal for individual practitioners to have slight differences in the first fifteen palms of a martial art, as long as the concepts and techniques are similar.

Cha Nan has not yet broken free from his limitations. His palm techniques are basically copied from Guo Jing's, so they naturally carry Guo Jing's traces and habits. When his skills deepen and his kung fu becomes greater in the future, they will naturally be different.

However, when it came to the last three palms, Xiao Feng's Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms were completely different from those created by Hong Qigong, and it could even be said that their core was completely different.

His Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, the first fifteen of which are about "the dragon's Regret", but the last three are about "dragons fighting in the wild".

All the preparations beforehand were for the ultimate sublimation.

In comparison, it is more powerful, more domineering, and more brutal, leaving no way out for the enemy or for itself.

In short, it means 'kill them all' and 'they all must die'!
Hong Qigong's version of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms draws a gentle circle; all the domineering and powerful elements remain within this circle, without ever stepping outside of it.

However, Xiao Feng's version of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms deliberately left an opening, like the Yellow River flowing through a tributary, where the last three palms would be delivered with all one's might.

"The Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms originally consisted of twenty-eight palms, all derived from the Book of Changes. Therefore, the essence of the twenty-eight Subduing Dragon Palms lies in the word 'change.' The twenty-eight palms are combined in groups of three, three, and six, resulting in countless variations. They can be powerful and domineering, insidious and vicious, unpredictable and cunning, or airtight... They can be considered to have everything." After finishing his practice, Xiao Feng said to Cha Nan.

This makes sense. The reason why the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms are derived from the I Ching is that, apart from the names of the moves corresponding to those in the I Ching, the core of the martial arts doesn't actually have much in common.

Because Xiao Feng made changes, he simplified the complex variations, retaining only the two core elements.

Cha Nan was not surprised to hear this. Before Xiao Feng, the Beggars' Clan had no known extraordinary masters. The Dragon Subduing Palm Technique was not the Beggars' Clan's signature technique; the Dog Beating Stick Technique was.

The Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, which became famous throughout the martial arts world, truly originated with Xiao Feng.

"Later I felt that the Twenty-Eight Palms were too complicated. Unless one is exceptionally talented, learning this palm technique would only allow one to join the ranks of the top martial arts practitioners. Therefore, I derived the fierce power from the Vajra Palm and guided the domineering nature from the Taizu Long Fist. I then took the 'Regretful Dragon Soaring' move as the core of the first fifteen palms. Only by mastering these fifteen palms to perfection can one learn the last three palms." "As the saying goes: 'Dragons fight in the wild, their blood is black and yellow.' In the Book of Changes, this refers to the battle between Yin and Yang, which is extremely fierce. Therefore, if one's skill is insufficient, forcibly learning these last three palms will do more harm than good." Xiao Feng carefully explained the key points and methods of energy circulation to Cha Nan. Huang Rong, who had been staying inside the Palu Ball, naturally took notes as well, while hesitating whether to appear and explain the situation to Xiao Feng.

After listening, Cha Nan asked, "Brother Xiao! May I take the key to the last three palm strikes back and pass it on to Uncle Guo?"

He calls Xiao Feng "elder brother" but Guo Jing "uncle," which is obviously strange.

However, there was nothing that could be done. Although Xiao Feng was the 'senior' in the timeline, he was actually older than Guo Jing in terms of age.

"Why not?" Xiao Feng laughed. He was never one to be stingy with his possessions, and besides, he greatly admired Guo Jing's character and martial arts skills.

Huang Rong was also moved by Cha Nan's words.

She understood better than Cha Nan the significance of those three blows to Guo Jing.

Guo Jing has reached a bottleneck. His Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms have been refined to a balance of strength and gentleness, and have even returned to their original simplicity. But precisely because of this, his palm technique seems to have lost some of its decisive effect.

The Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms are a style of fierce and powerful attacks, designed to overwhelm the opponent and leave them unable to retaliate or even catch their breath.

But when you reach Guo Jing's stage, you have to start to wear down your opponents and try to change your tactics. This is like losing the true essence of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms. It's like a top laner trying to learn how to jungle and farm. Isn't that putting the cart before the horse?
This was actually Hong Qigong's limitation back then. He only continued the rhythm of "Kanglong Youhui" without losing it, but forgot that in doing so, he also lost the fierce and decisive nature of the Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms. In another sense, he "castrated" this palm technique.

Of course, it's not that maintaining the "regret" in "the dragon soars to its fullest" is bad. After all, theoretically, this allows one to become stronger with each battle, stepping on the right foot with the left and spiraling upwards.

But this is theoretical, not factual. The truth is that the human body has its limits. At the level of a grandmaster, everyone has superhuman skills and can push themselves to the limit in some aspect. In that case, it's a contest of who wins when paths cross.

If Guo Jing had mastered Xiao Feng's original last three palm strikes when he was fighting Jinlun Fawang on the city wall, then Jinlun Fawang would not have been able to leave the city wall.

Could an eighty-year-old monk possibly win a life-or-death battle against Guo Jing, who was not even fifty?

After teaching Xiao Feng the original Eighteen Subduing Dragon Palms, he then taught Cha Nan the Twenty-Eight Subduing Dragon Palms.

As expected, the original version of the Dragon Subduing Palm wasn't exactly terrible, but it was lacking. It tried to incorporate a little bit of everything, but failed to fully master anything, immediately dropping its level to the same level as the Heart-Shattering Palm. Although it was still a superior martial art in the martial arts world, it was definitely not a peerless divine skill.

Having learned the palm technique, Cha Nan arranged a time and place for his transaction with Xiao Feng, and then rode the Cloud Sea Deer back to Xiangyang City.

After all, he came out with Huang Rong, Huang Yaoshi, and Yang Guo, so it wasn't appropriate for him to leave Xiangyang for too long, lest the Mongol side realize what was happening and launch a fierce attack while Huang Rong, the strategist and chief administrator, was away.

(End of this chapter)