Fanatic!

Chapter 44 Kung Fu Practiced to Life

"Look outside, when they build houses, they always have to build a foundation first. If the foundation isn't solid, the house will collapse before it's even finished!"

"The principles are all the same. If you want to build a tall building from the ground up, you have to lay a solid foundation. In martial arts, stance training is that foundation!"

When Zhou Qing learned that Chen Wujun wanted to learn the Swimming Dragon Palm, he showed no surprise and simply spoke calmly.

“Your old bear hugging the tree has built a solid foundation. Today you will learn another stance, the White Crane Probing the Branch.”

"The 'Old Bear Embracing a Tree' style originates from the bear-shaped stance of Baguazhang (Eight Trigrams Palm) before the war, characterized by its heavy, solid build, open hips, and upright axis."

"The White Crane Probing Branch comes from the imagery of the white crane in the pre-war White Crane Fist. Later generations combined it with the key points of the Three-Body Stance of Xingyi Quan. It is about practicing clear strength, looking back and forth, probing and pressing with lines, stepping steadily and lightly, reacting flexibly and coordinating the body."

"These two pillars, one heavy and one light, stand like a bear on its foundation and a crane in its form..."

Chen Wujun listened attentively to Zhou Qing's explanation.

Old techniques do not mean clinging to the past. After all, later generations stand on the shoulders of their predecessors, see further, and innovate as times change.

The old techniques we use today are all developed from pre-war martial arts. They retain some traces of pre-war martial arts, but they are completely different from what we use today.

"When entering the stance, one should be like a crane standing on shallow water, light but not floating... The soles of the feet support the weight on three points, the heels are suspended but not touching the ground, one hand extends forward in a crane's beak shape, the other hand presses back against the iliac crest, the top of the head is as if suspended by a thread, and the neck is lifted..."

As Zhou Qing spoke, he supported himself on one leg, lifted the other leg, extended one hand forward in a crane-beak shape, and pressed the other hand down behind him. His back spread out, just like a crane spreading its wings. Then he stepped forward with the other leg and swiftly beaked forward with his front hand.

As he pecked at the spot, a crane's cry rang out, making the hairs on Chen Wujun's body stand on end.

This was just like a white crane hunting for food in shallow water, as still as a virgin, yet as swift as thunder.

The cry of the crane, in particular, deeply moved him.

"Use sound to transform qi, use sound to propel strength; when the sound arrives, your strength will arrive as well." Zhou Qing's movements changed smoothly with this probing and pecking motion.

Originally, the right hand formed a beak shape while the left hand pressed down lightly; now, the left hand forms a beak shape while the right hand presses down lightly.

Zhou Qing pecked forward again with his left hand, and a crane's cry rang out once more.

This time, Chen Wujun saw it clearly: Zhou Qing's abdomen first swelled up like a ball, and then moved upwards.

It felt as if a ball of air surged from my abdomen like a python straight into my chest, and finally, with a gurgling sound in my throat, I expelled it.

"Do you see clearly? Without the support of the earth, the spirit crane cannot rise; without the spirit crane probing the sky, the earth is ultimately lifeless. Only when the two complement each other can your skill truly come alive."

Zhou Qing withdrew his movement and turned to look at Chen Wujun.

"I understood a little bit!" Chen Wujun said as he recalled and pondered.

Zhou Qing didn't urge him.

A moment later, Chen Wujun braced himself on one foot, gripping the ground only with his toes and sole, his head hanging as if suspended by a thread.

"That's right, the shape of the white crane probing the branch should not be scattered; it should stand in a straight line."

"Like a crane standing on shallow water, when inhaling, the back is as broad as wings spreading, and when exhaling, the shoulders open up, and the energy flows to the fingertips." Zhou Qing nodded slightly on the side.

After only one demonstration, covering a few key points, Chen Wujun was able to perform them almost perfectly.

Although there are still some problems, he has grasped the key points.

When teaching Chen Wujun, you don't need to use too much words; his comprehension alone is quite remarkable.

"Shoulders relaxed, elbows drooping, front hand probes a little further, rear palm presses down as if brushing water... it's pressing, not pushing..."

"If you don't want to hear the 'spring' (a point on the body) while still moving, you need to find the strength in your feet, not in your shoulders..."

"Inhale four times, exhale six times..."

Chen Wujun felt as if his right arm was being pushed forward along an invisible path, while his left palm was secretly supporting it from behind and below his body...

Not long after, he felt as if two pebbles were stuck in his shoulder.

"Master, it feels like there are two buttons locking my shoulders... the more I call out, the tighter they get, and I can't move at all," Chen Wujun said, stopping his movements.

“Open it with the crystal,” Zhou Qing said slowly and deliberately.

Chen Wujun took out a crystal from his body, put it under his tongue, and stood on the White Crane Branch again.

Chen Wujun's body memorized the movement after only one correction, and Zhou Qing didn't find any fault with it this time.

"Like a crane standing on shallow water..." With each breath, Chen Wujun's back muscles expanded and contracted, as if a white crane were constantly spreading its wings.

Soon, the feeling of being locked in the shoulder returned, becoming tighter and more sore, until the soreness subsided and turned into a cool sensation, as if a thread ran from the shoulder socket along the arm to the fingertips, pulling his hand forward a little more.

He finally understood what Zhou Qing meant by "Qing Jin".

As soon as the line was drawn, his body couldn't help but want to lean forward.

“Yes, that’s the ‘linear coolness.’ Once you reach the line, don’t chase it. Just hold the shape.” Zhou Qing said to Chen Wujun.

After a moment, Chen Wujun felt his supporting foot become steady, but the ball of his foot felt like it was stepping on water, moving with the current, and his body involuntarily wanted to lean forward another inch. "Don't be greedy!" Zhou Qing gently flicked the back of Chen Wujun's hand, and Chen Wujun was immediately jolted awake from the involuntary feeling of leaning forward.

"Qingjin needs to 'advance to the front line and defend the front line.' If you advance now, it will be considered a robbery."

Chen Wujun quickly composed himself.

He didn't know how long he had been standing there. He felt a breath expand in his abdomen, like water boiling in a kettle, with steam constantly escaping. Then, this breath surged upwards from his abdomen, along his chest, and then rolled in his throat.

When Chen Wujun opened his mouth, it was like the hissing sound of a kettle boiling, emitting a crane's cry.

It just didn't have the clear, sharp tone of Zhou Qing's voice.

He then took a sudden step forward and reached out with lightning speed to grab something.

This action produced a whooshing sound, much like a swordsman thrusting forward, creating the sound of air being cut.

Then profuse sweat poured from his forehead and body, making him look as if he had been pulled out of the water.

Chen Wujun did not appear tired; on the contrary, his eyes seemed even brighter.

He knew he had practiced correctly.

It took two or three minutes for his heartbeat to calm down. He felt as if he had always been carrying a heavy load on his shoulders, but now the weight seemed to have been removed.

The upper body, shoulders, back, and arms are incredibly flexible.

"Master, what's with this breath?"

"The old saying was that qi gathers in the dantian, but the current saying is that the diaphragm sinks and the abdominal muscles tighten, creating huge pressure in the abdominal cavity. This pressure stabilizes the spine and mobilizes deeper muscle fibers to participate in the contraction. In this process, your abdominal cavity will build a high-pressure gas tank."

"So that's how it is..." Chen Wujun only half understood.

He can understand and learn the essentials of stance training and boxing techniques immediately.

But he was completely confused by what his master said.

And this is so scientific!

"Practice this 'White Crane Probing Branch' move well these days, and your kung fu will become more refined. Then you can practice other things," Zhou Qing said, turning and walking away with his hands behind his back.

Chen Wujun stood still and stretched his body, then performed another set of wolf fist techniques. He felt that his body had never been so relaxed and flexible. Many of his movements were more expansive than before, and his balance was also better.

His lower body felt firmly rooted, while his upper body was light and agile.

“When I practiced Wolf Fist before, although it was steady and fierce, it had a dead force. After opening up the shoulders, back and arms with the White Crane Probing Branch Stance, my punches have a living force.”

"No wonder Master said that when the two are combined, the kung fu will come alive."

After practicing Wolf Fist several times, he picked up a towel to wipe the sweat off his body.

Then something suddenly occurred to me.

"broken!"

"Previously, standing on the Old Bear Hugging the Tree required five crystals per month, and now standing on the White Crane Probing the Branch requires another five crystals."

"From what Senior Sister is saying, we also need to master the Tiger Descending the Mountain and Spirit Ape Hanging from the Beam stances. Wouldn't that cost... twenty crystals a month?"

"A single crystal costs five thousand yuan, and that's the internal price at Hetu. Outside, a single crystal would cost eight thousand yuan."

"Twenty pills, that'll cost... 100,000 yuan a month!"

Chen Wujun lowered his head and calculated for a long time, his expression changing.

"How come this old technique is more expensive than the new one... No wonder no one practices it..." Chen Wujun felt a headache coming on.

He was happy yesterday, thinking he would have an income of 50,000 to 60,000 yuan every month from now on.

I only found out today that this 50,000 to 60,000 is only half of my monthly crystal expenses.

And this is only now.

We might need even more in the future.

"Forget it, there's no point in thinking about it too much. There's always somewhere to make money."

"My senior sister said she would provide the crystals I need for training these days, so I just need to focus on practicing martial arts."

"If I lose the bet, I won't even be able to leave the stage alive, and how much money I have to spend is none of my business."

"If I win, that half street will be mine. With some businesses on the street, even if it's not enough, the shortfall won't be too big."

"If I put in a little effort, I can always get it from somewhere else."

"I also kept all the loan receipts from loan sharks, so I can keep the money coming in. When they collect the debts, I'll go rob them again."

(End of this chapter)