The Martial Saint of the Defiled World

As the saying goes, "In literature, Tai Chi brings peace to the world; in martial arts, Bajiquan establishes order."

Bajiquan emphasizes six major openings and eight major moves, with its foundation in the waist and hips.

The force originates from the soles of the feet, passes through the knees and hips, runs through the waist and spine, and reaches the fist.

This continuous flow is called "whole-body strength".

When he was in the initial stage of understanding the realm, Jiang Shaosheng could only exert his strength in stages.

The feet are the feet, the waist is the waist, and when the fist is thrown, 30% of the force is dissipated.

After two months of arduous training, Jiang Shaosheng finally took a new step.

The panel slowly began to change.

[Technique] Bajiquan

[Level] Proficient (1/500)

[Effect] Improves the flow of energy and significantly enhances explosive power.

After moving from "initial understanding" to "proficiency", Jiang Shaosheng could clearly feel that his physical strength had increased by one step.

That feeling is hard to describe in words; it's extremely mysterious.

It's as if a veil that used to cover our muscles and bones has been lifted, or as if the disparate parts of our body have finally learned to work together.

When you push off with your heel, the force of the rebound no longer stays in your calf, but goes up along the bone, causing the thigh muscles to contract when it passes the knee, and then naturally sinks down and bounces up when it reaches the hip.

The spine is like a fully drawn bow, the latissimus dorsi muscles suddenly tighten, and finally, from the shoulder to the elbow to the wrist to the fist, it flows through each joint in one smooth motion.

With money in your pocket, you'll never have to worry about food or clothing.

In the past, every meal consisted of either noodles or thin porridge. Now, every few days, I buy a couple of ounces of meat and a few eggs.

Old Hu, the butcher at the alley entrance, recognized him. Every time he came, he would slash at the fat and lean ribs with his knife.

His body had become noticeably thicker, and the once distinct ribs were now covered with a thin layer of muscle. His arms had become thicker, and his shoulders had broadened.

Now, with the added benefits from the panel, my physical body has reached a new level.

He tried to stand still in the room, with his shoulders relaxed and elbows dropped, and his breath focused on his lower abdomen.

Feet shoulder-width apart, toes slightly gripping the ground as if trying to bury themselves in the earth.

Slightly bend your knees, relax your hips, straighten your back, lift your head slightly, and tuck your chin in.

A moment later, he slowly extended his right fist, and then suddenly released a burst of force at the end.

A crisp sound was heard, a sound of bones and muscles resonating together.

The punch didn't land properly, but the sound of the air being pushed apart was as crisp as the crack of a whip.

The moment he threw the punch, he could feel his shoulder blade retract and then thrust forward. In the instant his elbow joint straightened from a flexed position, his ulna and radius exerted force simultaneously, and his wrist joint gave a final jerk, making his entire arm resemble a whip with his fist at the tip.

Jiang Shaosheng withdrew his fist and closed his eyes to savor the trajectory of the force he had just experienced.

The reaction force from pushing off the ground with the feet travels up the leg bones, the hips sink and rotate, the waist and spine tighten and then loosen like a bowstring, the power accumulates layer by layer, and finally shines out from the fist.

The whole process took only a moment, but it was much smoother than before.

All of this, which used to require conscious thought and adjustment, now seems to be ingrained in my bones, becoming an instinct of my body.

"That's definitely a powerful move."

He opened his eyes and walked to the wooden stake in the corner of the wall.

I found this wooden stake a few days ago; it's made of elm wood and is quite heavy.

The room was cramped, and with it there, it felt even more cramped, but for someone who practices martial arts, this was enough.

Jiang Shaosheng stood still, exhaled, and punched the stake.

The muffled sound was particularly deep in the room.

The wooden stake wobbled, and a small clump of dust rose from the ground at its base.

When he looked at it, he saw a new crack in the hemp rope and a shallow dent in the stake.

"When I applied it two months ago, it would only wobble a few times, but now it leaves a mark."

Jiang Shaosheng touched the crack and immediately understood what was going on.

Two months ago, when I threw that punch, the wooden stake wobbled twice, and my wrist went numb from the impact.

Now, with this punch, the wooden stake shook even more violently, but his fist only felt a slight numbness, while a mark appeared on the stake instead.

The difference lies in the distinction between whole-body power and segmented power.

If this punch were to land on an ordinary person, the bones would either break or be broken.

He tried hitting the stake a few more times, taking turns bumping his shoulder, elbow, and hip against it.

When the shoulder strike occurred, the post tilted backward, and a thin crack was pried open in the ground at its base.

He braced his right shoulder against the post, stepped forward with his left foot, twisted his waist and hips violently, and slammed his shoulder hard against the post. In that instant, he could feel the weight of his entire upper body pressing down on it.

The stake creaked as he struck with his elbow. He bent his left arm, aimed his elbow at the center of the stake, twisted his waist, and thrust his elbow out like a spearhead, causing the stake to veer to the side.

When he struck the pile with his hip, the pile shook violently. He leaned close to the side and suddenly exerted force with his right hip, as if he wanted to overturn the pile by the roots. Several fine cracks appeared in the ground at the base of the pile, and the broken bricks sank down a bit.

"We need to smash it some more."

He squatted down, tamped down the broken bricks, and then stepped on them.

He wiped the sweat from his forehead as he stood up.

He walked back to the table, sat down, poured himself a bowl of cold tea, and slowly drank it.

His eyes glanced at the "Skilled (1/500)" on the screen and he thought to himself: At this rate, if I can eat meat and practice my fist every day, I might be able to reach the next threshold in less than a year.

As for what comes after "proficiency," he didn't think about it for the time being.

Because the crucial moment of choosing one of the three options has arrived.

Three new destinies slowly appeared on the panel.

The characters emerged stroke by stroke, as if someone were writing with an invisible pen dipped in light. Each time a line was finished, it would light up briefly and then hang there quietly, waiting for him to see it.

Jiang Shaosheng's breathing became heavier. The [Danger Awareness Instinct] he had previously acquired was ridiculously useful, and he wondered what else he could gain now.

[The mystery unfolds anew, the three luminaries shine down; please choose a destiny chart to uphold.]

1. [Resonance·Disarmament]

Effect: When you successfully neutralize or deflect an enemy's weapon attack with skillful force (parrying, deflecting, striking key areas), you can actively consume 20 points of [skill proficiency] to trigger "Disarm Resonance".

The enemy's weapons (excluding firearms) will be temporarily ineffective against you for the next 10 seconds.

2. [Breaking Limits - Penetrating Armor]

Effect: You can actively consume 20 points of [Technique Proficiency] to make your next successful attack on the opponent have the "Internal Force Penetration" effect.

This attack will ignore the target's physical defenses based on muscle, fat, or ordinary armor (but will be less effective against advanced defenses such as heavy metal armor and qi-based protective gear).

It directly impacts internal organs or vulnerable areas, causing additional internal injuries and severe pain, and has a chance to put the opponent into a brief "stiff" or "suffocating" state.

3. [Insight & Countermeasures]

Effect: You can actively consume 20 points of [Technique Proficiency] to enter the "Dynamic Insight" state for the next 3 seconds.

During this time, you can keenly detect signs of your opponent exerting force and weaknesses in their center of gravity.

If you successfully parry, dodge, or counterattack to avoid or interrupt your opponent's attack, there is a certain probability that your next counterattack will hit your opponent's weak point, and this attack will also have a brief "imbalance" effect.

If you fail to interrupt the opponent's attack, you will be briefly "stuck".