Breaking Limits in Martial Arts: Grinding Your Way to Becoming a Martial Saint in a Chaotic Era

"You? You hurt me?" Xu Qing laughed until tears almost came out.

He pointed at Xu Qing, then turned to Zhou Wen: "Senior Brother Zhou, did you hear that? This country bumpkin who's only been here for less than four days wants to spar with me! And he even says he's afraid of hurting me?"

Zhou Wen laughed, crossed his arms and leaned against the weapon rack, looking on with amusement: "Junior Brother Xu, they've really put up with this. If you don't accept it, you won't be able to hold your head up in the courtyard anymore."

Xu Qing stopped laughing, narrowed his eyes at Xu Qing, and a ruthless look appeared on his face: "Fine. Since you're asking for a beating, I'll grant your wish."

"Don't blame me for not warning you! Fists and kicks have no eyes; if you get injured or crippled, you can't blame anyone else!"

"Senior Brother Chen," Xu Qing said, then looked at Chen Wang, trying to distance himself from the situation, "He was the one who asked me to spar. My martial arts skills aren't up to par yet, and I can't control them perfectly. If I really hurt him, it's not my fault."

"Hit! Hit! Hit!" Zhou Wen started to incite, clapping his hands and shouting, "Come on, everyone, make way! Junior Brother Xu is going to teach the newcomer how to behave!"

Chen Wang frowned. The sparring match was initiated by Xu Qing, and it was understandable that Xu Qing agreed. He could only let the two of them fight.

"Fine, I'll keep a close eye on things and intervene when necessary," Chen Wang thought to himself. He had a good impression of Xu Qing and didn't want him to get hurt for no reason.

People love a good show, and seeing the cousins ​​turn on each other and start sparring instantly livened up the atmosphere in the training ground.

The other disciples stopped their fighting and gathered around.

Some squatted on the stone mill, some leaned against the weapon rack, and some simply sat cross-legged on the ground, their eyes shining.

Unlike the others who watched the show, Qin Liang stood in the corner with a worried expression.

He shared a room with Xu Qing and ate Xu Qing's mutton. Over the past few days, he and Xu Qing had developed a certain relationship, and he was on Xu Qing's side from the bottom of his heart.

"Are we really going to fight? Xu Qing has only been here a few days, can he handle it?" someone whispered.

"Who knows? But Xu Qing has been practicing for two months and has already mastered the basics of stance training. Xu Qing is probably in trouble."

"That's not necessarily true. Xu Qing mastered the basics of stance training in just one day. He might actually be quite skilled."

"Senior brother, you're mistaken. It wasn't a day, it was only half an incense stick's time to master it. I just wonder if they secretly practiced the Three Talents Stance before coming to our martial arts school to make a name for themselves..."

"Haha, junior brother, that's not a very kind thing to say..."

A murmur of discussion arose, and all eyes were fixed on the center of the training ground.

Xu Qing stood in the center of the field, looking at Xu Qing's face, which was distorted with anger, but his heart was surprisingly calm.

He didn't act on impulse.

He's been watching this while practicing his martial arts these past few days.

Watch each of the fellow disciples practice their skills, observe their stances, their punching techniques, and their attack habits.

He paid particular attention to Xu Qing, his nominal "cousin".

Xu Qing's stance training was indeed slightly better than mine, but only by a very limited margin.

And the fighting style...

Xu Qing's Five Elements Fist was merely standard in its movements, as if it had been carved from a mold. It was rigid, stiff, and always sluggish between moves.

A chopping fist is a chopping fist, and a collapsing fist is a collapsing fist. After finishing one move, you retract your fist and then start the next move. The transition is clean and crisp, like a student uttering words one by one without any continuity.

This kind of playing style, let alone achieving a minor level of mastery, hasn't even reached the threshold of a minor level of mastery.

As for his Five Elements Fist, he had already crossed that threshold this morning.

【Five Elements Fist (Minor Success): 3/200】

【Three Talents Stance (Beginner): 12/100】

The progress bar of boxing techniques and stance training in his mind gave him confidence.

Their stance training is about the same, but in terms of fighting style, he has already surpassed them.

Chen Wang had told him that stance training is the body, while striking techniques are the application.

Standing meditation trains the foundation, the strength of the lower body, and the extent to which you can mobilize the qi, blood, muscles and bones of your whole body.

The training in fighting techniques is about application—how you project your power, how you transition and connect between punches, and how you use every bit of force effectively.

Your stance training determines how stable you can stand, while your fighting style determines how much strength you can unleash.

Chen Wang also talked about something much deeper.

The stance training corresponds to the realm of martial arts. To get started, one needs comprehension, but further progress depends on one's physical constitution.

People with good physical constitution have abundant qi and blood, strong muscles and bones, and can achieve twice the results with half the effort when practicing standing meditation, thus making rapid progress.

With his special ability, he was not limited by his physical constitution, and his standing meditation was smooth without any hindrance, allowing him to progress at a rapid pace.

The fighting style depends entirely on one's understanding.

Fortunately, he had excellent comprehension skills.

What is comprehension?

It's about whether you can grasp the principles behind the martial art through the repetition of each move.

The question is whether you can integrate the five punches of chopping, striking, drilling, cannoning, and horizontal, so that they are no longer five isolated moves, but a complete system.

It's about whether you can deliver the most appropriate punch at the most appropriate time, with the most appropriate force.

Chen Wang also said.

Physical constitution is the container, while intuition is the key.

No matter how large the container is, without the key to open it, you can't pour out the contents. But if you have the right key, even if it's just a rough porcelain bowl, you can still drink the water.

His container was about the same size as Xu Qing's, but he got the key!

Therefore, he is 80% confident in this battle.

The remaining 20% ​​depends on how well they perform on the day.

Xu Qing and Xu Qing stood facing each other, three steps apart.

Chen Wang stood in the middle, looked around, sighed, and said in a deep voice, "A friendly spar is fine, but stop when you've made your point. If one side concedes defeat, the other side must stop. Do you understand?"

Neither of them spoke; they simply stared at each other.

Chen Wang stepped back a few paces and waved his hand: "Let's begin!"

Xu Qing made the first move.

He had been learning the Five Elements Fist for much longer than Xu Qing, and his stances were quite impressive.

A powerful punch came crashing down on his chest, the wind whistling through it.

Xu Qing dodged to the side, his feet remaining perfectly still.

Xu Qing's punch missed its mark, and he frowned. Then he threw another punch, aiming straight for Xu Qing's jaw from below.

Xu Qing leaned back slightly, the force of the punch grazing his chin, creating a gust of wind.

Having failed in both moves, Xu Qing was somewhat embarrassed.

He gritted his teeth, changed his stance, and unleashed a series of punches: a chopping punch, a drilling punch, and a horizontal punch. Each punch was faster and more ruthless than the last, as if he wanted to devour Xu Qing alive.

Xu Qing was like an eel, slippery and unpredictable. Every time a fist was about to touch her, she would dodge it at the last second, without faltering or panting.

The fellow disciples watching gradually realized something was amiss. Xu Qing wasn't deliberately hiding; he was observing, watching Xu Qing's tactics.

The Five Elements Fist taught in the martial arts school has a fixed routine, but everyone performs it differently.

He needed to figure out Xu Qing's tactics so he could strike back later.

Xu Qing fought for about ten moves, growing increasingly anxious as the fight progressed, and sweat beaded on his forehead.

Before the fight started, he boasted that one punch would keep Xu Qing bedridden for three days, but now, after more than a dozen punches, he hadn't even touched the hem of Xu Qing's clothes.

"Is all you can do is dodge?!" Xu Qing was furious, his punches getting heavier and heavier, and his footwork became chaotic.

Xu Qing suddenly stopped dodging.

A glint flashed in his eyes as he figured out Xu Qing's fighting style.

Xu Qing threw a Beng Quan (a type of punch), but Xu Qing did not retreat but advanced, dodging the Beng Quan by turning his body to the side, and then unleashed a Cannon Fist.

The fist, like a cannonball, struck Xu Qing's chest from below.

Xu Qing hurriedly raised his arms to block, but the punch left his arms numb and his defenses wide open.

Xu Qing's punches were continuous, with chopping punches, drilling punches, and horizontal punches, one after another, like a flood breaking through a dam, with each wave higher than the last.

His boxing style is completely different from Xu Qing's.

Xu Qing's boxing moves were precise, but rigid and inflexible.

Xu Qing's boxing moves were seamless, each move moving as one. Before the energy from the previous punch had dissipated, the next punch had already followed. His movements were fluid and fluid, executed in one breath.

Chen Wang's eyes widened even more.

He could tell that Xu Qing's Five Elements Fist had already reached a minor level of mastery!

Xu Qing's Five Elements Fist hasn't even reached the threshold of minor mastery!

"Bang!"

Xu Qing delivered a powerful punch, striking Xu Qing squarely in the chest!