Chinese Martial Arts: My Super Beast Clone

That day, Lin Hai stayed in the backyard.

Practice standing meditation in the morning and boxing in the afternoon.

Throughout the day, more than a dozen inner court disciples came in to practice, but most of them only practiced for an hour or two before leaving.

These inner court disciples always seemed to be in a hurry, coming and going in a rush.

Only three newly initiated disciples, Lin Hai, Sun Datou, and Zhao Peng, stayed from morning until evening.

As the sun sets, the afterglow casts long shadows in the courtyard.

Sun Datou had been training intensely and was now exhausted, lying sprawled on the stone steps, panting heavily.

After Lin Hai finished his last punch, he stood up, his body radiating heat.

"Junior Brother Lin."

Zhao Peng walked over and handed over a clean towel.

"Thank you, Senior Brother Zhao." Lin Hai took it and wiped his sweat.

"Your punches are very good," Zhao Peng said earnestly, looking at Lin Hai. "Your power is very well-integrated, stronger than mine."

"Senior Brother Zhao, you flatter me. I was just lucky and managed to get a little bit of the threshold," Lin Hai said politely. He had also watched Zhao Peng practice his boxing. He hadn't developed Zhao Peng's whole-body strength yet, but he wasn't far off.

Zhao Peng shook his head, a wry smile on his face: "Luck is also a part of strength. My master said that my mind is not calm, and my strength is always scattered. It seems he was right."

He plopped down on the stone steps beside the forest, looked up at the sunset, and looked somewhat forlorn.

"Do you think that someone like me shouldn't be practicing martial arts?" Zhao Peng suddenly asked.

Lin Hai was taken aback, wondering why he said that.

Zhao Peng chuckled self-deprecatingly: "My dad only has one son, and he can't wait for me to settle down, start a family, and take over his business. Practicing martial arts? In his eyes, that's a waste of time, a low-class thing."

Zhao Peng continued, "I'm my father's only son, and someone has to take over the family business. Starting last year, he arranged for me to take three concubines..."

At this point, Zhao Peng waved his hand, a look of bewilderment on his face.

Lin Hai listened quietly without interrupting. This was someone else's family matter, and he shouldn't comment.

"A third wife?" Sun Datou's eyes widened. "You mean a third concubine?"

"That's right," Zhao Peng said with a wry smile. "My father picked them all; I didn't even have a say. Two months ago, his second wife got pregnant again. My father was overjoyed and kept urging me to come home, saying things like 'With an heir, everything will be fine.'"

Sun Datou's mouth dropped open, and after a long pause, he managed to stammer, "Senior Brother Fang... isn't this a good thing?"

Zhao Peng glared at him.

"What's so good about it?" His tone was tinged with annoyance. "Do you know what martial artists fear most? The leakage of vital energy. The cultivation of strength focuses on foundation building, ensuring abundant blood and energy, and strong bones and muscles. I have three concubines at home, and no matter how much I try to control myself, just dealing with them every day takes a lot of energy. Think about it, I only have so much energy each day. I practice at the martial arts school during the day, and when I get home at night…"

He didn't elaborate, but his meaning was clear.

Lin Hai ate his steamed bun without saying a word.

He understood. The cultivation of the Strength Refinement Realm, simply put, is about tempering the body and solidifying one's foundation. This stage truly requires complete dedication; anything that drains energy and vitality will slow down progress.

Zhao Peng truly has a passion for martial arts; you can tell from his boxing stances—he has a solid foundation and has clearly put in a lot of effort.

"If I were like you, with no family to worry about and no worries except practicing martial arts, I dare say I would have passed this test long ago." Zhao Peng said this with a hint of genuine envy in his voice.

Sun Datou chuckled twice: "Brother Fang, you're like a well-fed man who doesn't know the hunger of an starving one. I carry loads at the docks every day, I'm exhausted like a dog, and when I get back I still have to stand guard. I envy you."

Zhao Peng shook his head, no longer dwelling on the matter. He stood up, patted his pants as if trying to shake off the frustration in his heart, and cupped his hands in greeting to Lin Hai and Sun Datou: "Junior brothers, that's enough for today. I'll head back now."

Watching Zhao Peng's somewhat dejected figure, Sun Datou scratched his head and said to Lin Hai, "Junior Brother Lin, do you think he's really unhappy? Do rich people have so many worries?"

Lin Hai withdrew his gaze and said calmly, "It's just that everyone has different pursuits."

To him, Zhao Peng's troubles were indeed a case of the well-fed not understanding the hunger of the starving. But he also understood that the anguish in people's hearts has nothing to do with wealth or poverty. For martial artists, the greatest fear is having mental burdens that prevent their strength from being pure.

Zhao Peng's predicament may also be a kind of obstacle on the path of spiritual practice.

……

Time flies, and another three days have passed.

Lin Hai's life was very regular during these three days.

He would get up before dawn, practice standing meditation, and then go to the martial arts school. In the backyard, he, along with Sun Datou and Zhao Peng, spent most of their time practicing boxing, standing meditation, and strengthening their muscles and bones.

After breaking through to the "proficient" level of the Tiger Subduing Fist, the biggest benefit was that it allowed him to touch the threshold of "whole-body power" ahead of time. In the past three days, he did not deliberately pursue how much power he could generate, but instead calmed down and repeated each move of the Tiger Subduing Fist over and over again.

He carefully observed the exertion of each muscle and the transmission of power through every inch of tendon and bone. The power rose from the soles of his feet; he learned how to twist his waist, how to thrust his hips, how to pass through his back, and how to flow down his arms to his fists.

Lin Hai felt as if he were clearing a silted-up riverbed during this process.

On the first day, he could deliver a complete and smooth full force in about one or two out of ten punches.

The next day, the number became three or four punches.

By the afternoon of the third day, when he stood with his fists clenched, he was able to deliver power to his fists in half of his ten punches, with a smooth and unimpeded flow. Although there was still a slight hesitation at times, it was a world of difference compared to three days ago.

He could feel a subtle change taking place in his body.

While honing his own strength, he was also tempering his muscles and physique. Through this tempering, his bones became more resilient, and his muscles became stronger. Although the numbers on the panel didn't change much, Lin Hai knew that his control over this power was reaching a new level.

That evening, he had just finished a round of boxing and was slowly calming his blood and qi when his senior brother Chen Wu came over.

"Junior Brother Lin."

"Senior Brother."

Chen Wu nodded and said directly, "Master asked me to inform you that you should assemble in the backyard at 5:00 AM tomorrow. Don't be late."

Lin Hai's heart skipped a beat, and he asked, "Senior Brother, is there something you need?"

"Master is going to take you new inner courtyard disciples out of the city to hunt tigers." Chen Wu's face showed a solemn expression.

Hunting Tigers!

Upon hearing those two words, Lin Hai's breathing quickened considerably.

He had heard that when the martial arts school's master, Lu Zhengchuan, was still in the Strength Realm, he had killed three fierce tigers with his bare hands, making him a legend in Yangcheng. The cultivation pills made in the martial arts school also all required tiger bones and tiger blood.

But he never imagined that he would have the opportunity to participate in it so soon.

Wilderness, monsters, hunting...