Chapter 49: Listen to the weak points and don’t look at the person (1/2)
Chapter 49: Listen to the weak points and don’t look at the person
“To be soft and relaxed…” When Wang Chao heard that the muscles had to loosen and the pores had to attack, he suddenly thought about to what sis Chen had taught him a year ago. Back when she taught him Taichi, she had said the same words along with this elder. It was as if the clouds had parted the skies, allowing him to see both the sun and the reasoning behind it.
Left hand pressed against the rib, the right hand laid parallel to the ground, this was the posture of Wang Chao’s Assault of Dragon and Snake. Silently raising the tailbone, and then use the pores as an attack before separating the interior and exterior by becoming relaxed.
Understanding was one thing, but actually doing it was another. When Wang Chao tightened his pores, his entire body began to grow taut, rendering him unable to feel that Yin and Yang balance within his body.
“Correct, soft and relaxed. Youngster, understanding and doing are two different things. You must work hard on tempering yourself. Test your hand against another by using Taichi’s art of pushing hands or Bagua’s art of rotating hands, both require at least year before they can be used to proficiency. Eh? What posture is this? What stance are you standing in? It seems like a combination of the Xingyi Quan postures.”
When he saw Wang Chao start to mutter, the elder had understood what he was thinking about and gave guidance. But when Wang Chao had suddenly got into a stance, he was surprised.
“This is the art of the Dragon and Snake. My master had said the dragon to be the horse, and the snake the spear. With both combined into one, it reigns supreme even amongst the battlefield of weapons.” Wang Chao spoke truthfully.
“So that’s your answer? It seems that your master has experienced the battlefield before. All generations of martial art experts will become masters of the generation after experiencing the battlefield once without dying. To be able to create a standard of combined postures would make one a master of their own school and paint their names as one of the many branches of Xingyi Quan.” The elder remarked.
Having read the history of martial arts, Wang Chao understood the meaning of the elder’s words. Xingyi, Taichi, and Bagua had many different masters who had created their own style and branches within the discipline.
Shang Yunxiang’s Xingyi Quan had been called the Shang style Xingyi. Other than that, there was the Che style Xingyi from Che Yizhai, and Guo Yunshen’s Guo style Xingyi. There was also Cheng Tinghua’s Cheng style Bagua, and so forth.
“Has elder Li reached the Transforming Jin realm? When we pressed hands, I could feel the Hidden Jin break out as if needles. I have not yet reached the Hidden Jin stage, so I know not of the layers of martial arts yet. When my master taught me, she had not Hidden Jin to help me.” Wang Chao asked hurriedly.
“Ai! I am old now, and when my martial arts was at its peak, it was indeed at the Transforming Jin stage. At that point, I could use my pores to strike, but I can no longer do that. At most, I can only knock someone off guard since my pores can no longer accomplish the same things.” The elder went quiet as his face revealed the damage of time with sorrow.
“What, does one’s martial art degenerate with age even after reaching the Transforming Jin?” Wang Chao asked in concern.
“Youngster, martial arts is not some fairy tale. Even masters of martial arts are no match for the passage of time. Time persists, time does not spare. To not accept aging is to not be human. I am already 90 years old, and of the three internal harmonies, I am able to do the harmony of mind and will and the harmony of will and Qi. However, the harmony of the Qi and power is unattainable for me, making me unable to circulate Jin to all parts of my body.”
As he spoke, the elder stepped towards Wang Chao suddenly and brought his hand like a knife towards Wang Chao’s throat.
The elder’s footwork had been impeccable and his movements were as swift as a leopard pouncing at an antelope. His footwork resembled that of having a mastery over Bagua, and he was even using the Bagua tradition of using one’s hand as a knife.
But instead of stepping from the side, the elder had charged in from the front. Like a spear going down the meridian line of a person, he had transformed the usually deceitful Bagua footwork into one of a valiant nature.