Chapter Thirty-Eight: Ghostly Hands and Steps

  Simadou was about thirty-seven or eight years old, wearing a light blue long gown, slender and tall, with a thin face, walking slowly with his hands behind his back, and arriving calmly.

  "Boundless Heaven Venerable has met Sima Daochang." The crowd waited for Sima Daochang to approach, then bowed their heads in greeting.

  "Boundless Heavenly Venerable, congratulations to all of you." Sima Daochang bowed his head in return, "My surname is Sima, my dual name is Feng You, this time I am following the divine decree of the Upper Clear Ancestor, and have come to impart martial arts to you all."

  "Thanks, Daozhang." The crowd bowed again, the etiquette of the Daoist sect was strict. Sima Fengyu returned the courtesy with Wu Liang Tian Zun, indicating that he was not a master of a sect or someone who had passed the heavenly tribulation, so he could only be called Daozhang and not respectfully addressed as Zhenren.

  "Disciples of the Taoist school usually wield long swords and feather dusters against their enemies, but I am not skilled in these two types of weapons. In my lifetime, I have only learned a set of palm techniques and a method of movement, the palm technique is called 'Capturing Wind Ghost Hand', and the movement method is called 'Chasing Wind Ghost Step'. You all focus on learning, and within a year, you should achieve some small success." Sima Feng Yu looked around at everyone.

  Everyone who heard the words was slightly shocked, and the two skills mentioned by Sima Feng had the word "ghost" in them. Just listening to the names revealed a strange and eerie atmosphere, which went against the Taoist values of uprightness, benevolence, and harmony.

  "Tell me, what is the use of practicing martial arts?" Sima Feng asked with a self-deprecating smile.

  "Kill the rich and help the poor." Baili Feng was the first to speak up.

  "In a chaotic world, one must protect oneself." Mo asked, seeing Sima's worried look, and he immediately replied.

  "Punish evil and promote good." Ah Jiu replied.

  Several others saw Ah Jiu's proper answer and followed suit. Qian Shuai, however, gave a different response, saying "Strong body".

  Unexpectedly, Sima Fengou listened and slowly shook his head. After a moment of silence, he calmly said, "Martial arts are only for killing people."

  Everyone was shocked and stunned by his words. Sima Feng had a scar on his face, and he looked evil. At this time, he spoke in a low voice, and his facial features seemed even more sinister. He didn't seem like a Taoist who saves the world, but rather an assassin or a killer.

  "There are those who listen to advice and those who do not. Those who listen can be enlightened with reason, guided from evil to good; this is the purpose of your studies in scripture. Those who refuse to listen bring harm to the world, their lives should be taken; this is the original intention behind your martial arts training." Sima Feng spoke again.

  Mo Wen heard the words and frowned again, Sima Feng felt that this person was not good, his words were cold and murderous, without any compassion of a monk.

  "What's your question?" Sima Feng raised an eyebrow and glanced at Mo Xun.

  "If he refuses to listen to advice, let him go and that's it. Why must you take his life?" Mo Xiang asked seriously.

  "Most people in the cultivation world only have the idea of doing good and accumulating virtues, but they don't know that eliminating evil is also accumulating virtues." Sima Fengyuan said this as he slightly waved his hand, "I came here just to pass on my skills, cultivating one's heart and nature is not within my jurisdiction."

  Mo Wen nodded his head in agreement, although he didn't quite agree with Sima Feng's words. However, this didn't affect his desire to learn martial arts. As long as he could master the skills, how to use them would be up to him to decide.

  Simafei Anger walked forward with his hands down, "Yin and Yang are divided into two, to advise and kill at the same time. The Yang leads people to do good, while the Yin punishes evil and eliminates evil. These two must be used separately, and one's heart must be sincere in advising others. If they cannot be corrected, when taking action, there will be no mercy. What people say 'showing mercy does not work, working does not show mercy' is precisely this principle."

  Simawen Feng finished speaking, and everyone did not respond. Simawen Feng looked around at the crowd, and wherever his eyes fell, everyone lowered their heads, except for Baili Kuangfeng, who replied, "I understand what Daozhang means. When offering advice, advise well; if they don't listen and still want to do evil, then you can only take action and kill them."

  "However, when facing an enemy, one must not be indecisive. Once you make a move, you must go all out. If you show mercy, you will suffer the consequences." Sima Feng said with a nod.

  Everyone nodded upon hearing this, and Mo Wu was among them. He understood that Sima Fengyue said these words to make everyone establish the correct attitude before practicing martial arts.

  "The wind is formless, if you want to capture it, your hands must be swift and unmatched. The capturer of the wind, as the name suggests, has quick and swift hands that can capture the wind. Because the palm techniques used are all fatal human acupoints, ruthless and deadly, this is called the 'Ghost Hand'. In short, this palm technique breaks bones and takes lives, both fast and ruthless." Sima Fengyu had no idle talk, directly getting to the essence of the palm technique.

  "This is the Wind Chasing Ghost Step, a lightness skill that doesn't follow the Eight Trigrams and Five Elements framework, nor does it follow the sequence of the Nine Palaces and Star Positions. After mastering this skill, when moving, a virtual shadow will appear, and with speed, there will be no trace to be found. The virtual shadow follows the body as it moves, hence the name Wind Chasing Ghost Step."

  As an artist, people can't do much except nod their heads.

  "To master the Wind Ghost Hand, one must first learn the Wind Ghost Step. From today on, practice three hundred forward and backward cycles, repeating daily for ten times. When you can complete three hundred cycles in the time it takes to burn an incense stick without vomiting or dizziness, come find me at the Western Hall." Sima Fengyu said as he turned around and left.

  Everyone was stunned, in everyone's impression, practicing martial arts should follow the rules and progress step by step. Who would have thought that Sima Fengyu actually made people turn around in circles? What kind of practice method is this?

  "Let's take a break, we only need to circle around every day, no need to tie up the horse and stabilize the foundation?" Ba Li Kuang Feng shouted as he turned around.

  "Take a look at this." Sima Feng said, turning his head.

  Baili Kuangfeng heard this and withdrew his arms, straightened his waist, and made a common martial arts stance, the horse step.

  "Do you want to go out?" Sima Feng asked with raised eyebrows.

  Although Sima Fengyou's face had no smile when he spoke, the implication was clearly that he was ridiculing Baili Kuangfeng's ugly posture. As soon as this remark came out, everyone burst into laughter. When Baili Kuangfeng heard it, he didn't feel ashamed and instead tried to correct his posture.

  Simawen frowned and shook his head, "Ordinary martial arts emphasize both offense and defense, but in reality, they have deviated from the true meaning of martial arts. The purpose of practicing martial arts is to attack others, if you divide your attention between offense and defense, it will degenerate into a low-level exchange of blows. Martial arts are all about attacking, there is no defense, even if there is defense, it is still replaced by offense. Attacking with full force can achieve a sharp and fierce effect, but if you divide your attention to defend, it will weaken the attack."

  Simafei Ang said, everyone was deeply thoughtful and understanding, Baili Kuangfeng did not understand the meaning, still squatting in the original place, Simafei Ang saw the situation and raised an eyebrow, "You are like a wooden stake squatting there, how can you cultivate the Wind Ghost Step?"

  A hundred miles of fierce wind, one listen, hastily straighten up and lower head.

  "May I ask, Master, whether it's better for us to move quickly or slowly when we're rotating?" asked Ye Xiangyu.

  "Why be slow?" Sima Fengyu turned his gaze towards the night sky.

  "Master Xuan Yang once said that the principle of yin and yang is like a long, gentle stream. If applied to martial arts, it would mean being slow and steady, waiting for the right moment to strike." Ye Xiao Yao said.

  Simafengyuan sighed, his face showing helplessness. "Martial arts are all about speed and not being broken, seizing the initiative is already difficult, how can we give up the initiative and plan afterwards?"

  "Is it not contrary to the principle of Tai Chi if one has speed but no slowness, attack but no defense?" Yan Xiaoyao asked boldly.

  "The principle of Taiji cannot be applied to martial arts. Although the separation of yin and yang in Taiji is not false, offense and defense are not necessarily corresponding to yin and yang. What is Taiji? The yang of Taiji does not fight, it persuades and saves. The yin of Taiji fights, it kills. Once you start fighting, yin and yang have already lost balance, how can you still take both into consideration?" Sima Feng explained patiently.

  Simafengyuan sighed again after finishing speaking and turned around to leave.

  "Don't ask if you understand?" Ye Xiangyang didn't understand the profound meaning of Sima Feng's words, and instead turned to Mo Wen for guidance.

  "Understood, the essence of Tai Chi lies in the harmony between Yin and Yang. When it's time to be strong, one must be resolute and firm; otherwise, it's just a mess." Mo Wen furrowed his brow as he spoke. Previously, he didn't agree with Sima Fengyue's words and actions, but now he felt that Sima Fengyue was speaking the truth. True Yin and Yang should be harmonious when gentle, and fierce when powerful; they shouldn't mix when they shouldn't. Just like men and women, masculinity and femininity must be clearly defined; otherwise, it would be like a eunuch, neither male nor female.

  Ye Xiangyao heard this and furrowed his brow, clicking his tongue in disapproval. Without needing to ask, he knew that the other party still didn't understand.

  "Simadou Chang's implication was that martial arts were originally ruthless and deadly, and could not be compassionate. If one wanted to show compassion, it should be done before taking action, and never during the actual fight." Mo Xun spoke again. People have different levels of understanding, and the timing of enlightenment varies from person to person. At this point, he no longer thought that ruthless moves were wrong, because he could freely decide whether or not to use them. If it was truly necessary, then they must be used ruthlessly; if not, one could still reason with the opponent.

  "That makes sense, right? You said he let us run around in circles for what?" Ba Li Kuang Feng leaned in.

  "It must be when the Wind Chasing Ghost Style is being performed that one needs to keep spinning around." Ye Xiangyu added.

  "Simadao Chang just said that the Wind Ghost Step doesn't have a fixed moving position, and some positions may be unbearable for ordinary people." Mo Xun said. Since the moving position is strange, it can't just be an ordinary standing position. It's very likely to require leaning or even inverted standing. Sima Fengrui letting everyone turn around might be to let everyone adapt to those unusual postures that are not used in daily life, laying the foundation for displaying strange movements later on.

  "I've always felt that something is off. We're the orthodox disciples of Shangqing, why do our martial arts skills all have a 'ghost' character in them?" Liu Song said with a shake of her head.

  This time Mo Wen didn't speak up, because Liu Song's question was also bothering him.

  At the moment when everyone was silent, Ah Jiu spoke softly, "Simadou's meridians were blocked since birth, unable to circulate Qi, and without circulating Qi, he cannot cultivate Qi to ascend. Since he can't become an immortal, after a hundred years, he will only be a ghost."

  "Haven't you found that the masters who teach us skills all have some strange temperaments?" Liu Shaoying interjected.

  Thanks to his reminder, everyone recalled that none of these seniors had the orthodox image of a true Taoist with an ethereal and transcendent demeanor.

  "Are we not being treated with disdain by our ancestors?" Ba Li Kuang Feng furrowed his brow and scratched his head.

  Everyone who heard this showed a puzzled expression, and after a moment, Mo Xiang guessed the underlying mystery. The different personalities of the various respected seniors can make everyone immune to the intangible influence of the respected seniors who teach the art, allowing everyone to maintain their true nature while learning the skills.

  Then it's time to turn around in circles...