Chapter 17: Wang Chan Leaves the Mountain

  Chinese martial arts were not divided into internal and external families for a long time before the Ming Dynasty. This naming seems to be after Zhang Sanfeng, a Taoist, left several Taoist kung fu routes on Wudang Mountain, people made this distinction to distinguish between Shaolin and Wudang, but it is not accurate. Only later, when internal fist became popular and more people practiced it, did this naming convention become a standard.

  Actually, people who practice martial arts do not have purely external skills. Once the martial arts training reaches a spiritual level, they can all achieve internal and external harmony, merging into one body. It's not just the internal school of boxing that incorporates Taoist health preservation concepts that emphasizes breathing and spitting out this kind of detailed work. Just like Wang Zhan's practice of this 13 Taibao horizontal exercise, which has been passed down since at least the Tang Dynasty, it also emphasizes internal refinement of energy, external repair of muscles and bones, and after truly mastering it, the whole body's pores open and close as desired. Not only is the skin hard like steel, able to withstand any impact, but also the internal energy and blood are abundant, physical strength is long-lasting, spiritual nourishment is full, and external exercise makes the physique strong and healthy. In terms of killing techniques, it is much more ruthless than any internal school of boxing today.

  This was originally very good, but now there is a huge drawback that has begun to emerge. That is, his kung fu skills were originally used for the military generals of the past dynasty to kill people on the battlefield, and every move he made when fighting with outsiders was a real killer move, with an unstoppable offensive. If he couldn't master the skill of releasing and retracting his strength at will, Wang Chan himself couldn't guarantee that he wouldn't kill many more people once he came down from the mountain.

  In this way, how can social laws rely on him? Sooner or later, something will go wrong. If nothing goes wrong, that's strange.

  Not to mention this time, Wang Chan's purpose of coming down the mountain was to help Zhou Lin protect her daughter and avoid that so-called Lin Shao from causing trouble. It can be imagined that once things change, it is unlikely that Wang Chan will not take action.

  "No wonder the old man was able to kill people like flies when he was young, and not leave a single survivor during his bandit days. But as his skills improved, the number of people who died at his hands actually decreased."

  "These two words 'fire' and 'coincidence' are really hard to grasp." The more Wang Chan pondered and compared, the more he realized how extraordinary and formidable King Daliang's skills were back then, and his heart was full of praise.

  "I currently have no experience, and my experience of interacting with people is only this once. To deepen my skills, I still need to find more masters to hone myself. Fortunately, I found a handwritten booklet from Sun Changfeng, which records all his experiences in practicing Bajiquan so far. This can be used as a reference to make up for my shortcomings. It's worth mentioning that Sun Changfeng is also diligent and always records his experiences whenever he has them. Unfortunately, this person has lost his heart and only wants to become an official, which divides his attention and makes it impossible for him to improve no matter how hard he practices. Otherwise, the fight this morning would have been a real one."

  During the day, Zhou Lin wanted to destroy the evidence, and in Sun Changfeng's inner clothes, he found a small booklet describing the Bajiquan. Knowing it was useless to himself, he gave it to Wang Chan. At this time, Wang Chan was about to leave the mountain, and having nothing better to do, he flipped through it. Considering that his own moves were too heavy-handed, causing injury or death whenever he acted, and unable to be taken back, he thought and thought, wanting to practice Sun Changfeng's Bajiquan well.

  The "eight extremes" of Bajiquan refer to the ability to generate power from any direction, with its movements being simple and direct, yet powerful and swift. It is a style that emphasizes actual combat and combines both internal and external techniques. The style's most distinctive feature is its use of sudden and fierce attacks, which are meant to overwhelm an opponent quickly. This style has great practical value in real combat situations, and many military and police units have incorporated some of its techniques into their training regimens for hand-to-hand combat, throws, and grappling. It is one of the most widely practiced styles in the world today.

  "That year, Li Shuwen was in his room, practicing his palm strikes, five feet away from the window. The window paper shook with a loud noise. He then used his Six Harmonies spear to pierce a date on the tree, one spear for each date. A fly landed on the wall and he pierced it with his spear, but there was no mark left on the wall. An iron awl was stuck in the wall, and it was very difficult to pull out. He used his spear to stir it, and the awl came out easily. It just so happened that I had recently acquired this large spear, and I could learn from Master Li's training methods."

  It's time to start, it's already around midnight, and since they will be leaving the Guandi Temple tomorrow, Wang Chan doesn't plan on going to the training grounds in the back mountain today. He simply tidied up the courtyard a bit, got ready, put on his iron-sand-filled vest, and followed the descriptions in Sun Changfeng's little book, practicing each move carefully.

  He had previously bought many books, including the boxing manual of Bajiquan, but those things on the market were all irrelevant routines and movements, with very few practice methods, let alone secret fighting techniques. How can they compare to Sun Changfeng's book that records all his experiences?

  At first, Wang Chan was afraid that his movements were not accurate and had some deviations because he was used to practicing the wrong force of Bajiquan. So before each practice, he would carefully examine the diagrams and texts on the booklet, memorize them, and then slowly practice. After practicing for half a night, Wang Chan also managed to come up with a hand of Bajiquan that was similar to the original.

  He was authentic in his Bajiquan moves, almost as good as Sun Changfeng's during the day, but deep down, he still relied on his horizontal training skills. He was far from mastering it and could only deceive outsiders.

  The night passed quickly, and Wang Chan didn't have much time to study carefully, so he had to put away the little booklet, wear it on his body, and read it at any time. Practicing martial arts is like sailing against the current, if you don't move forward, you'll fall behind, and you must practice every day to maintain your skill level, otherwise, just like Sun Changfeng, you'll be distracted by other things, unable to focus, and even if you want to maintain your original level, a moment of carelessness will lead to disaster when encountering a strong opponent.

  But when life is gone, all grand ambitions and ideals are also gone.

  At dawn, Wang Chan still burned hot water as usual, threw a large pile of herbs in, and stewed himself like pork for two hours. He then lazily crawled out of the wooden barrel to clean up everything inside and outside the temple. The Guandi Temple is located deep in the mountains, and in the past, except for the occasional visitor who came to pick ginseng, hardly anyone came to burn incense all year round. Now it's even more deserted.

  Actually, Wang Chan didn't have much to collect, just the old master's ancient books and some easily damaged items that were prone to dampness, all of which he packed up and moved into a dry cave behind the temple. He then blocked the entrance with a massive stone weighing several thousand catties, sealing it tightly, and covered it with grasses and vines for added security, making it safe from wild animals and birds getting in and destroying them, thus ending his worries.

  Apart from this, all the essential items to be carried were stuffed into a backpack by Wang Chan. Of course, he also had to bring along that large jar of golden butter made from tiger bone and blood, bear gallbladder and deer fetus. After taking a look at the sky outside, the sun was already high up, Wang Chan shouldered his gun bag with the big gun inside, walked out of the temple, just about to leave, but suddenly stopped and turned back, rummaged through a bundle under the deity shrine and pulled out a square-shaped package wrapped in cloth.

  In this old leather bag, there was a complete set of silver locks, a silver collar, and a small, faded red bellyband. According to the old man, these were the items that Wang Chan wore when he snatched him from the jaws of the wolf, and they were the only things left by his two unknown parents.

  Although Wang Chan had never had the intention of finding his parents, now that he is about to leave Guandi Temple and venture out of the deep mountains, not knowing when he will return, these few things that he had never valued before have given him a glimmer of hope. "I hope there's still a day when we can meet again! Even if it's impossible, carrying them with me is much better than leaving them here."

  She gently closed the temple door, wearing a morning glow, and waited until Wang Chan came down from Tiger Head Ridge. He then turned around and arrived at the main road leading to Tiger Head Town, only to find that Zhou Lin's car had been waiting there for who knows how long. Zhou Lin was sitting in the driver's seat, looking slightly anxious on his face.

  After all, he had provoked someone who was absolutely not to be trifled with. A fierce ups and downs, experiencing life and death, for people like Zhou Lin, it was also a rare situation, even if he had experienced many storms and seen the world, but still couldn't help but worry about his own future.

  "If I had known this would happen, why bother from the beginning? Zhou Lin was used to smooth sailing before, but as soon as he encountered a big storm, he couldn't sit still and his heart was already in disarray. However, he could think of retrieving so many national treasures from the old Mao's hands, which is also considered a kind-hearted person, helping him this time is not unjust."

  Although he was curious about how Zhou Lin had obtained this batch of antiques, Wang Zhen did not intend to ask him. Everyone has their own secrets that they do not want others to know, and even someone as simple as Wang Zhen himself was no exception. If his privacy were to be invaded without permission, anything could happen.

  What's more, this matter is now also related to Wang Chan himself. Sun Changfeng's death and he can't be separated, either hiding in the deep mountains, ignoring it, or bravely advancing, seeing the situation and responding accordingly, there are no other choices besides these two paths.

  Sometimes, Wang Chan actually saw things more clearly than Zhou Lin. These people from outside the mountain always liked to complicate simple matters infinitely, but they didn't know that things were originally so simple from the very beginning.

  "Brother, you've finally arrived!" As soon as he saw Wang Chan's figure appear in front of him, Zhou Lin was shocked and immediately opened the passenger door, gesturing for Wang Chan to get in quickly.

  As soon as Wang Chan had put all the things in the trunk and sat down, Zhou Lin immediately stepped on the accelerator, and the car sped away instantly.

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  Thank you all for your support, Lao Lu bows to you!!!!!!