Heavenly Flame Scarlet Tiger School

"My name is Cao Tong. From today onward, I will serve as your martial dao coach."

"First, let me lay down the rules. Those in the Core Class must arrive at nine o'clock every morning and train until three in the afternoon before they may leave."

"Lunch will be provided by the academy. If you have any questions, you may come to me at any time."

Inside the practice room with its wooden floorboards, Cao Tong, standing nearly one meter ninety tall, occupied the center of the open space. Dressed in a dark gray martial arts uniform, he looked like a small mountain, exuding immense pressure.

From his entrance to this moment, only a short minute had passed.

His gaze was imposing. He did not deliberately exchange pleasantries with Chen Feng, nor did he show any courtesy to anyone else.

He simply ordered everyone to gather and stand still, then continued in a voice like a booming bell: "The academy invests heavily in training you, not for any other reason."

"Only to let the martial dao school passed down by our Yan Wu Academy flourish and spread!"

As his powerful words fell, many of the young trainees wore excited, slightly stirred expressions.

Then, not letting them down either.

Cao Tong raised his hand and pressed downward, silencing all low murmurs.

His gaze swept across the crowd, exchanging a look with Chen Feng during the process, while also noting a few other promising seedlings.

His aura slowly rose. He sank his center of gravity, his five fingers curling into claws.

His spine tensed, elbows slightly bent, crossing and dropping downward.

In the blink of an eye, it was as if the world before them had shifted.

Chen Feng's pupils contracted, as though he had seen a fierce tiger awakening.

"Heavenly Flame Scarlet Tiger School!"

"Remember, this is the martial dao school of our Yan Wu Academy!"

"A martial dao inheritance that can break you free from mediocrity and achieve the realm beyond the ordinary!"

His deep voice continued to ring out, as if a fierce tiger was roaring beside their ears.

Under immense pressure, Cao Tong's body moved. His thick legs stomped firmly against the floor, the wooden boards creaking as if unable to bear the weight.

Then, clenching his fists, bending his knees slightly, and tensing his thigh muscles.

In the next second, he demonstrated the most basic stance—a standing post.

"Flame Tiger Stance!"

"Also known as Flame Tiger Fist. It combines movement and stillness, allowing both practice and combat."

"This is one of the foundational inheritances of our Heavenly Flame Scarlet Tiger School, consisting of eleven movements total."

"Paired with the Tiger Form visualization diagram, it will temper your bodies, drawing forth your entire skeleton, tendons, and internal organs."

His rolling voice continued. Chen Feng soon saw Cao Tong's posture shift—chest tucked in, back arched, shoulders sunk, elbows dropped.

The eleven movements emerged one after another. In a daze, it was as if a blazing flame tiger truly appeared before his eyes.

Sometimes it coiled in place with glaring eyes, majestic and imposing; sometimes it pounced and leaped across ravines, shaking the mountains.

Until finally, Cao Tong dispersed the stance, walking slowly to the wall of the practice room.

A rolled canvas wrapped around a cylinder hung at the top, with a red rope dangling straight down.

With a rustling sound!

As he raised his hand and pulled the rope, the cylinder spun, and the canvas slid down.

In the blink of an eye, everything before Chen Feng's eyes vanished, leaving only the pattern on the painting.

A massive tiger, its body covered in stripes and wreathed in crimson flames.

The black king character on its forehead radiated dominance. Its vertical pupils looked down, claws like sharp blades, feet treading on blazing fire.

Majestic and extraordinary, domineering and proud.

Such an image lingered in his mind. Waves of momentum swept over him, and Chen Feng felt his mind struck by a shock.

"This is our Yan Wu Academy's stance visualization, the Scarlet Tiger Flying Heaven Diagram."

"Every day when you stand in the stance and practice your fists, quiet your spirit, and visualize the scarlet tiger."

"It will stir your blood and qi, temper your skin, flesh, tendons, bones, and internal organs. It will also nurture your fist momentum internally, your chest holding the form's intent, your breath like a fierce tiger."

As his words fell, the crowd's expressions varied.

Some were excited and thrilled; others seized the chance to ask questions.

"Coach Cao, may I ask if the Flame Tiger Stance has realm divisions? What special traits appear as one trains further?"

"A good question!"

Cao Tong's expression was steady. His thick lips moved as he said, "After entering the Flame Tiger Stance, there are three realms: Tiger Form, Tiger Roar, and Tiger's Momentum."

"Entering Tiger Form means your shape resembles a fierce tiger, allowing you to refine your entire body's skin and flesh, strengthening your physique."

"Breaking through to the Tiger Roar realm lets you fortify your tendons and bones, condensing a tiger's roar to intimidate a crowd of enemies!"

"As for the further Tiger's Momentum—"

Words fell, and Cao Tong thought for a moment before quickly ordering someone to bring over a sandbag.

A full hundred kilograms in weight, when placed on the ground, it even caused the floor to tremble slightly.

"Watch closely!"

His aura shifted, and Cao Tong suddenly threw a punch.

Roar!!

Fist wind erupted, and a tiger's roar surged through the air.

In a daze, it was as if he had truly become a Soaring Scarlet Tiger, his fist slamming into the sandbag.

Boom!!

A muffled explosion rang out.

Everyone stared wide-eyed, seeing the sandbag burst apart violently, gravel flying in all directions and scattering across the floor.

"This—"

The crowd was stunned, and Chen Feng's pupils contracted as well.

Blowing up a sandbag was far more difficult than simply sending one flying.

For a time, looking at the torn sandbag casing and the ring of gravel around it, everyone's hearts could not calm down for a long while.

"This is the realm of Tiger's Momentum."

"It can internally train the organs and generate strength."

Slowly retracting his fist, Cao Tong's aura gradually dissipated.

"Everyone got that?"

Words fell, and the crowd nodded like chicks pecking at rice, lingering shock in their eyes.

Seeing this, Cao Tong's mouth curled slightly, as if he was quite satisfied.

"Alright, telling you all this is useless anyway."

"This is still too early for you. Hurry up and practice your boxing."

Hearing this, everyone nodded in succession.

Those who could enter the Core Class were all confident and extraordinary individuals.

Looking now, one could see their eyes gleaming with excitement, incredibly energized, as if they believed it wouldn't be long before they mastered the school and swept through Nanjiang undefeated.

At this, Cao Tong read their thoughts from their expressions, shook his head inwardly, and didn't expose them.

"Better not discourage them."

"After a few days of practice, these little brats will naturally know how hard it is."

Thinking this to himself, Cao Tong quickly demonstrated the Flame Tiger Stance again, signaling everyone to follow along.

"Tiger Form, Tiger Roar, Tiger's Momentum."

Following the stance, a flash of light flickered in Chen Feng's eyes.

Clearly, compared to this Martial Dao School, Sanshou could be called basic and ordinary without exaggeration.

Thinking this, Chen Feng suppressed his anticipation, sank his mind, and followed by taking a horse stance, setting up the stance frame.

The Scarlet Tiger Flying Heaven Diagram in his mind blurred into view, but he always felt something was missing, about to dissipate.

"Coach Cao, why does the visualization image in my head scatter as soon as I move my hands and feet?"

A nearby student asked.

As soon as these words were spoken, several others chimed in agreement.

"If your mind isn't calm, it's naturally hard to enter visualization!"

"The more impatient you are, the harder it becomes."

Commenting a couple of lines, Cao Tong told them to reflect well and keep their minds calm.

Stance visualization was never easy; if it were that simple to master, they wouldn't have been so carefully selected for training.

Thinking this, his gaze flickered, and he looked at a few promising seedlings in the field.

"Pei Yue's comprehension is indeed good. No wonder he's the genius recommended by Senior Apprentice Zhao. He's already succeeded in visualization so quickly."

"Oh? Wu Tian, this kid, was only at amateur eighth dan last time I saw him, and now he's already grasped the Tiger Form realm in his stance."

"Senior Apprentice Wu really knows her stuff. She's probably already passed down the technique, right?"

As his eyes swept over, Cao Tong nodded and shook his head in turns.

Private transmission of techniques could be a big or small matter, but thinking of that Senior Apprentice Wu's status, he didn't feel like saying much.

Then, he continued observing the other students.

He saw Lin Hao and a few others who had paid a hefty sum to enter the Core Class.

His gaze flickered, seeing their awkward postures, he planned to give them a few pointers later when appropriate.

After all, he had spent a fair amount of money—if the students learned nothing at all, word would spread and tarnish the Martial Arts Hall's reputation, making it harder to recruit next time.

"Then there's that kid. I wonder if he can pull it off."

The thought surfaced, and Cao Tong inexplicably turned his gaze toward Chen Feng, who stood beside Lin Hao.

Because he had witnessed the assessment, he now held somewhat higher expectations for Chen Feng.

If not for that, he wouldn't have gone out of his way to put in a word with the Martial Arts Hall's internal staff, securing Chen Feng for his own Core Class to teach personally.

With that, he looked over.

Chen Feng stood in place, his stance and fist practice posture quite standard.

But Cao Tong could tell at a glance that he hadn't grasped the essence of visualization—his movements were a bit stiff.

"Couldn't successfully visualize?"

Slightly Frowned, Cao Tong felt something was off.

Martial Awakening—shouldn't that be the case?

Doubt flickered in his eyes. Had he misjudged?