Discussing Martial Arts

Wang Anfeng's right fist was blocked. At the same time, a fair hand shot up like lightning and rested on his neck, forcing him to quiet down. He let out a soft breath and said:

"I lost."

"We agreed this was just a spar, what's this about winning or losing?"

The young man opposite him also stopped his moves and stood there, watching him with a smile. Wang Anfeng was already drenched in sweat, his Inner Qi depleted, while the young man's face was still like jade, his bearing elegant. He had never met anyone his age with such grace and demeanor at the foot of Great Liang Mountain. He already felt a good impression of the young man, and he strongly approved of the way the young man had acted at the tea stall and just now. He didn't hide his feelings and said with a smile:

"Winning is winning, losing is losing. It's just for this moment. Who knows who will win or lose next time."

The young man was slightly taken aback, then he looked into Wang Anfeng's clear eyes, seeing only sincerity. Knowing that Wang Anfeng wasn't just being polite or putting on a brave face, he laughed and said:

"Very good, very good. That's right. The Master's commentary on the I Ching said, 'The heart is as calm as still water, the will is as firm as a rock, hence the movement of heaven is strong, and the gentleman should strive ceaselessly.' I found you interesting before, little brother, and now it seems you are indeed much more interesting than others."

Wang Anfeng shook his head, "I don't deserve to be called a gentleman."

The young man laughed, "But you are not a villain either."

Wang Anfeng was speechless, a hint of hesitation on his face. The young man, naturally intelligent and observant, guessed about seventy to eighty percent of his thoughts and smiled, "Little brother, are you wondering why I was able to break your moves just now?"

Wang Anfeng was stunned for a moment. Since his thoughts had been seen through, he decided not to hide them any longer and nodded, "Indeed... My master said this martial art has been honed to its peak. You also said it was an 'unbreakable martial art,' so I'm a bit confused..."

The young man listened to his question with a smile, a slight urge to test him rising in his heart. Instead of answering, he asked, "Do you have an answer in your heart?"

Wang Anfeng thought for a moment and replied, "I think it's my own problem."

"What makes you say that?"

"When I fought others before, my mind went blank, and my moves relied completely on instinct from practice. I was as rigid as a tree or a rock. When I hit a tree, I didn't feel threatened by it. So, do those with martial arts skills see my moves like they see a tree?"

The young man's eyes lit up at this. He looked Wang Anfeng up and down and clapped his hands, sighing, "Insightful, a good thought."

"However, trees and rocks don't move, let alone think like this."

Wang Anfeng saw the slight upturn of his lips, a hint of teasing in his eyes. He wasn't offended, but simply said, "Perhaps they do move, just too slowly for our lifespans to perceive."

The young man was slightly taken aback and asked, "What do you mean by that?"

Wang Anfeng scratched his head and chuckled, "Just my own wild thoughts. Haven't you heard of the sea drying up and rocks decaying, mountains and rivers shifting? Rocks decaying is like dying, and shifting mountains and rivers are like people moving. Can these things recorded in history books be seen within one or two generations?"

The young man was speechless. He prided himself on his intelligence, but now, faced with Wang Anfeng's words, he couldn't argue. He changed the subject, returning to martial arts, and said with a smile, "Indeed interesting, as interesting as the thoughts you just shared."

"I have an uncle who holds a similar view to yours. There may be unbreakable martial arts in the world, but there are no unbreakable people, nor unbreakable moves. Any move, when performed by a mortal, will inevitably have a flaw. Similarly, any master will have flaws. The question is, can you grasp that flaw and strike a killing blow!"

Wang Anfeng's eyes lit up, and he instinctively asked, "Then how can one grasp the flaw?"

The young man glanced at him. Wang Anfeng's question touched upon the fundamental principles of martial arts, which was already overstepping. He should have refused and sternly rebuked him. However, he had a great appreciation for this simply dressed but occasionally insightful young man. So, he generously and concisely replied, "Water."

"Water?"

The young man nodded. "Don't you know the Daoist Canon says, 'The softest thing in the world is water, yet it can overcome the strongest; the Art of War by the God of War also says, 'The form of troops is like water. Water flows to low places and avoids high places; troops avoid the solid and strike the void. Water changes its course according to the ground; troops achieve victory by adapting to the enemy. Therefore, troops have no constant form, just as water has no constant shape.' According to my uncle's view, if one can use extreme softness to achieve hardness, embodying the spirit of water by avoiding the solid and striking the void, one has achieved minor success in martial arts."

Wang Anfeng felt a glimmer of understanding, but when he tried to ponder it further, he couldn't grasp it. He stared intently at the rushing river ahead, bent down to pick up a stone, and casually flicked it, sending a few splashes across the water. He was lost in thought when he suddenly felt a scorching gaze upon him. He turned his head slightly and saw the young man staring at him with wide, dark eyes, which seemed to be sparkling.

"What was that just now?"

"What what?"

Wang Anfeng was stunned for a moment, then realized and asked in surprise, "Skipping stones... Haven't you ever played?"

"Mmm, no, no."

The young man replied verbally, but shook his head repeatedly. His composure and elegance during the spar, his free and easy demeanor when discussing martial arts, and his magnanimity in dealing with people all vanished, leaving only carefree childlike innocence. His eyes were fixed on Wang Anfeng. The latter chuckled. It was only then that he felt this young man was truly his age, otherwise, he wouldn't be so steady; he didn't seem like a thirteen or fourteen-year-old boy. He picked up two thin stones from the ground and handed one to the young man, saying with a smile, "You've never even skipped stones? Did you grow up on a mountaintop? Here, let me teach you. To skip stones, you need thin ones like these. You skim them across the water's surface, like this."

As he spoke, he casually tossed one. The thin stone skipped five or six times on the river's surface before reaching the opposite bank. The young man's eyes lit up with excitement. He raised his arm and threw with all his might. The stone slanted into the water with a "thump," creating a large splash. Wang Anfeng almost laughed out loud but managed to hold it in. "You need to use finesse, look, like this..."

"No, no, you have to watch me do it like this... Come on, throw it diagonally..."

"Pfft... You, try again?"

The sound of a heavy object hitting water echoed again. Looking at the young man's wide-eyed, somewhat exasperated expression, Wang Anfeng, who had been holding back his laughter, finally couldn't contain himself and burst into laughter. The young man gritted his teeth and threw another stone, but it didn't even do as well as the last. He turned and shot a resentful glance at the laughing Wang Anfeng. Despite his anger, he couldn't help but laugh out loud himself.