Ape Arms, Wasp Waist, Mantis Legs

Ape Arms, Wasp Waist, Mantis Legs

After feeling Hu Qi's bones, he clicked his tongue in amazement.

"Since I started bone-feeling, this is the first time I've seen such a perfect wasp waist, ape arms, and mantis legs. How old are you, Junior Brother Liang?"

"Fifteen, nearly sixteen."

"Then you'll still grow quite a bit. You'll be at least six feet tall in the future."

One Da Shun foot was a little over thirty centimeters. At least six feet meant over 1.8 meters.

Liang Qu was relieved to hear that. His previous self had not been particularly well-nourished, and he was not very tall at the moment. He had been worried he would not grow taller.

Li LiBo's face twisted as he listened from the side. "I've practically ground my teeth to pieces. Damn it, you're handsome and your Root Bone is good too. Why do all the good things happen to you? If you don't treat us to a meal today, I'm not letting this go!"

Liang Qu brushed him off. "Next time, definitely."

Hu Qi continued, "You're also suited to specializing in Ape Fist, and you're very suited to archery as well. If there's an opportunity in the future, Junior Brother Liang can learn it."

Both of them froze at those words.

"Wait, Senior Brother Hu. Why is it that I'm suited for Ape Fist because I'm above average, while he's also suited for Ape Fist because his Root Bone is good?"

Hu Qi explained, "There are many kinds of good Root Bones, not just wasp waists, ape arms, and mantis legs. This type of Root Bone is the most suitable for Ape Fist—storing strength like drawing a bow, releasing strength like loosing an arrow. The force is swift, far-reaching, and fierce. Tiger Form is also not bad, but Crane Form is somewhat lacking."

"Junior Brother Li is a little lacking in other areas, but his arm span is long. You have neither the stance of Tiger Form nor the lightness of Crane Form, so you're suited to Ape Fist as well."

Liang Qu suddenly realized. He was suited to Ape Fist because he had talent. Li LiBo was suited to Ape Fist because he was even less suited to the other two.

Come to think of it, could his suitability for Ape Fist also be related to the Water Monkey Marsh Spirit? After merging with the Water Monkey Marsh Spirit, Liang Qu could feel changes in his body. Perhaps that was what had altered his Root Bone.

Li LiBo was somewhat discouraged. Learning martial arts was rather different from what he had imagined.

Seeing this, Hu Qi comforted him. "Junior Brother Li, there's no need to be discouraged. A poorer Root Bone doesn't mean anything. It doesn't limit our future. It isn't as though those with poor Root Bones will necessarily break through more slowly than those with good Root Bones. Junior Brother Liang, don't become proud and complacent just because your Root Bone is good. It doesn't determine our future either."

"Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother Hu."

Hu Qi nodded and took two books from his robes. "This is Master Yang's Three Fists Technique. You can learn Ape, Tiger, and Crane, but it's best to focus according to what I said.

"Can you read? It doesn't matter if you can't. There are illustrations inside. Just practice according to the sequence, and I'll correct you from the side."

How considerate. As Liang Qu flipped through the booklets, he felt that everyone in Yang Martial Hall was a talent. They spoke so pleasantly too. He loved this place.

The booklets had six sections: the Refining Methods and Fighting Methods of Ape, Tiger, and Crane. Liang Qu mainly studied the Refining Methods, intending to build his foundation first.

The Refining Methods primarily relied on Stance Training. Each of the three fist techniques had thirty-two stance forms. Some were identical, some were similar, and some differed greatly.

Learning three fist techniques for seven taels of silver was quite worthwhile.

Liang Qu knew that those who listened to advice ate their fill. He focused on Ape Fist and began practicing according to the stance diagrams.

He spread his feet apart, tucked in his chest and straightened his back, sank his shoulders and dropped his elbows. Then he filled his abdomen and relaxed his waist, tucked his buttocks and loosened his hips, controlling his Qi as it gathered and dispersed within his dantian.

"Your feet are wrong. Keep the centers of your soles hollow. You're too stiff."

"That's right. Correct."

"Junior Brother Li, don't tense up. Relax. Your movements are too stiff."

"Upper body empty, lower body solid; body empty, stance solid. Emptiness and solidity give birth to each other... Hold it. Don't move. Let your body remember this posture as much as possible."

Hu Qi instructed them from the side. Once he confirmed one movement was acceptable, he moved on to the next.

Over the course of the morning, Liang Qu learned three stance forms, while Li LiBo learned only two.

After noon passed, the seven-tael tuition did not include meals, so the two could only go out to find food. They made do at a Small Restaurant. When they returned, they found someone carrying a large wooden barrel out from the Backyard, filled with scalding medicinal liquid.

Some of the students went up to the barrel, took a bowl, and drained it in one gulp.

Li LiBo drew out his face. "That's the medicine? Didn't they say our fist techniques also had matching medicinal formulas? Why haven't we seen them?"

"Maybe the formulas are more valuable? Perhaps the Martial Arts School makes its money from the recipes?" Liang Qu guessed.

"Ah, only when money is needed does one hate having too little."

"There's no helping it. We were born at the bottom. If we want to change that, we have to rely on ourselves. We can only study a few more movements seriously this afternoon."

That afternoon, Liang Qu learned another five stance forms. He could assume them smoothly without instruction, while Li LiBo learned only three.

When they left the Martial Arts School at six, the sky had already darkened. The two did not hire a ride again, choosing instead to walk back to Yi Xing City.

The journey was more than ten li, nearly half a shichen. Once they reached the streets, the Two People parted ways.

Liang Qu still found a Small Restaurant to make do for dinner, but no longer ordered the same old three dishes. Instead, he had two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and rice. Now that he practiced martial arts, he needed more nourishment.

The days passed one after another.

With his foundation in place, Liang Qu learned faster and faster. He devoted himself wholeheartedly, without even socializing. To this day, he only knew Hu Qi and Xiang ChangSong at the Martial Arts School.

Thanks to such diligent effort, he finished all of Ape Fist's stance forms in less than four days. Li LiBo, who had started at the same time, had only reached the twentieth, falling far behind. It truly matched what Hu Qi had said.

After watching Liang Qu finish the final movement, Hu Qi nodded. "Learning all the stance forms in less than four days can be said to be the fastest I've ever seen. Try performing them all smoothly once."

"Yes."

Liang Qu answered and began from the first stance form, practicing all the way to the last. It took him less than half a shichen, fluid and effortless.

Moreover, halfway through, a thread of Qi slowly gathered within Liang Qu's body. It flowed throughout him with his movements, as though he had soaked in a hot bath. He was Sweating Profusely, yet utterly exhausted.

He had never experienced this before. In the past, after practicing, he had only felt tired and hot all over.

"How was it? Did you feel a thread of Qi?"

"Yes."

"If you can feel Qi after a single run-through, it means your blood and Qi are abundant, Junior Brother Liang, and your talent is not bad. Once Qi appears, it means your blood and Qi are growing. When your Qi becomes as thick as a finger and your blood and Qi surge like a tide, it means you can begin Skin Refining. As long as you break through the Skin Barrier, it will be a true Rebirth!"

Liang Qu immediately asked, "Breakthrough—how exactly does one make it?"

"That involves medicine again. When the time truly comes to break through, I'll explain it to you in detail. Junior Brother Liang only needs to practice diligently."

Hu Qi smiled without explaining further.

Fundamentally, he simply did not believe the two junior brothers had any hope of breaking through.

It was not that he looked down on them. It was simply the truth, the lesson of experience.

He himself was a Butcher in Ping Yang Town. How many pigs had his family slaughtered over generations for him to reach his current accomplishments?

Two Fishermen with no background, earning even less than ordinary farmers—telling them would only add to their worries. Better not to say it.

Liang Qu was not the sort to keep digging until he reached bedrock. He merely asked to learn Tiger Fist Stance. There was a focus, of course, but that did not prevent him from learning more styles to broaden his horizons. Besides, the other two sets of stance forms shared similarities, so they would be quicker to learn.

As long as he learned all the stance forms, he could practice by himself before Skin Refining. He would not need to waste time every day traveling more than ten li. A round trip took at least over a shichen—that was another three rounds of stance practice.

Hu Qi was not surprised. "All right, then I'll continue teaching you the twenty-four different stance forms in Tiger Fist."

At three in the afternoon, Liang Qu finished learning one Tiger Fist stance form. He immediately asked Hu Qi for leave, then hurried out of the Martial Arts School under Li LiBo's puzzled gaze.

Through the Mental Link, the Fat Catfish told Liang Qu that it had found another Treasure Fish!