Great Unrestrained Hands

Hearing Yu Gang's call, Chen Chuan stepped into the middle of the training ground and stopped in front of him.

Lu Ke had been training on his own nearby, but now he slowed his pace and cast a glance their way.

Yu Gang stood there expressionlessly, without urging him verbally, yet Chen Chuan felt an invisible pressure, as if reminding him that he needed to make a move quickly.

He instinctively used the Breathing Method, clenched his fist, and punched toward Yu Gang's chest. With a bang, it felt as if he had struck a thick tire. A rebounding force traveled back through him, forcing him to stagger several steps backward instead.

Yu Gang assessed him without mercy. "Your punching posture is amateurish even among amateurs. Your strength is lacking, and you're slower than a snail. Any trainee who has trained for a month could easily knock you down. There's no way someone like you can pass the entrance exam—not even through connections."

Sitting nearby, Lu Ke's lips curled up faintly.

Seeing Chen Chuan's calm expression, Yu Gang added, "But it looks like you were holding back. Use your full strength. Otherwise, I can't arrange a plan based on your actual condition."

Chen Chuan knew that during training, he would inevitably have to reveal the Second Self's strength, so this time, he decided not to hold back.

He took a breath and returned to his original position. He gave a low shout and threw another punch. This time, the Second Self standing behind him instantly overlapped with him. With a thud, the same rebounding force came back, sending him stumbling several steps away again, but anyone could tell that this punch carried tremendous weight.

Lu Ke could not help straightening up slightly.

Yu Gang still did not move, but there was a trace of surprise in his eyes. Talent... he thought. Aloud, he said, "That looks more like it. Once your force generation is corrected and your breathing is coordinated properly, the power of your strikes can rise further. Hmm, in that case..."

He seemed to be considering something. After a while, as though he had sorted out his thoughts, he said, "The current combat systems can generally be divided into Old Martial and New Martial. New Martial is currently the mainstream in the academy, focusing on techniques such as unarmed striking, throws and holds, and joint locks. New Martial's training system is practical and reliable, and it is also the most widely used today. It is the mainstream at Wu University, so we'll begin with New Martial."

It was Chen Chuan's first time hearing the terms Old Martial and New Martial. Wanting to understand, he asked, "Mr. Yu, is everything we learn now New Martial? Then what is Old Martial like?"

Yu Gang said, "Old Martial has complicated branches and countless varieties, but it generally focuses on killing with weapons, with fists and kicks merely supplementary. That is because the martial arts of the Old Era were meant both for fighting people and for survival.

"In the Old Era, there was a necessity to choosing that path. If you were fighting someone to the death, or hunting wild beasts, and you had a tool at hand, would you choose to fight barehanded?"

Chen Chuan answered decisively, "Of course not."

Yu Gang said, "So the direction of Old Martial was clear as well. Much of its fist-and-kick training was merely supplementary exercise for wielding weapons. When judged purely as unarmed combat, many movements seemed redundant, and it suffered compared to New Martial's pure unarmed fighting. Still, some improved forms of pure unarmed combat are fairly good.

"Of course, that doesn't mean New Martial does not teach weapon combat. It is simply separated from unarmed combat, unlike Old Martial, which emphasizes weapons and fists together.

"Enough, we've wandered too far from the topic. Let's address what's in front of us first. I'll teach you a set of Basic Combat Technique. Among civilians, it is called either Small Unrestrained Hands or Great Unrestrained Hands. The difference lies only in which offensive and defensive principles are emphasized. There is also a set called Righteous Unrestrained Hands, but it is not taught outside the academy. Only those who have obtained a martial academy certificate are permitted to use it. The set I'll teach you is Great Unrestrained Hands. Watch my movements carefully."

He walked to one side and assumed a fighting stance. His feet stood one before the other, his body slightly lowered, light in front and heavy behind. One hand extended ahead while the other shielded his abdomen.

He said, "This guard is not fixed. Different enemies call for different approaches, and thus different stances. For example, against someone skilled in throws and locks, you can lower your center of gravity. Against someone swift in movement, you can raise it and move faster. Your guarding fist can also change into fingers or palm strikes at any time. It depends on how you fight and how proficient you are with the techniques." After speaking, he straightened up. "Now try it yourself."

Chen Chuan walked to the center and assumed a stance according to Yu Gang's earlier example. Yu Gang came over and corrected his posture. "Don't tense your body so much. Don't raise your head so high. Tuck in your chin. Both hands need to be conscious of protecting yourself..."

Under his guidance, Chen Chuan soon looked fairly convincing in his stance. Yu Gang then taught him how to make a fist and form a palm, how to generate force with simple punches and kicks, and how to use common advancing and retreating footwork.

Since there were not many techniques taught at the beginning, after training for an entire morning, Chen Chuan was still far from mastering them, but at least he had remembered them all.

In the afternoon, aside from continuing to familiarize himself with those techniques, he mainly trained the various fundamentals. Under Yu Gang's strict guidance, he paused at intervals to rest and replenish nutrients. They trained like this until around five in the evening, when Yu Gang finally had him run back.

Throughout the process, he did not forget the most important Breathing Method. Besides making full use of his daytime training, after returning at night, he used the Second Self to practice the Basic Breathing Method. This continued until the Second Self became almost completely translucent, and only then did he go to bed.

Over the following days, he basically maintained this training rhythm every day. In less than ten days, he could already use some of the techniques in Great Unrestrained Hands with fair proficiency.

At the same time, he discovered that once he became familiar with a movement, whenever he used the Breathing Method, he naturally knew what sort of force the technique needed to be paired with in order to be correct.

If he stumbled while making a move or performed it incorrectly, his breath would not flow smoothly. Conversely, once his breath flowed freely, his strength gathered accordingly. This allowed him to use his breath to guide his movements more effectively.

This was undoubtedly the function of the Breathing Method. No wonder Yu Gang had said that the Breathing Method was the core of all cores.

Because he could constantly feel his gains, he threw himself into it wholeheartedly. Normal daytime training gradually strengthened his physical fitness and extended the amount of time he could maintain the Breathing Method in his ordinary state. In turn, the Breathing Method improved the efficiency of his training. This state of affairs was undoubtedly excellent, and his progress was extremely obvious.

He also made another discovery: the maximum amount of time he could use the Second Self was steadily increasing. Perhaps this was the positive feedback produced by training, driven by the pleasure that came from growing stronger without stop.

By mid-June, he found Yu Gang and said, "Mr. Yu, recently I've felt my body grow slightly warm after every session of Basic Breathing Method practice. I don't know what's causing it."

Yu Gang seemed somewhat surprised. Staring at him, he asked, "Warmth? After every breathing exercise? Are you sure?"

Chen Chuan nodded. "I'm sure. It happens after every Breathing Method session. At first it was only a slight sensation, but these past two days it has become more and more obvious."

Yu Gang asked again, "About how long has this been happening?"

Chen Chuan thought for a moment. "Four or five days."

Yu Gang could not help folding his arms and sinking into thought.

Chen Chuan asked, "Mr. Yu, is there a problem?"

Yu Gang said, "There's no problem. This is a phenomenon that naturally appears from practicing the Breathing Method. It usually takes some time, but I didn't expect it to appear so early in your case. It seems you can begin the next stage of training ahead of schedule."

The appearance of bodily warmth during Breathing Method practice represented that the practitioner's body was comprehensively adapting to this breathing rhythm. This was especially true for adolescents whose bodies had not fully matured. As they grew older, they would later have a comparatively long period of improvement.

But for ordinary people, this usually happened only after practicing the Breathing Method for dozens of days, or even half a year to a year. Some people never felt it in their entire lives. And how long had Chen Chuan been practicing now?

At most, half a month.

So it really is talent... Yu Gang thought.

That afternoon, Yu Gang called Chen Chuan and Lu Ke before him and said, "Chen Chuan, for the next period, you can begin sparring training. Lu Ke, you'll serve as Chen Chuan's sparring partner. Your own training can be pushed back for now."

Lu Ke felt somewhat displeased, but he smiled on the surface. "All right, Master." Then he added, "Young Master Chen, just call on me if you need anything."

Chen Chuan said, "You're too polite, Little Brother Lu."

From that day onward, Chen Chuan's training included two-person offensive and defensive drills, as well as reaction training through mutual coordination. Lu Ke mainly worked with him, helping him further familiarize himself with the application of Great Unrestrained Hands in attack and defense.

After this continued for seven days, Yu Gang began having the two attempt actual combat sparring. To avoid injuries, they naturally put on protective gear and gauntlets.

But at Wu Yi University, unless it was weapons instruction or ordinary sparring practice, there was no protective gear. So later on, Yu Gang would gradually remove those protections.

"Today is your first day of sparring, so there will be three rounds. Each round will temporarily be limited to three minutes, with five minutes of rest in between. I'll score you. Whoever has fewer points will be responsible for putting away the equipment and cleaning the training ground today."

After briefly explaining several more precautions, Yu Gang stepped aside and signaled that they could begin.

Chen Chuan and Lu Ke walked to the center and clasped their fists in salute according to combat etiquette. But before Chen Chuan had fully lowered his hands, Lu Ke suddenly threw a punch straight toward his chest and abdomen!