The Three Stages of Skin Tempering (Seeking Follow-up Reads)

That morning, before the mist had fully dispersed, Li Yuan was already in the martial arts hall, polishing his stance technique alongside a group of others.

Before long, Yang Chong arrived at the front courtyard after finishing his breakfast.

Seeing that Li Yuan and the other disciples who had joined at the same time had practiced their stance technique sufficiently, he nodded.

He then called the dozen or so disciples to gather together.

Yang Chong's gaze swept over everyone in the courtyard, his voice steady: "You have been in the hall for half a month now, and your foundation in stance technique is initially stable."

"Today, I shall teach you the Five Animals Technique."

Only with a solid foundation in your lower body can your punches and kicks avoid being soft, wobbly, and unsightly.

This is why many disciples who have never touched the martial path must practice stance technique first.

If your lower body is unstable, you cannot even exert your strength, let alone spar or practice with others.

Li Yuan stood in the crowd, watching Yang Chong, who stood with his hands behind his back, feeling a faint sense of anticipation in his heart.

He was also curious whether the martial arts of this life were any different from what he had seen on television in his previous life.

Yang Chong stood before a wooden post and continued: "The Five Animals Technique is the fundamental method of our sect. It draws upon the essence of the tiger, deer, bear, ape, and crane to temper the tendons and bones and circulate the blood and qi."

"Stance technique seeks movement within stillness, while the Five Animals Technique seeks stillness within movement. Only when the two complement each other can you truly step through the gates of the martial path."

With that, Yang Chong's posture sank slightly, his hands formed into claws, and a sharp, fierce aura suddenly rose from him.

"The first animal: Tiger Form Fist."

He slowly raised his arms, his spine taut like a great bow, the muscle lines clearly visible beneath his clothes.

As he moved, heat seemed to steam from his body, and the sound of his blood and qi circulating was faintly audible.

"The Tiger Form emphasizes ferocity and power. When practicing, you must imagine yourself as the king of the mountain forest; every pounce and every punch must carry the force of ten thousand jun."

"The blood and qi follow the momentum, gathering in the arms and channeling into the fists."

"The core of the Five Animals Tiger Form Fist lies in four words: fierce, violent, swift, and lethal. Watch closely!"

"The first move: Tiger Roars in the Mountain Forest!"

Yang Chong took a deep breath, his chest heaving, and suddenly blasted a punch forward.

The wind from his fist surged, actually carrying a clear, low tiger roar that made everyone's eardrums buzz.

This punch was not just about force; it carried the subtle sound of a tiger's roar.

"The second move: Vicious Tiger Pounces on Prey!"

He leaned forward, both claws striking out simultaneously like a tiger pouncing on its prey. His speed was so fast it left afterimages, and the sharp wind of his claws seemed capable of tearing the air apart, filled with a lethal momentum.

"The third move: Tiger Tail Kick!"

As the fist momentum subsided, Yang Chong twisted his waist and hips, lashing out with a swift, powerful whip kick like a tiger's tail. The angle was tricky, and the force was heavy and fierce.

"The fourth move: Black Tiger Digs for Heart!"

This move was even more dangerous—a close-quarters killing strike. It was subtle, aimed directly at vital points, and extremely insidious.

"The fifth move: Angry Tiger Pierces the Forest!"

For the final move, Yang Chong slammed his body forward, his fists joined together like a drill. It was a piercing attack that concentrated his entire body's strength into a single point.

As the five moves of the Tiger Form concluded, Yang Chong's blood and qi steamed, his Sha Qi chillingly intense, as if he were truly a beast that had just finished a hunt.

The courtyard was silent; the disciples, seeing this for the first time, were stunned by the sharp and ferocious fist technique.

This was on an entirely different level from the Five Animals Stance Technique used to temper blood and qi!

This was a killing art, not some flashy trick!

True martial arts were meant for killing!

Li Yuan also seemed to understand something.

He carefully recalled the movements and found them quite similar to the diagrams in the Tiger Form manual.

However, the movements were more fluid and natural, and the application of blood and qi was much clearer.

He reflected on his insights from studying the manual over the past few days and compared them to Yang Chong's demonstration, gaining new realizations.

"The second animal: Deer Form Fist."

Yang Chong's posture shifted; his steps became light and nimble, his arms extended like deer antlers. As he twisted his body, he seemed to transform into a spirit deer of the forest, elegant and swift.

"The Deer Form emphasizes lightness and agility. When practicing, you must imagine yourself treading on grass and skimming over water."

"The blood and qi gather in the legs, strengthening footwork and agility."

Li Yuan noticed that when Yang Chong performed the Deer Form Fist, the muscles in his calves vibrated at a specific frequency—clearly a special way of exerting force through the circulation of blood and qi.

Next, Yang Chong demonstrated the bear, ape, and crane forms in turn.

Each move had its own unique method of blood and qi circulation and requirements for mental intent.

As Yang Chong demonstrated, he explained the key points and common mistakes for each style.

Every disciple in the courtyard listened with bated breath, terrified of missing a single word.

"This is the Five Animals Technique."

The crowd held their breath, clearly witnessing true martial arts for the first time.

Seeing the reaction of these students, Yang Chong smiled faintly and continued:

"Human energy is limited; if you bite off more than you can chew, you will fail to digest it.

To truly enter the inner sanctum, you must choose one animal to specialize in after your initiation, according to your own inclination!

The other four styles should only be used as auxiliary insights; you must never divide your energy equally, or you will end up achieving nothing."

"Even I, having spent the better part of my life, have never practiced all five animals of the Five Animals Technique to perfection," Yang Chong said, shaking his head.

He was clearly using himself as an example to tell them not to be overly ambitious.

"And the path of cultivation has its own distinct realms," Yang Chong said in a steady voice, sounding nothing like a man who had just performed a multitude of moves.

"What you are facing now as you temper your blood and qi is the first major hurdle—the Skin Refining Realm."

Li Yuan's heart stirred; this was exactly what he had been wanting to understand.

"The Skin Refining Realm is divided into three stages. The first is the Ox Skin Realm." Yang Chong pointed to his own arm. "Once you reach this stage, your skin becomes as tough as ox hide. Ordinary punches and kicks cannot hurt you, and blades will only leave white marks if they lack sufficient force."

Many disciples in the courtyard revealed looks of longing.

The Ox Skin Realm was precisely the requirement for becoming an official disciple of the martial arts hall.

If one stepped into the Ox Skin Realm, not only would tuition fees be significantly reduced, but their status would also rise considerably.

"The second stage is the Stone Skin Realm," Yang Chong continued. "The skin becomes even tougher, as hard as stone. Ordinary people who strike you will only end up injuring themselves.

Once you reach this realm, you can be considered a formidable expert within the county.

Whether you are working as an armed escort or serving as the head of security for a wealthy family, it is more than enough."

"The third stage is the Iron Skin Realm." Yang Chong took the tea handed to him by a disciple and took a sip. "The skin becomes as hard as iron, impervious to blades. When your blood and qi are full, you can even withstand heavy blunt force.

Throughout Wuxi County, many masters who run martial arts halls or lead gangs are at this realm."

Hearing this, Li Yuan clicked his tongue in secret.

Once one reached the Iron Skin Realm, as long as the world remained stable, one would basically be free from financial worries.

Take his own situation: the three months of tuition he paid cost fifteen taels of silver, and with over a dozen people in his cohort, that was at least one or two hundred taels of silver.

Although some of this money had to be used to cultivate official disciples, one could still say they were raking in money hand over fist.

"Master, what comes after the Iron Skin Realm?" a young disciple couldn't help but ask.

Yang Chong glanced at the disciple and said indifferently, "After the Iron Skin Realm comes the Bone Forging Realm.

Skin refining is external strengthening, while bone forging is internal power.

Once you reach this realm, your bones become as hard as steel, your strength increases greatly, and every punch and kick carries the power to split monuments and shatter stones."

He paused, his voice tinged with a hint of emotion: "Cough, back when I was at war, I was at the Bone Forging Realm."