Hunyuan Staff Technique

The next day, at dawn

Chu Yan opened his eyes from his meditation, a flash of light passing through them.

He had not slept at all the previous night, yet he did not feel the slightest bit tired. Instead, he felt refreshed and full of energy.

The Soul Power in his dantian was a little more abundant than it had been the night before.

He swung his legs out of bed and walked over to the mirror.

The boy in the mirror stood tall and straight. His features were delicate, and his dark eyes were deep and bright. He looked nothing like a six-year-old child.

Chu Yan clenched his fist, feeling the surging strength within him.

After awakening his Martial Soul, his physical abilities had made a qualitative leap.

His strength, speed, and reflexes... every aspect far exceeded those of his peers. He could even hold his own against some Two-Ring Soul Grandmasters.

After a quick wash, Chu Yan changed into a black training outfit and opened the door.

The rear courtyard of the Chu Clan residence held a Martial Arts Arena covering several acres.

It was the Chu Clan's most important training ground. Its floor was paved with specially treated granite, strong enough to withstand the full force of a Soul Saint's attack without sustaining damage.

Training equipment of every kind stood around the arena: wooden dummies, stone weights, weapon racks... everything one could need.

A tall figure was already waiting in the middle of the Martial Arts Arena.

Chu Yuntian stood with his hands behind his back, as straight as a pine tree.

Today, he was not wearing his usual dark purple robe. Instead, he had changed into gray training clothes, with the sleeves and trouser legs tied snugly, giving him a sharp, capable appearance.

When he saw Chu Yan approach, Chu Yuntian turned around. A faint smile appeared on his resolute face.

"You're here."

"Father." Chu Yan stepped forward and bowed respectfully.

Chu Yuntian nodded, looking his son over. Suddenly, his brow creased slightly.

He felt that something about his son was different today.

His aura was steadier than yesterday, and an almost imperceptible pressure seemed to surround him. That was a sign of Soul Power reaching a certain level of abundance.

"Didn't sleep well last night?" Chu Yuntian asked.

"I meditated for a while," Chu Yan answered honestly.

Chu Yuntian did not press him. Instead, he took a black wooden staff about five feet long from the weapon rack and tossed it to Chu Yan.

Chu Yan caught the staff. It felt heavy in his hands, much heavier than an ordinary wooden staff.

It was a training staff specially made for the Chu Clan, crafted from the heartwood of century-old ironwood. It weighed three times as much as an ordinary wooden staff and was meant for foundational training.

"Yan'er, although your Martial Soul, the Yan Divine Weapon, can change its shape, it ultimately comes from a staff." Chu Yuntian walked to the center of the Martial Arts Arena and spoke in a deep voice.

"The Chu Clan's legacy stretches back ten thousand years, and our Martial Souls have always been staffs. Across the whole continent, there are few who understand the staff as well as our branch does."

Chu Yan nodded. He had no doubt about that.

The Battle Armor clans were no empty boast. The Chu Clan had stood firm in Eastsea City for thousands of years thanks to the staff techniques passed down from generation to generation.

"Your Martial Soul can evolve on its own. That's your talent," Chu Yuntian continued. "But however great your talent, you still need a solid foundation to support it. Starting today, I'll personally teach you the Chu Clan's ancestral Hunyuan Staff Technique."

"The Hunyuan Staff Technique?" Chu Yan's eyes lit up.

He had heard of this staff technique.

It was the Chu Clan's supreme heirloom technique. Legend had it that the Chu Clan's ancestor had created it over a thousand years ago. It combined staff techniques, footwork, and mental cultivation into one. Practiced to its utmost, a single strike could shatter mountains and rivers.

However, this technique had always been passed down only through the clan head's line, and it placed extremely high demands on the practitioner's physical ability and comprehension.

Seeing his son's expression, Chu Yuntian's lips curved upward. "What, you've heard of it?"

"I read some records in the clan's archives. The Hunyuan Staff Technique has nine forms, each embodying a core principle of staff fighting. It progresses step by step, from the basics—chopping, sweeping, lifting, and jabbing—to advanced techniques like redirecting force and overwhelming an opponent with momentum," Chu Yan said.

"Good." Chu Yuntian nodded with satisfaction. "But what you read was only the surface. The true Hunyuan Staff Technique must be taught through personal instruction. Today, I'll teach you the first form: the 'Opening Stance.'"

Chu Yuntian took another ironwood staff from the weapon rack and walked to the open space in the center of the Martial Arts Arena.

"Watch closely."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Chu Yuntian's aura changed abruptly.

He made only a simple opening movement, holding the ironwood staff across his body, feet shoulder-width apart, knees slightly bent, and weight lowered.

Yet that simple movement made Chu Yan feel as if the figure before him was not a man, but a mountain.

An immovable mountain.

The steady, weighty, domineering aura radiating from Chu Yuntian pressed down on Chu Yan until he could barely breathe.

This was the presence of a Soul Douluo!

Even with most of his strength restrained, the mere trace of power he let slip was enough to make an eleven-level Soul Master feel suffocated.

"The Opening Stance is the foundation of the Hunyuan Staff Technique." Chu Yuntian explained as he held the pose.

"It looks simple, but it contains the three most important principles of staff fighting: stability, precision, and ruthlessness. Stability means keeping your stance firm. Without a solid foundation, every technique is empty talk. Precision means controlling your force accurately. The power of a staff technique doesn't come from your arms. It travels from your feet, through your legs, waist, and back, then through your wrists, and only then into the staff. Ruthlessness..." Chu Yuntian paused before continuing, "means striking without hesitation. Hesitate, and you give your opponent an opening."

Chu Yan listened intently, committing every word his father said to memory.

"Come, give it a try."

Chu Yuntian lowered his aura and stepped aside.

Chu Yan took a deep breath, walked to the center of the Martial Arts Arena, gripped the ironwood staff, and imitated his father's movements.

Feet shoulder-width apart.

Knees slightly bent, weight lowered.

Staff held across his body, gaze level.

As Chu Yuntian watched his son, a flicker of surprise crossed his eyes.

Though it was Chu Yan's first time practicing, his movements already looked convincing. He was nothing like a beginner, with their stiffness and awkwardness.

That was the benefit of being an early bloomer.

He had started stance training at three and boxing at five. Six years of foundational training had given Chu Yan excellent coordination and control over his body.

"Lower your center of gravity a little more." Chu Yuntian stepped behind Chu Yan and pressed down on his shoulder.

Chu Yan adjusted as instructed, lowering his center of gravity a little further.

"That's it." Chu Yuntian nodded in satisfaction. "Remember this feeling. Don't focus too much on perfecting your posture in the Opening Stance. You need to find that feeling of stability. Once your stance is stable, every muscle in your body is ready to exert force at any moment. That's the essence of the Opening Stance."

Chu Yan quietly focused on every part of his body.

His feet pressed into the ground as if they had taken root.

His slightly bent knees held tension like compressed springs.

His back was straight, like a bow drawn taut.

His arms hung naturally, gripping the ironwood staff, which rested horizontally in front of him at chest height.

At that moment, he no longer felt like a six-year-old child, but a volcano poised to erupt.

"Good." Chu Yuntian stepped back a few paces, his gaze moving over his son as he continued, "Hold that pose for one incense stick."

One incense stick was about half an hour.

For a six-year-old child, holding a fixed pose for half an hour was no easy task.

But Chu Yan did not complain. He did not even furrow his brow.

He simply stood there, like a statue.

Chu Yuntian watched Chu Yan with a smile. Just as expected of his son—he had real ability.