Mighty Far Hall

Biodata

Feature	Value
Name	Mighty Far Hall (威远堂)
Organization Type	Martial arts school 5
Location	Qingyuan County, within the city walls 5 9
Leader	Hall Master Lin Cheng 5
Occupation/Role	Training aspiring martial artists in stance practice, fist techniques, and qi gathering 6 13 28
Distinction	Charges the lowest fees among Qingyuan County’s dozen or so martial schools 5
First Appearance	Chapter 5 5

Organization and Training

Teaching Structure

Training Stage	Instruction and Requirements
Outer Court: foundational training	Newcomers learn the Turtle-Snake Great Stance. Lin Cheng gives the initial demonstration, while Sun Tao supervises practice and corrects mistakes 6 7.
Stance initiation	Initiation is marked by strength rising from the ground and qi and blood surging through the body. Bone aptitude and comprehension both affect how quickly a trainee reaches it 6.
Fist instruction	Trainees who reach stance initiation may approach Lin Cheng in the Inner Court to learn the Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist; this does not yet make them full Inner Court disciples 11 12 13.
Inner Court admission	Successful qi gathering brings entry into the Inner Court, as shown by Lu Ren, Zhang Yong, and Zhang Hong 27 36.

• Limited beginner instruction: Lin Cheng initially visits the Outer Court about twice a month. Sun Tao eventually ends further stance instruction for trainees who have not reached initiation 6 10.
• Follow-up guidance: After teaching Xu Yang the Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist, Lin Cheng permits him to seek advice every seven days 13.
• Combat practice: Disciples practicing the fist technique are required to spar frequently. Lin Cheng also recommends training on the Plum Blossom Stance posts to develop steady footing 13 19.
• Nutrition and safety: Lin Cheng emphasizes abundant food and warns that intensive training without sufficient nourishment can damage the body 6 13.

Discipline

• Harassment: Sun Tao punishes Zhou Yang and Zhou Yuan with two hours on the Plum Blossom Stance posts after their confrontation with the Huang-sponsored recruits 15.
• Fighting restrictions: Sun Tao interrupts Xu Yang and Lu Ren’s first clash and later stops Lu Ren from attacking Xu Yang in violation of Inner Court rules 29 39.
• Breakthrough protection: Luo Dehu refrains from sabotaging Xu Yang’s qi-gathering attempt because he believes Lin Cheng would kill him for doing so 29.
• Institutional representation: Sun Tao’s position means he cannot casually intervene in private disputes on the hall’s behalf 48.

Martial Arts

Turtle-Snake Great Stance

The hall’s foundational stillness practice nourishes qi and blood and tempers the physique 6 13.

• Core principle: Breathing rhythm matters more than merely copying the movements 6.
• Restorative use: Lin Cheng teaches that continued practice can repair hidden injuries and prolong life; he recommends practicing every morning and evening regardless of cultivation level 6.
• Breakthrough preparation: Reaching minor mastery before attempting qi gathering improves bodily preparation and blood-energy reserves. Many trainees attempt their breakthrough before reaching this point 28.

Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist

The hall’s principal fist technique emphasizes hardness, ferocity, and practical combat. It complements stance training by circulating force, gathering qi, and cleansing marrow 13.

• Training approach: Beginners receive a manual and develop the technique through practice, sparring, and footwork exercises 13 19.
• Named move: Xu Yang uses Spirit Bear Plucks the Osmanthus to defeat Zhang Hong in a sparring match 27.
• Three types of force: The technique contains three forms of force, though only Explosive Bear Force and Wind-Thunder Force are identified in the provided chapters 49.

Force	Function	Known Attainment
Explosive Bear Force	An external-force method that sharply increases physical strength. Xu Yang’s use leaves him aching and exhausted afterward 40 49.	More than half of the Inner Court disciples can comprehend it. Lu Ren and Xu Yang both attain it 40 49.
Wind-Thunder Force	An internal or hidden-force method that drives true qi through an opponent’s protective true qi and into the body 49.	Xu Yang initially knows of no current disciple who has comprehended it, including Jiang Ping and Gu Fang. He subsequently unlocks it through his panel 49 50.

Limits of Instruction

• Zhang Hong reports that Qingyuan County’s martial halls teach incomplete methods that reach Marrow Cleansing at most. Entering a martial arts sect through the Martial Examination’s Dragon Ascension offers access to complete cultivation methods 47.

Facilities and Fees

Facilities

• Entrance: Three large gilded characters identify the hall above the compound’s entrance 5.
• Training ground: A large practice area equipped with stone locks and weights, swords, sabers, and plum-blossom stakes 5 16.
• Outer and Inner Courts: Separate training areas associated with beginner disciples and established martial artists 6 12 27.
• Dining hall: Provides meal plans for trainees, including meat and unlimited staple foods 7.
• Medicine Hall: Registers sponsored medicine allocations and sells additional Body-Strengthening Soup 7.
• Lodging: Disciples can pay to stay at the hall. Survivors of Xue Fangsheng’s hunting expedition use this accommodation to avoid being ambushed outside 27.

Documented Charges

Service	Price	Details
Standard tuition	Two taels per month	Lower than Tiger Roar Martial Arts School’s three-tael tuition 37.
Huang Family-arranged tuition	One tael per trainee per month	Reduced tuition within the family’s sponsorship arrangement 5.
Standard meal plan	One tael per month	Includes meat at all three daily meals. Xu Yang’s lunch consists of beef, bone broth, greens and tofu, with unlimited rice and steamed buns 5 7.
Lu Ren’s enhanced meal plan	Three taels per month	Provides unlimited meat and medicinal ox blood 7.
Body-Strengthening Soup	One tael for three bowls	Additional portions can be purchased privately 5 7 9.

• The hall collects fees every three months. After Liu Guangfa’s expulsion, the Huang Family leaves its payment with the hall rather than requesting a refund 16.

Notable Members

Leadership

• Lin Cheng — Hall master and principal instructor; teaches the foundational stance and Mountain-Shaking Bear Fist 5 6 13.
• Sun Tao — Senior brother responsible for beginner supervision, discipline, and employment recommendations 6 15 30 34.

Disciples

• Xu Yang — Huang-sponsored recruit who reaches Qi Gathering after two months and continues training while employed by the Liu Family. Later comprehends Wind-Thunder Force 29 35 50.
• Lu Ren — Upper-B aptitude recruit whose rapid progress attracts extensive patronage and help from senior disciples 5 11 33.
• Zhang Hong — Xu Yang’s regular sparring partner; survives Xue Fangsheng’s expedition and subsequently enters the Inner Court 19 26 36.
• Zhang Yong — Huang-sponsored trainee who survives the hunting expedition, enters the Inner Court, and later reaches minor accomplishment of Qi Gathering with support from a wealthy marriage alliance 26 36 47.
• Wu Yongfeng — Fellow disciple recommended alongside Xu Yang for Liu Family employment 34.
• Qiu Wenjie — Younger disciple who initially seeks Xu Yang’s advice, reaches Qi Gathering in three months, and joins his practice group 19 39 43.
• Gu Fang and Jiang Ping — Wealthy Inner Court disciples who support promising newcomers and receive increased attention from Lin Cheng during the rivalry with Raging Wind Hall 11 12 41.
• Xue Fangsheng — Inner Court senior who exploits junior disciples as expendable protection during an Exotic Beast hunt 22 25.
• Zhou Yang and Zhou Yuan — Earlier trainees who harass the newcomers; both later suffer backlash from failed qi-gathering attempts 8 15 35.
• Luo Dehu and Qian Jiaxing — Huang-sponsored recruits associated with Lu Ren’s faction; both fail to gather qi 11 16 35 36.
• Liu Guangfa — Sponsored trainee expelled after selling his allotted meat 15.

External Relationships

• Huang Family — Sponsors selected youths at the hall, paying tuition, food, and medicine in exchange for promised future service as Attendants. Its initial ten-person cohort receives unequal funding based on aptitude 5.
• Liu Family — Employs Xu Yang and Wu Yongfeng as martial artist Attendants after receiving Sun Tao’s recommendation letter 34.
• Gu Family — Connected to the hall through Gu Fang; later becomes Lu Ren’s patron and compensates the Huang Family for its investment in him 43.
• Raging Wind Hall — Longstanding rival. The two schools regularly challenge each other, and their disciples do not serve the same wealthy households as Attendants 41 42.
• Tiger Roar Martial Arts School — Ranks above Mighty Far Hall and charges higher tuition. During the Hong Family dispute, spectators explicitly reject the suggestion that Xu Yang’s intervention represents a confrontation between the two schools 37 50.

Major Events

Huang-Sponsored Intake

The Huang Family sends ten boys selected from nearly two hundred applicants to Mighty Far Hall. Lu Ren is the strongest prospect, while Xu Yang enters with lower-C aptitude. Resource redistribution and competition quickly fracture the recruits’ proposed brotherhood 5 7 13 16.

Lu Ren reaches Qi Gathering after two months, followed a few days later by Xu Yang. The Huang Family then clarifies that it will employ only Lu Ren, leaving the other trainees to seek work elsewhere 27 28 29.

Xue Fangsheng’s Hunting Expedition

Xue Fangsheng leads junior disciples into the Heavenly Prosperity Mountains for Exotic Beast hunting, intending to use them as expendable bait if necessary. Three participants die; Zhang Yong, Zhang Hong, Luo Dehu, and Qian Jiaxing return alive and confront him at the hall 25 26 27.

The survivors use money obtained from Xue to lodge at Mighty Far Hall until they can reach Qi Gathering. The dead trainees’ families accept compensation, ending their protest at the hall 27.

Raging Wind Hall’s Prodigy

Raging Wind Hall recruits Kong Yu, a rare lower first-grade bone-root disciple. His rapid qi gathering alarms Mighty Far Hall’s students, who fear he may eventually overwhelm them in school challenges 41 42.

Lin Cheng responds by teaching more frequently and personally sparring with disciples, concentrating mainly on Lu Ren, Gu Fang, and Jiang Ping 41.

The Qiu–Hong Family Dispute

Qiu Wenjie seeks help at the hall after the Hong Family injures his uncle and attempts to seize his family’s supply channels. Several disciples refuse to intervene because of the danger and the risk to their Martial Examination prospects 48 49.

Xu Yang agrees to help and reveals his concealed minor accomplishment of Qi Gathering. Other Inner Court disciples follow as spectators, explicitly declining to fight on Mighty Far Hall’s behalf 49 50.