Practicing martial arts

After finishing his meal, Huang Xiao returned to his quarters, sat cross-legged on the bed, and calmed his mind using the meditation method Liu Qiang had described as the practice of those in Jianghu.

As his mind grew still, Huang Xiao naturally began pondering the parts of Coiling Snake Hand he did not understand. Four hours later, he opened his tightly shut eyes. This session of quiet contemplation had brought him considerable insight.

"These martial teachings really are different from the books I read before. They're like a series of mazes: clear away one layer and understand it, and another obstacle appears before your eyes. Yet the surprise and delight of gaining understanding make it hard to stop." Huang Xiao rose and pushed open the window. Looking up, he saw a bright moon hanging in the sky, its light spilling hazily into the room.

"Tonight's moon seems to feel a little different from before," Huang Xiao murmured as he gazed at the bright moon in the night sky.

Different? Something suddenly stirred in Huang Xiao's mind.

These martial arts were indeed completely different from what he had studied before. Coiling Snake Hand was probably an ordinary martial art. According to Liu Qiang, martial methods fell into several categories. Put simply, they could be divided into two: those with internal power and those without.

Huang Xiao also knew that, given Liu Qiang's abilities, he probably did not know much more about the mysteries of martial arts. He had not developed internal power himself, and internal power was not something one could develop just by wishing to. Without an internal cultivation method, it was essentially impossible. To learn such a method, one had to join one of the martial sects in Jianghu, and even then, one's strength had to reach a certain level before one qualified to practice it.

Anyone in Jianghu without internal power was classed as unranked. Yet even among the unranked, some were stronger than others. Huang Xiao understood that, and Liu Qiang probably belonged to the lower end of that group.

"I really want to know what internal power is like. What sort of presence would those Wulin masters have, scaling walls and crossing rooftops, breaking metal and shattering stone?" Huang Xiao discovered a yearning within himself.

"Are scholars useless?" Huang Xiao sighed. "A scholar who hasn't earned an official degree really is useless. Apart from reading, I know no way to make a living. Now that nearly all my family's property has been sold off, I still have to consider how to survive. Martial arts, cultivation methods, internal power, masters-perhaps this is a different path."

Before coming to the stronghold, Huang Xiao had indeed intended to seek death. But now he had discovered something that interested him, a feeling of yearning he had never experienced before.

Coiling Snake Hand? If I can't even understand and master an ordinary method like this, wouldn't becoming a master be nothing but a castle in the air? Huang Xiao clenched both fists and made his decision.

The next day, Huang Xiao rose early and began practicing the routines of Coiling Snake Hand in the courtyard, following the book's instructions. Although he had not fully understood its training methods, he could at least begin practicing some of its moves.

"Hehe, Brother Huang, your hands look so strange, twisting this way and that. What are you doing?" Liu Qin came over just then. Seeing Huang Xiao practicing, she could not help asking with a laugh.

"Oh, it's you. I'm practicing martial arts," Huang Xiao said with a smile.

"Martial arts? It doesn't look like it. My daddy doesn't practice like that," Liu Qin said solemnly. "When Daddy punches and kicks, he's full of strength. You just twist your hands and feet around without any force at all. What kind of martial art is that?"

"Oh?" Huang Xiao smiled. "I don't know about other martial arts, but this is how this one is practiced. Anyway, did you need something?"

"I came to learn to read from you!" Liu Qin said with a smile.

"Xiao Qin, don't disturb Brother Huang." Liu Qiang had come over as well and said.

"Chief Liu, you're up early," Huang Xiao said with a smile when he saw him.

"Well, I've been thinking about Coiling Snake Hand," Liu Qiang replied. "Those moves you were doing just now were from its routines, weren't they?"

"Daddy, I still need Brother Huang to teach me to read!" Liu Qin protested.

"You can learn later. Your Brother Huang is busy right now. Oh, your mother's looking for you. Hurry along and help her." After sending Liu Qin away, Liu Qiang asked Huang Xiao, "Is this how Coiling Snake Hand is practiced?"

"It should be. I'm following what the book says. Chief Liu, you've practiced martial arts. What do you think of this one?" In truth, Huang Xiao was unsure himself. After all, he had never encountered these martial arts before and did not know whether he was practicing correctly.

"You may laugh, but the moves I've practiced all these years are just little tricks that don't belong on any grand stage. This is my first time seeing those moves of yours, too, so I can't really say how good they are. But there is one thing I'm certain of: Coiling Snake Hand follows a different approach from my fighting skills. My punches and kicks go straight in and straight out, relying on brute strength. Coiling Snake Hand probably follows the path of overcoming hardness with softness and subduing strength with weakness," Liu Qiang said.

"That's right. That is indeed how Coiling Snake Hand works. Since you don't understand it either, I can't be sure whether this way of practicing is effective," Huang Xiao said.

"That's simple. We can test it. Come on, use the moves from Coiling Snake Hand and exchange a few moves with me," Liu Qiang said.

"What?" Huang Xiao paused in surprise. "Chief Liu, you must be joking. I only started practicing a few moves today. I'm not even familiar with them yet. How could I spar with you?"

"We won't be fighting for real. I just want to try out the moves of Coiling Snake Hand," Liu Qiang said.

"Just the moves?" Huang Xiao asked.

"Yes, the moves. Try the moves from Coiling Snake Hand on me. That way, I can learn them too," Liu Qiang said.

Huang Xiao nodded. "Then let's try."

"What move is this?"

Huang Xiao's hands had locked tightly onto several of Liu Qiang's vital points, prompting Liu Qiang's surprised question. But with just a little effort, Liu Qiang forced Huang Xiao's hands away.

"Spirit Snake Entwining the Body," Huang Xiao replied. "Chief Liu, what do you think of this move?"

"What else have you got? Try some more," Liu Qiang asked.

So Huang Xiao used each of the few moves he had grasped on Liu Qiang, then waited for his assessment.

"Impressive. The martial arts in a secret manual really are extraordinary," Liu Qiang said with a sigh.

"Chief Liu, didn't you say before that Coiling Snake Hand was just an ordinary method? And an external one at that. Why are you now...?" Huang Xiao asked. He was still quite puzzled. After all, from what Liu Qiang had said earlier, he knew Coiling Snake Hand was not a particularly profound method.

"Brother Huang, that's where you misunderstood. I did say Coiling Snake Hand could only be considered an ordinary method. After all, it's only an external art. But there's something you may not understand, since you've never encountered martial arts before. Let me put it this way: any martial method committed to a book is something special. The fighting skills I've learned aren't even worthy of being recorded in a book as a martial method. When I called it ordinary before, I only meant in comparison with internal cultivation methods. In fact, any method that has been written down is extremely precious in Jianghu," Liu Qiang said with a smile.

"But I still don't feel there's anything impressive about Coiling Snake Hand. None of the moves I used could stand up to even one move from you, Chief Liu," Huang Xiao said helplessly.

"Brother Huang, that's only natural. Right now, you're merely performing the moves. You have their outward form, but no real power at all. Even if Coiling Snake Hand is a profound grappling art that overcomes hardness with softness, there's nothing you can do when that hardness exceeds what you can overcome. You've never encountered martial arts before, and as a scholar, you're considerably weaker than an ordinary person. I, on the other hand, have practiced martial arts for decades, so naturally I can break these moves easily. If you build up your strength, these moves will become much more powerful when you use them. Let me put it this way: with my current strength, I can lift a boulder weighing three hundred jin at most. Once you can easily lift a hundred-jin boulder, I'll probably find it difficult to break your Coiling Snake Hand. That's the power of a martial method," Liu Qiang explained.

"Three hundred jin?" Huang Xiao was somewhat dumbfounded.

"That's nothing. You should know that for any master who has developed internal power, lifting a thousand-jin boulder is as simple as eating a meal. For those of us without internal power, five hundred jin is already the limit. That's the difference between external and internal arts. Unfortunately, learning internal arts really is far too difficult. Only if you have excellent aptitude for martial arts and catch the eye of one of those sects will you have a chance to learn an internal cultivation method," Liu Qiang said.

Before, Huang Xiao had merely felt that internal arts were miraculous, without any clear idea of what that meant. Now Liu Qiang's clear comparison had shown him that even between two martial artists, the difference in strength between someone with internal power and someone without was unimaginable. Besides his surprise at that, he was also astonished by martial methods. As Liu Qiang had said, if he possessed the strength to lift a hundred jin, he could exchange moves with Liu Qiang by relying on Coiling Snake Hand. This method could multiply a person's strength several times over, and it was only an ordinary one. Wouldn't the formidable methods be even more powerful?