"With such a trivial matter, why bother with so many twisted thoughts? Isn't it tiring? Wouldn't it be better to spend this energy learning Tai Chi?"
After hearing what his friend said, Wang An could not understand what these people were thinking.
"Not everyone trains like you do. If he put more effort into training, he wouldn't have been embarrassed by a student like you. But Tai Chi is good for health. Although it sounds nice to say, 'yield to strength,' it lacks a bit of toughness," Li Xinzhu grumbled.
"Tai Chi also has strength." Wang An said with a smile.
"Yes, but if you don't pay enough money here, they won't teach you any of it! Besides, they may not necessarily know much. With Yang Zhang's limited skills, I reckon he only knows the basics. Yang Xianhua does have some real skills, but his heart isn't in it anymore!"
Li Xinzhu seemed to know a lot of inside information.
"You know a lot. Since you know that you can't learn the real Tai Chi here, why are you still coming here?" Wang An said in surprise.
"What else can I do? I've already paid the tuition fees! Sigh, you want to learn something strong?"
"Strong? What do you mean? Is it something like the Eighteen Dragon Subduing Palms?"
"That's just from a novel. It's all a lie. Have you heard of Intention Fist? It's strong and domineering."
Li Xinzhu looked around and saw that no one was paying attention to them. Then, he whispered, as if he was a spy.
"Xingyi? Wait a minute. I remember that ten days ago, a new Intention Fist Martial Arts Dojo opened on another street a few hundred meters away. I remember hearing gongs and drums."
Why are you telling me this? Could you be a spy sent from that school?" Wang An stared at Li Xinzhu.
A few days ago, when the Intention Fist Martial Arts Dojo opened for business, he happened to pass by. There was a lively scene with dragon and lion dances, drums, and a lot of noise.
Li Xinzhu smiled and waved his hand.
"A friend of mine was there. I was just helping to attract people to support him.
The monthly tuition fee here is 2000-yuan but only 1800-yuan over there. If you go, I'll give you a 20% discount. You can go there for free for a whole week."
"I was wondering why your strength was so strong when I was sparring with you. It turns out that you've learned Intention Fist before!"
"Even the dojo is in such a mess now. If Director Yang finds out about this, he will slap you half to death for dishonoring his star pupils."
"He wouldn't dare! This is a society governed by law. I paid the money and I have the receipt."
"You should come over anyway. It's not that I look down on him, but he might not actually have much fighting skills. Tai Chi hasn't been stagnant for ten years, while Intention Fist takes training seriously."
Tai Chi was notoriously difficult to learn, and Yang Xianhua's actual combat ability may not be necessarily strong. There were also rumors that he had been beaten black and blue by several burly men in his early years. It's hard to say who will win if the both of us fought. If I have the chance, I really want to try taking him on." When mentioning Yang Xianhua, Li Xinzhu's words were filled with disdain.
"Just how arrogant are you? Teach me a few moves first and let me see if you're just all talk." Wang An said after thinking for a while.
"Sure, how about Xingyi's 'Crushing Fist'? Half a step of 'Crushing Fist' conquers the world!"
As he spoke, Li Xinzhu brought Wang An to the Intention Fist Martial Arts Dojo not far away. "Xingyi" was written there as two big words.
At this hour, there was only one person guarding the door. When he saw Li Xinzhu enter, he hurriedly went forward to greet him.
"Senior."
"Ahem, this is a friend of mine." Li Xinzhu coughed and winked at the man.
Wang An saw what he did, but he did not say anything. He simply pretended not to see it.
He thought to himself that this dojo was quite crafty. They actually sent people to the Tai Chi Dojo to spy. He was reminded of a spy action movie.
After that, Li Xinzhu demonstrated the Crushing Fist footwork, and force exerting techniques of the Intention Fist to Wang An.
Crushing Fist is a type of straight punch. It goes straight forward forming an upright fist with the knuckles facing upward. The fist centers inward, and the power is concentrated on the fist's surface.
When releasing power, it is released rapidly over a short distance. The arm of the practitioner does not fully extend, and the power originates from the core and is suddenly unleashed. It is a brief and intense assault, which is both fast and fierce. It has force that penetrates deep into the organs.
Its movements were like sharp arrows piercing through objects, and when it exerted force, it was as powerful as a landslide.
Wang An looked very carefully.
He had practiced Tai Chi before, so he already had experience in coordinating his body and exerting force. Although Intention Fist and Tai Chi were two different martial arts, there were still some similarities between them.
Li Xinzhu demonstrated it several times.
"Can I try?" Wang An asked.
"Sure."
Wang An practiced according to Li Xinzhu's method, and it looked like it was working.
"Not bad, you are very talented." Li Xinzhu praised.
"Stop learning Tai Chi. Yang Zhang is not even good. If you learn from him, you won't be able to get anywhere even if you practice for eight to ten years. With your level of comprehension, you will definitely be able to master Crushing Fist in less than a year."
"If you want to train in Crushing Fist, you have to practice Standing Stance first, right?" Wang An recalled the technique from before.
Power was generated from the feet, with the waist as the axis. This was the same method of generating power in Tai Chi.
However, Tai Chi emphasized harmony and spiral force. Crushing Fist, on the other hand, was straightforward.
"That's right. Tai Chi Fist has the Wuji Stake and the Tai Chi Stance. Intention Fist naturally has a stance technique called the Three-Body Stance. Come, let me teach you."
"You're already teaching me? I haven't even paid my tuition fees yet," Wang An said with a smile.
"It's fine. Just treat it as if I'm being friendly." Li Xinzhu was straightforward.
After that, Li Xinzhu taught Wang An the method and key points of the Three-Body Stance.
[You have learned Intention Fist, Intention Fist (Beginner).]
He had learned a new skill on this trip, which was a pleasant surprise.
"What do you think?"
"Hmm, I have to think about it. By the way, I have a question that I want to ask." Wang An nodded.
"Ask. I will tell you everything I know." Li Xinzhu patted his chest.
"Other than Yang Xianhua, who else in Hu An is a master of Tai Chi?"
"Hey, why can't you just forget about Tai Chi"
"I've paid 4,000-yuan for my tuition fees. I have to learn something. Otherwise, I'm really losing out."
"Your fee is only 4,000, while some of the people training with us have paid over 20,000. I don't think their performance is as good as yours. What did they say?"
To put it bluntly, Tai Chi Fist was indeed quite unique in terms of its health benefits. However, most of the combat techniques have been significantly reduced. The martial art that Yang Wudi practiced back then has been completely transformed," he remarked.
"But if you really want to learn, I do know someone who has some real skills, but the fees are really expensive!" Lee Xinzhu said after a moment of silence.
"Who is it?" Wang An hurriedly asked.
"Chen Xifeng, the president of Hu An City's Tai Chi Association. He owns a Tai Chi martial arts dojo on Qingyang Mountain in the suburbs."
"How expensive?"
"One lesson costs 1,500-yuan, and the lesson will not exceed two hours." Li Xinzhu stretched out two fingers.