Chapter 2, The First Encounter with Tai Chi

This Tai Chi practice begins with the starting posture, emphasizing body stance, horse stance, and hand gestures. Currently, Hong Lian is practicing this starting posture, which is purely foundational and lacks any offensive capability

"Why can't I just move faster? No matter how fast I breathe, there is a limit, and my movements can't get any quicker." Hong Lian said, feeling frustrated as she came to a halt

How would I know? The martial arts you practice must be comprehended by yourself, the old man said with a sly smile

The complexion changed from red to green and then to a liver color, a sharp pain surged through the palm that was pressed against the stone, nearly bringing tears to my eyes, I was just short of jumping around while clutching my palm

A very ordinary cabin, constructed from timber sourced from the forest, with rough craftsmanship typical of a hunter's dwelling, yet it remains relatively dry

"Old man, it seems that I have encountered a bottleneck in my practice of Tai Chi. There are many factors limiting my ability to progress further," Hong Lian asked the old man during the journey.

He took out the Imperial Power Hammer from his bosom, gazing at this magical artifact that had saved his life... His thoughts inevitably wandered a bit; that family was just like this, why did he feel that the outside world was better than home...

"Who would want to be bald when they have hair? Although you have saved me, you cannot slander me." Hong Lian was filled with black lines on her forehead

It is just endocrine disorder and nutritional deficiency the day after tomorrow I see that you have many old scars all over your body were you mocked by a madman the old man was clearly taken aback and explained

Oh, I happened to pass by a garbage heap while hunting before, and seeing these few books in decent condition, I picked them up and brought them back. The old man scratched his head, feeling a bit embarrassed

"Well, what do you plan to do?" The old man looked at Hong Lian

Hong Lian's fierce determination was ignited, leading to continuous practice and contemplation. "Hushi" refers to gathering energy and strength in preparation for a powerful strike to achieve one's goal, while "Tuyi" involves releasing the stored energy and strength in an instant to injure the opponent. With this understanding, practice became much easier for Hong Lian, and gradually, she felt that her movements and breathing were in harmonious coordination.

"Did you not run away? Why are you back?" Hong Lian said to him with annoyance

Ren Honglian looked at the old man, who was speaking with great fervor, and couldn't help but wonder if this was concern

"Alright, I want this woman’s Tai Chi. But old man, why does your martial arts technique smell so bad, and it’s so outdated, filthy and shabby? Where did you get it from?" Hong Lian angrily took the Tai Chi manual.

Qishou Style Honglian felt that there was no need to practice any further, as continuing to practice would be futile

A month has passed, and Hong Lian has emerged from her room

"Good, you have a sense of masculinity, although your Tai Chi is somewhat effeminate. Since you have decided to follow your own path, just stick to it diligently." The old man did not forget to criticize Hong Lian.

Oh, you mentioned Tai Chi; I have seen it before. It is primarily about using force against force. It involves techniques like yielding and borrowing strength, anyway, it is essentially a woman's martial art. Indeed, it is very suitable for you, I mean for men.

"Now that you can get up, don't just daze here. Go outside for a walk; it will be beneficial for you." The old man walked in and looked at the dazed Hong Lian.

If a cultivator were present and saw him say this, they would definitely give him a good beating: "You little brat, you have already achieved the same effect as enlightenment and are still not satisfied, what are you even calling it"

The intangible surpasses the tangible, with the ability to receive and release, and the hope of using four ounces to move a thousand pounds. Suddenly, the line of text at the very bottom caught his attention

The entire person seems as if they do not exist, like a presence akin to air; if one does not pay attention, they might think that this person is merely air.

Thus, he began to cultivate according to his earlier thoughts. However, he found it unprecedentedly difficult; he remembered to perform the movements, yet his breathing could not keep up. When he focused on his breathing, he made mistakes in the movements, even reversing them into a form of striking and exhaling.

Like a bolt from the blue, Hong Lian was stunned on the spot. Tears could not help but fall; the old man was the first outsider he had encountered since leaving home. The kindness and concern he had shown were vivid in his memory. Although he would sometimes reprimand him, the old man made Hong Lian feel warmth and care that he could not experience at home

This young man has already grasped the smoothness of Tai Chi, quite impressive! However, it seems he is still unaware. The old man was just about to make a move when he discovered a circle of wolf corpses piled up, and his eyes involuntarily emitted a fiery light as he thought to himself

Hong Lian moved her body slightly, positioning her hands in a ready stance, prepared to launch an attack at any moment. Anyone familiar with Tai Chi witnessing this scene would surely be astonished, their jaws dropping to the ground, for Hong Lian now bore no difference from a Tai Chi master

The wolf pack launched an attack, initially probing one by one, but Hong Lian effortlessly blocked them. A palm strike against a wolf does not feel like striking a stone; when a palm hit a wolf, it fell to the ground without getting up. As two or three wolves attacked simultaneously, Hong Lian utilized her mastery of energy manipulation to change the direction of one wolf's attack, causing two wolves to collide with each other, resulting in their immediate demise as they both fell lifeless with their legs stretched out.

Stop, stop... that thing is exactly the old man who just ran away

Time passes, and Honglian still follows the old man to hunt as before, but now she practices Tai Chi more than she used to. As Honglian flips through this rudimentary Tai Chi, she realizes that this martial art lacks formulas and techniques, relying solely on continuous practice and understanding

Hong Lian turned and walked out of the forest, truly embarking on her journey through the world of cultivation. Not long after Hong Lian left, the old man's grave exploded with a loud bang, and a figure flew out, which was none other than the deceased old man.

The old man chuckled ominously: "Hmm, it does seem somewhat useful. I will throw a stone at you, and you can try to evade or block it using this skill."

After practicing some movements, Hong Lian is going out to hunt with the old man

A few days have passed, and Hong Lian feels that her injury has healed significantly

It seems that although this old man lacks moral integrity, his medicine is quite effective. Hong Lian moved back and forth a bit

"Old man, I feel that this Tai Chi seems to suit me very well, as if something is attracting me." Hong Lian gazed somewhat absentmindedly at the tattered book inscribed with 'Tai Chi'.

Taiji Little King Flying Knife, One Yin Finger, and Soul-Devouring Dark Fist, upon seeing the words above, Hong Lian couldn't help but feel both amused and exasperated

Oh my, how unfortunate, run! The old man continued without caring for Hong Lian and disappeared without a trace.

Hong Lian watched as the stone drew closer. At the moment the stone reached in front of her, she exhaled to gather her strength and swiftly struck the stone with her palm blade.

Indeed, this young man possesses a certain insight; however, as he himself mentioned, he has encountered a bottleneck. Both his physical body and internal energy have reached a standstill. The foolish lad lacks elixirs or rare herbs, making it difficult to further strengthen his physique. He can only strive to break through in the direction of vitality, and we shall see what tricks he can come up with... I should also be on my way out.

If the wolf pack had been a little larger today, I would not have been able to defeat them. My movements have reached a bottleneck; I cannot execute more actions in a single breath. It seems that this training direction has reached its limit, and I need to change my approach. Moreover, the more actions I perform in one breath, the weaker the force becomes. This was evident with the wolves I killed today; the first wolf was clearly dispatched with a single strike, while the later ones had time to gasp for breath. Since I cannot break through with my physical body, it appears I can only focus on internal cultivation. However, if I can cultivate my dantian and true qi internally, I would directly practice the methods of cultivation. Why bother with this inferior Tai Chi? As Hong Lian recalled her experiences from the day, a sudden realization struck her: "Wait a minute, when I first started practicing Tai Chi six months ago, it felt as if all my pores had opened up a bit. Since I cannot move quickly, wouldn't breathing through my pores allow me to be faster? Moreover, with so many pores, the volume of air I can inhale is greater, and the stored force and qi would also be larger, thus increasing the power of my movements." With this thought, Hong Lian began to practice right there.

If you do not wish to lie in bed for the rest of your life, then do not move recklessly. You may have internal injuries that could lead to sequelae. I see that you have no foundation, likely because you have not practiced. Your physical condition is truly lacking, even inferior to that of an ordinary woman, with congenital deficiencies and acquired imbalances. Born a waste, do not blame me for discouraging you, hee hee hee. " The door opened, and an old man walked in.

"Old man, you deliberately gave me such a set of skills, didn't you? However, this technique is indeed somewhat useful; I should now be able to defeat leopards and tigers." Hong Lian's body stiffened, nearly choking and passing out.

The old man does not appear to have been murdered; he died very peacefully

"I already knew, what is disorder?" Hong Lian did not find it strange that he said this, still wearing a cold, zombie-like expression.

Thank you for saving me, is there anything I can do? I do not like being indebted to others. Hong Lian came back to her senses

Hong Lian was just about to take a break when his keen perception detected that something had happened. Approaching, he thought it was a wolf pack that was about to launch an attack

In a secluded spot within the forest, an old man nodded furtively; he was indeed the old man who had abandoned the red lotus.

Looking at the small house where I have lived for more than a year, I recall the sadness of leaving home at the age of six, the disappointment when my family did not come looking for me, the banter with the old man, and the warmth I felt from his care. This warmth made Hong Lian reluctant to leave yesterday. I wanted to venture out into the world, yet I couldn't bear to part with the old man. It was such a coincidence that the old man passed away the very next day; could such a coincidence really exist?

Hong Lian struggled to rise, only to feel a piercing pain radiating from her heart.

"Receiving and returning? Could it be that actions can generally be divided into striking out and retracting, and that striking out requires exhaling while retracting requires inhaling? However, these few words seem to have been added later as a prank; could it lead to becoming disabled?" Hong Lian thought, recalling that the martial arts technique was picked up by chance, and such thoughts flashed through her mind.

It seems that you are just another good-for-nothing from a large family. How about this: you can stay here to recuperate before you leave. The old man deliberately put on a cold expression.

How is the kid? The old man is as enthusiastic as a male dog

Do you live your life like this? With a zombie-like expression, you will struggle to interact with others, and this will bring you no benefits in your future life. I can see that you have a dark and resentful past, but you have already left that place; why continue to act as if you are still there? Life outside is fraught with dangers and filled with treachery that can be terrifying. You should learn to conceal, including your feelings, emotions, skills, and finances; all of these need to be hidden so that you can live a little longer. Although you have nothing now, can you be certain that you will remain in this state in the future? The old man is being condescending. Life outside is fraught with dangers and filled with treachery that can be terrifying. You should learn to conceal, including your feelings, emotions, skills, and finances; all of these need to be hidden so that you can live a little longer. Although you have nothing now, can you be certain that you will remain in this state in the future? The old man is being condescending.

However, the old man has long since disappeared to enjoy himself elsewhere

This method is indeed effective. After consecutively blocking several stones, the incoming stones suddenly accelerated significantly. At first, it was manageable, but as the speed of the stones increased, Hong Lian gradually felt that her movements could not keep up. Several stones struck her body.

With a soft moan, Hong Lian awoke, slowly opening her eyes, feeling as if her eyelids were weighed down by lead, heavy and burdensome

Although Honglian usually calls him "old dead man" or "old immortal," she holds a deep respect for him in her heart and treats him like a grandfather. Now that he has passed away, Honglian feels a profound sadness. After becoming enamored with this bond of affection, this connection has now been shattered, which is indeed a cruel reality. Honglian sat in a daze for half a day before wearily getting up to handle the old man's funeral arrangements

"I am not worried that you might be bored; I am just trying to find some techniques for you to practice," the old man chuckled.

Hong Lian did not waste any words and went into her own room to cultivate

The ability of the pores throughout the body to absorb air enhances the absorption and expulsion of the surrounding spiritual energy. Honglian felt this strange sensation; could this martial art truly be effective? The entire body felt refreshed, but apart from that, there were no other effects. The body remained just as weak, and there was no sign of any true energy.

Well, I can now breathe through my pores, using them to draw air into my veins, and then store the air to release it with much greater force through my pores. Moreover, the range has also increased; previously, I could unleash a force equivalent to a palm strike, but now a palm strike is more than ten times that of before, and it continues to improve. However, my defensive capabilities are not very strong, as my body remains weak. Additionally, my dantian still cannot store true essence, or rather, I do not possess any true essence at all. This is completely different from cultivators. Yet, the force of my palm strikes possesses the power of a foundation-building cultivator, albeit without a flying sword. " Hong Lian stretched her muscles and bones.

Hong Lian repeatedly recalled the scene of striking the stone, realizing that her breathing could not possibly quicken any further. If her movements accelerated, her breath would not keep up, rendering her efforts ineffective. Thus, her breathing and actions could not be coordinated.

One breath can only produce one strike ... ? ... Hmm? Can't one produce two strikes with one breath? ? Hong Lian stood up and began to practice, gradually discovering that by striking at the fastest breathing speed, she could produce two strikes, three, four, and five strikes, but could not manage the sixth strike no matter what. Hong Lian understood that with her current physical condition, she could only strike this fast.

"Why do you think of yourself as an enlightened master? Well, I will just send it to you." Although the old man was willing to give Hong Lian something to eat, he did not forget to undermine him a bit.

"Choose one, the heavy responsibility of saving the world is entrusted to you." The old man took out a few worn books from his bosom

Hong Lian felt something was amiss, could I not increase my speed any further? Breathe, yes, if I quicken my breathing, my movements can also accelerate.

What a beautiful and graceful demeanor of the young lady. The old man couldn't help but sigh upon seeing Hong Lian's elegant figure and movements

The old man picked up stones from the ground and threw them at Honglian, specifically choosing the larger ones for fear of not hitting her

Is that so? Then you can think about what methods to use to eliminate these bottlenecks. Remember the process and insights of how you broke through the bottlenecks, and make sure to record them, perhaps..." The old man's words suddenly stopped. Hong Lian turned her head and saw that a pack of wolves had appeared in front of her, and it was not just one, but a group.

At night, the red lotus is in front of the small house door

There were no traces around, and a perfectly healthy person suddenly left. It is hard not to feel a sense of melancholy about the joys and sorrows of life, just as the moon experiences phases of fullness and emptiness. After burying the old man, Hong Lian stayed at the grave for seven days without eating or drinking, before finally returning to the small house to pack up and prepare to leave this place

The young man should have sensed it; let's see what surprises await him upon his emergence from seclusion, the old man murmured as he gazed at the frail figure.

The red lotus struck faster and faster, and the old man couldn't keep up with its speed. The old man, not being foolish, grabbed five or six stones and began to smash. The red lotus tragically transformed into a pig's head, and only then did the old man proudly stop his actions

What is going on? After such a long time, this is the result, which feels utterly useless. " Hong Lian felt frustrated

Attempting to breathe through the pores proved to be quite difficult to achieve

The next day, Hong Lian's spiritual awareness discovered that the old man had not yet risen. Upon investigation, it was found that he had already passed away.

You say this is garbage that others do not want? When the time comes, I will come to settle the score with you, neither human nor ghost. And what nonsense you speak about ancient martial arts being fabricated.

I plan to go out for a while, but... never mind, I will practice a bit more and become more familiar with the martial arts I created myself. Moreover, that book on Tai Chi is no longer useful; my current cultivation is beyond what is described in it. I stumbled upon this path by accident, and I do not know what the future holds. Without a dantian and true essence, it really feels a bit chaotic. I refer to my current realm as Tai Chi rather than enlightenment or foundation establishment. I divide Tai Chi into three stages: early, middle, and late. The Tai Chi book describes the early stage, while my current realm is the middle stage, characterized by the ability to breathe through the pores and store more energy than in the early stage, thus enabling more powerful attacks. I have already recorded all of this; I am walking a path that others have not taken. Anyway, I am just a useless person, and now I can achieve a bit, even if I die in the future, I will have no regrets. " Hong Lian became more and more excited as she spoke.

It occurred to me that what the old man said makes a lot of sense. I should make a change. When I leave, I should embrace a completely new version of myself. Since I am going to leave, I should leave the sadness behind.

Hong Lian has been practicing this for half a year now. There were moments when I thought about giving up, but I remembered the old man's words and persevered. This time, Hong Lian feels that when practicing this initial stance, it is distinctly different from before, as if I have integrated into the technique. It seems that I can observe equally from any direction, with an unprecedented clarity of vision. If any cultivator were to see this, they would surely find it strange, as it is quite similar to the enlightenment phase of traditional cultivation techniques.

Forget it, let it be; dying early means being reborn early. Hong Lian thought for a moment, realizing this was the only opportunity, so if death is inevitable, then so be it.

"Damn it, you old fool, I usually don't see you run that fast, come help me quickly." Hong Lian had not had the chance to run before being surrounded by a pack of wolves, and upon seeing the old man run far away, she cursed loudly.

Old man, I wish to enter seclusion for a period of time; please bring me food.

The old man pointed to the introduction of the martial arts: "This is a martial art from the time before the cultivation techniques emerged, which has the effect of strengthening the body. In ancient times, there were no cultivation techniques, only these so-called martial arts. Although they are relatively less useful compared to cultivation techniques now, at least they can provide you with some self-defense capability, so you won't die at the jaws of a wolf. I have not practiced this martial art, I only know that you can only choose one, otherwise there will be conflicts. Anyway, you have nothing else to do now except go hunting with me, so consider it a pastime."

Hehe, with so many wolves, we can make a big profit. Kid, help carry these wolves outside. The old man paid no attention to Hong Lian's disdain, his eyes gleaming with golden light as he instructed him to get to work

Thus, he began to read the next chapter, which was about movement and breathing. This chapter emphasizes the coordination of movement and breathing, but there are no standardized movements provided. Hong Lian felt at a loss, wondering if she should just strike randomly

However, the next stone was rapidly shot towards her. Hong Lian, feeling intense pain, knew she could not directly strike the stone and could only use the technique of borrowing strength learned from Tai Chi to deflect the stone aside

"Do those who are good to me not have a good outcome?" Hong Lian said self-deprecatingly, "The old man hopes that I will face life with a smile, so I will just hide my inner feelings for a while"

In front of the cabin, an old man and a young boy are chatting. Hong Lian has also spent half a year living the life of a hunter here. Although their physical condition remains equally poor, it is still evident that they have become slightly stronger than before

I didn't expect that kid to be so sentimental, which makes my efforts and expectations for him worthwhile. Although I haven't done anything... I might as well go and take a look. The old man took off on his flying sword, chasing after the red lotus, and just by the speed of the flying sword beneath him, one could tell he was a master of cultivation.

The wolf pack also realized that Honglian was not easy to bully and launched a group attack. The wolves pounced on Honglian from all directions. Honglian was forced to use her fastest speed, which involved breathing six times, along with techniques of leveraging power and footwork to bring down the entire wolf pack. Seeing that they could not overcome Honglian, the wolves retreated in fear, and Honglian broke out in a cold sweat.