8mi Chapter 5 Panel Anomalies, Martial Arts School Levels
Chapter 5 Panel Anomalies, Martial Arts School Levels
Three days later, at the Dragon Tiger Martial Arts School.
Before the morning mist had completely dissipated, shouts and the sounds of fists and feet cutting through the air could be heard rising and falling in the courtyard.
Zhou Tong practiced the first four forms of the Dragon Tiger Stance alone in the corner. Although his movements were still somewhat clumsy, they were much more stable than when he first learned them. With each transition between forms, information flowed through his mind, silently correcting the slightest deviations.
Senior Brother Chen Zong patrolled the field with his hands behind his back, his gaze sweeping over the students like a hawk's. Finally, he lingered on Zhou Tong for a moment, nodded slightly, and walked over.
"Hmm, the stance is much more stable than it was three days ago."
Chen Zong commented casually, "Your muscles and bones have been loosened up to a basic level. However, your movements are not yet fluid enough, and the transitions are stiff. You still have a long way to go."
Zhou Tong listened attentively, then stood up straight and said, "Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother."
"You've grasped the basics of the first four moves. The rest is just a matter of hard work and practice."
Chen Zong said calmly, "Today, I will teach you the next four moves."
Having said that, he didn't wait for Zhou Tong's response and his body naturally unfolded.
Unlike the steady and powerful movements of the first four forms, the movements of the last four forms are noticeably more graceful and agile, like a dragon swimming in the clouds or a tiger leaping through a mountain stream. The wind howls as the movements shift between stillness and movement.
Chen Zong still explained in great detail, pointing out the key points of breathing coordination and muscle exertion one by one.
Zhou Tong focused his mind on memorizing.
Just like last time, after teaching, Chen Zong had Zhou Tong imitate and practice, then adjusted his posture, and finally gave him a word of advice: "Practice on your own, step by step, don't be greedy for more or try to speed things up, or you'll hurt your muscles and bones, which is not good."
After saying that, he turned and left to inspect and instruct the other trainees.
Once the other person left, Zhou Tong continued practicing on his own, his eyes narrowing slightly as the transparent frame reappeared:
[Dragon and Tiger Muscle Training Posture - First Eight Forms: Multiple Deviations in Posture]
Specific and detailed correction messages resurfaced in his mind.
Just then, Zhou Tong noticed a faint light flickering behind the "Dragon Tiger Meat Training Stakes" section on the panel, as if something was about to emerge.
A thought struck him, and he quickly focused his attention to examine the area.
Snapped!
Just then, someone gently patted his shoulder from behind.
Zhou Tong subconsciously turned around and saw a familiar face with a smile.
"Song Jie?" Zhou Tong was slightly surprised.
The visitor was a member of the Song family, another prominent family in Cangzhou. He was about the same age as him, and the two had met a few times before and were somewhat acquainted.
"Zhou Tong, it really is you." Song Jie smiled and looked him up and down. "You've come to learn martial arts too. How's it going, learning from your senior brother?"
"Fortunately, the senior brother taught very diligently."
Zhou Tong replied, then asked curiously, "You're also learning martial arts at the academy? How long have you been here?"
"It's been more than three months."
Song Jie said in a relaxed tone, "I have learned all sixteen postures and breathing techniques of the Dragon Tiger Stance. However, I am far from mastering them, so I usually practice at home on my own and only come here every few days to get a feel for them or ask my senior brothers and sisters for advice. I didn't expect to run into you today."
Zhou Tong nodded slightly and smiled, "From now on, we'll be fellow disciples."
"That's right!"
Song Jie said casually, "If there's anything you don't understand, just ask me."
"I do have something to ask you," Zhou Tong said with a smile.
He had been practicing martial arts for the past few days with great enthusiasm, completely immersed in his training. He didn't know much about the staff and situation at the martial arts school, so he took the opportunity to ask around since he had run into an acquaintance.
Seeing that he had asked the question, Song Jie did not hide anything and spoke frankly:
"In our Dragon Tiger Martial Arts Academy, the highest-ranking person is naturally Director Ni, who is rarely seen and rarely appears in public. Next are the director's three personal disciples."
He pointed to Chen Zong, who was instructing others in the distance: "Senior Brother Chen Zong is the most kind and responsible person. He is in charge of most of the daily teaching in the academy."
"Second Senior Brother..." Song Jie shrugged. "He's very mysterious. I haven't seen him once in the three months I've been here. I heard he's away from home most of the time."
"My third senior brother is in Cangzhou, working in the police station, but he's very busy and doesn't come here often."
"So, the only person who actually lives in this courtyard is the eldest brother."
"Master's three personal disciples are all martial arts masters at the Refining Realm!" Song Jie said with envy and awe.
"Dirty martial arts master!" Zhou Tong's heart skipped a beat.
He has been cramming on martial arts knowledge these past few days and now knows that martial arts masters are generally divided into three levels: muscle training, bone forging, and genital training.
Among the guards of the Zhou family, the two leaders were only at the meat-refining level.
Those who can reach the bone-forging level are already considered skilled fighters with many career options and generally will not stoop to being a bodyguard.
The Zhou family's old residence does have a martial arts master who practices dirty tricks to protect it. However, that martial arts master is a confidant of Zhou Tong's second master, who is developing his business in Tianjin. It is because of this relationship that he is willing to stay in the old residence to guard it. He should not be regarded as a guard, but as a worshipper.
The other martial arts practitioners in the Zhou Clan Chamber of Commerce were all partners. Before Zhou Tong's father left the Zhou Clan Chamber of Commerce, he was already a pillar of the Chamber of Commerce, and he had to treat those people with courtesy.
"Besides the three senior brothers, those two are the highest-ranking people in the courtyard." Zhou Jie gestured to the side.
Zhou Tong looked in that direction and saw a man and a woman surrounded by seven or eight male and female students under an old locust tree not far away, looking like they were being fawned over.
"See that guy in the blue shorts? That's Zheng Hao, the son of Deputy Director Zheng of the Industry and Commerce Bureau. The girl next to him in the white training uniform is Liu Qing. She's supposedly from out of town, with a mysterious background. Both of them are at the Bone Forging level."
Zhou Tong nodded slightly and asked curiously, "Are there only two disciples at the Bone Forging level in the martial arts school?"
"That's not all. We also have some senior brothers and sisters in our martial arts school who are also doing bone forging, but they've all gone out to work and only come back occasionally."
Song Jie explained, "The reason why Senior Brother Zheng and Senior Sister Chen have been staying at the martial arts school is because they are renowned geniuses in the school and have the potential to become Master's personal disciples! That's why they spend every day at the school, waiting for orders, hoping to impress Master and be accepted into his school."
"A genius?" Zhou Tong's heart skipped a beat.
"That's right!"
Song Jie looked on with envy and exclaimed in admiration: "The two of them only took about a month to master the entire Dragon Tiger Stance and start to formally 'train their flesh'. They made rapid progress all the way until they broke through to the Bone Forging stage. It only took them a year in total!"
This is the standard of genius. For ordinary people like us, just mastering the Dragon Tiger Stance requires a year of arduous practice.
Upon hearing this, Zhou Tong was secretly surprised.
With the aid of a control panel, his cultivation speed far surpasses that of ordinary people.
At the current pace, it would take more than ten days just to learn the basics of these sixteen moves, and even longer to fully master them. It would be absolutely impossible to do so in a month.
Truly deserving of the title of genius.
Zhou Tong gave the two men a deep look, feeling a chill run down his spine, and then asked, "With such talent, is it really this difficult to become a disciple of the sect master?"
Song Jie spread his hands: "My master has been running his school for more than ten years. As one of the four major martial arts schools in Cangzhou, he has attracted countless people who come to learn from him. There are many wealthy people in the city and elites from surrounding counties and towns who want to learn from him."
However, Master only accepted three direct disciples in total. The eldest and second eldest disciples were accepted by Master before he came to Cangzhou.
To be honest, in the past ten years or so, I've only taken on one senior brother, the third. Do you think that's difficult or not?
Zhou Tong nodded slightly.
Song Jie patted Zhou Tong on the shoulder and laughed, "Come on, I'll take you over to meet the people. As the saying goes, 'the poor study literature, the rich study martial arts,' the students who can come here to learn martial arts all come from families with some means."
However, ordinary wealthy families can't get into Senior Brother Zheng and Senior Sister Liu's inner circle. But your Zhou family and our Song family are both top families in Cangzhou, so Senior Brother and Senior Sister will still give us face."
After a moment's thought, Zhou Tong nodded and followed.
Learning more about the martial arts school and making connections is not a bad thing.
The two walked to the locust tree. Song Jie, who was clearly familiar with everyone, greeted them with a smile and then introduced Zhou Tong:
"Senior Brother Zheng, Senior Sister Liu, fellow senior brothers and sisters, this is Zhou Tong, the young master of the Zhou family, who has only recently joined the academy."
Zhou Tong greeted them with a respectful bow, his attitude neither humble nor arrogant: "Zhou Tong greets Senior Brother Zheng, Senior Sister Liu, and all the other senior brothers and sisters."
Zheng Hao and Liu Qing glanced at Zhou Tong and nodded slightly, which was enough to greet him, yet they still exuded a strong aura.
The others were more enthusiastic.
While exchanging pleasantries with everyone, Zhou Tong observed their expressions and demeanor.
Within this core circle, there is a clear hierarchy: Zheng Hao and Liu Qing hold extraordinary positions, followed by others from prominent families who have reached the level of Muscle Refining, while those like myself and Song Jie, who come from prominent families but have shallow martial arts cultivation, are located on the outermost edge of the circle.
This is the difference between having a family background and having both family background and personal ability.
Zhou Tong stood in the crowd, listening to their conversation. He wasn't eager to show off, but he wasn't shy either. He would say a few words about topics he knew about.
After chatting for a while and becoming somewhat familiar with each other, Zhou Tong greeted everyone and returned to his corner to practice on his own.
While he may build connections, he knew perfectly well that connections are mostly just embellishments during times of success. Ultimately, the only person you can truly rely on is yourself.
As he was thinking this, a thought struck him, and the panel in front of him appeared.
There seemed to be some unusual activity on the panel just now, but Song Jie interrupted him before he could take a closer look. Now he wanted to see what was going on.