Chapter 19 Tai Chi Fist
“Hmm, not bad. Looks like you have a good foundation. But it’s still missing something. You have style but no meaning. Regardless, good job!” The moment Xuan Luo finished practicing, Tian Yu Zi spoke up.
There was still much for Xuan Luo to understand, but hearing the compliment, Xuan Luo gave himself a thumbs up. He proudly beamed, “Of course!”
“But old man, what kind of fist is this? You’re not seriously teaching me this, are you?”
“Haha. What’s wrong with this fist?” Tian Yu Zi refuted.
“This fist style is so soft. I mean, I can see me using this to maintain good health, but in a battle? No way. I wouldn’t be able to harm my opponents!” Xuan Luo fumed. Originally, when he started practicing, he thought the moves didn’t link up too well. But after he finished the whole set, he felt like the fist had no ferocious power at all.
Tian Yu Zi scowled at Xuan Luo. “Are you kidding me? This is Wu Dang’s most well known Tai Chi fist! I can’t believe you’re saying this! You’re driving me nuts!”
Hearing this, Xuan Luo was stunned, “This fist style?? How is it possible?”
Actually, it isn’t surprising for Xuan Luo to say this. He was observing Tian Yu Zi, and he did managed to imitate the softness of the fist.
“You! Even if the treasure is in front of you, I bet you cannot even get it. Use your own fist style and fight me then!”
Thus, Xuan Luo changed his posture and quickly got into fight mode. He lifted his fist and headed for Tian Yu Zi.
Tian Yu Zi also had his fists out. But when his arm struck Xuan Luo, he turned his wrist and pushed Xuan Luo’s fist away.
Xuan Luo didn’t believe in bad luck, thus he went back for more. But this time, instead of striking him directly, he is trying to find the weakness of Tian Yu Zi.
But just because he isn’t getting close on purpose, it doesn’t mean Tian Yu Zi won’t get close. Tian Yu Zi took a step forward and his right hand once again contacted Xuan Luo’s hand. Just as Tian Yu Zi was about to grab onto his hand, Xuan Luo quickly tried to escape by using force.
But Tian Yu Zi’s flexible wrist made it impossible for Xuan Luo to pull back his hand. It was as if Tian Yu Zi was a magnet; sucking his arm from him.
Seeing this made Xuan Luo realized how powerful this soft fist style was.
Xuan Luo felt like he was being controlled. Neither of his hands were obeying his orders. His wrists were being trapped by Tian Yu Zi’s wrists. It looked like they were trying to draw a diagram in air or something. Xuan Luo stared at Tian Yu Zi’s wrists and realized they were drawing circles in the air.
Tian Yu Zi then flipped his palms to separate their distance and pushed his arms down. Xuan Luo had no chance to fight back, and was pushed back by force. He took a couple of steps backwards before he was able to stabilized himself.
“How do you feel?” Tian Yu Zi asked as he returned his feet to his original position.
“Old man. How come I felt like I had strength but I couldn’t release any of it? My hands wanted to fight and escape, but no matter what I tried, I couldn’t. Why?” Xuan Luo was frustrated and slightly upset.
“Haha. That’s Tai Chi fist; it borrows strength to hit. We use the smallest strength, yet we can defeat the strongest people.” Tian Yu Zi laughed as he explained.
“Now you can’t say Tai Chi fist is soft and weak anymore! No attacking abilities?! If you are fighting a strong opponent, it will make you stronger. But even if you have a weak opponent, you’re still strong! That’s Tai Chi!”
“Tai Chi fist has thirteen movements: raise, embrace ball (I know, it sounds so odd), single push, explore, support, pounce, carry, separate, cloud, transformation, double push, lower, and pull back. These thirteen movements combine Daoist exercises with three types of nei gong xin fa. These thirteen movements are based on a trainer’s body and the eight arteries. The eight arteries are connected to our five organs. That’s why these thirteen movements have five steps and eight spells. (Okay, this paragraph is so confusing. I’m sorry guys. It’s very hard to translate).
“Don’t look down on these thirteen movements. It may appear to be weak, but once you have mastered it, you will be extremely powerful even without nei li. But nowadays, no one wants to learn this. Most of the disciples from Wu Dang only want to practice the sword!” Tian Yu Zi sighed to show his disappointment. Very few disciples would listen to his theory. Therefore, when he saw that Xuan Luo wasn’t able to release nei li (from the evaluation), his eyes lit up and he decided to use Xuan Luo as a tester.
Although he found out Xuan Luo can in fact produce nei li afterwards, it didn’t matter. Tian Yu Zi had decided Xuan Luo was his to keep.
“Wow! That impressive?” Xuan Luo was still skeptical.
“Of course. Tai Chi fist doesn’t just train the body. It also trains the heart. Earlier, while you were practicing, you had style but no meaning. But you’re already very good for a beginner. Especially because you were only following me without me directing you. Now I’m going to teach you how to properly practice the Tai Chi fist.”
“Style must be combined with meaning; meaning must be combined with energy, energy must be combined with the spirit. All of this must be mixed together. Only then will your style come alive. When you are making your movements, it must not be choppy. Flow like the clouds and release gently. Your movement should be soft but as if you have needles within them. Yin and Yang must combine. When breathing, be natural. Everything should be well distributed. Breathing should always return back to normal. When practicing, you must remember all this.” Tian Yu Zi wisely gazed at Xuan Luo.
“When I do not move, I am as is. But once I move, I shall amaze the world!” Xuan Luo said. He seemed to understand some stuff.
“Yes. When you do not move, you are as is. But once you move, you will shock the world. By the way, we have many sword spells in Wu Dang. When you have mastered Tai Chi fist, I will tell you about it. With your potential, you will only need a few years to become a success at Tai Chi fist.” Tian Yu Zi happily stated.
“Success? What is considered ‘success"”? Xuan Luo was curious.