The Martial Lord of the Troubled World

Chapter 35 Living Posture, Horizontal Training

After dismissing the servant who had delivered the message, Fu Juemin got up and sat down at the table to greet Li Tong.

"Uncle Tong, have some breakfast."

Fu Juemin didn't mention learning martial arts, but warmly invited Li Tong to have a meal.

The breakfast on the table was quite elaborate:

There's chicken soup made with astragalus and angelica and fragrant rice from Jiangnan; beef tendon and mutton stewed with eucommia; and five-nut buns made by grinding poria cocos into fine powder and mixing it into refined white flour, filled with walnuts, pine nuts, peanuts, almonds, and sesame seeds.
To prepare this breakfast, the Fu family's kitchen staff had to start working at three in the morning so that their young master could eat at six or seven o'clock.

This one breakfast alone, with its ingredients and nourishing herbs, costs about twenty silver dollars, equivalent to half a year's expenses for an average family.

Li Tong did not refuse and sat down to eat slowly with Fu Juemin.

In fact, since returning yesterday, Fu Juemin had keenly noticed a subtle change in Li Tong's attitude.

Today's instruction of new martial arts seems to have been his idea on the surface, but upon closer examination, it's possible that Li Tong was subtly guiding the process.

"Just because I single-handedly killed nine bandits yesterday?"

Fu Juemin thought to himself that he had unintentionally passed some test by Li Tong, or met some expectation in Li Tong's mind, which made Li Tong no longer treat him as perfunctorily as before.

After eating for a while, Li Tong put down his chopsticks and picked up a towel to wipe his mouth.

Fu Juemin's eyes flickered slightly, and he gestured to the servant next to him to remove the plate. He wanted to bring up the matter of learning martial arts immediately.

But before he could speak, another servant rushed up.

"Master."

"what happened again?"

"Someone has arrived at the front hall."

"Didn't I say I wouldn't see you?"

Fu Juemin thought that Xu Shirong and his daughter were still persistent and had sent someone to urge them again, so he frowned and said, "Tell the Xu family to come again in a few days."

Unexpectedly, the maid shook her head: "It's not the Xu family, it's the Lin family."

The Lin family sent over some gifts, saying it was to thank Young Master Xie for his righteous act of saving someone yesterday.

Su Hui?!
Fu Juemin's expression shifted, and after thinking for a moment, he asked, "Who from the Lin family has come?"

The maid replied, "A butler, carrying two large trunks."

One is said to be for the master, and the other is for you, young master.

"Where are the boxes? Bring them over here."

Fu Juemin suddenly became interested. He was curious about what a woman like Su Hui would give him as a thank-you gift for saving his life.

"Yes."

The servant responded and left.

Fu Juemin ignored him and continued to turn to Li Tong.

"Uncle Tong, about the new martial arts technique?"

"Young master, please come with me."

Li Tong smiled and got up, then slowly walked into the house with his hands behind his back. Fu Juemin hurriedly followed, and the two of them went to the training room.

The practice room is cleaned by servants every day, so it is naturally very quiet inside.

Fu Juemin watched as Li Tong walked straight to a spot against the wall in the training room. When his gaze swept over the spot, he noticed that a shelf specifically for displaying weapons had appeared in the training room at some point.

The shelf contained common cold weapons such as knives, swords, guns, and clubs.

The morning sunlight streamed through the window and fell on the weapons, reflecting a cold glint. Fu Juemin's expression gradually became solemn.

"The bandits you encountered yesterday, young master, used knives?"

Li Tong casually picked up a knife from the weapon rack, but it wasn't the kind of broadsword that Fu Juemin had seen yesterday. Instead, it had a narrow blade with a tip that resembled an eyebrow.

Li Tong handed the longsword to Fu Juemin and said, "Young master, do you still remember how those bandits used their swords to kill you?"

Fu Juemin looked at the eyebrow-tipped knife in his hand, blinked, and wondered if Li Tong was going to lead him through yesterday's battle again?

However, he didn't say anything. He lowered his head and thought for a while, then raised his hand and slashed at Li Tong with his knife.

Ordinary bandits didn't even have a chance to draw their knives in front of Fu Juemin; all he could remember were the moves used by the bald, burly bandit leader.

However, it can only imitate the general outline; it cannot replicate the details perfectly.

The blade sliced ​​through the air, but Li Tong easily dodged it.

"The strength is lacking; it lacks killing intent."

Li Tong commented: "You should treat me as a real opponent and strike with the intention of killing me."

"It doesn't necessarily have to be like yesterday's killing of that bandit. Just use whatever cunning and ruthless method you feel you can employ." Fu Juemin was taken aback. "Uncle Tong, didn't we agree that today you'd teach me a new martial art?"

"Let's talk when you can cut a piece of my sleeve."

Li Tong smiled slightly, and then suddenly reached out.

"Tear--"

As if his fingertips were gliding rapidly across extremely smooth silk, a sharp, low whistle echoed in the training room the moment Li Tong made his move.

Fu Juemin had never seen Li Tong make a move.

Only now do I realize just how terrifying Li Tong's strength is.

The sound of his casual move cutting through the air was even louder than when he slashed with his sword.

Li Tong's speed wasn't particularly fast, but he clearly saw every movement from raising his hand to making the move, and the hairs on his back and hands stood up in an instant.

Fu Juemin instinctively slashed out with his sword, but Li Tong quickly withdrew his hand that was aimed at his face, and then turned around and grabbed at him from the other side.

The chilling feeling returned, and Fu Juemin gritted his teeth and slashed again with the knife.
And so, Li Tong "forced" him to keep swinging his knife. After more than a dozen rounds, Fu Juemin's entire back was soaked with sweat, whether it was hot or cold sweat, he didn't know.

He didn't even touch a corner of Li Tong's sleeve.

What Fu Juemin found even more unacceptable was that Li Tong stood still the entire time, without moving an inch.

"What the hell"

Fu Juemin stared at Li Tong's feet, which were clad in black cloth shoes, holding the knife and breathing slightly, his eyes filled with disbelief.

"Young Master, do you know how I managed to hide?"

Li Tong stopped and asked calmly.

Fu Juemin scrutinized Li Tong's stance, finding it increasingly familiar, and suddenly realized: "The Hunyuan Stance?"

Upon discovering this, his expression became even more incredulous.

"good."

Li Tongdao: "Young Master's Hunyuan stance, especially the dead stance, is already quite good."

Next, I will teach you how to practice the live stake technique.

What is a "living stake"?

Fu Juemin took a light breath and whispered, "Just like Uncle Tong just now?"

Li Tong nodded, then looked around at the ceiling and his surroundings. "Once I have someone rearrange this room, you'll know how to practice on a live target."

Fu Juemin also only just learned that there were "dead" and "alive" realms in Hunyuan Zhuang.

"Dead stance" strengthens the body, while "live stance" seems to be used in actual combat.

"Uncle Tong's new martial arts technique, could it be referring to the dynamic stance training method of Hunyuan Stance?"

Fu Juemin asked tentatively.

Li Tong smiled slightly and then said, "I remember telling the young master that mastering martial arts can block bullets from foreign guns."

"Correct."

Fu Juemin didn't know why Li Tong suddenly brought this up.

"...A master of profound martial arts can withstand bullets from foreign guns because of the powerful energy that arises from his strong blood and qi after breaking through the blood barrier."

The energy is released outward, forming a thin film of energy on the body's surface. Any attack that lands on it will be deflected by this film.
Therefore, even when facing opponents wielding weapons, a master of profound martial arts is not particularly afraid.

As Li Tong spoke slowly, Fu Juemin vaguely felt that he had grasped some of the key points that Li Tong wanted to express. With a sudden thought, he couldn't help but ask, "How can a martial artist who has not yet reached the Tongxuan level defend against the attacks of weapons?"

Is hiding the only option?

Li Tong smiled and suddenly said, "Young Master, slash me again."

Fu Juemin, on a sudden inspiration, did not hesitate for a moment and swung his knife at Li Tong's shoulder.

However, what happened next left him completely stunned.

Li Tong deliberately sidestepped Fu Juemin's intended shoulder strike, and instead used his neck to meet the blade.

The speed was too fast; Fu Juemin had no time to react before he heard a crisp "ding" sound.

The long sword he was about to slash at Li Tong's neck was deflected by an inexplicable force.

There wasn't even a white mark left on the spot where Li Tong was stabbed in the neck.

"This is the method for those below the Profound Realm."

Li Tong slowly spoke: "The art of strengthening muscles and bones."

(End of this chapter)