Chương 14: Who Reigns Supreme in Martial Arts?

"I understand!" Cang Lian frowned and nodded solemnly.

Old Huang's words struck him like a heavy hammer, making him fully realize his current predicament.

From this perspective, he now faces two enormous problems, like two towering mountains.

Firstly, there's the secret medicine and the body.

This difficult problem was not a problem for him.

He possesses the essence of the sun and moon transformed from the Heaven and Earth Pearl, an energy that is purer and more primal than any secret medicine.

Given time, his foundation will eventually be honed to a rock-solid state. Far from being superficial, he will be more suited than anyone else to cultivate powerful and fierce boxing techniques.

But that's precisely where the problem lies!

If he were to unleash physical abilities far exceeding those of ordinary people during the Ming Jin stage of cultivation, that power and speed would inevitably be clearly seen by Gu Guolong, who was monitoring him.

The fact that a young master who has never taken any secret medicine can display a martial arts foundation comparable to that of a top genius is itself a huge mystery.

This is one of the hidden dangers!

Before he could truly begin cultivating Ming Jin, he had to find a way to completely break free from Gu Guolong's surveillance!

Secondly, there is martial arts!

This is the most crucial and fatal problem.

As Master Huang said, martial arts are the key to determining one's potential.

He possessed a "perfect" foundation and "complete" internal strength, but lacked a "martial arts" technique to unleash that power.

If one only practices a rudimentary skill like the "Eight Formations of Military Formations," it's like putting an aircraft carrier's engine on a tractor. Not only will its power be greatly reduced, but it might even collapse because the "martial arts" are not refined enough.

This puts him at a disadvantage compared to others, which is absolutely unacceptable for a modern person who has traveled from the past!

You don't have to practice, but if you're going to practice, then you should practice to the best of your ability!

"Elder Huang!" Cang Lian looked at Elder Huang, his eyes flashing with a thoughtful light.

"Besides the Cang family, in this vast Shenghai, or even the entire world, is there anywhere else where I can learn advanced martial arts at the Ming Jin stage?"

Upon hearing this, Old Huang gave a wry smile. He shook his head and then nodded, his expression complex.

"Yes, of course we have them. But young master, it's a hundred times harder to get them from the Cang family."

He sighed, "Think about it, what kind of world is this? It's a world of transition, a world of moral decay and social disorder. Who holds the truly profound martial arts techniques now?"

"Firstly, there's the nation. Since the fall of the 'Tatar Dynasty' ten years ago and the establishment of the new era, the 'National Martial Arts Academy' has been set up. Ostensibly, it's for strengthening the body and protecting the country, but in reality, it's for nationalizing and managing all martial arts in the world. Many sects' treasured skills have been 'borrowed' and copied under various pretexts, then hidden away in high places. Ordinary people want to learn? Difficult!

Unless you can get into the National Martial Arts Academy and become a core disciple, but the relationships there are so intricate that without connections, it's harder than climbing to heaven."

"Secondly, there are the martial arts schools and police academies run by foreigners. They learn Western fencing and boxing, emphasizing each move and scientific training. They look down on our 'showy' techniques, but they covet our real skills. Some spineless martial arts instructors, for a few dollars, revamp their family techniques and teach them to foreigners. But those are just superficial; they can't grasp or understand the true essence."

"Thirdly, there are the real martial arts sects. But what is the state of things now? Foreign guns and cannons are everywhere, and the martial arts world is no longer what it was a hundred years ago. All the major sects have retreated into their shells, emphasizing 'distinctions between sects,' 'passing down knowledge only to insiders, and only to men, not to women.' As an outsider, you want to learn their secret skills? You're lucky if they don't think you're a spy and kick you out.

This is the current predicament: the good stuff is all hidden away in their mansions, and ordinary people can't even get a glimpse of it."

Master Huang's words clearly dissected the trajectory of the martial arts world in this era, giving Cang Lian a deeper understanding of the world.

"Then... what specific powerful techniques are there?" Cang Lian pressed.

A hint of longing flashed in Old Huang's eyes, as if he were taking stock of those divine skills that only existed in legends.

"The most powerful of all are the royal secrets of each dynasty. They conquered the world, collected martial arts, and gathered the best of all martial arts techniques. Their martial arts were far more exquisite than those of ordinary people. From Yu, Yin, Ji, to Shi, Yan, Xiao, Lang, Tong, Tian, Shuo, Hong, and then to the recently overthrown Tatar Dynasty, each dynasty had its own unparalleled superior martial arts."

He counted on his fingers, as if reciting a familiar story:

"Among them, the closest to us is the Tatar Dynasty, whose national martial art, the 'Dragon Elephant Prison Suppressing Skill,' is said to grant the strength of a dragon and an elephant upon mastery, allowing one to withstand swords and spears even at the Ming Jin stage. And then there's the Hong Dynasty, a unified dynasty over five hundred years ago.

Its founding emperor rose from humble beginnings to unify the world, gathering the essence of martial arts from hundreds of schools, ultimately creating a peerless secret manual called the 'Martial Immortal Scripture'!"

"The Martial Immortal Scripture? I've heard Elder Huang mention it before!" Cang Lian's heart stirred.

"That's right!" Old Huang's eyes blazed with intense light.

"Legend has it that this 'Martial Immortal Scripture' points directly to the path of human immortal martial arts! The martial arts cultivation technique in the Ming Jin stage is called 'Heaven-Opening Jin'! What is Heaven-Opening Jin? It means using the human body to emulate the heavens and earth, and with a single punch, it has the power to open the heavens and create the earth! It's a pity that this scripture was lost at the end of the Hong Dynasty, and only legend remains."

Old Huang paused for a moment, then his tone returned to reality:

"Besides the martial arts of past dynasties, many profound martial arts techniques have also been passed down among various folk gangs. For example, the Sheng Haiqing Gang's 'Luohan Fuhu Gong' emphasizes a steady and solid stance, with a rock-solid lower body; the Northern Taiyi School's 'Xinyi Liuhe Quan' is ruthless and can defeat an enemy in one move; and the Tai Chi School's 'Chansi Jin' uses softness to overcome hardness and borrows the opponent's force to strike back...

But all of these are based on lineage, and unless one is a true disciple, outsiders can't even dream of learning a single move!"

Canglian listened quietly, memorizing these names.

The Tatar Dynasty's "Dragon Elephant Prison Suppression Technique," the Hong Dynasty's "Heaven-Opening Strength," the Green Gang's "Arhat Subduing Tiger Technique"...

These are all good things he needs!

"Never mind, I'll stop thinking about it now!"

Cang Lian let out a soft breath.

"The 'Ming Jin' technique cannot be cultivated at this stage! Even if I use the 'Sun Essence' to truly solidify my foundation and thoroughly refine this frail body into an immaculate treasure body, it will not be accomplished overnight. This process will take time. It's not too late to consider these things after I have completely refined this body into a treasure body!"

"Currently, the most troublesome and urgent issue is—how to break free from the Cang family's surveillance?"

Cang Lian frowned as she looked at the figure that followed her like a shadow—Gu Guolong.

With this person around, and with the Cang family's spies around, he can forget about openly cultivating Ming Jin!