I'll write a manual called the Sunflower Manual, and the entire martial arts world will turn in

Is this the oppressive feeling of a martial artist training in the second stage?

Xie An was quite surprised.

Xie An faced no pressure when he attacked and killed Scarface Liu and his two companions last night. Therefore, Xie An deduced that his direct combat strength should be no less than that of a martial artist who had just entered the Skin Refining stage.

Unexpectedly, this man brought her a great sense of oppression as soon as he appeared.

The more this was the case, the more interested Xie An became in the martial arts realm of this world.

Once one has mastered the martial arts realm, combined with the Qi cultivation techniques of the first level of the Sunflower Manual... the actual combat power that will be unleashed will likely be terrifying!

cough cough.

The man walked to the eaves and coughed twice. "Let me reiterate the rules here: Although you have paid tuition, you are nominally just laborers at Yong Sheng Martial Arts School. That's all we can say to outsiders. If anyone dares to boast that they are an apprentice at Yong Sheng Martial Arts School, don't blame me for being ruthless. At best, I'll kick them out of the school; at worst, I'll give them a beating and throw them out the door."

Everyone nodded in agreement.

The man was pleased with everyone's expressions. "You are the third batch of laborers this year. Come early every day, lunch will be provided in the backyard, and you will leave at dusk. Also, my name is Liu He, and I will be responsible for your martial arts instruction for the next six months. You will be taught a lot of basic martial arts; whether you can master them depends entirely on your own efforts and luck."

"There's an old saying in martial arts: 'To get started, you must first practice stances for three years.' Today, I'll teach you a set of Hunyuan stances. Watch carefully."

After saying this, Liu He stepped forward, his legs shoulder-width apart, his knees slightly bent and not extending past his toes; his arms were loosely clasped in front of his abdomen, as if embracing a ball; his whole body was relaxed, his head upright and his neck straight.

As Liu He slumped his shoulders and elbows, hunched his chest and straightened his back, he stomped his foot on the ground with a loud "thump," causing the ground to shake. Immediately afterward, Liu He stood rooted to the earth like an ancient tree, unmoved by wind or rain.

Everyone stared wide-eyed.

Liu He demonstrated and explained at the same time:

"Hun Yuan Zhuang encompasses eighteen stances, with six core postures: standing upright, knees bent, hands raised, body adjustment, and breathing. These six postures are called 'One Form Connects All'."

"As for the levels of stance training, they are generally divided into three stages:"

The first layer is adjusting the form and seeking relaxation: correcting the skeletal structure, eliminating awkward force, achieving "correct form and relaxed body", and cultivating a sense of posture.

The second level is to concentrate the mind and nourish the Qi: focus the mind, and coordinate breathing with the internal flow of Qi and blood to cultivate the sensation of Qi in the Dantian.

The third level, "Universal Unity," involves entering a state of harmony between form, energy, and spirit, where the entire body feels as if it were a unified sphere, adaptable to both movement and stillness, laying the foundation for unleashing power.

"Those who can master the first level of posture adjustment and relaxation within half a month and find the feeling of stance training have barely any talent for martial arts. Those who can master all eighteen stance training methods within a month have the opportunity to become a registered apprentice at the martial arts school. Now, do my movements again."

Liu He took another step and began practicing from the beginning.

This time, Liu He mainly talked about the six-step stance training for adjusting posture and achieving relaxation.

Everyone eagerly began practicing.

Xie An followed suit, adopting the starting stance of the Hunyuan stance:

Stand with your feet parallel, shoulder-width apart, and arms loosely clasped in front of your abdomen, as if embracing a ball...

The posture looked simple, but after standing for less than fifteen minutes, Xie An was sweating profusely and his hands and feet were twitching.

My strength is 1.5, it shouldn't be that high...

Xie An turned to look at the others and was shocked to find that... fifteen or sixteen boys had already collapsed on the ground, panting heavily, while only a thin girl, a lean boy, and a strong, dark-skinned boy were still struggling to hold on.

Oh... then it's alright.

Xie An stood there for a while longer and noticed that the three people were still gritting their teeth and holding on, glancing at Xie An from time to time, looking rather unwilling and surprised.

Xie An simply ignored it and focused on his stance training.

The first movement lasted for a full quarter of an hour before he was exhausted and sat down on the ground to catch his breath.

After a short rest, Xie An got up and continued practicing standing meditation.

During this time, Liu He was quite responsible. When he encountered laborers who didn't understand something, he would take the initiative to give them some pointers, correct their movements, and provide explanations.

"The Hunyuan stance is completely different from the bow stance and horse stance commonly seen outside."

The bow stance, like the Xingyi San Ti stance, is a combat stance that integrates offense and defense, emphasizing the transition between movement and stillness and the ability to unleash explosive power.

Horse stance, like the Baji Liangyi stance, is the foundation for hard-hitting and brute force, cultivating the root strength and brute force of Mount Tai pressing down.

The Hunyuan stance lacks the sharpness of the bow stance and the domineering nature of the horse stance, possessing only a kind of inward-curving "harmony." It does not train muscle and bone strength, nor does it train explosive power; it focuses on cultivating one's breath and nurturing one's spirit.

But it is precisely this seemingly simple stance that is the most difficult to master. Once mastered, however, the breathing becomes long and even, the movements measured and controlled – this is superior stance training. Although it is arduous in the early stages, once the feeling of the stance is found, the body will feel internally tense and externally relaxed, smooth and comfortable.

……

They practiced until almost dusk.

Xie An suddenly felt a strange relaxation in his hands and feet.

Although I'm still practicing standing meditation, it's not as strenuous anymore; in fact, it feels quite relaxing.

Like a running enthusiast from a past life, the first few days of running 10 kilometers a day were extremely difficult. But after persisting for a while, running suddenly felt easy and enjoyable.

That's exactly how Xie An felt at that moment.

Could this be the feeling of being in a standing position?

Xie An glanced at the other laborers, each of them gritting their teeth, veins bulging on their foreheads.

It must be due to the blessing brought by reaching 90% progress in the first level of the Sunflower Manual.

All martial arts in the world, whether in the past or present life, are interconnected.

Liu He had previously said that finding someone with the ability to sense the stake within half a month would be considered barely acceptable, and it's only been half a day...

While it's true that coming here to practice martial arts should provide opportunities to showcase one's talent in order to gain more resources and opportunities, finding a foothold in half a day is simply too extraordinary... and might very well attract some unnecessary trouble.

Thinking of this, Xie An immediately stopped and pretended to be very tired, sitting on the ground and panting.

Liu He glanced at the sun and said, "That's enough for today. Everyone should head back early. Also, a batch of medicinal herbs has arrived in the backyard. Anyone who wants to stay and sort the herbs will receive five copper coins."

The martial arts school had a lot of odd jobs, and some of the unfinished work was assigned to the "laborers" in the backyard.

Seeing that Xie Yu was still busy in the kitchen, Xie An decided to stay and sort the medicinal herbs.

Two other laborers also stayed.

One was named Ma San, a farm boy who made a living by farming. The other was named Daya, whose mother was a peddler.

"Brother Ma, I admire your stance training so much. I'm no match for you. I have all that brute strength, but I can't quite grasp the essence of stance training..." Daya muttered as she sorted through the medicinal herbs. "This ten taels of silver for tuition is my mother's savings of three years, and I cried for three days to get this opportunity. If I don't succeed in martial arts training..."

As she finished speaking, Daya's expression visibly darkened.

Ma San said, "I'm also figuring things out as I go. After we finish sorting the herbs, if you have any questions, just tell me, and I'll teach you a few tricks."

Daya bowed and thanked him, "Thank you, Brother Ma."

Ma San said, "We're all poor kids, it's only right that we help each other out. I heard from others that those gifted young men in the front yard who are exempt from tuition can find their footing in six or seven days. Our conditions are a bit worse, but we'll try to find our footing within half a month."

Xie An kept this information in mind.

Da Ya and Ma San both paid ten taels of silver for tuition, while Qiu Lan only paid nine taels. This shows that Qiu Lan did indeed help out.

In addition...

The gifted boy in the front yard, exempt from tuition, showed signs of talent after six or seven days...

Six or seven days...

This provides the basis for controlling the score.

The feeling of emerging from the pit in half a day is too incredible, and the feeling of emerging from the pit in five or six days... It shows talent without scaring people.

After quickly sorting the medicinal herbs, Ma San carefully instructed Da Ya in stance training. Da Ya glanced at Xie An beside her, "Xie An, Brother Ma San's stance training is excellent. Why don't you let him give you a few pointers too?"

Ma San laughed and said, "It's not really about giving pointers. We're all just poor kids with no way out, just exchanging tips."

Xie An smiled and politely declined, saying, "I have to wait for my sister to come home."

After Xie Yu finished work, they went home together. Xie An immediately went to the room and closed the door.

The stances Liu He had practiced before appeared in his mind, and he began to practice them step by step.

Before long, Xie An found himself becoming addicted.

He knew that running was addictive in his past life.

Once you get the hang of martial arts, you can become addicted.

Five days passed in the blink of an eye.

That afternoon, Xie An practiced stances in the backyard of Yongsheng Martial Arts School as usual.

Although Xie An had completed the first six-step stance training for adjusting form and seeking relaxation six days ago, he was only now beginning to demonstrate it steadily.

……

The living room of the backyard martial arts training ground.

Liu He was drinking with a bald young man. On the table were fried peanuts and a plate of cooked beef.

"Old Liu, your job is so much easier. You can teach a few tricks and then relax. There's no performance evaluation, and whether you teach well or badly, you won't get scolded by the master. You just collect the money and that's it. I'm in a terrible situation in the front yard. Just now, those two idiots kept asking me all sorts of questions, wasting a whole hour of my time. I can't refuse to teach them, or I'll get a scolding from the master." The bald man picked up his wine bowl and took a big gulp, complaining about his difficulties.

Liu He took a sip of his drink and said, "Zhanping, stop acting all innocent after getting what you deserve. If you teach well, you'll get extra profits and your master will value you. I was sent to the backyard to earn money because I failed to break through the Bone Refining stage, which disheartened my master. My life has come to an end."

There is only one master in the entire Yong Sheng Martial Arts School.

That was Chen Lutang.

Liu He and Zhan Ping were both formal disciples of the martial arts school. However, Zhan Ping had broken through the bone-training barrier and had a bright future, so he was assigned to teach formal apprentices in the front yard.

Liu He failed to break through the barrier and was not favored by Chen Lutang. He was sent to the backyard to do some shady business for the martial arts school.

Zhan Ping comforted me, saying, "Don't be so absolute about things. I was just lucky to break through the Bone Refining Barrier. Besides, you're unsupervised in the backyard, so you're quite free and have more time to think about your martial arts. Who knows, maybe a few martial arts talents will emerge from the backyard, and that will be your achievement after you're officially promoted. If you achieve something, Master will notice and won't fail to reward you."

cut.

Liu He snorted coldly, "Forget it. The apprentices from the back courtyard are all skinny, either with extremely poor talent or too old. Expecting a talent to emerge from among them is nothing short of wishful thinking. The first two batches of apprentices slunk back after half a year. This batch is even worse, there's no hope for them. Alas, everyone has their own fate, my luck is not as good as yours, Zhanping."

Eh?

Zhan Ping suddenly exclaimed in surprise, his gaze falling on Xie An in the corner of the crowd.

I happened to see Xie An demonstrating the first six forms of the Hunyuan Stance. Every movement was incredibly fluid, with internal tension and external relaxation. It was even more fluid than those free-of-charge geniuses in the front courtyard.

How did you find the feeling of standing still in just five days?

Even those geniuses in the front yard who were exempted from tuition fees needed six or seven days to find the feeling of the Hunyuan stance.

This kid is a rare gem.

Zhan Ping's eyes immediately lit up.

Liu He was focused on achieving results in the backyard, while Zhan Ping faced even greater pressure to perform in the front yard…

Liu He, drinking alone, was about to raise his cup to clink with Zhan Ping's when he noticed Zhan Ping was lost in thought. He said, "What's the point of watching a bunch of good-for-nothing lads? They're just wasting money..."

The next moment, Liu He was speechless.

He followed Zhan Ping's gaze and saw Xie An in the corner.

Feel the weight of the pile!

I actually developed a sense of stance in just five days!

Zhan Ping suddenly asked, "What's this kid's name?"

Liu He sighed, rubbing his forehead. "How could I possibly remember that..."

Zhan Ping took out a blue pill and handed it to Liu He: "Old Liu, this is a bone-strengthening pill that my master gave me a while ago. Take it and try to break through the barrier."

Liu He was overjoyed and accepted the pills with both hands, saying, "Thank you very much, Senior Brother Zhanping..."

"No need to thank me right away, I have a small request."

"Hey, what are you talking about with me? This Bone Strengthening Pill is extremely rare, I'd agree to a hundred of your requests."

Zhan Ping pointed to Xie An outside the door and said, "That kid is wasting his talent in the backyard. Give him to me, and I'll take him to the front yard."

Looking at the blue bone-strengthening pill, Liu He's hands trembled.

This is his last hope in breaking through the bone-training barrier!

But look at that boy... He developed a sense of the stake in just five days, already surpassing the genius students in the front courtyard who were exempt from tuition fees.

This is the ladder to heaven that will allow him to return to his master's sight!

Liu He frowned, caught in a struggle.

Zhan Ping looked at him with a half-smile: "Old Liu, this kid's ability to develop his core skills in five days is amazing, but he might not achieve much in the future. How many geniuses who start fast have fallen by the wayside? Are you sure you want to give up this real opportunity to break through the bone-training barrier for an uncertain future?"