Chapter 225

Uncle Bo's expression was a little tense; seeing Li Xin about to fight the five passes and six generals of a mountain stronghold, he was really worried Li Xin would get hurt—if he really did, it would be hard to explain when he goes back!

Among those who came this time, he is the oldest, and he doesn't want to bear this responsibility.

Yaowen glanced at Uncle Bo's expression, tapped his arm, and whispered: "Don't worry! A Xin's strength is formidable; I've never seen him go all out—he always holds back."

Uncle Bo also knew A Xin's strength was formidable; even the Taizi admitted he wasn't a match for him, but taking on a mountain stronghold's experts all at once still left him uneasy.

This is no joke—you know the heritage of West Hua Mountain is not simple; it can be traced back to the Military Intelligence Bureau of the Anti-Japanese War period, and what kind of experts aren't there?

All kinds of action experts keep emerging; the foundation of West Hua Mountain can be said to be immeasurably deep, being the inheritance of various combat experts.

Even to this day, some old-timers are still alive; with their personal guidance, even an ordinary fighter will make great breakthroughs in technique.

Mediterranean smoothed the few remaining hairs on his head, his bespectacled eyes fixed intently on the match venue, not wanting to miss any detail.

What he prided himself on most was his fighting ability; in that regard, he used to be very confident.

Until yesterday, when he met that baby‑faced guy, he realized there are always people better than him opposite him, and heaven beyond heaven is right before his eyes!

The kid called A Bu is superb in skill, but his martial‑arts technique still lags considerably behind his; the reason he can beat him is mainly his great force, which carries a fierce ruthlessness from deep within.

Mediterranean thought he lacked that death‑defying courage, so he lost to A Bu in their match! It wasn't a loss of skill, but a loss to that kid's desperate, all‑out vigor—and it was no shame.

Now he wants to see what the boss's capability is like, whether he can absorb some practical techniques; his entire fighting prowess has been built this way.

Before, he traveled the world challenging all kinds of masters, just to absorb everyone's strengths and distill the essence for his own use.

On West Hua Mountain's side, the first person to step forward had a build about the same as Li Xin's, roughly 1.8 meters tall, with his temples bulging high—at a glance you could tell he trained in hard‑style kung fu.

His fully tensed muscles were full of strength, especially his arm muscles, which were exceptionally developed, and his palms were much thicker than an average person's.

His finger joints were covered with a thick layer of calluses, and his hand technique was absolutely superb.

Stepping up to Li Xin, he clasped his fists and said: "West Hua Mountain Red Stick, Iron Mountain has come to seek instruction."

His voice was already coarse, and together with his build, at a glance he was clearly a rough‑hewn man.

Li Xin returned the salute with clasped fists and said: "Hongfa Mountain White Paper Fan, Li Xin requests instruction."

Iron Mountain's mouth twitched at the words—this bastard is truly shameless! He takes advantage everywhere; winning is what his Red Stick should do, but if he loses, he'll lose face big time.

If a Red Stick can't beat a White Paper Fan, once that gets out, Iron Mountain might as well quit the gang.

This guy is truly despicable—like an old man urinating against a wall, vile, shameless, and contemptible!

"Stop the lip service; let's see real skill on your hands!"

After saying that, Iron Mountain rushed forward, his right fist shooting straight for Li Xin's face.

Li Xin raised his left arm to block, hooked his wrist downward to catch Iron Mountain's right hand, stepped forward half a step with his right foot, then brought his rear foot up to follow, without letting the rear foot pass the front foot.

Compared to normal walking, where the rear foot stepping past the front foot counts as a full step, this is a half step—this is the half‑step collapsing fist.

The collapsing fist is launched from the middle level, the chest‑abdomen area, not as high as the cannon fist, which originates from the upper level.

Its form is short, its force fierce—like a collapsing arrow piercing the heart, like mountains crumbling and earth splitting; because the stance distance is short, it is called the half‑step collapsing fist.

When applying the collapsing fist, the front hand hooks and catches the opponent's hand while the rear hand delivers the penetrating strike; if one's internal strength is deep, the timing is right, and the footwork is swift, the opponent hardly gets a chance to react—as with Iron Mountain….

"Thud!"

In the blink of an eye, after a muffled thud, Li Xin shattered Iron Mountain's hard‑style kung fu in a single exchange, sending him straight to the ground.

A foul smell still emanated from the corner of his mouth, yet Iron Mountain showed no reaction; gritting his teeth, he swallowed the blood that welled up.

Li Xin silently admired him—what a tough guy!

Turning around to Iron Mountain's back, Li Xin slapped him hard; Iron Mountain could no longer hold back, and a mouthful of blood spurted out.

Only then did Li Xin speak: "Don't hold it in! If you don't spit out this blood, you'll suffer internal injury and later regret it."

With Li Xin's help, Iron Mountain rose, wiped the corner of his mouth, his rugged face showing gratitude as he forced a smile: "Thank you, Brother Li, for your kindness."

Iron Mountain stumbled up to Wentongbiao and said frankly: "Mountain Chief! Brother Li is very strong; I'm no match for him—I lost fair and square, I've lost face for West Hua Mountain, so please punish me, Mountain Chief."

Wentongbiao had watched the whole thing, knowing it wasn't Iron Mountain's fault, and soothed him: "Winning and losing are normal; you've given it your all—hurry back and tend to your injuries, you don't need to worry about anything here."

On West Hua Mountain's side, the faces of those about to fight were grim; they knew Iron Mountain's strength well, yet he was felled in a single exchange—to them it was unbelievable! So fast!

Li Xin clasped his fists and said: "Who will come first for instruction?"

A youth over 1.7 meters tall, hearing that, stepped forward.

Approaching Li Xin, he clasped his fists and said: "West Hua Mountain Red Stick, Liu Yuan requests instruction."

This man spoke much more politely, possibly because Iron Mountain's defeat had put great pressure on him.

Li Xin returned the salute with clasped fists and said: "Hongfa Mountain White Paper Fan, Li Xin receives your instruction."

Liu Yuan kept his soles level, lifting them to stay about an inch off the ground, gradually straightening his feet as he stepped forward, with both hands exchanging defenses in front of his chest.

Li Xin saw his footwork and knew the kid was practicing Baguazhang; without proper transmission, trying to understand this palm art is just wishful thinking.

The foundation of West Hua Mountain is indeed deep! Even to have a Baguazhang master capable of real combat is truly impressive!

In the traditional martial arts world there is a saying: "Taiji treachery, Baguazhang slipperiness, nothing is more vicious than the Yintent grip."

Traditional martial arts' Taiji, Baguazhang, and Xingyi are known as the three internal schools, famed throughout the world.

The precursor of Xingyi Quan is the Six Harmonies Yintent Fist; Yintent Fist and Yintent grip share the same origin, the three schools' fists all derive from the same manual, said to have been created by Yue Fei, later Jiang Longfeng detached the spear to form the fist, perfecting Xingyi Quan.

Baguazhang slipperiness refers to the Baguazhang practitioner's body‑shifting and turning, leaving no dead angle, giving the opponent no point of force, and spinning away at the slightest touch.

By avoiding the solid and striking the void, it makes the opponent unable to gauge his true strength, yet allows one to follow the momentum and strike vital points—hence the name Baguazhang slipperiness.

Xingyi fierceness, Xingyi Quan being a power‑based method, hard striking and hard advancing; with great power it bullies the opponent.

From the outset it forces the opponent into a helpless scramble, shuts the gate and beats the dog, taking him down in one breath.

It discards much waist‑twisting and hip‑turning, rising instead to a state of tendon‑bursting power emission, and its technique advances seven fists in unison—as if several methods attack together, making defense impossible.

Therefore Xingyi Quan emphasizes explosive thrusting force, like a tiger pouncing on prey, ensuring every move carries three vectors of power, making it hard for the opponent to defend.

Showing no mercy in the raise of a hand, giving no ground on the stage, binding the opponent's hands and feet to strike vital points—thus it is the most fierce.

Li Xin immediately adjusted his own force; he very much wanted to exchange moves with various traditional martial arts masters.

He just wanted to see whether it was Liu Yuan's Baguazhang slipperiness or his Xingyi fierceness!

Such opportunities are rare; for Li Xin to boost his own strength is greatly beneficial!

In the age of guns and cannons, it's still people who use guns!