Chapter 451

Song Lin led us to the theater pavilion that had been erected on the stage, in the central position of the pavilion, there was enshrined a three-eyed deity statue. This deity statue is precisely the famous Marshal Ma of the Spirit Palace, also Pangzi's ancestral master, the Thirty-Three Heavens Five Manifestations Great Emperor Huaguang.

Those who work in the theater troupe are called people who eat the eight-direction rice, running all over the place—southeast, northwest, up and down, left and right. People often say, if you walk many night roads, you fear encountering ghosts, so theater troupes also enshrine deity statues for protection.

As for why we enshrine Huaguang Ancestral Master, of course it is certainly not because of the folk saying that Huaguang Ancestral Master is the patriarch of theater. The reason theater troupes enshrine Great Emperor Huaguang is first, many of the actors performing theater are Hakka and Chaoshan people. Hakka culture especially venerates Huaguang Ancestral Master. One could say that enshrining Huaguang Ancestral Master in the theater troupe originated with the Hakka people.

Secondly, other deities, even if they are spiritual, are too compassionate. If hungry wandering ghosts come to absorb incense, most of them close their eyes. Yet among the many deities, Great Emperor Huaguang and Lord Guan are different—no matter whether the ghost is good or evil, as long as it is a ghost, it cannot approach them. Those who eat the eight-direction rice seek a hundred percent guarantee; the best choice is none other than Huaguang Ancestral Master.

As for Lord Guan, this deity is suitable for those who eat the ten-direction rice; the so-called ten directions means adding the two directions of heaven and earth to the eight directions, referring to those who at any time step into the yin-yang realms, the desperate outlaws.

However, the range covered by Huaguang Ancestral Master's dharma body is quite limited; besides the backstage, it does not even cover the stage area. Once the deity statue is positioned, it cannot be moved arbitrarily. When strange occurrences appear on the stage, even the consecrated Huaguang deity statue is powerless.

After washing our hands and eyes with pomelo leaf water, Pangzi and I respectfully offered a stick of incense to Huaguang Ancestral Master; then, under Song Lin's guidance, we came to the main hall where Liu Guanzhong was resting.

"\"The horse stance of the Liu family staff technique emphasizes being four-square and eight-steady, like an old tree taking root. Using a still stance combined with waist power to turn the horse, when turning the body the horse must be steady, the waist flexible, and the qi must follow the turning of the horse stance; only then can one execute the Retreating Pretty Lock-Throat Spear, \" said an old man with vigorous spirit inside the spacious hall, explaining the essentials of the Liu family fist to a group of young people.

"\"Bring the staff, let me demonstrate once for you, \" the old man snatched the staff from a nearby young person's hand and planted his legs into a firm four-square horse stance.

Suddenly, behind the old man, a young person casually threw out a dish used for holding vegetables. I was wondering what they were up to when, all of a sudden, I heard the old man let out a loud shout.

In the blink of an eye, just as I heard the shout, the old man turned his horse at incredible speed, keeping his horse stance in the posture of a level plain while turning, his waist and horse unmoving, yet the staff in his hand shot forward at lightning speed straight toward the dish in midair.

There was no booming crash, nor the clatter of bowls and plates falling to the ground; only in that instant of extreme speed did the old man's long staff steadily pierce through the dish, the white ceramic dish thus strung on the staff, hanging steadily in midair as the old man maintained his level-horse posture.

"\"Good\"—when the feeling rose to a high pitch, I couldn't help but shout out loud. Don't think the old man's move is extremely simple; it contains skill, and even someone who has painstakingly trained martial arts for ten or eight years cannot perform it.

What matters is not only waist and horse power, but also ear power, eye power, and internal inch strength. At the moment the dish was tossed into midair, the old man, relying on his extraordinary hearing, turned and thrust back; his eyes accurately captured the dish's central point. In the instant of penetration, it appeared on the surface as a straight-ahead thrust, but in fact the old man's hand only extended halfway before explosively shooting forward.

This is internal martial arts strength—it speaks of explosive power, a 'shake' character. It follows the same principle as Yong Chun's Daily Rush Fist: the fist eases out to halfway, then is launched with a sudden burst.

If a person's fist shoots forward blindly without restraint, no matter how strong he is, the result is merely blind force. But if a punch is delivered with this shaking method, the damage is to the internal structure of a person's body. When it strikes a person, the fist power flows along the body through the meridians, injuring the viscera.

This is why, when the old man's staff passed through the dish, it merely pierced a hole in the center, and the dish did not shatter instantly.

Those who use blind force have their power merely disperse; but if one masters inch strength, the force of each punch concentrates at a single point, shaking into the person's body.

But never underestimate this internal strength: if it stays still, it does nothing; once it moves, it can reduce a person to countless fragments. This internal strength, hidden within your body, is like a time bomb that can be detonated at any moment.

For example, two people practice punches against a stone; one knows blind force, the other knows internal martial arts strength. After the blind-force practitioner finishes, the stone keeps breaking into piece after piece. But after the inch-strength practitioner finishes his punch, the stone suffers no damage at all.

But if you then lightly tap that stone, I guarantee the stone will explode instantly, because the one who knows inch strength has already, during his practice, gathered the force at a single point, gradually shaking it into the stone.

Just as I let out my shout, the old man lightly turned his hand gripping the staff, and the dish suspended on the staff instantly shattered into pieces. At that same moment, the old man coughed and stepped back several steps; fortunately someone behind him held him up, otherwise he would have collapsed straight to the ground.

"\"Uncle-in-law... \" Pangzi hurried over and steadied the falling old man.

This lame old man is precisely Pangzi's aunt's husband, Liu Guanzhong. While Aunt Wang was alive, they could not become a couple; after her death, he stubbornly insisted on giving her a title, taking her as his wife.

Upon hearing Pangzi's voice, Liu Guanzhong's shoulders involuntarily trembled; the instant he turned around, his stiff, solemn expression immediately changed to one of kindness.

"\"So it's Xiaoqiang who's come; it's good that you've come, it's good that you've come, cough... cough\" Liu Guanzhong said kindly, his chest rising and falling continuously; after a violent bout of coughing, his face had flushed red.

Pangzi quickly took a cup of water, gave it to Liu Guanzhong, and patted his back to help him breathe easier.

"\"By the way, Xiaoqiang, who is this... \" After finishing the water, Liu Guanzhong looked at me with puzzlement and asked Pangzi.

Pangzi waved his hand nonchalantly and said, \"Oh, this is Hai Sheng, my childhood sweetheart. \"

"\"Pfft... \""

"\"Hiss... \""

I took the water handed over by a young brother; as soon as I swallowed it, I heard Pangzi's words. I immediately felt a surge of rebellious blood rush to my chest, bringing up the water I had just drunk. My heart... felt exactly like ten thousand alpacas galloping. If I were to describe the scene of those ten thousand alpacas galloping in a single sentence, I could only think of three words.

"\"Damn alpacas... \""

After Pangzi said that, the young people in the hall all sucked in a breath of cold air, staring at me with strange looks, and even the little brother who had just handed me the water, without realizing it, quietly shifted his feet; while shifting his feet, he even covered his buttocks with both hands.

Liu Guanzhong was even more thunderstruck, unable to come to his senses; his hand stroking his beard involuntarily twitched, and he didn't even notice that he had pulled out one of his own beard hairs. His gaze at me and Pangzi was also extremely strange.

Seeing everyone's expressions, Pangzi absentmindedly scratched the back of his head and asked, \"What's wrong with you all? Did I say something wrong? \"

I both laughed and cried, gave Pangzi a push, walked up to Liu Guanzhong, and respectfully explained the situation.

"\"Hello, Uncle Liu, I am QingSongShu's disciple; I grew up with Pangzi—no, with Weiqiang—so we are brothers... definitely not childhood sweethearts; we two... are completely normal, very normal! \"

The relationship is too complicated; I can only pose as QingSongShu's disciple to explain. If I say too much, lest I dig myself deeper, everyone will give me a \"we all understand\" look, and I'll have no one to cry to.

"\"Right, we are a pair of good brothers, childhood sweethearts, two youngsters with no suspicions! \" To prove my point, Pangzi fiercely put his arm around my shoulder and introduced us to everyone with a grin.

I...

At this moment I felt an urge to run straight into a wall and kill myself. Damn it, Wang Da Pang, where did you learn your language all these years? Is the phrase \"childhood sweethearts, two youngsters with no suspicions\" used to describe brothers?

I feel utterly powerless, extremely powerless.

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