Chapter Thirty-One: The Legacy of a Millennium of Martial Arts

In truth, Du Huaishan’s stance in the three-body form was not the best among the new recruits. His posture focused too much on aesthetics, lacking real understanding. There was a certain sense of insubstantiality to it. Upon inquiry, it turned out he had only learned a little. This was precisely why Chang Suian specifically called Du Huaishan out—he wanted to use the exercise of tossing sandbags back and forth as a way to instruct him, and at the same time, warn the other recruits about how to properly generate force with the three-body form.

In the first round, Chang Suian could see Du Huaishan was relying on his upper body to brute-force his way through, which might work for one or two repetitions, but by the third or fourth, the arms would ache and the small joints of the spine could easily be displaced. Yet, unexpectedly, by the second round, Du Huaishan had already grasped the proper technique for generating force. Such quick comprehension was truly rare!

What Chang Suian didn’t know was that Du Huaishan had accumulated four years of martial arts and combat knowledge. Learning other martial arts now was akin to standing on the shoulders of giants, gaining a greater perspective.

“Not bad, return to your group,” Chang Suian said, rare praise in his voice. He then turned to the line of recruits: “All new soldiers, pair up, take a bag of sand, and repeat the movements Du Huaishan and I just demonstrated!”

Back in the lineup, Du Huaishan found Tan Hai to practice with.

“Huaishan, this training method is exhausting—after just a couple rounds, my arms are sore,” Tan Hai complained, using his body to take the sandbag blows. His arm muscles felt as if they were being torn apart.

“You need to use your core—your waist and abdomen—let the big muscle groups do the work. Your arms are just the transmission tools,” Du Huaishan replied with a grin, sharing his insights.

Right now, he was as excited as a child who’d found a new toy. He had assumed that Chang Suian’s teaching of Xingyi would be like modern martial arts routines—stand in stance, pose, repeat until proficient. But unexpectedly, after teaching the stance, the next step was to use it for sandbag tossing.

In traditional martial arts, this was called “single exercise.” In modern training, it was known as resistance training. Many combat athletes would train resistance, such as punching with dumbbells or resistance bands, swinging heavy ropes, or flipping giant tires.

Punching with dumbbells was to fully experience the force of a punch, maintain movement stability, and increase strength and speed. Swinging heavy ropes trained the core, upper limb control, and muscle endurance. Flipping tires developed lower limb strength, explosive power, and overall coordination.

But Chang Suian’s single exercise was clearly superior. Not only did it force new recruits to truly feel how to generate force and strengthen the stability of their stance, but it also trained all the muscles of the upper and lower body, forming a unified whole.

Most importantly, during sandbag tossing, the force exerted each time varied. This required you to control both the force you give and the force you receive, maintaining flexibility in power output! Over time, the stance became steadier, muscles grew larger, strength increased—how could one not become a capable fighter?

The essence of combat is always the body.

Indeed, Chinese martial arts could not have survived for thousands of years without something genuine at its core.

Du Huaishan was not stubborn; he never blindly pursued the superiority of any single fighting style, avoiding superstition. Thus, he was adept at thinking and accepting new things.

No wonder this military training program could turn recruits into monster-slayers in just a year.

The first lesson that morning, taught by Lai Yanlong, focused on teamwork and endurance. Lin Zhaoshu’s second lesson covered the principles and knowledge of the enemy. Zhou Zhongai’s third lesson strengthened orientation and balance. Chang Suian’s fourth lesson trained physical strength and speed.

Any new recruit who seriously trained in these four aspects would, after a year, undergo a complete transformation!

But I possess more scientific training methods from the twenty-first century. On this foundation, I can modify and add programs to make myself even stronger!

“Stop! Stretch and relax in place,” Chang Suian finally called out, as the setting sun slipped behind the hills.

“Tan Hai, help me massage my shoulders and back!” Du Huaishan called out after finishing his stretches.

“Sure!” Tan Hai eagerly came up behind him.

Thanks to learning Sanda from Huaishan, he realized all martial arts share a common method of generating force, making today’s Xingyi three-body form much easier to pick up! Tan Hai was satisfied, pressing more deeply as he massaged.

Du Huaishan felt his muscles and tendons being kneaded until sore, but once Tan Hai let go, blood flowed back and a strange sense of comfort washed over him.

While enjoying the massage, he noticed several pairs of recruits also stretching and massaging each other, just as he and Tan Hai did—among them, Xing Zhenhao and Guo Tingyu, clearly from martial arts backgrounds.

But what surprised Du Huaishan most was a female recruit who took out a small silver box, scooped out some translucent oil, rubbed it into her palms to warm it, then slipped her hands under another female recruit’s shirt to knead her back.

Medicinal oil? She must be a genuine practitioner!

A glance revealed that the woman being massaged was the one who’d achieved the best results in the orientation and balance training—the woman with her hair up.

Perhaps wanting to change position, the woman with the bun suddenly turned her head, her cool gaze meeting Du Huaishan’s curious eyes in a direct stare.

Imagine it: both enjoying a massage, faces contorted in “painful yet comfortable” expressions as they hit sore spots.

Just then—

“Ah~~”

“How’s that, Huaishan? Feels good?” Tan Hai chuckled smugly, his heavy-handed technique finally releasing a stubborn knot.

“Mmm... Feels great!” Du Huaishan groaned, noticing the woman with the bun’s face flush as she turned away, ending their brief “massage experience exchange.”

All of this was observed by Chang Suian.

“All right, today’s training is over. New recruits, go to the cafeteria for dinner, then rest in your dorms. At six-thirty this evening, anyone with a guardian spirit must assemble in the hall of the three-story white building on the east side of the training ground!”

Hearing the instructor announce the end, the new recruits cheered and dispersed.

After a day of exhaustion, they finally had a chance to rest.

Those who had awakened their extraordinary spirits were even more excited—especially Du Huaishan. The power of monsters and ghosts was the ultimate weapon in this world, and he needed to master it quickly!

In the new recruits' instructor office, Chang Suian paced in, hanging his army coat on the wooden rack. The office contained five old wooden desks, mostly empty—only Zhou Zhongai still sat there. Seeing Chang Suian, she smiled, lips pressed together: “Suian, I’ve brought you some food. Eat it while it’s hot!”

“Thank you, Sergeant Zhou!” Chang Suian replied. Seeing the steaming lunchbox on the desk, he said nothing more, opened it, and took a big chunk of beef, putting it in his mouth.

“How did Du Huaishan do in training with you this afternoon?” Zhou Zhongai asked as she rinsed her lunchbox in the sink.

“A martial arts prodigy!” Chang Suian replied, whether from excitement at finding such talent or simply from hunger, devouring two big mouthfuls of rice.

“Oh?” Zhou Zhongai’s eyes showed surprise. “He did very well in the orientation and balance test this afternoon—he even crossed the wooden bridge with his eyes closed!”

Chang Suian paused with his chopsticks, then laughed, saying, “He’s clever,” and continued eating.

“With talent like this, we don’t need Old Chen to tell us—we must hold on to him ourselves,” Zhou Zhongai said. She walked over, half-leaning on the table by Chang Suian, her graceful figure highlighted by the dusk’s light and shadow, pink eyes fixed heatedly on his weathered, slightly stubbled profile. “But I’ve already used a little trick.”

“That little trick of yours…” Chang Suian shook his head.

“What’s that supposed to mean, Chang Suian? Are you saying I’m not charming enough? Have you forgotten years ago…” Zhou Zhongai called him by name for the first time, suddenly rising from the table and straightening her chest, as if to show him exactly how small she was not.

“I’m not saying you lack charm,” Chang Suian replied hurriedly, panic in his eyes. “I mean, Du Huaishan is highly goal-driven. Ordinary temptations probably won’t attract him.”

“I saw him watching the massage with medicinal oil among the recruits. He seemed envious—what he needs most now is a good way to get stronger!” Chang Suian said, stuffing the last piece of meat into his mouth. “I plan to ask Instructor Luo.”

“You’re going to ask Old Luo to personally instruct a new recruit?” Zhou Zhongai’s eyes widened. “Chang Suian, you’re really going all out. Looks like I’ll have to put in some effort myself~”

In late autumn, night always fell fast.

When Du Huaishan left the cafeteria, the moon had already risen.

“Wu Ming, Tan Hai, you guys go ahead. Huaishan and I are going to the east building.”

“Okay, we’ll wait for you to come back for a foot soak!”

After bidding farewell to Wu Ming and the others, Guo Tingyu and Du Huaishan headed straight to the white building on the east side, as Chang Suian had mentioned.

Though it wasn’t yet six-thirty, the hall on the first floor was already crowded with new recruits. Each of their pupils was tinged with unusual colors, their faces filled with anticipation and excitement.

“Awo—!”