Chapter 5

Wang Lei dared not say that Xingyi Quan was inferior to boxing. He quickly explained, "Of course not, Xingyi Quan is a hundred times more sophisticated than Western boxing... No, these two are not even comparable! However, Grandpa, Westerners are very unreasonable. They have a bunch of rules. If you want to fight on the boxing ring with them, you have to follow their rules. Otherwise, they will call it a foul and declare me the loser, and they won't even let me back on the ring. Although Xingyi Quan is very powerful, except for Beng Quan, Pao Quan, and Zuan Quan, other techniques cannot be used, or it will be considered a foul, and even if I defeat them, they won't be convinced!"

"Why don't you use Beng Quan, Pao Quan, and Zuan Quan to fight them? The Xingyi Quan masters of old, Guo Yunshen and Shang Yuxiang, were known for 'half-step Beng Quan to conquer the world.' You can use three types of punches and still can't beat the Westerners?"

Wang Lei smiled bitterly, "Grandpa, you're too kind to me. How can I compare to Guo Yunshen and Shang Yuxiang?"

"Who made you lazy and not practice hard before, always slacking off!" Wang Zhengshan glared at him, put down the bamboo stick in his hand, and asked, "Who told you that martial arts are just for show, like dancing?"

"Oh, it's a white classmate from our school. He's the same age as me. Grandpa, it's not convenient for you to deal with him, so let me take care of him!"

Wang Lei unhesitatingly made a "white classmate" take the blame.

"Do you have to use boxing to fight him?"

"I didn't learn boxing to fight him. I mainly want to become the world champion and bring glory to our Chinese!" Wang Lei said with "great enthusiasm."

Wang Zhengshan looked at him with disdain, "World champion, with you?"

"I know I can't do it alone, but I still have you, Grandpa!" Wang Lei chuckled, "After practicing boxing for a few days, I found that many aspects of the Xingyi Quan you taught me can be combined with boxing techniques, such as the explosive force, wave force, and spiral force of Xingyi Quan. If I can integrate the explosive force of Xingyi Quan with boxing techniques, I might be able to easily defeat opponents on the boxing ring and become the world champion. Of course, I need your guidance!"

"Explosive force, wave force, and spiral force?" Wang Zhengshan laughed, "The first two are fine, but it took me almost twenty years to truly master the spiral force. With your talent, to master the spiral force and apply it to boxing... you might as well wait for the next life!"

"Grandpa, you're too discouraging! I'm your grandson, after all!" Wang Lei said with a bitter face.

Wang Zhengshan glanced at him and said, "Alright, where do you practice boxing? Take me there tomorrow. I want to talk to the Westerner who teaches you and study how to integrate Xingyi Quan and boxing!"

Wang Lei was startled and quickly said, "Grandpa, don't cause trouble. The one who teaches me boxing, Saleed, is old... okay, he's younger than you, but he's just a coach. You should know that Western boxing coaches are different from Chinese martial artists. They are rich in theory and can teach boxing, but they may not be able to fight. If you challenge him, I'm afraid he will be killed by one punch from you!"

"Who said I want to fight him?" Wang Zhengshan glared, "Also, don't think your grandpa is an ignorant old man. I have lived in the West for seventy years. How could I not know the difference between Western coaches and athletes?"

"..."

...

Because of Wang Zhengshan's insistence, Wang Lei had no choice but to take his grandpa to Saleed's boxing gym the next day.

Fortunately, Wang Zhengshan was not an unreasonable and stubborn old man. When he met Saleed, he did not attack him or challenge him, nor did he mock the old boxing gym. He just shook hands with Saleed, introduced himself, and stood quietly as a spectator while Saleed taught Wang Lei.

Wang Lei felt a great relief.

He was really afraid that his grandpa would fight with Saleed.

Wang Lei didn't know if Saleed could fight, but he was sure that his grandpa was very skilled. In his "memory," his grandpa's Xingyi Quan skills were probably at the "transformative force" level described in martial arts novels from his previous life.

Despite being seventy-six years old, his grandpa was still in excellent physical condition. Last summer, he had walked with Wang Lei to the highest peak in San Francisco, Twin Peaks, and when they returned, Wang Lei was exhausted, but his grandpa didn't even break a sweat.

Wang Lei suspected that his grandpa might be like the old general Huang Zhong from the Three Kingdoms, getting stronger with age.

If Saleed fought with his grandpa, he might be killed with just one punch!

Saleed ignored Wang Lei's grandpa and continued to teach Wang Lei boxing techniques, while being surprised that Wang Lei's right thumb joint had recovered to normal overnight.

In the morning, Chuck Cruz didn't come, so the boxing gym only had Saleed teaching Wang Lei, with Wang Zhengshan standing silently as a spectator.

Saleed explained the theory of boxing space and rhythm control to Wang Lei, which sounded very sophisticated but was explained in a straightforward and clear manner. Wang Lei at least understood it.

After explaining the theory, Saleed held the punching pads and let Wang Lei punch for five rounds, about half an hour, before letting him rest.

When Wang Lei looked toward his grandpa, he found that his grandpa had already left at some point.

In the afternoon, when he met Cruz again, Saleed still had Wang Lei attack Cruz, who only defended without counterattacking.

With the lesson from the previous day, Wang Lei was more careful with his punches and didn't hurt himself again.

However, after two rounds, Saleed suddenly had Wang Lei put on a helmet and protective gear and let Cruz attack him, while he only defended without counterattacking.

This time, Wang Lei suffered.

Despite his serious defense and evasion, Cruz's punches still landed on him, sometimes even passing through his arms and hitting his face.

The punches weren't heavy, but after dozens of them, Wang Lei was dizzy and had to use his arms to protect his face and lower his head.

Saleed kept shouting from the side, "Don't lower your head, don't close your eyes, Lei! You must maintain your defensive posture and keep your eyes open, staring at Cruz... I know you can't control it, but you must overcome the instinct to close your eyes and lower your head. Otherwise, you will only get hit on the boxing ring! You must overcome this bad reaction and always stare at your opponent, moving your head with minimal movement to evade, not lowering your head or retreating... Lei, from today on, your daily afternoon practice will be to attack Cruz for one round, then let Cruz attack you for one round, until you can continuously punch and deliver effective attacks while moving, and face Cruz's attacks without blinking, lowering your head, or retreating, and remain calm. Only then can you start real sparring practice..."

Wang Lei's ears almost went deaf from Saleed's shouting, but he gradually "remembered" Saleed's instructions, maintaining his defensive posture, keeping his eyes open, and staring at Cruz's punches, trying not to blink or lower his head.

After one round, Wang Lei started to get used to it.

After two rounds, Wang Lei could control his reactions, not blinking, lowering his head, or retreating when facing Cruz's punches.

After three rounds, Wang Lei was completely accustomed to Cruz's attacks and could face his punches without changing his expression.

At the end of the training, Saleed couldn't help but praise, "Lei, you are indeed born for the boxing ring. Few beginners can overcome the instinct to blink and lower their head on the first day of sparring practice. You have a lot of talent!"

Cruz also patted his shoulder and said, "Lei, you are better than me. I took ten days to overcome the habit of blinking and lowering my head. I thought I could bully you for ten days!"

Wang Lei: "..."

In the evening, after returning to Chinatown, he was called by his grandpa.

When he arrived at his grandpa's herbal medicine shop in the backyard, he saw his grandpa holding a bamboo stick with a stern expression, making him feel uneasy.

"Grandpa, you..."

"How long do you practice at the boxing gym every day?" Grandpa interrupted him.

"Uh, about four hours a day, roughly one and a half hours in the morning and two and a half hours in the afternoon."

"Then come to me after dinner and practice for an hour."

"Ah, this..."

"What, can't you?"

"Of course not, you decide, Grandpa, I'll listen to you!"

"Very good, do you remember the key points of the San Ti Shi stance I taught you?"

"Crystal clear."

"Then stand for twenty minutes, but not in the San Ti Shi stance, use the boxing stance instead!"

"Yes, Grandpa!"

Wang Lei had to comply, changing the San Ti Shi stance of Xingyi Quan to the boxing stance and standing in it.

What are the key points of the San Ti Shi stance in Xingyi Quan?

In simple terms, it's "six directions of tension."

The body is kept in a state of five bows, with tension in all directions: up and down, left and right, front and back.

The specific practice is to pull and stretch the arms up and down and forward, as if hugging a large tree that you can't hold but must force yourself to; the legs also pull and stretch forward and backward, as if trying to tear the earth apart while maintaining stability; the spine pulls and stretches up and down, as if trying to straighten it, with the top forming a point and the bottom a tail.

As long as you maintain the "six directions of tension," you don't necessarily need to use the San Ti Shi stance. Any combat stance can be used.

This is not only the foundation of Xingyi Quan, which can enhance the body's strength and quality, forming a structure that cannot be knocked down or scattered, but it can also develop overall power, also known as "six-sided round power."

Of course, to truly develop six-sided round power, just practicing "six directions of tension" is not enough; it is only the foundation. The next step is to practice "six-sided penetration."

In Wang Lei's "memory," his grandpa had not yet taught him the "six-sided penetration" method, but after standing in the "six directions of tension" stance for twenty minutes, his grandpa started to guide him in practicing "six-sided penetration."

After practicing for another twenty minutes, his grandpa had Wang Lei change to practicing walking.

This involved the waist driving the hips, the hips driving the knees, and the knees driving the feet, with the movement resembling a person carrying a heavy load and walking like a caterpillar.

To be honest, Wang Lei didn't like practicing walking, finding it too boring and not understanding the benefits of such practice.

But when he asked a question, his grandpa immediately struck him with the bamboo stick and shouted, "If I tell you to practice, you practice. Why so many questions? Once you master the skills, you will know the benefits!"

Indeed, nothing had changed!

To make his grandpa explain the principles of boxing like Saleed and clearly state the benefits of such practice was impossible.

If he insisted on asking, he would only get a bamboo stick as an answer.

Wang Lei howled in his heart and had to practice walking obediently without asking any more questions.

Fortunately, after practicing for an hour, his grandpa kept his word and let him go back to rest.