002 The Three-Body Posture of Xingyi

“Granny An, Granny Ci, Grandpa Hui—are you chatting here?”
Du Ruo was the first to greet them with a smile. At times like these, it was best not to lower one's head and walk away. In the countryside, the elderly were notorious for their gossip; if you left without saying a word, who knew what rumors might spread by tomorrow.
“The boy from the Du Jianting family is back, eh?”
The elders, hearing Du Ruo’s greeting, lifted their heads and replied to him with cheerful smiles.
“Ding~”
Du Ruo had intended to stay and chat a bit longer, but a sound in his mind signaled the completion of a download. He knew it must be that little game, finally extracted in full.
Suppressing the excitement in his heart, he nodded to the elders and quickly strode toward a house at the end of the village.
As he walked, he summoned the panel.
This time, what appeared before his eyes was no longer just the small icon and extraction progress bar, but a screen similar to the mini-game he had played that night.
Name: Du Ruo
Age: 31
Essence: 8.02
Vitality: 8.10
Spirit: 8.42
(Average values for a normal adult: 8; the upper limit for human essence, vitality, and spirit is 10)
Attribute Points: 0.00
Initial Skill: Xingyi Boxing LV0 (0/100)
Note: The host’s body cannot withstand all skills. Please strive to improve yourself.
Practicing skills will grant skill experience and attribute points.
Attributes can be used to increase essence, vitality, and spirit.
When skill experience is full, skills can be upgraded and the next skill unlocked.
...

Du Ruo stared at the panel, his steps slowing unconsciously until he came to a complete halt.
The excitement within him was beyond words. The panel was exactly as he had hoped—it truly had extracted the skills from the game he played that night.
Though only the skills had been drawn from the game, and not the exaggerated character stats, the ability to allocate points set Du Ruo’s mind at ease. At least now, he had a chance to transcend.
Simultaneously, a fragment of memory surfaced in his mind—as if he had always known it, now simply recalling it effortlessly and vividly. He could even easily grasp the logic and reasoning behind it.
The memory contained basic martial arts knowledge, as well as insights and practice tips regarding the Five Elements Boxing and the Three-Body Stance in Xingyi.
The sudden influx of knowledge delighted Du Ruo, and he understood that these were the skills displayed on the panel. Happiness had arrived so unexpectedly.
“I take back what I said—that wasn’t a trash game, it was the most honest game in the world! I only regret not playing it seriously at the time. I apologize for my attitude then—it was my fault, I was too loud.”
After absorbing all the skill knowledge, Du Ruo immediately apologized for his previous attitude toward the game, regretful for his earlier indifference.
If only he could remember all the skills he’d learned! Now, he could only recall that he had studied ‘Xingyi Boxing,’ ‘Bagua Palm,’ ‘Baji Boxing,’ and so on. There seemed to be hidden weapons, weapon techniques, acupoint manipulation, mental cultivation methods, but their names escaped him.
“I wonder if I learned any immortal cultivation methods like the ‘Eight-Nine Mysterious Art.’ If I did, wouldn’t that make me soar?”
Du Ruo muttered under his breath, completely forgetting that the mini-game was called ‘Grandmaster of National Martial Arts.’
“Son? Why did you suddenly come home? What are you murmuring about at the door?”
The shout brought Du Ruo back to his senses, and he realized he’d already reached his doorstep. The caller was his mother, who spoke to him while looking him up and down.
“Mom, you’ve lost so much weight! You look younger and more beautiful.”
Du Ruo looked at his mother, suppressing his excitement. To avoid worrying her, he quickly rubbed his face, put on a smile, and flattered her relentlessly.
“Yes, I’ve lost weight. I’ve been dieting lately, it seems to be working. Come in—have you had lunch yet? I’ll make you something to eat.”
His mother, indeed, was susceptible to praise, but her main concern was whether her son had eaten and if he might be hungry.
“No, I just got off the plane and took the bus straight here. Haven’t stopped once.”
Du Ruo touched his stomach; it was about half past one in the afternoon, and he really was a bit hungry.
“All right, have some fruit first. I’ll cook you a bowl of noodles; tonight, I’ll make your favorite stinky mandarin fish.”
Hearing that Du Ruo hadn’t eaten, his mother couldn’t sit still. She handed him some fruit and went straight to the kitchen.
Du Ruo placed his backpack in his room on the second floor, then took a walk around the house.

Nearly two years had passed since his last visit, yet everything felt just as familiar as before; nothing seemed to have changed.
After finishing his noodles and chatting with his mother for a while, Du Ruo had expected her to ask all kinds of questions—like why he’d come home so suddenly, whether he’d encountered difficulties, how his partner search was going, and so on.
Unexpectedly, his mother simply tidied up his room, smiled as she watched him eat, and asked nothing. When he finished, she only inquired if he’d had enough and whether she should make more noodles, and said nothing else.
“Go rest in your room, you must be tired from the journey. I’ll go find your father, and later we’ll buy some groceries. Tonight we’ll make you a good meal, and invite your sister and your brother-in-law to join us.”
After Du Ruo had eaten his fill, his mother tidied up the dishes and sent him off to rest.
Du Ruo nodded and went upstairs—the martial arts he had just gained awaited his study, and he could hardly contain his eagerness.
“Since practicing is the way to gain attribute points and skill experience, let’s begin in earnest.”
Suppressing his excitement, Du Ruo recalled the knowledge about Xingyi Boxing in his mind.
“To train martial arts, first change your power; Taiji relies on forms, Bagua on turning around trees, Xingyi on stance training.”
Basic martial arts knowledge was already in his mind, and this saying led Du Ruo to decide to start with stance training.
The so-called change of power is essentially altering the habit of exerting force—normal people use their muscles, the stronger the muscle, the greater the strength.
Traditional martial arts, however, use tendons and bones for power; changing power is the process of altering this habit. With practice, one gradually transitions from muscle-based exertion to tendon-and-bone-based power, completing the change.
Stance training not only accomplishes this transformation but also gradually strengthens the tendons and bones, so practicing the Three-Body Stance must be sustained.
“The Three-Body Stance, also called the Three-Talent Stance, embodies Heaven, Earth, and Man—the upper, middle, and lower sections. When exerting force, you must unite the three talents; the stance is the foundational post of Xingyi, the origin of all techniques and transformations, hence the saying that all methods arise from the Three-Body Stance. During practice, you must achieve unity of mind and intent, intent and qi, qi and power.
It requires three tops, three hooks, three rounds, three poisons, three embraces, three hammers, three bends, and three stretches.
In Xingyi stance, you should emulate the chicken’s leg, the dragon’s body, the bear’s shoulder, and the tiger’s head embrace, also known as the internal and external six-fold harmony.
When exerting force, you must twist the waist, pull the back, let the shoulder push the elbow, and the elbow push the hand; also achieve sinking shoulders, dropping elbows, and waist power—these are the basic three-pushing forces in Xingyi.
At the same time, ensure the tip of the nose, fingertips, and toes align.”