Chapter 29: Qi Perception?

No matter which adaptation of "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Saber" one refers to, the eight years following the suicide of Zhang Cuishan and his wife are always depicted as a period of uneventful calm. Even in the darker film "The Devil Cult Leader," the atmosphere remains largely the same.

For Li Daniu, those eight years are irrelevant. His stay in this world lasts only three months.

To have used a bit of cleverness to become a menial disciple in the Wudang Sect, Li Daniu feels deeply satisfied. Having reached this point, he can be reasonably assured of his safety in this film world, and need not fear an inexplicable, sudden death.

Safety is always paramount, whatever the circumstances. Once it was secured, Li Daniu began his martial arts journey, starting as a menial disciple.

As the leading righteous sect, Wudang managed, in just a few decades since its founding, to stand shoulder to shoulder with Shaolin, which boasts a history spanning centuries. This achievement was due not only to profound martial arts, but also to a solid organizational structure.

The saying, "All martial arts under heaven originate from Shaolin," is more than mere slogan.

In the original "Heavenly Sword and Dragon Saber," Zhang Sanfeng's master was Jueyuan, the fire-tending monk of Shaolin. In order to save Guo Xiang and Zhang Sanfeng, Jueyuan ran with two iron buckets until he collapsed from exhaustion. Before dying, he recited the "Nine Yang Manual" which he had discovered hidden in the folds of the "Lankavatara Sutra." Guo Xiang and Zhang Sanfeng, each reading the same scripture, achieved different insights, creating the Emei Nine Yang Skill and Wudang Nine Yang Skill respectively—two unrivaled arts. Present at the scene was also the Shaolin monk Wuse, who developed the Shaolin Nine Yang Skill.

Guo Xiang, daughter of Guo Jing and Huang Rong, granddaughter of Eastern Heretic Huang Yaoshi—one of the Five Greats—and sworn sister of the famed Yang Guo, was steeped in a legacy of martial prowess. Yet she chose to make Emei Nine Yang Skill the inner strength passed down within the Emei Sect, underscoring the power of the Nine Yang Manual.

Zhang Sanfeng's most famous skills, Taiji Fist and Taiji Sword, were only perfected after he reached the age of one hundred. Long before that, Wudang was already a prominent sect rivaling Shaolin. The Wudang Nine Yang Skill played a pivotal role in this ascent.

Just one martial art hidden within the Lankavatara Sutra gave rise to both Emei and Wudang, and with Shaolin’s seventy-two ultimate techniques, the depth of Shaolin’s heritage becomes clear. Yet it is precisely because of Shaolin’s profound foundation that the rapid growth of Wudang appears all the more remarkable.

According to the original story, Wudang truly surpassed its predecessor.

The reason for this, aside from Zhang Sanfeng's extraordinary insights into martial arts, is Wudang’s robust management system. A towering edifice stands only with a solid foundation; Zhang Sanfeng alone would not have made Wudang what it became. Only by cultivating successors could the sect endure through generations.

Thus, even as a menial disciple, Li Daniu never felt his starting point low. To begin his martial arts journey in such a place, even if nothing else, the method of building his foundation alone would allow him to walk further into the future.

Every day, he rose on time, washed and ate, completed his assigned tasks, practiced fist and sword routines during midday breaks, and meditated at night. Once his muscles loosened, this routine became unchanging.

The fist routine was the entry-level Wudang Long Fist, and the sword routine was the basic Nine Palaces Linked Rings Sword.

Li Daniu devoted four weeks, spending every day either at work or practice, and finally learned the framework of these routines—yes, only the framework. He could replicate every movement precisely, but that was the extent of it.

At first, Li Daniu assumed these two martial arts were mere performance routines, with little practical value. Yet, holding the attitude that practice couldn’t hurt, and with nothing else to occupy him, he diligently trained every day and eventually discovered their benefits.

They aided the cultivation of inner strength.

To be honest, compared to these routines, Li Daniu was most curious about and eager to learn inner strength cultivation, as every person from his homeland has fantasized about possessing such power.

Why is that?

Because while physical strength has limits, inner strength is boundless.

The strength of the flesh is finite—not merely in terms of force. If that were the case, training external arts such as the Dragon Elephant Prajna Skill, which increases brute strength but not inner power, would make one stronger than inner strength experts of the same level. But here, strength refers to what one can accomplish.

For example, when the two masters of the Xuanming School wish for a cold drink, a single strike with their Xuanming Palm can achieve it. With pure physical strength, how would one freeze or heat something? Rub it with their hands?

As someone from his homeland, Li Daniu was exhilarated upon realizing he could cultivate inner strength, even enduring the brutal muscle stretching regimen for it. However, when he started practicing inner strength, he was utterly baffled.

The inner strength taught to menial disciples was the Song Crane Heart Sutra, a basic method created by Zhang Sanfeng, only an introductory inner skill. Generally, menial disciples were only permitted to learn the first three levels.

The first level of Song Crane Heart Sutra is about sensing qi.

"Five hearts toward heaven, tongue against the palate, focus and calm the mind, free from distracting thoughts, seek qi in the dan tian." This was all Li Daniu learned for the first level.

"Are you kidding me?" Li Daniu seriously suspected the young Taoist was playing tricks. Aside from the physical actions of five hearts toward heaven and tongue against the palate, what do the rest mean?

He understood "focus and calm," "free from distracting thoughts"—just don’t let your mind wander. But what does "seek qi in the dan tian" entail?

Isn’t the dan tian three inches below the navel? Yet anatomical studies have never identified such an organ. He didn’t even know exactly where in that area it was supposed to be—how was he meant to find qi there?

"What benefit would I get from tricking you?" The young Taoist rolled his eyes. "If you don’t believe me, I can bring you the Song Crane Heart Sutra so you can read it yourself, or ask the other menial disciples whether they’ve learned the same first level."

Li Daniu wasn’t truly skeptical. He had never encountered a martial arts manual, so he had no reference point, and the young Taoist had no reason to deceive him. It was simply incomprehensible to him: how could one sense qi from just this phrase?

"You shouldn’t just think about the heart sutra; you must combine it with breathing exercises," the young Taoist explained, eager to teach. "When inhaling, don’t puff out your belly; instead, draw air into your chest and relax your abdomen. When you can’t inhale further, hold your breath, and let the air settle from your chest into your lower abdomen. That means chest in, abdomen out. Keep your chest in and exhale from your abdomen. Repeat this cycle, and that’s the breathing method."

Isn’t air always drawn into the lungs? How could it go to the abdomen?

As the saying goes, the more you know, the more you realize you don’t understand. That was Li Daniu’s situation. He knew things Zhang Sanfeng never did—what air is, its composition, the principles of eclipses, the earth as a sphere—but he couldn’t grasp how the Song Crane Heart Sutra could produce inner strength.

"Don’t overthink it. Just follow my instructions and experience it for yourself. Most people sense qi within three to five months. If you still can’t after that, it means you lack talent for martial arts, so you’d better stick to being a coachman," the young Taoist said, waving him off like a little adult, and leaving Li Daniu full of questions.

If you don’t understand, ask. But when the answers make no sense, what then?

Li Daniu realized that with his intellect, he would never truly comprehend the principle behind it. So he resigned himself, letting go of the need for explanations.

Read the book a hundred times, and its meaning will reveal itself. The same applies to cultivating inner strength. If everyone follows the same method, then he might as well do the same. If it doesn’t work once, try again; if not in one day, then two; if not in one month, then two. Only by trying can he know whether he will succeed.

Thus, twenty days into his practice, Li Daniu had yet to sense qi, but the training had some benefits. He could maintain the five hearts toward heaven posture for half an hour, and stand up without numb legs. Prolonged focus allowed him to achieve a state of calm, free from distracting thoughts, no longer thinking of modern matters or the film’s plot.

Compared to inner strength, his progress with external routines was more apparent. Since these were concrete movements, he treated them as a more challenging form of calisthenics and could just barely complete a full set.

At this rate, by the time his three months in this world ended and he returned, he still wouldn’t have sensed qi, and the routines would be useless in real combat. If things ended thus, his journey would have been a failure.

On the thirtieth day, Li Daniu finally noticed a change.

That day, he had no idea how many times he’d practiced the Wudang Long Fist—just as usual, like a set of calisthenics. When he finished, he felt a sudden warmth in his abdomen; more precisely, three inches below his navel.

He could swear to the heavens it was no illusion, but a very real sensation.

"Could this be the dan tian?"

The sensation was fleeting, vanishing as soon as he noticed it. He tried to recapture the feeling, but it eluded him.

"System, is there anything abnormal with my body?"

"No abnormalities detected. In fact, your body is stronger and healthier than when you first arrived in this world."

With the system’s confirmation, Li Daniu, regardless of the blazing sun, sat down cross-legged and began breathing exercises.

As usual, but he noticed something different: when he pressed the inhaled air toward his abdomen, he felt a faint barrier; when exhaling from the abdomen, the sensation disappeared.

Inhale—he felt it.

Exhale—it was gone.

Inhale again...

After several attempts, Li Daniu confirmed the sensation was real.

"Could this be some kind of bottleneck? But I’ve never heard of a bottleneck at the first level of an introductory skill."

Unable to figure it out, Li Daniu decided to consult an expert. Although yesterday was the designated day for martial arts instruction, he had connections: the little Taoist apprentice of Mo Shenggu, one of the Seven Heroes of Wudang.

Not caring that rest time was almost over, Li Daniu slipped away to the sect gate, where the little Taoist was usually on duty.

Having a disciple of a Wudang elder guard the gate might seem impractical, but it's actually sensible. If menial disciples stood guard, they couldn’t handle trouble, nor could they receive visiting martial artists properly.

As expected, the young Taoist was there, bored at his post.

"Li Daniu, what are you doing here?" he asked, surprised.

"I think I sensed qi," Li Daniu replied, describing his experience and anxiously awaiting the Taoist's verdict.

"Oh, congratulations. You've finally reached the threshold. Keep at it, and you may truly sense qi one day."

The Taoist's comment reassured Li Daniu, but left him puzzled.

"Aren’t you surprised? Isn’t it said that most people need two or three months to sense qi? I haven’t even reached a month—does this make me the legendary martial arts prodigy?"

The Taoist and his fellow gatekeeper exchanged a look and burst into laughter.

"What are you laughing at?"

Once he regained composure, the Taoist explained, "First, you've only touched the threshold, not truly sensed qi. Second, most people need two or three months, yes, but I only needed seven days. In fact, among the disciples of our generation, I was one of those who took the longest. If you're a genius, then we must be immortals reborn."

Li Daniu ignored their laughter and walked away silently.

Do you really have to crush my confidence?