In the early morning, a rosy-cheeked, bright-eyed child dressed in cotton clothes was eating breakfast with a woman of benevolent countenance. This was Teng Qingshan and his mother, Yuan Lan.
“Qingshan, do you want a younger brother, or a younger sister?” Yuan Lan looked kindly at her son.
“Both,” Teng Qingshan replied, shoveling the last mouthful of porridge down with great appetite.
“Hmm, then Mother will give you twins.” Yuan Lan smiled, gently stroking her slightly protruding abdomen; she was nearly four months pregnant.
“Mother, I’m finished.”
Teng Qingshan promptly dropped his bowl and chopsticks and bolted outside.
“Run slower, watch your step!” Yuan Lan called after him, then glanced at his empty bowl and couldn't help shaking her head and sighing, “Qingshan truly has a huge appetite. He ate two flatbreads and a large bowl of porridge this morning. And he’s only three… he eats almost as much as I do.”
The fact that Teng Qingshan, at just three years old, could eat so much was something many in Teng Family Village would marvel at with a tut of admiration.
…
“The more I can eat, the better,” Teng Qingshan muttered to himself as he walked down the small path. “It means my internal organs are strong, my absorption capacity is high, and my vital energy and blood are vigorous.”
Since arriving in this world, Teng Qingshan’s life had been utterly relaxed. There were no enemies here, only parents who cared for and doted on him. As for playing with other two or three-year-olds, that felt like pure torture to him!
So, Teng Qingshan calmly began training according to his own plan.
As a supreme assassin and a grandmaster of internal martial arts, Teng Qingshan knew precisely what needed to be trained and when.
Although he was chronologically three years old, the custom here was that a baby was considered ‘one year old’ upon birth, meaning he had actually only been in this world for two years. During these two years, he dared not engage in any strength-based training. The only thing he focused on was—improving his body’s flexibility and accelerating the growth of his bones and tendons.
This method was synthesized by Teng Qingshan based on ancient Yogic techniques and the foundational drills of internal martial arts.
A child’s body possessed superior flexibility, making training much easier.
An adult might struggle for a year or more to separate his legs into a perfect straight line, yet a child could achieve it in ten days to half a month. This was because children’s bones and tendons were supple and they were naturally in a period of rapid growth.
The better the body’s resilience and the stronger the bones and tendons, the greater the benefit for practicing internal arts.
“Qingshan, off to the training grounds?” Occasionally, neighbors along the path would greet Teng Qingshan with a smile.
“Mm,” Teng Qingshan nodded.
The training ground was an open space two hundred meters long and wide. Every morning, the men of Teng Family Village would drill there.
“Hah!”
“Hngh!”
Powerful shouts and grunts echoed from up ahead like rolling thunder.
Teng Qingshan finally arrived at the training ground. In the center of this vast open area, hundreds of men stood in precise ranks, their upper bodies bare, slick with sweat. Each held a long spear, thrusting forward repeatedly. As hundreds of men shouted cadence in unison while executing synchronized spear thrusts, even Teng Qingshan felt a surge of excitement.
Near the edge of the training ground, several young children stood watching with wide eyes.
“Keep it steady, shoulders level, spear level, feet level, body level!” A stern shout ripped across the entire field. A lean man with piercing eyes walked through the center of the formation. Suddenly, he lifted his foot and kicked the thigh of a man holding a spear nearby, sending him staggering.
“Your body is swaying—where is your core strength? Did you waste it all on your mothers? Hold steady!” the lean man barked.
“Yes, Master,” the man quickly corrected his stance, not daring to utter another word.
“Suffer a bit now, and you’ll shed less blood when you meet bandits, mountain thieves, or savage beasts!” the lean man said coldly as he moved on. “When danger strikes, we can only rely on ourselves.”
“Alright, now, practice the Great Spear Shake,” the lean man commanded. “Lead hand takes, rear hand rotates… aim at the target and stab out. Whether defending or attacking, you rely on this one move. Master it well, and you can save your lives when danger finds you.”
The strong men immediately began practicing this familiar move.
This maneuver had been drilled countless times.
Teng Qingshan watched the scene, a faint smile touching his lips.
“The Teng Family Village men train daily. While this training is simple, it is extremely effective. However, the ‘Central Level Thrust’ and the ‘Great Spear Shake’ alone are enough techniques to practice for a lifetime,” Teng Qingshan thought, recalling that in his previous life, he was a Grandmaster of Xing Yi Quan, which itself is derived from the essence of spearplay.
Whether it was the Crushing Fist or the Drilling Fist, both contained the spirit of the long spear.
Teng Qingshan could see that if a few dozen of the strong men from Teng Family Village formed a spear array, their collective power would be formidable.
“With the military strength of Teng Family Village, ordinary bandit gangs wouldn't dare provoke them!” Teng Qingshan’s thoughts drifted to the White Horse Gang. “But the White Horse Gang is the largest faction within two hundred li of Yicheng. To join them, there are physical requirements, yet even so, the White Horse Gang still boasts eight thousand core members!”
Eight thousand core members, plus a whole host of lesser underlings surrounding them.
They were absolute overlords within the Yicheng territory!
Teng Family Village was also required to pay an annual ‘tribute fee’ to ensure peace.
…
Watching the hundreds of clansmen drill, Teng Qingshan suddenly had an idea.
“My bone and tendon resilience training is nearly complete. Although I’m still not suited for compressive strength exercises yet, practicing Xing Yi Quan is definitely fine now.” After watching for a while, Teng Qingshan jogged back home.
“Qingshan, you’re back,” Yuan Lan said, holding a basket of dirty clothes, preparing to head out to wash them.
“Mm, Mother, I’m tired, I’m going to sleep for a bit.” Teng Qingshan went into his own room. As a three-year-old, the family would never ask him to do chores. The excuse of needing sleep was something his mother, Yuan Lan, didn’t doubt for a second.
He closed the door and the window.
“It’s been too long since I practiced Xing Yi Quan.” Teng Qingshan stretched his limbs slightly, feeling a touch of excitement after years of not practicing.
He took a deep breath, calming his mind, and began to practice inside the room. The Twelve Forms of Xing Yi, the Five Element Fists, and the Three Stances—all mixed together, flowing spontaneously as inspiration struck. One moment he was a fierce tiger descending the mountain, the next a python coiling, then a swimming dragon emerging from the water…
Most children, with their small arms and legs, even if practicing internal arts, were merely mimicking the form, achieving no real effect. Even with a Grandmaster’s awareness, if the body was too small and couldn't fully extend, it was useless. This was why Teng Qingshan had spent the last two years focusing solely on flexibility and bone/tendon growth. Now, his waist could bend back so far his mouth could touch his feet. With physical conditions like these, executing internal arts was effortless.
With the right physical condition and the awareness of a Grandmaster, what was the inevitable result?
His movements, coordinated with inhalation and exhalation techniques, made Teng Qingshan feel more energized the longer he practiced. He trained for a full two hours. For the beginner in internal arts, the more you practiced, the more vigor you gained, and Teng Qingshan wasn't just a beginner; his conscious awareness was already at the Grandmaster level.
“Hah! Hngh!”
At the end of his session, Teng Qingshan couldn't help but shout out twice in excitement.
“What a relief, my entire body—bones, tendons, and muscles—feel wonderfully pliable. The effects of internal arts are clearly much superior to the ancient Yogic techniques.” Teng Qingshan was overjoyed.
**
Internal martial arts inherently possessed the effect of strengthening bones and muscles. Coupled with Teng Qingshan’s memories from his past life, the execution of Xing Yi Quan yielded the best possible results. He could even sense that after every session, his entire skeletal structure was undergoing transformation. His bones, tendons, and muscles were rapidly improving, which naturally required energy!
Therefore, Teng Qingshan could eat even more!
“Hup!”
Teng Qingshan launched himself across the courtyard, landing with a single hand bracing the ground before flipping over into a double-leg sweep.
“Inhale, exhale!”
Accompanying the strenuous activity, Teng Qingshan also integrated controlled breathing techniques.
The profound mystery of internal arts lay precisely in the coordination between the breathing techniques and the physical forms. This breathing also served to strengthen the internal organs and stimulate the bones and tendons.
Whenever his parents were away, Teng Qingshan would lock his door and practice in the courtyard.
“Huh?”
Teng Qingshan stopped abruptly in shock, then crouched down and slapped the ground. Thwack! A hole appeared in the mud.
“How is this possible?” Teng Qingshan stood stunned on the spot. “I—I have only been practicing Xing Yi Quan for one month, how could I have generated Inner Strength? And my bones and muscles are still in the growth phase; they haven't even approached their limits, so how could Inner Strength manifest?”
Just moments ago, Inner Strength had materialized within his body.
According to the hierarchy of internal martial arts, one should first temper the body. Only when muscle mass reached its limit and vital energy and blood were abundant could it possibly transform into Inner Strength. But Teng Qingshan was only three, and had only practiced Xing Yi Quan for a month; his body was still an unimaginable distance from its limit, so how could Inner Strength appear?
“In ancient times and modern times, I practiced internal martial arts. Why such a huge difference?”
Teng Qingshan’s expression suddenly shifted. “Could it be…”
He had practiced internal arts in both eras, true. But the environments were different. In modern times, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth had thinned to a negligible level. But in ancient times?
“Legends say that in ancient times, one could absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to refine Inner Strength. And this method of absorbing spiritual energy is actually a form of breathing technique,” Teng Qingshan’s eyes lit up. “My internal arts’ breathing technique must also be capable of absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Could it be that during this past month, while I was cultivating Xing Yi Quan, I naturally absorbed this spiritual energy, which has now converted into Inner Strength?”
There was no other possibility.
Teng Qingshan’s bones and muscles were still in the nascent stage; his internal essence and blood could not possibly generate Inner Strength.
There was only one explanation—absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth to create Inner Strength.
“Generating Inner Strength at age three—that’s absolutely impossible in the modern era,” Teng Qingshan felt his heart tremble. “Humans rely on food to absorb energy, which is limited. But now I can absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Just how far can I progress?”
In the modern world, relying on food for energy, which was finite, allowed him to reach the level of an SS-rank assassin through internal arts.
But in ancient times, with the endless spiritual energy of heaven and earth to draw upon, what heights could an internal arts master reach?
Teng Qingshan’s eyes shone brightly.
Suddenly, his heart filled with an intense craving—a craving for the future!
What level would he ultimately attain?
“It seems my previously established training plan must change,” Teng Qingshan felt that faint wisp of Inner Strength within him, and in that moment, his ambition soared to the heavens.