With both arms supporting the ground, Wang Longhu exerted strength through his waist, flipping effortlessly so that both legs were comfortably perched on the wall.
Feeling the world upside down before him, Wang Longhu couldn't help but be a little excited. His arms slowly bent, beginning the first wall handstand push-up of his life.
Now that his strength and physical attributes both surpassed 1, Wang Longhu's physical condition was no longer as frail as when he had just returned.
After drinking quite a bit last night, he woke up early this morning, spent half an hour standing in the three-body stance to adjust his spirit, Wang Longhu impulsively wanted to challenge the ultimate prisoner workout position.
One-arm push-up, one-leg squat, one-arm pull-up, hanging leg raise, the iron bridge, wall handstand push-up.
Breaking a constitution of 1 is ultimately just a numeric change; it doesn't mean Wang Longhu fully understands his body's limits. Strengthening health through Internal Boxing is also a vague concept.
To truly test whether his body has strengthened, a real challenge is needed, and the high-difficulty moves in prisoner workouts are the best tests.
Slowly and forcibly controlling his arms, half a minute passed, Wang Longhu gritted his teeth and managed to do 12 wall handstand push-ups.
As he brought his legs down, Wang Longhu's face was severely flushed, appearing as if experiencing altitude sickness, yet it couldn't hide the excitement on his face.
He had gotten stronger! He truly had gotten stronger!
A few days ago, Wang Longhu's arm strength wasn't even enough to manage a handstand, let alone push-ups in that position, but now, 15 handstand push-ups weren't even his limit.
This clearly indicated the significant improvement in his physical condition.
Next, Wang Longhu tried one-arm push-ups, one-leg squats, and one-arm pull-ups. For these high-difficulty exercises, Wang Longhu could perform 10 in one go for each.
The only one that Wang Longhu found difficult was the iron bridge, which severely tested lower body and waist strength.
This position requires you to stand with both legs while leaning your upper body backward until your back is parallel to the ground, and your waist forms a straight line. That's considered qualified.
Wang Longhu attempted it several times but quickly fell to the ground, unable to hold even for three seconds.
"Forget it, practicing this move doesn't increase much physical condition anyway, I'm not going to waste time on you," sighed Wang Longhu helplessly, getting up from the ground after yet another failed attempt, dusting off his pants.
The lung cancer inside his body is still a major problem, like a sword of Damocles hanging above his head, ready to fall at any moment.
His urgent task is to enhance his physical condition as much as possible, rather than wasting time on high-difficulty training poses. Wang Longhu is well aware of the priorities.
Putting on a jacket and heading out, those three unknown crawling figures he encountered last night cast a significant shadow in Wang Longhu's mind. So this time going out, he made sure to slip a folding knife into his pocket, just in case.
Looking at the dimly lit sky, Wang Longhu planned to change his route today, replacing his morning run with practicing the Beng Fist.
Lingbei Community is located on a hill of a low mountain, walking down along the road leads to the city, a half-hour walk reaches the seaside.
And walking up along the road leads into the mountains, the renowned Yingzhou Zen Temple within Dong County's domain is located at the mountain entrance. The air is fresh, quiet, and deserted, perfect for practicing the Beng Fist.
...
"Hoo... hoo..."
Advancing in the three-body stance, with every step, Wang Longhu quickly launched a punch, striving for that state Master Chen mentioned, where the footwork keeps up with the fist, and the fist keeps up with the footwork.
In the Five Elements Fist, the Beng Fist emphasizes sudden movement, short and fierce, both fast and intense.
Once fully mastered, as soon as a step is taken, the fist has already struck the opponent, not giving them the time to react and parry, and the punch penetrates deeply, causing damage upon contact, leaving little chance for resistance.
Initially, Wang Longhu used his inherent strength for each punch, indistinguishable from an ordinary person's punch, but gradually, he recalled the night before when he executed a subtly sounding Beng Fist.
Suddenly inspired, Wang Longhu sensed something, flexed his spine, and launched a punch, hot energy immediately surged through his arms, and a faint 'swoosh' sound reverberated once again.
Seeing his idea succeed, Wang Longhu was further motivated, each punch stimulating the spine to generate heat, exciting the tailbone to form goosebumps, closing pores to prevent heat from escaping.
One punch, two punches, three punches... Gradually, Wang Longhu lost count of how many punches he threw, only feeling like his body was a balloon ready to burst at any moment.
Snap!
A crisp sound snapped Wang Longhu's attention back. The sound was clear and sharp, like firecrackers.
A look of disbelief crossed Wang Longhu's face as he stared at his own fist, hardly believing the sound came from one of his punches.
"Did I... mutate?" Wang Longhu exclaimed in surprise.
He might have been better off staying silent, for upon speaking, Wang Longhu felt his body relax, the goosebumps on his skin began to fade, and he temporarily lost the ability to close his pores by moving his spine.
The heat locked inside his body erupted like a flood breaking a dam, compelling Wang Longhu to lift his head and roar to the sky. Once he'd calmed down, sweat was pouring down his body, his hair and clothes as wet as if he'd just fallen into a pond.
"This feeling, it's amazing."
Having sweated so much in an instant, Wang Longhu felt utterly exhausted, as though he'd just run a marathon.
Yet the feeling of locking the energy inside, forcefully enduring, and not allowing it to escape gave Wang Longhu immense pleasure, a surging thrill after suppression.
Leaning against the roadside guardrail, Wang Longhu caught his breath, recalling and familiarizing himself with the feeling of that punch he just threw.
Though previously a total novice to martial arts, Wang Longhu knew that being able to produce such a crisp snapping sound with a punch wasn't simple.
"I'll ask Master Chen about this the next time I see him exercising in the morning," he decided.
As Wang Longhu took a break, a chorus of barking dogs suddenly rang out from a bend in the mountain road ahead, sounding like more than just one - it was a pack.
Peering over, within seconds, he saw a large pack of dogs rushing forward like a bustling crowd.
Among them were black dogs, white ones, brown, red, two-colored, three-colored, a wide variety, no fewer than twenty, clearly stray dogs.
"Woof woof woof!"
"Woof woof woof!"
It was the first time Wang Longhu had seen such an extensive bark squad, and he couldn't help but feel a bit anxious.
In the countryside, stray dogs are dangerous, even more so when they're in packs. They could easily overwhelm two adults working together.
Though he learned the Beng Fist from Master Chen, Wang Longhu wasn't confident enough to battle such a large number of beasts. He quickly reached into his pocket, gripping the folding knife prepared earlier.
"Time to eat!"
A loud voice echoed as Wang Longhu looked in the direction of the sound. Descending the roadside slope was a towering, yellow-robed monk with broad shoulders and a sturdy build.
Carrying a wooden bucket in each hand, he navigated the 60° sloped dirt path with steady ease.
Upon seeing this figure, a thought instantly sprang up in Wang Longhu's mind.
"Shaolin master!"