"Do you know why practicing martial arts is criticized as fancy tricks?"
Qin Jiao picked up the short stick again and kept hitting Fang Qingyu's punching arms.
"Because too many people mistake feeding moves for real combat."
Then he kicked toward Fang Qingyu's raised foot.
"What you hit every day are dead objects that don't fight back; you're training muscle memory, not killer instincts."
The short stick suddenly poked into Fang Qingyu's armpit: "When you really encounter thugs vying for territory, who would follow the routines to fight you?" The tip slid towards the crotch, "People specifically kick you low when you're doing horse stance!"
Fang Qingyu, who originally thought he was extremely familiar with Pile Skill Boxing,
appeared like a three-year-old learning to speak in front of Qin Jiao...
"I mentioned before, Pile Skill is alive, those fixed stances can transform into any other position anytime."
Qin Jiao flicked his wrist, and the short stick suddenly changed from poking to twisting, wrapping around Fang Qingyu's blocking right arm and pulling it to the side.
Fang Qingyu stumbled and bumped into the wooden dummy, his lower back painfully pressed against the protruding wooden arms.
"Remember this pain!"
The short stick slapped the back of his knee.
"Who would wait for you to pose in the standard horse stance?"
Fang Qingyu just tried to bend his knee to stabilize himself when the stick shadow darted like a poisonous snake toward the gap under his ribs.
Just as he wanted to block, the short stick glided along his jawline, its cold wooden edge against his throat.
"You're too focused on the rigid moves of Pile Skill Boxing."
"Again!"
Fang Qingyu was just about to pose when the short stick pierced the air straight for his face.
He instinctively tucked his neck and lowered his head.
"Hip rotation!"
Amid the loud shout, Fang Qingyu practically rolled away from the stick shadow sweeping towards his lower body, yet subconsciously formed a knife-hand chop, slashing at Qin Jiao's ankle.
This was an action never included in the Pile Skill.
But the short stick suddenly stopped half an inch from his temple.
Qin Jiao finally showed his first smile of the day: "You finally started to use your brain?"
It was now that Fang Qingyu truly understood what Qin Jiao meant by "alive Pile Skill", and he reflected:
"So... Pile Skill and Fist Technique are not techniques meant for fighting?"
"I've been emphasizing all along, it's a method mainly for strengthening the body!"
Qin Jiao replied irritably.
"Pile Skill stabilizes your foundation, and Fist Technique trains your force-exertion skills."
"As long as your foundation is stable, you can always exert your full strength. Do you think you can't beat ordinary people?"
"No..."
Fang Qingyu seriously shook his head.
"That's right, what's important now is to free yourself, don't let the previous stances restrict your thinking."
"Real Martial Technique is learned in the formal classes; those techniques are truly meant for killing!"
"If you lay the groundwork now, you can progress faster than others when you attend the formal classes."
"Got it."
Fang Qingyu exhaled deeply.
"Alright, that's all for today, we'll continue tomorrow."
Then Qin Jiao checked the time and announced dismissal.
Just as Fang Qingyu was about to turn around to shower and change clothes, he suddenly remembered something.
"Hey, Qin Jiao, I want to ask you a question."
"What's up?"
Qin Jiao turned back.
"That Tongyuan Martial Arts Hall in the city, do you know about it?"
"...Sounds familiar, why?"
"It's nothing, I just wanted to ask if such places are legit?"
Fang Qingyu scratched his head.
Qin Jiao felt a bit puzzled: "It's legal, isn't it just a place for betting on fights? There must be several in the city. Are you going to fight?"
"Oh no, I'm going there to be a security guard..."
"..."
Hearing this, Qin Jiao's lips twitched.
"You might as well fight there; you'd earn more than being a security guard."
Upon hearing this, Fang Qingyu's eyes suddenly lit up.
Looking at Qin Jiao's occupation title on top of his head...
It seems, I could really give it a try???
"People from the martial arts hall, is it okay to go fight in the ring?"
But he still had to clarify first.
"No problem, you can't participate in the formal competitions of the martial arts hall until you reach the Elite Class, so many people go fight in the ring to earn money, otherwise how could they afford club memberships every day."
Qin Jiao hadn't expected Fang Qingyu to be so naive and patiently explained again.
"Alright, I understand, thank you, Qin Jiao."
Fang Qingyu nodded and saw Qin Jiao off.
Although he still wanted to ask why he hadn't seen any Elite Class students, he figured he had asked enough questions for today.
After showering and changing clothes, Fang Qingyu left the martial arts hall and started his delivery job on an electric scooter.
But his mind was already focused on the security guard work at night.
While waiting for orders, he checked online about the rules of fighting in the martial arts hall.
It was different from his past experiences.
There was no categorization by weight class.
The competition types here were divided into two.
One type randomly arranged opponents by the venue's host, emphasizing randomness, meaning you might face anyone.
The second type was a challenge arena.
You could become the arena master, waiting for others to challenge you, or you could actively challenge any arena master.
The rules were simple.
The prize money was not low at all...
Winning ten consecutive matches as an arena master earned you 100,000, and defeating an arena master got you 20,000.
The randomly arranged events were even more terrifying.
A commission was taken based on the bet amount.
The highest one, as seen in the news, reached over a million.
It truly was worth exploring the world more.
After reading, Fang Qingyu felt a bit moved.
He used to just think about how to survive and never really paid attention to this information.
Things you'd see if you just searched a bit.
He only found out now.
Thankfully, it's not too late.
Or rather, just right!
Fang Qingyu was now somewhat looking forward to what the martial arts hall would be like at night.
He worked until past six o'clock.
He checked the deliveryman panel.
[Profession: Deliveryman Lv.1 (59/100)]
[Professional Basic Skills: Electric Car Driving Lv.2 (33/200)]
Both were steadily increasing.
Then he went home, first changed into the security guard uniform, and also packed a set of loose-fitting clothes into his backpack.
Only then did he head to the martial arts hall.
"Five Miles Street..."
Previously, Fang Qingyu hadn't paid attention to this address.
Now he realized this martial arts hall was actually on the most bustling street in Qingjian City.
This place was humorously dubbed.
"Five miles hide five cities, prosperity at every step!"
Imagine the level of luxury here.
Fang Qingyu rode his electric scooter into Five Miles Street and stopped in front of the Tongyuan Martial Arts Hall.
"Truly luxurious..."
A twelve-meter-high bronze revolving door with crystal chandeliers hanging above, marble steps flanked by life-size bronze statues, not the usual bodybuilding forms, but boxers wrapped in bandages making punch moves.
Fang Qingyu parked his electric scooter and walked up the steps.
After telling the doorman he was reporting for duty,
"Understood."
This place's security chief was named Lv Chen, in his thirties. He said, "Alright, tonight you'll stand by the fighting ring, learn how it's done, tomorrow I'll place you in the audience area."
"Alright."
Fang Qingyu took a deep breath and walked towards the nearest fighting ring.
He fixed his gaze on it, ready to see how the fight was about to begin.
Just in time to see.
How the coaching standards of these halls compared with Qin Jiao.