052 Tai Chi: Like Catching Fish

Aside from his height, Chen Jue felt his frame and muscles had grown significantly. The appearance of forty teeth left him utterly stunned! This was the legendary physical state said to belong only to the Buddha, Shakyamuni: “Forty teeth, even and white as snow.” Yet, he was still some distance from such a realm—his old teeth hadn’t fallen out, and the new ones hadn’t fully grown in. It showed that the Muscle-Tendon Changing Sutra, though it had transformed his skeleton, strengthened his marrow, and enhanced his blood-making ability, helping him shed his former self, was not enough by itself to elevate him to saintly heights.

His internal energy had not yet suffused his entire body, nor had his strength truly penetrated his marrow; being able to replace his teeth so early was entirely thanks to his extraordinary constitution. He took out the newly purchased electronic scale and stepped onto it—a white “80KG” illuminated. “My weight has increased instead of decreasing?” A flicker of doubt crossed his eyes. He switched the scale to measure body fat. At last, the few hundred yuan spent had proven useful. A glaring “7%” appeared on the screen!

For reference, the normal body fat rate for men is around 15% to 18%. Before settling back in his hometown, Jue had been slightly overweight, his city life habits irregular, and his body fat a bit high. After all this training, he hadn’t expected his body fat to drop to such a low level. Only the world’s top athletes typically reach a 7% body fat rate.

“If only I had more advanced equipment, I could measure bone density and muscle mass, too.” A gleam of excitement flashed in his eyes as he smiled and put the scale away, glancing at his attribute panel:

Player: Chen Jue
Age: 27
Health Index: 105%
Strength: 1.96
Agility: 1.47
Intelligence: 1.24
Constitution: 2.21
Skills Mastered: (abbreviated)

Available Free Attribute Points: 0.05

Everyone wishes their body could be stronger, healthier, and more vigorous! Perfecting the twelve forms of the Muscle-Tendon Changing Sutra had boosted his already impressive physical attributes yet again! The Shaolin divine art truly lived up to its name!

However, the free attribute points he’d accumulated over days were nearly depleted, and Jue began to look forward to his evening training. But before that, he needed to satisfy his hunger. The dozen Power Pills he’d taken replenished his energy, but food could not be replaced by pills.

He emptied the fridge, throwing everything into a pot for a grand seafood and mountain delicacy stew, cooking twice his usual amount of rice. He ate heartily, relying on his enhanced digestion to break down several pounds of food. After an hour’s rest, the hunger faded and he felt invigorated. Then, donning his weights, he sprinted up the mountain.

Now, seventy kilograms of extra weight felt as trivial as carrying a few books before he began training. Where it once took five minutes to reach the reservoir dam, he now made it in just over three. “This body is becoming more and more monstrous!” Jue gazed at the encroaching dusk of the reservoir, jogging around it for half an hour, gaining 0.01 in agility.

When darkness had fully settled and the villagers had finished their walks, he approached the small boat, shed his weights, and rowed straight for the whirlpool in the water. With a splash, he dove in. His greatly improved heart and lung capacity made him feel almost as comfortable underwater as on land.

He dove to the sluice gate, his enhanced vision allowing him to make out the outline of the base even in the pitch-black night—a sign of improved night vision.

He took his stance, set up the thirteen forms of Tai Chi, and slowly began the movements. Jue felt a warm current circulate through his body. The spinning whirlpool around him stirred the undertow, rushing past his body, and he used this underwater flow to sense changes in his internal strength.

The Tai Chi forms, already advancing rapidly in daylight, now benefited from the underwater environment, with proficiency shooting up as if ignited! In less than ten minutes, both the forms and stances broke through to Level 3!

You’re not mistaken—Level 3! Not capped at level three as other skills might be.

“No wonder Tai Chi is called the mother of all martial arts—the potential truly is boundless!” Jue couldn’t help but marvel as he glanced at the changes in his skill panel.

A strange new muscle memory spread through his body, deepening his understanding of Tai Chi. As for the siphon effect triggered by this breakthrough, he had prepared in advance. Did you think he ate all those pounds of food for nothing? Most had already been digested, but plenty remained in his gut. As his body absorbed nutrients in a frenzy, the siphoning effect quickly subsided.

Constitution, strength, and agility all increased by 0.03. While not as explosive as the gains from the Muscle-Tendon Changing Sutra, it was steady and enduring.

He performed the thirteen Tai Chi forms underwater, his movements resembling “fishing”—here, “fishing” was not the usual office time-wasting, but the essence of the art. As the saying goes, “Tai Chi is like fishing, Bagua like grinding, Xingyi like catching shrimp.” Though it sounds like mockery, it encapsulates the essence of the three internal martial arts.

Had a Tai Chi master been watching, he would have praised Jue’s pure form. He had grasped the very soul of Tai Chi—if he wished, he could open a school and attract a throng of eager students.

His “fishing” movements grew ever more vigorous, the energy around him swirling like a whirlpool. The small vortex caused by the drain valve was now amplified by his internal force, spinning faster and larger!

On the surface, a great funnel-shaped whirlpool formed, the small boat above spinning furiously. Such a spectacular scene would have prompted any witness to record a video and submit it to the “Into Science” show for a special feature on “Reservoir Anomalies.”

Fortunately, the recent cold weather had kept even the anglers away from Chen Village Reservoir, so no one noticed the dramatic changes on the water.

After more than ten minutes, sensing the warm current had nearly circled his body and his lungs were out of air, Jue finally stopped, pushed off, and surfaced.