86: Chapter 86 Nominal Disciple

"Literature has Taiji to pacify the world, martial arts has Eight Extremes Fist to stabilize the universe."

The person Cao Xiao was going to visit today was the Eight Extremes Fist master, Hou Jingsheng. The full name of Eight Extremes Fist is "Opening Gate Eight Extremes Fist," and "Eight Extremes" means that the force generated can reach extremely far in all directions. Eight Extremes Fist is one of the martial arts styles that emphasizes practical combat and combines fighting with practice. It holds great practical value; the grappling, back throws, and combat techniques practiced by the military and police have all absorbed the characteristics of Eight Extremes Fist. Its movements are simple and concise, rigid, fierce, and crisp, with extremely strong offensive capabilities. Li Shuwen, the legendary marksman who was a household name during the late Qing and early Republic of China eras, was a representative figure of Eight Extremes Fist.

Arriving in front of a residential gate in the suburbs towards the Hongwu District, Cao Xiao felt somewhat uneasy. He was impatient to see the long-famed Eight Extremes Fist, but he was also afraid that seeing it would disappoint him. It was not that he feared this Eight Extremes Fist master, Hou Jingsheng, would not live up to his reputation, but rather he was worried that Eight Extremes Fist would not meet the expectations he held in his heart. Legends are often the least reliable. He wanted to learn a martial art that could break through human limits, not just simple combat techniques; otherwise, he would have long since gone to find his third brother, Chen Huaizhi, to learn military combat techniques.

This was a Chinese-style courtyard in the style of the Republic of China era. From the outside, one could only see a two-story building, surrounded by thick red brick walls over two meters high. The main gate was tightly shut, and the situation inside could not be seen. Cao Xiao took a deep breath and knocked on the large wooden gate.

"Who is it?" a middle-aged woman's voice came from the courtyard.

"May I ask if Mr. Hou Jingsheng is at home?" Cao Xiao called out towards the inside.

The gate creaked open, and a woman dressed like a farm wife, around forty or fifty years old, appeared behind the door. After sizing up Cao Xiao, she frowned and asked, "Who are you, and what business do you have with our Old Hou?"

Old Chen knew very little about Hou Jingsheng and nothing about his family situation, so Cao Xiao did not know who this lady in front of him was. Seeing her displeased expression, he did not address her randomly and said, "My name is Cao Xiao, and I have come specifically to visit Mr. Hou today."

"Our Old Hou is not even sixty yet; did you find the wrong person?" the middle-aged woman said with confusion.

"Uh!" Cao Xiao choked. He had imagined the Eight Extremes Fist master Hou Jingsheng to be an old man with white hair and beard, possessing an immortal-like demeanor. He had not expected him to be a middle-aged man. This was awkward, and he was also somewhat disappointed in his heart. But since he had already come, he would not be satisfied without seeing him, so he said, "I am sorry, I came here because of his reputation. This is indeed Mr. Hou Jingsheng's home, right?"

"Reputation? What reputation? Is our Old Hou famous? How come I do not know? Forget it, tell him yourself. Old Hou, come out, someone is looking for you." The middle-aged woman was even more confused. Not bothering to waste words with Cao Xiao, she shouted towards the inside and then turned and walked into the house.

Cao Xiao did not follow her inside but stood at the gate waiting patiently. Before long, a middle-aged man wearing a white vest and loose shorts appeared before his eyes. The look of disappointment in Cao Xiao's eyes grew even stronger. Not only was the person in front of him thin and gaunt, but one of his legs was also severely lame; he limped as he walked over, and there was absolutely no sign of a National Martial Arts master about him. However, his teacher would not lie to him. Could this person in front of him be one of those hidden experts who usually looked like an ordinary, lame middle-aged man, but would unleash thunderous power the moment he started fighting? Whether it was true or not, he would know once he tried. He took the initiative to speak, "Are you Mr. Hou Jingsheng?"

"I am Hou Jingsheng. Who are you? What do you want with me?" Hou Jingsheng might have just been taking a nap, as he spoke with a hint of sleepiness.

"Hello, Mr. Hou, my name is Cao Xiao. I have come specifically to visit you today," Cao Xiao said respectfully with a smile.

"Heh! I am curious, what does a lame farmer like me have that is worth you visiting? Do not give me that flowery talk; I am just a farmer and do not understand that sophisticated language. Tell me, who sent you here!" Hou Jingsheng sneered, speaking with disdain.

This person's personality was indeed strange, and he was not polite at all when speaking. However, Cao Xiao had already prepared himself mentally and was not offended. He continued to smile and got straight to the point, "I learned about Mr. Hou from Mr. Chen Jinheng. I came here because I want to apprentice under you to learn Eight Extremes Fist."

"Chen Jinheng? That man is fine. But look at me, how can I teach you any Eight Extremes Fist in this state? At your age, you cannot practice a damn thing; your body has long since set. Even if my leg was not lame, I would not teach you. Besides, I have no intention of taking on any disciples. You are just messing with me. Get out of here, do not waste my time." Upon hearing Old Chen's name, Hou Jingsheng's attitude softened slightly, but after carefully sizing up Cao Xiao, his attitude became even worse, his eyes filled with intense disgust. After finishing, he impatiently waved his hand to drive Cao Xiao away.

Cao Xiao looked at Hou Jingsheng with a determined gaze and said firmly, "Master Hou, please let me finish. History is full of martial arts masters who achieved success late in life; some did not even start practicing martial arts until they were over thirty. I am only twenty-six this year, and I have the determination to practice martial arts with perseverance. As long as you are willing to teach me, I believe I will not disappoint you. And..."

"You do not know a damn thing about success late in life. Eight Extremes Fist is not some flashy showpiece; this is a technique for killing. What is the point of practicing routines, no matter how good-looking they are? Get out of here, I cannot be bothered to waste words with you!" Before Cao Xiao could finish, he was rudely interrupted by Hou Jingsheng, who drove him away again and reached out to close the door.

Seeing that his words not only failed to move Hou Jingsheng but actually made him more impatient, Cao Xiao quickly opened the box in his hand and held it out in front of Hou Jingsheng, saying quickly, "Wait, Master. Nothing in this world is absolute. This is a gift for you. I hope you will give me a chance. Besides, I have the ability to never forget what I see, and I learn things very quickly. If I truly cannot satisfy you, then you will not need to chase me away; I will leave on my own!"

"Hmm? Ginseng, and it has some age on it. What do you do? An actor? Even actors are not as ugly as you. Why do you want to learn martial arts? With the money you spent on this ginseng, you could have hired a bunch of bodyguards to block bullets for you." Hou Jingsheng's eyes lit up when he saw the ginseng in the box. He did not take it but stood where he was and asked Cao Xiao curiously.

Cao Xiao was almost crushed by these words and felt very stifled. So you think I want to learn martial arts just for performance? Because I do not look like an actor, you think I am some coward rich second generation? I give you ginseng and get belittled like this; what kind of eyes do you have! Cao Xiao thought this in his heart, but he did not dare say it out loud. He forced a smile and said, "I am just a small businessman. I dug up this ginseng myself in Changbai Mountain. I am learning martial arts for self-preservation. I have offended quite a few people abroad. It is better to rely on oneself than on others. Having some real skills on me increases my chances of survival."

"Oh! It seems your business is not small, and your ability to stir up trouble is even better, offending people all the way abroad. Come in with me!" Hearing Cao Xiao say this, Hou Jingsheng did not close the door to drive him away anymore; instead, his attitude suddenly changed, and he let Cao Xiao inside.

Cao Xiao was overjoyed. Although he did not know why Hou Jingsheng had such a reaction, there was finally hope. Holding the box, he followed behind him into the main room. Hou Jingsheng sat on the sofa on his own, ignoring Cao Xiao who was still standing. After entering the main room, Cao Xiao placed the box containing the ginseng on a table to the side and stood silently before Hou Jingsheng, waiting for him to speak.

"I have never taken on disciples in my life, nor do I intend to teach anyone boxing. If you want to learn Eight Extremes Fist, you should not have come to me. I have never apprenticed under a master myself, and the boxing techniques I learned are incomplete—they are all cobbled together and practiced haphazardly. So, I do not know how to teach people. However, since you want to learn so badly, I will test you first to see if you are worth me wasting some time on. You can temporarily be my registered disciple; we will talk about the rest after you pass the test," Hou Jingsheng said to Cao Xiao indifferently, then shouted into the house, "Cuier, go and bring me that book I wrote."

"Disciple Cao Xiao pays respects to..." Upon hearing Hou Jingsheng agree to take him on as a disciple, Cao Xiao was overjoyed and immediately moved to kneel before Hou Jingsheng according to ancient rites, but he was interrupted before he could finish his sentence.

"You are only a registered disciple; there is no need to kowtow to me. I am not dead yet, and I will not have people kowtowing to me. Stand properly!" Hou Jingsheng said to Cao Xiao, frowning.

"Yes." Cao Xiao stood up and stood quietly to the side.

Before long, a young girl, about ten years old, came into the main room carrying a stack of thread-bound books about twenty centimeters thick. After handing the books to Hou Jingsheng, she took a timid glance at Cao Xiao and ran into the room.