Martial Arts Livestreaming
Chapter 312 - 283: Millennium Legacy, Human Power Has Its Limits

Chapter 312: Chapter 283: Millennium Legacy, Human Power Has Its Limits

"Martial Arts have lasted for a thousand years. How many have faded into oblivion?" Sun Yiquan said with an aged tone, leaving Wu Li stunned.

Before coming, he had considered many reasons why Sun Yiquan had discarded the spear: perhaps due to a bet, perhaps due to lingering illness, or perhaps because of some unspeakable reasons.

In any case, in Wu Li’s opinion, Sun Yiquan must have discarded the spear reluctantly—it seemed impossible for an outstanding Spear King and Wu Family Spear successor, who mastered five Master Level skills, to not love Martial Arts and Spear Technique! How could he willingly abandon the spear?

But now, having heard Sun Yiquan speak these words, Wu Li realized, somewhat shocked, that the other’s attitude might not stem from indescribable hardships, but rather a genuine feeling that the discontinuation of the Wu Family Spear in his hands was not of great consequence.

Frowning, Wu Li looked at Sun Yiquan, thought for a moment, then sat down again and softly said, "I learned Xingyi Fist from my grandfather, but it wasn’t a family tradition."

Sun Yiquan looked startled at first, then probably guessed what Wu Li wanted to say, shook his head, took a sip of tea, and remained silent.

Wu Li continued, "My grandfather learned his martial arts from a boxer in the village when he was young, who is my grandmaster. Initially, my grandmaster had no intention of taking disciples but later, after a severe illness and in order not to let the heritage die with him, he took on my grandfather and two others as his disciples."

"After my grandmaster taught them the martial arts, it wasn’t long before he passed away. Later, my grandfather told me that if the grandmaster hadn’t taught them, preserving some energy, he could have lived a couple more years."

Wu Li’s tone was calm, the camera facing him in the quiet great hall; Xu Ming and many onlookers listened silently to his words.

"The other two who learned martial arts with my grandfather, one was caught and executed during the severe crackdown for committing minor offenses; the other was gravely wounded during a major uprising and didn’t survive."

"Only my grandfather, because he joined the military, avoided many troubles. However, he later faced near-death several times on the battlefield. He told me that if he had died there, our grandmaster’s lineage of martial arts would have been completely severed."

"Fortunately, that did not happen. My grandfather survived, returned home, started a family, and had my father. He originally wanted to pass on the martial arts to my father, but my father was reluctant to learn until I was born, and so the martial arts were passed on to me."

"When I first started learning, I thought about how tortuous the transmission of this lineage had been. If even a minor mistake had occurred, such as if my grandmaster hadn’t persisted in teaching martial arts, or if my grandfather had encountered an accident on the battlefield, then this martial arts tradition would have been severed. And that’s just across two generations; going further back, my grandmaster’s master, my grandmaster’s grandmaster, generation after generation, how many hardships and accidents must they have endured to pass down these skills? Yet, ultimately, it still reached me!"

Wu Li looked at Sun Yiquan, "You just mentioned that Martial Arts have lasted a thousand years. Yes, a thousand years, with too much lost to the winds of time, but doesn’t this give us all the more reason to cherish the traditions we still have? The Wu Family Spear has already lost much by the time it reached you, but do you realize the efforts your predecessors made simply to ensure that this part of the Spear Technique could be passed down to you? In dismissing it as ended, have you considered your master, your master’s master, and the countless sacrifices made by our forebears?"

Comments in the live stream:

"Well said!"

"Yes, the transmission of Martial Arts is already difficult enough; to claim it can simply end is too irresponsible."

"Only today, after hearing Wu Li speak, did I truly understand how challenging the preservation of our traditional skills has been until now."

"Indeed, in the past unlike today, natural disasters and human calamities claimed lives before many things could be passed down."

...

"Fill the guest’s cup with tea." Sun Yiquan suddenly instructed Xu Ming, who was at his side.

"Ah!"

Xu Ming snapped back to reality. Listening to Wu Li recount those events, he had been swept up in imagining the countless wars, famines, and diseases those ancestors had endured through a millennium to pass these skills down to the present—a thought both heavy and moving!

At this moment, his reverie was interrupted by Sun Yiquan’s calm voice, annoying Xu Ming as he shot his boss a glare before standing up to refill Wu Li’s water, then reluctantly did the same for Sun Yiquan under his watchful gaze.

"Well spoken," Sun Yiquan affirmed, giving Wu Li a meaningful look, "Master Wu, I have considered all that you said, and I want to ask you one question."

Wu Li, "Speak."

In a somber tone, Sun Yiquan asked, "You said Martial Arts have lasted a thousand years and the heritage is hard to maintain. I want to ask, how much has this thousand-year-old Martial Arts advanced compared to the past?"

Wu Li frowned. Sun Yiquan continued, "A thousand years ago, even hundreds of years ago, people used Martial Arts to kill enemies on the battlefield or to compete with others. Today, do battlefields still rely on Martial Arts? In competitions before your time, has anyone made a name for themselves with Kung Fu? Even you, haven’t you proposed reforming Martial Arts? Why the need for change? Because you also realize that Martial Arts no longer suit this era!"

Wu Li wanted to speak but hesitated. Sun Yiquan watched him, "Over thousands of years, how much has the world changed? Many things have progressed, so why is the progress of Martial Arts so negligible, or even worse than before?"

"The reason is simple—there are limits to human strength!"

Sun Yiquan’s voice rose, "Martial Arts, fundamentally, is a study of how to better utilize the body. Although various weapons exist, what truly matters is not the weaponry, but the person. However, human strength is limited, no matter how much we develop our bodies or study techniques, human power, speed, and reaction all have their limits. Not just a thousand years of Martial Arts, if this trend continues for another thousand years, the pinnacle of Martial Arts will still not rise much higher!"

"Master Wu, you are already one of the top Martial Artists of our time. Originally faced with firearms, you could only avoid their sharpness. Even an ordinary person holding a gun could pose a threat to you, let alone someone who has practiced Spear Technique for a few years. Yet, here you are—talent, determination, heritage, luck, none could be lacking. Decades of hard training might still be less effective than someone lightly moving their finger."

"Master Wu," Sun Yiquan looked sincerely at Li Wu, "Martial Arts have been around for a thousand years but, over these many years, we have almost been marking time. What is the point of continuing this legacy?"

...

A moment of silence.

Live Chat Comments:

"This, I suddenly feel that he actually makes some sense..."

"Alas, when human strength reaches its limit, the emergence of guns is indeed the end of Martial Arts."

"In a thousand years, technology might have already broken the limits of the human body, like developing Exoskeleton Battle Armor or something. Wouldn’t Martial Arts become useful then?"

"That’s the progress of technology, not the progress of Martial Arts. Even if there are things like Exoskeleton Battle Armor to counter firearms, that would be a new type of Martial Arts—how to use tools efficiently. Essentially, it’s the same as using firearms now, none of the Ming Jin, Dark Force, or Hua Jin would be necessary."

...

Many netizens in the comment section were convinced by Sun Yiquan’s words, and they also accepted the viewpoint that ’human power is finite.’

Chen Gang looked at Li Wu, eager to know what Li Wu would say.

"So that’s it?" Li Wu finally spoke, his expression somewhat complex as he looked at Sun Yiquan.

"So this was the reason for retiring from spear?"

Sun Yiquan pursed his lips, non-committal.

Li Wu shook his head, "You’re right, Martial Arts have been stagnating for a thousand years, even regressing, but that’s no reason to not pass it on."

"For a thousand years, countless people have existed and then died in this world. Before they died, they had their own lives. They laughed, cried, got angry, fought... They existed so vividly, yet after their lifetimes, they will be forgotten. Everything they ever did, remembered, completely nonexistent in this world, as if they never existed..."

Li Wu’s voice was low, "I once visited a master of Eagle Claw Fist. His whole life’s effort and all his pride were tied to Eagle Claw Fist. He passed on the art to his son and hoped he would master it and continue the family’s Martial Arts legacy."

"Perhaps many years from now, he will be gone, but the Fist he practiced will remain. Even if it’s just passed down to one person, there will at least still be someone in this world repeatedly doing what he did countless times, delving into what he devoted his life to. His mark in this world, albeit small, will continue to exist in this manner."

Li Wu looked up at Sun Yiquan, "Senior Sun, the transmission of Martial Arts at least lets future generations know that such people once existed in this world."

Sun Yiquan: "..."

"You don’t want to pass down the Wu Family Spear, and I understand, but I feel it’s a pity. Finally, I want to say, over thousands of years, the apex of Martial Arts hasn’t been surpassed, but who knows in the next thousand years, perhaps someone will reach even higher peaks?"

Sun Yiquan was stunned for a moment, opened his mouth, but ultimately didn’t say anything.

Li Wu stood up, bowed to Sun Yiquan, "Sorry to have disturbed you."

After speaking, he signaled to Chen Gang and then turned to walk downstairs.

"Hey..." Xu Ming instinctively stood up, wanting to keep Li Wu, but didn’t know what to say.

"Is that it?"

"Alas, I was hoping to see a clash of Big Spears."

"Li Wu spoke well, not just about Martial Arts, but all cultural transmissions. Isn’t it about allowing life to continue in another form?"

"Li Wu really has spirit; maybe someday someone will break human limits through Martial Arts?"

"So this episode of ’Seeking Martial Arts’ is over?"

...

The comment section was lively, with most netizens feeling regretful that they didn’t witness the anticipated duel.

Li Wu, leading a large group, walked down the stairs, stepped out the main door of the restaurant, and looked back at the second floor window one last time, sighing to himself.

"Human power has its limit, huh?"