EXCELLENT KUNGFU IN COMBAT
"Fierce Tiger Springs Claws" during the Essence of Shaolin course
When Fong Sai Yuk arrived at the lei-tai, or stage for kungfu combat, Li Siew Wan was already waiting.
“I am Fong Sai Yuk. Why did you invite me for a lei-tai match?”
“Fong Sai Yuk,” Li Siew Wan replied, “My husband and you had no hatred. Why did you ‘deliver you poison-hand’ (which means ‘kill him’)?”
Fong Sai Yuk laughed coldly. “How can you say this? Sifu Looi set up the lei-tai to challenge heroes of the world. If there are death or injury, it is the will of heaven. No one can blame another. Not only this, those who died under Sifu Looi’s hands, whom would their wives ask for revenge?”
Li Siew Wan was furious but could not answer. She went straight at Fong Sai Yuk with an eagle-claw. Fong Sai Yuk warded off the attack, and pierced a finger-thrust at her with the pattern “Soon Yang Thrusts Sword”.
(“Soon Yang” is one of the eight Taoist immortals. Another of his name was Zhong Pin, and his surname was “Lu”. Lu Soon Yang or Lu Zhong Pin was famous for his sword.)
Li Siew Wan jumped over Fong Sai Yuk with the pattern “La Char Flies in Heaven”. (La Char is a child-god, and the son of the Heavenly King, Li Ching, who carries a pagoda.) Before Fong Sai Yuk could turn around, she moved forward and struck his back with the pattern “Wu Song Opens Window”. (Wu Song was a warrior in the Song Dynasty famous for killing a fierce tiger.)
Fong Sai Yuk heard a sound from behind. He bent forward and executed with his left leg a sideway tiger-tail kick using the pattern, “Fierce Tiger Stretches Waist”. Most people would be hit by the tiger-tail kick, which was one of the no-shadow kicks. But Li Siew Wan was skillful in kungfu, without moving her feet, she slanted her body backward to avoid the tiger-tail kick, and simultaneously caught Fong Sai Yuk’s leg with the pattern “Two Tigers Subdue a Dragon”. She would have moved forward to execute a coup de grace.
But Fong Sai Yuk was not worried. He placed his hands on the ground and shot off his right foot at Li Siew Wan’s front leg in a pattern called “Crane Dances in Clouds”. (In our school this pattern is called “Fierce Tiger Springs Claws”.) Li Siew Wan was excellent in kungfu. She jumps back to avoid the second kick.
The two combatants had many exchanges on the lei-tai, each knowing the other was highly skilled in kungfu. They fought like comet chasing the moon, every technique was executed with precision like breeze flowing though clouds.
While using his hands to engage the opponent’s hands, Fong Sai Yuk lifted his left leg to kick at the lower body of Li Siew Wan using the pattern “White Crane Flaps Wings”. But Li Siew Wan did not defend against the kick. She shifted her body slightly to her left and with her right thrust-kick executed “White Horse Presents Hoof” at Fong Sai Yuk’s chest, using the tactic of “no defence direct counter”.
Fong Si Yuk could not avoid the attack. He was kicked at his chest and fell more than ten feet backward, lying motionlessly on the lei-tai. Members from the Guangdong Association rushed up the stage to carry Fong Sai Yuk away.
“You have sustained internal injury and will die,” Li Siew Wan called after him. “This ‘chuin sam thui’ (which means ‘through-the-heart kick”) is my ultimate technique.”
Wong Kiew Kit,
9th January 2018, Sungai Petani
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