Choy Li Fut, one of the southern Chinese martial arts, emphasizes the balance of offense and defense. Its moves are stretching and highly practical. The founder Chan Heung and Master Jeong Yim created and revised the system of Choy Li Fut by combining the advantages of the fist positions of Choy Gar, the leg positions of Li Gar and the palm positions of Fut Gar. It dates back to nearly 180 years ago.

Huang Zhenjiang, born in Foshan City, Guangdong Province, has been practicing Choy Li Fut for 52 years. Now he is known as the inheritor of the martial art, which was named an Intangible Cultural Heritage, and the director of Hungsing Choy Li Fut school. 

The vocalization of Choy Li Fut is unique to other schools. The utterances are aligned with the moves and helps build up morale. There are five vocabularies. You cry out "yak" and "ha" when striking with the fist, "dik" when kicking, "wak" with the tiger claw, and "hok" with multiple hand positions.

The basic skills include practicing a firm stance and striking with the fist, each includes 24 steps. Only when these basic skills are mastered, can one learn Choy Li Fut's typical strikes.

One of the martial art's most-used feature is waist movement. Every move requires the strength of arms, the waist, legs and hands. With the combined force, you can retreat as quickly as you strike. The hands move with the body. The strength accumulates when the torso and the limbs flow together.

The stances are flexible and change with every strike. The kicks are swift like shooting stars. For example, the crossing kick features a large span, and swirl-wind kick is known for its swiftness.

Choy Li Fut wins with speed and vigor in combat. You need to fight sideways so you don't expose too much to your enemy, and so you never fight face to face with your opponent.

The "Gatekeeper" broadsword is a unique weapon in  Choy Li Fut. The broadsword techniques are powerful and act as a deterrent. The weapon requires great strength to wield, and it can intimidate the enemy by its mere presence.

The hardest part of practicing martial arts is persistence. The more you practice, the more you understand it. Let the things you learn become your instinct, and you finally get the essence of it.

Like other kung fu styles, Choy Li Fut is deeply connected with traditional Chinese culture. "My master and other forerunners would never teach the ill-reputed rich people or the hooligans. They always tell us to be righteous and help the weak. One of the rules of Hungsing School is to help those in need. Holding on to the concept of using martial arts in the right place is more important than the fighting techniques," Huang says.

Director：Lei Rong, Chen Xiao

Editor: Chen Xiao, Gao Xingzi

Filmed by: Hou Xinqiang

Designer: Yu Peng

Article Written by: Si Huijie

Copy Editor: Xuyen Nguyen

Producer：Wen Yaru

Chief Editor: Wang Dewei

Supervisor：Pang Xinhua