[Extreme Martial Arts] Swordsman Morning Glow

Author: Wu Chaohui (JEFFI CHAO HUI WU)

Article Date: Wednesday, August 27, 2025, 7:10 AM

I walk into the morning glow with my sword in hand, while the world is yet to awaken; only a streak of brilliant gold like fire on the eastern horizon is rousing the sleeping world (the shooting time is during the golden hour before sunrise, 06:15 – 06:45, with the astronomical sunrise at 06:42). Beneath my feet lies the damp rocky shore, the humidity in the air is 78%, the temperature is 16°C, and the wind sweeps across the water's surface at a speed of 2.3 meters per second, coming from the southeast, carrying the salty scent of the sea and the lingering warmth of light brushing against my garments. My body trembles slightly, yet the sword remains still, my heart already immersed in the sword's intent. At this moment, I am neither a swordsman, nor a performer, nor a photographer; I am merely a person seeking a position between light and wind, using my body to sense the density of time, and measuring the tilt of daylight through my movements.

The light before sunrise is the prophecy of the sky and the prelude of the heart. At that moment, I stood by the shore, feeling that I belonged neither to the present nor to the past; I was merely a beam extending the existence of time and space, like an echo of life thousands of years later. The sword I held was neither a weapon nor a tool, but a tangible form of a quantifiable structure of civilizational positioning. The direction of the sword's tip was not to harm others, but to advance the will of the world. At this time, the shooting angle was 225° southwest. I slowly began to move, with a breathing frequency of about 9.2 seconds per breath, my heart rate fluctuating between 68–85 bpm throughout, my steps silent and measured, the sword moving in stillness, concealed within my being, my body in harmony with the momentum, and the momentum aligned with the heavens.

The morning glow presses down, and the clouds transition from deep purple to a translucent orange. My movements are as slow as water (this practice consists of 4 sets of Tai Chi sword forms, with each set lasting an average of 6 minutes and 30 seconds), but in that fleeting moment, I distinctly feel a complex geometric system unfolding within me: the shoulders as the pivot point, the deviation of the spine from the vertical angle is less than 1.5°, the trajectory of the center of gravity is controlled within an area of 0.15 square meters, and all joints move in coordination, collectively forming a stable and controllable internal power cycle. I am not performing; I am calibrating to the light waves of the rising sun, establishing a reproducible anchor point in this world, and the actions struck in the realm of law are not for the sake of striking, but for a bodily response to the celestial motion that is "precise to the second."

[图]

Wu Chaohui practices swordsmanship in the morning glow.

Some people stand at a distance watching; they may see a swordsman performing or a morning exerciser in motion. But what they cannot see is that within me, an internal geometric network driven by posture, direction, speed, and the axis of inertia is unfolding, and all of this is being fully recorded by the camera. The equipment is a Sony A7S III, paired with a 24-70mm f/2.8 lens, synchronously recording in 4K at 60fps, along with a nine-axis IMU inertial sensor that captures every angle of my movement and subtle shifts in my center of gravity. The footage not only captures "what I am doing," but also the "true correspondence between the body and the dimensions of time and space."

Between heaven and earth, it is not intelligence that is at odds, but rather the text that has not been interpreted. The practice of martial arts does not lie in defeating others, but in recognizing the laws of all phenomena. My qi sword is not for confrontation, but for positioning; it is to execute a mark with the body in the face of the cosmic order, uttering half a word to the universe. Once the sword intent is released, it becomes an anchor. When the photographic mechanism naturally records all of this, it is not capturing this person, but rather seizing a certain "person within a structure." It does not record intention, but logic; not the action itself, but the coordinate information formed by the action. Time, longitude and latitude, direction, speed, signature—each data dimension is no longer subordinate, but constitutes a structural unit of "verifiable reality."

I have never regarded the sword as a martial art; I prefer to call it a civilizational positioning act. Every swing of the sword is a confirmation struck by the human body on the world's coordinate system. I do not need an audience, nor do I seek applause, and I certainly do not rely on the sensation of noise. Because this is not a performance, but an execution. This is a person's first clear expression of the world's coordinates: I am here, at this moment, this action, this direction, completed by me, validated by me.

I draw my sword and walk towards the dawn, my figure falling between the golden light. The sword returns to its sheath, yet my will does not cease. Perhaps many will eventually forget the actions, but they will not forget the structure. The sword can cut through water, but I use it not to pierce the enemy, but to penetrate the layers of time and space in this world that can be restored.

[Summary of Empirical Data from the Morning Glow Sword Practice]

Time range: August 27, 2025 06:15:00 – 06:45:00 (UTC+10)

Geographical Location: Australia NSW, Monterey, Drew Dog's Rocks

GPS coordinates: -33.97976493, 151.1497585

Altitude: 3.1 meters

Shooting direction: At this moment, the camera is positioned in the southwest direction (225°), with the lens facing due east (45°), directly towards the horizon where the morning light first appears, capturing the initial confrontation between light and movement in space.

Shooting speed: 0.0 km/h (static recording)

Environmental Conditions:

Temperature: 16°C

Humidity: 78%

Wind speed: 2.3 m/s

Wind direction: Southeast

Body Data:

Average heart rate: 76 bpm

Respiratory rate: 9.2 seconds/cycle

Sword form combination completed: 4 sets