Introduction
An old martial art master from Shanxi Province whom I have known since the 2000s is worried about the future of his art; as he says: “There are just a few left to pass on the real things; after [we] die, it’s over” (conversation with Master G, January 2017, Datong). Master G is a representative of intention boxing (yiquan 意拳 also known as dachengquan 大成拳, great accomplishment boxing), which is an evolutionary style elaborated on the basis of Shanxi’s and Hebei’s form and intention boxing (xingyiquan 形意拳, hereafter xingyi). During my fieldwork with three other xingyi masters presented below, I noticed different ways of expressing the same concern: “I’m afraid we’re the last ones” (conversation with Master Z, June 2018, Yuci). Oral narratives may also be corroborated by written sources. Probably one of the most detailed xingyi master’s narratives published to date is Li Zhongxuan’s 李仲軒 (1915-2004) testimony, which is part of the analysis in this work. Concern over martial...