I read that Dian Xue is connected to certain Tajiquan styles. In Yang it is hidden within the form, in Zhaobao it is not hidden and seperate forms are made for it, but are rarely taught. I read that one of Yang Luchan sons demonstrated very powerful Dian Xue, and he claims he learned all his skills from his fauther. In Chen style Dian Xue is either not found or greatly hidden. So either Yang Luchan learned Dian Xue seperately and incorporated it into Chen boxing, or learned a different kind of Tajiquan from Chen than was taught in the village. Tim what are your thoughts on Dian Xue, have you had any experience in it?

It depends what you mean by 'dian xue.' If you are talking about striking places on the body that are more vulnerable than others, I've seen it in virtually all CMA. If you are talking about the 'death touch,' or otherwise incapacitating or knocking someone out with a touch, I have never seen it.

Here's a little something about Bajiquan(my favorite style) master Li Shuwen and his one hit kills:

"Li Shuwen (1864 - 1934) was also known as the "God of the Spear" and had a substantial number of formal students who also served as military leaders mainly in Shandong Province. Li was a notorious fighter and known primarily for his ruthless matches. According to oral tradition, almost everyone who challenged him ended up dead. His reputation was built upon his extreme striking power and his practice of telling opponents exactly what technique would be employed to bring about their demise. One of his favorite techniques was to use a collapsing palm on top of the acupuncture point of the head (baihui), resulting in the crushing and collapse of the opponent's spine and neck. To develop such power, "God of the Spear" Li is said to have intensely practiced one-arm thrusts with a large spear roughly twelve to sixteen feet long. Overall, he was a man to be feared. As a youth, even Liu feared the severity of Li's training methods.

Unfortunately, these exploits eventually brought about Li Shuwen's own downfall. At the request of others, one of his students murdered him by serving him poisoned tea. Luckily, Liu had a much friendlier disposition, although his training methods could be just as severe to neophyte martial artists."

Here's the full article if anyone's interested: http://www.wutangcenter.com/bajipigua.htm