Master Li Lu Lai was born in Shanghai, China. Master Li started training Plum Blossom Tang Lang (Praying Mantis) when he was eight and then trained Bagua Quan and Xingyi Quan. When he was 13 years old in 1968 he was fortunate to be accepted by Grand Master Liu Fuhao as a student. Master Liu Fuhao was Great Master of Tai Chi, well known in Martial Circles in Shanghai and practised Chen and Yang Tai Chi. Master Liu Fuhao only ever taught four "Inner door” students at his home and believed in passing the complicated tradition to only a few hard working students.

Training was brutal to western standards but the result was that Master Li managed to attain a skill that both his teachers were proud off. For the first 20 years Master Li seldom missed a day’s training with his teacher. Being absent was not an option or you won’t be taught. Training started at 2am in the morning till sunrise, every day. While lunchtime and evenings were also used to refine what was corrected earlier the day.

In 1981 Grandmaster Liu Fuhao's close friend from Beijing, and well-known Tai Chi Master, Feng Zhiqiang visited him. During this trip Grandmaster Feng Zhiqiang accepted Master Li as one of his very first "Inner door" students while performing the traditional ceremony with him. Grandmaster Feng was very fond of Master Li, because of his dedication to studying and researching Tai Chi by keeping to a strict daily training regimen over many years.

In those early years he taught Master Li Lulai the Chen Xinjia and Paochui routines, as taught by his teacher Chen Fake. Master Li was regularly taught by Grand Master Feng and when Master Feng developed his Hun Yuan style he taught the Hun Yuan Xinyi Chen Shi routines and the internal details to Master Li. Master Li visited Grandmaster Feng as often as possible and was updated and corrected on the essence of Hun Yuan Tai Chi till Grand Master Feng’s untimely death in 2012. After the death of Master Li's first teacher, Grand Master Liu Fuhao in 2013, the responsibility now falls on the ” inner door” students like Master Li to make sure the lineage skill lives on.

In 1997 Master Li travelled from Shanghai to New Zealand to teach Tai Chi. He decided to permanently stay in New Zealand with approval of his teachers, while sharing the internal arts with all people. Master Li now still lives and teaches in Auckland, New Zealand. He regularly travels to China to teach and develop his skills together with his peers.

Master Li has studied Tai Chi (or Qi as he describes it) for 50 years and still follows the same strict regimen daily that he was taught by his two teachers. Like most internal art teachers, Master Li was also taught Traditional Chinese Medicine and combines it with his training. To develop the internal skill Master Li also practices and recommends practising "Ji Ben Gong" or basic skill exercises. All practices should revolve around feeling what you train instead of just strengthening or stretching muscles. It all comes back to becoming more aware of who you are.