72 hours stopover

Is it possible to travel from Copenhagen in Denmark to Mandalay in Myanmar (Burma) and use the 72-hour visa in Beijing or Kunming? There will be a stopover (2 hours) in Beijing before continuing on to Kunming.

Is it possible to use the 72-hour options both on the way to Myanmar and on the way back to Denmark? I mean, if I land in Beijing first and use the 72-hour stopover there before transiting via Kunming (or any other chinese city) to Mandalay, and then when I go back have the longest, 72-hour stopover in Kunming before transiting through Beijing?