Martial Arts Master

“Two groups?” Lou Cheng looked blankly and silently judged his master.

“This is a very unreliable move!

“Isn’t he afraid of losing the Fighting Formula to others? Did he have to wait until I became available?

“Is testing his disciple more important than getting the Fighting Formula?

“Err… My master might actually say yes to this question…

“He never really cared much about the Nine Words Formula…”

Lou Cheng put the thoughts and emotions aside and gazed at Li Wanquan with half a smile.

“Two groups have come here for the pot before? And you are still here safe and sound? So you didn’t lie to them.”

“Can I make money from lying to you? This is no joke!” answered Li Wanquan gruffly while making the same money-counting gesture again by rubbing his thumb and index finger. “I’ve heard about people working as consultants and making money by answering questions.”

“Bro, you are out… Get a Weibo account and everybody can make money by answering questions…” Lou Cheng’s mouth twitched and he put on a smile. “How much?”

“Ten grand!” Li Wanquan’s eyes shone as he gave the big number.

Lou Cheng chuckled. “I’d rather ask Aunt Xiu. Just heard them talking about some familiar outlanders lingering about looking for you recently. They might know where they are, right?”

He made up a threatening lie based on some logical reasoning. If the two groups had gotten it, there would be nothing he could do and the military should take it over.

However, if they hadn’t succeeded, they would be in need of more information, so it’s very likely they would return to question Li Wanquan and become familiar outlanders. It was impossible to tell if a person was lying through a phone call, since facial expressions and body motions were unavailable.

Li Wanquan’s eyes blinked and he forced a smile. “What do they know? Well, you seem like a genuine guy. I’ll settle for a few hundred bucks.”

“Sure.” Lou Cheng glanced at the counter and pointed at a delicate silver talisman. “800, including this.”

“Deal!” Li Wanquan took out the talisman quickly. “Here you go!”

“… Damn it! That was fast… I feel tricked…” Lou Cheng accepted the talisman and took out his wallet to pay with cash. He didn’t want to pay through his mobile so that his personal information would stay safe.

Li Wanquan was all smiles with eight red 100 yuan bills in his hands. “Look for Old Nanny Qiu at 15 Wanhe Street. My dad was fooling around with her when my mom was still alive and often slept over. On the rare occasions where he came home, he usually brought my mom a wine pot he made himself. Yeah, the kind you are looking for.”

“Old Nanny Qiu at 15 Wanhe Street…” Lou Cheng memorized the name and the address before asking, “What kind of a woman is she?”

“A mysterious one. She rarely leaves her home. Such a beauty in her youth…” Li Wanquan lowered his voice. “She has had many lovers over the years, and they all shiver when talking about her. My dad was the same…”

Lou Cheng listened without a word. Afterward, he asked the residents in Zhengyun Ancient City who had answered his questions earlier to confirm Li Wanquan’s story.

Carrying his backpack, he followed the map on his phone towards Wanhe Street.

This was a quiet back alley with houses that had been well maintained for over a century. Lou Cheng would’ve felt like a warrior in ancient times if the electricity wires and air conditioners could be ignored.

As Lou Cheng got closer to No. 15, his hair stood up and he could feel many eyes on him in the dark.

He passed Old Nanny Qiu’s dwelling without stopping and looked about leisurely like a tourist.

Those intense eyes were withdrawn and the door of the No. 15 house opened with a squeak. Lou Cheng turned around and saw the man in black from the same bus step out.

His face was gloomy and his emotions were close to an explosion. He lowered his voice,

“She’s gone!”

Abruptly, he burst into a laugh, loud and wild.

“Hahah… Hahah…”

The unbridled laugh echoed in the alley and ruined the tranquility and peace.

Lou Cheng had no intention to cover his shock and acted like a curious spectator, taking a video of this random crazy man.

Several enthusiastic and energetic youths ran out of the dark and surrounded the man in black. Lou Cheng’s view was blocked.

Almost one minute later, the man in black calmed down and panted heavily. One of the youths walked towards Lou Cheng in a showy manner, attempting to scare him away.

Lou Cheng shook his head slightly and left at once.

“Old Nanny Qiu is pretty strange indeed…

“Seems like she is missing on purpose. How can I find her?”

Ideas flashed in Lou Cheng’s head and he began to understand why his master had put him on this task.

“A martial artist can’t stay in the ring all the time. It’s important to learn to cope with complicated matters with martial arts, but I can’t solely rely on it.”

…

Lou Cheng didn’t return to 15 Wanhe Street. Instead, he wandered around in Zhengyun Ancient City like a proper tourist, took many photos, tried a few local dishes, and beat around the bush to gather information. He met the two girls who sat behind Lou Cheng on the bus to Zhengyun but never saw the man in black again.

He lied in bed with his phone around eight at night and browsed the local news aimlessly.

Finally, the special ringtone he had set for Yan Zheke sounded and she sent a stretching emoji. “I have finally overcome the jet lag. I was sleepy all the time. Now I’m fully charged!”

Then she added a smiley face with one hand covering its mouth. “Did they take another one after checking the photos you took for them?”

Messages flooded in as she replied to Lou Cheng, typing rapidly.

“I didn’t look, but I guess so…” Lou Cheng began to share what he had experienced today delightedly and Yan Zheke responded actively whenever she had time. She sent a selfie over before heading out and asked proudly, “Cheng, how do I look?”

She wore a pair of blacked-edged glasses similar to Lou Cheng’s, which covered half of her pretty face. Her hair was tied up into a boring ponytail and her clothes were simple jeans and a plain t-shirt.

“You don’t have to look so old-fashioned.” Lou Cheng chuckled.

Yan Zheke used the working with a passion emoji. “Must! No distractions. Focus on study 100%. I’ll work hard so I can graduate early and reunite with my Cheng soon.”

“Phew… I don’t want you to get depressed.” Lou Cheng was very touched.

“I won’t. Studying makes me happy!” Yan Zheke pushed up her sunglasses.

The conversation went on and off until Lou Cheng’s bedtime. The next morning, he got up half an hour earlier. He said good morning to Yan Zheke and went straight to Old Nanny Qiu’s home at 15 Wanhe Street in a dark martial arts suit.

He skipped the front gate and jumped into a neighboring yard fast like lightning in the dark silently.

Lou Cheng climbed another wall and snuck into Old Nanny Qiu’s home in hopes of looking for some traces of her whereabouts. It should be pretty safe after their actions yesterday.

Lou Cheng landed on the ground and glanced through the yard in the dark, seeing many worn out bottles and pots accommodating water, plants, herbs, or disgusting excreta.

The ground was not flattened with cement. After the heavy rainfall last night, the yard was messy with two ditches.

Lou Cheng was approaching towards the door through the ditches and mud when it suddenly squeaked open. The noise was like a thunder striking at the peaceful dawn.

The door opened and a blurry, ghostly figure bumped into Lou Cheng in the dark.

Another martial artist came to explore this house before the sunrise like Lou Cheng.

Lou Cheng was stunned. So was the blurry figure. He froze and then took a deep breath, attempting to take the initiative to perform the Force Concentration and open a way out.

Lou Cheng’s hair stood up and his Absolute Reaction took place. The astonishing Army Formula was drawn in his head, imposing and impressive.

He didn’t make a sound as he didn’t want to expose himself. Instead, he blended the feeling into his spirit and gave it off as a terrifying bearing.

The figure shivered, his right arm swollen and his fist frozen.

Lou Cheng lowered his weight and withdrew before releasing his blood and qi. He threw his fist out like a hammer.

Bam! A dull sound spread and the shadow hurried to withstand the attack, his body leaning backward immediately.

Lou Cheng withdrew his right fist and borrowed strength to concentrate his qi and blood once again smoothly.

Bang! His three punches and kicks knocked the enemy out.

Lou Cheng took a quick look at Old Nanny Qiu’s house and memorized everything before leaving via the same route. In less than ten seconds, he began his morning exercises.

The shadow knocked over Old Nanny Qiu’s dining table and felt desperate, about to give some dying kicks. However, when he finally got up, the enemy had vanished in the dark.

The storm of strikes was like a dream.

The shadow froze for a second and then took a deep breath. He then rushed out of Old Nanny Qiu’s yard before the neighbors came for the noise.

He made several detours in an alert manner before returning to the guesthouse he was staying.

“Brother, how was it? Any discovery?” His junior brothers and sisters gathered up.

The shadow was a sturdy young man of 26 or 27 years old. His face darkened. “Nothing. I met an expert…”

“An expert?” a girl blurted out.

“Yes!” The shadow nodded heavily as the memory hit him.

He pulled the door open and saw a shadow standing outside in silence, his face blurry under the faint light and his body completely blended into the dark.

Before the enemy made any move, he had already felt stuck in a hopeless situation as if surrounded by many on all sides. His body and mind shivered and his will to fight collapsed.

The enemy’s attacks came in waves and pushed him out of his stance within three or four bouts. He was terrified, feeling death approach.

Then the enemy vanished as if he had never existed.

Recalling the details, he sensed cold sweat on his back and felt his clothes dampen.

“Hurry! Inform the Sect and request for a master!” he commanded hurriedly and briefly.

One of his junior brothers frowned. “We haven’t found Old Nanny Qiu yet. Isn’t it too early to request for an elder?”

“No, it will be too late when Old Nanny Qiu is found!” said the senior brother without any doubt.