Martial Arts Master

An ocean breeze passed through the city that was choked with people and devoid of even a semblance of uniqueness. From the milling tourists’ lips came standard Chinese in a variety of accents. Most of them looked stoked. To them, it was not only about watching the competition, but it was also a vacation opportunity. Admittedly, the Battle of The Kings preliminary matches had been set on a splendid date. Students were on their holidays with time to spare, and parents were taking time off for their families. It was a similar setting to the Warrior Sage’s preliminary matches set for the end of the year.

When the lot from Longhu Club arrived at the Wanhua hotel, the hall was already filled with a welcoming crowd: some dewy, some vibrant, some spirited, some past their 30s, some matured and joyful, and some—were just reporters.

“Lou Cheng, can we know what goals have you set for yourself in the upcoming Battle of The Kings competition?”

“Are you confident about getting into the main match?”

“Who do you want to fight the most? Peng Leyun, Ren Li, or the warrior monk from the Daxing Temple?”

…

“Hello, Tu Zheng, I heard you beat Lou Cheng during a sparring session, is that true?”

“Will you use the opportunity at Battle of The Kings to make the great leap?”

“The one who has beaten you previously, Meng Liang, from Shizhou Island is also participating this time. Is there anything you would like to say to him?”

…

The ones who received the most attention from the media and were deemed the most worthy of being interviewed were, doubtlessly, Lou Cheng, the current Heavenly Son of China, and Tu Zheng, who was anticipated to reach Physical Invulnerability in less than two years. This made Yu Wangyuan, Lu Shaofei and the others feel rather dejected. There were only a few reporters paying attention to them, and worse still, they were only interviewing them because they couldn’t get near Lou Cheng and Tu Zheng.

Motivation spawns from comparison. Right now, a fire kindled in their eyes as they secretly clenched their fists.

“Alright, please make way, everyone. If there are any more questions, we will arrange time for interviews,” said the co-director of the External Affairs Group. Xiang Tong, the guide for the Battle of Kings, slightly exerted his aura, opening up a passageway through the people. The hotel security also formed a barricade with their bodies, blocking off the crowd.

Lou Cheng remembered Coach Yan’s advice to heart—at times like this, he just had to smile. Occasionally, when he noticed fans painstakingly extending their arms, he happily took the pen and paper from them and signed his name before returning it to them. In exchange, he received screams of ‘Lou Cheng!’, ‘Lou Cheng!’.

After a tough journey, they finally entered the lift and came to the 33rd floor, which was fully booked by them. It was a serene there.

“This is an individual competition, so there aren’t any hard and fast rules. To you, I only have two words of advice,” Guide Xiang clapped and smiled. “First, don’t miss the competition. Second, try not to stir up any trouble.”

“Okay,” the lot of them replied impassively. After that, they took their key cards and went off to scour for their individual rooms.

In private, Lou Cheng informed the guide that he wouldn’t be joining them for dinner since he had an appointment with his friends.

“No problem, as long as you don’t let it affect your form,” Xiang Tong nodded with an ambiguous smile.

What on Earth is he thinking! “Male friends,” emphasised Lou Cheng.

“Oh…” Xiang Tong shot him a funny look and took a step back, then laughed. “Just kidding.”

Mental… Mouth twitching, Lou Cheng secretly cussed at him. He was deeply concerned for the guide’s mental well-being.

After going into the room, he laid his belongings down and spent some time sorting through them. He then waited for a moment, until the sky began turning dark, before putting on his black-framed glasses and changing into new clothes. Slipping out of the hotel, he walked onto the hot summer road.

He only hailed a cab when he was out of the perimeters of the Wanhua Hotel. The cab headed for Guanchao Street, a bustling street choked with seafood stalls.

Before the well-decorated storefront of Linfu Century BBQ Fish stood Ann Chaoyang, with his headphones on and his hands in his pocket. He still kept his hippy, semi-long hair. He had a peaceful expression on his face, his eyes half-shut, as though he was sleeping.

“I have already reserved seats,” he smiled as he greeted Lou Cheng.

Lou Cheng twitched his nose, distinguishing the smell in the air. “Smells good.”

“A local friend introduced it to me. Can’t go wrong,” Ann Chaoyang laughed softly, whirling and walking into the shop.

“Local friend…” Lou Cheng repeated whimsically.

Looking as though he was about to fall asleep at any moment, Ann Chaoyang replied,

“A fellow music lover that I befriended on a travelling forum.”

Sounds convoluted… Lou Cheng pulled out a chair and sat down. His eyes roved around the place. “Do we order the fish now? Or do we wait for Priest and Ren Li to arrive?”

“I say we order it now. We are all big eaters, so it’s best if we stock up on food,” said Ann Chaoyang. He thought for a moment. “When would they be arriving?”

“… Aren’t you the one who contacted them?” questioned Lou Cheng blankly.

“I thought you would contact them…” said Ann Chaoyang, initiating a stare-off.

“Shouldn’t the one who is footing the bill be tasked with contacting everyone…” said Lou Cheng after a brief pause, rushing to push the blame.

“Back when we were in Shengxiang, it was always you that was more active in contacting everyone and keeping us updated…” reasoned Ann Chaoyang.

They fell silent again. Amused and exasperated, Lou Cheng sighed and picked up his phone. “Should I ask them now?”

“Forget it, it’s almost past dinner time. They would either have not arrived yet or have already eaten. We can hang out again in a few days,” said Ann Chaoyang, laughing in self-derision. He stood up and ordered some fish.

When he was back and seated, he even took off his earphones and set them aside, adopting an attentive attitude as he ate and chatted with Lou Cheng.

“Hipster, this must be the highest level of respect you would offer to a friend, right?” jested Lou Cheng.

In the past, he would have slung his headphones around his neck even if he wasn’t listening to music.

“Are you praising me, or mocking me?” laughed Ann Chaoyang. “How are things? Have you more or less mastered the Fire Sect Dan Stage Chapters?”

“I mastered all the important ones,” Lou Cheng replied concisely. “What are your plans this time? Wowing everyone and soaring to fame?”

“Stop poking fun at me,” Ann Chaoyang shook his head in amusement. “I only made the breakthrough recently. As someone who just consolidated his learnings, I’m only here to broaden my horizons and gain some experience. I dare not hope for anything beyond my reach. But what about you? Are you really not thinking about getting into the main competition?”

“I would be lying if I told you it never crossed my mind,” Lou Cheng replied frankly.

“Then you’ll be in for a load of competition. The top-tiered organizations have sent out their strongest reserves and seasoned seniors. Many of them are at the same level as Tu Zheng, and some could even be stronger, just to name some, Fa Zhen and Zhi Ren of the Daxing Temple, Ming Shi of the Shangqing Sect, Gou Wen of the Xuanwu School, Qing Feng of the Shushan Study, Wang Xuan of the Yanzhao Sect, Zheng Shiduo of the Guanwai League, Meng Liang of Shizhou Island…” enumerated Ann Chaoyang as he consulted his memory.

“Even Fa Zhen’s coming? He’s of the grandfathers’ generation…” Lou Cheng was started.

Fa Zhen was the junior martial brother of the Daxing Temple’s abbot, Fang Yuan, and the martial uncle of ‘Wisdom King’ Zhi Hai. He was 51 this year, an Inhuman Mighty One belonging to the generation of Geezer Shi.

He had been a Physical Invulnerability Reserve since twenty-odd years ago, but unfortunately never made the breakthrough. Presently, there was no longer hope for him to do so. Still, after being among the apex of Inhumans for so many years, his body has yet to enter a state of obvious deterioration. He definitely wasn’t someone to be think lightly of!

But didn’t this gramps, I mean, senior monk long ago devote himself to self-cultivation and the path to enlightenment? What’s the meaning behind him registering for the Battle of the Kings preliminaries?

As for Zhi Ren, he was a senior brother to both ‘Wisdom King’ Zhi Hai and ‘Living Buddha’ Shi Shan—the Living Buddha is not ranked by the traditional naming system, and therefore was assigned a different title. Zhi Ren was 29 this year and had hopes of attaining Physical Invulnerability.

As for Ming Shi, Gou Wen, and the others, though they weren’t Heavenly Sons of China, they were still Physical Invulnerability Reserves from major organizations. Out of them, Gou Wen was especially worth mentioning. He was approved by the strongest fighter in the Xuanwu School, ‘Long Dam That Guards The Sea’—Ma Xinghong, who once held the titles of ‘Warrior Sage’ and ‘Grandmaster’. According to him, Gou Wen could make the breakthrough the following year.

Hearing Lou Cheng’s doubt, Ann Chaoyang smiled. “The one regret senior Fa Zhen has was that he never entered the main competition of Battle of the Kings. This time, he wants to fulfill that dream.”

“Considering his age and ours, I call that bullying!” quipped Lou Cheng.

“If we count the B-list and C-list Inhumans, the Mighty Ones in the police and Martial Arts School, and the other ones that have went into all sorts of occupations, there’s probably more than 400 people in the preliminaries…” Ann Chaoyang sipped at his tea as he discussed with Lou Cheng about the Battle of The Kings.

Of course, this number was definitely not a representation of the total number of Inhumans.

And so, they chatted merrily around the topic that they were both interested in. The roasted fish was delicious too, with a strong aroma that made them drool and a taste that left them craving more.

When they had amply enjoyed themselves, Lou Cheng returned to the hotel. Once again, he video-called Yan Zheke, and the two of them began discussing the aforementioned Mighty Ones.

On the evening of the following day, the registration ended. About two hours later, the host of the event published the match-ups of the first round.

The competition this time would take place in four venues simultaneously. There would be battles ongoing throughout the day: morning, noon, and night. The first round will last for two days in single-elimination format. It would be same afterwards, all the way until the Top 64. Then, the format would change to double-elimination. The 16 remaining contestants would enter the main competition.

Lou Cheng scrolled through the webpages, looking for his name, and in that time he caught glimpses of the names of Peng Leyun, Ren Li, Gou Wen, and Fa Zhen. All of their opponents weren’t very famous.

Finally, he found his own name: 19th, Morning. Guanhai Martial Arts Stadium, 6th Match. (Longhu Club) Lou Cheng!

At the other end of the em dash was (Shizhou Island) Lin Yue!

Beep, a message came from Yan Zheke. “He’s a famous senior, Cheng”

Copying and pasting the name into the search bar, Lou Cheng found information on his opponent in no time.

Lin Yue, 42 years-old, 16 years as an Inhuman, his ability ‘Immortal Flesh’ is terrifyingly powerful…

He had accumulated an entire 16 years of experience in the high-tiers of Pin.

“I just wanted to enter round two without a hitch…[sighs while covering face]” replied Lou Cheng.

…

Somewhere in Linfu, in a motel, a man with silvery-white hair amidst his dark hair was staring at the screen of his computer. He shook his head slightly.

…

On the morning of 19th, reporters blocked the way of Lin Yue at the entrance of Guanhai Martial Arts Stadium. To the successful-looking Mighty One, they asked,

“What are your thoughts on drawing Lou Cheng?”

Lin Yue smiled.

“I will beat him while it is still possible to.”