Martial Arts Master

Hearing the referee’s judgment, Lou Cheng collected himself. He put his hands together, bowed, then turned and walked towards the changing room entrance at the end of the stadium. In his ears, he seemed to be able to hear sighs from miles away.

Ke Ke, Yan Xiaoling, and Brahman must be feeling disillusioned, even more so than me…

He retrieved his phone from Auman after entering the aisle. Saw Yan Zheke’s text right as he lit up his screen.

“I wasn’t expecting The Clown to put his life on the line…[shocked doge]”

“Yeah, neither did I… He treated the arena match like a life-and-death battle… [covers face and sighs]” replied Lou Cheng.

Despite being fully aware of Gu Jianxi’s battle style, he wasn’t expecting his opponent to go to such extreme lengths after exchanging merely a few moves. His own wellbeing never meant a thing to him as long as he could hurt his opponent.

Undeniably, martial artists who practiced the Death Sect secret arts were plagued with the weakness of low stamina. However, the fight had only just begun, and The Clown still had a long way from reaching his limits, so it was unnecessary for him to take such extreme measures!

The fight had been more dangerous than a life-and-death battle!

At this level of combat, their safety relied solely on their own judgment as Physical Invulnerability Mighty Ones. The referee staying at the edge of the arena merely served as host and witness.

In other words, a Physical Invulnerability Expert should be aware of whether they can block an enemy attack and roughly how much damage they would receive.

At this level of power control, accidents arising from lack of restraint were exceedingly rare. Even if it did occur, it was highly likely for the victim to survive, albeit with grave wounds. Any wilful acts would be uncovered when the footage was reviewed. And once confirmed, the offender would incur the rage of a nation.

Yan Zheke then sent a [covers face and sighs] emoji.

“The Clown’s fans are mad at you…”

“What for? It’s not like I torched him there on purpose. He was the one that bumped into me…” replied Lou Cheng, annoyed yet amused.

Yan Zheke sent a “tears of joy” emoji. “They are mad that you didn’t last longer and throw out more moves. If you did, then The Clown would surely have had a wardrobe malfunction…”

Lou Cheng let out a laugh. He couldn’t help but shake his head. Strangely, it lifted his mood and dissipated much of the gloominess from losing.

A miracle wouldn’t be called a miracle if it happened every time!

Surrounded by First Pin Pros and titled Mighty Ones, he was content with making it to the top 16!

However, the contentment was temporary, for he would come back stronger next year!

As for the Battle of the Kings in December and Battle of Supreme Class at the start of January, he planned on opting out so that he could invest more time in learning the Physical Invulnerability Chapters. He had to root out every problem he discovered during the Master Battle.

Having picked himself up, he sat on the sofa watching the subsequent matches between the top dogs. At the same time, he chatted idly with Ke Ke, who was on her way to Connecticut Uni’s campus. Half-way, he switched tab to the group chat and tagged Peng Leyun and the others.

“Time to decide on what to eat!”

“You got back on your feet fast.” Ann Chaoyang’s reply came before long, as though he had been keeping an eye out for Lou Cheng’s message.

“Against an opponent like The Clown, the chances of winning as the underdog were slim. However, if you were at a similar level to him, you could lay a trap for him by leveraging on his reckless fighting style.” Peng Leyun began discussing the previous battle with great interest.

“Yup. Strong swimmers tend to drown, and adept riders tend to fall. One’s strength and habits can often lead to defeat,” said Ren Li literarily, then added, “That’s what my Master just told me using The Clown as a case study.”

The discussion went on for a while as they all threw in their two cents. Lou Cheng glanced at pictures of food deliberately sent by his little fairy. He quickly reminded the group.

“Shouldn’t our main focus be deciding on what to eat?”

“… I know a food blogger that lives in Jiuqu. Let me consult her,” said Peng Leyun, who seemed to have just remembered about the main focus.

“You know a food blogger? You don’t seem like a food enthusiast to me, Priest. Is that a scandal I’m smelling? [surprised]” asked Lou Cheng.

Peng Leyun replied seriously. “I was scrolling through Weibo when I remembered a difficult question and spaced out. Then, my hand slipped and followed her by mistake. I was going to cancel the request immediately, but she DM-ed me excitedly saying that she loved martial arts and had been following me for some time… It didn’t feel right to just unfollow her, so I left it as it was. We occasionally chatted and reposted each other after that.”

“Say no more. Explaining is covering up, and covering up proves that you are guilty! [snickering]” teased Lou Cheng.

“I’m serious, I don’t even know her that well,” Peng Leyun replied quickly, earnestly emphasizing his point.

Tsk, Priest is so innocent… Usually, an experienced guy would have changed the subject or joked about it self-mockingly instead of giving a serious explanation…

Lou Cheng kept that to himself and dropped the subject tactfully. He then tagged Ann Chaoyang.”

“When’s your flight arriving, Hipster?”

“Tomorrow morning,” Ann Chaoyang sent a screenshot of his air ticket.

“Then we’ll set the date to tomorrow night,” decided Lou Cheng.

That’s when Peng Leyun relayed the advice he was given.

“She told me crabs are the meatiest during autumn, so now’s the best time for crabs. Jiuqu’s spicy crabs are very tasty, with a unique flavor that you couldn’t find at anywhere else. She recommended a place called First Grade Fresh.”

“Sure, no objections from me.” As Lou Cheng was typing, he recalled the different spicy crabs he had eaten in the past and began salivating.

“I’m fine with it too.” Ren Li never had much input on food.

“Oh yeah, one more thing. [spacing out]” wrote Peng Leyun.” When I talked to her, I mentioned I was meeting up with you guys. She asked if she could tag along and meet us. According to her, she’s a loyal Lou Cheng fan, and wanted to have a signature and a picture taken with her idol. If you guys aren’t cool with it, I’ll turn her down.”

“Sure, it’s your call.” Lou Cheng smiled with a bit of smugness.

It feels pretty good to have fans everywhere!

“I would like to see what sort of girl idolizes Lou Cheng,” replied Ann Chaoyang, amused.

“Don’t talk about my fans like that…” protested Lou Cheng.

“Only if she promises to keep this gathering to herself!” emphasized Ren Li.

The matter was settled after a round of discussion. On the next day, Lou Cheng followed his usual routine of morning practice, video-chatting with Yan Zheke, and a siesta. When he woke up, he planned on another three-hour training session.

He rolled and sat up, but wasn’t in a hurry to get off the bed; a tent had been erected down there.

As a healthy, energetic Physical Invulnerability Mighty One who hasn’t been around his wife for over a month, such reactions and the occasional fantasizing was normal.

He inhaled, calmed down, and brought his body under control. Soon, he was back to normal. After changing into a new set of clothes, he headed to the hotel’s training room.

At 6:30 pm, he had Auman arranging a ride for him. He found the private room upon reaching First Grade Fresh.

He pushed the door open, entered. At first glance, he saw an elegant beauty with straight medium-length hair in a thin white sweater. Then he saw Peng Leyun spacing out by himself, paying the girl zero attention.

It’s clear as day that there’s no scandal here… Lou Cheng felt a little disappointed.

The beauty with light makeup, bright and clear eyes, and sparkling pink lips stood up, smiling and extended her hand. “I’m Peng Xi, an avid fan of yours. I love how you kept creating those miracles, how you strive to achieve your goals and your perseverance.”

Her chest was a sight to behold, and even jiggled slightly when she stood up.

Maintaining eye-contact, Lou Cheng extended his right hand and gently touched hers. Smiling, he said, “It’s my honor.”

That was when Ren Li and Ann Chaoyang came in from outside. Peng Xi re-introduced herself, ending it with a self-mocking remark.

“I never expected you all to be close friends behind the scenes. I got really curious after hearing about it, not to mention knowing that my idol was coming as well, so I shamelessly asked to tag along to your gathering. I hope you wouldn’t mind me being here. I won’t tell a word of anything said at this table to anyone.”

Girls who are good at poking fun at themselves are often likable. Ann Chaoyang nodded his approval. Ren Li glanced at Peng Xi’s chests, then retracted her gaze and covertly looked at her own. For a moment she looked a little lost.

Afterward, she sat silently at the seat furthest away from Peng Xi.

They ordered spicy crabs, steamed mitten crabs, and many other signature dishes. Peng Xi got the ball rolling, initiating a topic with a smile.

“Earlier, when I was scrolling through Weibo, I saw this reporter suggesting a Heavenly Son of China match between you all, Wisdom King, and Living Buddha, in order to determine to strongest Heavenly Son of China. Feels like he’s trying to spark controversy. What do you all think?”

“Boring,” said Ren Li, shaking her head.

“In my opinion, they shouldn’t be limiting our opponents to such a small circle. Once we all attained Physical Invulnerability, there’s no point in talking about a match between Heavenly Sons of China. We can only prove our worth by taking the titles.”

My opponent isn’t only Wisdom King, Living Buddha, Priest, and the others. There’s The Clown, Spear King, Dong Baxian, Taoist Sword, Warrior Sage, Dragon King, and many more Mighty Ones!

“Exactly,” said Peng Leyun, snapping out of his daze and nodding in approval.

Ann Chaoyang smiled bitterly. “I feel Iike this conversation is above my pay-grade…”

As they chatted idly, plates of delicacies were placed neatly before them, along with the bamboo steamers with the mitten crabs. Peng Xi took one, disassembling it into different parts expertly, and passed it to Peng Leyun.

“Try it, it’s not a local specialty, but it’s good.”

“Thank you,” replied Peng Leyun politely.

After that, Peng Xi peeled another and passed it to Ann Chaoyang.

“Thanks, the taste is pretty authentic,” said Ann Chaoyang, who was from Huahai, smilingly.

After that, Peng Xi picked up another mitten crab, skilfully dissected it, then placed it on Lou Cheng’s plate.

“Here, my idol,” she said with a sweet smile.

Glancing at the crab in the plate, Lou Cheng habitually smiled and said,

“Thanks, you peeled it excellently!”

After he said that, he suddenly froze in Déjà vu.

In a moment, the details came to him as he recalled the scene back when Ke Ke was peeling crabs for him and teaching him the Yan-styled dating techniques.

“Not bad, it tastes good!

“Wrong answer! Zero points!”

“You should have said, ‘you peeled it excellently’! That’s the right answer!”

…

Past scenes and voices came to him at once. For a moment, Lou Cheng began spacing out like Peng Leyun.

Upon hearing his answer, Peng Xi paused, then grinned.

“You are a little different from what I expected…”

Clearly, he knew the way to a girl’s heart.

Lou Cheng, containing his thoughts, smiled and shook his head, then focused on eating his crab. Peng Xi also peeled a crab for Ren Li. Politely, Ren Li picked up an untouched mitten crab and tossed it into the air.

As the crab descended, Ren Li stuck out her fingers, enveloping it in a draft.

Whoosh!

Piece by piece, the crab shells dropped down as the snowy crab meat and tasty-looking crab roe fell neatly into Peng Xi’s plate.

“I’m not very good at peeling crabs, so I have to do it like this,” Ren Li cleaned her fingers with a piece of napkin. “Here, as my gratitude.”

Peng Xi stared at her blankly. After some time, she recovered and smiled.

“I just want to say, Coach, I want to learn martial arts…”

It was late by the time they sated their appetites. Peng Xi was driving, so she offered to drive Lou Cheng and the others back to the hotel.

“My assistant is already on her way here,” lied Lou Cheng. Peng Leyun and the others also rejected her politely.

When everyone had left, Lou Cheng, with his spectacles on and hands in his pockets, ambled on the road matted with fallen leaves in the warm night. He walked for some time before remembering to take a cab back