Martial Arts Master

In the central ring, dancers were performing with great passion but the audience seemed cold, still occupied by the previous match.

Old Zheng and his friends looked at each other, seeing shock and disbelief in their eyes.

“Every time I thought I knew Lou Cheng’s limit but every time I was wrong,” a friend of his said incoherently.

“Yeah. A surprise for us every time. And shock. Reminds me of the days when Warrior Sage and Dragon King were new in the circle.” Old Zheng rubbed his forehead.

They commented with a tinge of emotion on the match and Old Zheng’s sharp eye for spotting Lou Cheng, an extreme sleeper, and keeping his faith in him all through this tournament.

“Ha-hah! Old Zheng, how much did you make from this match? You better treat us to a nice meal!” a friend of his joked.

Old Zheng’s face changed a bit and put on a forced smile.

“I bet on Ye Youting…”

“Ahh?” His friends were astonished and amused.

Old Zheng heaved a sigh. “I’m not a fortune teller. How could I damn know Lou Cheng would defeat Ye Youting?”

He swore a little to let out his mixed emotion.

…

Lying on a sick bed in the emergency ward under a normal saline IV therapy, Lou Cheng had no idea how the spectators were doing. He was waiting for the doctor to bring down his fever.

Lou Cheng grabbed his mobile with his right hand and took a photo of his left hand and the IV infusion for Yan Zheke. He sent a miserable emoji. “My last IV therapy was five or six years ago.”

Lou Cheng had grown up healthy and strong. He had a cold or a fever here and there but several pills were always enough to suppress the symptoms. He hadn’t felt a needle for years.

Yan Zheke replied an emoji weeping a cold sweat. “I had an IV therapy last year. But I’m already much better these years. Before I started my martial arts training, I visited hospitals every other week. Three years training and finally I became stronger. You have no idea how sick and weak I used to look in my primary school and middle school days. Now I’m more or less at the average health level.”

“I’d love to see how you looked like in your primary and middle schools. You must be super adorable!” Although dizzy and giddy, Lou Cheng couldn’t resist teasing her.

“Hmm… With an IV needle in your vein, you can still joke. How do you feel?” Yan Zheke sounded concerned.

Lou Cheng thought about it and typed with one hand. “The fever is pretty much gone. My head is not as hot, but my body still has no strength. And my head feels very heavy.”

Yan Zheke sent him a laughing emoji with its mouth covered by its hands. “Hi, Lou Daiyu.”

She continued with an emoji with a pair of bright piercing eyes. “By the way, what happened during the match with Ye Youting? How could you arouse such incredible might?”

Seemingly she had been holding back this question and finally let it out when Lou Cheng was obviously better.

Lou Cheng had been thinking how to explain it to her. He started with a teary emoji clenching fists. “I didn’t want it. It was a total accident. I hoped for a decent loss, so I tried my best to hold on longer. I kept pressing my body, one minute after another.

“You know how ridiculous my physical strength can be. I’d never reached my limit until this last match. Something exploded inside my body, giving off a horrible force, pushing me to attack until Ye Youting was down on the ground.

“After the force was released, I felt empty, close to a faint. My face must look terrible with abnormal redness towards the end of the match.”

He pretty much told the truth except Jindan (the Golden Elixir) was replaced by his inner force.

Yan Zheke sent him an emoji of knocking head and scolding. “You deserve it! People explore their potential step by step, afraid of anything going wrong like Wang Xiaoshuang who was sent to practice meditation in Daxing Temple after his supernatural ability of manipulating fire went out of control and burnt down several houses. Why did you push your gift in physical strength beyond the limit? Now you see the consequence?”

“Yes, I see. Thank you, Coach Yan, for your wisdom. I’ll never do it again!” Feeling love and warmth from the scold, Lou Cheng sincerely apologized and made his promise.

How happy and joyful it is to feel love and care from the loved one!

After being so close to death, Lou Cheng dared not to abuse Jindan (the Golden Elixir) like this anymore. He needed a better, safer way to digest it.

Yan Zheke replied an emoji of a cat holding dried fish. “That’s good. I’ll get some information and tips about how to gradually exploit one’s talent and supernatural ability from my grandpa. Or you’ll have to seek advice from Coach Shi. He seems full of stories and experiences.”

“Coach Yan is the best!” Lou Cheng answered with a sly grin. His eyelid started to sink and weariness showered down his body. Ready to fall back to sleep any second, Lou Cheng added, “If I don’t reply, I’m asleep. Don’t worry.”

“Hmm! I won’t worry. I was just terrified.” Yan Zheke recalled her feeling and sent a stunned dog emoji. “Everything seemed fine when you were suppressed by Ye Youting at the beginning of the match. I was thinking about how to poke fun at your loss when you abruptly exploded like a Super Saiyan. My eyes didn’t blink for a long time after that. I knew this kind of explosion came at a price as we were not in a comic book. So I phoned you right away.”

Lou Cheng felt weak and tired, and his typing slowed down. Before he could finish his reply, Yan Zheke’s next message already arrived, starting with an onion bulb sighing emoji. “That poor girl must be destroyed. Who could have guessed she would lose the fight? Not even you!”

“Life is all about surprises. I’ve completed a small miracle and added ten more grand to our meal foundation!” The good side of the result brightened Lou Cheng up.

“I’ll eat away all your savings!” Yan Zheke sent a cute emoji of eating a big bowl of noodles.

“All my life… ” said Lou Cheng in his heart.

“By the way, Cheng, have you got your train ticket?” Yan Zheke suddenly changed the topic to a very important matter about whether Lou Cheng could make it home.

Lou Cheng was wide awake all of a sudden. “Damn! Forgot about it.”

“You in your current status are able to gobble up a ticket? Give me your ID number and let me help.” Yan Zheke added an emoji demanding compliments.

Wild with joy, Lou Cheng instantly wrote back. “Lovely Yan Zheke is so beautiful and kind! Give me your alipay account and I’ll transfer you some money for the ticket. Let me know if not enough.”

The conversation continued until he fell asleep. A strange assortment of visions and voices flashed and vanished in his dream, leaving no trace behind.

It was towards 5 p.m. when Lou Cheng finally woke up. His head was still in a whirl and his body weak. The fever seemed gone as the burning sensation disappeared from his forehead and face.

“Here is 10,000 award money for making into the top eight. The hosts sent it over knowing you are recovering here.” The doctor handed him a big stack of 100-bills.

Lou Cheng blew some air out and scratched his head. “Forgot about it. Thank you very much.”

“No need. Bai Song will be your next opponent. Do your best and continue your magic!” The doctor waved his fist to send encouragement. Lou Cheng looked stunned.

…

Back to the hotel, Lou Cheng had no appetite at all. He took his medicine and chatted a bit with Yan Zheke in bed. Quickly he fell asleep and slept through the night until 7:30 the next morning and for the very first time missed his morning training.

His head was clear as if he had recovered from a severe disease. He tried to meditate and watch inside his body, checking if there were any hidden problems before logging on his QQ. He saw a message from Yan Zheke with a proud emoji pushing sunglasses. “Got you a ticket at 11:40 which should give you enough time to finish the match. But I think you can’t finish the fight being so sick yesterday… ”

“Coach Yan is very straightforward. I think I’ll retire.” Lou Cheng added a wronged emoji.

Yan Zheke sent an emoji losing in thought. “How do you feel?”

“The fever is gone. I’m actually feeling hungry. But still, my muscles hurt and I have no strength. I can barely walk with my bag, not to mention the fight.” Lou Cheng felt under attack by many minor diseases after defeating a severe illness. He could sense some symptoms of a cold already.

“Don’t worry. You expected to lose the match yesterday but you have made it to today. It’s already a very good outcome!” Yan Zheke offered some comfort.

Lou Cheng got out of bed and cleaned up. He saw himself in the mirror, wan and sallow.

He gazed at himself for a minute or so and suddenly lifted his right hand. He snapped his fingers and a small flame appeared!

From the earlier inward vision, he saw the remaining heat from Jindan’s flames completely blend into his body. The force was tiny and probably useless.

“What the heck is this?” Lou Cheng laughed, talking to his reflection in the mirror. “Congratulation for unlocking the supernatural lighter! A super power that can light a cigarette.”

He blew the flicking flame off.

It could be a surprise magic show for Yan Zheke. These days supernatural ability was no longer news; just something odd that no one seemed to care. After watching his sudden explosion yesterday, she should be ready for some supernatural ability awakening.

…

After packing his bag, he struggled to put it on his back and checked himself out at the reception. He took a taxi to Yanling Martial Arts Stadium.

“Is your supervisor around?” He asked Ning Ling, the girl at the service desk.

Ning Ling was confused, “What do you need from the supervisor?”

She seemed more overwhelmed and impressed, not as friendly or bubbly as before. A fighter under 20 years old who had defeated Ye Youting was unattainable.

Lou Cheng felt grateful for her support in the past and gave her a genuine smile. “I aroused all my potential strength yesterday and got exhausted. I can’t handle it anymore and need an early retirement.

“Ohh… I see… ” Ning Ling’s eyes were filled with sudden understanding as if the biggest puzzle on her mind had just been solved. She guided Lou Cheng to the man in charge of the tournament.

“Early retirement?” The man in charge was calm, as if he had seen this coming.

Lou Cheng explained again and added, “I would love to give it a try if I could make it… ”

The man in charge smiled. “I kind of guessed this after seeing you in the emergency ward yesterday. To go by rules, I will have you checked up. We can’t just go with your words, right?”

He called two masters of the Danqi stage, one of which was Sheng, the head of Liu Zunyu’s bodyguards. They inspected Lou Cheng briefly and confirmed his health condition.

…

Carrying his bag, Lou Cheng stepped to the exit of the stadium. A sudden feeling of loss and reluctance hit him.

Through this door he had become a real martial artist! The one who entered here had shed his mortal body and changed his bones to become the one who was about to leave.

He turned around to take one last look at the stadium. The matches, cheers, and screams of his name flashed across his mind. He remembered how he again and again went up the flight of stairs of glory.

Yanling, one the most important stops in my life!

Lou Cheng was buried by emotions and sentiments until his taxi arrived.

“Young man, you are leaving early? Why not watch the following matches?” asked the chatty taxi driver casually.

Of good manners, Lou Cheng didn’t want to chat but still replied, “Time to go home. It’s been several days already. I’ll be scolded if I stay longer.”

He unlocked his mobile, thinking about what to do. Yan Zheke has martial arts training every morning, not available to chat.

“What a pity! The matches are getting better and better,” said the driver excitedly. “Listen. This tournament has a big sleeper Lou Cheng. He defeated Ye Youting from the Yiye Martial Arts School. He might make another surprise and defeat Bai Song today!

“I tell you! I’ve bet heavily on him! I’ll be rich soon!”

… Lou Cheng was stunned. He released his fingers from Contacts and dropped the idea of calling Geezer Shi.

“Sigh… Young friend. What’s wrong?” The driver glanced at him.

Lou Cheng chuckled, “I’m not feeling very well… ”

The call can wait till the train station.

…

In a tidy bedroom Yan Xiaoling woke up.

She was exhausted last night after going shopping with her best friends and didn’t carry out her plan. She decided to do it now!

She searched for the name Lou Cheng. Not many entries were returned and no personal forum. On the website where the Longhu Club’s forum was hosted, she clicked Create a New Forum and selected the classification Martial Artists.

“Forum Name: Lou Cheng.”

“Type: Personal”

…

A series of information displayed in front of Yan Xiaoling. She read through and smiled.

“Ha! I’m to be his first fan!”

She pressed the blue square:

“Create!”