Martial Arts Master

At Jiuwen Stadium in Hexi City, the bright lights made it look like daytime in the arena and grandstand. The voice of the committee representative rumbled through the air.

“And now we have the four official contestants for the Battle of Warrior Sage! First, we have the one who has been known as Warrior Sage since the dawn of time...”

He intentionally paused to let the audience burst into cheers.

“Qian Donglou!”

The spectacle made Lou Cheng a little giddy, as though he was in a dream, as though he had returned to the year before. At that time, the scene and noise were the same. The only difference was that the name that was resounded was Chen Qitao.

Yes, I’ve made it past countless obstacles and entered the semifinals of Battle of Warrior Sage once more!

However, this time he entered as a seeded contestant. In the first round, he guided Inhumans. In the second round, he didn’t run into other super-class experts, which made it easier than before.

Amidst the perpetual cheering, he glanced around at the other contestants. There was Warrior Sage, Qian Donglou, Kirin, Dong Baxian, and much to his surprise, Sunny Star, Ren Li.

Seeing the indomitable, trouble-making girl come this far, Lou Cheng once again wondered if she had a supernatural ability that enhanced her luck.

Along the way, Ren Li had only encountered a super-class in the quarterfinals, who happened to be the oldest in the professional league, Sword King, Wu Qiao. During the round of sixteen, Wu Qiao almost had the tables turned against him by The Clown and only won by a hair’s breadth after a tough fight.

In the first round, she was matched against Ann Chaoyang, who had only advanced recently. She took him down easily. It made Lou Cheng realize that Hipster always got bullied by girls.

In the second round, Ren Li encountered a second-pin Physical Invulnerability expert, The Witch, Qian Hui. Relying on her fearsome instincts, she overcame Qian Hui’s Illusion Sect techniques and hypnosis talents and made it to the round of thirty-two. In the round of thirty-two, she got lucky once again and fought against her martial uncle, Soul-Hooking Swordsman, Song Changting, whose moves were familiar to her own.

In the round of sixteen, she finally encountered a strong enemy. However, in an environment where most that remained were super-class, she was lucky enough to be matched against Xuanwu Sect’s first-pin, Tidal Wave, Yue Guanzhong.

In comparison, Warrior Sage’s luck had been abysmal since the round of thirty-two. The thought made Lou Cheng toss an extra glance at Qian Donglou.

In the round of thirty-two, he had encountered Wisdom King, Zhi Hai. In the round of sixteen, he encountered Empress Luo, Ning Zitong. In the quarter-finals, he encountered God-Slaying Saber, Lu Yongyuan. Every fight was intense and an uphill battle, especially against Lu Yongyuan, who nearly proved himself once again with his splendid performance. In the end, Lu Yongyuan failed to turn the tables, but gave the Warrior Sage a run for his money and left him with severe wounds.

In the semi-finals the day after, he could only be at seventy percent, at best, thought Lou Cheng, retracting his gaze from Qian Donglou and nodding thoughtfully.

It didn’t seem that bad, but compared to Ren Li, Warrior Sage’s horrible luck was apparent.

This wasn’t to say that Ren Li had relied entirely on luck. In the previous title tournaments, her luck in lot-drawing had always been good, yet she never made it far. The main reason she was able to enter the semi-finals was because her standard was already first-pin. Her luck could only come in handy with that prerequisite accomplished. In the past, she might not even been able to make it past Tidal Waves, Yue Guanzhong, much less Sword King, Wu Qiao.

Compared to her, Lou Cheng didn’t seem lucky at all. Then again, he wasn’t as unlucky as Warrior Sage. First two matches aside, he encountered Living Buddha, Shishan in the round of thirty-two. With his cultivation base, superior mental power, and equal attainment in stage, he cleansed his shame and beat his opponent in his peak form for the first time. However, he did not do so without wounds and a huge headache. Luckily, the Nine Words Formula was good for healing and he managed to recover almost entirely before the round of sixteen.

His opponent for the eound of sixteen was Priest. It had been a long time since they met each other in the arena. With his superior strength, he won without many injuries.

However, he felt something was odd about Priest’s kung fu, as though he was cultivating some sort of terrifying monster... In time, he would become a super-class expert who could not be taken lightly. Lou Cheng began to ponder about what Peng Leyun learned from the Thunder Sect secret arts, specifically his mindset.

“Lou Cheng!” The sea of cheers made him snap out of his thoughts. He saw the round of eight playing before his eyes.

His opponent was Long Dam that Guards the Sea, Ma Xinghong. His Xuanwu Divine Sword and Water Sect secret arts proved to be extraordinary, and he truly displayed the strength of a super-class. However, with the Dragon King’s beatings and his own growth, Lou Cheng resolved his issues and managed to win.

Of course, he was left rather serious wounds. He would be lucky if he could be at eighty or ninety percent for the semi-finals.

Thoughts racing, Lou Cheng felt his back, chest, and limbs ache.

...

In the VIP lounge, Empty Nest Greybeard, Wu Molian sat shoulder to shoulder with his friend Shi Jianguo. As he smoked his self-rolled blunt, he chuckled.

“The student has surpassed the master. What a good disciple!”

“Surpassed the master? Not in his lifetime!” snorted Geezer Shi. “Back in my day, if I had participated in title tournaments, taking home more than ten titles would have been a walk in the park! Look at him, he hasn’t even gotten to challenge the defending champion yet.”

Back in your era, there wasn’t the Dragon King and Warrior Sage, thought Wu Molian. He then smiled.

“You seem like you’ve been rather free lately, coming all the way to watch the match. Why not take in more disciples? Train them well, and you’ll be contributing to the sect and country!”

Geezer Shi glanced at him, then gave a “heh-heh” laugh.

“You should know how I am. Having one shitty disciple is already too much for me to handle. Old Wu, could it be that one of your connections wants my mentorship? Just teach them yourself! After all, you’re just one cut below me.”

“Ah, I see your true colors now. You’re even lazier than me!” said Wu Molian, avoiding the question.

That was when the lot-drawing for the semi-finals began. He looked outside.

Geezer Shi smiled secretly, thinking in his heart,

If this geezer took in more disciples but didn’t produce anymore Physical Invulnerability experts, wouldn’t that be embarrassing?

It would make that brat cocky, too!

...

Lou Cheng tried his best to balance his breathing as he watched the committee representative put his hand into the box.

The best outcome for him and Chihuahua would be for them to encounter each other while Warrior Sage and Kirin brawled it out.

Dong Baxian’s journey, like mine, has been luckier than the Warrior Sage, so there’s a big possibility he could eliminate Warrior Sage. No matter who comes out on top, they’ll be weakened from their all-out fight. That would be the best for Ren Li and I. Hm... That is, if we don’t deal massive damage to each other. Still, I’m somewhat confident that I wouldn’t take too much damage...

May Ren Li’s lucky star will continue radiating...

As the thought flashed past, the representative displayed the first ball.

“Shangqing Sect, Warrior Sage, Qian Donglou.”

He drew a second ball.

“Longhu Club, Lou Cheng!”

The result made Lou Cheng want to laugh. Just like the year before, he would run into the strongest one. However, it wasn’t exactly the same. Warrior Sage’s conditions weren’t as good as the Dragon King’s, and he wasn’t who he used to be.

Almost unconsciously, he turned to look at Warrior Sage, Qian Donglou and saw a polite smile on his face. He had a scholarly air and suave manners, the air of a martial arts master.

Thank goodness Warrior Sage isn’t in peak form, thought Lou Cheng, amused. He nodded a greeting back, feeling relaxed, as though his hopes had been realized.

And so the semifinals for the Battle of Warrior Sage had been decided:

Warrior Sage, Qian Donglou vs. Sky-Shaking Hou, Lou Cheng!

Kirin, Dong Baxian vs. Sunny Star, Ren Li!

...

After the lot-drawing, Lou Cheng and the others went down a flight of stairs to the mixed interview area.

“What are your thoughts on getting the Warrior Sage as your next opponent?”

“What do you estimate your chances of winning to be?”

“What are your thoughts on the Warrior Sage’s performance thus far?”

Lou Cheng recalled a similar situation the year before—reporters pushing their microphones at him, throwing one question after the other through the hubbub—and realized that the contents of their questions were roughly the same.

Smiling, he gave a vague reply,

“A cook that doesn’t want to be a general isn’t a good driver.”

After completing the interviews with a similar approach, he left the place and returned to the hotel.

That was when the reporters realized something was amiss. One of the newly advanced semi-finalists, Sunny Star, Ren Li, was nowhere to be found.

In a quiet corner, a young, round-faced assistant was making a panicked call.

“Hello? Ms. Ren, where are you?! Please tell me right now!”

Assistants weren’t allowed to tag along to the lot-drawing ceremony.

Ren Li’s serious voice came from the other end of the line.

“I’m at, um, there’s a wall at my left. And my right. In front of me, there’s a...road. Same goes for behind.”

The assistant stood speechless, stupefied.

...

Lou Cheng took out his phone for a glance when he had seated himself in the van. No replies from Yan Zheke.

Since entering the graduation phase, she had been as busy as a bee. She could barely find time to check the results of the matches, much less spare time to watch the competitions broadcast at night in China, which was afternoon in Connecticut.

Laying down his phone, Lou Cheng looked out the window. The beautiful night lights mingled with the neon lights.

Suddenly, he heard the special notification. Holding his phone up, he saw a message from Yan Zheke:

“Do your best!”

Three simple words, as though they had been typed furtively and eagerly.

Beep, a few seconds later, another message came, equally simple, furtive, and eager.

“I know you’ll do well.”

Lou Cheng’s lips curved into a smile.