Martial Arts Master

“Taoist Wuguang wins round three!”

The announcement didn’t surprise Lou Cheng. He focused on monitoring his emotions.

Every defeat upset him, and this match was no exception.

Even though he had accomplished his objective by wounding and exhausting his opponent, Lou Cheng couldn’t shake the feeling that he could have done better, lasted longer, and not have given in the way he did.

Honestly, encountering such an enemy was a first for him. He used to joke that people with weak presences always had some sort of hidden ability, and it turns out he was right. Taoist Wuguang was a prime example.

All the information about him that had been inadvertently omitted had lead people to think that he was an insiginifcant figure, whcih immediately put his opponents at a disadvantage.

If they became distracted, they might even forget their opponent entirely and focus on the wrong target!

If not for his danger premonition ability, this battle might have been a quick, one-sided victory for Taoist Wuguang.

Thankfully, Taoist…Wuguang isn’t a practitioner of secret arts from the Dark Sect or Death Sect, or he would have been even more horrifying and unpredictable, thought Lou Cheng. Supressing his emotions, he planned to note his findings later. If he revised often enough, he wouldn’t forget about them.

“Thank you for your guidance, sir.” Heaving a sigh, he bowed to the Shangqing Sect Master, who had the same seniority as his own Master. Lou Cheng turned and walked towards the edge of the cliff where the rest of the Longhu Club members were.

Yan Xiaoling slapped her thighs. “Aye! How did he lose all of a sudden?” wrote Yan Xiaoling on the forums.

She felt the match had ended before she even found out who the opponent was.

The disappointment wasn’t overwhelming, but it felt as if the match never happened.

The same thought crossed the minds of Yan Zheke, Cai Zongming, and others. It was as though they had watched a fixed fight.

On the other side of the arena, the Shangqing Sect members shifted their gaze to the next opponent.

By then, Ning Zitong, the Phantom King, had already stood. Her skin was smooth and milky, and her hair had been bunned up elegantly. Her refined beauty was tinged with a foreign air that was enrapturing. It was hard to tell she was already in her forties.

She wore a loose, navy blue martial arts suit that concealed her nymphlike body. Walking towards Lou Cheng, she greeted him with a slight nod.

Nodding back, Lou Cheng raised his fist as encouragement.

Brushing past Ning Zitong, he returned to the guest team seating area. Chen Qitao glanced at him placidly, showing no sign of disappointment or delight. He quickly diverted his attention back to the impending round three. Guo Jie frowned, deep in thought. She was having trouble working out what had just transpired.

Lü Yan harrumphed. “Not bad,” he said stiffly.

Was that a compliment? Or was that a compliment? Lou Cheng sat down on the futon and took back his ring and phone.

He wanted to text Yan Zheke and tell her about Wuguang’s secret ability, but the unstable electromagnetic field interrupted the signal. He put down his phone and waited for the fight between Ning Zitong and Taoist Wuguang to commence.

I feel like I’m forgetting something… Lou Cheng furrowed his brows slightly. He heard the referee shout, “Begin!” Relaxing, he focused his attention on the match.

By now, thanks to the Heavenly Lightning that had ravaged the land, Shangqing Sect’s home ground set-up was nearly destroyed. The only things remaining were the occasional high-voltage zones and areas and an unstable magnetic field.

Ning Zitong specialized in moves from the Dark Sect, so her combat style differed starkly from the other Physical Invulnerability experts in the Longhu Sect. Right as the fight began, she used the Evanescent Shadows Movement to evade the electromagnetic sword and close in on Taoist Wuguang.

Her airy, nimble movements seemed to contrast her savage nickname, which echoed the monsters of western mythology.

The bizarre sight of Ning Zitong chasing after Taoist Wuguang while the magnetic longsword chased her ensued. Taking advantage of her superior footwork, she completely ignored the sword’s pursuit and focused on hounding her opponent, who would soon be forgotten if left to his own devices.

The flitting figures darted and danced in the gleam of the sword’s metallic luster. The scene perfectly captured the essence of the famous poem: The beauty redolent of fine jade, and the sword redolent of the rainbow.

Between the two formerly-titled Mighty Ones, one attacked with unorthodox, erratic, and vicious moves, while the other attacked with savage moves of hammering and slamming. It was an even match.

Before long, the wounded, exhausted Taoist Wuguang began to fall behind under Ning Zitong’s relentless attacks. With her surreal footwork, she repeatedly dodged the pincer attack from the flying sword in the nick of time, nearly causing it to hit Taoist Wuguang instead.

As expected from the Phantom King, praised Lou Cheng inwardly, captivated by the fight.

Undeniably, the Evanescent Shadows Movement is only at its strongest in the hands of a Dark Sect specialist.

Then again, Taoist Wuguang’s not half bad at close quarter fights. His profound mastery of the Thunder Sect secret arts rivals his Sword Manipulation and supernatural ability.

I better note this down in case I forget. Speaking of which, wasn’t I going to write something down before…

Whoa, what an excellent claw by Sister Ning!

In her hands, the secret arts of the Dark Sect are a true form of art.

Sigh, the problem is, the uncooperative Taoist… Wuguang keeps disrupting her moves at their crucial points. The most brilliant parts of her moves don’t get a chance to shine.

Move along, geezer, stop blocking my view.

If only he could disappear…

Similar thoughts flitted across the minds of many audiences. Perhaps the saying “The man condemned by a thousand will die even he isn’t sick” does hold water, because sure enough, Taoist Wuguang began to lose. After another round of grand exchanges, he finally gave in.

This wasn’t to say that Ning Zitong was unscathed. The rips in her navy martial arts suit revealed charred skin and bloody wounds.

A hideous sword wound extended from the right side of her sleeveless shirt to her neck, covered in fresh blood.

But rather than tarnishing her image, it added a wild, coquettish charm to her beauty. The sight of it made Lou Cheng recall childhood stories of a terrifying, though beautiful Bloody Mary.

“Ning Zitong wins round four!”

Hearing the referee’s voice, Lou Cheng shifted his gaze to the Shangqing Sect seating area. Dressed in a white robe, Peng Leyun stood up mechanically, without even moving his limbs.

He kept his hair neat and short. His eyes gleamed as though there were countless lightning bolts from the Nine Heavens striking successively in them.

As he stepped forward, all signs of distraction were erased from his face. The air around him intensified, as though harboring destructive thunderbolts.

With Yang comes Yin, and with life comes death. Being the product of Yin and Yang, thunderbolts represented righteousness, exuberance, and life, at the same time symbolizing destruction, divine punishment, and death. At that moment, Peng Leyun perfectly illustrated the latter.

The light around him faded, reminding Lou Cheng of his own Ice Spirit Force that embodied darkness. However, Peng Leyun’s version was closer to death and destruction. It had a finality to it.

“Huh…” muttered Lou Cheng, frowning.

Something’s not right… This isn’t like the Priest…

Beside him, Lü Yan suddenly said pensively,

“Forbidden Sect, Shangqing Chapters.”

Lou Cheng looked at him. “He can learn those already?” he blurted.

“He used them as reference,” corrected Lü Yan. He shook his head. “There are subtle differences between Sects and clubs like us. If you want to access those, you have to accumulate your contributions to the club.”

“Hmm…” Lou Cheng pondered. “So why didn’t Taoist…Wuguang use any of those? He’s the Sect Master after all.”

“You think he came up with 10,000 Lightning Earth Cleanser by himself? It’s just harder to tell since he integrated it into his own kung fu,” snorted Lü Yan.

Lou Cheng paused for a moment.

“You still remember that move?”

If he hadn’t mentioned it, I would have forgotten about it!

The muscles on Lü Yan’s face twitched.

Still gazing straight ahead, he said almost inaudibly,

“My first fight against Wuguang was the most humiliating defeat I suffered…”

“As if I could ever forget.”

“I remember it clearly.”

“I remember it all too well.”

Okay, okay, I get it, thought Lou Cheng as he glanced curiously at Lü Yan. Brushing away these frivolous thoughts, he shifted his eyes to the last battle. The battle that would determine the true victor.

The referee took a step back and raised his right arm as Peng Leyun and Ning Zitong got into position.

“Begin!” he shouted.