Martial Arts Master

Daxing Temple’s arena was an open field of over three hundred square meters. There were old pagodas at each corner. Some were made of wood while others were forged from stone. They all emanated righteous, compassionate, and peaceful vibes which merged in the center of the field and gave off a glow. It was as though the Buddha Realm had descended on this spot to let the audience, who was watching from tall tower some distance away, forget their worries and worldly desires.

One could tell that once a martial artist entered this area, his soul would be greatly affected and his mind greatly disrupted.

This was the homeground advantage of Daxing Temple.

At the middle of each of the four pagodas, a monk in a red kasaya was sitting on each azure stone roof. They were either old or middle-aged, haggard or rosy, holding a “demon-subduing ring”ring or a long black whip.

They were all high monks from Daxing Temple’s Bodhi Garden. They were sitting there to prevent any shockwaves or off-target fireballs from damaging the pagodas. Inside these pagodas were relics of the previous generations of Venerables.

Because of this, Daxing Temple wouldn’t have to worry about their homeground being completely destroyed. No matter how badly damaged the Limestone Square was, it would still be fixable.

“Fighting in this place makes me feel like I’m disrespecting the ancestors. What is Daxing Temple thinking…” Lou Cheng stood at the window of a hall that was being used as the visiting team’s changing room and looked towards the Holy Ground of Buddhism.

Ning Zitong tied up her hair and revealed her slender neck, still without wrinkles. She laughed lightly,

“Everything is nothing but emptiness. If they cared about all these, how would they be monks? And plus, isn’t borrowing strength from the relics a common tradition of monks?”

“That’s true.” Lou Cheng looked away and took out his phone.

I guess I’m just a regular guy who can’t see these things with such an open mind.

In the home team changing room, which was decorated plainly, Zhi Jing knocked on the door before entering. He placed both of his hands together in greeting and said,

“Abbot, the supervisor tower is rushing us for our lineup.”

Because there were unmanned drones taking videos, Fa Yuan, whose eyes, nose, and mouth were drooping, hadn’t brought any paper to make signs, trying to maintain his image as a Divine Monk.

However, this didn’t stop him from interacting with others. Shi Shan sat opposite to him fewer than five meters away.

After a silent stare shared between them, Shi Shan stood up and said,

“We’ll just let nature takes its course today.”

“Let nature takes its course… Those words are too deep.” Wisdom King, Zhi Hai, sank deep into thought.

He had another nickname on the Internet, where he was called Elder Tang, which meant that he was as handsome and naivenaive r as Tang Sanzang. Demons loved him and couldn’t wait to devour him.

[Note: Tang Sanzang was depicted as a naive monk who showed idealistic compassion to demons without wisdom in the popular chinese novel, Journey to the West. This is where the “blur” characteristic comes from]

Shi Shan glanced at him and sighed helplessly,

“It seems like I’m the only useful Physical Invulnerability expert in Daxing Temple.”

He ripped the paper into three pieces and wrote the abbot’s, Wisdom King’s, and his name on them. After shaking, he asked Zhi Jing to pick them out.

Zhi Jing placed a hand in front of his chest like a pitiful lady afraid of being bullied. He silently recited, I’m not thinking of anything over and over as he extended his hand to pick the first Physical Invulnerability for the round of matches.

He opened up the paper and saw the two words Fa Yuan. After which, he drew out the next slip and said,

“Abbot Venerable.”

After which, he picked the third Physical Invulnerability and showed the slip of paper around,

“Martial Junior Zhi Hai.”

And thus the sequence of appearance for Daxing Temple was decided.

Divine Monk, Fa Yuan; Supreme Class, Zhi Hai; Living Buddha, Shi Shan. Zhi Hai currently held the title of Supreme Class and therefore could use it when he submitted his name on the lineup.

As for the reserves, there were Wang Xiaoshuang and the rest.

…

In the visiting team’s changing room, Lu Yan got dressed, looked at his surroundings, and said,

“Without a doubt, with Optimus Prime gone and Dragon King temporarily out, our strength is inferior to Daxing Temple. Since we’re the underdogs, we have to show them the attitude of one!”

His words were based on a reasonable analysis, but he also seemed to be taunting Lou Cheng. Before Lou Cheng could reply, he stared at Lou Cheng and asked,

“In a one-on-one match against a stronger opponent, how would you choose to fight?”

Lou Cheng thought for several seconds before replying,

“I’d analyze the situation. If I didn’t understand my opponent well enough, I’d choose a guerilla strategy to exhaust them so I could observe. Once the opportunity arose, I’d grab onto it and aim for consecutive strikes. If that didn’t work, I’d open up distance and repeat.”

“That’s basically the plan. We’re going to use it for the entire round of matches.” Lu Yan nodded his head slightly before continuing, “The three Physical Invulnerability experts of Daxing Temple are similar in strength. Any sequence of appearance is possible. We will line up based on our lack of understanding of the opponents. We will adopt a guerilla strategy and try to exhaust them as it goes. In this aspect, no one is better than you, Empress Luo.”

“No problem,” answered Ning Zitong with a smile.

“After dragging them into a prolonged battle, it will be about explosiveness. In this aspect, I’m not as good as you.” Lu Yan looked at Lou Cheng and admitted honestly. “As for reacting to variations in timing, momentum, and finishing developments, I have at least twenty or thirty years on you and am a little more experienced.”

Coach, you are saying you’re still strong despite your age? Lou Cheng laughed in secret as he cursed. However, he maintained a serious look, nodded his head and answered,

“Alright.”

After making the arrangements and submitting the lineup, they still had twenty minutes until the start of the competition. They moved their bodies, adjusted their mental states, or looked afar to seek encouragement from the audience.

Lou Cheng kept his phone with a satisfactory look on his face. Just as he was about to close his eyes to make some adjustments, he suddenly heard Guo Jie ask him softly from the side,

“If you were fighting against Divine Monk, Fa Yuan; Supreme Class, Zhi Hai; and Living Buddha, Shi Shan separately, what would you say to each of them during the conversation time? Would there be any differences?”

Since when is Martial Arts Fanatic so talkative? Lou Cheng tilted his head over in surprise and saw Guo Jie looking out the window, clearly distracted. Perhaps she was thinking about what it would be like to face Fa Yuan, Zhi Hai, or Shi Shan since she wasn’t participating this time.

“Um…” After a moment of silence, he replied, “I haven’t encountered Divine Monk, Fa Yuan or Wisdom King yet, so I don’t know much about them. It’s hard to say. However, if I saw the Living Buddha, I’d tell him about all kinds of food during the conversation time. Like steamed lamb, steamed bear’s paw, steamed deer meat, roasted duck, roasted chicken, roasted goose… ”

That guy is clearly a glutton, the kind that was forced to become a vegetarian. Telling him about different kinds of food attack his weakness directly!

Just as Lou Cheng was feeling proud of this idea, Guo Jie looked over and asked curiously,

“Did you host a talk show before?

How can you name things off like that so effortlessly?

Lou Cheng was dumbfounded and only answered after a long time, “I’ve just always been interested in listening…”

…

It was the middle of the night in Connecticut. Seeing that it wasn’t yet time for the competition, Yan Zheke was getting flustered at how slow time was passing. She decided to open up her laptop and do some research.

I’ll just work on my report to calm myself down a little.

…

In a dormitory room in Songcheng University.

He Zi pushed the door open and entered. She saw Yan Xiaoling putting on a face mask.

“He Zi, He Zi. Come comfort me! I told them that I use up my facial cream really quickly nowadays because I’m so diligent with my routine. But they just they mocked me for having a big face.” Yan Xiaoling cried and used her baby voice as she exaggerated the matter.

He Ze took a look at her and said, “It isn’t that your face is big. It’s just that your face got fatter. You’ve gained a lot of weight recently.”

“Heartless. You break my heart… ” Yan Xiaoling said, her jaw dropped.

“That’s not the main issue. The real question is why are you putting on a face mask at 3pm in the afternoon?” He Zi asked.

Yan Xiaoling heaved a long sigh and said, “I was too nervous last night and couldn’t sleep until 6am! Then I was dragged out for lunch by Jinjin in the afternoon. My skin isn’t good and I need sleep. So I was thinking of putting on a face mask and getting something to eat so I can sleep straight through until tomorrow morning!”

“What are you nervous for?” asked He Zi curiously.

“Maybe it’s because senior is finally going to face the most outstanding martial artist of this generation, Wisdom King, Zhi Hai? I can’t help but feel a little nervous…”

Yan Xiaoling suddenly jumped up. “Competition, afternoon competition. I forgot that the competition is in the afternoon! I slept so much that I forgot all about it!”

Yan Xiaoling quickly looked for her laptop to search for live streaming websites. While looking, she knocked over her school bag, hit her head, and ended up crying from the pain. Seeing that she was a mess, He Zi sighed helplessly as she mumbled softly,

“I’d forgotten about it, too…”

As the saying goes, “Proximity to cinnabar makes you red.” Staying close to Ling makes one dumb…

…

At 3:10 in the afternoon, the shadows of the pagodas extended over the Limestone Square. The rays of the sunlight covered the other areas of the Limestone Square in a layer of gold. The referee walked to the middle of the arena and waved at the changing rooms of both sides, signalling them that the competition would soon begin.

“So it’s Divine Monk, Fa Yuan.” Ning Zitong glanced at the lineup as she pushed open the door, leaving with a grin on her face.

“Why does Sister Ning look so excited…” Lou Cheng mumbled to himself.

Lu Yan, who was standing beside him, explained,

“It’s a pastime of hers to try and make Divine Monk, Fa Yuan break his silence during the conversation period.”

She’s acting like a little girl… Lou Cheng found it rather hilarious.

Speaking of which, after gaining full mastery of Thoughtsteal, Divine Monk, Fa Yuan’s Silent Zen should have reached full mastery, too. Did something happen in between?