Martial Arts Master

“Shit, what just happened?” blurted Cai Zongming on his stream, unable to conceal his astonishment.

Right as he had been worried about whether Lou Cheng’s counterattack would prove effective and whether or not he could break free from Long Zhen’s suppression to regain his footing, Lou Cheng had ended the battle with two punches and a kick.

Did I miss something?

Was I watching a highlight reel instead of the live stream? A highlight reel where someone clipped the video from when Lou Cheng used Tilting Northwestern Skies, Sinking Southeastern Earth to the end of the fight?

This defies science and martial arts!

After a moment of silence, many comments floated past, most expressing incomprehension.

“I’m questioning whether or not I just watched a staged match.”

“Maybe Lou Cheng used a time-stopping ability to buy time, which helped complete the turnaround.”

“Maybe Long Zhen zoned out there…happens to me, too.”

“This won’t do, I have to catch a break. That was too damn amazing and too damn exciting!”

…

It didn’t take Cai Zongming long to collect his thoughts. With a faint smile, he said,

“Anyways, Lou Cheng has taken the victory! As his former roommate slash teammate, I won’t make any further comments to preserve my neutrality.”

Comments floated by as he spoke.

“Jeez, looks like I underestimated you! To think you could resist the temptation to praise Lou Cheng!”

“Not gonna get carried away? No unrestrained celebration?”

“This isn’t your style!”

Before the audience had finished commenting, Cai Zongming laughed softly.

“I’ll now hand it over to my partner. Let’s welcome my partner, ‘Talker’ Xiaoming!”

He coughed and lowered his voice.

“Greetings everyone, I am ‘Talker’ Xiaoming. For a battle at a Physical Invulnerability level, seldom has there ever been such a speedy victory between opponents of similar strength, much less the weaker one making quick work of the strong.”

“And today, Lou Cheng changed that!”

Ellipses covered the screen, as the audience was rendered speechless. After some time, they began commenting again.

“These city-slickers are too sly! I want to go back to the countryside!”

“You can do that?!”

“Host, I love your shamelessness!”

“Are you going to solo the duet?”

…

As people who believed themselves to be well-versed in martial arts and blessed with extraordinary eyes debated the key to Lou Cheng’s victory, Ning Zitong stood at the entrance of the tent waiting for her match to start. She sighed.

“After being caught off-guard and falling into a passive position, he figured out Long Zhen’s trick almost instantly, laying a trap and leading him by the nose… All things considered, this brat is something else when it comes to battle talents and winging it. In a match, he uses his abilities to one hundred and twenty percent.”

Out of habit, Lu Yan played the devil’s advocate.

“It was mainly due to Long Zhen’s erroneous mentality. He thought he could take down Lou Cheng in one fell swoop. Even the Warrior Sage himself wouldn’t think that if he was in his place.”

When he had finished, he added a line internally.

But it’s no easy feat to seize the opportunity and pull a reversal on Long Zhen. Lou Cheng’s getting even more skilled with his kung fu…

Ning Zitong nodded gently, then chuckled.

“Long Zhen got played hard this time. Any thoughts?” she said as she turned to Chen Qitao, who stood with arms akimbo.

Impassively, Chen Qitao said,

“Bad mentality. Low IQ.”

Pfft… If Long Zhen heard that, he would faint from rage. Ning Zitong nearly let out a laugh.

Mhm, when it comes to commenting on foes, Dragon King always had quite a vicious tongue. But he would never elaborate too much since that might affect his dignified image.

Then again, his latter comment did make a lot of sense. Did it not occur to Long Zhen where the Nine Words Formula came from, and who brought all the words back?

Shouldn’t he have been more wary and suspicious when Lou Cheng was completely passive and backing off at every turn?

Just who gave him the courage to challenge Lou Cheng in Nine Words Formula?

Did he not consider the possibility of being countered?

Then again, a bad mentality indeed leads to erroneous judgment, especially if one is too focused on winning and overlooks details.

Despite the Dragon King’s extreme competitiveness, which sometimes causes him to forget his manners, he never lets his emotions get the better of him and cloud his judgment on the battlefield. The fiercer the flames, the calmer his heart!

…

The one in question, Long Zhen, was standing in the desert giddily. Though half of his body was still in the sand, but it didn’t even cross his mind to vault out of it.

In his ears, the announcement “Lou Cheng wins!” resounded. His mind was blank and full of icy snowflakes.

I lost?

To Lou Cheng?

And I lost so easily and weakly?!

How is that possible? How did this happen?

Actually, he was well aware of the cause of his loss. However, he couldn’t fathom how he had made such a mistake. He didn’t want to think about the imminent derision from the public.

That was when he saw Lou Cheng withdrawing his leg and straightening up.

“You were too rash,” said Lou Cheng calmly.

Too rash… As Long Zhen chewed on these words, Lou Cheng turned and walked to the edge of the arena, his right hand swollen and throbbing.

Right when the match commenced, the bones in his right hand had been cracked thanks to Long Zhen’s surprise. Though he had tended to it, he couldn’t completely prevent the injuries from deteriorating given the intensity of the match. Worse still, he had forcefully used Tilting Northwestern Skies, Sinking Southeastern Earth near the end of the match by enduring the pain and ignoring everything.

Luckily, an injury of this level would only take him two or three days to recover from. It wouldn’t affect the third round, which would thin the thirty-two contestants to sixteen.

…

On the other side of the tent, Empty Nest Greybeard, Wu Molian peered into the distance with his hands crossed. He shook his head and sighed.

“Long Zhen setting his eyes on Dragon King or Warrior Sage is ambitious, but his eyes were so full of them that he underestimated the other Mighty Ones and gave them an opening.”

“From this day onward, the public will agree Lou Cheng replacing Long Zhen was a fortuitous event for the Longhu Club. It hasn’t even been that long, and he has already taken his first win. Plus, Lou Cheng has only recently advanced, and much of his potential has not yet been converted into strength. On the other hand, Long Zhen has been renowned for years and has pretty much realized his potential. In time, he will be completely outshone by Lou Cheng. This isn’t necessarily what I think, but what the public will undoubtedly say.”

“This loss could make or break Long Zhen’s future, depending on whether or not he can recover from this trauma and adjust his mentality. At first-pin, one’s state of mind directly affects their potential. If he succeeds, he will preserve his hope of catching up to the Dragon King and Warrior Sage. If not, he will be stuck where he’s at, choked at the bottleneck, and it will cost him a lot more to make the breakthrough.”

Cheetah, Li Yuanqi and The Witch, Qian Hui listened silently. The ambience in the tent was oddly tense.

After a long while, Qian Hui said, half-questioningly and half to herself.

“Elder Wu seems to know very well…”

With his back facing her, Wu Molian tensed, a bitter smile spreading across his face.

…

“Ha ha ha! Not sure how we won, but no complaints! [bellows with hands on waist]” wrote Yan Xiaoling in the Lou Cheng fan forum.

Unparalleled Dragon King replied with a “wiping sweat” emoji. “Ever since Long Zhen became first-pin, no one has ever made such quick work of him, not even Dragon King or Warrior Sage… Is Lou Cheng on steroids today?”

“My idol can do miracles! [rolling around]” wrote Brahman.

…

Amidst the commotion, Yan Xiaoling expressed her joy unreservedly as she posted links to Weibo headlines and internet news.

“An upset or a sign? Is Lou Cheng’s speedy victory against Long Zhen the greatest upset in the Battle of Warrior Sage, or a sign that he has what it takes to make it to the top eight?”

“The wolf is coming! The Heavenly Son of China that has created miracles at every stage is coming!”

“Top eight or top four?”

“Long Zhen’s departure from Long Hu might have been his only option. If he had stayed any longer, his position as the second powerhouse would have soon been taken over by Lou Cheng!”

…

Right as Lou Cheng finished bandaging his right arm and informing his girl of the good news, he saw a text from Auman.

“Mr. Lou, post-match interview.”

The screen locked as Lou Cheng strode out of the tent. He saw a lady with slanted eyes.

“Hello! What are your thoughts on your speedy victory against Long Zhen?” blurted the reporter, who had been waiting for some time.

Lou Cheng considered his words.

“I won mainly because of his erroneous mentality. Plus, I happened to be familiar with his new move, and I was able to seize the fleeting opportunity.”

“New move? Is it the Nine Words Formula?” The reporter had done her homework.

“Yes,” said Lou Cheng curtly.

The reporter paused for a second, then beamed.

“May I know what your goals are for this Battle of Warrior Sage?” she asked.

Lou Cheng chuckled.

“I know you guys too well. If I set my goals low, you’ll call me insincere, whereas if I set them high, you’ll brand me arrogant. Either way, there’s always a reason to criticize.”

“Oh no, no, I won’t do that…” smiled the reporter awkwardly, shaking her head profusely.

Before she could finish, Lou Cheng looked to the camera and smiled.

“I want to be the one standing on the final stage.”