Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
In the large conference room on the first floor of the Longhu Club, the press had mounted their cameras to point towards the three people on stage.
Ning Zitong (Empress Luo), Chen Qitao (Dragon King), and Lou Cheng had all changed into navy blue club uniforms. They looked elegant, stately, and robust respectively, exhibiting the different styles and manners of martial artists.
A reporter stood up after getting permission, and asked, “Lou Cheng, why did you choose to join the Longhu Martial Arts Club instead of remaining in the Wuyue Club? It is widely known that you are from the Ice God Sect.”
Lou Cheng had prepared for the question. He gave an unperturbed smile. “Longhu has always been my dream team back when I first started watching professional matches. I also have to express my gratitude to my Master, who told me not to be bogged down by the opinions of the Sect, and that Longhu adopts a liberal and tolerant approach that exceeds the individual level...”
It has taken me a few days to come up with this answer, after multiple version changes and going through Coach Yan’s checking and modifying!
Cough, cough! Before the television screen, Geezer Shi cussed with the flagon in his hand.
This nasty brat is going to lay the blame on me?
Had it been ancient times, such disciples ought to be lynched!
Only a tough and powerful master like me can deal with you!
In the future, if you fail to learn the Restricted Godly Techniques, you are going to get it from me!
Pleased with Lou Cheng’s answer, the reporter planned on delving deeper into the subject, and question whether the structure of a Sect organization was still relevant in modern society. Sensing his meddlesome intentions, the observant host moved on to the next interviewee.
“Dragon King, according to rumors, you made a personal call to invite Lou Cheng to your club. Is that true?” asked a short-haired reporter, smiling. She wore a ‘Huaxia TV’ tag before her chest.
Without a change in his expression, Chen Qitao replied indifferently, “Yes.”
“And what drove you to do that? To my knowledge, you have never regarded anyone this highly in the past,” asked the short-haired reporter in excitement.
“Because he has sufficient potential, and his mastery of the Emperor Yan Force is not bad either,” answered Chen Qitao flatly.
Right after that, he raised his hand to indicate that he wanted no more of these questions. None of the reporters, who usually loved being the devil’s advocate, demurred to that.
At the same time, in the Longhu Club forums, ‘A Plumber Eating Mushrooms’ sent a sticker of [guffawing while hammering the ground].
“Dragon King is a good senior, but definitely not a good opponent. When Lou Cheng has sufficient potential, he treasures him for his talents. But when Lou Cheng converts his potential to actual power and starts catching up, I bet he will put the brakes on him!”
“Bad mouthing my mighty Dragon King again! [disdainful look]!” replied ‘Pig-Riding Knight’.
“How am I bad mouthing him? I’m a diehard Dragon King fan! Everyone knows about his personality. All I did was predict what would likely happen based on the actual situation, [funny face]” replied ‘A Plumber Eating Mushrooms’. “If you worship someone, you have to worship their flaws too! I’m just as petty as him!”
‘Okamoto’s Fan’ dissed him. “Only a fanatic fan is comfortable with talking about their idol’s flaws!”
“Bah! How would all of you feel if Lou Cheng makes phenomenal progress and threatens Dragon King’s position in his club in the future? [shrugs]” replied ‘A Plumber Eating Mushrooms’.
“...I wouldn’t feel good. Dragon King is my true idol after all. But there’s no way anyone could surpass Dragon King. Even if he falls behind momentarily, he will catch up in due time! Didn’t he reenact such miracles over and over again in the past years? Back then, almost every mighty one despaired about Warrior Sage’s almighty powers, but not Dragon King!” replied ‘Unparalleled Dragon King’, living up to his name.
‘Wonton Seller’ replied with her forefingers’ tips touching. “I’ll feel very conflicted...”
Their discussion didn’t last long. The conference was soon near its end. Lou Cheng took a commemorative picture with Empress Luo and Dragon King, officially becoming a part of the Longhu Club.
Before long, the news reached Weibo headlines. “Lou Cheng chooses the city of flowers(Huacheng)! The Dragon King now has someone to pass the baton to!”
Shrip, shrip, shrip! The martial arts columns on all large websites had uploaded similar content:
“The fight for the current Heavenly Son of China ends!”
“He joins Longhu! A New Beginning! A Mutually Beneficial Decision!”
“Shattering Sect Stigmas! Modern Martial Artist Lou Cheng!”
...
In the forum, the rock-lover girl “Above The Sky” sent a snickering emoji after seeing the commemorative photo.
“Friends watching from the tree, you can come down now. Lou Cheng is confirmed to be in the club now. Everyone slide down in order, don’t step on each other!” she replied.
“Hahahahahahaha! I’m overjoyed! I’m overjoyed! My idol has joined my favorite faction! [rolling on the ground]” replied Brahman, who was currently in Ninth Grade. “Let’s add Lou Cheng Club’s invite link to the friendly links in our forum! We are all a family from now on!”
“Little Brah, has Silly Nightfall’s stupidity gotten into you? Look at you, laughing like an idiot! [funny face]” replied Unparalleled Dragon King.
“What are you talking about? You may not know this, but that silly girl laughed so hard she rolled off her bed! Thank goodness she was at home and not in school!” she replied, adding a [head high and chest out] sticker to indicate that she wasn’t on the same level as a certain someone.
As the two forums celebrated, Lou Cheng had completed text interviews from the press, watched Dragon King leave in an air of dignity, and was now following Ning Zitong to the restaurant.
“What’s Volcano Experiment Lab?” he asked curiously.
The term had been mentioned by both Martial Arts Fanatic Guo Jie and Dragon King Cheng Qitao.
“In ancient times, when practitioners reached the Physical Invulnerability Stage of the Secret Arts of the Flame Sect, they choose to train in environments that resemble the deep parts of a volcano. However, that is fraught with dangers. Even a Physical Invulnerability Mighty One would not be able to get out scath-free if accidents were to occur,” Ning Zitong explained briefly. “The Volcano Experiment Lab simulates the conditions of the deep parts of a volcano through the power of modern technology. Though the actual effects aren’t as exaggerated, the strength can be adjusted. It’s a useful tool that aids training. You can use it once you start approaching the Physical Invulnerability Stage. As for the Ice Sect environmental labs, we do not have those at our club, but the military does!”
Lou Cheng was stoked at the news. He felt as though he had stepped into a new world.
Ning Zitong had led him into the restaurant as they were talking. It was past serving time, but there were various food steamers lined up for the convenience of the Mighty Ones.
“You’ll be eating here in the future. Try it. Huacheng’s breakfast dim sum is great,” Ning Zitong pointed to the front, smiling.
Lou Cheng studied the area. There was a notice stating: breakfast is from seven to nine am, lunch is from twelve to two pm, and dinner is from five-thirty to seven pm. All leftovers would be kept warm so that the Mighty Ones— who all had prodigious appetites— could eat small frequent meals, until the club closes at eight pm. After some effort, he lined up three food steamers the size of half a person on the dining table before him. He had not had breakfast yet.
First, he took a picture of it for Yan Zheke, then opened the food steamer and picked up a crab dim sum. He swallowed it in two or three bites and praised in contentment.
“Delicious!” It doesn’t lose out to Huacheng restaurants!
After a while of stuffing his face, he was half full. He then asked carefully, “Sister Ning, what’s the daily schedule like in the club? Are there holidays?”
“Holidays?” Ning Zitong snorted, her eyebrows raised like a flower blooming, giving an air of latent maturity. “We are all grownups here— Mighty Ones addressed as monsters— so we ought to have striking personalities. Why would there be so many rules? The club has a very flexible schedule. As long as you don’t miss the competitions arranged for you, whether you come to the club or not on regular days entirely depends on your own preference.”
“That being said, there’s a vast array of equipment here and personal trainers, so the effects will definitely be better than if you were to train alone. Plus, the Reserve Team has a guidance session by a Physical Invulnerability Mighty One once every week, on Monday from three to five pm. Unless you have something really important, I recommend you try your best to participate.”
“If you need a day off, inform the Assistants Team in advance, so that food and the chef’s efforts don’t go to waste. Behind every grain of rice is unimaginable hard work!” she said sententiously.
Whew, that’s fine. When the time comes, I’ll have to plan which competitions to join... If I have time, I should be able to go to America once every month and stay for four to five days. If not, then I might not be able to go in two to three months, but I could still fit a few trips back home... Lou Cheng’s mind turned quickly as he planned ahead. Unknowingly, he had gobbled everything on the table— abalone braised chicken feet, white sugar sponge cake, Shumai, and more.
Without having to clean up, Ning Zitong led him to the Reserve Team training grounds located at the northwest area on the first floor.
“You’ll get to know them today. The most important thing for you is to practice the Dan Stage chapters of the Flame Sect. Endeavor to have a basic mastery over it in one month,” Ning Zitong said nonchalantly as she walked. “The club has other secret arts, such as the Dark Sect’s Wavering Light Shifting Shadow, which happens to be my expertise. Other than that, there is different kinds of compound kungfu merged from incomplete Golden Bell Cover and Immortal Flesh, which Long Zhen excels at. Once you completely master the Flame Sect Dan Stage chapters, you can try your hands at similar stuff to broaden your horizons.”
“Got it,” Lou Cheng nodded in elation.
There’s so much he could learn! How exciting! This was one of the joys of practicing martial arts!
After walking for a few minutes, Ning Zitong stopped by a large door. She spent a few seconds to adjust her smile to a faint one that exuded elegance.
Then, she pushed the door open and walked inside with decorum and grace.
She called out to the martial artists scattered among the venue. “Everyone, gather for a moment.”
Yu Wangyuan and the others recovered from their stances and greeted her as ‘Empress Luo’ reverently. They congregated before the beautiful, proper and austere Ning Zitong.
Lou Cheng noticed that Lu Shaofei and Yu Yuanwang were lagging in their movement, swarming behind one martial artist. He recognized the martial artist.
Tu Zheng!
Tu Zheng who was at the doorsteps of the Physical Invulnerability Stage!
He had a plump forehead. His square face, masculine and fierce, looked as though it had been carved out by knives and axes. His eyes were average sized with pitch-black pupils with latent flames.
Ning Zitong smiled faintly and said to the two of them, “I’m skipping the introductions for you two. You already know each other, don’t you?”
“Yes,” Tu Zheng smiled widely, looking towards Lou Cheng. “I heard about you coming over earlier, but only managed to confirm the news today. I should be hosting a welcome feast for you tonight to welcome you in, but I didn’t know when you were coming and got arranged for other things. How about tomorrow night? We can get together tomorrow night and have a good talk. What do you say?”
“That sounds great,” Lou Cheng replied with a smile.
He wasn’t introverted or imperious. He knew how to get along with people around him so that he wouldn’t be bothered by trifles.