Martial Arts Master

Watching Zhang Zhutong knocked out of the ring and after hearing the referee’s announcement about the result, the entire stadium fell silent with no cheers or cries for victory. They probably wanted to but their hearts were still strained and shocked, after feeling the intensity and tension from the previous fight. At the end of the match, no matter who they had come here to support, the first feeling they had was relief, followed by mentally and physically exhaustion.

When Lou Cheng finally stood upright and shouted with his arms high in the air, the audience’s excitement exploded and thundering voices filled the hall.

“Lou Cheng! Lou Cheng!”

“Victory! Victory!”

Screams and shouts echoed in the arena, raising the roof with their cheers.

But soon they fell into silence as Lou Cheng, while still in the ring, bent his body and rested his hands on his knees for support while gasping hard for breath. On the big screen, his sweat dripped down unto the broken green tiles and splashed into countless tiny drops. His eyes were glazed and unfocused like a blind man peering in the dark.

He also feels tired?

Can he also be exhausted?

His exceptional physical strength also has a limit?

The audience finally realized that this young fighter who just had a tough battle was not Superman but made of real flesh and bones like everyone else. The seemingly insurmountable distance between them was gone and they felt that they could touch him if they stretched out their arms. He had given his everything to defeat his rival of a higher class and to claim victory.

Their already good impression of him became even better.

Yan Zheke kept her hand over her mouth, her mind was weary but she felt so excited and alive.

Watching Lou Cheng exhausted in the ring and recalling his imposing and overwhelming bearing earlier, she found her heart filled with love, concern, pride, excitement and joy. She wanted to jump into the ring to give him a big hug.

Lying on the floor next to the ring, Zhang Zhutong gradually regained consciousness. Through the transparent glass ceiling, he saw the rising moon shining with a backdrop of countless lights. It was so peaceful that he thought that he was still in the ultralow temperature cryotherapy system shrouded by thick fog.

A defeat?

I’ve waited for three years and I’ve trained for three years. Yet, I lost.

Although winning or losing a battle is a common occurrence, I won’t have another chance to fight in the youth tournament and take the championship to prove myself as I’ll be 26 years old in three years, beyond the age limit. Even if they eased the restrictions on me and allowed me to register, how great would Lou Cheng be by then? It’s terrifying just thinking about it.

I can never be the champion of the youth tournament.

Once you miss it you can never get it back.

With no strength left in him and aches all over, Zhang Zhutong wished he could just lie here in peace forever, away from the brutal reality of the loss. Then he heard heavy gasps through the quiet.

He tilted his head and looked up, seeing Lou Cheng and his weary eyes gazing without focus.

Is he tired?

His physical strength does have a limit!

In a flash, intense sorrow and regret flooded into his head, crushing his spirit.

If only I knew he would feel tired… If only I knew he was at his utmost limit… Why did I freak myself out and lose focus? Why was my mind disturbed and my moves slowed? Why did I reveal my own weakness?

I would have won if I stuck to my previous style!

Realizing Lou Cheng was also exhausted and struggling on his last legs, Zhang Zhutong grit his teeth. He felt certain that victory would have been his if he could only have hung on for five or ten more minutes. However, the match was over and the clock couldn’t be set back.

A defeat is a defeat. All the glory goes to the victor and the loser is humiliated.

He subsided into helpless laughter and slowly rose to his feet, knocking the dust out of his suit before walking to the lounge, isolated and despondent. His heart was full of regret.

This was martial arts. And this was life.

As soon as he started to take steps, some of the audience suddenly recovered from the shock and began to shout,

“Lou Cheng! Lou Cheng!”

A sharp yet young female voice pierced through the air.

“Superstar! Superstar!”

“Lou Cheng! Superstar!”

Wei Renjie turned to look at Sun Yixing and Chu Weicai with a complicated smile upon Wu Ting’s screaming and jumping.

Without a word, Chu Weicai and Sun Yixing both gave a thumb.

Yes, Lou Cheng is now the champion of our province’s young fighters!

Yes, he is now the No. 1 fighter of our province!

…

“Victory! Victory!”

Lou Zhisheng could barely believe his son had just snatched victory. He jumped up despite his usual reserved manner and cheered like the other young people in the stands.

“Victory! Victory… ” Qi Fang pulled his arm, her worried eyes staring at the ring. She asked nervously, “Is Cheng OK?”

When he was in middle school, a classmate of his died suddenly while running on the track!

“Fine. Fine. Look! He’s recovered, waving at the audience now.” Lou Zhisheng’s eyes were fixed on the ring and the big screen. He saw Lou Cheng circling around the ring and clapping at the audience as the light slowly came back into his eyes.

“That’s good… That’s good!” Qi Fang felt relieved and joined in the human wave in spite of her age.

“Martial arts competitions are so exciting!” thought Qi Fang. But she probably wouldn’t attempt to talk her son out of this for his safety.

Son, we are so proud of you!

Watching her cousin circling in the ring as the victor and thinking about his tired face and blank eyes, Qi Yunfei suddenly realised how hard he had trained and how much pain he must have endured given his quiet, reserved and low profile nature. His exhausted eyes were manlier than those men who could only brag.

Recalling every punch and kick that was branded in her heart, the thundering shouts, the powerful muscles and his rival who shook the floor with a single stamp, Qi Yunfei flushed scarlet and murmured to herself with a tender smile.

“I’m becoming obsessed by my brother…. ”

She looked around, very shy and afraid that others would see through her thoughts. Fortunately, Chen Xiaoxiao, Ma Xi, Qiu Hailin, and Cao Lele each had their own thoughts and were too distracted to spare her any attention.

…

In the living room of Lou family.

Lou Yuanwei’s clenched fists loosened as joy filled his heart.

Almost at the same time, more emotions hit him. He stared at the TV blankly with all kinds of feelings churning in his mind as he watched the exhausted Lou Cheng running a lap of honor.

He could hardly remember how Lou Cheng was like over the past 10 years.

He has completely changed. So much so that even a close relative felt that he was unfamiliar.

I can’t believe it is Lou Cheng…

I wish I could be like him… No, even just half of this or one-tenth of it.

Lou Debang held an unlit hand-rolled cigarette in his mouth and muttered blankly,

“He won?”

“He defeated the No. 1 seed?”

About half a minute later, he suddenly came back to himself and reached his hand out. The thing he wanted was not there, which enraged him a bit. He yelled powerfully,

“Zhiqiang, bring my phone over!”

“I’m calling them back one by one!”

Lou Zhiqiang shivered at the yell and glanced at his ferocious wife before responding defiantly in a low voice,

“He won. So what?”

…

The QQ group of Lou Cheng’s high school classmates was quiet for a few minutes.

Wang Jie, another classmate with whom Lou Cheng used to share a desk with wrote,

“I’ll announce Lou Cheng as my idol!”

Cao Lele replied,

“He’s already my idol!”

Tao Xiaofei sent a sticker of Yao Ming’s signature smile.

“Brother Lou has long been my idol!”

You are too late!

Only a few wrote in the group chat while the others were just being there, excited about the victory but unsure what to say to this former classmate’s great glory and success.

His success was shocking!

…

In Xing Province TV station, the host remained silent for a moment before forcing a wry smile.

“Master Yu Hong, what do you think of the match?”

Yu Hong commented with emotions,

“Lou Cheng is a man who can accomplish miracles.”

If they fought ten more times within one or two months and Lou Cheng would probably only win one of two out of the ten. However, he has just won the most important one!

One victory that is greater than 10!

From now on, no one could call him weaker than Zhang Zhutong!

…

The aged guest host’s comment and Lou Cheng’s gradually recovering mobility gave Yan Xiaoling a feeling of relief. The emotions she had suppressed for two days finally broke out and she started a chat thread by creating several posts in a row.

“Come on! You slanderers! Who thought Lou Cheng’s advance into the top four was due to dirty tricks? Who predicted Lou Cheng’s defeat to Zhang Zhutong or Han Zhifei?”

“Come on! Admit it!”

“Our Lou Cheng is in the top four. He’ll keep advancing to the final and crush the No. 1 seed!”

“It was not his dirty tricks. Someone else practiced dirty tricks to avoid confronting him!”

“Come on! Damn your dirty tricks! Damn you hypocrites! Damn you slanderers!”

Yan Xiaoling couldn’t help breathing heavily after the posts, exhausted but satisfied.

The whole forum was quiet to these new posts. Slanderers dared not reply and others were probably too shocked to respond.

A while later, Brahman wrote, terrified, “So scary… I came to scorn those slanderers but Little Changye, your posts scared me away… Honey, I didn’t know you could say such words… ”

“Didn’t know our Little Changye was so good at swearing… ” Unparalleled Dragon King followed, also terrified.

Yan Xiaoling read through her earlier posts and covered her face with both hands. “I lost my temper… I’ll delete it. Can’t leave it in my history… ”

“No need. It won’t be the first dirt in your history. I’ve taken screenshots of it and kept them safe for my children and grandchildren!” Laughed Okamoto’s Fan.

“Yeah. Don’t delete it. I find bad words make you more adorable, Yan Xiaoling.” Unparalleled Dragon King sent a waggery emoji.

“When there’s enough dirt, it will be clean again. Honey, keep it up!” Brahman tapped her shoulder as an encouragement.

The lip language expert Bull Demon King followed, “Miss Moderator, I’d like to propose a nickname.”

“What is it? Better be nice!” Yan Xiaoling began to feel emotional, almost tearing.

I was once a sweet child, pretty and cute!

The forum is such a bad influence that I’ve abandoned my graciousness and principles!

Bull Demon King sneered, “In ancient times, men of great accomplishment were addressed as Lord. You said so many ‘damns’ in a row and completely ruined your image. I have decided to call you Lord Damn.”

…

Recovering from the dizziness and shortness of breath, Lou Cheng waved at the stand where Yan Zheke and his parents were sitting. Tolerating his headache and the weariness of his mind, he moved himself to the side of the ring and took his mobile back from the supervisor before heading to his lounge with slow, painful steps, amidst the thundering cheers and shouts.

He didn’t go straight to sleep to restore his energy as he wasn’t able to achieve the control of spirit and qi right now to achieve deep sleep through meditation. 1.5 hours’ rest at this level would not relieve his tiredness and might make it worse.

He needed more time to let the weariness reduce before practicing Solemn Silence to fall into a long, deep sleep.

Sitting on the couch, he didn’t feel like doing anything at all — not even moving his fingers or taking a hot shower — though his muscles had been restored to their normal state by his Jindan.

Of course, on the other hand, he had a very firm will. He picked up his phone and sent a message to Yan Zheke on QQ with excitement.

“So exhausted!”

Holding her mobile tight in her hand, Yan Zheke had been longing to write him a message but was afraid of interrupting his rest. The message took her by surprise. She replied with a cracking head emoji, “Why are you still up? Sleep and rest!”

There’s only 1.5 hours until the second semi-final match finishes!

Lou Cheng explained that he couldn’t meditate to enter deep sleep right now and added a sneer before continuing. “Unfortunately I have to prepare for the next match or I could go back to the hotel room to share my victory with you and enjoy your head massage… ”

“Your head hurts a lot?” asked Yan Zheke, concerned.

“Yeah. My head is pounding and my temples are throbbing.” Lou Cheng revealed his true state to her.

Men are supposed to be strong and stoic. However, showing your vulnerable side to your loved one from time to time would arouse her maternal instinct. It would let her feel needed, and prove that there’s no barrier between them and that she is the most special one.

Yan Zheke looked about, seeing cameras focusing on the ring again and Han Zhifei and Liu Xunzhen walking into the ring. She replied without any emoji, “Should I come and massage your temples? It might help you recover and sleep through meditation.”

She knew the VIP lounges each had a physical therapist on standby but she couldn’t resist the impulse.

“Great! I’ll wait for you at the door!” Lou Cheng didn’t think about physical therapists at all. He shook off his exhaustion and pulled himself up from the couch.

“Okay.” Yan Zheke stood up, holding her phone, and headed towards the washroom along the aisle, intending to take a circuitous route.

“Ke Ke, where are you going?” Immersed in her thought that “Ke’s man has defeated Zhang Zhutong”, Gu Shuang was brought back to reality by her best friend’s move.

Yan Zheke’s eyes shone like stars and her face flushed.

“The lounge.”

“The lounge. We can go together. Err… What lounge?” Gu Shuang slowly came to realization, winking at her.

Xing Jingjing pulled her arm and interrupted in a low voice, “Ask no more.”

“Oh… ” Gu Shuang dragged her voice long as she understood which lounge she was going to, with a thoughtful smile. “Aren’t you afraid of disturbing his recovery? I guess it doesn’t matter. He’s already exhausted. 1.5 hours are not enough to recover at all. Maybe some love works better!”

Yan Zheke clicked her tongue in response and picked up her pace towards the aisle.

With great caution, she tried to avoid all possible cameras and entered the half-closed door to the lounge while everyone else had their eyes locked on the ring. She saw Lou Cheng waiting there with his heartbreaking weariness.

“I don’t know why but my tiredness is suddenly gone seeing you,” said Lou Cheng with a bright smile, his heart filled with strength from joy and happiness.

“Bluffing!” Yan Zheke sent one glare at him. “Go back and rest!”

Lou Cheng grabbed her hand, ignoring Fang Siqi’s gaze, and walked back to his lounge.

As soon as the door closed behind them, he hugged the girl tight and began to kiss her, savouring her sweet scent.

The pair kissed gently but passionately.

A few minutes later, Yan Zheke pushed Lou Cheng away and looked seductively at him, “Still thinking about doing bad stuff though you are so tired! Didn’t even take a shower. So smelly!”

After expressing her fake annoyance, she asked with concern, “Feeling better?”

“Much better with your love. I think I can control my spirit and qi now.” Lou Cheng snickered. “Let me take a shower first.”

“No need. Just lie down. You will sweat a lot in the next fight anyway.” Yan Zheke settled him in the big, comfy couch, took a seat next to him and began to massage his temples. “Fall asleep soon.”

“I don’t want my smelly sweat to disturb you,” said Lou Cheng with concern, putting his mobile down.

“Hmm! As long as you know how big a sacrifice I’m making right now.” Yan Zheke had learned some physiotherapy massage techniques. She put forth her strength, massaging away the uncomfortable feeling from Lou Cheng’s head slowly and deliberately.

The musky smell of her boyfriend’s sweat rose to her nose but surprisingly she didn’t mind it at all. On the contrary, she found it manly and masculine.

She paid particular attention to the changes in Lou Cheng’s body during her massage. He fell asleep within a minute.

She continued massaging with one hand and unlocked her boyfriend’s phone with the other to put it on silent. Then she did the same to her own mobile.

“Can’t wake Lou Cheng with the terrible noise!” thought Yan Zheke with a faint smile without slowing down her hands on Lou Cheng’s head, quite proud of her thoughtfulness.

Her mobile suddenly began to flash, showing the name

Empress Dowager!

Empress Dowager! The terrified Yan Zheke picked it up and whispered, “Mom?”

Ji Mingyu chuckled, “Pretty quiet over there? Are you in Lou Cheng’s private lounge?”

“You… How do you know?” Yan Zheke was very impressed by Empress Dowager’s accurate guess, feeling amazed, in disbelief and astounded.

“Your dad and I are in the stadium,” answered Ji Mingyu leisurely. “I’ve been keeping my eyes on the door to the lounge and our silly daughter showed up.”

“What are you doing in the stadium? Why didn’t you tell me?” Yan Zheke kept her voice low. “Did dad see me, too?”

Empress Dowager is too good!

“Don’t you worry! He’s slow as always.” Ji Mingyu twitched her mouth. Standing in the quiet outer corridor of the stadium, she burst into a laugh. “Ke, like mother like daughter. You’ve got my eyes for men. Not bad.”

When they first started dating, Lou Cheng was merely an amateur martial artist with some potential.

“Mom, why did you say that?” Yan Zheke looked bashful.

“Just saying. I’ve never been against your relationship with Lou Cheng and I’ve always trusted your taste in men. Now he’s capable of taking care of you, giving me one more reason to be supportive. However, marriage is not easy. It takes time and hard work because there are so many differences between two people in terms of thoughts and personality. Like a pair of new shoes, you are the only one that knows if it is suitable or not. Your dad is a doctor but we’ve been really good with each other.” Ji Mingyu sounded sentimental. “I hope you two can take your time and make sure that you are the right one for each other so that you can grow old together. Don’t burn with passion too quickly.”

“Mother, I understand,” answered Yan Zheke after a deep breath.

After the call, she continued to massage Lou Cheng’s temples.

Looking at this not-so-handsome but just right face, smelling his manly scent, and recalling everything that had happened between them, Yan Zheke was lost in her thoughts.

How empty and depressed would I feel if one day Cheng was not by my side?

I can barely breathe just thinking about it!

…

Liu Xunzhen did not make a breakthrough in his supernatural ability. Although he managed to trouble Han Zhifei, after a few minutes, he lost because he could not overcome the gap between different ranks.

Han Zhifei was panting but not particularly exhausted, which upset Lou Cheng’s supporters badly. They remained silent after the match.

In the next 1.5 hours, the two fighters in the final match were introduced with a montage of the many highlights of the tournament together with a song and dance performance.

Lou Cheng’s journey was tough, battling capable rivals with a lot more challenges than the other, which made the audience appreciate his efforts more as they fell silent.

Watching Han Zhifei come back and take an acupuncture and moxibustion treatment along with some red pellets, Zhang Zhutong resisted the impulse of inviting him to the low-temperature therapy together.

It will take just over ten minutes to get to the Divine Fire Club and the cryotherapy only takes up a short time. There’s more than enough time.

However, will it look like Han Zhifei and I have teamed up against Lou Cheng?

Zhang Zhutong’s pride didn’t allow him to issue the invitation.

…

One hour and twenty minutes later, Yan Zheke woke Lou Cheng up gently like his personal alarm.

“How do you feel?” Yan Zheke blinked, very concerned.

Lou Cheng shook his head and smiled. “Almost half recovered mentally. My physical strength has no problem but my tendons, vessels, and muscles are still suffering from the Smelter Force, aching and uncomfortable.”

Very different from the Chill Force, the Smelter Force could cause more physical damage and would accummulate over time. Although dispersed a bit, it still damaged Lou Cheng’s body.

“Hmm. Go and get changed.” Yan Zheke kept it short.

In a new martial arts suit and shoes, Lou Cheng washed his face with cold water, looking refreshed and brisk again. He asked with a gentle smile, “Are you going out later or watching the fight here?”

“I’ll be here.” Yan Zheke pursed her lips, her eyes smiling. “Waiting for your return in triumph.”

“Terrific!” Lou Cheng chuckled, “Don’t you want to cheer me up again?”

“Pervert!” Yan Zheke flushed before muttering, “Turn around. Turn around now!”

“Okay.” Lou Cheng turned to the door, facing her with his back.

Yan Zheke took one step forward, put her arms around his waist and buried her face in his neck, whispering,

“Hon, honey, go for it!”

No matter if you win or lose, I’m proud of you.

…

The broadcast began to introduce the two fighters of the final match in the stadium. The winner of the first semi-final fight was invited to enter the ring first by convention.

“The final match of The Third Youth Fighters Championship of Xing Province is about to start. Give a round of applause to our first fighter, No. 18 Lou Cheng!”

“He made it to the final after defeating the No. 9 seed, the No. 5 seed, the No. 6 seed and the No. 1 seed!”

The audience was moved by the introduction. They remained silent as if expecting yet another surprise.

Lou Cheng stepped out of the lounge and walked towards the flight of stairs along the path under the glare of the spotlights.

He suddenly heard a shout,

“Champion!”

The whole stadium was ignited. Voices echoed in the air.

“Champion!” “Champion!” “Champion!”