Martial Arts Master

“Where’s Lou Cheng?” Fang Fakui, the elder of Zhengfa Sect with a protruding forehead, asked the man in the black t-shirt.

Having long prepared for this, Huang Zhihua replied frankly,

“He probably went to Old Nanny Qiu’s house again to look for clues yesterday night but found nothing important. Except for his kungfu practice, he stayed in his hotel room the entire morning.”

With the police’s help, he found out which hotel room Lou Cheng was staying in and sent someone to monitor the place. He didn’t dare hope to obstruct him, only to find out about his moves at once.

Fang Fakui nodded. “Send another person to keep an eye on him. Disperse the rest and investigate Old Nanny Qiu more carefully. I don’t believe she wouldn’t reveal anything odd at all this while!”

“What about you?” Huang Zihua asked in confusion.

Fang Fakui turned to look out the window.

“I’ll go to Old Nanny Qiu’s house too and see if you guys missed any clues.”

…

In the Li Family’s Silverware Shop, the greedy and lazy Li Wanquan was trembling in front of an old man with heavy eyebrows and small eyes.

“I-I’ve told you everything!”

The old man was Wan Shengjiang, Hou Yulin’s senior uncle. He shot Li Wanquan a fierce look and once again asked,

“Are you sure? Think it over. Think about what your father mentioned about Old Nanny Qiu.”

“I-I-I…” Li Wanquan turned to look helplessly at Hou Yuyun, but he was playing with his handmade silver ornaments and paid him no attention.

Shivering, Li Wanquan immediately ransacked his mind and told them everything he managed to remember.

“M-My father said s-she’s very rich… that she’s a m-monster…”

Wang Shengjiang listened carefully before turning to his martial nephew.

“Old Nanny Qiu might have some supernatural ability, allowing her to dodge us. I’ll go to her house to see if there are any clues left… Yulin, divide your men into two groups. Get one group to continue monitoring Lou Cheng wherever he goes and send the other to follow those from the Zhengfa Sect. If we still find nothing today, we won’t be getting anything.”

“Yes, Martial Uncle!” Hou Yulin said, having realized how dire the situation was.

…

While the two groups of people were madly searching for Old Nanny Qiu, Lou Cheng was sitting in his room and communicating with Yan Zheke through the computer.

They had finished talking about the Fighting Formula and whether it would mess up the other sects. Their conversation shifted to Yan Zheke’s anecdotes as she settled down, went shopping, and registered for classes. They both enjoyed exchanging what they saw and heard in different countries.

Just then, Lou Cheng’s phone rang. There was a call coming in.

When he picked it up, he saw that it was Geezer Shi. He gestured at his fairy before answering the phone.

He could vaguely guess what this call was for, so he feigned bafflement and said, “Hello, Master. What’s up?”

Geezer Shi tut-tutted. “You’re feeling pretty leisurely, aren’t you? Without any sense of urgency, aren’t you? Experienced fighters from both sides have arrived. They may even get Daxing Temple involved. The military can’t wait any longer and they’ll be taking over. They’re asking you to stand aside and not to interrupt.”

“Sure.” Lou Cheng’s tone was casual and indifferent, causing Yan Zheke to burst out laughing. She pressed her lips tightly together, rolling her eyes at Lou Cheng through the screen.

“You brat. Something seems off. Are you hiding something from me? Are you really in no hurry at all? Are you really not worried that the Fighting Formula will fall into someone else’s hands? You’re really willing to have the military take over?”

“Nope. Why do I have to be in a hurry?” Lou Cheng smiled. “I’ve already mastered the Fighting Formula.”

“What…” Geezer Shi coughed as if he was choked by the alcohol he was drinking. He had to soothe himself before saying, “When did you find it?”

Not only did Lou Cheng find it, he had even managed to learn it!

If not for wanting to keep up his dignity as his master, Geezer Shi would have asked him a bunch of questions!

Lou Cheng told Geezer Shi the simplified version of the complete story, not even concealing his intention to watch the military make fools of themselves. But he didn’t mention the changes in his Jindan since Geezer Shi had never shown any concern for this.

“You’re really fated with the Nine Words Formula.” Geezer Shi sighed with emotion before giggling. “Great, don’t tell them. That sounds just nice. Those guys are so proud, they’re verging on arrogance.”

Damn. Did his master still remember he was a senior held in high esteem by many people? How could his master be like a “child” like him, harboring such mischievous thoughts? Lou Cheng snickered and said, “Remember to tell me how the military is reacting.”

There was no need for him to stay here and wait for further progress to be made. Zhiyun’s ancient town was too small, so it only took Lou Cheng two to three days to visit every single spot of it, but he still didn’t know where the military would find the truth.

“Are you asking for a thrashing? Go back to have a rest and then come to Wuyue Province. Anyway, the Fighting Formula should be given to the military in exchange for the Emperor Yan Force. Then you’ll be able to advance your two Forces before morphing into the Inhuman stage.” Geezer Shi laughed in satisfaction.

“Sure, Master,” Lou Cheng gladly answered.

Hanging up the phone, he found Yan Zheke tittering.

“Cheng, you’re really destined to be master and disciple!” she joked.

In certain aspects, they really had synergy at times!

Lou Cheng rolled his eyes at her. “Ke, are you implying that I’m as unreliable as my master?”

Yan Zheke smiled, making a gesture as if she was phoning someone.

“Hello, Coach Shi? Your disciple just said you’re unreliable!”

Come to subdue this brat… Lou Cheng added in his mind.

After telling her good night, he stood up and began packing his belongings.

He had no doubt the military would soon find Old Nanny Qiu. As for those local forces, they might have two or three Inhuman mighty ones and plenty of Dan-stage experts. That was nothing to turn up one’s nose at, but the number of the fighters they had was incomparable to the military, and many of them tend to go overboard on one or several kungfu. The fighters under the military were collected from across martial arts fields and all possessed unique skills like fighting, trailing, and assassinating. That was the basis of their confidence in waiting and watching Lou Cheng playing the “game.”

Under such circumstances, there was no way for them to miss Old Nanny Qiu, who was actually no good at hiding.

…

Two strong-looking men, one tall and one short, broke into 15, Wanhe Street at 2 PM without paying any heed to the surveillance. Several minutes later, Fang Fakui, who had returned empty-handed in the afternoon, rushed there with Wan Shengjiang, Huang Zihua, and Hou Yulin. They were on alert and watched the house with cold indifference.

The two men wore poker faces as they searched the house from its exterior to its interior without caring about the watchful eyes.

They searched again and again before suddenly pausing.

They exchanged a look and nodded. The tall man squatted down and landed a punch on the ground with his right fist.

Crack!

An orange-red fireball appeared in his palm and exploded when it touched the ground, making a great shock that could permeate through the earth.

“Inhuman stage…” Fang Fakui and Wan Shengjiang were stunned and their expressions turned solemn.

Where did these Inhuman warriors come from?

The Ice God Sect?

No, he was using the Blaze supernatural ability…

Just as the two groups of people felt their hearts sink, the ground hit by the tall man suddenly softened like a swamp. A pale and wrinkled hand stretched out of the ground and they finally saw the familiar old woman with a sad look on her face.

“You still caught me…”

Old Nanny Qiu? So she hadn’t run away but was hiding in the ground! Huang Zihua and Hou Yulin were first surprised by this discovery before they were immediately filled with regret.

She actually had such a supernatural ability and skill!

Had they known this earlier, these two mighty ones wouldn’t have gotten ahead of them and given this slap on their faces!

The two burly men exchanged a look, revealing relaxed and satisfied smiles.

The tall one looked at Old Nanny Qiu.

“We won’t bother about your past deeds since it’s the police’s business. Where’s the antique with the Dou character on it?”

Old Nanny Qiu gave him a strange look and burst out laughing,

“Someone has taken it away.”

“Who? Who took it?” the two men stopped smiling and asked eagerly. Fang Fakui and the other guys waiting outside were also astonished at this news and looked at each other with fear.

There was someone earlier than them?

Who? Who was it?!

Old Nanny Qiu thought for a while.

“A young man of middle height and dressed in a black suit. He looked pretty energetic. He came here yesterday night.”

Yesterday night… A name suddenly popped up in everyone’s minds.

“Lou Cheng!”

…

After getting rid of the people monitoring him, Lou Cheng boarded the bus and left the ancient town of Zhiyun. Geezer Shi’s call soon arrived, telling him what had happened on the other side.

Though there were not many details, Lou Cheng was greatly amused. He then called Yan Zheke.

Just then, something occurred to him. He clicked on the chat with the military official Rapid March, who had been liaising with Lou Cheng. He sent him a head-scratching emoji.

“Can you do me a favor? I still owe Old Nanny Qiu 600 for the jade plate. Can you pay her for me? I’ll transfer it to you online…”

He felt apprehensive after sending the message, feeling like Rapid March might curse him out. But Rapid March proved to be a man with self-restraint. After being quiet for a moment, he replied with one word:

“Okay.”

Sighing with relief, Lou Cheng raised his head and saw the couple he encountered when he first arrived here. They were also going home today.

Looking around and finding no two adjacent seats available, Lou Cheng stood up. He pushed up his glasses and waved at the couple.

“Come and sit here.”

When they saw Lou Cheng’s brilliant smile, the couple looked at each other with joy. They felt that it was a world of love.

…

Having stayed home for several days, Lou Cheng couldn’t resist the urge and set off to see his master in Wuyue Province once again.

“Give me the item related to the Fighting Formula and then take a look at the instructions about the Ice Spirit Force,” Geezer Shi said casually. “By the way, there’s a competition with a reward of more than 150,000. Are you interested?”

“Which competition?” Lou Cheng was in dire need of money.

The jade plate alone wasn’t enough to help a person master the Fighting Formula, but having gained enlightenment, Lou Cheng didn’t mind sharing his understanding of it with the military. He even wrote the seal character for them. As for how much the military could gain from it and how long the character would last before losing its effect, those were none of his business.

Geezer Shi laughed. “King of Youth Pro League. It doesn’t include our country, and there’s no broadcast here either. This time, they gave us four wild cards and invited us to participate. Participants must be young fighters under the age of 23 who haven’t reached the physicalinvulnerability stage. If you’re interested and want to morph into the Inhuman stage through fighting in different styles, I can reserve a place for you.”

“When? Which countries?” Lou Cheng was suddenly intrigued.

“Japan, Miluo, Shenxiang, and Nanzheng. From the 12th to the 27th of August.” Geezer Shi smiled. “Besides the champion, the top eight fighters will also get large rewards. But I don’t know if Peng Leyun and Ren Li will be joining.”

Miluo and Nanzheng used to be vassal states of China and shared a deep connection with it.

“Got it.” Lou Cheng nodded, looking at Geezer Shi seriously. “Master, I want to join the competition.”