Martial Arts Master

Early June in Connecticut city—inside the Holy Top Church.

A large cross towered at the end of the apse. The seats on both sides of the nave spread in an orderly fashion, extending all the way to the narthex. Most were occupied by devotees. The church took up a large plot of land, and at the top of the building rested a magnificent dome. Light streamed through narrow stained glass windows on the walls, giving the place a solemn and dignified ambiance.

A bishop, with a bible in his hand, slowly intoned a prayer in a booming and ceremonious voice, as though he was leading lost sheep to Heaven’s light. The holy and ethereal scene provided the people respite from their woes.

That was when Lou Cheng entered wearing a white T-shirt, casual shorts and tennis shoes. He took a few steps with his hands buried in his pockets, then looked to his left and right before sitting down on an empty seat in the back.

Unlike the devotees who hung their heads low and folded their hands, Lou Cheng merely closed his eyes. Leisurely, he began to perceive his surroundings with his ears, spirit, and mind.

Due to the amount of attention he received from blowing up on the Internet, he dared not dwell in Xiushan and promptly flew to Connecticut after a short stay. After a month of recuperation, he was pretty much at his full power again.

However, the reason why he came to watch a ceremony at the Holy Top Church was not to be baptized. For a martial artist with an iron will, clear goals, and solid convictions like him, his faith had always been placed in himself. He would never leave the tasks of seeking inner peace and finding his own path to something as hollow and abstract as God.

Lou Cheng snuck among them to observe and learn.

According to Geezer Shi, every martial art in the world leads back to the same path. Lou Cheng felt that the next step in his path of combining martial arts and cultivation—the important step that might lead him to advance to the Physical Invulnerability stage—might have something to do with the aforementioned ‘sameness’.

In view of that, he decided to expand his range of references beyond martial arts and cultivation. To seek out the meaning of the word ‘sameness’, he had to find the common points between religious ceremonies and martial arts sects. That would give him a tangible increase in his foundations and allow him to build up further from there.

He shut his eyes and listened intently in silence. Lou Cheng’s All-Seeing God—focused, yet non-committal—took in the shifting events in the ceremonial environment and the gathering spirit of the devotees.

After a long while, the church choir began singing their praises in a neat, pure and visionary fashion. The special design of the church amplified the echoes, immersing the crowd in the baptism of holiness. They felt as if the doubts in their minds and negative emotions like latent anxiety were being washed away. In a matter of minutes, they seemed to be reborn.

Lou Cheng opened his eyes slowly. Some devotees were already wailing their eyes out. He vaguely saw a wavy milky luster in the church. But then again, it felt like a figment of his imagination.

This sensation… Thoughtfully, he watched, listened and learned. He was getting some ideas, but nothing concrete, let alone any signs of ‘sameness’.

A similar ambient feeling persisted until the end of the ceremony. Without lingering, Lou Cheng got up casually. He walked towards the door at an unhurried pace with his hands in his pockets.

In the front row, a man who just happened to lay down his folded hands scoured around him inquisitively. His eyes caught the silhouette at the door.

“Huh?” The blue-eyed youth with dazzling blond hair uttered his confusion.

“What’s the matter, Oblak?” the dark-haired youth inquired quizzically.

Oblak frowned. “The guy from just now seemed familiar.”

But from the back, he simply couldn’t remember who it was.

“I don’t see anyone,” said the dark-haired youth, looking over his shoulders. There was no one at the opened door.

“Forget it. It’s nothing important,” Oblak said with a shake of his head. He stood up. “I must go and prepare for the competition tonight.”

He and the dark-haired youth, Charles, had come from Europe’s Brutale, a branch of the Mission Sect. Right now, they were acting as convoys for the Holy Grail’s traveling exhibition in America. They were also part of a religious event that allowed them to spar with local martial artists.

Since Connecticut was one of the key locations of the Mission Sect in America, the event escalated into a small-scaled competition held in the name of determining the strongest martial artist below the Crown grade.

The Mission Sect believed that there were ten Sephiroth in different parts of the human body, each bearing a unique significance. When all ten were refined, the tree of life would spawn. That’s when the practitioner attains the final Crown grade, which was equivalent to the Physical Invulnerability Stage in China.

And despite being referred to as ‘final’, it only meant the end of mortality, in the words of the Mission Sect. When a practitioner attains three Crowns, the Curtain of Shadow will be unveiled and Ein Sof would reveal himself; that’s when they become bona fide Archangels.

Being exceptionally gifted, Oblak had made a name for himself at a young age. After a setback in China, he got rid of his arrogance and impatience, which helped refine his ten Sephiroth in a shorter time than expected. Presently, he was only a half-step away from spawning the tree of life and a step away from attaining the Crown. He’s was smoothly sailing in his current competition and was about to enter the finals.

…

Midnight. Inside a mansion.

In the center of the living room on the first floor, there was an altar with strange symbols drawn onto it. A number of naked man and women vigorously copulated on the surrounding chairs, sofas, tables, and even carpet. Some were doing it one-on-one, some with many and others even more. They all wore expressions of indulgence and pleasure, as though they were enjoying the highest form of liberation.

Lou Cheng silently stood at the railing on the second floor. In his hand was a paper cup filled with fruit punch.

The lust parched his throat. Sipping at the ice cold drink, he tried his best to not let his mind go wild and visualized the Confrontation Formula stroke by stroke. That put his body and mind at peace again.

He channeled his kungfu at the opportunity, condensing water to ice and turning the lake into a mirror, entering the state of All-Seeing God.

He looked at the scene below him again. Free of his lust and impulsion, his eyes resumed being pitch-black and profound. He looked down at them with haughty sangfroid.

“These spirit cultivators sure know how to enjoy themselves…” he chuckled.

They were one of those ‘legal’ spirit cultivation sects—the type that acquired its members through ‘proper preaching’. Since they did not employ any use of drugs, bewitchment, or abduction to drag innocent people into their sect, Lou Cheng had no intentions of delivering justice to them.

Gentling swirling the paper cup in his hand, he observed silently and harmlessly as tides of flesh tumbled in a sea of moans. He was making something out of the scene and their method of ‘training’.

To put it simply, this was a revolutionary method that went against all norms… He nodded slightly and sipped at the punch. From birth, everyone is bound by all kinds of restrictions and rules. When one breaks free from those, they are introduced to sensations—both mentally and physically—like liberation, relaxation, gratification, and exhilaration. Combined with lust itself, it was similar to the Vidja Buddha Sect’s take on substance and emptiness—what they were trying to attain is not lust, but to dethrone obstinate doctrines, binding rules, and orthodox mindset.

In the process, if you become a slave to lust, indulgence, and the release and catharsis of the deed, you’d go astray and form new obsessions and bindings. That’s just going from one norm to another.

The spirit cultivators’ method of acquiring Own Spirit was two sides of the same coin with the Vidja Buddha Sect’s methods. Both were extreme and could easily lead the practitioner astray…

This is the rite to enhance their Own Spirit. Spirit cultivators’ advancement to the Physical Invulnerability Stage depended largely upon their Own Spirit. The Mission Sect… Sects that emphasizes on combat…cultivation…martial arts… Just what is the hidden connection between them?…

Recently, Lou Cheng had read many ancient books and records. He mulled over the matter at length, then vanished from the second floor with his paper cup in hand.

When the rite ended, the Spirit Cultivator host returned to the second floor. He wanted to enhance his Own Spirit while his body was still in its state of comfort.

That was when he looked to the study with a tinge of confusion. The window was open.

Night gale rushed into the empty room.

“Did I forget to close it?” The Spirit Cultivator was dumbfounded.

…

A sedan sped through the streets that were vacant at night. With his eyes on the road, Smith asked in confusion, “Lou, why would you want to watch the Satan’s rite?”

Lou Cheng put a hand against his lips in a thoughtful manner.

“Satan has Satan’s methods. You have to understand them to defeat them,” said Lou Cheng flippantly.

“You are getting more and more enigmatic lately,” mused Smith, shaking his head.

As a Puritan descendant, he loathed the activities conducted by Spirit Cultivators.

Without persisting on the matter, Smith asked, “Two more stops. Where to next?”

Lou Cheng hesitated, then laughed in a self-deriding manner.

“Let’s stop here for tonight. Send me home.”

Weirdo… Smith thought to himself. He turned the steering wheel, and the car swerved into the road leading to the North area.

…

On the next day, early in the morning, Lou Cheng returned from training. When he entered the house, wiping at his sweat, he happened to see Yan Zheke coming down from the second floor with brisk steps.

“Ke Ke, has your body been recovering well lately?” he inquired hastily. He had been asking the same thing every three to five days.

Yan Zheke wore a T-shirt that exposed her exquisite collarbone. Looking away, she said, “It’s alright. After collecting all of the Nine Words Formulas, my spirits have been increasing rapidly. My body has been regaining strength at a better rate too.”

She went down the staircase as she talked. A dimpled smile escaped her face.

“Feels like it won’t be long before I fully nourish myself, grasp the concept of ‘withdrawing’, enter Dan Equilibrium, and nourish your basic cultivation-martial arts foundation! What do you think, impressive huh?”

“I wouldn’t expect any less from Coach Yan!” praised Lou Cheng, grinning as he gave a thumbs-up.

At first, when he was perfecting the cultivation method and gathering all of Nine Words Formulas, he solely wanted to help Ke Ke with her congenital deficiencies. Who would have thought that it would end up opening a new avenue for him?

God knows how long he would have to wait if he relied on George and the others!

On the other hand, his own progression in the Nine Words Formulas had been satisfactory too. His spirit had increased even more. He had been feeling at the top of his game lately.

Feeling proud, Yan Zheke pursed her lips prettily. “But my increased spirit has all been used to nourish my body, so my current state is not much different from last year and I still can’t stay up late too much…”

She paused and yawned in an adorable manner with her hand on her mouth. She then reddened and made a scary face. Lifting her foot, she swiftly kicked Lou Cheng in the shin—with only a little strength.

Lou Cheng could only smile to that.

After breakfast, he sent his wife to the University of Connecticut and left her in the care of Aunt Du. Afterwards, he swung by the martial art club, then headed to the Holy Top Church once more to carry out his observations and learning.