Chapter 78: The Request from Qin Rui

The early morning mist wreathed the grove. Lou Cheng glanced at Jiang Fei, who was practicing the standing stance with his eyes closed. He rubbed his thumb and forefinger together, and a tiny orange flame flickered in the bleak breeze.

Pang!

His arm shook and lashed out like a whip, rending the air with a loud crack. The flame died out. It was blown out by the airflow!

"The flame is too tiny and weak to keep steady. I have to integrate it into the attack to take the enemy unawares," Lou Cheng confirmed a previous guess. He had named his Power of Blaze "lighter" because they shared a characteristic: a physical move was needed to accelerate the internal force to spark the flame, just as a flicking motion was needed to catch a light.

Rubbing his fingers together to spark a flame was impractical in combat. He needed a better way. After some thought, he decided to combine the force-launching of a normal attack with the sparking of the flame. He adjusted his stance, raised his right arm, and twisted his waist to launch a downward fist strike. The flame appeared, covering his fist, but was immediately extinguished by the airflow.

Lou Cheng scratched his head in embarrassment and glanced at Jiang Fei. He breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that Jiang Fei was still concentrating and hadn't noticed his failure. It would be a shame to show off such a semi-finished skill.

Lou Cheng analyzed his failure. He realized the force was usually launched at the very beginning of the punch. The flame, still too weak, couldn't endure the blow of the airflow for long. "Launch the force when the fist is very close to the opponent. That's the abrupt explosive force? It should work to combine it with the flame..." he mused. He shook his arm and struck out like a spear. Just as he launched the explosive force, he sped up the heat flow within his body.

Pang!

A flame burst forth with a sharp crack, covering his fist as it hit its target. Although it flickered and died out quickly, Lou Cheng grinned. The goal was achieved. The weak flame wouldn't do much harm, but it could still sting and surprise an opponent at a crucial moment. A fighter's brief moment of disorientation was an opportunity.

If he could master his Power of Blaze, he might defeat a Professional Ninth Pin again. However, he knew the flame should only be used as a last resort, as his opponents would be wary of the technique once they saw it.

Lou Cheng had been thinking for a while about how to strengthen the Power of Blaze: by improving his physique. He didn't have the physique to handle the backlash of the Jindan's Burn Force, which had almost killed him. If his physique were as strong as a Professional Ninth Pin or Danqi fighter, things would be different. He could then attempt to absorb both the Ice Force and Burn Force from the Jindan, which would be a dangerous, life-or-death process.

Bringing his thoughts back to the exercise, Lou Cheng practiced the 24 Blizzard Strikes several times, trying to integrate the Power of Blaze into the abrupt explosive force. When he felt he had a basic grasp of the skill, he smiled at Jiang Fei. "How's the practice?" he asked. "Can you feel the concealment of spirit and qi?"

Jiang Fei opened his eyes and said with a devastated, crying face, "Not yet!" He then feigned anger. "It's all your fault! You made such noise! How can I meditate?"

"An old monk is able to meditate while the newlyweds are entering the bridal chamber next to him," Lou Cheng teased. "Let's have breakfast and then go home. You've reached your limit for today."

Jiang Fei breathed a sigh of relief. "Will it take great perseverance for me to get up tomorrow because of sore muscles?"

Lou Cheng smiled. "You'll feel sore in a little while, not tomorrow morning. You'll be fine after a few days when you get used to the training rhythm."

As they passed the Gushan Martial Arts School disciples, Qin Rui called out, "Fatty Jiang! Lou Cheng!" They stopped, and Qin Rui trotted over with a big smile. "Could you do me a favor?"

"For what? What can two poor schoolboys do for you?" Jiang Fei asked, wary of being asked for money.

Qin Rui smiled. "Not a big deal. You're helping organize the class reunion, right, Fatty Jiang?"

"Yes, so?" Both Lou Cheng and Jiang Fei were confused.

Qin Rui pointed at his team members. "The Mingwei Martial Arts School disciples just challenged us. They want to learn from each other to prepare for the preliminaries. They set the time for the day after tomorrow, and we set the place. I suggested the North Courtyard of the Spring Scenery Field Conference Villa because of the class reunion. Could you ask the monitor to get our classmates to come cheer for us?"

Jiang Fei understood. "You want to show off in front of your classmates?"

"A little bit..." Qin Rui smiled awkwardly. "I mainly want to advertise our team for the preliminaries next year. The manager of the foundation will decide the winner based on the candidates' popularity if our scores are close. Don't worry, we won't disturb the reunion in the South Courtyard." The North Courtyard had a martial arts stadium, while the South Courtyard had recreation facilities.

Jiang Fei didn't promise directly. "I'll tell the monitor about your request. But I can't guarantee she'll agree. I suggest you invite the classmates yourself. I bet many would be willing to watch and cheer for you."

"Right! Mr. Wu will be there that day. As a huge martial arts fan, he'll definitely want to see it. Since the head teacher is leading, many classmates will follow him to cheer for you," Lou Cheng added.

Lou Cheng related to Qin Rui's desire for cheering and applause. He had experienced it firsthand at the Warrior Sage Challenge Tournament. Qin Rui looked as if he wanted to reach out and touch them. He resisted the urge and smiled. "Okay, I'll come to invite our classmates... Well, that's wrong. I'm already in the reunion. I'll just be there..." After the funny line, he said goodbye and trotted back to his team.

Watching him go, Jiang Fei murmured, "What a narcissist..."

"Not that bad. It's natural for anyone to do so," Lou Cheng said in his favor.

After a few steps, Jiang Fei joked, "Cheng, how about you jump into the ring and beat all the opponents? The one in the limelight will be you. Your strength isn't weaker than theirs, right?"

"Am I crazy?" Lou Cheng scoffed. "Why would I meddle in their match? Their target is the preliminaries, while mine is the National University Martial Arts Competitions. The well water doesn't intrude on the river water."

They laughed and chatted as they walked out of the park. They had braised pork noodles and other snacks at a breakfast stall. "How will we get back?" Jiang Fei asked, wiping his mouth.

Lou Cheng smirked. "We'll run back!"

Jiang Fei's face turned pale. "Brother Cheng. No! Master Cheng, it'll kill me to run another ten kilometers!"

"Don't be a coward. I'm only kidding." Lou Cheng took out his phone and booked a car.

Jiang Fei sighed in relief. "I have to believe what you're saying. When you told me we were running to People's Park, I thought you were joking. Well, the truth was..."

---

Back home, Lou Cheng took a shower and felt his cold was gone. He turned on his computer, logged into QQ, and checked his email for the videos from Geezer Shi. There was nothing. Lou Cheng didn't seem to care. He clicked on Yan Zheke’s profile and sent a muscle emoji. [I feel powerful and energetic again after the morning exercise!]

Yan Zheke sent a laughter emoji. [You're not Lou Daiyu anymore. I'm disappointed!]

[By the way, Coach Yan. I want to seek some advice from you,] Lou Cheng sent a pair of piercing eyes.

[Say it! My good mood now is your chance!] Yan Zheke sent an emoji of a curling finger.

Lou Cheng sent a smirk. [You know I got a prize of 15 thousand RMB. Besides treating you to a nice dinner and a trip, I'd like to give my parents a present. It's the first gift I've bought for them with my own money. Any advice?] Lou Cheng wanted to involve Yan Zheke in his private life to get closer to her. He also genuinely had no idea what to buy.

Yan Zheke sent a stunned dog emoji. [I've never seen your parents and have no idea what their hobbies are. How can I give you constructive advice? You'd better offer some choices, and then I'll give you some suggestions.]

Lou Cheng thought for a while. [How about clothes?]

[Not bad.] Yan Zheke sent a pondering emoji. [But do you know your parents' size? XL or XXL? Their waistline?]

Lou Cheng froze and sent an ellipsis. [...]

[I do know... So, the daughter is more considerate than the son,] Yan Zheke sent back a sighing emoji.

[Haha, I wanna have a daughter too,] Lou Cheng replied.

They chatted about sons and daughters for a while before getting back to the presents. [How about asking my parents directly?] Lou Cheng asked.

[Um, no surprise at all! Are they at home? You can check their wardrobe to see what kind of clothes they need. The presents don't have to be expensive, just overcoats and the like. You have to budget your prize money. When your martial arts level reaches the Danqi stage, you'll need to spend a small fortune on tonic medicine,] Yan Zheke advised with a righteous-looking emoji.

[Coach Yan is right!] Lou Cheng answered excitedly. He went to the master bedroom and opened the wardrobe. How long has dad's jacket been worn? I remember it was there when I was a kid... His wool sweater has many pills, and some parts are nearly worn out... Mom’s thermal underwear looks very old. How long has it been worn?

Lou Cheng looked at their clothes, which he had never paid attention to before. He had always thought that after their living conditions improved, his parents would replace their old clothes with new ones, just as he had. But the truth was, they lived a very frugal existence, only buying a few suits for social events. Yet they were willing to spend every single coin on him. Most of their clothes had been worn for years. They only bought new ones when the old ones couldn't be mended.

Lou Cheng took a deep breath, his eyes turning red. He was filled with sorrow for his parents. He memorized their sizes and returned to his room. He messaged Yan Zheke. [I wanna buy my dad a wool sweater and my mom two suits of thermal underwear...]

After receiving the sizes, Yan Zheke selected several styles. [I think these are good. You can choose one and buy it at a local store. It might be a little more expensive than buying it online. Anyway, you're newly rich. I have to mention that express delivery won't resume until after the Spring Festival. How sad it is...]

Yan Zheke went for her martial arts training after dealing with Lou Cheng's request. Lou Cheng played an online game for a while. Suddenly, he heard the door open and a familiar cough.

Mom and dad came back!