Grandpa Wang watched the two stare at each other in silence, then cleared his throat and introduced her with a touch of pride. "Ahem, this is my granddaughter, Wang Qinghe."
"Hello, my name is Wang Qinghe."
The girl extended her hand generously. Her honey-colored skin gleamed with healthy radiance beneath the streetlights, and her eyes were bright and direct. "I'm a senior at Ning City No. 1 High School. I practice free combat, and my goal is to compete in the professional league."
"Xiao Yun, don't let her age fool you," Grandpa Wang immediately chimed in, his voice full of vigor. "She was last year's champion of the youth division in our city's women's free combat division! She's really something!"
"Hello, I'm Ling Yun."
Ling Yun returned her smile and lightly shook her hand. He could feel the thin calluses on her palm and knuckles. "I'm also from Ning City No. 1 High School, a freshman."
"Huh?!" Wang Qinghe's eyes widened instantly as she looked him over carefully. "You're that... Ling Yun, the junior who, not long after the start of freshman year, lifted a freshman athlete with one hand and threw him several meters away?"
Her tone was filled with curious disbelief.
Ling Yun rubbed his nose and smiled helplessly. "Uh... if no one else has done that, then I guess it was me."
He hadn't expected the story to spread so widely.
"So it really was you!" A smile blossomed across Wang Qinghe's face, carrying the excitement of having found a legendary figure. "The rumors weren't exaggerated at all. You really are... handsome enough to be convincing!"
She praised him openly.
"You flatter me, senior schoolmate. I'm just a little handsome, that's all."
Ling Yun sounded modest, but the little bit of smugness in his heart still bubbled up like fizz.
Being praised to his face—especially by a beautiful senior schoolmate—felt pretty great.
Seeing the two young people hit it off the moment they met, Grandpa Wang grinned from ear to ear.
"By the way, Grandpa," Wang Qinghe finally remembered the matter at hand and turned to him. "What are you doing here with Ling Yun? Why haven't you gone home so late at night?"
At that, Grandpa Wang immediately perked up. His back straightened as he vividly recounted how Ling Yun had manipulated fallen leaves into forming a Tai Chi diagram and pointed out the essence of his fist form. His words were filled with admiration for Ling Yun.
After listening, Wang Qinghe knitted her delicate brows, her face practically spelling out three words: Are you kidding me?
Manipulating fallen leaves into a Tai Chi diagram? That sounded even more fantastical than a martial arts novel!
She practiced free combat, which emphasized real, tangible confrontation. She had always scoffed at the mystical claims surrounding traditional martial arts.
If it was really that powerful, why had no one ever seen it in the professional arena?
However, when her gaze swept across the ground and landed on the clear Tai Chi pattern outlined by leaves of varying shades, not yet completely scattered by the wind, much of the doubt in her heart wavered. The marks on the ground couldn't be faked.
A bold thought rose in her mind.
"Ling Yun," she said, taking a deep breath as the flames of challenge ignited in her eyes. Turning to him, she asked seriously, "Could you... spar with me using your Tai Chi?"
As a fighter who pursued real combat and strength, there was no better way to verify the truth than experiencing it personally.
"I can," Ling Yun replied, the corner of his mouth curling into an amused smile as his gaze swept over her taut muscles. "But, senior schoolmate, let's make this clear first. If you lose later, don't secretly wipe away your tears, okay?"
He wanted to see how this confident champion senior schoolmate would react after being "shaken."
"Hmph! Don't underestimate me!"
Wang Qinghe's competitive spirit was immediately provoked. Her brows rose slightly. "I'm a real champion! Bring out your best and let me see what you mean by a difference in level!"
She assumed a standard combat stance, lowering her center of gravity, her eyes sharp as an eagle's.
"All right. As you wish." Ling Yun put away his playful expression and became more serious.
"Master," Grandpa Wang hurriedly cut in, his face filled with worry. "Go easy on her! Definitely go easy! My granddaughter has such delicate skin..."
"Don't worry, Grandpa Wang. I know my limits."
Ling Yun gave him a reassuring look, then added, "And Grandpa, you can just call me Xiao Yun from now on. Being called a 'master' feels a little embarrassing."
He put on a suitably bashful expression, but inwardly he muttered, If it weren't for how cool and beautiful your granddaughter is, I'd say 'master' sounds pretty nice...
Grandpa Wang took it as nothing more than Ling Yun being modest. Feeling even closer to him, he smiled until his eyes narrowed into slits.
Seeing that even her own grandfather thought so little of her chances, the fire in Wang Qinghe's heart burned hotter. Her eyes locked tightly onto Ling Yun like a cheetah poised to pounce.
The two stood about ten meters apart.
"Begin!" Grandpa Wang shouted nervously.
Before his voice had even faded, Wang Qinghe drove off with her feet, shooting toward Ling Yun like an arrow released from its bow!
She was incredibly fast, her steps swift and springy. Her right fist was already chambered, and it shot straight toward Ling Yun's centerline with a whoosh. It was a standard combat opening attack, aiming to use speed and strength to suppress him.
However, Ling Yun's reaction was even faster!
He lowered his center of gravity slightly. His feet settled into a balanced stance, while his hands slowly formed a circle before his chest. The movement looked incredibly slow, yet it contained a strange rhythm.
The instant Wang Qinghe's fist was about to reach him, he twisted at the waist. His hands traced a gentle arc that was nevertheless filled with tremendous pulling force—Crane Spreads Wings, a technique from Tai Chi!
There was no dazzling light or exaggerated sound effect.
Yet Wang Qinghe was horrified to feel the air before her fist suddenly become incomparably viscous. A vast, irresistible force that was nevertheless perfectly rounded and seamless abruptly wrapped around her arm and the entire momentum of her charge!
It wasn't a hard collision, but a subversive pull that stripped away her center of gravity!
She felt as if she had charged into the center of a rapidly spinning whirlpool. In an instant, all the strength in her body—even the stability beneath her feet—was "neutralized" by that strange force!
She desperately tried to steady herself, engaging the strength of her waist and core to resist, only to discover that every effort sank into the sea like a mud cow. Her body no longer obeyed her at all. That gentle yet irresistible force carried her forward and to the side!
"Mm!" Wang Qinghe only had time to let out a short cry before she completely lost her balance. As if pulled by invisible threads, she staggered helplessly into Ling Yun's arms.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye!
A soft, muffled thud sounded.
Wang Qinghe crashed solidly into Ling Yun's embrace and was gently supported by his arms, which he had raised instinctively.
Their bodies pressed tightly together, the distance between them vanishing in an instant.
Time seemed to freeze.
Still shaken, Wang Qinghe looked up and met Ling Yun's lowered gaze.
The tips of their noses were less than ten centimeters apart. She could even clearly see his long eyelashes and feel his steady, unhurried breath brush across her bangs.
A faint, refreshing scent, like grass after rain, entered her nostrils.
Facing that handsome, flawless face from such a close distance, Wang Qinghe's heartbeat suddenly ran wild. It pounded against her chest like a drum, and her cheeks instantly burned scarlet. Even the roots of her ears flushed red.
Her mind went blank, leaving only one thought screaming inside her: Oh my god! How can someone be this handsome? And this... strong!
"Ahem, ahem, ahem..." Grandpa Wang's untimely teasing broke the delicate, awkward silence. He grinned so broadly that his teeth showed. "What did I tell you? A talented man and a beautiful woman—a match made in heaven!
"This is the first time this old man has ever seen a spar fought like this!"
"Grandpa!!" Wang Qinghe came back to herself as if awakening from a dream, so embarrassed that she wished she could find a hole to crawl into.
As if shocked by electricity, she abruptly pushed herself backward, jumped out of Ling Yun's arms with a flushed face, and lowered her head, not daring to look at him again.
"Ahem... senior schoolmate, I'm really sorry. Just now... things got a little out of control." Ling Yun also withdrew his arms awkwardly, his tone carrying genuine apology. He truly hadn't expected the gravitational effect of Crane Spreads Wings, empowered by spiritual energy, to be so direct and overbearing.
"No... no problem!"
Wang Qinghe took a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart and the heat in her face. She looked at Ling Yun with unprecedented fervor. "Junior, what was that just now...? I completely... completely had no way to resist!"
She couldn't even describe that sensation using the terminology of free combat.
"That was an application of force that can only be mastered when Tai Chi has reached the level of 'thorough mastery.'"
Ling Yun didn't conceal the level he had reached, but he deftly avoided revealing the core secret of his spiritual energy.
"It requires an extreme grasp of strength, timing, and spatial awareness."
What he said was true; he had merely omitted the crucial prerequisite.
"'Thorough mastery'..."
Wang Qinghe repeated the phrase under her breath, her eyes full of curiosity. "Is that level... very difficult? What kind of talent does it require?"
"Extremely difficult."
Ling Yun's expression turned solemn. "It isn't something you can achieve simply by practicing the forms relentlessly. You need an extremely deep understanding of the principles of boxing, as well as absolute precision in controlling every ounce of strength in your body and every joint. More importantly... you need an innate, top-tier comprehension of 'force' and 'momentum.'
"Throughout history, those who have reached this level have been as rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns. Zhang Sanfeng was one of the greatest masters among them."
"Zhang... Zhang Sanfeng?!"
Wang Qinghe drew in a sharp breath, her eyes going round. A once-in-a-century... no, once-in-a-millennium talent?! That assessment carried immense weight!
Amid her shock, a strange sense of relief welled up inside her.
So it wasn't that traditional martial arts were useless. It was that anyone capable of reaching this level had already surpassed the realm of ordinary competition!
Even the opponents she faced in the professional arena in the future, no matter how strong they were, probably couldn't be stronger than this monstrous junior before her, right?
At that thought, the tension in her shoulders eased instead, and a relieved smile appeared on her face.
Before you continue