Chapter 9

"Lightness skill? Do you believe it? Actually, I know Internal Energy too, hahaha." Whatever else Bai Lang might have been before transmigrating, perhaps a shut-in, three years in the broker trade had greatly sharpened both his tongue and his ability to deal with people—if everything had to be settled with fists, he would probably have been beaten to death long ago.

The Changle Gang had considerable influence and plenty of experts, but they would not necessarily send out truly high-level fighters over some insignificant broker office beneath them. So if someone from one of those offices provoked an expert of a certain caliber, even if the "expert" was later killed by the gang, would the victim not still have died for nothing?

Bai Lang joked around with them. He made no attempt to hide the fact that he knew martial arts, since he could not hide it anyway, but just how skilled was he? That was something he could joke his way around. Ordinary people truly had no way of knowing or seeing how good Bai Lang was. They merely felt that he moved quickly and struck with explosive force, so he certainly seemed capable in a fight.

But knowing martial arts was useless in this world. Martial arts that could not earn money were nothing more than a hobby. Everyone also believed that no matter how skilled one was, a single bullet would put them down. Things like "Internal Energy" and "lightness skills" existed only in wuxia novels and could not be taken seriously—everyone was an adult, and this was the twenty-first century, not the 1980s. Anyone who still believed in wuxia novels had to be an idiot.

As he said this, Bai Lang even struck a few poses. "The real deal! I'm not lying to you." This method was extremely effective at lowering everyone else's guard. They laughed, and the matter passed.

Even after saving someone, the travel itinerary was not delayed—everyone had come to Japan for fun, not to waste time saving people or anything. Even Bai Lang himself had not considered it a big deal, until Japanese reporters came knocking later that evening.

"You're looking for me?" Bai Lang looked at the male and female reporters before him. They spoke fluent Chinese—because they were Chinese themselves, reporters from Qiao Bao. "Mr. Bai, we came to interview you about saving that person," the male reporter began, but the female reporter immediately asked, "Was it really kung fu? We saw the surveillance footage. You were so fast!"

Dealing with reporters was much more troublesome than dealing with his tour group, but Bai Lang still handled it well. Neither of them had the means to make him demonstrate anything, so all he had to do was steer the topic toward how this represented the moral character of Chinese people—after all, it was a good deed. Japanese people did not often save others like this.

After finally getting rid of the two reporters, Bai Lang at last had time to cultivate the Cosmic Circulation again—this counted as quiet cultivation. "It seems this world has given me nothing good except time to train?" Though he felt that so-called voice was utterly unreliable, once he had truly discovered that the Jade Fish could travel through time and space, Bai Lang naturally had certain ideas—he had read those infinite-flow novels before. Honestly, even after three years, he could still vaguely remember quite a few of them.

Compared to the world he had come from, this modern society was far less like a "fantasy" world. The Internal Energy flowing through his body was proof enough. Could he reveal the circumstances of "that world" to people here, or even profit by teaching his martial arts? To be honest, Bai Lang did not really want to try. With a body as slight as his, if he stirred up trouble, it probably would not be something he could handle himself.

Besides, he could not simply assume that this world absolutely lacked so-called "Internal Energy." Right now, he was merely an "ordinary person" who had joined a tour group. As for the "truth" hidden behind this world's veil, he was completely in the dark and knew nothing—so keeping quiet and making his fortune was the real way to go. Even if he gained nothing else, ten years of cultivation time was already the greatest benefit.

That was how the Japan trip went, and soon it was time to return home. Looking at the address on his passport and ID card, one he had no memory of at all, Bai Lang gave a bitter smile. "Damn it, I don't even know where I work. There's a bank card in my wallet, but hell if I know the password. Does this identity have parents? Any other relatives or friends? I don't know any of that at all! How am I supposed to get by now?"

Fortunately, transmigration did come with some benefits. After returning, Bai Lang discovered that he lived alone in the house. After rummaging through everything, he finally found the household register and discovered that he was the only person listed. That was excellent. As for relatives and friends? He did not need them. Where he worked was not important either, since Bai Lang would only be staying for ten years anyway.

The best way was to sell the house and use the money to live in this world for ten years. Once he decided, he acted. Bai Lang sold the house as quickly as possible, rented a safe-deposit box at a bank to store his household register and other documents, then set off to roam the world.

Training in martial arts was meant to be like this. He carried only a phone and a laptop; the money from selling the house was enough to let him stay in hotels wherever he went. "Hmm, those three high school students actually did send emails. That's not bad. Let me see... there are plenty of grammatical errors, but at least they're understandable."

The first place Bai Lang went was the northwest. No one there recognized him, and training martial arts in such a place truly progressed much more smoothly than in a prosperous city. Bai Lang's mind had settled as well. At first, he really had been dazzled by modern prosperity and relaxed somewhat, but now that he had reached the bitterly cold northwest, he immediately returned to the days when he had trained hard in martial arts.

He rose every day before dawn and practiced the Thirty-two Forms Long Fist. At sunrise, he gathered the first thread of violet qi and refined it into vital essence that coursed through his meridians. Movement and stillness alike, he took pure joy in martial training. Though the food in this world seemed not to possess the benefits of being rich in primordial qi and nourishing true qi, it was fully capable of replenishing the blood and qi he expended. And as long as he had money, he could eat as much meat as he wanted.

Bai Lang's martial attainments had not yet reached the level where he could directly absorb the qi of heaven and earth and refine it into vital essence. He still needed to eat large amounts of food that nourished his blood and qi to sustain his consumption. Perhaps once he opened the Ren and Du Meridians and formed the Bridge of Heaven and Earth, he would no longer need to be such a glutton.

Bai Lang now lived in a county town in the northwest. He rented a single-story house with water, electricity, and gas, and the internet was connected as well. Normally, he tempered his strength, sharpened his essence, and cultivated qi. Other than going to the market each day to buy large quantities of meat, he had little contact with anyone else.

Only occasionally would Bai Lang relax a little by going online or strolling through the streets. This was a place where Donkey Glue was popular. Though he did not particularly like that sect, Bai Lang had no intention of interfering with others. But just because he did not interfere with others did not mean others would not interfere with him.