Performance

The first hint of dawn appeared on the horizon.

Chen Yiming lay in bed, tossing and turning, unable to sleep.

In his mind, a tiny figure practiced basic sword moves over and over without stopping. Eventually, it even began practicing the incomplete Mantis Snake Swordsmanship.

These were scattered moves he had secretly picked up while delivering takeout. They hardly formed a complete system.

"Could this be the legendary method of training in your dreams?"

He opened his eyes and sat bolt upright.

No longer sleepy, he threw off his covers, grabbed the wooden sword from the table, and began practicing the incomplete Mantis Snake Swordsmanship from his dream.

The moment he raised his hand, he realized the training in his dream had been real.

On his first run-through, he perfectly reproduced the moves he remembered seeing.

On the second, he instinctively drew on his understanding of basic sword moves, piecing together techniques to fill the gaps. He had created an entire, heavily modified sword style.

"This... is a heavily modified version of the incomplete Mantis Snake Swordsmanship, right?"

He had no idea how powerful his haphazardly altered sword style was, but at least he could execute its killing move without a hitch.

His confidence soared. He practiced it several more times, stopping only when his stomach started growling.

After training, he showered and changed into clean clothes before heading downstairs.

His parents were already waiting for him. On the table sat a steaming bowl of noodles and a thick envelope containing the thirty-thousand-yuan enrollment fee.

His mother picked up the envelope, tucked it into his pocket, and buttoned the pocket shut. "Keep the money safe. Don't forget it later."

Chen Yiming pulled out a chair and sat at the table. He grabbed the hot noodles with his chopsticks and shoveled them into his mouth, polishing off the big bowl in moments.

Seeing him eat, his father couldn't help saying, "Slow down. You need to keep a steady head, not rush everything. Don't worry too much about the result of the test. Even if you fail this time, it's fine. We can still afford another enrollment fee. You can try again next time."

Seeing that his parents clearly had no confidence in him, Chen Yiming set down his half-finished noodle soup and reached for the wooden sword. He would show them the power of the system.

His mother quickly caught his hand. "Your dad just doesn't know how to say things nicely. Don't take it to heart. Save your strength for the test."

Chen Yiming couldn't let it go. Unless he showed them what he could do today, they would keep thinking he was bragging.

He picked up his chopsticks, still wet with noodle soup, and wielded them like a long sword, unleashing an unnamed spiraling killing move from the Mantis Snake Swordsmanship.

The chopsticks shot toward the heavy iron front door, spinning as if propelled by a rocket.

Clang! The tremendous impact sent the door rattling back and forth.

A large, ragged hole appeared in its center. Wood splinters littered the floor, and one half of the chopsticks lay by the door. The other half was nowhere to be seen.

His parents sprang to their feet in shock. Even Chen Yiming jumped at the noise.

That was as powerful as a pistol bullet. A hit to a person might have killed them instantly. Luckily, no unlucky passerby had been outside.

"When... when did you get so strong?"

His mother's head was spinning. If she hadn't seen it herself, she would never have believed her son had done it.

Her impression of his martial arts was still the clumsy sword practice that looked much like a school exercise routine.

"The chopsticks punched straight through an iron door. Was the swordsmanship they taught you at school really that powerful?" His father could hardly believe it either.

From what he had seen of Chen Yiming's friends and the neighbors' children, their martial arts practice looked more like playing around. They would have been better off with hammers.

"Now you believe me, right?"

Chen Yiming clenched his fist and tried to look calm. In truth, he hadn't expected it to be that powerful either. He would have been satisfied just to leave a mark.

His mother stepped up to the hole and peered outside. It was big enough to fit a fist through. Troubled, she said, "What do we do now? Are any shops that sell doors open yet? Anyone outside can see into the house through a hole this big."

"...Stick a piece of paper over it."

Chen Yiming faltered. This was bad. In the heat of the moment, he had wrecked their front door.

His father came over, glanced at the hole, and suggested, "It's right in the middle of the door. Why don't we install a peephole there? It'll look a little odd, but that's better than covering it with white paper."

The newly risen sun lit up the dim lanes of the urban village.

"Mom, Dad, I'm heading out."

Chen Yiming got on his bicycle, took several turns through the narrow lanes, and rode onto the main road.

Along the stretch between the urban village and the main road, he felt plenty of watchful eyes on him. In broad daylight, though, no one dared stop him openly.

At several corners, he saw refugees who had pitched tents and settled in, complete with pots, bowls, and pans. Whole families huddled in single corners.

The refugees didn't dare pitch tents on the main road. The City Patrol passed through there, and anyone caught would be driven out of the city.

Along the main road, recruiters handed out job flyers on every street, seeking people desperate enough to take dangerous work outside the city as porters or transport workers.

For now, few people were asking about the jobs. Perhaps the war had only just begun, and most families still had food to spare. They weren't desperate enough to risk their lives to survive.

He rode on past the city park plaza.

A platform more than ten meters long and wide had been set up in the middle of the plaza. A girl in yellow and a boy in white were dueling with swords atop it. Young spectators crowded around, and music played over the lively scene.

Normally, people came here for a stroll after meals. But since fighting had broken out to the west, hardly anyone had visited the park.

Curious, Chen Yiming decided he had plenty of time before registration closed. He rode into the plaza to see what was happening.

After practicing swordsmanship in his dream the night before, he was more interested than ever in learning by watching others. This public duel was a rare opportunity, and he could watch openly; whatever he managed to pick up was down to his own ability. Besides, he lacked martial arts experience and had never fought anyone. He badly needed to learn from others.

He parked his bicycle in an open spot and locked it, keeping it within sight at all times.

With unrest spreading, there were far more thieves around than usual. If someone tried to steal his bike, he wanted to spot them in time.

When he reached the platform, the girl in yellow was wielding a jade-green sword and using footwork that shifted between feints and real attacks.

Yellow and green blurs filled the platform. One moment she was behind the boy in white; the next, she appeared at his side. By the time he turned, she was behind him again.

Attacked from every direction, the boy in white could only hold his sword across his body to defend himself and try to predict where she would strike next.

But he could not defend forever. The girl caught him the instant his footwork faltered and struck his sword hand before he could turn. His sword flew from his grip and fell to the ground.

Unwilling to give up, the boy tried to switch to unarmed combat, but his fist techniques were clearly far worse than his swordsmanship. The moment he raised his hand, a jade-green blade came to rest against his throat, leaving him unable to move.

The young spectators erupted in cheers at his defeat.

The girl in yellow was clearly popular. Many of the young people around the platform were her fans.