Chapter 145 – The Beginning

“Have you been practicing jujutsu lately?”

Lu Yuan asked casually while eating, engaging in small talk with Lu Jing.

After returning to Jiaoyan, Lu Jing obediently followed Lu Yuan’s instructions. During the day, while Lu Yuan went out for cultivation, she would accompany him to the martial arts gym.

Although it was called “work,” Qin Feng didn’t actually give Lu Jing any tasks. She just wandered around the gym every day.

Lu Yuan and Lu Jing had a tacit understanding about this matter. They didn’t mention anything about the crane style, the martial arts gym, or the archaeological team to their family.

A few days ago, Lu Yuan heard that Lu Jing was practicing jujutsu with a coach at the gym, so he brought it up in conversation.

“Yes, Coach Wu says I have great talent and I’m progressing quickly.”

“Of course,” Lu Yuan nodded. “You’re my older sister. Even if you were as dumb as a pig, she’d still praise you as a genius.”

“You…”

Lu Jing pretended to hit him but held back when she saw Lu Yuan resting his arms on the table.

She grumbled, “Haven’t you noticed that my complexion and figure have improved lately?”

“Well, no matter what… Practicing is never a bad thing. That Coach Wu teaching you is quite skilled. If you can learn a thing or two from her, you won’t have to worry about small-time thugs.”

Lu Yuan said.

Lu Jing’s jujutsu coach was a woman in her forties with a martial arts level around the professional second rank. Generally, for ordinary people without a sect’s legacy, reaching this level was about the limit.

“Yeah,” Lu Jing replied somewhat perfunctorily. Lu Yuan noticed she was busy chatting on her mobile phone.

Sensing her mental power, he asked expressionlessly, “Is it that best friend of yours again? Talking about me?”

“No… no, just chatting randomly,” Lu Jing said, putting down her phone, her eyes evasive.

Lu Yuan didn’t know what to say. Since returning from the crane style sect, Lu Jing’s best friend Wu Xinlei had been constantly advising her to leave the crane style sect, saying how bad it was and urging her not to jump into the fire pit.

Lu Jing was somewhat swayed and had tentatively tried to persuade Lu Yuan twice, but hadn’t mentioned it since.

“This woman… I’ll let Sun Zhihua from the Moon Shadow Sect handle her later!” Lu Yuan thought to himself.

Last time, he had exchanged contact information with Sun Zhihua. Occasionally, they would chat a bit, but it was mostly Sun Zhihua initiating the conversation, inviting Lu Yuan to various martial arts salons and Ancient Style martial arts seminars.

Sun Zhihua’s Moments posts were mostly about these events, which Lu Yuan rarely paid attention to.

Lu Yuan had long considered the issue of the crane style sect.

Whether the crane style was a righteous sect or an evil sect didn’t matter much to him.

Old Liu treated him well, always meeting his needs. Even if he joined a legitimate, well-known righteous sect, he might not receive such treatment.

Moreover, Lu Yuan’s perception was extraordinarily keen.

So far, none of the direct disciples of the crane style had shown any “malicious” intent towards him.

At most, they were indifferent.

“The rights and wrongs in the martial arts world can’t be judged by normal people’s logic. The crane style being labeled as an evil sect might mainly be because they weren’t strong enough…

If Old Liu were a Grandmaster, he’d probably be known as the Celestial Crane of Sky Water by now.”

Sun Zhihua was a good example. As a successor of the Moon Shadow Sect, he proactively added Lu Yuan’s contact information, most likely fearing he might accidentally get killed by him.

Lost in his thoughts, Lu Yuan slowly chewed the food on his plate, one bite at a time.

After clearing most of the dishes on the table, Lu Yuan suddenly remembered something and asked Lu Jing, who had finished eating and was sipping her drink while browsing her mobile phone, “How are the members of your archaeological team doing lately?”

Lu Jing paused, then quickly nodded, “They’re all doing well. As you suggested, I check in the group chat daily, and if anyone doesn’t respond, I privately message them to confirm. Everyone’s fine… except…”

Lu Yuan’s eyes flickered, “Except what?”

Lu Jing hesitated and said, “One of the lead archaeology professors has been out of contact since we got back. My classmates said that a few days ago, the professor’s family even reported him missing…”

“What was the archaeology professor’s name?”

“Xia Weimin.”

…

A vast and empty training hall.

A massive black-and-gray statue of a ram’s head with three eyes hung high from the ceiling, its hollow, lifeless eye sockets silently overseeing everything below.

Amidst the pulsating drumbeats, carrying a strong ancient tribal music style, two figures appeared in the large arena.

One was dressed in a black short-sleeved outfit, wearing a mask of a three-eyed goat. He stood tall and slightly burly.

He stood quietly, yet it seemed as if an invisible undercurrent was constantly surging in the air around him.

The other was a man wearing a brown-striped tank top and a mask of a Black Saber-Toothed Tiger.

The latter was very strong.

In terms of height and build, he surpassed the former by a significant margin.

It was like comparing a medium size to a large size.

However, beneath the Black Saber-Toothed Tiger mask, a rugged face was slightly contorted.

Sweat covered every inch of his face.

Accumulating to the point where it flowed down his chin and neck, leaving visible sweat marks on his chest.

Finally…

The man could no longer endure it; he was almost overwhelmed by the invisible aura pressing down on him.

“Roar—”

The man let out a low growl, the sound beneath the mask resembling a beast’s roar.

The floor beneath his feet exploded into a small crater, and with a whooshing sound, he lunged forward like a fierce beast.

As the man made his move, the emotions of the audience in the large arena seemed to ignite simultaneously.

Many stood up, subconsciously shouting the man’s name—”Fierce Tiger!” “Fierce Tiger…”

But with a slight thud.

The just-ignited fervent atmosphere was instantly doused with a bucket of cold water.

In the arena, the man wearing the Saber-Toothed Tiger mask held his powerful, muscular arm in a punching stance. Just by looking at his bulging muscles, one could imagine the explosive force contained in his punch…

Unfortunately, that force was firmly blocked by a slender, fair hand.

The owner of the hand, a man wearing a goat mask, had merely raised his hand…

And all that violent energy was forcibly suppressed.

It was as if an impenetrable, unscalable wall stood in front of the Saber-Toothed Tiger.

The man’s Adam’s apple bobbed up and down, and his lips trembled slightly beneath the mask as he spoke.

“They said… you used to let people get a few hits in first.”

“You said it yourself… that was before.”

As those words fell, the goat-masked man’s hand lifted high and then struck down with immense force.

With a resounding “thud,” the Saber-Toothed Tiger, along with his mask, was slammed into the concrete floor, creating a shallow crater.

The large arena fell silent for several seconds, with countless spectators in the stands frozen in shock.

Moments later, a loud voice boomed from the speakers.

“Feast Eater… wins!”

“Boom!”

Loud music and cheers erupted simultaneously.

Lu Yuan, amidst the commotion, calmly walked down from the arena.

From the fighting ring to his private lounge, whispers about the “Feast Eater” followed him.

Surrounded by gazes of admiration, reverence, fervor, fear, and curiosity, Lu Yuan felt an unusual sense of emptiness.

“The opponents are just too low-level…”

In the lounge, Lu Yuan took off his mask and shed his black, tight-fitting shirt, revealing a body of smooth, mercury-like muscles.

“Mosa’s ‘Boiling Night’ is becoming more like a legitimate martial arts competition…”

Lu Yuan found this thought somewhat strange.

Hadn’t he always hoped for Mosa’s events to be more formal?

Perhaps with his increased strength, his mindset had undergone some peculiar changes.

Challenge!

Lu Yuan felt a growing desire for more challenging adversaries.

He yearned to explore broader horizons, face more formidable opponents, and delve into more mysterious and unknown extraordinary realms.

“The feeling of being watched is still there… I wonder if Lin Zhiqin knows that I’m still competing in Mosa…”

Lu Yuan changed his shoes, took out the Seize the Moon boxing gloves from his backpack, glanced at them, and then put them back.

Ever since Lu Yuan received the Seize the Moon, he carried it with him almost everywhere.

While part of the reason was to be prepared for any unexpected situations, the main reason was the desire to show off his new equipment whenever possible.

“But even if he knows, there’s nothing he can say to me… after all, I’m a True Disciple now…”

Lu Yuan still remembered Lin Zhiqin’s stern warning about official disciples not being allowed to participate in profit-driven martial arts competitions.

Back then, it didn’t seem like a big deal, but now Lu Yuan found Lin Zhiqin’s adherence to such rules almost archaic, if not downright stubborn.

“Perhaps even Old Liu has forgotten about this rule he set for Yuan Martial Arts Gym… He was abandoned by the crane style in Jiaoyan for so many years, yet he still stubbornly follows it…”

It was somewhat pathetic…

But also oddly admirable.

“I should find out more about Coach Lin’s story. Which of the direct disciples of the crane style seems the most gossipy?”

With these thoughts, Lu Yuan changed his clothes, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and left the lounge.

Now the front entrance to the training hall on the second basement level of Mosa Club was open.

Pretending to be a ticket-buying spectator, he mingled with the crowd and entered the ascending elevator.

Lin Zhiqin had taken his daughter Lin Mo to Xiabang for surgery over two weeks ago. Lu Yuan wondered if everything had gone smoothly.

Lu Yuan made a habit of coming to Mosa every day for a few “easy wins” and “fish in a barrel” matches. Besides gaining some daily professional experience, he wanted to accumulate some more victories for Lin Zhiqin—apparently, Lin Mo’s survival depended on it.

“Hopefully, it won’t be needed…”

With a sigh, Lu Yuan stepped out of the Mosa Club.

The evening sunlight, carrying the day’s accumulated heat and warmth, bathed him as he squinted at the increasingly lively area, heading towards a nearby grilled sausage stand.

He bought two grilled sausages and found shade at a bus stop, eating while waiting for his bus home.

As he was halfway through his second sausage, his mobile phone rang from his pocket.

He pulled out his phone, his eyes flickering slightly when he saw the caller’s name, and then he answered.

“Hello, Uncle Liu.”

On the other end of the line, Liu Si’s respectful voice came through.

“Young Sect Master, I’ve found the information you asked for. Is this a good time for you?”

Lu Yuan glanced at the distance and saw a bus approaching, but it wasn’t the one he was waiting for.

“Go ahead, Uncle Liu.”

“Regarding Xia Weimin, who you asked me to investigate, he disappeared at Pingcheng Airport on the 8th at 3 PM during the Xixu archaeological team’s return journey…”

“Was he kidnapped?”

“No, according to the airport’s surveillance footage, he deliberately left the group on his own. He didn’t board the plane and was seen carrying a large black suitcase.”

“And where is he now? Any updates?”

“He’s dead.

On the morning of the 13th, Xia Weimin’s body was found in a small hotel in Wengzhou, over a thousand kilometers from Pingcheng.

His body was torn apart, almost reduced to a pulp.

It seemed as if some powerful palm strike had crushed him to death…

The suitcase he was carrying is also missing…”

Dead? Killed with a single palm strike?

Lu Yuan frowned and asked, “Uncle Liu, do you have any more detailed information or perhaps the hotel’s surveillance footage? Could you send it to me?”

Liu Si chuckled bitterly on the other end.

“Young Sect Master, this is the best I could find. Even if I were to spend more money, my contact wouldn’t divulge any more information.”

“Alright.”

Lu Yuan nodded. “Thank you, Uncle Liu. I appreciate your help.”

“You’re welcome, Young Sect Master.”

After hanging up, Lu Yuan’s expression grew increasingly grim.

He suddenly realized something.

The reason everything seemed so peaceful with Lu Jing’s archaeological team recently wasn’t that the matter had been resolved.

But because…

This was just the beginning!