Chapter 31 – Fragment

Lu Yuan clicked on the top link, the one with the highest relevance.

A promotional website page appeared before his eyes.

The background was pure black, with four bold, blood-red characters spelling out “Boiling Night,” giving a sense of mystery and excitement.

“This competition is hosted by the Moss Martial Arts Enthusiasts Association. The tournament is divided into preliminary round—repechage—semifinals—.”

Organizer and tournament format introduction.

When Lu Yuan saw the prize money, his eyelids twitched slightly.

“One million!”

The prize for the champion of this so-called Boiling Night Supreme Martial Arts competition was actually one million.

For Lu Yuan, this was definitely enticing enough.

“If I could win that one million… Forget it, it’s better not to think about it.”

The championship was too far out of reach for Lu Yuan at this point. Even though he could already punch with the power of an amateur sixth-rank martial artist, he was still a complete novice in the martial arts world.

“Even if I could train my leg techniques to the level of that middle-aged man, the chances would still be slim.”

Lu Yuan shook his head, completely dismissing this unrealistic thought from his mind.

He continued reading.

Registration method, competition location.

The entire web poster ended with a small line of text—Boiling Night, please enjoy the thrill of battle.

At the end of the small text was a Goat Head Emblem, with one eye painted blood red.

After reading all the information on the poster, Lu Yuan thought for a moment and directly took out his phone to call the contact number listed.

A female voice answered the call. After Lu Yuan expressed his desire to register for the competition, she told him to bring his ID for an interview at a specified location the next day.

“An interview just to register?”

Lu Yuan was a bit speechless, but this actually made the organization seem more legitimate.

Lu Yuan then looked up information about the “Moss Martial Arts Enthusiasts Association” mentioned on the poster.

He found that there indeed was such an association in Jiaoyan City, but there was very little information about it.

All he knew was that this association held two to three martial arts competitions like “Boiling Night” almost every year.

The prize money was decent, but there weren’t many participants.

The main reason was the overly complicated tournament format and the long duration of the competition.

Lu Yuan went back to the poster and indeed found that the format of this competition was much more complex than typical martial arts competitions.

Actually, it wasn’t so much complex as it was extensive.

Preliminary round, preliminaries, group stage, repechage.

Just the first stage of the competition had so many different forms.

In general, a martial arts competition, short ones last two to three weeks, and long ones a month or two, would be over.

But the Boiling Night competition lasted a full six months!

Even professional martial artists, who make a living by participating in competitions, rarely join such time-consuming and labor-intensive tournaments. Although the prize money was indeed generous, you could earn money just by passing the preliminary round.

“According to past practices, once this tournament ends, the association’s next tournament will follow immediately. It’s like boiling for the first half of the night and then continuing to boil for the second half, boiling for a whole year?”

Staying in a constant state of “battle” throughout the year.

It must be said, this enthusiasts association really had a deep passion for martial arts.

“Tomorrow, I’ll go check out the place and see if it’s reliable.”

Speaking of which, Lu Yuan also didn’t know how Lin Zhiqin planned to make money by having him participate in the competition.

Before reaching the finals, even if you win a match, the prize money is very little and has to be split between two people.

As a coach at a martial arts gym, could Lin Zhiqin really be interested in such a small amount of money?

This was another thing Lu Yuan needed to figure out tomorrow.

Anyway, Lu Yuan had already made up his mind that he wouldn’t participate unless he fully understood the situation.

He might be short on money.

But he preferred to earn it in a safer and more secure way.

Just as Lu Yuan was about to close the webpage, the chat software in the bottom right corner of his computer screen started flashing.

It was a video call.

FromOlder Sister (Lu Jing).

Lu Yuan clicked on it.

Lu Jing’s face quickly appeared on the computer screen.

Lu Jing had some resemblance to Lu Yuan, but her features were much softer.

However, the Lu Jing that Lu Yuan saw now was quite different from the Lu Jing in his memory.

“Lu Jing, you’ve gotten so much darker.”

On the screen, Lu Jing was wearing a large, tan sunhat and had a scarf wrapped around her neck. She was dressed in a dark green outfit that resembled hunting gear.

Her face was tanned and she had lost quite a bit of weight.

She looked just like a professional adventurer from a movie.

Well, that wasn’t far from the truth.

She was currently on an expedition in the desert.

“Don’t mention it, I know I’ve gotten much darker.”

Lu Jing seemed to be sitting in a tent, with large, dark canvas flapping behind her, occasionally shaking.

The sound of wind and sand was clearly audible.

“This place is desolate for miles. You can’t even buy a pack of instant noodles, let alone sunscreen. The two bottles I brought ran out last week. Sigh.”

Lu Jing sighed softly, looking rather melancholy.

Lu Yuan felt a twinge of pity and couldn’t help but say, “Do you want me to buy some and send it to you?”

“Forget it. There’s no way to get deliveries in a place without even a supermarket. Even if you bought it, it wouldn’t get here.”

“I know.”

Lu Yuan nodded. “I was just saying it casually.”

“Lu Yuan!”

Lu Jing pretended to be angry, showing her adorable little fangs.

The two of them laughed and joked for a while, then Lu Jing asked, “How’s Grandpa’s illness? Is he getting better?”

“The surgery is done, and he’s recovering now. He’ll probably be discharged in a while.”

Lu Yuan was initially a bit surprised, but then he realized that after Grandpa’s surgery and the critical period had passed, his parents must have told Lu Jing so she wouldn’t worry.

“That’s good. When you plan to visit the hospital, let me know in advance. I’ll see if I can video call with Grandpa.”

“Sure.”

Lu Yuan nodded, then remembered something and asked, “Lu Jing, have you been inside that temple yet? By the way, I haven’t seen any news about your archaeological team.”

Lu Yuan’s question was casual, but Lu Jing’s expression immediately became tense.

“Don’t mention it. Even if they let me, I wouldn’t dare go down there.”

“Why?”

“Don’t tell anyone else what I’m about to tell you.”

Lu Jing looked around, seeming to check if anyone was nearby.

After ensuring no one was around, she leaned closer to the screen and whispered, “Because people have died down there!”

“Why is there no signal again?!”

Lu Yuan tried calling back several times, but there was no response from Lu Jing’s end. He had no choice but to give up in frustration.

Lu Jing had just started telling him about how the first batch of the archaeological team members who entered the temple unearthed something, and hadn’t yet reached the part about the deaths.

Then the video signal cut out.

It felt just like reading a novel and reaching the climax, only for the author to abruptly stop the chapterleaving Lu Yuan feeling extremely frustrated.

Oh well, he would ask her about it the next time they spoke.

He quickly typed a few exclamation marks into the chat box for Lu Jing.

Lu Yuan then shut down his computer and stood up from his desk.

He found his special mat for practice and laid it out in his bedroom.

Daily martial arts practice still needed to continue, and he had already wasted quite a bit of time today.