Chapter 57: My Senior Sister Has a Successor!

Lin Chen, engaged in combat, was unaware of Kong Yinglei’s inner thoughts; at this moment, he unleashed the Water Cloud Palm in full force, completely enveloping Sister Li.

Had Sister Li not opened one more qiao than him and absorbed several of his palms directly, any opponent at the same realm would have already been defeated.

Even so, Sister Li’s defeat was merely a matter of time.

There is a gap between three qiao and four qiao, but it is not an insurmountable chasm.

One palm, two palms, three palms…

At this moment, Li Xue’s breathing grew rapid; in her eyes, this younger brother Lin’s palm technique surged like towering waves, one after another, leaving her struggling to defend and gasping for air.

Her rhythm had been utterly shattered.

She could only react hastily to block, but after several consecutive palms, her arms began to tremble.

“Sister Li, I yield!”

Hearing the words Lin Chen had spoken earlier to Xiao Shimei, Li Xue’s pupils contracted slightly; she instinctively prepared to defend—but it was too late. A palm pressed against her chest.

Hmph!

Li Xue let out a soft grunt, staring at the palm resting on her chest, her cheeks flushing red.

Lin Chen withdrew his hand, equally embarrassed.

He had no intention of taking advantage of Sister Li—Sister Li was far stronger than Sister Xiao, and he could not yet control his power with precision.

“Lin Chen wins this match. The fifth Class-A benefit slot in the martial hall is awarded to Lin Chen.”

At this moment, Kong Yinglei’s gaze toward Lin Chen gleamed with excitement; she had lost all interest in the match itself and now desperately wanted to understand how Lin Chen had mastered the Water Cloud Palm in such a short time.

She had not forgotten that when Lin Chen left the martial hall, his goal had been to cultivate the Swallow’s Flight Scripture—not the Water Cloud Palm.

Upon Kong Yinglei’s announcement, Fu Jingya and the others stared at Lin Chen in disbelief.

Three qiao defeated four qiao!

Today, Younger Brother Lin had taught them a lesson.

Realm does not equal strength.

In martial combat, mastery of technique and fighting skill are also components of strength.

“I hope you all remember these matches well!”

Kong Yinglei’s gaze swept over Fu Jingya and the others; when it landed on Lin Chen, she smiled: “Lin Chen, come with me.”

Seeing Lin Chen follow Master Kong away, Fu Jingya and the others wore expressions of envy—Master Kong was surely going to give Younger Brother Lin private instruction.

Yet they felt no jealousy; after all, they themselves had not yet mastered the Water Cloud Palm.

Before mastery, one must rely solely on oneself.

……

……

Kong Yinglei’s courtyard.

“Lin Chen, you’ve given me a surprise!”

Kong Yinglei made no effort to hide her satisfaction; she had expected Lin Chen to win, since his Clear Wind Palm was already mastered—but she never imagined he would win so effortlessly.

Watching his battle with Li Xue, it was more than mere mastery of the Water Cloud Palm—each of Lin Chen’s palms struck with perfect precision, exploiting the gaps in Li Xue’s palm movements, leaving her no chance to counter and fully suppressing her throughout.

“Has anyone guided you in martial combat techniques?”

“No,” Lin Chen shook his head, answering honestly: “I went to the Martial Garden.”

“The Martial Garden?” Kong Yinglei’s eyes widened: “You fought on the arena?”

“Yes. I thought fighting other martial artists on the arena would help me accumulate practical combat experience.”

Hearing Lin Chen’s answer, Kong Yinglei fell silent for a long moment, then sighed softly: “You’ve got guts. On the Martial Garden’s arenas, only those who’ve cultivated their techniques to Minor Mastery—or even Major Mastery—are willing to step up, and they all have at least twelve qiao opened.”

“I never expected to win. I only wanted to learn combat techniques from those opponents. Also, the Martial Garden has many disciples from other martial halls—fighting them lets me understand their techniques.”

Lin Chen scratched his head. Originally, he’d planned to seize the arena champion’s title to claim the ten silver taels reward—but once he stepped onto the arena, he realized how naive he’d been.

Of course, he would never admit that.

“Hmm. Fighting on the arena does build practical experience, but you must guard your safety. Many martial artists on the arena strike with brutal intent; a single misstep can leave you injured.”

“I’ll remember.”

Lin Chen nodded. He had already felt how ruthless those arena fighters were—completely different from the gentle sparring among martial hall disciples.

“How long have you been cultivating the Water Cloud Palm?”

Kong Yinglei asked the question she cared about most, her face filled with anticipation.

“Seventeen days.”

“Seventeen days!”

Kong Yinglei’s voice shot up sharply; her breathing quickened: “Is this true?”

“I would never deceive Master Kong. Though I received the Water Cloud Palm manual long ago, I only began cultivating it after becoming a full disciple of the hall.”

“So you only started the Water Cloud Palm after Chen Chunfeng left—and you did not cultivate the Swallow’s Flight Scripture?”

“I did cultivate it.”

Seeing Kong Yinglei’s eyes widen further in shock, Lin Chen felt a little embarrassed.

Every time Master Kong asked a question, he answered one by one—was he sounding boastful?

“Master Kong, I’ve mastered the first four moves of the Swallow’s Flight Scripture. Originally, I was confident I could complete all six moves—but I was also cultivating the Clear Wind Palm and the Water Cloud Palm simultaneously. I overestimated my comprehension.”

“W-what do you mean?”

Kong Yinglei sensed that Lin Chen’s words concealed something important. His way of speaking reminded her of her senior sister.

She recalled, years ago in the martial hall, how her senior sister had lowered her head, looking shy.

Back then, her senior sister—then at twelve qiao opened—had told the hall master: “I thought I could easily open three qiao, but I distracted myself improving the Water Cloud Palm’s proficiency. I ended up overestimating myself and only opened two qiao. Fortunately, I reached Minor Mastery in the Water Cloud Palm.”

……

“Though I didn’t master all six moves of the Swallow’s Flight Scripture, I did reach Minor Mastery in the Clear Wind Palm!”

Lin Chen smiled bashfully. In Kong Yinglei’s mind, two figures began to merge.

Same style. Same tone.

After a long silence, Kong Yinglei slapped Lin Chen on the shoulder:

“Lin Chen, you should’ve joined our Jingshui Martial Hall. My senior sister has found a worthy successor!”

The slap made Lin Chen slump half a foot lower; even with the strength of a Internal Organ Cultivator restrained, his shoulder burned with pain.

Lin Chen winced in a bitter smile. He understood the first half of Master Kong’s words—he had greater talent for the Water Cloud Palm than the Clear Wind Palm, making him better suited for the Jingshui Martial Hall.

But the second half—he didn’t understand. “My senior sister has found a worthy successor”?

What did that mean?

If he weren’t certain his mother was just an ordinary village woman, he’d suspect Master Kong had accidentally revealed that his mother was a hidden martial expert—or even her senior sister.

“Come, I’ll take you to find your senior sister!”

Kong Yinglei couldn’t suppress her inner laughter—Qingfeng Martial Hall had missed out on such a genius!

(End of Chapter)