1RomanceEB Chapter 45 Croak! Where is everyone?
Chapter 45 Croak! Where is everyone?
Martial arts school.
Wang Daniu led Nannan to a corner of the training ground. He asked Lu Feng to observe from the side while he squatted down and looked at Nannan.
"Little girl, what's your name?"
"Nannan".
"Okay, Nannan." Wang Daniu's voice became a little hoarse again, as if something was stuck in his throat. "Practicing martial arts is no joke, especially our 'Mountain-Shaking Force,' which is notoriously domineering. Are you sure you want to practice it?"
"OK!" Nan Nan nodded without hesitation.
"Alright." Wang Daniu stood up, assumed a fighting stance, and said, "Then watch me demonstrate it first. Remember, the key to the 'Mountain-Shaking Force' lies in—"
He took a deep breath, gripped the ground with both feet, and bent his knees slightly.
"Waist and stance in harmony, power originates from the spine!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Wang Daniu threw a punch!
boom!
A muffled thud exploded in the air, the force of the punch whistling through the air, creating a subtle shockwave.
In the training ground, about a dozen disciples were already practicing. Some were practicing horse stances, some were hitting sandbags, and a few were gathered together discussing moves.
Upon hearing the muffled thud, they all turned to look.
"Hey? Isn't that the little girl? Wang Dani is really teaching her step by step? Isn't she going to run away? Is she really going to train with Wang Dani?!"
"I thought she was just here to have some fun. But why would a little girl like her choose to learn martial arts instead of calligraphy or painting?"
"Tsk tsk, look at those skinny arms and legs, what kind of martial arts can they practice?"
A murmur rippled through the crowd, making Lu Feng feel somewhat embarrassed.
He wasn't embarrassed about Nan Nan practicing martial arts; what bothered him more was that the Lu family already had its own Tiger Leopard Thunder Sound internal energy cultivation method, yet Nan Nan insisted on coming to this martial arts school to learn it.
Doesn't that mean their family's martial arts skills are weaker than this martial arts school's?
But Nan Nan didn't seem uncomfortable at all.
On the contrary, Wang Daniu's actions made Nan Nan's eyes light up.
This punch was almost the same as the one she threw yesterday when Fang Yuan taught her!
hum~
Nan Nan felt a surge of pride and excitement, and she had already figured out how to show herself off in a little while!
"Did you see that clearly?" Wang Daniu finished his stance, his voice even hoarser, like two rough stones rubbing together. "The 'Mountain-Shaking Force' emphasizes... uh..."
He suddenly paused, as if trying to recall something.
"What are you particular about?" Nan Nan asked curiously.
"What's important is..." Wang Daniu frowned, his voice becoming increasingly hoarse, "&￥...?...No, it's the flow of energy. Yes, the flow of energy."
He shook his head, as if trying to dispel some kind of trouble.
Nan Nan tilted her head, feeling that Wang Daniu's sound just now was strange, but she didn't think much of it.
"Here, you give it a try."
Under Wang Daniu's guidance, Nannan got into position.
She had practiced all night, and now her movements were fluid and seamless. She took a deep breath, lowered her shoulders and elbows, her spine moved like a dragon, and power rose from her feet, flowing through her entire body—
"drink!"
boom!
A crisp, powerful explosion resounded across the training ground!
The entire training ground fell silent instantly.
All the disciples who were practicing stopped what they were doing and stared at Nan Nan in disbelief.
A little girl of six or seven years old actually managed to unleash internal energy?!
This...this can't be right!
"this……"
Wang Daniu was also stunned.
He stared wide-eyed at Nan Nan in disbelief. That punch, though immature, clearly showed the power generated and the feeling of perfect harmony between the waist and stance – it was the hallmark of someone who had just entered the realm of "Mountain-Shaking Force"!
but……
This little girl just came to the martial arts gym yesterday!
How could that be...?
"&#……"
Wang Daniu subconsciously uttered a strange syllable, then suddenly covered his mouth.
How could he make such a sound?
?
"Senior Brother Wang, am I doing this right?" Nan Nan stopped her movements, tilted her head up and asked, her big eyes full of curiosity.
"Yes...yes." Wang Daniu nodded with difficulty, his voice already hoarse like a broken gong, "Very...very standard. You...you used to practice martial arts?"
"No," Nan Nan blinked. "This is my first time practicing martial arts."
first?!
Wang Daniu felt that his worldview had been impacted.
He practiced for three years before barely touching the threshold of the "Mountain-Shaking Force," and this little girl's first time practicing martial arts...
"My God...a genius..."
Wang Daniu muttered to himself, his voice hoarse and tinged with resentment.
wrong.
and many more.
Why is his voice so hoarse?
and……
Wang Daniu suddenly realized that he seemed to have uttered strange syllables more than once.
What's going on?
He subconsciously touched his throat, but found nothing unusual.
"Senior Brother Wang?"
Nan Nan's voice pulled him back to reality.
"Ah, it's nothing." Wang Daniu shook his head, forcibly suppressing those strange feelings. "You...you continue practicing. I'll go...go and call Old Li over."
He turned and left in a fluster, his gait stiff.
Nan Nan looked at his back with a puzzled expression, feeling that something was not quite right.
……
Lu Feng did not notice Wang Daniu's unusual behavior at this time.
His attention was drawn to a tall, thin disciple on the other side. The disciple was about twenty years old and was one of the older members of the martial arts school. Seeing Lu Feng staring intently at the arena, he smiled and walked over.
"Young Master Lu, I've long admired your name. My name is Li Si, everyone calls me Old Li."
The man wore an extremely enthusiastic smile, but the smile looked somewhat stiff, as if it were pasted onto his face. "Your sister is truly a prodigy. It's only the first day, and she's already made a name for herself."
"Not at all, it's all thanks to your excellent teaching," Lu Feng said politely, though he was secretly itching to try it himself.
Those who practice martial arts always feel an itch to practice when they see others doing so. Especially after experiencing that robbery and murder, Lu Feng's desire to become stronger became even more urgent.
More importantly, my own sister actually gave up Tiger Leopard Thunder Sound and insisted on coming to this godforsaken place to learn the Mountain-Shaking Force...
Although Lu Feng could understand that it was Xiao Gua's request to collect cultivation techniques...
But Little Frog didn't come today, and my little sister is coming...
This really annoyed Lu Feng, so he simply clasped his hands in a fist and asked:
"Brother Li, I see that your Mountain-Shaking Strength is incredibly powerful and unparalleled. I wonder if you could lend a hand and let me see it for myself?"
He wanted to see what this martial arts school was capable of!
Let's also try to prove the strength of the Lu family's Tiger Leopard Thunder Sound!
"Of course, of course." Old Li smiled even more broadly, the corners of his mouth seemingly widening beyond what most people could see. "We were just thinking of learning some kung fu from the Lu family."
The two walked to an open space to the side.
Although Lu Feng was injured, his skills were still intact. He took a deep breath and assumed the starting stance of his family's "Tiger Roar Saber Technique"—although he had no saber in hand, this skill was just as fierce when used in fists and palms.
"please!"
"please."
No sooner had he finished speaking than Old Li lunged forward.
call!
The punch that came down did indeed carry the powerful and fierce style unique to the Mountain-Shaking Force.
Lu Feng dared not be careless. He dodged to the side, raised his hand to block, and tried to use skill to deflect the opponent's force.
However, the moment their arms collided, Lu Feng's expression changed.
Not right.
The texture doesn't feel right.
According to Shouzheng's account, the "Shaking Mountain Force" emphasizes skin and flesh as hard as iron and bones as strong as steel, so that when you hit it, it should feel like hitting a rock.
But Old Li's arm...
Why is it so cold?
Moreover, beneath that seemingly hard skin, Lu Feng actually felt a slippery, yin-like force, like... a snake swimming under the skin?
"Hmm?" Lu Feng wondered, and couldn't help but give a strong jolt to separate the two.
"Brother Li, your Mountain-Shaking Strength... why does it feel a bit weak? It seems to have a yin-like strength?" Lu Feng asked bluntly.
Old Li stood still, his smile unchanged, not even panting: "Young Master Lu has a good eye. My master often said that excessive rigidity leads to breakage. This is something I figured out myself, a balance of strength and gentleness... a unique approach with strength within gentleness."
"A blend of softness and strength?" Lu Feng frowned.
This is so soft! It's like she has no bones at all.
But he didn't think too much about it. After all, all martial arts in the world lead to the same goal. Perhaps this really is the unique secret of the Hanshan Martial Arts School?
"Impressive, impressive." Lu Feng chuckled twice. "This method of combining strength and gentleness is indeed rare."
As the two were talking, three or four other disciples who had been practicing their skills stopped moving at some point.
They slowly surrounded them, forming a circle that encircled Lu Feng and Lao Li.
"Impressive skills."
"That's amazing."
"A balance of strength and gentleness."
They uttered words of praise, but their tone was flat and without any inflection, and they began to applaud.
"Slap, slap, slap."
The applause was rhythmic and perfectly synchronized, sounding more like one person clapping than three or four. The echoes then overlapped.
Chen Tieshan, who was sitting in a grand chair drinking tea, was staring blankly at Nan Nan's amazing punch when he heard the strange applause and suddenly came back to his senses.
He frowned, looking at the group of disciples who were gathered in a circle in the center of the arena.
What happened?
These bastards usually slack off and cheat during practice, how come they're so... well-organized today?
A strange sense of unease, like a thorn, pierced Chen Tieshan's heart.
He subconsciously put down his teacup, his eyes quickly scanning the crowd as he began counting heads.
This has been his habit for many years; he takes attendance every morning during class.
"One, two, three... thirteen, fourteen, fifteen."
I've finished counting.
There are only fifteen.
Oh, fifteen, not one less, not one more.
?
!! ?
No, no, something's definitely not right!
Chen Tieshan's heart skipped a beat.
That's not right.
He had just looked at the roster and there were clearly sixteen people on it.
He was just wondering where Wang Daniu and Lao Li had gone, and then Wang Daniu came out, and Lao Li was sparring with Lu Feng. So who's the missing person?
He counted it again.
Still fifteen.
A layer of cold sweat instantly seeped out from Chen Tieshan's back.
The fear of "something is missing, but I can't remember it" was like an invisible hand gripping his throat.
Just then, Lu Feng and Lao Li finished their fight.
The two praised each other, bowed, and parted ways.
The few people who had gathered around to applaud watched them finish, then dispersed and continued their training.
Chen Tieshan took a deep breath, stood up abruptly, strode to Lu Feng's side, and asked in a low voice:
"Young Master Lu the Second".
Lu Feng was catching his breath, trying to calm his racing heart from the fight. Seeing Chen Tieshan approach, he quickly turned around: "Master Chen, what's wrong?"
"When you arrived..." Chen Tieshan's voice tightened, his gaze fixed on the disciples around him who were still smiling and clapping, "Did you notice... exactly how many people are in my hall?"
Lu Feng was stunned for a moment.
He wiped the sweat from his brow, somewhat bewildered. "This... I didn't pay much attention. There were probably only about a dozen people. What's wrong, Master? Did someone skip work?"
Chen Tieshan did not answer.
His gaze passed over Lu Feng and landed on Wang Daniu, who was teaching Nan Nan...
Wang Daniu was facing away from him, his body slightly hunched, as if he was trying his best to endure something...
As Chen Tieshan looked around, he suddenly felt that his figure was somewhat blurry, and it seemed that there was an old Li next to him... But after blinking, he felt that there was no one next to him.
"Wang Daniu!" Chen Tieshan suddenly shouted.
Wang Daniu's body trembled violently, then he slowly turned around.
His face looked normal, still with that honest and simple appearance.
"Master..." Wang Daniu began, his voice hoarse as if he had a mouthful of sand, "What's wrong?"
As Chen Tieshan looked at that familiar face, his unease grew stronger.
Not right.
Something's wrong here.
There was no smell in the air; it was still the same old air.
The wind was blowing normally, just the same wind.
The sun was shining normally...
But... there's just something off about it!
His intuition told him: He had to leave this house!
run!
Run!
Run now!!
Chen Tieshan took a deep breath, forced a hearty smile onto his face, and said loudly:
"Well done! Everyone did a great job!"
"Today is a good day! Miss Lu is exceptionally talented, I'm so happy! Everyone stop! Stop practicing!"
He waved his large hand, the sound so loud it made dust fall from the roof beams:
"Master is treating today! I'm taking you all out... to have a good meal! Young Master Lu, Miss Lu, you're coming too! We're going to Zuixianlou!"
Lu Feng looked at Chen Tieshan in surprise.
Why did the owner of this museum suddenly change his ways? Why is he being so generous?
Wasn't he supposed to have a terrible temper? Yesterday he demanded fifty taels of tuition, and now he wants to treat us to a meal?
But he didn't refuse, after all, it would be a good thing for him to have a good relationship with this local bigwig.
"Thank you, Master Chen," Lu Feng said, clasping his hands in thanks.
The disciples around them stopped in unison.
They all turned their heads in unison to look at Chen Tieshan.
In that instant, Chen Tieshan felt as if he were being watched by a dozen wolves.
"Thank you, Master."
in unison.
The sound was perfectly synchronized, without any background noise, just like the voice of a single person amplified ten times.
!!!
But the next moment it seemed to return to normal, and cheers erupted in the training ground.
"Really? Long live the museum master!"
"Great! It's been so long since we went out for a nice meal!"
"The owner is so generous!"
……
Chen Tieshan felt a chill run down his spine, but he dared not show it, and could only laugh loudly to hide his fear:
"Haha, okay! Let's go! Follow me! We'll go now!"
As he spoke, he grabbed Lu Feng's arm and tried to pull Nan Nan with his other hand, but Lu Feng subtly blocked him.
"Nannan, stay close to your second brother." Lu Feng pulled Nannan to his side.
The group marched in a grand procession toward the entrance of the martial arts school.
Chen Tieshan walked at the very front, his steps quick, even somewhat hurried.
The moment he stepped out the door, the sunlight shone on him, and Chen Tieshan felt as if he had been brought back to life.
He took deep breaths of the outside air. Although the streets were noisy, the clamor of people made him feel incredibly at ease.
"call……"
Chen Tieshan wiped the cold sweat from his forehead and turned to look at his disciples behind him.
Under the sunlight, the disciples, though somewhat pale, looked much more normal. The eerie feeling of their uniformity seemed to dissipate considerably as they stepped outside.
Maybe... I'm just too tired and it's making me feel uneasy?
Chen Tieshan tried to reassure himself, and to cover up his earlier lapse in composure, he asked with a smile:
"What would everyone like to eat? Just say it! Master brought plenty of money today!"
Wang Daniu walked beside Chen Tieshan, his head always down.
Upon hearing this, he slowly raised his head, his bloodshot eyes staring intently at Chen Tieshan, and a strange smile slowly spread across his face.
"Master... let's go to the east of the city."
His voice was very soft, with a slight, trembling quality, as if it were drifting from a great distance:
"Let's go to that new restaurant in the east of the city... The meat there... is so tender, and it's cooked so deliciously."
Chen Tieshan subconsciously retorted:
"Nonsense! That area in the east of the city is the old town, full of dilapidated houses. There aren't any newly opened restaurants there!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Chen Tieshan felt the atmosphere around him change.
Dead silence.
No one answered him.
No one echoed this sentiment.
Chen Tieshan's heart skipped a beat.
He turned his head sharply—
There was no one behind.
Wang Daniu, Lao Li, Zhao Lin...
This includes Lu Feng and Nan Nan.
Everyone, everyone, disappeared.
It's as if it never existed.
The streets were still bustling with people, but their gazes swept over Chen Tieshan without lingering for a moment, as if he were just a roadside stone.
Chen Tieshan stood there, his whole body stiff.
Cold sweat trickled down my forehead.
Where are the people?