"Boss Du, I see you practice martial arts too, so why are you...?"
Xiang Yuanyuan watched Qiangzi and his classmates leave, then asked Du Ruo with some confusion. She had seen Du Ruo consistently act as if he didn't practice martial arts in front of Qiangzi, or rather, he didn't want to discuss it with him, which made her struggle to understand his reasoning.
Logically speaking, if Du Ruo simply showed that he also practiced martial arts and performed a set of methods to make the other party concede, that would have been enough; there seemed to be no need to crush the person like that.
"In this modern society, what future is there in practicing martial arts? It consumes a massive amount of money and energy. If you practice well, you still can't find a good job; if you don't practice well, you just hurt your body. Plus, there are more scammers out there than actual practitioners. If you go to learn from a half-baked teacher, you'll just end up paying money and being played for a fool."
Du Ruo shook his head as he spoke. Of course, he only mentioned the downsides and didn't say a word about his own martial arts practice.
However, these were truly his inner thoughts. As for himself, that was naturally different; his martial arts knowledge was all extracted from a game, and his purpose for practicing was actually to gain Attribute Points to Add Points and strengthen his Body.
"You can't really say it like that. Traditional Martial Arts have been passed down to this day, and after so many years of development, there must be a path for them. The way you put it makes it sound like all Traditional Martial Arts are scams."
Yang Chenguang felt a bit uncomfortable after hearing what Du Ruo said.
He held a favorable view of martial arts and had always believed they weren't that pathetic. Even though various masters were being exposed for fraud online, Yang Chenguang firmly believed that martial arts definitely contained Real kung fu.
"What are you thinking? I was just advising that guy earlier. Have you forgotten that I also practice martial arts to exercise the body? I'm not denying Traditional Martial Arts; I just feel that modern society doesn't have much soil for martial arts to develop."
"Scammers running rampant is one thing, but look at that Qiangzi, he's only in his twenties and has trained his Body quite well. If he encountered something, he would definitely act instinctively to resolve it."
"Do you know what price you have to pay for using martial arts moves to hit someone nowadays?"
Du Ruo looked at Yang Chenguang after speaking, and seeing his blank expression, he continued to explain.
"Take Tai Chi's 'Double Peaks Piercing the Ears' for example; once you strike, even if it's a light blow, you'll have to pay at least 98,000 in compensation."
As Du Ruo spoke, he extended both palms and gestured near Yang Chenguang's ears.
"Just a light tap like that, and you have to pay, even if the other person started it."
Du Ruo stopped talking after that, instead picking up his Wine Cup to clink it with Xiang Yuanyuan's, and took a big mouthful.
"But isn't there still self-defense or an Act of bravery? In those situations, you wouldn't have to pay, right?"
Yang Chenguang wanted to refute this, but unfortunately, his voice grew quieter and quieter by the end.
"Let's not talk about this anymore, let's drink."
Xiang Yuanyuan Smiled at the sight, then picked up her Wine Cup and took a big mouthful. It was just casual chatter, and she didn't really care whether martial arts had Real kung fu or not; she had just been curious about why Du Ruo had crushed Qiangzi so harshly.
"Alright, let's drink!"
The three of them stopped discussing the topic and continued drinking and chatting, never mentioning the previous matter again.
"Is the martial arts circle like this now? Is it an isolated case or... forget it, I should just worry about myself. My current ability is far from enough; striving to make myself stronger is the right path."
Only Du Ruo was still thinking about this issue internally.
In fact, as Xiang Yuanyuan thought, Qiangzi had good intentions in coming to persuade Du Ruo to practice, and although the guy was a bit thick-skinned, it didn't warrant Du Ruo destroying his beliefs entirely.
Regardless of how you look at it, it seemed a bit heartless.
Actually, Du Ruo was likely just in a fit of anger. Even though he spoke of martial arts as worthless, that didn't negate his passion for it; he admired martial arts even more than Yang Chenguang did.
It was just that after watching videos online lately, and based on his own martial arts knowledge, many of the big Internet celebrity types were all style and no substance, yet they were wildly raking in money online by showing off things that were flashy but empty, which made him very annoyed.
Especially seeing Qiangzi's admiration for them earlier, it was like adding fuel to the fire, which was why Du Ruo had mercilessly exposed them. Du Ruo didn't know if he had done the right thing, but he could only look after himself for now. He was still a rookie, and he had been in such a sorry state going up the mountain today; he had no ability to change the status quo.
The three of them drank and chatted, dispersing around nine o'clock, but this had increased Du Ruo's favorable impression of Xiang Yuanyuan quite a bit.
Xiang Yuanyuan drank a lot, and she drank quite fiercely; she had consumed over a jin of sixty-degree alcohol by herself. However, once her eyes became a bit hazy, she stopped drinking so fiercely.
Throughout the whole process, Xiang Yuanyuan behaved very appropriately and didn't show any signs of losing control from drinking. Coupled with her rather bold way of working, even if he didn't pursue her, she would be a great friend to have.
"If she didn't drink, or could drink a little less, marrying a woman like this to live life with probably wouldn't be bad."
Du Ruo returned to the Bed and Breakfast, looking at the lights on the second floor of the Tavern, thinking silently to himself.
The next morning, Du Ruo woke up at six o'clock again and practiced martial arts in the courtyard as usual. Today, he felt his Body had recovered, and he didn't know if it was because Add Points had enhanced his Physique, but the wounds from yesterday had already started to heal, though they still looked a bit terrifying.
However, Du Ruo still started his practice with the gentlest Xingyi Five Elements Fist.
"Qiangzi, don't think about yesterday anymore. Boss Du wasn't wrong; if you got scammed, you got scammed. When we get back to school, we'll help you promote it and let everyone know about your master."
Du Ruo was practicing in the courtyard, while in the nearby Bed and Breakfast, a group of people were packing their things to climb Mount Huang today. After the climb, they would return to school. However, Qiangzi was a bit listless today, completely lacking the Essence, Qi, and Spirit he had yesterday. His classmates had also heard about what happened and were comforting him while they packed.
"No need. Although his Qi Guan Xiong Tang was fake, the Xing Yi Quan he taught is real. I will definitely find true martial arts. When the time comes, I'll come back here, and I will make Boss Du know that Traditional Martial Arts have Real kung fu. Let's go, let's go climb the mountain. After we finish, I'm going to go Visit other people; I must learn true martial arts."
The classmates' comfort seemed to have worked. Qiangzi pulled himself together, put on his Backpack, and walked out of the Bed and Breakfast with his classmates.
There was no need to go to the front desk to check out here; just leave the room card and send a message online, and the deposit would be returned after the room was inspected.
"Hey, look, isn't Boss Du practicing boxing? It's also Xing Yi Quan, right? It seems a bit different from yours."
When the group passed by the building where Du Ruo lived, a sharp-eyed roommate saw Du Ruo practicing and tugged at Qiangzi, as if he had discovered a new world.
"It really is. We're not in a rush anyway, let's take a look."
Qiangzi also saw Du Ruo practicing and immediately became interested. He walked closer to watch Du Ruo.
"Boss Du, you're practicing this Xing Yi Quan wrong; the Five Elements Fist isn't in that order."
Qiangzi seemed to have made a big discovery and couldn't help but shout loudly from outside the courtyard.
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