I Can Replicate Martial Arts

As the competition progressed, more members of the Dongqi University team were eliminated.

Two third-year members were the first to be knocked out, not even making it into the top one hundred.

It was a bit of a shame. After all, they were already in their third year. If they couldn’t break through to Level 9, their careers on the Martial Arts Team would soon be over.

They would have to say goodbye to the competitive Martial Dao scene for good.

But where some were disappointed, others were elated. Cai Zhengyang soared through the ranks, advancing to the top fifty early on and securing a spot in the round-robin tournament.

Next were Wang Dalong and the others. With their Level 9 strength and powerful Cultivation Techniques, as long as they didn’t face a Level 10 Talent Type opponent, the outcome was practically certain.

Watching his team’s results, Wang Zhanshan nodded with great satisfaction. ’Looks like the "Outstanding Coach" award is already in the bag for me this time,’ he thought.

Now it was just a matter of who could break into the top ten first.

While the competition was in full swing, far away in a remote mountain dwelling in Sichuan Province, in a building hidden within a mountain ravine, a group of people in black robes with their hair tied up were kneeling on the ground. They bowed their heads toward a square throne carved from stone, chanting scriptures.

On the throne sat a woman, also dressed in a black robe, but hers was embroidered with many strange patterns in gold thread.

They resembled flowers and fire, glinting with a brilliant golden Starlight in the torchlight.

There were no electric lights in the entire room, only numerous torches hanging on the walls, crackling and emitting black smoke.

"The ceremony is complete. All disciples, return to your positions!"

After the people below had finished their prostrations, a stern-faced, middle-aged man standing beside the throne spoke in a deep voice.

Hearing the command, the crowd rose and stood in rows on either side.

"The Divine Envoy has decreed that you are all to closely monitor the Martial Dao tournament and use any means necessary to recruit talented individuals into our fold."

"Those who perform exceptionally well may be gifted ten Soul Reviving Pills..."

As the middle-aged man’s voice faded, the crowd bowed in unison to accept the order, then slowly retreated from the hall.

Once everyone had left, the middle-aged man turned to the black-robed figure on the throne with a fawning smile. "Divine Envoy, all arrangements have been made. I trust we will have fresh Martial Artists arriving soon."

"You’ve done well! I hear the ’pseudo-sect’ has taken notice. Has that been dealt with?"

"We have already identified the personnel who leaked the information. We have our own people planted within the pseudo-sect. There will be no problems."

"Good. I can rest easy when you’re in charge. Send the new Martial Artists over as soon as possible. When my Divine Skill reaches Great Success, you will be well rewarded!"

After speaking, the black-robed figure descended from the throne. Her form was like a phantom, vanishing before the middle-aged man’s eyes.

"Thank you, Your Excellency, the Divine Envoy!"

Even though the Divine Envoy had already left, the middle-aged man bowed again with a joyful expression.

After a moment, the middle-aged man straightened up and strode outside.

Outside, two plainly dressed men approached, carrying a wooden sedan chair.

They stopped beside him and crouched down. Once the middle-aged man was seated in the chair, the two men stood up and started toward the mountain’s exit.

Although the two men were dressed ordinarily, their skills were extraordinary. They moved through the dense forest of the ravine as if walking on flat ground, with incredible speed.

After traveling like this for over an hour, the three of them reached the mouth of the ravine.

Through a narrow stone opening, the view suddenly opened up to a wide mountain peak and a winding mountain road.

A black sedan was parked by the side of the road. Seeing the black-robed middle-aged man emerge, someone got out and quickly opened the car door for him.

After the middle-aged man got in, the driver stomped on the gas pedal and drove off into the distance.

In the car, the middle-aged man deftly removed the black robe he was wearing, then leaned back lazily against the seat and closed his eyes to rest.

After a short while, the man’s cell phone rang.

He frowned slightly as he took out his phone and answered the call.

"Director Wang! The new film has finished post-production. When can you come take a look?"

"I’m out of town right now. I’ll be back as soon as I can."

The middle-aged man said, then hung up.

...

「In the Jeju City District.」 The streets were bustling with traffic, a picture of peaceful and prosperous urban life.

On the sidewalk, Zhao Rui was giving Qin Rui a ride on his bike, pedaling slowly. The gentle summer breeze rustled their clothes, making a soft WHOOSHING sound.

Qin Rui sat sidesaddle on the back, her legs together, resting her head gently on Zhao Rui’s back. One hand was wrapped around his broad waist.

"I’ve been sacrificing my good looks for you for half the day. Are you feeling any better?"

Zhao Rui said as he pedaled.

"Not yet. Keep riding for another half hour."

Qin Rui pouted, inhaling the scent of laundry detergent from the boy beside her. The faint, fresh fragrance filled her senses.

’It smells so good!’

"It’s just one loss, what’s the big deal? It’s not like you’ve never lost before!"

"If you don’t know how to comfort someone, just shut up, okay!"

"Previous tournaments never gave me any hope! But my results were so good this time, I thought I... Ugh, let’s not talk about it. It hurts too much. I’m just going to hold on for a little longer!"

After speaking, Qin Rui wrapped both arms tightly around Zhao Rui’s waist again, as if afraid he would run away.

"I think you’re just trying to take advantage of me!"

Zhao Rui sighed speechlessly and picked up his pace.

The two of them circled the city district for a while before turning onto Furong Street. After stuffing themselves with snacks, they returned to Qin Rui’s place, fully satisfied.

Now that the competition was over, Qin Rui was preparing to go home for summer vacation.

"This is the first time I’ve been to your place!"

Entering the apartment, Zhao Rui glanced around the living room. It was decorated in a very girlish style, with a color scheme dominated by pale yellow and pink.

The sofa and furniture were rather cartoonish, which was a little surprising given Qin Rui’s usual image.

This style would be easier to understand if it belonged to Miao Miaomiao.

Although Miao Miaomiao appeared cold and aloof, that was because of her Cultivation Technique. Deep down, she was more of the cute type.

She looked cute, too.

Qin Rui, on the other hand, had more of a gentle, "big sister" vibe, full of youthful energy.

"Whose places have you been to? Miao Miaomiao’s? Or Shen Xinzhu’s?"

"Or maybe that beautiful classmate of yours, He... He Wanqing!"

A faint smile appeared on Qin Rui’s face, her eyes curving into crescents, giving her a surprisingly charming look.

"Now that vacation’s started, just go home and get some rest! Don’t run around all over the place. I have a feeling things have been pretty chaotic lately."

Zhao Rui didn’t want to engage with her line of questioning and instead changed the subject to her vacation plans.

"Yeah, I feel like things are chaotic too. That thing that happened last time... I still don’t know what was going on."

His words caught her attention, and she couldn’t help but recall the time someone secretly acted against her when she was on that film set.

"You didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary?"

"I never would have thought along those lines. But now that you mention it, I remember I have a good friend on the film crew, Xin Li. She messaged me two days ago, asking me to go find her in Sichuan Province."

"We were still in the middle of the tournament, so I refused..."

"Xin Li?"

Zhao Rui frowned slightly. ’If that person could target Qin Rui on the film set, what about the other Martial Artists?’

’Luo Min?’

A jolt went through Zhao Rui’s heart.

He didn’t usually pay much attention to Luo Min, so he had almost forgotten about her.

"Weren’t you guys with Luo Min?"

"We weren’t close before, so we didn’t talk much. We’d just say hi if we happened to see each other."

"Are you suspecting that she also..."

Qin Rui was taken aback for a moment, but then she shook her head. "She seemed perfectly normal!"

As she said this, her pretty face flushed slightly, as if recalling her own bashfully alluring state back then.

"Hm, I’ll keep an eye out when I have time. You get some rest! I’m leaving!"

Zhao Rui thought for a moment, then stood up to leave.

"Oh!"

Qin Rui was a little disappointed. She followed him and saw him to the door.

Just as Zhao Rui turned to leave, Qin Rui suddenly called out softly, "Do you like the me from now, or the me from back then?"

Her voice trembled slightly.

"I like you the way you are as my senior!"

Zhao Rui raised an eyebrow, a smile playing on his lips, and stepped into the elevator.

Hearing his words, Qin Rui immediately rolled her eyes.

"You’re all talk!"

With that, she huffed, turned, and went back into her apartment.

Half an hour later, as Zhao Rui was heading to the training base, he received a call from Zheng Huai Peak.

He said the driver’s license had come in.

Hearing this, Zhao Rui immediately turned his bike around and hurried toward Zheng Huai Peak’s home.

On the way, he bought some fruit and other things.

When he arrived, Zheng Huai Peak was already waiting at home. His cousin hadn’t gotten off work yet.

Seeing Zhao Rui arrive, Zheng Huai Peak smiled and tossed him a brand-new driver’s license.

He said, "You’ve got the license. Now you just need a car, right?"

Zhao Rui paused, then raised an eyebrow and said, "Bro, you have one?"

Zheng Huai Peak stopped teasing him and pulled a set of car keys from his pocket, tossing them over.

"It’s an old Jeep. Besides being a gas-guzzler, there’s nothing wrong with it! It’s yours. I’ve already transferred the title to you."

"Heh heh, thanks, Bro!"

Zhao Rui didn’t stand on ceremony with him. Since the title had already been transferred, it was a sincere gift. Being overly polite would just create distance between them.

"Come on, let’s see how you handle it. Don’t you try to fool me, you hear!"

Zheng Huai Peak said.

"Fool you? I’m an absolute pro driver! I can drift through corners without even slowing down!"

Zhao Rui laughed and followed Zheng Huai Peak out the door.

The car was parked not far from the building. It was an SUV similar to a Jeep Wrangler, with a pretty cool overall design.

It didn’t look old at all. It definitely wasn’t as simple as the "old Jeep" Zheng Huai Peak had described.

The two of them got in the car. Zhao Rui gripped the steering wheel, searching for the feeling of driving from his memory.

He turned the key in the ignition!

The tires screeched as Zhao Rui turned the wheel and drove out of the residential complex.

About an hour later, though he hadn’t had his fill of driving, Zhao Rui had to turn the car around and head back to Zheng Huai Peak’s place at his cousin’s urging.

The moment he stepped through the door, the rich aroma of food wafted over him.

"Don’t you two know it’s time to eat? I had to call so many times."

his cousin said, displeased.

"We were having too much fun. It smells amazing, Cousin! Your cooking has improved again!"

"I bought it from a restaurant!"

"Same difference! Same difference!"

Laughing it off, the three of them sat down at the dining table, sipping on some alcohol and chatting idly.

Less than half an hour into their drinks, Zheng Huai Peak’s phone rang.

His brow furrowed slightly. He put down his phone, stood up, and said, "Something’s come up at the department. I have to head back. Zhao Rui, if you don’t have anything else to do, you should stay the night."

"Yeah, we’ll see!"

Zhao Rui said with a smile.

Zheng Huai Peak nodded, changed his clothes, and left.

"Ah, he’s always like this. Don’t worry about him, just eat."

his cousin said with a laugh.

Zhao Rui grunted in acknowledgment. After dinner, he waited for a while before getting a call from Zheng Huai Peak.

He said he had to work all night and wouldn’t be coming back.

Hearing this, Zhao Rui didn’t stay any longer. He just stuffed his bicycle into the car and drove back to his rental apartment.

「The night passed without incident.」

The next morning, after freshening up, a high-spirited Zhao Rui got into his Jeep, stepped on the gas, and drove toward Qin Rui’s place.

"What are you doing here?"

Qin Rui looked at Zhao Rui at her door, a little surprised.

"Came to take you for a spin!"

Zhao Rui dangled the car keys in his hand.

"Okay!"

Qin Rui smiled brightly, changed into a cool, pretty outfit, and got into Zhao Rui’s passenger seat.

Fine clothes, a fast ride, and a graceful beauty at his side.

The wind on his face, wild and free.

Zhao Rui was thoroughly enjoying the kind of dashing freedom he never had in his previous life.

...