Chapter 243: Returning to Closed-Door Cultivation
Seeing Zhao Quan and the others snickering, Zhao Qinghan snapped, "Is something funny?"
"Not at all." Zhao Quan quickly shut his mouth and shook his head.
Seeing that Zhao Qinghan was on the verge of erupting, they didn’t dare to cross her.
"I lost," Zhao Qinghan said, looking at Chu Feng.
"It was just a casual spar. Winning or losing doesn’t matter," Chu Feng said with a smile.
He sighed inwardly. ’Looks like I’ll have to find some of the old-timers from the Martial Arts Clans to spar with from now on.’
’After all, no one from the younger generation is a match for me. There’s no point in these spars anymore.’
"Let me have a go, then," Su Miaoke said, a bit impatient.
She had been in cultivation for so long but had barely been in any fights. She’d only fought that one time at the Cyan Dragon Mountain Villa, and it hadn’t been nearly enough to satisfy her.
The first one to step up was Zhao Quan.
At first, Zhao Quan thought Su Miaoke would be an easy opponent. So, before the spar, he said with a smile, "Sister-in-law, I won’t use my sword. I’ll go easy on you."
Su Miaoke wasted no words, simply raising her sword and striking.
After they exchanged a few moves, Zhao Quan cried out.
"I’m done! I’m done! I give up!" Zhao Quan yelled, his face pale.
Su Miaoke’s sword strikes were completely unorthodox, aimed directly at a man’s most vulnerable parts.
Zhao Quan had never encountered such tactics before and wanted no part of it.
"You’re giving up already?" Su Miaoke asked, looking confused.
"Nope, I’m done," Zhao Quan said, hastily shaking his head.
"What about the rest of you? Anyone want to fight?" Su Miaoke asked, turning to the others.
The others all reacted the same way, refusing to a man. Who would dare step up? One slip-up and their family jewels would be gone.
"I’ll spar with you," Zhao Qinghan said to Su Miaoke.
"Okay," Su Miaoke agreed with a happy nod.
The two quickly engaged, their longswords a blur of thrusts and slashes as they went back and forth.
Su Miaoke executed the Taiqing Sword Technique, her Sword Skill fierce and aggressive.
Zhao Quan and the others felt their scalps tingle as they watched. They never expected Miaoke to be so formidable.
In the end, however, she was no match for Zhao Qinghan and was defeated.
"I lost," Su Miaoke said, a little dejected.
"Sister-in-law, you’re already very skilled. With a little more cultivation, even I won’t be a match for you," Zhao Qinghan said.
Su Miaoke smiled faintly. "You’re too kind, Qinghan."
In truth, Zhao Qinghan was being honest. Su Miaoke’s strength was indeed impressive, enough to give even her a sense of urgency.
Just then, a few of Wu Yongzhi’s old army buddies returned with all the seafood they needed.
As it turned out, one of them had spent several years in an army mess squad and was an excellent cook.
"President Chu, what should we do with these ingredients?" Xiao Pan asked.
"You guys go take care of it," Chu Feng said with a smile. "Make sure it looks, smells, and tastes amazing. Let’s see what army cooking is like."
"You got it." Xiao Pan nodded and hauled a large cart of seafood toward the kitchen.
Afterwards, everyone sparred casually for a bit before settling in to wait for dinner.
An hour later, the meal was ready.
Chu Feng brought out a case of 300-year-old Guojiao, a previous gift from Jiang Tao.
"Holy crap! Big Brother, you have 300-year-old Guojiao?" Zhao Quan’s eyes lit up the moment he saw the liquor.
"I’m surprised you know your stuff," Chu Feng said with a laugh.
"Are you kidding me? Big Brother, you have no idea. Back home, I used to sneak drinks from my Uncle Qi’s collection all the time. There isn’t a liquor I don’t know about," Zhao Quan boasted.
"And then got strung up and beaten for three days and three nights!" Zhao Qinghan added, rolling her eyes at him.
"Ahem, that’s all in the past. No need to bring it up," Zhao Quan said, quickly changing the subject.
Everyone had a great time during the meal.
They all praised the delicious food, and they managed to finish off more than half the case of Guojiao.
Everyone was drunk. Only Zhao Qinghan, who hadn’t drunk much, remained sober.
It had to be said, as they were martial artists, their tolerance for alcohol was impressive. Each of them could handle at least two bottles.
But even so, they couldn’t out-drink Chu Feng. He drank them all under the table, though he was pretty drunk himself by the end.
It had been a long time since he’d had such a satisfying, unrestrained drinking session.
"It seems I’ve been too lenient with you all. When we get back, I’m making every one of you go into closed-door cultivation for a few months," Zhao Qinghan said, her expression one of deep disappointment.
Their performance in front of Chu Feng had been utterly pathetic.
Chu Feng was strong, yes, but for Zhao Quan and the others to not even have the strength to parry a blow was simply unacceptable.
Zhao Qinghan also had a profound sense of Chu Feng’s power. Though it was just a spar, it was enough to make her realize that if he were to truly make a move, none of them would stand a chance, even if they all attacked at once.
Chu Feng was simply in a different league.
As evening approached, Chu Feng slowly woke up, his head groggy.
"Honey, what time is it?" Chu Feng asked, opening his eyes to see Su Miaoke beside him.
"It’s already five-thirty," Su Miaoke said.
"Have they all left?" Chu Feng asked.
"Mhm, they’re all gone. But it looks like you made them unhappy this time," Su Miaoke said.
"Heh, it’s only natural they’re unhappy. After all, they lost, and lost badly at that," Chu Feng said.
"So what if they lost? It’s not a big deal. I lost, too," Su Miaoke said.
Just then, Su Miaoke noticed Chu Feng had gone quiet and glanced over at him.
She found him staring at her with a dazed look on his face, like a complete fool.
"Why are you staring at me like a dope?" Su Miaoke asked.
"Honey, you’re so beautiful," Chu Feng said with a goofy smile.
"Tch, are you just noticing? Be serious. I’m trying to talk to you about something important," Su Miaoke said, rolling her eyes.
"It’s perfectly normal for you to lose. How long have you been in cultivation? To be this strong after such a short time... for people who’ve trained since childhood, how could they not lose face? If you were in their shoes, could you accept it?" Chu Feng said.
"Oh, you’re right. When you put it that way, it really would be hard to accept. After all, they started practicing martial arts as kids, only to be outdone by a latecomer like me," Su Miaoke said, nodding.
’Anyone in that position would probably find it hard to accept.’
’After all, for a martial artist, even a small difference in rank can feel like a world of difference, let alone a loss that crushing.’
"Exactly. So it’s perfectly normal for them to be angry. I bet we won’t be seeing them for a while. They’ve definitely been hauled back for some brutal, nonstop training," Chu Feng said.
"Then they must have been under a lot of pressure since they were kids," Su Miaoke mused.
"Of course," Chu Feng said. "On the path of the Martial Dao, you can’t succeed without hardship. The suffering they’ve endured far exceeds that of ordinary people. They may seem glamorous on the surface, but all of it was earned through blood, sweat, and tears."