Ancient Being Predecessor of the Primordial Era: An OP Mc LitRpg - Cultivation - Development, page 18
Someone stepped in. A wave of overwhelming perfume filled his hall immediately. Sickly sweet and suffocating.
Dong ZhenKang immediately closed his eyes and allowed himself a mental sigh.
The slimiest individual he had ever met sauntered in by themselves. Short, chubby, always sweaty, and with wisps of hair combed sideways. Doing nothing to hide his baldness. The sleazy smile. Too much perfume that invaded the senses.
“Can you even see your pretty little thing through the rain?” The fat man said, voice nasal and followed by a snort. Chuckling at his own hidden jokes.
Dong ZhenKang tried to hide the hate and disdain he had for him, but found it impossible. “Lang Tu.”
He turned to fully see the old, pale man. A weak Gaseous core cultivator. Had this been a normal case, Dong ZhenKang would have executed him and nine generations removed. Torturing the next seven generations as a reminder to never utter Lang Tu’s name ever again.
Maybe salt the fields of the village he had been born in? Execute the midwives that helped give birth to the disgusting whelp. He wasn’t sure it would satisfy him. No he would need to kill everyone that had ever associated with Lang Tu to feel the sliminess escape him.
But no. Not this Gaseous core filth.
Lang Tu was special.
A representative sent by the Spider Cult Valley. Sent to keep an eye out for them and report anything that occurred in the village quickly, but Dong ZhenKang knew better. Lang Tu was nothing more than a disposable member they sent to trap him.
Worthless mouthpiece.
Hoping he would be infuriated enough to kill or harm the insufferable, short, fat, ugly, pot marked filth. An unknowing sacrificial lamb sent to the slaughter. The issue was that Lang Tu didn’t know that. Attempting to lord over everything and everyone, screaming out his clan and sect name as soon as anyone got close enough to hurt him.
Dong ZhenKang would not fall for such a trap. One he had used before. He knew the second he killed the bastard, an army of Spider Cult Valley demonic cultivators would flood his bandit town. Larger groups that lorded over the spiders would come in to stop the ensuing battle between them. Eventually crushing him because he was less valuable to keep the Spider Cult Valley happy and content to send out more forces in their fight against the fake righteous clans.
“I thought you were in seclusion,” Dong ZhenKang said. Knowing well that it had been Lang Tu that ratted him out and caused the Black Widows to appear at his doorstep. “Working on finally being anything more than a disappointment.”
Lang Tu smiled. His eyes did not shift at all. Fake. “Isn’t the weather strange? Heavenly Lightning. I don’t suppose you are attempting to break through to the next major realm?”
Dong ZhenKang stared at him. Immediately his mind began to work, breaking down everything he was saying, the tone, timing, every tiny detail he could make out from those few scant words. Things hidden in between the uttered words.
It hit him. He did not like what he figured out.
They don’t know what happened either. Attempting to fish for information from me.
He turned away from Lang Tu. Trying to hide his shock and expression from him. His mind was in overdrive now. Unable to stop it from unintentional plotting and planning, but he would not act upon it. He needed to figure out what was going on.
More importantly, what the hell happened to the Black Widows. Had they even encountered the Hu ancestor or did they make a mistake and wake up a hidden monster or sage hiding under a rock within the bandit town.
Hidden masters. Hidden sages. Hidden legends tired of the worldly life and only wanted solitude. Just waiting for some idiot to insult them.
Lang Tu cleared his throat.
“If I had ascended to the next realm. I would have executed you already, Lang Tu.” Dong ZhenKang did not even shift slightly. Freezing his expression and subconscious reactions. Giving nothing away. “Know that well.”
Lang Tu choked on his pit. Sputtering and hacking, beating at his chest. It took a while for him to finally catch his breath. He cleared his throat one more time just to make sure he kept pretenses. Not that it helped the ugly welp.
“How about the very abrupt vanishing of Qi from the air? Know anything about that? A lack of Qi in a Qi storm. Strange, isn’t it?”
Dong ZhenKang did not respond. How the hell was he supposed to know why or how Qi acted in detail? His Dao wouldn’t be stuck in his current realm otherwise. A true Sage he would be. Not stuck in some backwater with a sleazy bastard interrogating him.
“You’s got to give me something,” Lang Tu continued. Dong ZhenKang could hear the smile in his voice. “The Spider Cult Valley wants information. Losing five Black Widows is enough cause to bring down hell. Not listening to me and giving me information is even worse, you know. My great uncle is related to the Patriarch. If you—”
Dong ZhenKang turned to look at him. Pulling at the scant Qi in his core, nearly empty from the vanished Qi in the air. His wind screamed louder than ever before. Using the storm to boost its strength and power beyond anything he would have been capable of with such little Qi.
Lang Tu stepped back. Laughing.
“I-I’ll give you time to think about it. A week—”
The storm surged into the room, sending Dong ZhenKang’s gathering hall into disarray. Seats began flying, the table with bandages and wraps began slamming into the walls. A vase or two smashing and shattering. Sharp pieces flying at terrifying speeds.
“—a month! I’ll be back in a month!”
Lang Tu rushed out of the room. The wind slammed the door behind him closed and locking it with air pressure.
Dong ZhenKang turned away and let the Qi die. Trying his best to look through the heavy rain and storm and into the Hu girls home. Lightning flashed in the sky. Dong ZhenKang narrowed his eyes, doing his best to use his Qi and sight to see anything. A hint. Something or another.
All he could make out was a figure. Meditating a few feet above a stable unmoving chair. Even with the wind and storm, it did not budge. The figure's robes snapped back and forth. His hair rising above him. The silhouette of a mighty spear in his hands.
I can’t figure out who or what this Hu ancestor is!
Chapter 36 - Ultimate Badassery!
Baby steps, James. Baby steps.
Yin Hu laid on his lounging chair. A wide brimmed hat rested on his face to cover his eyes from the beaming sun. Relentlessly trying to keep him uncomfortable and without a single wink of the nap he tried to plan for. Or maybe a ‘do nothing day’ since he couldn’t really sleep.
He sighed.
Trying his best to find contentment and reaffirm his glorious resolve. Remind himself of his ultimate goal. He did not want to forget something so important in the rush to create nukes and build the Hu clan from the ground up.
Living in luxury and surrounded by beautiful Jade Beauties. It didn’t sound that hard. Just needed to figure out a few prerequisite steps first. Defeat a few mob enemies. Gradually advance until he found someone he couldn’t beat. Escape and find a larger city.
Rinse and repeat until he could just point his warheads and they would explode the enemy and their entire sect for him.
Yin Hu shifted slightly. Enjoying the light robes that felt like clouds on his skin. Allowing the cool breeze to pass through the fabric and add onto the setting of perfection he was in. Warm sun caressing his body. Shadows over his eyes. And a cool breeze to add tasteful hints to it.
What could be better than—
“Hyah!” Shui shouted as loud as her small frame could. Which was louder than realistically possible. “Hyah!”
Baby step, James. Baby steps.
Yin Hu couldn’t imagine a world where he had to wear normal clothes anymore. His ostentatious robes were simply too amazing. The thought of normal fabric on his skin, grating and scratching, chaffing and worse things. There was no way he would allow himself that.
Similar to his food situation. Except, he had options with the massive wardrobe he carried in his rice bag. Choices of color, fabric, size, design, and a hundred other things. No silk would ever touch his skin. No cotton. Satin. Wool or whatever normal people tended to wear in fabric.
That didn’t even mention the cultivator properties of the robes. Constantly cleaning him. Sweat and grime would never be an issue, and his smell would always be fresh as flowers. Accentuating his mysterious persona of being an ancestor of a well known clan.
Not overpowering, but perfectly complimenting his style in ways that—
“Hyah!”
—would help keep him at the—
“Hyah!”
—pinnacle of the mortal and immortal—
“Hyah! Hyah! Hyah!” Shui was relentless in her training.
Yin Hu sighed. Maybe today was not the best day to relax and comfortably lounge in the silence of the courtyard. Jun had Shui doing katas. Ancient things that had supposedly been created by the original and true Hu ancestor. Their entire martial arts were based on it. A foundation.
It made no sense to him. Why did they need to dance around in a circle before attacking? Why swing their arms in three rotations before attempting to headbutt the enemy? What was the point of jumping ten feet into the air, landing in a tree pose, pausing for a second, only to give a normal front kick?
None of it made any sense to him.
Jun grunted. “Again. You are still too slow. Faster. Be the flowing vines. Strike with the base of our Hu Clan’s tree. Tear down a thousand enemies with nothing but a glance.”
“Jun!” Hu Shui complained.
“Again!”
“But my arms hurt, Jun. I don’t want…”
There was a long pregnant pause. Yin Hu could already imagine the stern look on Jun’s face. A death glare that would melt stone, boulders, and or a mountain if necessary. She was a demonic drill instructor from hell. Pushing Shui far beyond what a little kid should be going, but he was not intending to step in. He had no clue what levels were normal and what was overdoing it.
He had to figure out what the baseline was. And then he could tailor their training programs better.
“Again!” Jun shouted.
Shui gave in, weakly continuing her katas. “Hyah.”
Yin Hu wondered if Jun had military experience. She seemed to have been a soldier or served in something of that capacity with her rigid forms. Cadence during walking. The way she took to being an instructor and a whole bunch of other things.
Do clans serve as military branches? How similar are they to modern or earth armies in general?
He shook his head. He had no clue about even the most basic stuff that came to leading armies. Yin Hu would stick to his lane and figure his own processes out. Not be boxed in by things he couldn’t know or might not believe in if he did.
“Hyah!”
Fuck this. No rest for me! Not here and not on the island!
Yin Hu took off his wide brimmed hat. Quickly making it disappear back into the spatial pocket. He surveyed the courtyard.
Shui was standing in the middle of the clearing with a pink robe. Spinning, kicking, punching, and swinging her arms in bullshit moves. Jun, on the other hand, was swinging a training sword at a torn up training dummy on one corner near the grave hole they’d put the assassin ladies in. She wore a blue robe.
Each one focused on what they were doing. Wearing simple robes for training he had given them. Both had their hair tied back.
Didn’t Jun carry the staff? What’s she using a sword for if it's the wrong weapon?
He intended to give them their first real fighting class. Something as simple as the jab and cross, one two combo, would give them an edge. Especially with how overly wide and flowery all the techniques he’s seen so far looked like. Even the guards Jun slapped around had been ridiculous.
“Jun. Shui,” Yin Hu said while he stood. He waved the two of them over. “Hurry.”
They immediately stopped what they were doing and rushed to him. Standing side by side. Straight as arrows and chins raised. The perfect little disciples he would have imagined his clan members to be. Ever since he beat up those mortal assassins, they’d been rushing to obey his commands and show perfect form in everything.
Yin Hu looked at Jun. “You’re using a training sword? What about the staff? Isn't that your main weapon for fighting?”
“No, ancestor!” Jun shouted. “It's the only weapon I have that won’t break as soon as I try to channel Qi into it. The Jian is my main weapon. The weapon of the mighty Hu Clan and its glorious techniques!”
Hmm, maybe I have something she could use. A real weapon that isn’t a piece of wood.
There were a thousand epic weapons with sweet names in his rice bag. He would need to go over them one by one until he found something that fit her and didn’t sound too ominous. Some of the ones he got were pretty terrifying.
He nodded sagely. “Well, it's about time I begin to teach the both of you how to actually fight—”
“You’re going to teach us your World Defying Strike of Twelve Rainbow Steps to Heavenly Glory?!” Shui shouted again. Jumping on her feet.
“Better,” he smiled. “I’m going to teach you the Grand Hidden Technique of Ultimate Badassery!”
The two girls blinked at him blankly. They shared a glance before finally returning to his own. Shui looked like she was going to explode with a question. Holding back to the best of her ability. Yin Hu appreciated the restraint. He could build on it to make her more amazing and into his primary nuke one day!
“Speak, Shui.”
Hu Shui scratched her head. “What’s Badassery?”
“Don’t say bad words!” Jun slapped her head.
“B-But our ancestor said it first—”
Jun narrowed her eyes. Dangerously. Promising a dozen more sessions of their katas and training if Shui attempted to argue back ever.
Shui sagged. Letting out a mournful sigh.
Chapter 37 - Jab and Cross Combo
Yin Hu pulled out three technique scrolls. Each one as thick as his forearm and made to be studied for nearly a decade, but all they really carried in it were basic boxing skills. The Jab. The Cross. And then a couple combinations of the two, detailing rhythm and where you should be.
All in excruciating amounts of data and words.
“Grab these,” Yin Hu held them out to Jun. “I will personally teach you all the basics of my Grand Hidden Technique of Ultimate Badassery. Then continue to follow up with these. Combinations and techniques all in one piece.”
Jun’s eyes shone like lanterns, nearly matching Shui’s expression. She grabbed them gingerly. Holding them like they were worth more than anything she had ever seen in her life. Which to be fair, they probably were. Not much was worth anything in this bandit town.
“First and foremost! We must prepare ourselves!”
This was the first kung fu movie training scene he would experience as the master. Standing before disciples. Watching them punch and kick the exact way he had taught them. All moving in perfect sync. He could already see the mirage of tens of thousands. Shouting with every strike.
Yin Hu brushed his shoulders.
Both Hu Jun and Hu Shui copied him.
“Spread out a bit.” He took a few steps back and got into a good stance.
The girls took a few steps away from one another. Watching with intent eyes. Studying his motions and everything else they could figure out just from what he had done already. Which wasn’t much, but he knew how their gears turned. They were used to bullshit technique manuals that were unnecessarily obscure and confusing.
“You must have a perfect stance!”
“Yes, Ancestor!” They shouted back together. In sync.
It made Yin Hu smile. Satisfying and filling his chest with a warm feeling. A real step toward his ultimate goal right here before him. Real disciples. It hadn’t really hit him until now. Even when leveling them up with his miraculous medicines and washes. There still had been a distance. Something that whispered that it could all go wrong.
This was different. This was action and reaction to his direct orders without a second of doubt.
“Feet shoulder with! Bend your knees only slightly!”
Jun did exactly as she was told. Shui squatted instead.
“Wrong, Shui! Stand tall, and only bend them slightly!”
“Yes, Ancestor!”
It took a few tries to finally get through to Shui. She was still a child, even if her Spiritual Roots potential was much better than Jun's. Practical experiences were still important. Especially if they were going to apply a new technique he was about to make up on the spot. Jun helped as well.
“Your non-dominant foot and hand forward! A strong foundation is the base you build your entire technique. Strong, stable, and capable of generating power without wasting energy! Learn to leverage the slightest movements with great efficiency to create the speed and heft you require to cause the most amount of damage!”
Both girls were in their base foundation. He walked up to them. Giving them a slight nudge and making sure they were balanced. Neither one toppled over. Yin Hu nodded to them and returned to his spot as their teacher. He got back into his boxing base stance.
“Shift your weight to the balls of your feet. You must learn to be bouncy. Athletic. Quick. Knees always slightly bent to dodge and strike without wasting energy! Channel your Qi to respond as you wish when you wish it!”
“Yes, ancestor!”
“Resist the temptation to straighten your knees!”
“Yes, ancestor!”
“Get into your Guardian of the Spirit Position!” Yin Hu brought his hands up in a basic form. Guard up. Both girls followed his guidance. “Hands loose, not tight in a fist. And then—”
Yin Hu snapped his arm forward. “Os! Os! Os!”
It always returned back into position as he bounced on his feet channeling his inner Mohammed Ali. Dancing back and forth, ducking and shifting to the left and right in perfect sequence. Leaning back and dodging imaginary foes. All like he had done a thousand times already on the island while he was alone.
Of course, he wasn’t as wild and flamboyant as he usually was. Less movie kung fu and more practical. He needed to be the perfect example for the two girls to follow and perfect the teachings. Anything extra he added made the situation worse, because he could forget it in the future.
