"Five youtiao, fifteen buns, two bowls of soy milk... Please pack them for me."
In the early morning, Lu Yuan, dressed in black sportswear, stood at the entrance of a breakfast shop placing his order.
Because it was the weekend, with no students or office workers around, the shop wasn't very crowded. Only a few old men in shorts and undershirts were there, having breakfast after their morning exercises. One of them had even brought a portable radio, which sat on his breakfast table, chattering non-stop with a comedy talk show.
Lu Yuan paid, picked up his packed breakfast, and slowly headed home.
The time was now six forty-five in the morning.
He'd gotten up at six o'clock and had been jogging through the city until then. The benefits of his strong constitution and youth were evident. Despite an intense workout the previous day, he was full of energy today, perhaps even more so than usual.
"Name: Lu Hui
Gender: Female
Age: 28
Height: 1.57 meters
Speaks with a local Burnt Rock accent, wearing a white T-shirt with a red heart and black denim shorts, disappeared in May..."
While passing an internet cafe, Lu Yuan's attention was drawn to a missing person notice posted on the wall by the entrance. The photo showed a young woman with a radiant smile, holding a short-tailed blue cat.
He stopped and looked for a moment. He noticed there wasn't just one missing person notice on the wall, but four or five. Most of the disappearances had occurred in May or June, within the last two months.
It seems the recent missing person cases are indeed quite serious, Lu Yuan frowned slightly.
Surveillance cameras were everywhere in this era. Yet, so many people had disappeared in such a short period, and the police still hadn't cracked the cases. The thought was chilling.
Could there be a large-scale human trafficking organization in Burnt Rock City?
Organ harvesters?
An inexplicable chill ran down his lower back, and his craving for strength surged. Although the probability of something like this happening to him was low, what if, by some unlucky chance, he stumbled into it... Being stronger would at least give him a better chance to escape danger.
I need to work harder, he thought.
Unconsciously, he had walked back to their small family shop. His mother, Zheng Qiuling, had already opened the door. Lu Yuan helped her move some goods that had arrived the previous day onto the shelves. The recent missing persons cases had made the nearby neighborhood a little apprehensive. More people were purchasing rice and oil than usual, and the small shop was selling goods much faster.
After a busy spell, Lu Yuan set up a small table in the shop and shared the breakfast he had bought with his mother. After his morning run and moving goods, Lu Yuan was famished. His appetite was huge now, and he consumed more than three-quarters of the breakfast.
During breakfast, his mother, Zheng Qiuling, somehow started thinking about Lu Jing, his elder sister, and couldn't help sighing.
"Every time your sister calls, she complains about not eating or sleeping well out there... I wonder when she'll be able to come back. Why would a nice girl like her choose to study archaeology?"
Lu Yuan didn't speak. Even though his elder sister, Lu Jing, often complained about one thing or another when she called or video chatted, he felt she was actually enjoying herself. If she really couldn't stand something, she probably wouldn't even bother complaining; she'd just want to get on the first flight back.
At seven-thirty, having finished his breakfast, Lu Yuan took a bus to the martial arts hall. He arrived at the Origin Martial Arts Hall before eight o'clock.
Today, Coach Lin Zhiquin was teaching Basic Step Skill, a part of basic combat techniques. Compared to Basic Fist Skill and Basic Leg Skill, the movements of Basic Step Skill seemed much simpler. However, once he started practicing, he realized it was a completely different matter.
Agility was a crucial aspect of combat. If you could attack your opponent without being hit yourself, your chances of winning increased greatly. Footwork was especially important.
Lu Yuan continued to learn diligently. His Level 2 [Absolute Focus] state allowed him to grasp Basic Step Skill much faster than he had Basic Fist Skill and Basic Leg Skill. Even Lin Zhiquin couldn't help but praise him several times.
Among this new batch of students, Lu Yuan was undoubtedly number one in terms of focus and seriousness during training. He wasn't the most skilled, however.
"Yang Jiandong, come with me for a moment."
After teaching all the footwork movements, Lin Zhiquin immediately called one student aside. This student was tall and well-built, with slightly dark skin. Lu Yuan had a strong impression of him. This person had claimed upon arrival that he had practiced martial arts for only three months and had already defeated the instructor at his previous dojo. And indeed, his performance in the three basic courses—Basic Fist Skill, Basic Leg Skill, and Basic Step Skill—was the best.
Lu Yuan even suspected this person had already reached Level 3 in all three basic skills.
Initially, Lu Yuan thought Lin Zhiquin had called Yang Jiandong out because of some class schedule change. But as the class neared its end, a student suddenly exclaimed, "Damn it, Coach Lin is secretly giving Yang Jiandong private lessons! Not only extra practice, but he's teaching him stuff beyond the curriculum!"
"How do you know?"
"I'm friends with Yang Jiandong; he just texted me to brag about it!"
"Damn, Lin Zhiquin is such a jerk!"
"We have to complain! We must report him to the martial arts hall!"
A group of students were indignantly decrying the unfairness and vowing to complain.
Lu Yuan felt a slight pang as he listened. Besides envying Yang Jiandong's treatment, there was also a hint of resentment.
If I could perform better, would that opportunity to be singled out by Coach Lin have been mine? he wondered. If he had more practice time, he could definitely catch up with, or even surpass, Yang Jiandong quickly.
Unfortunately, he was still a student and had to attend school five days a week.
No matter what, I still have to become a formal disciple of the martial arts hall as soon as possible! Lu Yuan resolved.
...
"You want to spar with me?" Cheng Peng blinked, staring blankly at Lu Yuan.
Lu Yuan, however, was calm. "Yes. Now that I've learned all three basics, I feel like I can try sparring."
"Don't mess around." Cheng Peng immediately shook his head. "You've just learned the basic exercises; you haven't even learned how to apply them in a fight yet. Spar now... I'm not bragging, I could easily beat you with one hand."
"I mainly want to get a taste of actual combat beforehand. The martial arts hall only has two classes a week, and the teaching pace is really too slow. By the time I get a real chance to spar, it'll probably be the second half of the year. If you spar with me, I'll be able to master those basics much faster."
"But..."
Seeing Cheng Peng still hesitant, Lu Yuan couldn't help but affect an impatient tone. "You're not scared, are you? You're always bragging about how you're about to qualify for ranking, how you're going to become a formal disciple...
"Now I ask you to spar a few rounds, and you're chickening out?"
"Scared of you?!" Cheng Peng, predictably unable to stand such taunts, immediately jumped up. "I'm afraid I might hurt you!"
"Come on, change your clothes." Cheng Peng rolled up his sleeves and said, "Meet me on the training field in five minutes. Father-son match! Loser's the son!"
"That's more like it, good boy." Lu Yuan nodded in satisfaction.