Chapter 9: A Dangerous World
“Is it really that powerful?”
Hearing Xu Qing's question, Jiang He slowly closed her mouth, her expression turning serious as she shook her head. “This skill… it’s practically immortal.”
She truly couldn't imagine a re needle wielding such power; it had literally torn an entire house apart. Jiang He looked down at her own hands. At most, she could use it as a concealed weapon to hit a target a few ters away, inflicting only minor injuries—probably not even piercing bone. A needle like that could hardly kill soone.
“How about this one?”
Still in shock, Jiang He saw Xu Qing pull up another video—this ti, it was Kung Fu Hustle.
"All martial arts in the world are invincible, except against speed."
An old man sat on a chair and shot himself in the head. Xu Qing explained, “That’s a gun… a type of weapon with trendous power, way stronger than your darts.”
As the movie played in slow motion, Jiang He couldn’t grasp it fully; her mind was still reeling from the earlier needle demonstration and the flashy martial arts moves that allowed people to fly through the air.
If the gang’s second-in-command used his pair of hamrs to smash rocks, maybe with enough force, he could chip a piece off. But in the movie, people were sent flying straight into stone, shattering it. The body strength and force they showed were terrifying…
Boom!
Stephen Chow’s character landed a palm strike that left a giant handprint on a building.
Jiang He instinctively recoiled, her body tensing like a startled wildcat as she stared in disbelief at the screen. A mont later, her gaze shifted to Xu Qing.
“Is this… your kind of strength?”
“No, no! This is all fake!”
Seeing how seriously Jiang He was taking it, Xu Qing panicked, afraid she might try to spar with him.
“But I saw it.”
“Uh… that’s sothing we made up and fild using special effects. It’s all fake—totally fake.”
“Really?” Jiang He’s doubt was evident.
“It’s fake… uh, really.”
“Is it real or fake?”
“It’s… martial arts are fake.” Xu Qing felt helpless. The gap in their understanding was impossible to bridge; it was like they were from different worlds.
He moved his mouse around, searching on his computer for a mont, before pulling up a clip he’d edited from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, explaining as it played.
“You see? In one world, it doesn’t make sense to have so many different clothing styles. These are imagined versions of ancient warriors… no, they’re imagined martial heroes in an ancient setting. With costus… does that make sense?”
“Not really.”
“Good. When you get used to this world, you’ll understand what a movie is, and what art ans… Watch this.”
Xu Qing had no choice but to give Jiang He a crash course in modern culture. He hoped to teach her to use a computer when his tablet arrived in a few days—it even had voice input.
In the anti, though, he needed to learn more about Jiang He’s world.
As the thrilling duel between Jade Fox and Shu Lien played on the screen, Jiang He’s attention drifted back to the earlier movie.
“Is your gang leader’s martial skill as high as this?”
When they reached the bamboo forest fight scene, Xu Qing asked her again.
If this wasn’t convincing, he’d have to find Fearless or Kung Fu Jungle.
“Pretty much,” Jiang He replied casually. She glanced at the two characters dancing through the bamboo, then added, “Except for this kind of agility.”
“Oh? No lightness skill?”
Xu Qing looked a bit disappointed. To him, the most fascinating part of martial arts was that airy lightness. In a harmonious society, who wanted to fight all the ti? Skills had little practical use, except for agility—it looked cool and elegant.
“We do, but… most people specialize in one skill. The only one in our gang who could pull off such agility is our second boss, but her hand-to-hand combat skills aren’t as good as these two.”
The movie scene ended, but Jiang He was still thinking about Stephen Chow’s “Buddhist Palm Strike” from before.
What inhuman power!
She stared at the screen, her thoughts racing. It was hard to believe that anyone could reach such a level of skill… no, it was more like magic.
Xu Qing, though, had stopped the movie and thought for a mont before searching online for a video of Wudang master Chen demonstrating “Eagle Claw Technique,” complete with shadowy hand movents.
“Hey, can you do this?”
He raised his eyebrows at Jiang He.
“What is that?”
“You just saw it. Like… swish, swish, swish!” Xu Qing waved his hands around, mimicking the video’s movents. “Creating shadow effects with your hands, complete with sound… It’s not that I don’t believe you; I’m just curious.”
After accepting Jiang He’s identity, his curiosity grew. Yesterday, she’d shown only a bit of dart-throwing skill—otherwise, she seed pretty ordinary.
Jiang He’s eyes flashed as she looked at the screen, then she took a step back, got into position, and perfectly copied the video’s moves. The sound of her movents cut through the air, leaving Xu Qing with his mouth half-open, speechless.
“Like this?”
“Yes, yes!”
Xu Qing nodded fervently.
Jiang He relaxed her stance and smiled at Xu Qing. “Let know when you want to learn—I can teach you the basics.”
With that, she awkwardly tugged at her clothes, picked up her sword, and went back to her room, glancing at the chubby cat in the corner of the living room before shutting her door.
Nothing cos free in this world. Jiang He had never fully trusted Xu Qing’s intentions behind helping her; he’d claid he just couldn’t leave a stray cat behind. But a truly selfless person? That would be hard to believe.
Now, she finally understood his intentions—he wanted to learn martial arts.
Everything now made sense.
Jiang He let out a breath, feeling much lighter as the weight lifted from her mind. Images from the movie replayed in her head.
This world seems dangerous…
She asured the room with her eyes, taking small steps along the walls. With her sword in hand, she started practicing in the confined space.
…
Xu Qing didn’t sneak up to listen at Jiang He’s door. That would’ve been too creepy, and getting caught would be even worse. Instead, he casually browsed the news, checking for any unusual incidents elsewhere. But there was nothing. Last night, he’d barely slept, and after a few yawns, he couldn’t hold out any longer. He closed his computer and returned to his bedroom to catch up on sleep.
With a lady knight sleeping across the hall, he drifted off with that thought, falling into an even stranger dream. When he awoke, it was already dusk.
The golden light of sunset stread through the windows, filling the room with a warm glow. Xu Qing checked the ti, rubbed his face, got dressed, and decided it was ti to take Jiang He out to explore this world.
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