Chapter 63: Refusal

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Bang!"

"Thanks for letting me win!"

Lu Zheng took off his gloves and grabbed Li Changyang’s hand that was instinctively reaching out, pulling him up from the floor.

Li Changyang’s pupils were clearly dilated, still evidently shocked by the outcome.

The audience was silent.

Previously, Lv Tieling boasted so much, only to lead to this awkwardness now.

Kunlun Technique’s defending champion?

UFC’s prospect?

This is it?

Lv Tieling’s eyes, as large as copper bells, were wide open.

Is this real?

According to Li Changyang, even if he joins the UFC, they wouldn’t arrange too strong an opponent for his first match. Even if he couldn’t win, he should be able to last the entire match.

So how did Lu Zheng end up slamming him onto the ring like a dead dog?

It wasn’t until Lu Zheng stepped off the stage, taking a bottled water from Lin Wan and having a sip, that Li Changyang, still standing dazedly on stage, came to his senses with a shiver.

A hidden master!

A folk legend!

Damn, the real experts are among us, the ancients weren’t lying!

So, under Lv Tieling’s gaze that could not bear to look, Li Changyang shamelessly approached Lu Zheng again, with a flattering smile all over his face.

"Great master!"

"No need, Mr. Li, it’s not necessary."

"Don’t call me Mr., that’s too condescending, you can call me Old Yang or Yangzi!" Li Changyang hurriedly said, "Great master, what kind of martial arts did you practice? You’re so amazing, much better than us so-called professionals!"

"I just practiced mindlessly." Lu Zheng grinned.

"Impossible!" Li Changyang raised his voice, then immediately lowered it, "If you practiced mindlessly, then we are just playing house?"

Lv Tieling couldn’t stand it anymore and quickly joined the conversation, "Lu Zheng practices Chuan Wu, but also mixes in some Sanda and real combat."

"Really?" Li Changyang was doubtful; he had seen many Sanda experts, and he could also do it himself, but none were as formidable as Lu Zheng.

This reaction, this speed, this technique...

"Great master, with your skills, it’s a pity not to enter the martial arts circle!"

Li Changyang praised endlessly, "With your skills, you’d crush through Kunlun Technique and then casually fight at the Hero Rankings or Martial Arts Legends, and you’ll be in the UFC by next year!"

"Does that mean you’ll get the Golden Belt the following year?"

"Absolutely, by then you’ll have cars, houses, money, and girls... everything!"

"And you’ll bring glory to the country, a major contributor to the revival of Chuan Wu!"

Whether Lu Zheng was swayed or not, Lin Wan certainly was.

She nudged Lu Zheng’s arm and pondered aloud, "Lu Zheng, you’re so skilled, it was fine not knowing before, but now that we know, you could actually try this path."

Lin Wan knew that Lu Zheng was still unemployed at the moment.

They had talked about work several times over meals, and Lu Zheng had mentioned that he didn’t plan to become a programmer working nine-nine-six in the future.

Even though she knew Lu Zheng didn’t seem to lack money, it wasn’t quite right, was it?

Lu Zheng waved his hand, "Not going, do I need to sell my body to make money?"

Turning to Lin Wan, Lu Zheng reassured her, "These past two months after graduation, I wrote the core program for an independent game and sold it to Tencent, it’s enough to last us for the rest of our lives."

How to legitimize the two million in his account and the millions more soon to come had been on Lu Zheng’s mind for a long time.

The things he said to fool Gu Pingzhong and Liu Zhenming couldn’t be used to brush off Lin Wan.

Nowadays, who doesn’t know online games are insanely profitable?

Add in the inspiration Tong Muxuan gave Lu Zheng last time, so Lu Zheng swiftly found a pretext to legitimize his wealth.

Anyway, the millions don’t have any repercussions, it’s perfectly safe; Lin Wan surely wouldn’t go to Tencent for verification, right?

"Really?" Lin Wan’s eyes widened.

"Really!" Lu Zheng’s face was earnest.

Then Lu Zheng saw Lin Wan’s face bloom with a genuine smile.

"I knew it; you’re the best!"

Then she offered a sweet kiss.

Li Changyang originally wanted to entice Lu Zheng into fighting with fame and fortune, but was instead fed a mouthful of dog food.

"What? An independent game? You’re also a programmer?" Li Changyang asked in surprise.

He really couldn’t connect programmers with combat masters.

"Hmm, yes." Lu Zheng nodded.

Li Changyang, "..."

Lv Tieling, "..."

Writing independent games to earn money is surely a hundred times safer than stepping on the ring?

"Well, that’s too bad." Li Changyang could only say.

Lv Tieling suddenly asked, "Lu Zheng, you wrote an independent game and made a lot of money?"

"Uh, yes."

Lu Zheng nodded, unsure of what Lv Tieling meant by such a personal question. He was straightforward but not foolish.

Lv Tieling said, "Then I think you even more should take up fighting. Your combat talent is incredible, yet your life is worry-free, so you should naturally take on the responsibility of revitalizing Huaxia’s martial arts.

Look at who’s dominating internationally now; it’s all about Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, Karate, etc. Huaxia martial arts have already lost their ground.

Changyang is considered a top figure in the domestic lightweight, but internationally, he’s virtually nameless.

If you could make a name, it would inspire national morale immensely! Let them know Huaxia martial arts aren’t just showmanship."

Lu Zheng shook his head, "With Li Xiaolong around, no one dares to call Huaxia martial arts just showmanship."

"That was before; how many more years can Mr. Li Xiaolong’s influence last? Currently, there’s not a single Huaxia person among the most popular UFC top fighters."

"Right, right!"

Li Changyang nodded repeatedly, "Now the country is calling for the establishment of a sports powerhouse; combat sports, being highly commercial, are definitely focal points for support.

As a country with a five thousand-year heritage, we certainly can’t let Korea’s Taekwondo monopolize it.

If you could debut with Chuan Wu and make a name on the world stage, then in the country, you could definitely walk sideways!"

Lu Zheng grumbled, "I’m not a crab, I’m not breaking the law, why would I want to walk sideways for no reason?"

Li Changyang laughed awkwardly, "It’s just a figure of speech, just a figure of speech!"

Lv Tieling nodded, "By then, with your commercial value, be it endorsements or developing your own brand, the money you make won’t be less than writing games."

Someone who can open a fighting club and make it increasingly successful surely doesn’t lack a good business sense, even if they seem straightforward.

Lu Zheng sighed, "Are you all so sure I could succeed in fighting?"

Lv Tieling and Li Changyang looked at Lu Zheng as if he were an idiot, with Li Changyang feeling doubly insulted.

So basically, I’m just a weakling, and beating me doesn’t give any sense of achievement?

...

Regardless of the temptations, Lu Zheng still shook his head.

He had considered this issue before. Growing up reading martial arts novels, he too wished for Huaxia martial arts to awe the world.

Although his current Martial Dao foundation is the "Eighteen Mountain-Carrying Techniques," as long as he spends a bit of qi fortune, he can use Baji Fist or similar to face opponents, which isn’t fake.

But his bigger concerns were privacy and his personal free time.

He’s been traveling to the Great Jing Dynasty more frequently, and who knows what greater abilities he might gain in the future? To rush into fame with martial arts now would be too reckless.

Today’s paparazzi are everywhere; he doesn’t want to perform live crossings to the Otherworld in front of the world audience.

Becoming famous now poses more drawbacks than benefits for him. He won’t risk himself for such a goal.

As for the future, he’ll cross that bridge when he comes to it.