Chapter 8 Legend_1

Gao Guang didn't know what to say because he didn't believe what John said, or rather, he couldn't imagine it.

"After he knocked down four men, what then?"

"After he himself came out of the ring, oh, those were the rules of the cage fight, but there wasn't an actual cage. When he came out of the circle, I ran up to him and said, 'You're my idol.'"

"What happened next?"

"Next…" John's face was filled with helplessness and deep loss as he said, "I wanted to become his disciple, but he didn't want to pay attention to me. I pestered him, telling him how much I admired him, how much I loved Kung Fu, and how much I hoped he would teach me a thing or two."

"What did he say?"

"He said there were many who wanted to learn Kung Fu, asking who I thought I was."

"Um… please, go on."

"The very next day, the Huaxia man fought in another underground fight, one-on-one. But this time his opponent was a Green Beret combat instructor, a martial arts expert called Wolfman. Really very powerful, extremely powerful. At least I'm no match for Wolfman. But the Huaxia man took just six seconds, punched Wolfman in the chest, and then, Wolfman died."

Gao Guang gasped in shock, staring at John, unable to speak, while John continued with a look of admiration, "I stopped him again, with many people around. Right there and then, I knelt down. I said I was willing to give all my money just for him to teach me Kung Fu. I really, really loved Kung Fu!"

"So… what happened after that?"

"He refused me," John said shaking his head with a crestfallen look. "But he spoke a few more words to me. He said that this was a family martial art, not taught to foreigners."

"Um, what happened next?"

John continued, "Later I tried hard to get closer to him. I begged him to tell me what kind of martial arts he practiced, and finally, when he believed I was sincere, he was willing to tell me that he practiced Baji Fist techniques combined with Bagua Palm footwork. That's all."

Long ago, Gao Guang had lost faith in martial arts. In his opinion, martial arts was just for show, to look good in fights. As for the legendary ancient martial arts, that was just a legend, existing only in martial arts novels.

But now, an American was telling Gao Guang about the marvels of Huaxia Kung Fu, and Gao Guang had trouble believing it.

How grievous, how utterly grievous.

"What happened after that?"

Heaving a heavy sigh, John said with a look of despair, "After that, he died. Just when I was trying hard to get close to him, just when I saw some hope, he was killed by a bomb while leaving the Green Zone for a mission. So the last time I saw him, it was his body."

Gao Guang was very hungry, but now holding a hamburger, he had forgotten to eat, just staring dazedly at John.

John spread his hands and said to Gao Guang, "After that, you're another person I've met who knows Kung Fu, a Huaxia person, so I have a very good impression of you."

Gao Guang swallowed, looking at John with a blank face, "Is what you're saying true?"

"Of course it's true. Why would I lie to you? Captain... Frank was also a witness," John said.

"What's the name of the Huaxia person you talked about?"

"Chen Jinjun. His companion told me, I even had it written down, but later I was told that was a fake name."

With a sigh full of regret, John looked at Gao Guang with expectation, "But you'll teach me, right? You owe me a life, buddy. You've got to make it up to me somehow."

A desperate patient will seek any doctor, but John was eager to acknowledge a master as soon as he found one.

Nibbling on the hamburger absent-mindedly, Gao Guang said in a daze, "If you want to learn, I can certainly teach you, but you might be disappointed."

John immediately broke into a smile, then he said cheerfully, "No worries, we'll know after a fight. Yep, that's settled then."

"Ah? A fight? This..."

Not giving Gao Guang a chance to back out, John rushed on, "Let's eat first. After that, I'll take you to buy some necessities. Frank said you can stay at the company, there's a mattress there, but you'll still need things like a pillow and a blanket, not to mention toiletries, which the company won't provide. You'll have to buy them yourself."

"Alright."

"And clothes, buddy, you can't be working in those clothes, it's bad for the company's image. So, you need to get a change of outfit at least."

"Do I need to buy clothes too? What kind of clothes do I need to buy?"

"Tactical gear, boots; you need a good pair of boots. Trust me, you definitely need a good pair of tactical boots."

As John ate and spoke, he then said gleefully, "Once we've shopped for everything you need, I'll drop you at the company. There's a gym there where we can have combat training, and we can have a fight there to see your real skill level."

Gao Guang was starting to lose his appetite. He said seriously, "Can we go to a gun store or shooting range first? I'd like to go shooting."

As a military enthusiast, wanting to play with guns should be the first thing on one's mind after arriving in the United States; otherwise, one is not a true enthusiast.

Gao Guang was definitely a hardcore military fan, so he wanted to go shooting right away.

However, John did not see it the same way. He hurriedly said, "What's the rush with shooting? You'll have plenty of time for that later. We need to take care of business first. Once you're settled, I have to attend Wild Bull's funeral. So, the plan is to eat, drive to my house, then go to the outlets to buy the clothes you need, head to Walmart for your living essentials, and finally, I'll take you to the company. After our fight, your day will be clear."

It seemed the fight was unavoidable. Gao Guang let out a sigh and then started to eat voraciously.

Looking at Gao Guang's somewhat distressed expression, John spoke very seriously, "I know you Huaxia people don't like to teach real kung fu to foreigners, but don't forget, I saved your life. You owe me one."

"I know, you don't need to keep repeating it."

John nodded, thought for a moment, and then said earnestly once more, "Of course, I won't make you teach me for nothing. You want to shoot guns, I can take you to have a blast. Any gun you want to play with, I'll treat you, but on one condition, you must teach me real kung fu."

Gao Guang sighed, feeling rather helpless, "If by then you still want to learn, I swear I'll teach you everything I know. Is that okay?"

John smiled, satisfied, and finally he began focusing on eating, rather than continuing to harp on about kung fu with Gao Guang.

But after finishing a burger, Gao Guang couldn't help asking John, "Are you serious? That Chen Jinjun, is he really that formidable?"

Shrugging, John responded, "You can ask Frank; he was there. He also knew Wolfman, the guy who got killed."

This was beyond Gao Guang's understanding, but seeing John's confident demeanor, his beliefs started to waver, and he was now very curious to know more details.

But most crucially, Gao Guang began to feel uncertain about his choices all over again.

If, just if kung fu really was that powerful, then all the forms he had been practicing for so many years, would they not be a waste?