114 The Truth of the Strongest Man

King and the others didn't know when Martial Maniac would come to the dojo, but they could be sure that he was coming for Bang. Thus, they simply have to stay in the dojo and wait for Martial Maniac to come.

Bang made King play many traditional games with him for the next two days, including a game similar to "Where's Wally," where they have to find specific characters within a massive array of similar characters. It was a cruel game that tested the very limit of focus and observation skills of the participants.

When King asked about the meaning of these games, Bang explained that they were made to instill vital observation skills into the disciples, allowing them to find flaws in their opponents and improve their combat strength.

King thought it made sense.

King and Bang played the game for more than three hundred rounds, and Bang lost every single one of them. Bang's nature as an unyielding warrior made him challenge King over and over again, despite the repeated loss.

Bang was absolutely dumbfounded, and he even began doubting his life. After being continuously defeated by King, he decided to take the third day off to recuperate from the shock.

Bang sighed every time he recalled the last two days, "King's senses are too strong. He can detect even the slightest color differences. This old man has been utterly defeated!"

Of course, this was only what he said publicly. In secret, he had countlessly badmouthed King, "King, you son of a bitch. How dare you bully this old man. You really have zero respect for your elder!"

King had no objection to having the day off, but in reality, he couldn't get any extra rest at all. King was "touched" by Charanko's diligence early in the morning. After greeting Bang and eating breakfast, he threw himself back into Tai Chi.

While King entered a meditative state, Bang secretly and quietly turned to watch King practice Tai Chi. His eyes brightened. King was secretly...practicing martial arts?

Bang watched King's Tai Chi stances for a while and frowned doubtfully. What kind of messy martial art is this? It's all over the place! I must bring him back to the proper "path" of martial arts.

"King, which martial art school are you from? What kind of martial arts are you practicing now?" King's technique was very strange. Bang couldn't identify it even with his many years of experience.

The questions surprised King. He turned around to Bang, who had stood behind him at some point, and shook his head. "I have no school. I learned this martial art by chance and continued exploring it on my own. It is called Tai Chi."

He really did learn Tai Chi by accident. Back in the days, the neighborhood old men would gather early in the morning and play loud aerobic exercise music, waking him up. Every time this happened, he would bring a bucket of water to the window and contemplate whether he should drop it at the old men who practiced Tai Chi.

In the end, he never dropped the bucket and even memorized their Tai Chi poses.

He remembered them clearly, but he couldn't perfectly replicate the stances. His crooked posture was definitely not standard Tai Chi moves. Well, it could be considered a self-created Tai Chi branch.

Bang's eyes widened. "By chance? Explored on your own? King, you never actually learned martial arts, have you?" These slow sweeping stances were definitely a fraud martial art. It's pretty enough to be believable, but it would be suicidal to use it in a real fight. The practitioner would be beaten to hell and back.

"No, I haven't."

"That's unsurprising. None of your stances and moves conform to the basic principles of martial arts. They have no harmony, slow, and have no strength. Such unorthodox martial art might help you strengthen your body, but to use it in real battle would be... difficult, to say the least.

"Martial arts were originally developed as a method to strengthen the body, but in the present day, it is a weapon in and of itself, focusing on a particular aspect of combat and the human body. It can be overwhelming speed, immense strength, or tricks and cunning. As for your martial arts... To be honest, I can't see any advantages."

Bang mercilessly slammed down on King's Tai Chi.

King was offended. How dare this old man insult the precious Chinese cultural heritage? He wanted to refute Bang's evaluation, but he then remembered that Bang was a martial arts grandmaster and he was a martial arts noob. He wouldn't be able to make proper arguments against Bang.

King waved his hands defensively. "It's not that Tai Chi is weak; it's just that I haven't properly learned it. Besides, it has been many years, and I must have forgotten some vital parts."

He tried to save Tai Chi's face by taking the blame on himself.

"King, if you really want to learn martial arts..." Bang smiled. "I can teach you."

"Teach me? You'll teach me Flowing Water Rock Shattering Fist?" King was surprised.

Bang nodded solemnly. "That's right, my dojo's martial arts - Flowing Water Rock Shattering Fist. How about it? Are you interested?"

"Oh?" King pondered for a few seconds and shook his head. "I'm not interested."

To build a house, you need a good foundation, and to learn martial arts, you need a good body. Although he couldn't say that he didn't want to learn martial arts, he would need a strong body to properly do it. Otherwise, no matter how strong a martial art was, it would only become a weak imitation in his hands.

And to train the body... it was very hard!

I think it's better to watch TV and play games.

"Oh, I see."

Bang nodded in disappointment. Well, I still couldn't seduce King into bed... Ah, I mean, I couldn't get him onboard!

"King, since you are not interested in learning the Flowing Water Rock Shattering Fist, I will not force you. However, martial arts are not just a matter of practicing stances. You will also need to train your body in various ways, in addition to the stances and movements. Why don't you join our training for the time being? You and Charanko can work together to improve the foundation of your martial arts."

He was trying to take a roundabout method to teach King.

I can't directly force King to learn the Flowing Water Rock Shattering Fist, but I can slowly put more and more of its teaching in his training regiments. Over time, it will naturally affect him, making him unconsciously devote himself to studying Flowing Water Rock Shattering Fist.

He nodded with satisfaction at his plan.

"Join your training?"

King pondered for a moment. Since he had nothing to do anyway, he might as well practice martial arts with Charanko to pass the time. He could also obtain the basic skills of the Flowing Rock Shattering Fist.

Thus, Bang's clandestine plot succeeded. He brought King and Charanko... to run.

The three of them ran slowly down the stairs to the dojo. King could almost relax in the descending half, but he was deadly tired on the ascending trip. When they finally reached the dojo again, King fell to the ground, unable to move.

Charanko, who was only slightly panting after the joint training, stared in surprise at King's unmoving body on the ground. "Master, what kind of training did King do? Why is he so exhausted from just a single trip?"

Bang frowned silently.

He remembered that King was also exhausted when he first went up the mountain several days ago. Back then, he thought it was King's unique training method. However, after careful observation, there was nothing different from King's movement. He was just running normally. In the end, King stopped to rest several times along the way up and even collapsed on the ground. King's demeanor was really unbefitting of his title as the strongest person.

Why couldn't King climb the mountain, despite his strength?

A trace of doubt was buried in his heart.

His later observations only fostered his doubt. King's behavior was simply inexplicable. His walking gait and posture were full of openings, and he was also learning the useless martial arts...King really lacked the aura of a confident and strong Hero.

Was King's strength all fake?

A shocking thought emerged in his heart.

He had excused all of King's flaws before, thinking that there was hidden strength behind them. Now that he thought about it carefully... was King really as strong as others said?

He frowned and looked at King, who was gasping for breath. If King's reputation as the strongest man is fake, how could he explain the super observation skills King displayed during the games?

Confusion filled his heart, and doubt flashed in his sharp eyes.

What is the truth behind the strongest man?