33 Inhumane

"I have scanned your body and sensed that your body has practiced a certain kind of martial arts. Is that correct?" Alus asked Ben.

Ben nodded and then replied with. "Yes, that is correct. I practiced from the age of three till my seventh a martial art that is called karate. My parents read somewhere that if the child starts at a young age it will help improve the childs physical fitness, coordination, flexibility and strength. My dad was also a martial arts fanatic.

I had a lot of talent for karate if I do say so myself, but at the age of seven, I began to hate the sport because of a lack of motivation and too much pressure that was laid on top of me.

Then I had a break for two years and then I saw a kickboxing fight on the television, this is something from my world where we get most of our information from, and I immediately fell in love with the sport.

Then I practiced this martial art, kickboxing, till now."

Alus took everything in what Ben had told. Ben should be nineteen years old right now. Then his experience with martial arts should be fourteen years.

Alus began to smile. "Show me! The martial arts you practiced your whole life!" Alus himself lowered his cultivation to mirror that of Ben and stood in a fighting stance.

Alus is a battle fanatic. He loves to master a technique and then follow it up by learning another. Alus's variety of mastered techniques makes him a frightening opponent. Alus wanted to know the extent of a martial art of a different world without cultivation, how this martial art would compare to that of this world.

Ben on the other hand was shocked. He would have to fight his master from the get-go? This has never happened to him before.

"Don't just stand there. Get in your stance and attack! I have reigned in my cultivation to mirror yours. Don't worry about anything and just attack me." Alus commanded him.

Ben took a deep breath and with the exhale he lowered his stance. His left foot was a bit forward and his hand came up to his cheeks while his elbows were tucked to his torso a bit to the sides to protect his liver and spleen.

Ben stood in the standard kickbox position. Ben again took a deep breath to calm his mind and to focus. His upper body began to sway from left to right and back ever so small.

Ben was ready to fight. He took a stride forward and opened with a left jab to Alus's face.

Alus who saw the fist coming swayed to the left to dodge was caught off guard when right after the left fist missed and was on its way back a right hook from Ben was already underway to hit the side of his face.

Alus ducked and wanted to use a palm to hit Ben's stomach. But just before Alus's palm made contact with Ben's stomach. Ben pushed himself backward, just out of reach of the arms of Alus.

As Alus was retracting his arm because he missed his target. Ben's eyes gleamed. He made a half step, so only with his left foot, he moved forward. Then he turned his hips and his leg followed, a beautiful right kick came for the head of Alus.

Alus's eyes widen he upped his power by a little. With inhumane flexibility, Alus ducked under the kick and swiped the standing leg of Ben away underneath him.

Ben fell to the floor on his back. A bit dazed at the move Alus just made Ben just laid on the floor. Ben turned his head to Alus. "How did you do that?" Ben asked Alus.

"I've once mastered a technique that focused on flexibility." That was the only answer Alus gave Ben. Alus stretched out his hand to Ben and helped Ben get on his feet.

"Let's go again." Alus said. Ben nodded and got in his stance again. When Alus saw that Ben was ready Alus suddenly lashed out with a piercing strike of the hand.

Ben saw the strike coming and used his left hand to deviate the strike to the side and threw a right straight over his left hand to Alus, but he wasn't there anymore. Alus who had felt his piercing strike being deviated let himself follow the deviation. Thus Alus sort of fell to the side, again with inhumane flexibility he turned mid-fall to kick Ben in the stomach.

Ben flew backward again on his back. Alus dusted himself a bit off and walked towards Ben. With an appreciative glint in his eyes, he said. "Your style of fighting is very straightforward and simple, but effective. Still, in the cultivation world, this wouldn't be called a martial art. It's more of a free-fighting style.

There is not really any technique, don't get me wrong there is certainly technique, but something is missing. It's a great way for non-cultivators to fight and get and stay in shape. But as cultivators, this is not called a martial arts technique.

Let me show you."

Alus got in a stance and started to do a set of motions. It looked very graceful and profound. Ben who sat up intensely looked at Alus moving. The way Alus moved was so much more profound than anything Ben had seen before.

It looked so mesmerizing. It was like a depiction of the journey a tranquil lake must take from its source towards the lowlands and sea. A lake that lets itself flow without real direction. Just going with the flow.

"Wow! What was that? It felt like the journey a lake would take." Ben said when Alus was done with the moves.

Alus was again taken aback. 'This kid...' "Ahem... Yes, you saw that right. This technique is the movement part of the full red grade martial arts called [Flowing fist]."

Techniques were divided by grades. The grades were as followed from lowest to highest: Grey, Red, Silver, Yellow, Purple, Blue, Green, Black and White.

"As a genius of your caliber, you can skip the Grey grade martial arts techniques. You already have a solid foundation in martial arts with your kickboxing and karate. It's just that I am an expert when it comes to hand-to-hand combat. If you would have fought your average peers you would have won easily."