Zhen Zhu brought them to his home. He owned a beautiful home close to the center of the town. It had a large courtyard and was filled with many different medicinal plants. Da Ren and Zhen Zhu had spent the better part of an hour catching up and reminiscing about their youth. Their conversation finally shifted to Anthony.
"So, boy, you are from the other world?" Zhen Zhu asked.
Anthony nodded, "I have been here for around two days."
"Tell me about the other world," he asked.
And so he did. Anthony told them of his life. He told them of his parents, their shop, the technologies of his world, the fashion, the food. He couldn't stop the feeling of sadness that overcame him when he thought of never seeing any of it again. "I just want to go back," he finished, falling silent as tears begin to prick his eyes.
Zhen Zhu coughed, "Alright that's enough of that. It's is fascinating that your world has thrived without the use of Qi. I would love to see this "train" and this eye messenger box that you spoke of." He reached into his robes and pulled out a pill. "About this pill, I have a proposition for you."
Anthony quickly wiped his eyes, "Yes, whatever it takes," he said.
"In a few weeks time, the annual Martial Youth Contest hosted here in Bamboo Root Town will take place. The three big clans, Li, Zhen, and Wu will all be present. If I help you breakthrough to E-2, you must participate for the Zhen clan," Zhen Zhu said.
"Martial Contest?" Anthony asked. "Is that like a fighting tournament?"
Zhen Zhu nodded. "Every year, the youths of Bamboo Root Town gather at the Lord's mansion where they partake in fights to determine the strongest youths of that year. As long as one isn't over the age of eighteen, they are able to compete. Lord Ironfist gives prizes to the top contestants."
"Will I be able to fight Li Huang?" Anthony asked, suddenly.
Zhen Zhu shot him a look. "Boy, don't even think about messing with Li Du's son. The past two Martial Contests he has won solely due to his father. The other youths don't dare touch him."
Anthony nodded quickly, not trying to upset the fat man.
"Zhen Zhu, my friend, might you have any basic skills to teach Anthony before the Martial Contest begins," Da Ren interjected, changing the subject.
Zhen Zhu nodded, "Yes, but first we must break through the boy's bottleneck. Here take this pill and circulate your Qi. Meditate like you usually do and you should feel the Qi around your flowing into you once more." He passed the pill to Anthony. "I have prepared rooms for the both of you, I insist on having you both stay here until the tournament."
Anthony took the pill and found sat down in the grass not far away. He swallowed the pill and began taking in deep breaths. He tried to circulate the Qi around him but found that he still couldn't. He began to open his mouth when a sharp pain passed through his core. It was like a sledgehammer had smashed a brick wall allowing his Qi to flow more freely.
He tried pulling the Qi around him and found that he was once again able to absorb the Qi. He grinned, laughing to himself. He once again lost himself in the feeling, letting the Qi reinforce his muscles and his mind, strengthing his will. He could feel each little breeze on his skin, carrying vital amounts of Qi with it. He could feel it concentrating in his dantian, pressing into a dense ball of Qi. It gave off a sharp feel. Anthony felt that if he tapped into the ball, he would be able to release a large amount of power.
He opened his eyes to a red sky. He had spent the day absorbing Qi and forming the ball of Qi in his dantian. He returned to the room that Zhen Zhu had prepared for him and fell asleep, not hungry, but mentally exhausted.
The next day Anthony was woken up at dawn by Zhen Zhu. He spent the morning training his body under Zhen Zhu's guidance. He did muscle building workouts, cardio, and calisthenics. These exercises were very similar to the training that professional athletes did in his world. The afternoon was spent studying the three different Human grade skills that Zhen Zhu had brought him.
"Now that you are now an E-2, you have the build necessary to begin these rudimentary skills," he said. The first skill of the three that Anthony practiced was Twisting Gale Steps. It focused on quick, erratic movements to make one unpredictable in battle. The second skill was Roaring Tiger Dance. It was fist skill that focused on fast, quick hits that targeted the opponent's weak points. The final skill that Zhen Zhu presented to him was also his favorite. It was called Whistling Breeze Guard. The skill focused on deflecting an opponent's force and using their momentum against them. It had many powerful counters that made it hard for an opponent to land a critical blow.
The next few weeks flew by fast. He would wake up every morning and train his body with Zhen Zhu. In the afternoon he would practice the skills with great vigor. He would end up feeling exhausted and covered in sweat. The evenings were spent learning philosophy and different facts about Center Continent and the South Realm Kingdom. At night he would meditate and focus on polishing his Qi. He broke had broken through to E-3 soon in a weeks time but was now stuck at another bottleneck.
"My lord, the bottlenecks between major ranks is often more difficult to break through. Even Zhen Zhu doesn't have the capability to make the Uncommon Grade Qi Breakthrough Pill required to advance from E-3 to D-1," Da Ren reassured.
Anthony noticed the changes with his body. He was more tone, his face sharper and his eyes were filled with a fighting spirit blazed brightly. He would win this Martial Contest and grow even stronger. He needed to, in order to search for a way back home.
The day of the Youth Martial Tournament finally arrived. Anthony woke up refreshed, having slept soundly the night before. Zhen Zhu brought Da Ren and Anthony with him to join the rest of the Zhen Clan's youths as they made their way to Lord Ironfist's mansion.
Zhen Zhu introduced Anthony to the other youths of the Zhen Clan. "This here is my niece, Zhen Bai." He gestured to a serious looking girl in blue robes. "This is her brother, Zhen Quan." Zhen Quan was a stocky boy with an affable smile. He nodded in Anthony's direction. "This is Zhen Bu, and his brother Zhen Di." Zhen Bu and Zhen Di were both lanky and handsome. "And the pride of our Zhen Clan, Zhen YuYan." Zhen YuYan was a beautiful young woman with her sleek black hair put up in elaborate fashion. Her ocean blue eyes captivated Anthony at once. Never before had he seen a girl so beautiful.
She smiled at Anthony and he could feel his face burning up. This made Zhen Zhu chuckle and say, "She's the pride of our clan not only for her beauty, boy," which caused Anthony's face to turn even redder.
The group of youths laughed and Anthony soon joined them. They talked and got to know each other as they made their way to Lord Ironfist's mansion.
They soon arrived at the mansion, which Anthony recognized as the complex that he had seen when he first laid eyes on Bamboo Root Town. The walls were taller than he had imagined and we patrolled by guards in uniform. Each one looked to be at least a martial fighter.
Zhen Zhu led the group up to the gate of the mansion, where they were ushered inside by an attendant. The attendant brought them to a sheltered pavilion, where a table of delicacies had been laid out for them.
Anthony did not eat, he was far too excited and jittery to stomach anything. The rest of the Zhen youths dug in, for they had not eaten before they left.
Another group of youths entered, led by a jovial looking man in green robes. Anthony turned to Da Ren and asked, "Who are they?"
Da Ren looked up from his barbequed pork, "Them, my lord? They are the youths of the Wu Clan. The man in the green is Wu Dang, He is a D-2 martial expert as well."
"Are you stronger than him?" Anthony asked.
Da Ren nodded, "Wu Dang is the younger brother of Wu Bing, the head of the Wu Clan. Wu Bing is also a martial expert, but he has many years of experience compared to Wu Dang we only broke through recently."
Many smaller groups of youths filed in, representing the smaller clans in Bamboo Root Town. Anthony could see the Li Clan with Li Huang enter last. With the Li clan, over sixty youths had gathered at Lord Ironfist's mansion.
A figure strode out from the main building at that moment. He was a tall, well-built man. He was completely bald but sported a well-maintained beard. He held his hands up to quiet the crowd before speaking in a deep booming voice, "Welcome everyone, I hope you have had the chance to enjoy the food that the chef and his team have spent hours preparing! I know that you are all excited for the Youth Martial Contest to begin, so without further ado, I now begin this year's annual Youth Martial Contest!"