Time passed quickly, and Chen Zheng had already been in this world for a year and a half. He had roughly figured out the flow of time here. Six months ago, Huo Yuanjia's daughter, Huo Cui, was born. Chen Zheng remembered that this little girl would eventually die at the hands of Qin Ye's son. The movie didn't specify her age, but based on her appearance, she would have been around five or six years old when she died, meaning there were still five or six years left before Huo Yuanjia's demise.
This world's history was vastly different from the one Chen Zheng knew. For instance, the Opium War, in his historical knowledge, began in 1840, but in this world, it started in 1860—twenty years later. This discrepancy was likely one of the reasons why certain events in Huo Yuanjia's life differed from the history Chen Zheng had learned.
In the year and a half that had passed, the most significant changes had occurred in both Huo Yuanjia and Chen Zheng.
Since Chen Zheng first became Huo Yuanjia's disciple, Huo Yuanjia had been participating in fighting tournaments every four to five months. However, recently, he had been fighting every two to three months, and each contest was becoming more dangerous, with stronger opponents. Despite the increased frequency and difficulty, Huo Yuanjia's skills were improving as well. Chen Zheng couldn't quite articulate it, but he could sense that Huo Yuanjia had undergone a major transformation. Two months ago, after a week-long retreat, Huo Yuanjia returned with a completely new aura, as if he had been reborn.
Chen Zheng's own progress over the year and a half had been just as noticeable. Originally, Huo Yuanjia had planned for him to spend three years focusing solely on the Horse Stance, but Chen Zheng's natural talent and hard work had far exceeded his expectations. In just a year and a half, he had reached the level Huo Yuanjia had set for him.
"Ha!"
"Bang..."
"Finally, I've done it. I've entered the Mingjin stage!" Chen Zheng thought to himself as he broke a wooden staff the size of a teacup with a punch.
Through his training, Chen Zheng had learned that martial artists could be divided into several stages: Mingjin (Bright Strength), Anjin (Hidden Strength), Huajin (Transforming Strength), and eventually, the grandmaster level. There were other stages above that, but Huo Yuanjia hadn't explained them to Chen Zheng, only hinting that the grandmaster stage had been unattained for many years.
"Big Brother, Master is going to the tournament. Do you want to go see it?"
"Sure, I'll change clothes and come right away!"
Over the past year, Huo Yuanjia had taken on more disciples. Like Chen Zheng, they were all young and eager to follow him after seeing him win a match. Since Chen Zheng was Huo Yuanjia's first disciple, the others called him "Big Brother."
At the northern arena.
"The death match agreement has been signed. Victory depends on the man, life and death on fate. Two martial artists, the match begins!"
It was the same old elderly man who acted as the referee. He was a martial artist who practiced internal martial arts and held a high status in Tianjin. Even Huo Yuanjia called him "Shibo" (martial uncle). Because of his seniority, he had the privilege of being the witness for the tournament.
This time, Huo Yuanjia's opponent was the head of the Hongtian Martial Arts School in the southern part of the city. His specialty was Xingyi Quan, a martial art known for its aggressive, forward-driving fighting spirit. It was a style that emphasized relentless attacking and forward motion, and from what Chen Zheng could tell, the schoolmaster was only at a basic level in it.
The moment the schoolmaster struck, Chen Zheng could already tell he wasn't a match for Huo Yuanjia. Huo Yuanjia, now, had a presence that was very different from the first time Chen Zheng had seen him fight. He wasn't rushing to attack; he was waiting for his opponent.
The reason Huo Yuanjia didn't initiate an attack was something Chen Zheng realized was a consequence of his exposure to too many martial arts dramas—he had always associated defensive fighting with "true masters," even though he knew that this assumption was wrong.
The schoolmaster of the Hongtian Martial Arts School launched the most powerful strike in Xingyi Quan—the Cannon Punch, a fierce and forceful move designed to overwhelm the opponent with sheer power. But rather than avoiding it, Huo Yuanjia met the blow head-on with his own punch. It was a direct collision of strength.
The schoolmaster, believing his punch would be unstoppable, grinned smugly. However, after the two punches collided, Huo Yuanjia remained still, while the schoolmaster was sent stumbling backward, taking seven or eight steps before regaining his balance.
The schoolmaster hid his hurt hand behind his back, trying to maintain a composed expression, but it was clear he was trying to hide the pain. However, the spectators noticed and laughed.
"Hahahaha!"
The crowd burst into laughter at the sight.
Hearing the laughter, the schoolmaster's face turned crimson with shame, and his anger flared. He rushed back toward Huo Yuanjia, hoping to redeem himself, but the difference in their strength was too great to be overcome by rage alone.
After five rounds, the schoolmaster was forced out of the arena.
"Huo Yuanjia wins!"
"Master Huo, you're amazing!"
"Huo Yuanjia! Huo Yuanjia!"
"Nine wins in a row! He truly is incredible!"
Huo Yuanjia smiled and cupped his fists in return to the crowd's cheers.
"Master!"
"Ah, Kan, let's go. We're going to Guyuetlou tonight. We won't leave until we're drunk!"
"Yes, Master!"
As always, after a victory, Huo Yuanjia made it a tradition to celebrate at Guyuetlou, a popular restaurant in the city.
At Guyuetlou.
"Uncle Nong!"
"Ah Kan, did Yuanjia win again?"
"Yes, he did!"
Over the past year and a half, Chen Zheng had developed a good relationship with Nong Jinsun, a scholar who was close to Huo Yuanjia. Both men were intellectuals, and since Chen Zheng had knowledge from a hundred years ahead, they often had stimulating conversations.
When Chen Zheng and Nong Jinsun stepped out of the restaurant, he saw a scene straight out of the movie—a group of about ten people rushed into the restaurant to become disciples of Huo Yuanjia.
"Good, good, good, all brave men! I accept you all. Drink this bowl of wine and we'll be brothers from now on!"
"Yes!"
Nong Jinsun frowned slightly as he watched Huo Yuanjia take on so many disciples without any real screening. While he respected Huo Yuanjia as a close friend, he didn't entirely approve of his indiscriminate acceptance of students.
"Uncle Nong, we'll talk another day. I'm going to join Master now."
"Alright, you go ahead!"
That night, Huo Yuanjia was in high spirits. On the surface, it seemed like he was celebrating his victory against a powerful opponent who had previously won seven matches in a row. But Chen Zheng could sense that what really thrilled Huo Yuanjia was the breakthrough he had made two months ago.
Simply put, after that retreat, Huo Yuanjia's combat ability had reached a new level.
The next morning, Chen Zheng arrived at the training grounds at four a.m. sharp, but Huo Yuanjia was nowhere to be seen. It wasn't until six o'clock, during breakfast, that Chen Zheng saw his master.
This was the first time since he became Huo Yuanjia's disciple that he hadn't seen his master practicing early in the morning.