Chapter 20: Internal Force Expert
When Chen Fan arrived at the restaurant, he was surprised to find out that Zhou Tianhao’s bodyguard, A-Biao had injured his arm.
A-Biao’s arm wrapped in bandages was secured in a sling. Chen Fan wagered that someone must have broken it.
“Who did it?” Chen Fan asked curiously.
He knew A-Biao’s strength first hand. Whatever damage he had done to A-Biao from the kick that night should have long-since recovered, so why was his arm broken?
With many questions in his mind, Chen Fan came up to Zhou Tianhao.
“Boss Zhou, I don’t think you wanted me to come here just to hear your apology, so what is it? ”
“I knew I wouldn’t be able to fool you!” Zhou Tianhao was not embarrassed at all by his poor excuse to coax Chen Fan to here. “I need a hand, a small favor from you if you will.”
“I’m all ears.” Chen Fan nodded slightly.
Zhou Tianhao lowered his head and shot Sister Rouge a knowing glance, tell the other people to leave the room. Once everyone else was gone, a wry smile broke over Zhou Tianhao’s face, and he said:
“Since Brother Chen knew Mr. Wei, that puts us on the same side. Let me fill you in on the details.
“One of my competitors who went overseas in the early years is now back on my turf. Since then, he had been racketeering my business; I went to talk some sense with him. Bah! You see what he did to A-Biao, that SOB! ” Zhou Tianhao cursed loudly.
“What does it have to do with me?” Chen Fan’s lips thinned into a smile. He didn’t give a damn about the infighting between criminal scumbags.
“I knew you didn’t care about my problem, but what if I tell you that this guy was really something else—” Zhou Tianhao paused and then heaved a sigh, “he had returned to China all by himself. I am not sure how he did it, but his martial arts skills had increased by leaps and bounds compared to the last time I saw him. He seeks to stir up trouble but is not interested in money. I was all my fault; I really shouldn’t have offended him when we were both young. I have tried to bring as many as a dozen bodyguards with me, but they still got their asses handed over to them.”
“Oh?” Chen Fan’s interest was piqued. He gave A-Biao a look and asked, “How does his strength compare to mine?”
“He is too much for me to handle, that’s for sure. I can’t even withstand a single punch from him. In my opinion, he is more powerful than you.” A-Biao smiled bitterly. “I have been practicing martial arts for more than ten years, and I have never seen such a bad-ass.”
Chen Fan nodded.
He wagered that the martial artist must be an expert of the Internal Forces. As for A-Biao’s comment that seemed to have undermined his power, Chen Fan did not care.
After all, He had only used 30% of his force when he landed that kick on A-Biao; otherwise, he might as well be dead. With his recent advancements in his cultivation, he figured that his attacks should be even more powerful than it was three months ago.
“That prick had asked me to meet him on the island in the middle of Yangui Lake tonight. I would appreciate it if Brother Chen could accompany me.” Zhou Tianhao said in a pleading voice.
Chen Fan knitted his brows; something told him that there was more to this than what meets the eye. However, since he needed money, he conceded that there would be no harm in getting paid for meeting up with another martial artist who used the Internal Force.
Although Zhou Tianhao knew that he was the old man’s friends, he remained skeptical of Chen Fan’s ability. He had invited Chen Fan to accompany merely as a security measure.
“Sure, I will go with you.” Chen Fan nodded.
“Great! ” Zhou Tianhao was elated by Chen Fan’s decision. “Before you leave, I wish to introduce you to another powerful martial artist.”
Chen Fan was right; this “other” martial artist was who Zhou Tianhao is really counting on tonight. He himself was just a contingency measure.
After Sister Rouge had taken a slow sip of her red tea, a group of people started to file into the room.
Zhou Tianhao pushed himself out of the chair and went to the leader of the group with a warm smile.
“Master Guo! You are finally here! Come on in, please!”
The leader of the group was a middle-aged man in a black gym suite. His eyes glinted as he walked into the room with steady and swift steps, trailing behind him a group of young disciples.
Zhou Tianhao introduced the group to Chen Fan, “Brother Chen, this is the master I was talking about. He was master Guo Wei from Wei Shen martial arts school!.”
Guo Wei gave Chen Fan a cold look and said:” A kid? Did you find us a cheerleader? Haha!”
An awkward silence fell into the room. After a while, Zhou Tianhao finally broke the spell:” No, no. This is Brother Chen, don’t let his young age fool you; he is quite a fighter. Just ask A-Biao!”
“It seems that you still have no idea who you are dealing with.” Guo Wei shook his head and said dismissively:” Your bodyguard is just a piece of cake for who you are messing with. He is above the pay grade of any bodyguards.”
“How so?” Zhou Tianhao asked. So far, he hadn’t given any thought about the exact power of his rival.
Chen Fan smiled and kept his thoughts to himself. So far, he had been enjoying the performance of this Master Guo.
He remembered that Mr. Wei told him that in addition to the Wei family, there was also a Wei Shen martial arts school who also used the internal force. Mr. Wei must be talking about this Master Guo and his students. However, it was evident to Chen Fan that the power of Master Guo was pathetic, and no wonder Mr. Wei didn’t seem to take him seriously.
Master Guo regarded Chen Fan with a contemptuous look, and then he asked:
“Boss-Zhou, have you ever heard of something called internal force?”
“Internal Force?” Zhou Tianhao frowned and then murmured: “It sounds very familiar.”
However, the bodyguard A-Biao was stirred by the question. His hulking frame trembled slightly, and then he asked:” Do you mean that person used Internal Force?”
Guo Wei nodded and then gave the bodyguard a look. “If he didn’t use Internal Force, how on earth could he injure your arm so badly with just one punch? The power in the internal force was beyond the limitations of human flesh.”
“A-Biao, did you know anything about it?” Zhou Tianhao asked his bodyguard.
A-Biao managed a smile and then said:” I had heard about it when I was studying under my master. He told me that once a martial artist’s power had reached a certain point, he would be able to emanate his inner energy outward and form the so-called ‘Internal force.’
“I had always thought my teacher was pulling my leg, so I have never paid much attention to it. I also remembered that my teacher told me that it was really difficult for a martial artist to utilize the Internal Force. He had admitted that he had never seen one in his life.”
“Your teacher is right. There are only a handful of people who could use the Internal Force in today’s world. However, those who had the force at their disposal were extremely deadly. Their incredible speed could even render modern weapons such as guns useless.” Guo Wei said. “Of course, being able to use the force did not mean that there was no more room for improvement. One could go even further until they reach the Transcendent State. At that stage, the martial artist was practical a demi-god. ”
Zhou Tianhao’s eyes were filled with disbelief. “Is that true? Why have I never heard of it?”
“Hehe.” Guo Wei simply laughed.
He held out a hand and pressed it gently on the table, palm facing down. When he jerked his hand back, the room had fallen into a pin-drop-silence.
Master Guo’s hand had left a shallow but noticeable impression on the table top.
“Is-is this the Internal Force?” Zhou Tianhao’s eyes were wide with disbelief.
A-Biao felt sweat rolling down his forehead as he wondered what would happen to him if that palm was pressed on his flesh.
Chen Fan watched the development quietly and then shook his head.
What Guo Wei did was nothing compared to what he had done to the willow tree trunk. Not only the table was made out of plastic, but the Internal Force had never left the master’s palm.
Nonetheless, Zhou Tianhao was extremely impressed by what he saw. “So Master Guo also knows how to use the Internal Force! I am relieved. Finally, we can fight against my opponent on even ground.”
With the new found confidence, Zhou Tianhao finally revealed the details about his feud with his enemy. “The guy’s name is Linbao. We had been business competitors when I first started my company. After a few other competitors and I weighed in on him, his company eventually went belly up, and he ran away to overseas. Who would have thought that he would be back as a martial artist? I thank the gods for your help, Master Guo. I haven’t been able to fall asleep for many weeks because of the mess.”
After that, Zhou Tianhao took out a briefcase and pushed it into Guo Wei’s arms.
“Master Guo, here is the first half: five million. After we have settled the score with my old friend, I will wire you the other five million to your account. I will also introduce you to my boss, Wei ‘San-ye’. I am sure San-ye could use your talent too. ”
Hearing Zhou Tianhao’s words, Guo Wei smiled satisfyingly.
Although the money was good, he didn’t offer his help to Zhou Tianhao just for the money; he did it to be connected with Zhou Tianhao’s powerful boss.
Chen Fan watched and didn’t say a thing.
He wagered that neither Zhou Tianhao nor Master Guo knew that Mr. Wei was also a powerful martial artist. As a matter of fact, even Wei San-ye’s niece was a more powerful Internal Force expert than Guo Wei was.
At the dining table, Guo Wei had quickly become the center of everyone’s attention. Everyone fawned over him for the protection he had promised to provide.
They were truly shocked by Guo Wei’s display of strength; his usage of the Internal Forces had been an eye-opener for them.
Chen Fan left the dining table and made a phone call to Sister Ying and the head teacher to ask for the afternoon off.
After the lunch, Guo Wei took upon himself to come up with a list of people that he would bring with him. They were Zhou Tianhao, A-Biao, two gunmen, and one of his apprentices who had also practiced Internal Force. Together, the six of them will meet with Linao on the island.
Seeing that Chen Fan was not included in the list, Zhou Tianhao said:
“Guo Master, I have also invited Brother Chen to join me. Why don’t you bring him with you as well? ”
“I have told you why. It’s not a fight for just anybody. He won’t stand one punch from Linbao.” Guo Wei complained.
Zhou Tianhao grimaced as he looked at Chen Fan and then back at Master Guo.
Chen Fan said faintly:” Since you have already invited me, I must protect you.
“Plus, I don’t believe in high tales about Internal Forces and immortals and what not.”
“You are too young too simple, sometimes naive!” Guo Wei sneered.
Despite his hesitation, Zhou Tianhao eventually decided to let Chen Fan tag along. After all, this boy was a friend of the elderly man.
Guo Wei snorted and let the matter rest unwillingly.
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