Writing Novels Will Make You Invincible

Chapter 45 : The Vibe of a Real Expert is Being Lonely at the Top

The Vibe of a Real Expert is Being Lonely at the Top

The entire group stage wrapped up in just one day.

By afternoon, all four age groups had finished their preliminaries, and every qualifying spot was decided.

The elimination rounds didn't need a draw. Instead, the Martial Arts Tournament’s organizing committee would create the match-up list based on the contestants' qualification scores and their original groups.

The brackets will be posted online on the official Martial Arts Association website tomorrow morning.

After the group stage ended, Chu Tianxing planned to head home and train, but Qin Ling dragged him off to the commercial plaza to buy clothes.

Standing in a men's clothing store, Chu Tianxing was totally lost.

“Um, are you… buying me clothes? Why? My birthday was last month.”

Qin Ling didn’t even look up from the rack she was searching.

"The elimination rounds are going to be televised. Everyone in the city will see you on TV, so you need to look sharp. Here, try this one first."

“Please, I could wear anything and make it look good. This is a total waste of money.”

Chu Tianxing muttered under his breath but still took the coat Qin Ling handed him.

It was a black men’s trench coat with a stand-up collar, a wide, stiff belt, and slits up the sides. It looked exactly like an Imperial Guard uniform.

Well, it basically was a high-quality knockoff of an Imperial Guard outfit.

They said that the Embroidered Uniform Guard even gave it their official stamp of approval so long as it didn’t have their signature flying fish design on it.

Chu Tianxing shrugged off his jacket, slipped on the coat, and tied the belt.

The second the coat was on, Qin Ling’s eyes practically sparkled. She couldn’t stop praising herself, “I have such good taste.”

The trench coat fit Chu Tianxing like it was custom-tailored, perfectly highlighting his upright posture and elegant yet masculine aura.

Chu Tianxing walked back and forth a few steps, then glanced in the fitting room mirror before turning back to ask Qin Ling, “So? What’s the verdict? Good enough for TV?”

“Good enough? It’s perfect.”

Qin Ling gave him a thumbs up, then frowned and muttered to herself:

Qin Ling shot him a big thumbs-up. But then her brow crinkled, and she started thinking, Wait a second. If I make him look this good, won’t a bunch of other girls be all over him? Did I just shoot myself in the foot?

While she was lost in thought, Chu Tianxing asked, “So, this is the one?”

After hesitating for a moment, Qin Ling finally gritted her teeth, "We'll take this one! But let's look at some others too!"

At the same time, she thought to herself. Okay, this coat is just for me. He’s wearing something else on TV.

She took the coat off him, handed it to the salesperson to bag it up, and immediately dragged him off to keep shopping.

But just like he’d said, the guy was a walking mannequin. You could put him in anything as long as it fit, and he’d look amazing.

This made Qin Ling feel pretty mixed up inside.

It used to be just his face that was good-looking. But now, after that Creation Pill, he’s hitting a growth spurt and his body is getting better too. Broad shoulders, narrow waist, long legs… he looks like a freaking idol no matter what he wears. I’m feeling the pressure here…

But what she was thinking was one thing, and her actions were another entirely.

She just kept happily making him try on clothes, and every time he looked good in something, she’d whip out her card and buy it in a heartbeat.

Before they knew it, they'd hit several stores.

They'd bought a whole pile of clothes, several pairs of pants, and multiple pairs of shoes ranging from sneakers to dress shoes to combat boots...

"Ling'er, that's enough."

Chu Tianxing was loaded down with shopping bags like a human pack mule, giving Qin Ling a helpless look. "Any more and we won't be able to carry it all. Besides, I don’t even have enough days in the week to wear all this…”

Qin Ling was unmoved and walked enthusiastically toward another men's clothing store. "You've grown taller and stronger recently, so all your old clothes at home are too small and don't fit properly. That's why we need to buy plenty today."

Chu Tianxing said:

“But what if I keep growing?” Chu Tianxing asked. “Then all this stuff will be too small in a few months, right?”

Qin Ling stopped dead in her tracks. “Oh. Huh. That’s… a good point.”

Chu Tianxing smiled. "So let's call it quits for today."

Qin Ling thought about it and nodded with some reluctance.

"Fine, we'll stop here for today. When you make it to nationals and we go to the Imperial Capital, I'll buy you new stuff then."

So they finished shopping, left the mall, and took a taxi home.

By the time they got back to Chu Tianxing's place, it was about dinner time, so Qin Ling stayed to cook.

She tied on an apron, rolled up her sleeves, and grabbed a cleaver. One swift chop, and she’d sliced right through a tough beef rib.

A few more chops and the entire beef rib was divided into several pieces of almost identical length.

While chopping the ribs, she asked Chu Tianxing.

“In past years, before every contestant entered the elimination round, they’d always design some flashy entrance moves. Like a standing jump with ten and a half aerial spins, or a soaring falcon strike, or doing over a hundred consecutive flips. Tianxing, have you thought about designing some kind of entrance move?”

Chu Tianxing looked surprised. “It’s just a fight. Why do we really need all that flashy stuff?"

Qin Ling said, “It’s tradition. A tradition of the Martial Arts Tournament.”

Chu Tianxing thought for a moment. "How about I do the splits when I enter? Would that work?"

"..."

Qin Ling's mouth twitched, her knife work went haywire, and she nearly chopped through the cutting board.

She gave Chu Tianxing a pretty glare that was half annoyed and half amused. “Be serious, would you? There will be thousands of people in the stands and who knows how many watching on TV. And your big move, in front of everyone, is doing the splits? How thick do you think your skin is?”

Chu Tianxing shrugged.

"What else can I do? I'm all about substance, not performance! Anyway, what about you? What’s your big entrance?”

Qin Ling's face fell. “Honestly… I’m terrible at that stuff too. I was kind of hoping you’d come up with something for me. Guess that’s a lost cause.”

He nodded sagely. “You know, I think warriors like us should be a little more stoic. None of that flashy nonsense. I mean, look at DJ Tathagata…”

Uh, wait. DJ Tathagata's entrances involved crackling electricity all over his body and built-in background music, which was even flashier.

Bad example.

So Chu Tianxing switched gears.

"Look at Sword Sovereign Xingyun, Thunder God Yu Jiang, and Daoist Xichen when they showed up the other day; they were silent and low-key. Real experts need to be steady and reliable. Ideally, you gotta have that ‘lonely at the top’ vibe. That’s the mark of a true expert.”

“But if everyone’s doing a routine and we just walk out, aren’t we going to look like weirdos?” Qin Ling asked.

Chu Tianxing thought about that. “A crane doesn’t try to blend in with chickens. We’re geniuses. We’re supposed to stand out by not fitting in, don't you think?"

Qin Ling's eyes brightened. "Not bad, Tianxing. I didn't expect you to have such high aspirations."

Chu Tianxing laughed, "It's just the two of us here, so a little bragging doesn't hurt. No outsiders to hear it, so no one can laugh at us."

So they chatted while they cooked. It was mostly Qin Ling cooking, with Chu Tianxing helping out, and dinner was on the table before long.

After happily finishing dinner and cleaning up, Qin Ling was about to say goodbye and leave when Chu Tianxing suddenly called out.

"Wait, don't go yet."

Qin Ling got a little nervous and instinctively covered her chest with both hands. "What is it?"

"Nothing big. I just noticed during your match today that your leg techniques have much room for improvement. I happen to know some leg work too, so how about you stay tonight and we practice leg techniques together? Maybe I can help you improve a little and give you better odds in the elimination rounds."