Unparalleled Duo

"Really?" Huang Donglai had been away from home for months, and indeed, he was in the dark, "Ha! That's totally cool, I was just thinking of checking it out myself." He said, nudging Sun Yixie with his elbow, "Brother Sun, in that case, you should come too. If push comes to shove, I can protect you."

"Piss off! Does this old boy need your protection?" Sun Yixie scoffed, "I can take care of myself."

Mr. Sun, sitting by, watched his son and his old friend's son hit it off as if they'd known each other for ages, befuddled but figuring it must be a good thing.

He pondered for a moment, then mused, "Hmm... letting him broaden his horizons isn't a bad thing after all."

"Dad, let's just go with that," Sun Yixie said upon seeing his father's hesitation, "Don't you trust me? It's just a trip to Luoyang, nothing will happen."

At this moment, Sun Yixie wanted to attend the conference for a couple of reasons: firstly, the flattery from Shen Youran had gone to his head; secondly, he'd heard Huang Donglai was going and wanted in on the action; and thirdly, he'd been in this world for over a decade without really leaving Hangzhou City, so he was keen to venture out.

Seeing his son put it that way, Mr. Sun thought, despite his son's illiteracy and lackluster martial skills, he had a sharp mind, and with the Huang family's son for company, he probably wouldn't suffer too much. So, he gave his consent.

With the matter settled, and Mid-Autumn Festival still a ways off, there was no rush to leave.

Master Shen had a busy schedule and planned to leave the next day, but Huang Donglai had nothing pressing, so he decided to stay at the Sun Mansion for a while before heading to Luoyang with Sun Yixie. A carrier pigeon could easily notify his family.

That evening, everyone feasted and drank at the Sun Mansion.

Mr. Sun, having read the letter Huang Donglai brought before the banquet, was in good spirits from seeing his old friend's handwriting, drank a bit too much, and retired early; Shen Youran excused himself to return to the inn when 9 p.m. was nearing.

Thus, at the table, only Sun Yixie and Huang Donglai remained.

Now, they could finally exchange words only "transmigrators" could understand.

"Damn, I thought I'd never meet someone from the old world in this lifetime. If I'd known you'd transmigrated too, we could've hung out sooner," slurred Huang Donglai, having had a few drinks, though the alcohol of that era wasn't very strong due to distillation techniques.

"Ah~ it's all good stuff," Sun Yixie responded, "Now that we've met, we can hang out together again. Let's set aside everything else... With our combined strength, we could definitely make a splash at the Youth Hero Conference."

"Pfft—" Huang Donglai spat out his drink. "Brother Sun, aren't you getting ahead of yourself?" He looked at Sun Yixie with disdain, "I noticed the moment you sat down today. You don't know jack about martial arts, do you?"

"Bullshit!" Sun Yixie retorted stubbornly, "I have learned it, okay?"

"Bullshit!" Huang Donglai replied with equal bluntness, "I'm the one who's trained, so I can tell in one glance that you don't have a trace of Inner Strength in you."

"What?" Sun Yixie raised his voice, "There's such a thing as Inner Strength in this world?"

"No shit! You're just figuring that out?" responded Huang Donglai.

Sun Yixie's eyes darted about, avoiding the question, and instead shot back, "So you have Inner Strength, huh?"

"Of course, I have Inner Strength," Huang Donglai answered confidently, "Hey, I was fortunate enough to land in a world with awesome martial arts and the right conditions to learn them. Why wouldn't I train my ass off?"

"Great!" Sun Yixie exclaimed, slamming his hand on the table. "Well then, if your brother is in a tight spot, shouldn't you share some of your ten-year power with me, so we both benefit?"

"Get lost! I'm not sharing shit!" Huang Donglai rejected, "I started training at the age of five, and it took a full year just to learn how to circulate my breath through all the meridians. Only then did I begin to generate Inner Strength. I've only accumulated ten years of power, and now you want me to share a decade's worth? Are you even human?"

"How about half then? We split it; five years each, deal?" Sun Yixie began to haggle.

"Go to hell!" reprimanded Huang Donglai, taking another drink, "Apart from the fact that I don't know how to 'transfer Inner Strength to others,' someone clueless about even the most basic breathing techniques, with all your energy channels blocked, wouldn't be able to handle the transfer. If someone pumped a load of Inner Strength into you, you'd literally explode, alright?"

"Damn!" Disheartened upon hearing that there was no shortcut, Sun Yixie cursed and sipped his drink.

"Give me a break, have you been binge-watching TV shows or something?" Huang Donglai said, "Training in martial arts inherently doesn't come with shortcuts unless you're a genius with unparalleled talent and are badass by birth. Otherwise, you start with the basics, and without a foundation, it's useless even if some old guy is willing to bestow power on you."

"What about Xuzhu? He didn't have much aptitude, and he became badass through someone else's centuries of power," Sun Yixie argued, unconvinced.

"Before receiving that power transfer, Xuzhu had at least practiced Arhat Fist and Weituo Palm for two years. And who told you he has lousy aptitude? That guy picked up the Heavenly Mountain Broken Plum blossom Hand in just a few days," Huang Donglai pointed out.

"That makes sense," Sun Yixie nodded, "Hey, why don't you teach me some martial arts? With my talent, I bet I'll catch up with you in a few years."

"Heh..." Huang Donglai scoffed, "Sure, it's possible, but what's in it for me?"

"What? You're asking for benefits to teach your brother a thing or two?" Sun Yixie shook his head, "You really are..."

"Alright, alright, let's drop it," Huang Donglai knew if he pushed it further, Sun Yixie would roast him on a moral stake, so he interjected quickly, "I'll write down some basic breathing exercises for you later. Start practicing them daily."

Strictly speaking, he wasn't supposed to do this since the Huang Sect's martial arts were never shared with outsiders, but given their "two-life" friendship, the rules were more relaxed.

"Deal! You said it!" Sun Yixie agreed loudly but then hesitated and added, "Oh, right, you better write it in simplified characters."

"Huh? Why?" Huang Donglai asked, puzzled.

"To prevent theft," Sun Yixie pitched higher, "In case you lose your writing, no one will understand it if it's in simplified characters."

"Hmm, that makes sense," Huang Donglai nodded thoughtfully, but then realized something, "Eh? Hang on, Brother Sun, since when have you been so detail-oriented? This isn't like you."

"Hmph..." Sun Yixie snorted, "What's the big deal? You just don't know me well enough."

Huang Donglai wasn't buying it, "You're telling me you can't read the local script, and that's why you want me to write in simplified characters."

"Bullshit!" This time, Sun Yixie's denial sounded a little weak, and it ended without further ado.

"I'm seriously done with you," Huang Donglai could tell he was right based on Sun Yixie's reaction, "Master Shen must've been blind to invite a clueless illiterate like you to the Youth Hero Conference and even made the trip himself."

At this, Sun Yixie suddenly turned serious, "Right... speaking of Master Shen," he looked around cautiously as if fearing eavesdroppers, then whispered, "I've been thinking it over... and it seems like he might be up to something sinister."