Chapter 180: Kyle, the American Boxing Champion

Knock, knock, knock…

As the door opened, Ouyang Zhenli stood in the doorway, gazing at Cheng Yao with a playful tease in her eyes. "You really couldn't wait to rush over, didn't you, Mr. Pervert?"

"Are your skin and bones itching for a beating?"

Cheng Yao stepped inside, tucked Ouyang Zhenli under one arm, closed the door behind him with the other hand, and tossed her onto the bed.

"Oof…"

Ouyang Zhenli's eyes were full of stubborn defiance. "Mr. Pervert, are you seriously trying to force yourself on me in broad daylight? Surely things haven't reached that point yet—"

"You've got it wrong. I purely just want to beat you up. We haven't seen each other in a while, and your sharp tongue has gotten worse!"

Cheng Yao pinned her down and called out, "Aili, come give me a hand."

"Coming!"

Ouyang Aili, who was washing her hands, rushed over. Her absolute favorite activity was helping Cheng Yao bully Ouyang Zhenli, especially on certain occasions.

Smack, smack, smack!

Ouyang Zhenli felt utterly aggrieved, trying to resist as she cursed, "Traitor!"

"Sister, just gracefully surrender, so you won't be too embarrassed later tonight."

An evil smile hung on Ouyang Aili's face as her fair fingers clawed through the air. With a flick from Cheng Yao, Aili hugged her head and squatted down in the corner.

After letting Ouyang Zhenli go, Cheng Yao finally asked, "How are we sorting out dinner?"

"You don't need to worry about us, just go eat by yourself."

Ouyang Zhenli pouted, lowering her head to inspect her clothes to make sure they weren't too rumpled.

Cheng Yao patted her head and said after a moment of thought, "Let's just order some takeout. There isn't much fun outside anyway. Tomorrow daytime, you two can take a ride to Qinghai Lake; the scenery there is nice, but I wouldn't really recommend anywhere else."

"Mm, okay."

After ordering takeout, Cheng Yao leaned back on the sofa to check his messages while Ouyang Aili leaned against him, playing a game. As for the older sister, she was rather reserved…

Reserved my ass. She was lying flat on her bed, her skirt flipped up just enough to reveal a glimpse of color.

Cheng Yao double-checked to make sure she wasn't deliberately trying to seduce him.

The older sister was rational, true, but on certain occasions, she was even more stubborn and intense than her younger sister.

Now that both sisters had arrived, Cheng Yao knew he couldn't escape his fate tonight; the daily routine followed him relentlessly.

Even though there was a match tomorrow, his physical condition was top-notch. Warming up with a round of combat tonight shouldn't pose any major issues.

That evening, Lin Sujia and the others invited him out shopping.

Cheng Yao politely declined. First of all, he disliked shopping, especially not as a date with a girlfriend. Secondly, with the two sisters present, he didn't really feel like leaving his cozy paradise.

By ten o'clock, Qin Haoran asked, "What did Cheng Yao say?"

"He said he's not going to the bar. Chen Xingyan and Lin Sujia aren't going either."

"Forget it, let's just go ourselves."

"Let's move."

While they were heading to the bar, the bed in a certain hotel room began to vibrate as well.

[Your intimacy level with your cultivation girlfriend 'Ouyang Zhenli' has reached ninety. You have obtained one barrier capsule.]

Late into the night, Cheng Yao continued to teach Ouyang Aili how to play the woodwind instrument.

However, Ouyang Aili proved to be a natural without needing any instruction.

By the time both girls had fallen asleep, Cheng Yao was still full of energy, perhaps feeling a bit hyped up because of tomorrow's upcoming match.

Or perhaps due to other reasons entirely…

As he looked at the cozy haven on his left and right, the sense of satisfaction and achievement in his heart was beyond description. For an ordinary person, keeping this up would simply be impossible.

He opened his phone to browse some short videos and frowned.

Lately, that self-proclaimed time traveler from 2027 named Javier had gotten quite popular, and Cheng Yao felt it was getting a bit too absurd.

Have human intelligence levels really dropped to such a foolish degree nowadays?

Cheng Yao couldn't say for sure whether time travelers actually existed, since his own situation was completely inexplicable. But if a real time traveler were foolish enough to publicize themselves, they would've been dragged off for research long ago. Would he really be strutting around showing off on the internet?

Even if he had amnesia, how could he forget everything except the fact that he was a time traveler?

Amnesia was truly too cliché; his storyline wasn't even keeping up with social trends. Cheng Yao seriously wanted to send him a private message: these days, time travelers always come with their own golden fingers.

History proved that there truly were a lot of idiots in the world.

The guy's social media account already had over three million followers. Even if two million nine hundred and ninety thousand were just rubberneckers, there were still ten thousand complete morons among them.

Fortunately, such blockheads were mostly found abroad.

…

Early the next morning, Qin Haoran and the others looked groggy and hungover, clearly having failed to get a good night's sleep. They had already bought car emblems, declaring they intended to sleep in the vehicles.

The original promise of coming to cheer him on dwindled down until only Lin Sujia remained.

Lin Sujia didn't find it boring either; she had already arranged with Chen Xingyan to go sightseeing by car after the match concluded, treating their previous itinerary and travel guide as mere reference material.

Plans could never keep up with changes; traveling out west was always like this.

Ouyang Aili and Ouyang Zhenli had been thoroughly satisfied the previous night. When they woke up in the morning, both of them were glowing with radiance and full of vigor.

Soil nourished by rain always looked healthier and more vibrant than ordinary fields.

"Tonight, we'll go cheer you on and root for you too."

"The travel time back and forth is about the same—did you buy your tickets?"

After Ouyang Aili and Zhenli left, Cheng Yao went out for lunch with Chen Ruiyong and Chen Xingyan, enjoyed some afternoon tea, and arrived at the sports center as usual by three in the afternoon.

Today, the entrance of the sports center was already packed with cars since early morning, and more vehicles kept arriving, forcing them to park in the underground garage.

Figures stepped briskly out of the cars, carrying backpacks with robust, muscular physiques—Americans, Thais, and Indian fighters alike…

These professional fighters usually looked no different from ordinary people, but once they stepped into the arena, they turned into the most ferocious wolves.

Professionals greeted one another, especially those who were already acquainted. After all, the top-tier events were limited, and there was a chance some of them had even traded blows before.

"Hello, I'm a reporter from Qinghai XX Media. Are you guys here to watch the match?"

At that moment, a pretty reporter passing by noticed Cheng Yao and Chen Xingyan, and walked up with a smiling question.

After all, two people with such high attractiveness appearing here so early made it hard not to notice them.

Chen Ruiyong spoke politely into the microphone, "We're here to participate."

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you were spectators. Where are you all from?"

"Jinling Martial Arts Association."

"Jinling? That's quite far. Are you confident about this competition?"

Chen Ruiyong instinctively glanced at Cheng Yao and nodded.

The female reporter continued to press, "Then may I ask, which country do you think the tournament champion will come from?"

"That's hard to say. The skill levels among professional fighters aren't that far apart. Considering various factors, I can only say anything is possible."

"Alright, I hope you achieve great results."

Entering the stadium, staff members were busy maintaining order.

Chen Ruiyong said, "Let's go say hello. Over there are the members of the Qinghai Martial Arts Association."

Looking from afar, Cheng Yao spotted the large characters for the Qinghai Martial Arts Association. Banners had already been hung up. It was still early; some spectators had arrived ahead of time, but not many.

Tonight, Qinghai's largest fighting competition would unfold right here.

Chen Xingyan walked alongside him and asked, "Nervous?"

"Me?"

Cheng Yao shook his head. He was completely at ease. You could say his mindset was more optimistic and untroubled than anyone else's. If a minor scene like this could make him nervous, he would have lived his life in vain.

Whether someone was nervous,

and just how nervous they were,

depended entirely on an individual's self-confidence.

Someone overflowing with confidence like him, who had never been beaten down by harsh reality, would never feel nervous or scared.

As for being beaten down by society, he didn't think a tournament like this could possibly teach him any harsh lessons.

By this time, Chen Ruiyong was already exchanging greetings with the locals from Qinghai.

"Hello, hello! Welcome to Qinghai. Good luck with the matches."

"Let's all do our best."

Chen Ruiyong glanced at Chen Xingyan and said, "I'm going to go talk to some acquaintances. If you two don't want to come, feel free to walk around and just meet back here later."

"Let's go," Chen Xingyan said, turning on her heel.

Cheng Yao didn't care for socializing either. He enjoyed chatting with girls, but interacting with other men was a different story.

They took a stroll and happened to wander into the foreign fighters' area. An American fighter stood there talking animatedly. Upon seeing Chen Xingyan, he flashed a confident set of white teeth and asked with a smile, "Want an autograph?"

"?"

Chen Xingyan was a bit dumbfounded, and Cheng Yao was momentarily stunned as well.

Stephen Kyle spread his hands. "Guess not. Hello there, beautiful lady, my name is Stephen Kyle. Nice to meet you."

Chen Xingyan looked at Stephen Kyle and remarked, "The American champion."

"That's right."

Stephen Kyle smiled with heartfelt confidence, though it was hard to tell if that confidence came from his height of one meter seventy.

Chen Xingyan tapped Cheng Yao on the shoulder. "He says he's really looking forward to sparring with you in the arena."

Cheng Yao didn't even want to dignify that with a response; Chen Xingyan loved stirring up trouble at crucial moments.

As a heavy-puncher type of fighter, Stephen Kyle boasted a past record of thirty consecutive wins and three losses, making the title of champion entirely well-deserved.

He glanced at Cheng Yao and his seemingly slender build, merely gave a nod, and shrugged.

"Sure."

Clearly, he didn't take Cheng Yao seriously at all.

He didn't believe this Chinese youth, who still looked like a student, could pose any threat to him.

After Chen Xingyan and Cheng Yao walked away, Stephen Kyle scoffed mockingly, "Has China run out of people? Do they need to send students into the ring now?"

"Hahaha, Kyle, don't put it like that. Their club still has plenty of people."

"Isn't it an association?"

"It's just a club—fighters who aren't even worth a warm-up."

…

Cheng Yao asked out of curiosity, "Do you know him?"

"I've read up on him. Stephen Kyle is considered a very strong professional fighter in the 130-pound division. His technique isn't particularly refined, but his combination punches are fierce, and he made his name through them."

Cheng Yao asked, "Combination punches, huh? How do they compare to mine?"

"Not sure. Just comparing pure strength, I feel like two of him wouldn't match up to you…"

Chen Xingyan wasn't entirely certain either. She genuinely felt that Cheng Yao's strength was almost absurdly high; even her older brother Chen Ruiyong had mentioned it in private.

Cheng Yao glanced back at the so-called American champion and muttered, "If I take him down, will he think I'm on drugs?"

"That's actually quite possible. When they do the urine test later, there won't be a single drop of actual urine!"

Chen Xingyan chuckled playfully as well.

…

*(Author's Note: I've been feeling completely drained lately, just lacking any spirit or energy.)*