The stars and moon decorate the night, shining in place as if to wait for the arrival of someone. Beneath their watchful gazes, the sound of wind sweeps across the central plains. The wind bends and twists as it meanders through a wooded area before arriving at a massive circular clearing in the middle of the woods. At the center of the clearing, an open flame wisps and flickers in response to the passing breeze.

Aside from the rustling of the leaves, an occasional crackling would fill the air as the fire rages, unwilling to be snuffed out by the likes of a meager breeze. The wild glow from its unbreakable will lights up the figure of a lone man, sitting cross-legged beside the fire. His hair, long and dark with streaks of white, rests behind his broad shoulders, occasionally lifting with the passing wind.

“Give it up, boy. You’re not fooling anyone.” The man’s eyes snap open upon detecting the presence of another person. His lips curl into a gentle smile upon seeing the teenager trying to sneak up on him, hiding behind the raging fire. “This renowned master is surprised you’re able to get this close without making a sound.”

“What? Renowned master? Where?!” The boy lifts his palm over his brows, swiveling his head around to look for this ‘renowned master’ the man spoke of. Upon seeing nobody except for the man, his face distorts with exaggeration. “Oh… You mean you. Give it up, old man. You might be able to fool my naive little sister, but not me. A renowned master with such basic martial arts? As if.”

“Bahahaha! ‘Basic’?” The man breaks into a hearty laugh. Setting the straight sword resting on his lap aside, the man rises. “I suppose everything is basic in the face of true talent.”

Towering above the raging fire, the man pats the ashes off his robe before looking around for something. His eyes land upon a straight branch protruding from a tree to his right. He makes his way towards the tree with gentle steps.

Upon arriving, he extends a single finger towards the branch before flicking downwards. With a resounding crack, the branch is suddenly separated from the tree. The man catches the entire branch by the widest part, leaves and all, as it falls towards the ground. With his outstretched finger, the man’s hand suddenly blurs before disappearing. A split moment later, it reappears by his side, accompanied by the gentle sound of smaller branches and leaves hitting the ground. After a short moment of observing the branch, the man nods lightly before tossing it towards the boy.

“Come again then, boy.” The man folds one arm behind his back as he stretches the other palm out. “Let this renowned master show you the difference between the talented and experienced.”

The boy, trying to hide the aching pain all over his body, keeps a straight face as he lowers himself to pick up the branch. With his fingers wrapped firmly around one end, the boy lowers his head to hide his expression as he pushes himself upright.

“Can you stop trying to sound like some sort of enlightened wise master, old man?” Turning his gaze back to the man standing in front of him, the boy slides one foot in front of the other before bending his knees. He lifts the branch up to his eyes, keeping it perfectly stable as he aims the end of the branch at the man. “It doesn’t fit you.”

“Bahahahaha! Brace yourself, boy!” The man roars as he lifts his heel. Digging his toes into the dirt, he bends his knees. “Lest you end up bruised and battered again!”

With a wide grin on his face, the man kicks off against the ground, disappearing from where he stands. As dirt and rubble float towards the sky from the crater he left behind, the boy furrows his brows as he braces for impact. Seeing the fire flicker in response to the shifting air, a smirk stretches across the boy’s face.

Too slow old man!

With his center of gravity above his right leg, the boy sweeps left foot backwards. Following the movement of his leg, he twists towards the direction of the changing air pressure. Digging the sweeping feet into the ground, the boy kicks off towards the pale blue blur approaching him. As he and the blur approach one another, the boy stabs the branch forwards.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

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The boy’s eyes grow wide upon feeling the sensation of striking empty space. In the same instant that the branch pierced through the blue blur, it disappeared. Sensing a slight shift in air pressure behind him, the boy stomps his front foot into the ground and uses it as a pivot. Allowing the momentum to carry the rest of his body spinning around the pivot, he repositions himself to face the blur once again.

As the blue blur approaches with blinding speed, the boy redirects the momentum of the branch, curving the tip around and striking forth.

Dammit!

Again, he strikes empty air.

“Just where are you looking, boy?”

The voice, paired with an immense rush of pressure approaching from behind, causes the boy to whip his head back around. Having put all his body weight into the strike, he knows that he won’t be able to recover his footing in time to dodge. Instead, the boy grips the branch with both hands and infuses it with aura, hoping to at least be able to block the attack. As his head completes the turn, he’s greeted by the sight of a palm blurring forth towards his face. He tries to lift the branch in front of him to intercept the palm, but quickly realizes that although his brain can register the movement of the palm, his body still lags behind.

“Too slow once again, boy!”

Everything falls silent as soon as the palm comes to a sudden stop past the boy’s face, no further than a centimeter from grazing his ear. The immense rush of pressure that the boy had hastily reacted to suddenly disappears. Amidst the silence, he hears an almost imperceivable rumbling around the palm. The rumbling grows louder and louder as the air around the palm becomes denser and denser.

The boy rolls his eyes upon seeing the fat grin on the man’s face. He bends his knees, falling into a squat beneath the palm, and drops the branch before covering both of his ears with his aura-infused hands. Feeling the air pressure above him nearing its absolute limit, the boy braces himself.

With a resounding, thunderous clap, the air around the palm explodes forth into the night sky, grazing the top of a tree and disintegrating the leaves and branches along the way. Despite isolating his sense of hearing, the boy flinches upon feeling the shockwave from the explosion.

As the rumbling fades, the boy glances up at the man. Seeing the grin still on his face, the boy flashes a devious smirk as he reaches for the branch. Holding it firmly with both hands, he flexes his legs, kicking forth and stabbing the end of the stick into the man’s abdomen.

“BAHAHAHA!” The old man breaks into a hearty laugh as he intercepts the strike with his other hand, grabbing the tip of the branch and blocking it from striking his midsection. “Little rascal, you have no shame. Did you really think I’d fall for that one again?”

The boy ignores the taunt. He pulls on the branch with all his might while kicking off the ground, sending his body flying above the man’s towering figure. In midair, the boy twists his hip and whips his leg up and around.

The man chuckles as he watches the foot crash through the air towards his shoulder. Seeing the boy using the branch as the pivot point for his kick, the man pushes the branch forwards, shifting the boy a few centimeters back.

Once again, the boy barely misses his mark. Undeterred by the constant failures, he stomps his kicking foot onto the ground before twisting his hip to redirect the momentum into a spinning back kick towards the man’s face.

Observing the slight adjustment in the boy's hip as his foot touched the ground, the man sees the follow up kick coming even before it starts. He chuckles once again as he whips the branch behind the boy’s leg. The impact causes the boy’s knee to buckle, sending him tumbling across the ground.

“So? How ‘bout it, boy?” The man adjusts his footing to face the boy. “Bow three times and take me as your master.”

“I won.” The boy pushes himself off the ground before dusting off his beige hemp top.

“Hmm? Just what part of that looked like a victory for you? Boy, for someone so talented, you sure are slow. Bahahahaha!”

“Old man, for an enlightened master, you sure are dumb.”

The man breaks into another heart laugh before tossing the branch back towards the boy. The branch hits the ground with a light thud. Hearing the sound, the man’s eyes grow wide as he suddenly realizes his mistake.

“Took you long enough.” The boy chuckles as he bends down to pick up the branch. Sliding one foot forwards, the boy bends his knees and raises the branch to his eyes. With the tip pointing at the man, he smirks. “You used both hands. It’s my win.”

"Again!"

“What does it look like I’m doing, old man?” The boy asks, confused by the man’s request.

“What are you on about, boy?” The man raises a brow at the strange question. “I didn’t say anything.”