[You've reached 1,000 heavenly Qi]
"Eh." 1,000 Qi wasn't a threshold anywhere. If he remembered 1,200 was what he needed to ascend to the 2nd realm.
[Unlocking special training quest - The Punching of Forum Shadows. Reward - the cultivation Technique - The Banned Punch]
"EHHHH?"
[Teleporting...]
Huang Lu was suddenly teleported to a strange place with all these floating shadows. The shadows saw him and laughed.
"Look at this pathetic Huang Lu. He doesn't even know that he is nothing but a mote of dust suspended on a sunbeam."
Huang Lu turned around and didn't see anyone. There were just shadows. They spoke.
"Look at this Huang Lu. All he does is trash. The things he writes are trash. The things he practice are trash. The ones who write his fate doesn't know what he's doing and it's pathetic."
Huang Lu looked for the voice. What's the point of this place?
"Pathetic. Doesn't even have character growth or personality development."
Huang Lu looked around. No. The name of the quest is the Forum of Punching Shadows.
"His fate is so cliche and typical."
"He's just playing off a singular attractive trope, and then milking it dry."
Huang Lu felt anger, and he punched. The shadow vanished with a scream. Somehow, it felt damned satisfying.
"Does the fates have no creativity? Why does he have such a boring middle part of the story? The training arc is too damned long. Stop sleeping and kick some ass already."
Huang Lu punched again. And another shadow vanished.
"Where's the spoteefai preemium?"
Huang Lu wondered what the hell was that.
"Look at this corny synopsis. Numbers go BRRR? The fuck is that?!" Another shadow yelped when he punched it. He got it. His mission was to punch all the shadows!
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
He punched. And punched.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.
Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.
Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.
Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch.Punch
PunchPunch
it felt fucking good. Each punch felt like he was punching a part of his anger away. Who were these assholes that kept saying all these pathetic things.
"Look at this pathetic fate-writer, attempting to create something with this lowlife called Huang Lu. He should never ever cultivate again-"
Punch.
It felt good.
He punched every single shadow he saw, and each punch felt absolutely, ridiculously enjoyable. It felt like he took out his anger on the shitty people that haunted his life.
There was a shadow. It glowed red.
"Oho, you dare approach me?" The shadow said.
"I can't punch you without getting closer."
"Then come. I am the big boss of this stage, and I shall insult you."
Huang Lu punched. The red shadow did not vanish. Instead, it became even bigger. "OHO. Your anger fuels me. Tell me, Huang Lu, do you know why so many others fail?"
Huang Lu wondered whether this was a quiz. "Because they were not lucky." He punched again. It was true. Luck played a big part in the success of people. The fact that he was born poor was down to luck. The fact that he didn't have parents, was also luck. The fact that he didn't have many things in life, was luck. It was luck that the young master was born to a powerful family, and it was luck that Huang Lu stumbled on what he achieved today.
Luck was the starting point of everything. And if they started unlucky, it would often just snowball. That, was reality. Reality sucked. Or maybe, reality lucked.
The shadow grew even more. They traded more punchs, but the shadows punch did not hurt at all. "Then tell me, if a thousand shadows tell you you are wrong, are you wrong?"
Huang Lu didn't get the question. "No. If I believe I am right, I am therefore, right. Fuck you." He punched back.
The red shadow grew even bigger. "Why do some persevere in the face of insults? Why do some crumble?" The red shadow punched him, and it just scratched his skin.
Huang Lu didn't like that at all. He punched back. "Why do people have to deploy insults? What gives you power over another to insult another? Why must we endure?"
The red shadow grew even more. "Because you can. Becauee you must."
Huang Lu frowned and punched. "Go away, shadow. You have no power here. Your punches do not hurt."
"I will not."
"Then I will punch you until you do." Huang Lu punched repeatedly, and each punch, the red shadow grew, and grew. He punched repeatedly, and damned it felt good. At long last, the red shadow seemed annoyed at how they couldn't hurt each other.
"I tire of you." The red shadow said.
"And I of you. Go away, red shadow."
It transformed, strangely, into a pile of shit.
"Go away, annoying forum shadows."
[You have completed the Punching of Forum Shadows. You have learned the cultivation technique - The Banned Punch. You now know how to punch, really, really, hard. Each day, you may use the Banned Punch to block or interrupt one single cultivation move. That person may not use that move for a day.]