Chapter 053: The Dream of a Martial Hero

After Li Gang had familiarized himself several times with the HK420 automatic rifle and the latest model of military automatic pistol, Lin Yan began instructing him, guiding his hands step by step through the most basic military combat boxing used in the army.

Despite being called a ‘boxing’ style, this set was not a single form of boxing, but rather a comprehensive foundation of practical combat techniques. It included straight kicks, side kicks, sweeping legs, knee strikes, elbow blows, straight punches, left and right hooks, thrust punches, as well as some basic and practical grappling and counter-grappling maneuvers.

Many of these foundational combat skills were quite different from those Li Gang had learned online after the game began, but they lacked the systematic rigor that Lin Yan’s instruction provided.

According to Lin Yan, every soldier in the army learns this combat set. Ordinary soldiers’ daily combat training revolves around these basics. Li Gang, having already built a foundation through self-study, quickly memorized all the key points of the combat set—it was now just a matter of repeated practice to gain proficiency.

“I’ll now demonstrate the ‘Eight Steps of the Wandering Dragon.’ You must pay close attention to the essential techniques of each step. Oh, and turn on your recording function—I don’t want to repeat the demonstration,” Lin Yan said, seeing that Li Gang had basically mastered the combat set, and began teaching him the ‘Eight Steps of the Wandering Dragon.’

This footwork, even within the army, was only taught to the most elite soldiers—not because the army discriminated, but because the technique demanded exceptionally high physical attributes, especially balance; most people would not only fail to learn it but might injure themselves trying.

Unlike the military combat boxing, which everyone could gradually learn and use, the ‘Eight Steps of the Wandering Dragon’ had an extremely high threshold for mastery. Certain special angles and key points required an extraordinary sense of balance to perform.

The two tests Lin Yan previously gave Li Gang—walking in place and walking in a straight line with eyes closed—were meant to assess whether he could learn this footwork.

Li Gang’s successful completion of the tests surprised Lin Yan a little, though she quickly realized the reason: comprehensive repair and treatment had rendered his physical senses ideal and flawless.

“Of course, footwork is fixed, but people are flexible. Besides mastering the essentials, you must constantly reflect in actual combat on how to adapt and make it your own,” Lin Yan said, after demonstrating all eight variations.

The ‘Eight Steps of the Wandering Dragon’ was not the creation of any single person, but the crystallization of generations of elite soldiers’ practical experience and continuous refinement, designed to dodge attacks and counter swiftly in close combat.

Because of its demanding entry requirements, even among elite soldiers, few could master all eight steps proficiently.

That afternoon, Li Gang learned a great deal. With Lin Yan’s permission, he had to enhance his mental attributes once to relieve fatigue and improve focus.

As for cultivating the Fragmented Foundation Guidance Technique, Lin Yan stipulated that he could only practice it in his free time after completing her assigned training tasks each day; at all other times, he must master what she taught and be able to use it in actual combat.

Lin Yan, apart from correcting Li Gang’s mistakes and demonstrating the moves once, would then practice the Fragmented Foundation Guidance Technique alone, which Li Gang envied greatly.

This scene motivated him further, making him practice harder—even when his concentration faltered, he persisted, gritting his teeth.

After all, this also helped strengthen his mental endurance.

Perhaps it was because he had enhanced his mental attributes once, breaking past a value of 100, that after dinner, his mental fatigue recovered considerably.

Lin Yan only scheduled his training during the day; after dinner at seven, Li Gang was free to do as he pleased until six in the morning, whether for entertainment or relaxation—Lin Yan did not care.

But there was one rule: he must go to bed before midnight.

During this period, Li Gang found Lin Yan lounging in a chair, watching something intently on a virtual screen.

Curious, he walked over and discovered she was reading an e-book; she did not avoid him.

Lin Yan even told him that when she first discovered the smart wristband could store large amounts of data, she immediately loaded it up with her favorite martial arts TV dramas and e-novels.

She explained that she had few interests: one was playing FPS games, the other was reading various martial arts novels and watching martial arts shows, with occasional dips into fantasy and other genres, though not often.

“Sister Lin, in this ten-year life-and-death hunting game, everyone is busy getting stronger. Isn’t it a waste of time to relax like this? Isn’t your goal ultimate victory? Shouldn’t you seize every moment to become stronger?” Li Gang, having grown familiar with Lin Yan after a day together, voiced his confusion with three questions at once, as he often did.

Lin Yan usually answered whatever he asked.

“Have you ever read a comic called ‘Dragon Ball’ by a DY country artist named Akira Toriyama, drawn more than half a century ago?” Lin Yan replied, watching Li Gang’s puzzled expression.

“Is the protagonist named after the Monkey King, Sun Wukong, from our country’s ‘Journey to the West’? If so, then I’ve watched the anime adaptation,” Li Gang answered confidently.

He was secretly delighted—finally, something Lin Yan mentioned that he knew well. Years ago, during a summer break, his mother had rewatched this DY country anime, and he happened to be home, so he joined her for a few episodes.

That was the start—Li Gang was hooked, accompanying his mother through the entire ‘Dragon Ball’ series, spin-offs, originals, and extras.

He remembered it clearly; that summer he did little else, just watched ‘Dragon Ball’ with his mother.

“Let me guess, you watched it with your mother again?” Lin Yan teased, seeing Li Gang’s expression, and when he nodded, she laughed, saying, “Seems I share your mother’s tastes. If I ever meet her, we’ll have plenty to talk about.”

“Yeah, my mom loves watching shows and anime popular half a century ago—her father always brought out these classics for her during vacations,” Li Gang replied, glancing meaningfully at Lin Yan, as if he sensed something.

Lin Yan, keen-minded, caught the implication in his words.

She murmured, “So Auntie’s childhood was filled with these old classics, making her revisit them now and then.”

Li Gang shook his head.

His expression grew complex. After a moment’s hesitation, he said, “My grandfather passed away in a car accident when I was in elementary school. I suppose my mom pulls out these shows because she misses him. My dad once said that Grandpa loved her dearly.”

Lin Yan fell silent.

She herself loved martial arts novels and anime, partly as a hobby, partly because of her father.

He was often away on missions, gone for weeks at a time. Her childhood was spent with the martial arts books and comic collections he left behind.

When he returned, he would always find time to watch with her, patiently explaining the spirit of martial chivalry, the growth of each character, their martial arts techniques.

It was from those moments that she developed a love for the world of martial heroes, the spirit of justice, and dreamed of someday wandering the world with a sword, righting wrongs, living freely and unrestrained.

“What’s wrong? You seem lost in thought,” Li Gang asked, noticing Lin Yan had drifted into a daze.

Lin Yan snapped back, smiling at her own fanciful thoughts.

After all, this world of martial arts and fantasy was the creation of ordinary people; how could it be real?

Lin Yan asked, “Where were we in our conversation?”

Li Gang reminded her, “We were talking about the ‘Dragon Ball’ manga.”

At the same time, Li Gang recalled the questions he had originally posed to Lin Yan. In his view, if one aimed for ultimate victory in this life-and-death game, one should seize every moment to become stronger.

Lin Yan looked at the earnest young Li Gang and couldn’t help but laugh—sometimes, this boy was simply amusing.

She thought for a moment and asked, “What do you think of the ‘Dragon Ball’ manga?”

“‘Dragon Ball’ is a really exciting anime, especially the Super Saiyan transformation—it’s so cool, and the fight scenes are thrilling. I remember when Sun Wukong first transformed into a Super Saiyan,” Li Gang recalled, mentioning the key moments and famous scenes.

It had been years since he’d watched it, so he only remembered the main plot points and some famous memes.

Lin Yan pressed, “Is that all?”

“Um… It’s a hugely popular anime from half a century ago, with lots of memes that are still used today—like ‘battle power is trash,’ ‘smoke but no injury,’ ‘never beam struggle with the Sun family,’ and so on,” Li Gang thought further.

Lin Yan asked again, “Is that really all? Didn’t you have any personal insights?”

Personal insights?

It was just an anime—what was there to ponder? Wasn’t it just about passing time and entertaining oneself?

Li Gang was stumped by Lin Yan’s question and shook his head, indicating he had none.

Yet inwardly, he found it a bit absurd—who watches anime for deep insights? That's for weirdos. He just wanted to enjoy it.