Mecha Era, Punch the Stars

On the shore, a thin, bony girl is collecting seashells.

It's windy and the waves are big here.

A wave crashed over her, and the girl stumbled and fell.

Although she fell, the seashell basket in her hand did not fall out.

Even if her face slammed hard into the sand, she wouldn't let the good shells she had painstakingly collected spill out.

Because she was short of money and food.

The live clams she collects each day, with bits of shellfish meat still attached, are what she uses to exchange for money.

After all, she was too young and didn't have any other skills to earn money.

She believes that, having studied clam collecting in depth, she is quite skilled at it.

Her mother told her that to live a good life, one must have a means of livelihood and a skill.

She felt that her greatest skill was finding things, especially good things.

Besides collecting shells, they could occasionally find some good stuff that would make their mother smile from ear to ear.

Sure enough, she saw a large object being washed ashore by the waves.

I walked over, and lo and behold, this is a really burly old man. He's drowned?
The girl thought for a moment, then carefully squatted down and checked the man's breath.

Hmm, he's dead after all.

His body was cold and he was lifeless. So, I should be able to feel around his body to see if there's anything valuable on him, right?
The girl reached out and touched it.

Snapped!
A hand suddenly grabbed her wrist as she reached into her pocket.

"Little girl, didn't anyone teach you that you can't just steal from a drowned ghost?"

The girl was stunned.

However, she did not scream.

She was quite brave; even though the object of her affections was a ghost, she didn't seem to feel any fear when the moment came.

Oh no, I'm going to die. But it doesn't seem so bad to die. I can't go hungry and cold after I die, can I?

It seems like my mother can no longer take care of her.

At this moment, the girl felt a sense of calm as if she had accepted everything. She closed her eyes, waiting for the final moment to arrive. "Pfft, sorry, sorry, I didn't expect you to be unafraid of ghosts."

The girl listened to the sound, which sounded like the sound of footsteps on sand being hit by waves. The man seemed to have stood up.
Huh? If you can step on the sand, then you're not a ghost?
She suddenly opened her eyes: "You don't seem to be a ghost."

"You are very smart."

"But you were clearly dead just now."

"Why am I considered dead?"

"You're not breathing, and your body is ice cold."

"I am a Martial Saint. What's so strange about me concealing my breath and feigning death to live out my days?"

The girl tilted her head and asked:
What is a Martial Saint?

"A Martial Saint is a master who has cultivated martial arts to the pinnacle of human skill, a saint among men, do you understand?"

"But you sound both proud and insecure, as if you're not very satisfied with your title."

The girl thought for a moment and asked in confusion.

The man paused, then released his grip on the girl's hand and sighed.

"What a pity. You are such a bright little fellow. If I had met you a few years earlier, I would have definitely considered passing on all my skills to you."

"I understand now, you're a fraud, aren't you? Because the title is fake, others are just deceived by your false side, so they call you Martial Saint, but you know you've deceived others, so you feel somewhat inferior."

The man's lips twitched.

"Alright, your summary is partly correct, but not entirely. I've changed my mind. I'm going to teach you martial arts and show you that I am the real Martial Saint! Quickly kneel down and kowtow to become my disciple."

"I do not!"

"why not?"

"You don't even know my name, yet you want to teach me things? Isn't that just a scammer's trick?"

"Okay, so what's your name?"

"Before that, why don't you tell me your name?" (End of Chapter)