Pokémon, you're not allowed to expel me from human form!

Hearing Luo Ke's almost blatant mockery, Lando didn't reply, but his aura towards Luo Ke intensified.

But Luo Ke continued speaking.

"I still don't understand what your purpose is."

"If you really want to provoke others, then all your rambling is less effective than saying, 'I'm not targeting anyone in particular, I'm saying that everyone here is trash.'"

"If you want to pursue something like 8001, then you can open your own martial arts school and start from scratch. Today, martial arts in Tianjin have economic vitality and reputation. Guys like Bai Kehu are just disliked by others because they make them feel embarrassed. A martial arts school with a practical fighting style can definitely accommodate them."

Why do you insist on forcing others to follow your line of thinking?

Does something you dislike necessarily mean it's wrong?

"We live in a peaceful era now, don't we? There are no battlefields where warriors need to fight or protect themselves in chaotic times. So, in such circumstances, how could you possibly be dissatisfied with the fact that such skills have evolved into a culture and been preserved to this extent?"

"Times have changed, sir."

"It is perfectly normal that the development of combat skills in peacetime is not as rapid as in wartime."

"And if you use your brain for a moment, if you actually met those martial artists of your so-called golden age, and you asked them whether they honed their martial arts skills to protect themselves in chaotic times, to kill enemies on the battlefield, or for the thousands of years of martial arts, what do you think their answer would be?"

"Are those techniques, forced out of them in the face of life and death, something they were born with a love for studying?"

"Were those warriors who died on the battlefield born with the unwillingness to live any longer?"

At this point, although Luo Ke still had a slight smile on his lips, his eyes had become serious.

"In peacetime, martial arts can generate economic value, preserve it as a cultural form as much as possible, at least slow down the rate of its extinction, and wait for it to shine again in the next era of war. In my opinion, this is the 8,001st year of martial arts."

"And what you're doing is destroying the fruits of everyone's hard work, and the reason you gave was the most ridiculous 'you don't like it'."

"What, martial arts aren't like this now? The vast majority of them have been lost, and what's left in circulation are just fancy moves, lifeless techniques, and stage routines. Are you satisfied with that?"

"Or is it that breaking the current peace and triggering another war, causing countless families to be torn apart and lives lost, is the world you envision?"

"If that's really what you think, then I'm really going to take control of you."

Luo Ke's words contained parts that seemed like jokes, but you could tell from his eyes that most of them were not jokes.

Landau saw this, but he wasn't angry at Rocco; he even nodded slightly.

“Although I don’t agree with your philosophy, you are at least different from these athletes. You dare to express your thoughts to my face. That’s how a martial artist should be.”

"Of course—as a martial artist, if you want me to agree with your ideas, don't just talk about it. We have a more direct way of communicating, don't we?"

As he spoke, Landau took a step forward, steadied his lower body, put one hand behind his back, and extended the other hand forward, palm facing up.

“I can tell you’re very strong, at least as strong as that Bai Kehu these guys are talking about.”

“I’m so glad that a martial artist like Bai Kehu has appeared in the years I’ve been away from Tiangang. It’s just a pity that he’s gone missing and I haven’t been able to fight him. So come on, if you really want to convince me, then do it with martial arts!”

"Bring something more powerful than words!"

Seeing Randall's reaction, Luo Ke didn't put on any pose. He just maintained his standing posture, even putting one hand in his pocket. He just stood there and then beckoned to Randall with his other hand.

"Since you insist on using this method, then go ahead."

"it is good!"

Landau didn't say anything more to Roque. When he heard Roque say that, he just shouted to signal that he was going to start the attack.

Immediately afterwards, he used his front foot to push off, moving all the joints in his body to propel himself forward, while his body sometimes leaned forward and sometimes twisted, adjusting his movements several times during the advance.

If Rocco's gaze fails to keep up with his adjustment even once, Landau will seize the opportunity to burst into speed and slip out of Rocco's field of vision.

However, Luo Ke's gaze was always following him, which made Lando give up his plan to fight, and at the same time made him even more excited.

Having witnessed Luo Ke and Lei Lie's playful antics before, Lando knew very well the strength Luo Ke could unleash in a direct confrontation. So, under these circumstances, he quickly adjusted his posture, changed his steps, twisted his waist, and threw out his fist from behind his back. At the same time as throwing the punch, he twisted his back foot to support his whole body, and then combined the downward stomp of his front foot with the upward punch.

His movements were so fluid and graceful that even those who were intimidated by him in the audience couldn't help but take a second look.

On the other hand, Rocco only raised his hand when Landau came over.

Furthermore, he didn't use any part of his body to coordinate with his outstretched hand movement; he simply swung his hand out in the most basic way possible.

Snapped!

Before Landau's front foot even touched the ground, Rocco, taking advantage of his wingspan, had already slapped him across the face!

The terrifying force lifted his feet off the ground, and he fainted instantly.

boom!

The unconscious Randall flew out like a cannonball, first smashing through the protective railing of the arena, then flying more than a hundred meters along the path he had come from, until he crashed into a wall and finally came to a stop.

When Rocco defeated Landau, the scene should have been met with cheers.

But in reality, there was only deathly silence.

Previously, these martial artists thought Luo Ke's strength was at the level of Bai Kehu, or even a better Bai Kehu. Having experienced the period when Bai Kehu showed no mercy, they were still happy even though they knew Luo Ke was holding back.

But... they never expected Luo Ke to go to such lengths before!

Bai Kehu can easily knock someone off the stage, but Luo Ke... he can knock someone off the stage with just a little force!

We all try our best to live, right?

Even someone as powerful as him only symbolically parried when facing Lei Lie, and even unleashed the Tiger Roar Fist...

Landau only verbally refers to them as toddlers, but this guy actually does it.

Upon realizing this, Lei Lie's expression shifted constantly amidst a mix of emotions, including relief, gratitude, shame, anger, and guilt.

Those faces that are sometimes described in novels, resembling statistical charts, probably look like him now.

It is a complexity that is difficult to describe in words.

But Rocco didn't look at him much, nor did he pay attention to anything else. He simply jumped off the ring from the spot where he had knocked Randall away, and looked at Victini and the others who had already packed up all the leftovers, quite satisfied.

Then he gave Bai Linglong a look.

It's time for them to go.

We've packed up everything we wanted to eat. It'll be more comfortable to go back and enjoy it slowly than to stay here.

...

Anwuhui.

The middle-aged man, who had been watching the monitor the whole time, crossed his arms and rested his chin on them. He was quiet at the moment, but his eyes were fixed on Luo Ke on the other side of the screen until he completely disappeared from sight.

If there were any martial artists here, they would recognize him as the current president of the Anwu Association—Zong Qinke.

"It's you, isn't it..."

After a long while, the solemn, statue-like man finally spoke.

"...Bai Kehu".

"You're finally back, and you're even stronger than before."

"That's right, with your talent you should be strong."

"But do you think a change of appearance will work? Your daughter will always be your weakness, and that has never changed."

"In that case, let's continue the game we started back then."

......

41. Rocco: I'm going to train my Pokémon.

For Luo Ke, the food at the Tianwu Tournament was quite enjoyable. After returning to Baiji Martial Arts School, he arranged the packed food and looked forward to another wonderful meal that evening.

On the contrary, Bai Linglong had been pondering some things ever since she returned from the Heavenly Martial Tournament.

"Luo Ke, what you said about Landau's assessment of modern martial artists as athletes...doesn't it make some sense?"

Bai Linglong had been pondering the words Luo Ke and Lan Dao had spoken at the Heavenly Martial Arts Tournament.

He agreed with Luo Ke's words. It was unrealistic to let martial artists fight in the streets during peacetime. Moreover, as Luo Ke said, Tiangang was now fully capable of accepting combat martial arts schools. If he really wanted to change things, he could start with himself and the environment would be more than capable of supporting him.

but...

"Compared to Lando, we really seem a bit...weak at the Heavenly Martial Tournament?"

"In short, he really does seem quite different from the image of a martial artist I had in mind."

Seeing Bai Linglong frowning in thought, Luo Ke raised his hand and tapped her forehead. Only when she clutched her head and cried out in pain did he speak softly.

"There's really no need to think about it so much."

"Just like those martial artists who only wanted to save face when facing your father, can that be called weakness? It's human nature. At least for me, if I did something particularly shameful in public, I would also feel bad."

"Similarly, in this peaceful era, who among those who open martial arts schools or those who become apprentices at them doesn't have a family to support?"

"This is no longer a chaotic era. It's not like people learn martial arts just to save their lives, to fight, or to seek revenge. It might be for showing off, to improve their health, or for a sense of security... In short, people learn martial arts for all sorts of reasons that seem absurd to martial artists in the past."

"For martial arts, if there are more people like this, and more people learn martial arts, there will be economic value. This will allow some martial arts schools to stay open for longer, and naturally, some powerful styles and techniques will be preserved for many more years, so that the hard work of these predecessors will not be completely lost."

"For others, they have a legitimate hobby that can improve their health, and if this hobby is developed well, it can even bring in income."

"Isn't this all a good thing? So we can't say they're weak just because they're afraid of someone who's as fierce as a knife and might even have some terrifying battle record."

"As for the athlete argument, it's even more unreasonable. While some people only focus on their own martial arts, others are putting in the effort to continue the martial arts tradition, promote martial arts culture, maintain the economy of martial arts schools, adapt martial arts to the current era, and strive to train disciples to succeed them. In the end, all the skilled ones are the ones who show off, while those who build the environment are ridiculed in every way."

"That doesn't make sense."

"They deserve to be ridiculed when they create chaos in the environment. But from what I've seen, martial arts have only undergone some modern adaptations after so much peace; the vast majority have preserved their heritage."

"Then as long as you don't go after someone like Lando, but find some good fighters in modern combat sports to fight, like Lei Lie, you can definitely beat him, and I think a considerable number of combat sports athletes would be no match for him, isn't that great?"

Recalling the state of martial arts before his transmigration, Luo Ke shook his head slightly.

"Just like I said at the Tianwu Tournament, I feel that this is already the 8,001st year of martial arts."

"Moreover, your father's modified Tiger Roar Fist is indeed stronger in his hands than the original Tiger Roar Fist. Just because the improvement is small for martial arts as a whole does not mean there is no improvement at all."

Bai Linglong was already nodding when Luo Ke finished speaking.

"As for Randall, there's not much to say. When he took that hit from me, he didn't show fear or surprise, but excitement."

"Moreover, his feel is completely different from Lei Lie's. From this point of view, I can feel that he must have gone through a lot of hard work that is hard for ordinary people to imagine in order to create such a body."

"He just loves martial arts too much and idolizes it, so he can't accept anything down-to-earth."

"Perhaps in the eyes of such people, martial artists should be single-minded in martial arts and fearless of death, but martial artists are also human beings."

"So don't be too hard on yourself because of other people's opinions. It's normal to reflect on yourself, be happy, or even get angry because of other people's opinions. But if you live only in the opinions of others, then you're depriving yourself of the right to decide what you like and dislike."

After listening to Luo Ke's explanation, Bai Linglong's furrowed brows finally relaxed.

Seeing her like this, Luo Ke felt as if he understood the purpose of Landau's madness.

Among so many people at the Heavenly Martial Arts Tournament, was Bai Linglong the only one who had the same thoughts?

Absolutely not...

So Randall did look like a clown, but as long as a small number of young people were affected by his incredibly martial-like demeanor, he had achieved part of his goal.

Thinking about this, Luo Ke also had some guesses about Lan Dao's arrival at the Heavenly Martial Arts Tournament.

After all, the martial artists below the stage were discussing the vetting process for the Anwu Association, and the Tianwu Tournament required registration to participate. There were also Anwu Association members guarding the outside, but no one had come looking for Lan Dao since he arrived. When he left, he didn't see any Anwu Association members knocked unconscious by Lan Dao; instead, most of them were still guarding outside...

Could it be that Lan Dao was let in by the Anwu Association?

So they want to make some adjustments to the current martial arts, which is why they did this?

Maybe...

Although Luo Ke felt that if that were the case, then Anwu Association's actions were a bit foolish, the Tianwu Tournament was over now, and he had no intention of getting involved in what happened afterward, so he couldn't be bothered to think about it anymore.

Compared to these...

"Luo Ke, thank you very much."

"Whether it's now, before, or during the Heavenly Martial Arts Tournament, you represented Baiji Martial Arts School back then, just like a hero in a story."

Having stopped daydreaming, Bai Linglong once again looked at Luo Ke with her big, adoring eyes.

This made Luo Ke sigh softly.

"I've never been a hero."

"Alright, let's not talk about this anymore. Why don't you go and see how to prepare the food that Bictini and the others packed up tonight to keep it in the best condition? Or you could go practice your boxing a couple of times to stop overthinking things."

Upon hearing Luo Ke's words, Bai Linglong immediately stood up and gave Luo Ke a military salute that looked rather strange.