Chapter 51 Martial Arts? Inner Strength?

Zhu Ruoxue’s heart was filled with sweetness. She had thought Lin Fan wasn’t particularly interested in her, but reality had proven that her charm was not inferior to Gu Qingcheng or anyone else. That evening, Lin Fan even bought her a selection of designer clothes and cosmetics. When they arrived at the hotel, the two, deeply attracted to each other, checked into the same suite.

The next morning, as Lin Fan awoke and glanced at the sleeping Zhu Ruoxue beside him, a faint sense of guilt crept into his heart. He hadn’t originally intended to claim Zhu Ruoxue, but after being ambushed by Chen Wei last night, a desire for revenge had arisen. He didn’t want Chen Wei to win her over. Why not seize the opportunity himself?

[Ding! Host has successfully conquered a goddess with a favorability of 100. Five attribute points awarded!]
[Attribute points delivered. Host may allocate them as desired.]

“Wait! If I’ve conquered a goddess, why hasn’t my system level increased?” Lin Fan felt a surge of frustration and couldn’t help but question the system—why only attribute points, but no level up? He’d been hoping that after leveling up, his Dogged Devotion Cashback would rise to 11%.

“To increase your personal level, Host must complete tasks, not simply conquer goddesses.”
“Conquering a goddess doesn’t require a relationship, only that her favorability reaches 100. Once that’s achieved, it counts as a success. Only by completing system-triggered tasks can the Host increase his personal level.”

“So I have to complete tasks to level up? Dammit! So all my previous efforts were for nothing?” Lin Fan hadn’t expected the system to answer this way. He had always assumed he needed to win over his dream girls to gain levels and cashback, but now it turned out that only attribute points were awarded for that! Didn’t that make him a scoundrel?

“Forget it! Let’s see where these attribute points are best spent.” Lin Fan had finally figured out the system’s rules—he’d never really studied them before.

“Better invest them in skills...” After conquering Gu Qingcheng the first time, he’d put all five points into physical strength. His reaction time and resilience had improved, but he hadn’t learned any martial arts, only basic Tai Chi. Basic Tai Chi couldn’t be used to fight—it was only for exercise.

All the martial arts skills in the system were divided into three levels: basic, intermediate, and advanced.

Lin Fan immediately upgraded Taekwondo to its maximum, and Wing Chun to intermediate. [Skills: Tai Chi (basic, upgradable), Taekwondo (advanced, maxed), Wing Chun (intermediate, upgradable).] After checking his current skills, he discovered that all the moves of Taekwondo and Wing Chun were now ingrained in his mind, as if he had learned them through real combat.

In other words, the moment he activated these two skills, he had instantly mastered both foundational martial arts.

“There’s more—internal martial arts, the Eighteen Weapons... It seems I’ll need to max out all the basic skills before I can unlock the next tier.” To his surprise, the skill panel even included internal energy cultivation methods, skills one only ever saw in novels, as well as lightness techniques, assassination arts, and more.

He couldn’t help but wonder if there really were hidden masters in this world, beyond ordinary understanding. Then again, given that he possessed such an overpowered system, the existence of extraordinary people in the world seemed entirely possible.

However, to learn these internal arts and powerful techniques, he first needed to master all the basic and intermediate martial arts. There were six basic martial arts: Tai Chi, Taekwondo, Wing Chun, Five Fists Thirteen Styles, Eighteen Weapons, and Internal Martial Arts. The three intermediate arts were: Iron Body Qigong, Shaolin Secret Techniques, and Bodhidharma’s External Arts. After mastering all three intermediate arts, he could then study advanced martial arts.

Advanced martial arts represented the pinnacle of the craft, including skills such as Heaven and Earth Internal Energy, Arhat Divine Power, and the Nine Yin and Nine Yang Divine Skills.

“Once I finish Su Xuanmo’s mission, I should be able to max out all the basic martial arts! This system really knows how to tailor its quests…” Lin Fan now had a rough grasp of the system’s workings.

At that moment, he heard Zhu Ruoxue’s gentle breathing beside him and thought to himself, “Ruoxue, don’t blame me for being fickle. It’s just that you’re so alluring I couldn’t help myself!”

He wasn’t just making excuses. Ever since he got this system, he had constantly felt the urge to embrace darkness and become the kind of playboy who flirted with women everywhere. Yet, in the past month, he had only been involved with Gu Qingcheng and Zhu Ruoxue. It wasn’t that he hadn’t been tempted by other women—he certainly dreamed of being a wealthy man surrounded by beautiful women who chased after him.

But compared to women, he wanted power and wealth even more. The cashback from his devotion would eventually run out, and what if the system vanished one day?

With that in mind, he sought real, inexhaustible wealth and power in the real world—something he could truly control. Genesis Media, Emperor Grand Hotel…these were far from enough.

His ultimate dream was to become the richest man, a true titan with wealth and influence rivaling nations.

While Zhu Ruoxue was still sleeping, he quietly left a few messages for her and slipped away from the hotel without a sound.

…

At noon, he messaged Su Xuanmo, asking if she liked the villa he’d given her. Su Xuanmo didn’t answer directly, but told him she had a gathering that night—a supercar club event. Her cousin was the club’s president. A new dealership was opening in Hang City, and she would be there, inviting Lin Fan to join her.

Lin Fan promised he would attend.

At seven in the evening.

The Rolls-Royce dealership on Linjiang Road.

A grand opening celebration was underway on the lawn behind the showroom, which also served as a small gathering for the supercar club. The guests were all wealthy individuals who owned supercars, including car owners from surrounding cities. Among them were many prominent local tycoons, and even a few top second-generation heirs like Su Xuanmo.

Since the showroom was already packed with cars, latecomers had to park their vehicles on the street outside.

Lin Fan, empty-handed, was about to enter the event, but was stopped by the security guard at the door.

“Sorry, sir. Tonight’s opening is invitation only.”

“An invitation is required?” Lin Fan was puzzled.

“I’m here as a guest of Miss Su Xuanmo...” Lin Fan raised his head, answering haughtily.

“A guest of Miss Su?” The guard eyed him up and down, half believing, half doubting. After a few seconds, he pulled out his phone and made a call.

“You may go in,” he said at last.

Seeing the look of disdain on the guard’s face, Lin Fan felt a surge of annoyance. If even a doorman was so arrogant, what would the wealthy heirs and tycoons inside think of him?

He hadn’t dressed up for the occasion, assuming it was just a small gathering.