703: One's Own Fists

One's Own Fists

"Stop!"2

Then someone rushed up from the side, standing between the two of them. 

"Dear?!"

The first to stop was Xing Huang, who lowered her fists at the sight of her husband, who raised his hands. And upon seeing both of them, Ming Yue lowered her swords. The flashing glow in her eyes dissipated as Pale Moon was released. 

Seeing them lower their weapons, Xing Long had a nervous look on his face before sighing. As he relaxed, he looked at the both of them. 

"If this duel had gone any further, there might not be a ceremony left to celebrate", he said. 

Hearing this, the two women looked around, realizing the destruction that they had caused to the arena. On top of that, everyone that had been watching before were now standing back far from the arena. 

They weren't quite afraid but certainly didn't want to get caught in the fight.

Ming Yue even saw Xiao Yin and Hei Yue standing beside everyone else, seemingly ready to protect everyone. 

"O-oh... It seems we got a bit carried away there." 

Xing Huang revealed an embarrassed face, scratching the back of her head with those giant gauntlets. 

"Err, since there was no clear winner, how about we call it my loss?!" she said, "After all, it's a bit embarrassing for a junior to push me so far." 

Despite that, Ming Yue shook her head as she withdrew her swords. Cupping her fists together, she bowed. 

"No, it would've ended in my loss no matter what. Thank you for teaching me", she responded. 

But the Godfist wouldn't accept such a thing. 

"No, no, how about we call it a draw? For the sake of this joyous occasion?"

Ming Yue looked at her, seeing that she would not budge from this conclusion. And so, the young cultivator relented. 

"If that is so, it is a draw."

"Great! Great! But, uh... now... now what?" 

Though the Godfist wasn't sure what to do next, her husband was quick on the draw. 

"The two of you should go back to the manor, there should be attendants waiting to relieve you. I'll have a few men tidy things up."

After telling them this, he quickly announced the result as a draw before sending them off on their way. 

Quickly leaving the arena, Ming Yue glanced over her shoulder seeing the king giving orders and directing people. In a matter of seconds, he had full control of the situation, and the aftermath of the fight was dealt with swiftly. 

As she turned around towards the mansion, she caught Xing Huang looking at her husband dreamily. 

"I love it when he takes charge."

That dreamy look quickly vanished into embarrassment when she saw Ming Yue, glancing in her direction.

As Xing Long said, there were several attendants waiting for them inside. They surrounded them, presenting new clothes while helping to take off their dirtied armor. Although the young cultivator wasn't used to this, she followed Xing Huang. Among them was a group of burly men who went to the Godfist, taking off her gauntlets for her.

It took four of them to carry one and even then they struggled, shuffling through the halls. 

"Phew, that was heavy."

The muscular woman shook her arms a few times, enjoying the lack of weight. As Ming Yue watched it unfold, she couldn't help but ask something. 

"How were you able to fight while wearing that? You didn't seem slow at all." 

Xing Huang looked at her before starting at her arms. 

"Mmm, it's a bit difficult to explain it. Part of the reason comes from my own strength. My gauntlets needed to be sturdy enough to handle the power. But because of that, they were extremely heavy. I knew that they would slow me down but there was no other choice. Even the best blacksmiths had no better solution", she explained. 

As the both of them were dressed and cleaned up, Xing Huang dismissed everyone and walked with Ming Yue out of the manor.

"And then, I met someone during my own Ten-Year trial. I had been training off the side of the road, trying to figure out how I can improve it. I was frustrated. I soon realized that these gauntlets weakened me. But without them, I was even weaker. I had to compromise if I was going to perfect the Godfist style. In a fit of anger, I tossed to them to the side which drew some attention. Among them was a farmer."

There was a smile on her face as she reminisced about those memories. 

"An old man who was certainly much older than me and he was a simple farmer. He knew nothing but the fields. But he came to me with curiosity, wanting to know what was happening and then why I seemed so angry. I told him my dilemma and he had this serious look on his face. He rubbed his chin, thinking for a bit before giving me such an absurd idea. Do you know what he said?" 

Xing Huang looked at Ming Yue, who listened intently. 

"The farmer pointed at those massive gauntlets and said that since they were shaped like my fists, why not just treat them like so? I laughed because it seemed so foolish. How could these gauntlets be my real fists? Rather, haven't I been treating them like fists? But he shook his head, holding up the sickle he used to harvest his crops. He said he's been using this sickle all his life. He's gotten so used to it that sometimes he thinks of it as his own hand."

She sighed then. 

"With his reasoning, I'd have to use those gauntlets to the point where I treated them like my own two fists. The farmer soon went back to his home leaving me to ponder. On one end, it seemed so simple and nonsensical. But his words stuck with me. And then I thought, maybe I should try it."

The woman raised up her fist, looking at it. 

"I then put on those gauntlets, feeling the weight. Why not treat them like my own fists? And soon enough, I understood what he meant. It really was as simple as that. I ignored the weight, the size, everything and just treated them like my own two fists. I was baffled. I didn't understand how this worked. But it was all about belief, one's mindset, the Dao you could say. They might've been two hulking pieces of metal but they're my fists nonetheless."

She then looked at Ming Yue as they returned to the ceremony. 

"Did that answer your question?"

The young cultivator had a thoughtful look on her face, digesting this story. 

"To truly believe..."

Ming Yue dwelled on those words as they parted ways, heading towards different places for the ceremony. She watched it unfold, seeing Xing Hou walk to her parents, kneeling and lowering her head. At the same time, she thought about that story, trying to understand. 

Both the King and the Queen looked down at their daughter, before placing one of their hands on her shoulders. With the other hand, they took off the headdress, putting it aside before bringing out another pair of gauntlets. 

Xing Hou looked up at her parent before staring at the gauntlets, letting her forehead touch the knuckles. 

Then she stood up, accepting them as her own and then bowing to her parents. 

It was quiet, everyone watched with respect before erupting in cheers as their princess spun around with a smile. Now wearing them, she raised her fist up high for everyone to see. And that was the end of the ceremony as everyone began to enjoy the rest of the day with food, drink, and fun!

But for Ming Yue, she quietly retired to the mansion, standing in the courtyard as night began to fall. 

In her hands was nothing more than a blade of grass.

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