Chapter 25: Chapter 25: Are You Casting Aspersions? (Edited)
After crossing over, Clark Lee remembered the plot of the movies quite clearly. Hearing Old Pym's question, he immediately responded in a grave tone:
"The seed was planted in a forest in Missouri, the exact location unknown. The alien being had once come to Earth, fallen in love with a woman named Meredith Quill, and had a child with her. This child was later taken away by another alien being, the same one I mentioned earlier who killed his father to save Earth."
"Anything else?"
"That's all for now."
Since he decided to play the role of a seer, it was best not to reveal everything at once. Releasing information bit by bit allowed the other party to digest it slowly, which was the smartest approach.
The sample of the Super Soldier Serum inherently carried by Captain America, and the seed left by Star-Lord's father, were significant. Perhaps in Old Pym's hands, useful discoveries could be made from them.
Whether it was successful or not was Old Pym's concern; Clark's job was to lead him on.
As for whether Old Pym planned to dig up Captain America's or Star-Lord's mother's grave after hearing these "prophecies," that was not Clark's concern.
Glancing at the wall clock, Clark stood up and said, "I have to go to the martial arts gym today and might return very late. If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."
"Today is Monday, and there are no classes at the gym. What are you doing there?"
Clark smiled slyly, "Aside from it being Monday, it's also the Mid-Autumn Festival according to the lunar calendar. Even just for the sake of etiquette, I should buy a box of mooncakes and visit my teacher."
"This is called learning etiquette before skills, which is never too excessive. It's a traditional virtue of our culture, something you wouldn't understand."
...
Today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, and mooncakes are readily available in Chinatown.
Not sure which brand was better, Clark simply bought two of the most expensive boxes and then knocked on the closed doors of Nalan Martial Arts Gym.
The door was opened by Nalan Bai, who brightened upon seeing Clark but immediately launched into teasing: "Yo, if it isn't Clark Lee. Haven't seen you for half a month, and you've become even prettier than before."
Clark's face darkened, "Miss Bai, I've already apologized for the previous rudeness. Can't you stop targeting me like this? On such a festive day, even officials don't criticize those who bring gifts, yet you start with sarcasm as soon as you see me. Is this really okay?"
Nalan Bai stuck out her tongue while letting Clark into the house, not forgetting to tease him further: "I was clearly complimenting you! Your face really does look much better than before!"
Clark was stunned, subconsciously touching his chin.
It seems the "Watch My 72 Changes" BGM is working already?
Suddenly, Nalan Bai asked out of the blue, "The 'Battle Through the Heavens' is written by you, right?"
Clark couldn't help but smile bitterly. At the charity costume party, he first rebuked Stephen Strange and then Tony Stark.
Though the root cause was the disagreeable nature of these two future superheroes, what Clark didn't expect was for the incident to hit the newspapers the next day.
The headline read: "Mysterious Author of 'Battle Through the Heavens' Revealed, High School Student Rebukes American Tycoon at Party."
This, while providing him with a considerable amount of impression points, also brought him a fair share of trouble. Such is the double-edged sword of fame.
Seeing Clark's tacit acknowledgment, Nalan Bai suddenly looked mischievous and sinisterly asked, "So, the Nalan family in your novel, especially the first female antagonist Nalan Yanran who broke off the engagement, were they meant to imply something or cast aspersions? Huh?"
"I did not! I haven't! Don't talk nonsense!"
Clark hurriedly denied three times in a row, realizing this misunderstanding needed to be clarified: "I just picked a surname that sounded nice to attract readers at the beginning. There was absolutely no disrespect intended towards the martial arts gym. You can't wrong me like this!"
Seeing Clark's agitated denial, Nalan Bai secretly snickered but kept a serious face: "Who knows if some people, unable to obtain something, resort to writing novels as a way to slander others, casting aspersions is all too common."
Faced with her relentless probing, Clark felt overwhelmed! Why did he forget to change the villain's name when copying the novel? "You two stop bickering." As they reached the upstairs, they heard Nalan Long's voice from a room: "Clark coming to visit us on the Mid-Autumn Festival shows his thoughtfulness. Since you're here, stay for dinner. Tonight, we're having authentic Chinese cuisine."
"Alright!" Nalan Bai cheerfully agreed, making a face at Clark, leaving him speechless.
Why does this girl enjoy teasing him so much? Entering the living room and setting down the mooncakes, Clark first offered his festival greetings to Elder Nalan Long, who glanced at him and then asked, "Are you also wearing weights today?"
Clark grinned, "You once taught me to integrate martial arts into every aspect of daily life. I dare not forget this, so except for bathing and sleeping, I always wear weights."
"Training also requires a balance of work and rest. Pushing yourself too hard will only break your body!" Nalan Long frowned slightly and then said, "Starting today, you only need to train with weights for two hours a day. There's no need to wear them all the time."
As a transmigrator with a cheat, Clark wasn't worried about the physical strain, but he took the elder's kind advice seriously and replied, "Thank you for your guidance, Uncle Nalan. I'll remember it."
The elder was pleased with Clark's attitude and nodded slightly before saying, "We still have some time before dinner. Take off the weights, and let's see your recent progress."
Clark's eyes lit up; indeed, gifts could open doors!
Eagerly agreeing, he immediately followed the elder to the training area, took off his outerwear and weights, and tossed them aside, creating a loud "thud" that startled Nalan Bai, who had come to watch.
"Your weights don't seem like the ones bought from our store." As Nalan Bai bent down to pick up Clark's discarded weights, choosing the relatively larger weighted vest, she couldn't move it at first.
Her competitive nature kicking in, she took a deep breath, mustered all her strength, and barely managed to lift the weighted vest, then exclaimed in surprise, "Where did you get this weight from? Why is it so heavy?"
Seeing Nalan Long's equally puzzled expression, Clark explained, "I had it custom-made with osmium alloy material. The weights on my hands and legs are 50 kg each, and this vest you're holding is even heavier, weighing 200 kg."
Nalan Bai's mouth dropped open in shock, and even Nalan Long looked surprised.
"So you mean, you've been carrying 400 kg of weight, chatting and laughing with me?"
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