#i just want a super saiyan style xianxia

[cantsomeoneelsedoit]

Ch 60: Truth

BUT WHYYYYYY?

Why go to all that trouble?

To protect their friends

For personal glory

For the sake of the martial art itself

To ascend toward Godhood

To see how far they can go/because they're destined to be the best

To befriend all the Pokemon

Others want to be the best because strength will bring them the freedom to live however they want:

Some are just crazy for martial arts:

It's already been established that Shen wanted to be the best from a young age, but it turns out that there's something else that's been driving him to push himself, no matter how many times he experiences defeat along the way...

SPOILERS ABOUND!

Shen's expression is so unexpected. It's not a snarl or a tear-jerking frown--it doesn't match the emotional weight of what he's saying. He looks determined and self-confident, like he's waaay past the grieving stage and has turned that grief into fuel for training.

And he just says it so matter-of-factly! A lot of shonen series would have shown him shaking with rage or billowing black smoke or something while he said that line, but instead he just has this alert, "Any further questions?" kind of look about him.

Another common feature of Xianxia/Spirit Cultivation works is the pursuit for immortality. Looks like Feng has that part already figured out!

"I had my youth restored! And friends, I couldn't be more excited to share this special offer with you! If you sign up using my code, we will both receive a 5% discount on all future subscriptions!" --Feng, selling infrared light masks or something.

Not even Victor had Shen struggling like this! But then again, Shen liked Victor and so he could use his ability on him. He still lost, but it wasn't as bad as this. That middle panel of Shen is just wonderfully horrible!

Feng doesn't know what Shen's ability is called, but he's putting the pieces together to figure out how it works.

Most of the characters who've gone through this battle process of trying to figure out someone's ability are doing it so they can have a strategy to defeat their opponent. But Feng just wants to use the info to taunt Shen into fighting harder. He's vicious.

HOLY SHIT

His awakening tragedy is a lot like Chikara's.

Ugh-- the chapter title is Truth, and we expect that it'll be about Shen and his ability and how great he is, but here comes Feng just throwing words like "truth" around and using them to hurt people.

Up until now, we've had lots of examples of how Shen can put emotions aside while he's fighting, but Feng knows exactly how to hurt him and stun him into silence. Luckily, Mui comes in strong with the two-sword style!

Unfortunately, Feng reverse kicks Mui and snaps the swords in half.

Feng finally says what we've all been thinking: aren't there an awful lot of similarities between Mui and Mei?

They look alike. They both look up to Shen. Their names are different pronunciations/transliterations of the same name. They even have the same favorite food: dumplings they make together with Shen.

Mui and Mei aren't carbon copies, but they're similar enough to make you wonder if Mui was added by "God"/the author as a way to both take Shen's little sister away and give him a new companion. It also reminds me of Zoro, Kuina, and Tashigi from One Piece. We'll learn some more about Mui and Mei later in the story.

Now Feng exposes his teaching philosophy, which boils down to:

1. Traumatize your students until they go Super Saiyan.

Even worse, he also has a magic cloud that does his bidding, and he takes Mui hostage on it while Shen suffers below. He has a magic cloud and a magic staff, just like Shen!

Feng is using the same line Victor used when he asked Andy if Fuuko's death would break Andy's spirit. The difference is that Feng wants to hurt Shen not to make him weaker, but to make him stronger!

Meanwhile, Andy and Fuuko are still fighting the Juniors with the help of Kinto'un. Andy slices one of them in half, but the core (and Feng) are still ready to fight.

Feng helpfully outlines his goal, his process, and how Life Is Strange works, but Andy tells him to can it.

Latla hugging little Rip is the heartwarming panel we needed in the middle of this chapter!

Andy doesn't care if he's 150 years old because Andy's also pretty old lol.

Feng is a blood knight who's only interested in cultivating strong opponents. Whether it's Shen, Summer, or God themselves, he doesn't really care. You see some of those traits in Shen, too, but Shen's not as criminally insane as Feng.

And as much as Andy enjoys a good fight, he's all about PRIORITIES. Unfortunately, there aren't a lot of logical arguments that could convince Feng to change his ways (though Fuuko tries to make him see reason!)

Right? Feng's like some asshole who mistreats an animal so he can kill it and say he fought it at its strongest. But with Shen, you literally can't fight him at his strongest unless he likes you. It's a self-defeating strategy.

Like Billy, Feng doesn't realize that WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT! Personal ambitions aren't really something we can afford to focus on right now!

Andy winds up for a punch and Feng gives him an unsure side-eye.

In his arrogance, he dismisses Andy right away. But--

He spoke too soon! Andy's Ten-Twist Vortex Fist sends him spinning and bloodies his lip. I love Fuuko's face in the top panel.

At the end, both Fuuko and Andy say that they're fighting for other people, but Feng is still just fighting for his own amusement. How can they take down a wildcard like him?

Masterpost

[puresampaguita]

yeahhhh... i am still drowning in this fandom until now while being choked by my biochemistry lab reports. i was going to post my wei wuxian yiling laozu art when my ipad decided that “ imma combust on you biz, sayonara adios patria adorada”. I had to wait for the unit replacement for months.The only thing i was distraught of is when i did not finished that paiting along with my unfinished projects. i did have the energy to do art but welpss i am here back to old school style soooo what do ya think?

btw this is my rendition version of my oc Lan Zutian.