"Look at that, Richard is showing off again," Keanu Reeves commented as he watched Saturday Night Live.
"Richard is genuinely amazing. His martial arts are the real deal. Remember how he single-handedly took down four armed robbers last time?" Jennifer said as she gently rocked the cradle on the couch.
"Hah, going up against armed men? What a reckless guy," Reeves scoffed.
"Papa~" Suddenly, a clear voice called out.
"Haha, Eva, you're awake! Were you calling me?" Reeves crouched down by the cradle, grinning like a servant.
"Papa~ there!" Little Eva pointed at the TV, her voice filled with innocence.
Reeves's face darkened. He picked up the little one and placed her on his lap, saying, "That guy on TV isn't your daddy, he's your godfather. Say it with me: god~father~"
Reeves gently held Eva's shoulders, trying to teach her.
"Papa~" Eva ignored him, turning her head back to the TV.
Reeves's face grew even darker. "Richard isn't your dad, I'm your dad, your one and only dad."
"Keanu, are you a child? Eva is only a little over a year old. Why are you saying this?" Jennifer rolled her eyes and took Eva from his hands.
"Papa~" Eva clapped her little hands while watching the TV.
"Haha, yes, that's Richard. He's amazing—nobody can beat him," Jennifer said, cuddling the little one.
"Hmph! This show isn't worth watching. How about we watch The Matrix instead?" Reeves stood up, grumbling.
"Don't be silly. Don't you want to see if Richard can actually make the kick?" Jennifer glared at him.
"He definitely can't. O'Neal is standing on tiptoe with his arm raised, nearly three meters high. Besides Bruce Lee, no one can kick that high," Reeves confidently replied.
"Let's just watch and see!"
—
"Hunter, sit down! Richard's about to kick!" Scarlett Johansson called out in an apartment in Beverly Hills.
"Is he really starting?" Hunter Johansson, Scarlett's twin brother, put down his gaming console and sat in front of the TV, his eyes wide with anticipation.
On the screen, Richard stretched his legs a few times, standing a little over two meters away from O'Neal. Suddenly, he lifted one leg, his foot nearly grazing O'Neal's face, startling the big man.
"Haha, that's hilarious," Scarlett laughed out loud.
On TV, Richard lifted his leg a few more times, testing the height. Then, with a loud shout, he suddenly leapt high into the air, tilting his body as his left foot aimed directly at O'Neal's right hand.
"Wow, no running start?" Hunter exclaimed.
At that moment, O'Neal slyly shifted the bottle half a foot to the side, standing even higher on his toes.
Bang! Richard's foot struck O'Neal's wrist but fell just short of the bottle. He didn't hit it. Richard spun in midair and landed steadily on the ground.
"Wow, that was so cool! How can he kick so high?"
"What a shame, he almost hit it!"
"Haha, O'Neal's so naughty. If he hadn't moved, Richard would've nailed it."
"Richard hit O'Neal's wrist, so that counts, right?"
"Is this Bruce Lee's technique? Richard doesn't seem any worse than Bruce Lee."
"That kick was amazing! I wish I could learn that."
Viewers watching the show began chatting excitedly about Richard's performance.
"What a pity. Couldn't O'Neal just stand still?" Scarlett complained.
"If he stood still, he wouldn't be O'Neal," Hunter chuckled.
"Hey Richard, I didn't mean to move. My arm was getting tired; you understand, right?" On TV, O'Neal grinned mischievously.
"It's fine. In real life, the target moves, so it's reasonable to move too. Let's try again, and this time, you can move as well," Richard replied with a smile.
"Really?" O'Neal furrowed his brow, suspicious. "Are you threatening me? You're saying I can move freely, but you're actually hinting that if I move, you'll beat me up, right?"
"No, no, O'Neal, I'm not threatening you. I mean it," Richard spread his hands, still smiling.
"Alright, everyone heard that. If you miss again, you can't blame me afterward," O'Neal said cautiously.
"Wait, O'Neal, are you afraid of Richard?" Paul Rudd asked curiously.
O'Neal smirked, "Obviously, he's beaten me up before."
"Really?!" The host Paul, the live audience, and viewers at home all stared curiously at the two of them.
"O'Neal, stop talking nonsense. When did I ever hit you?" Richard frowned.
"Haha, did you forget? Well, let me explain from the beginning. Richard and I are neighbors, living close by. Last year, I saw he had just moved in, so I invited him over to my place, and we played a game of basketball."
"Oh, how's Richard's basketball skills?" Paul asked, intrigued.
"That time, I blocked him ten times in a row, haha!" O'Neal laughed heartily.
The audience and viewers at home joined in the laughter.
"O'Neal is too good at basketball; I could barely get past his defense," Richard smiled.
"O'Neal's much taller than you. It's normal to get blocked," Paul Rudd chuckled.
"No, no, actually, Richard is really good at basketball. His physical fitness is amazing—he's got great jumping ability and speed. He's no worse than many NBA players. At the start of the game, he kept dunking, and I kept blocking him. But eventually, my stamina wore out, and I couldn't stop him anymore. I just had to watch as he kept dunking, one after another, all these powerful dunks. There was nothing I could do," O'Neal shrugged, looking helpless.Here's the translation of the text into English:
---
"Haha, O'Neal, you forgot about Richard's title, the Tactics Master. You definitely fell into his trap," Paul Rudd reminded.
"Yes, I realized that afterward. After that basketball game, I wanted to challenge him to a boxing match. At that time, he had just won his second championship belt and was very famous."
"What was the result of the match?" Paul Rudd asked.
O'Neal grinned, "It didn't go well. At the start, Richard was worried about hurting me, so he didn't use much strength. I wanted a real match, so I told him to go all out without worrying about injuring me. Then he suddenly threw a punch at lightning speed. I couldn't block it, and it hit me on the forehead. I got KO'd and was out cold for 10 minutes before waking up."
"Wow, knocked out for 10 minutes?" Paul Rudd was surprised.
"Yes, I knew nothing after I got knocked out. When I woke up, Richard said I had a low resistance to hits. He only used half his strength, and I was down. So, do you understand why I'm afraid of him now?" O'Neal asked irritably.
"Haha, got it!"
"Why wasn't this part cut?"
In the living room, Richard watched the TV show where O'Neal was rambling on about unrelated things. He thought it would be cut during the broadcast.
"Take a look at these stats." Old Hall took out a report. "This is the first broadcast's viewership report from the TV station. This program averages 18 million viewers per episode, ranking in the top five for its time slot. This time, viewership reached 26 million, higher than the highest-rated episode last year.
Especially during your high kick demonstration, 24 million viewers watched the first time, and it broke 30 million the second time. These were the two peaks, and in between, we needed some transition, so we left in O'Neal's interview.
Also, online, this video has over 42 million views.
Overall, this promotional campaign was very successful. Not only did it launch 'Galactic Legends,' but it also made everyone know that you are a real martial arts expert."
Richard looked at the data and smiled slightly, "I look impressive on the show, but there aren't many action scenes in the movie. I hope they won't call me a fraud after watching it."
"That doesn't matter. Even with fewer action scenes, it doesn't hide the fact that you're a martial arts expert. Bruce Lee sparked a Kung Fu craze in America with his movies, and now that you've shown your exceptional martial arts skills, many media outlets are optimistic about your future," Old Hall said with a smile.
Richard smiled lightly and looked back at the TV, where O'Neal finished speaking, and the second challenge began.
——
"This time, I hope Richard can hit the target," Hunter Johnson said in front of the TV.
"As long as O'Neal doesn't move around too much, Richard will definitely hit it," Scarlett said, clenching her fists.
"But Richard just said that O'Neal could move freely, so it seems more difficult this time," Hunter said.
"Look, it's starting."
On TV, Richard was again kicking his leg, showing off his legwork, with straight kicks, side kicks, and spinning kicks—his moves were clean, sharp, and very swift.
"Wow~" Seeing Richard's moves, Hunter couldn't help but try a few of them, but Richard's moves were too fast and fierce to imitate easily.
"Shaq, are you ready? This time I'm going to kick the bottle out of your hand," Richard said, stopping his practice.
"Okay, but you said I can move around," O'Neal said.
"Yes, but you can't put your hand behind your back."
"No problem. Go ahead and try; I bet ten dollars you can't hit it."
O'Neal raised the bottle and stood on tiptoe.
"Then watch closely!" Richard smiled lightly, wiped his nose like Bruce Lee, then suddenly shouted and jumped up, his left leg shooting straight towards the bottle in O'Neal's hand like a spear.
"Amazing, this time he'll definitely hit it," the audience exclaimed.
Just then, O'Neal suddenly flattened his feet, and the bottle he was holding dropped half a foot. Richard's toes brushed over the top of the bottle.
"Damn, so close!"
"Wow, look!"
Just when everyone thought it was a pity, Richard suddenly twisted his body, spinning half a circle, and delivered a spinning back kick. His other leg came forward like a whip, and his toe hit the bottle squarely.
Bam~
The bottle was kicked flying, and O'Neal flinched, his shoulders hunching like a startled little animal.
Thud~
Richard landed on the ground, pushed himself up with his hands, and jumped up, his movements clean and cool, looking incredibly stylish.
"Wow~" The live audience all stood up, clapping and cheering loudly.
"Wow, did he just switch feet in midair and kick twice?" Hunter asked in astonishment.
"Is this the power of Champion Richard? He's so cool!" Scarlett shouted excitedly, her face flushed.
"How is that possible…" In front of the TV, Levi was dumbfounded, completely speechless.
While filming 'The Matrix,' he had practiced martial arts and knew many cool moves, but those all required the use of props. Yet Richard had just done those two kicks without any wires, using only his jumping ability and physical strength. It was incredible and defied logic.
"Isn't this guy a boxing champion? How is his kicking so good too?"
"Richard said his martial arts skills are better than his boxing," Jennifer said with a smile.
"I don't believe it. He must have cheated." Levi pulled out his phone.
"That move was too cool; I want to learn it too!" Ms. Theron raised her long leg and tried a few kicks, but her body didn't jump high enough. "Is there some secret to this?"
"Richard is amazing. He'll definitely become an action star in the future," Jessica Alba blinked and took out a delicate little phone.
"Giselle, you're so lucky. Richard is not only rich and handsome but also so strong. Did you save the world in your past life?" Angela asked sourly.
"Quite possibly." Giselle smiled, curling the corners of her mouth.
"Hmph, you're so smug. Richard is getting more and more famous, and more and more women are after him. I suggest you go to Los Angeles and stay with him, or else he'll definitely be snatched away by another woman."
"He won't. I trust him." Giselle smiled lightly, pulling out her phone to call Richard. She tried twice, but the line was busy.
"Busy? Maybe he set it that way on purpose so you wouldn't bother him. Should we fly to Los Angeles to catch him cheating?" Angela joked.
"Don't be silly. This show had high ratings, so a lot of people must be calling him to ask about his martial arts. He'll call me back once he's done."
"If he doesn't, though, it's night time now. How busy could he be? If he's with another woman…"
Ring ring ring~
Just then, the phone rang. Giselle picked it up and laughed, "Haha, look, it's Richard."
"He must have made the girl hide before calling back." Angela pouted.
Giselle laughed and answered the phone, "Hey, Richard, Angela says you're on a date with another girl."
"Then tell her that the next time I see her, I'm going to beat her up," Richard said on the phone.
"Hmph, you wouldn't dare!" Angela said, dissatisfied.
Giselle laughed, "Are you scared now?"
"Giselle, it's night time in New York, right? Why are you still with Angela? Are you two sleeping together?" Richard asked, displeased.
"Yes, so what? Right now, Giselle is my girlfriend. Muah~" Angela said, kissing Giselle.
"Don't be silly. Be careful, or Richard will really beat you up," Giselle pushed her away. "Richard, did a lot of people call you tonight?"
"Yes, a lot of people saw 'Saturday Night Live' and called, asking to be my apprentice and learn martial arts from me. Keanu, that guy, is jealous of me. He said I cheated and that my move wasn't scientific at all. What a frog in the well."
"Haha, your performance was too impressive. Ordinary people can't do it. Angela even said you're a superhero," Giselle laughed.
"Superhero? Maybe I am," Richard chuckled on the phone.
The reason he could perform such an incredible move was partly due to his own strength.
The second reason was that he had specifically designed the move before going on the show and had practiced it with O'Neal many times, so it was a big hit on the show.
After the show aired, many people called to ask about it, which showed that this promotional event was very successful.
"Is the movie promotion over?" Giselle asked.
"The first round is done. Now it depends on the first-week box office results. If the box office is good, the promotion will continue. The movie is released this weekend, and the crew will hold a premiere in New York. Do you have time to attend with me?"
"No problem, I'd love to," Giselle smiled.
"Thanks, and ask Angela if she's free too."
"Okay, she's free!"
"Giselle, you didn't even ask me