(AfroGamers.com) It’s time for another Manhua Manhwa Mash-Up! This time we’re looking at the manhua series Global Martial Arts—or World’s Best Martial Artist—by well…the loose translation is “Eagle Eats the Chick”. I’m having a hard time finding the phonetic version of their name.
Anyway, it’s a series that has gotten my attention as I’m a sucker of martial arts fantasy, isekai, and series with detailed levels of power and the like. I just love definite measurements for everything in a series.
Let’s check out Global Martial Arts and see if it’s a series worth adding to your reading list!
The World of Global Martial Arts
This series takes place in a modern-day country heavily based on China. Based on the webnovel of the same name, it starts in 2018 and features modern technology mixed with martial arts mysticism.
See, martial arts are at the forefront of everything. As a result, everyone’s ability to with martial arts is ranked on a scale from rank one up to the recognized rank nine.
These are just the ranks most people have obtained. There are a few levels beyond rank nine where martial artists go beyond superhuman to being near godly and eventually godly.
Ranks are broken down further into stages and are determined by how many bones are honed, blood honed, and mental ability. At higher ranks, things such as breathing and destructive power become more important as well.
Those who are either still in the lower ranks into their adult peak or don’t rank at all tend to take civilian jobs. People around the second and third rank are basically the cream of the crop of civilians and find work as executives, professors, and politicians.
People who rank higher or are constantly growing beyond those lower ranks are those who will go on to become heroes of the nation. They put their lives on the line to defend the country against dark martial artists, supernatural threats, and monsters.
As you’d expect in such a world, universities play an important role in Global Martial Arts. While there are normal universities for business, education, and the arts, the powerhouses are the martial arts universities. Getting into one of those is a great way to put yourself on a profitable career path and set your family up for life, basically.
Humans who have achieved those ranks beyond rank three are often professors or seniors at these universities, a part of the military, or take on bounty work. One aspiring martial artist is Fang Ping, a kid from a poor family.
Our Hero: Fang Ping
Currently a teenager, Fang Ping is from a world like our own where martial arts isn’t a focus of study in school. It’s 2008 and Fang Ping wakes up in a world where martial arts is all important.
Mind you, the manhua doesn’t really go into how he got here or anything. Fang Ping is just here and he knows that martial arts will bring a better life for himself and his family.
However, he has no initial talent in it and seems like a long shot for success and is learning a lot about things from his classmates. The first chapter is where we learn that a rank four can become governor of providence and a ranked martial artist can have success as an entertainer or in pro sports.
Martial arts are everything here.
His family is similar to the one in his original world. They live in a shabby apartment, his mom is a housewife, his sister is shameless amount money, and his father works his fingers to the bone.
Seeing his lot in life, he tells his family that he wants to take the entrance exam to become a martial artist. His father knows of his son’s dreams and gives him the last bit of cash the family has to take the exam.
The following day, he heads off to take the exam and this is when his system activates. If you know anything about isekai, the system is supe-important in most series. It’s something of a cheat that can read enemies and items’ stats, give enhancements, and allow characters to use skills that they wouldn’t be able to as a result of not being from that world.
In Fang Ping’s case, his system allows from him to train and hone his body using money. The more he has, the further he’ll be able to go with his system training. It also allows him to heal himself and replenish his blood and stamina.
As the series goes on, he’ll go from an honest kid to an honest but shrewd/shameless character as money is necessary for him to become stronger. It’s also important to the friends he makes along the way as training materials such as pills cost a lot of points and cash.
Fortunately for all of them, the more they advance, the better the missions become, and the more money they make. It’s all a circle in Global Martial Arts.
Verdict: 4 Fists Out of 5
This is a really good series! The story is good and plentiful but it doesn’t bog down the pace of everything. You won’t be longing for action after lengthy chapters full of exposition but it’s not all action all the time.
Action drives the series but it isn’t the series. Also, the world-building in this series is some of the best of I’ve seen in a manhua series and an isekai series at that. Usually, isekai takes an ancient or medieval fantasy approach which is easy enough.
Hower, the modern fantasy approach—while not new or anything—ranks as the best I’ve read in a while. Here’s hoping it doesn’t fall into the “I have money and extreme power and you all looked down on me” territory that other series in this pool came to the party with such as The Strongest God King and I Was Trash.
Staff Writer; M. Swift
This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.