The World of Kung-Fu 1.3: The Secret of Kung Fu

Though the Kung Fu War is a secret war, it often runs hot, with teams of martial artists duking it out in public places. How is it possible for the war to stay a secret? Nobody knows for sure. For some reason, most people will forget amazing displays of Kung Fu. They may run screaming from the mall as rival Taekwondo gangs kick each other through storefront windows, but once they can no longer see what is going on, the events will fade from their mind. Somehow, all physical evidence, like the shattered glass from the storefronts, gets rationalized away. Even hard video evidence is automatically dismissed as fake.

This phenomena is commonly known as the “Wushu Effect”, in the belief that it is the result of Wushu mind-control techniques. The Wushu Effect also explains why most people don’t know that guns are less powerful than empty-handed Kung Fu. They simply aren’t capable of remembering how good Kung Fu is. Whether Wushu is really behind the Wushu Effect is hard to say. Sometimes they work to keep Kung Fu secret, but sometimes they seem to want to reveal their Kung Fu’s power to the public.

Ironically, the ones who police the secrecy of Kung Fu most consistently are not Wushu, but the Wulin, and especially the Shaolin. The Wulin have long feared that if ordinary people, especially Westerners, were to realize the true power of Kung Fu, they would study it for personal gain,while ignoring the traditional moral teachings. To the Wulin’s horror, many Vigilante groups see no point in keeping Kung Fu a secret, while the Infinite Fighting Federation actively works to turn martial arts mastery into a public spectacle.

A lot of bad blood in the martial arts community stems from accusations that some style of other has failed to properly keep its true power secret. Naturally, the more popular a martial art is, the more likely it is to be accused of irresponsibility on this front. Taekwondo, Karate, Jujutsu, Judo and Muay Thai in particular have their reputations stained in the eyes of the Wulin and other traditional martial artists.

Here’s a rough list of Kung Fu secrets in order of secrecy, from the best known to the least known, listed under the sort of person who might know the secret. As always, though, who knows what will depend on their individual circumstances.

Ordinary American.

Mixed martial arts fights are popular television, especially the Infinite Fighting Federation.

Cop, streetwise person.

There are martial arts gangs on the streets these days.

Cop in bad neighborhood, resident of bad neighborhood.

There are a lot of martial arts gangs on the streets these days.

Perceptive cop, gang affiliate, Inexperienced Vigilante.

Martial arts gangs seem to be taking over the streets.

Vigilante groups have also taken to the streets, using their martial arts skills to defend ordinary citizens from crime.

Streetwise martial artist, curious IFF fighter, good FBI or CIA agent, maverick cop, lucky martial arts enthusiast, most Vigilantes.

The Circle of Iron is an underground fighting ring.

A confederation of martial arts gangs known as The Maniac Warrior Empire is the most powerful criminal organization in the USA.

Karate is in a state of civil war.

Seasoned Vigilante, experienced cop or government agent who has devoted themselves to fighting martial arts crime.

The Maniac Warrior Empire is at war with the Five Venoms, an old criminal cartel based in China.

A lot of Japanese martial arts styles have gone “Ronin” in disgust at the Karate Wars, living without rules until Karate returns to sanity.

Experienced Vigilante, orthodox Wulin student, member of secret government / military / police clique.

Wushu is an evil organization that has slowly been taking over the world.

The Wulin are a confederation of Chinese martial arts styles, dedicated to defeating Wushu.

The Shaolin monks are genuinely badass.

Ninja are real and also badass.

Magic is real! The Wudang priests and Laughing Devils are wizards.