Translator: Transn Editor: Lucas
While ascending onto the arena step by step, Li Mao had decided how he would take on Gao Shengli as a top-level Ninth Pin fighter with brute force who had been practicing the Iron Cloth. He wouldnât consider using Force Concentration unless it was a critical moment. It wasnât very likely that heâd waste his Dan Stage explosive powers again.
His heart calm and his gait steady, Li Mao gained more and more confidence as he walked up and faced Gao Shengli, to the point where he even entertained the fact that he could perhaps win the fight!
No fighter would like to taste the bitter taste of defeat!
The judge looked around, then slowly raised his right hand and waved it down light as a feather.
âBegin!â
Li Mao suddenly straightened his back. He adopted the Avalanche pose with his body and powerfully and violently pounced towards Gao Shengli, not in the least bit aware of his weaknesses as a fighter.
Not bad! Gao Shengli said inwardly. Not dodging or evading, he forged ahead and his body unfurled. The contours of his muscles seemed almost as if they were forged out of black iron!
Ever since I had made achievements in the Iron Cloth, I favored close and body-to-body fighting. Under these circumstances, so long as the opposition doesnât have any simplified physical invulnerability, I could defeat even a Seventh Pin!
Bang! Just as he was approaching, Li Mao paused and twisted his waist. His pulled back his right arm and threw out his fist, making a beeline for the bridge of his opponentâs nose.
The Iron Cloth was impressive, but his head had become a problem. After all, the iron didnât extend to his head!
Seeing the situation, Gao Shengli threw out his shoulder and withdrew his left arm, putting it in front of his face without pausing his movement in the slightest. It was as if he was a soldier bravely facing a cannon blast. Urgently depending on a sliding step, he threw out a whip kick. Both of them were attacking one another, both of them were risking it all!
Li Maoâs backbone undulated, and he spread out his left fistâs strength, pulling it back and dodging to the side.
In a battle where Iron Cloth was involved, the most important point was to be patient. One couldnât be rash in order to avoid falling into a trap and making it a free for all. You had to wait until a true opportunity presented itself, and then you had to do your best to seize that opportunity!
Bang bang bang! Crash crash crash! Li Mao unceasingly changed directions towards Gao Shengliâs eyes, ears, nose, mouth, temples, throat, eyes, and other places that he felt he could harm through attacks. His fists whizzed by and his legs were like whips, but as long as his opponent resisted and launched counter attacks or pinched his waist and twisted his thighs, the places he insisted on harming were safe. He was promptly withdrawing his body and not greedily attacking. He was not advancing prematurely and was not getting in a snag.
The fight continued in this way for a while. Playing it safe, the conservative Gao Shengliâs strength slowly but surely deteriorated, but throughout the entire fight, he couldnât find an opportunity to grasp his opponent.
Li Maoâs exhaustion also began to accumulate, but he remained as calm as before. Amidst the entanglement, he observed his opponent and noticed that Gao Shengliâs fists and legs seemed to have a bit of a feeling of impatience to them, and his eyes suddenly sharpened.
If it continued like this, his opponent would once again be unable to control himself from using Force Concentration!
He had to seize this point in time now, not before and not after!
Bang!
His right fist shook and went towards his opponentâs temple as quick as lightning.
Gao Shengli lifted his left arm to brace himself and at the same time strode over using his right foot to attack, aggressively throwing out his other arm like a whip.
Just then, the previously prepared Li Maoâs right arm struck out, and he twisted his waist. Taking advantage of the moment, he leaned his body forward and, by using the sliding step, he slid behind his opponent.
His entire body straight, his two arms struck out with a snap and his palms cracked in opposite directions at his enemyâs temples. âStrike opponentâs ears with both fistsâ!
Gao Shengli was not nervous nor rushed. His left foot suddenly went back, and stomped on top of Li Maoâs foot. At the same time, his mind contracted and his body went to the side. His right arm bent upwards and the tip of his elbow violently slammed back.
Bang!
A powerful and distinct sound resounded all around!
In these circumstances, Li Mao had unexpectedly not retreated, but rather had changed his strike that was amined at opponentâs ears with both fists into Downward Cut with Fist, pursuing his opponentâs focused the mind!
Following this chopping attack, his waist rebounded and he abandoned the stance. His entire body flew horizontally through the air, narrowly avoiding Gao Shengliâs rear kick and causing his attack to merely scrape the side of his ribs.
Bang! Li Maoâs ribs were sore and sweat dripped down his forehead. When he had struck both fists down to attack his opponentâs head, he had lost the greater part of his strength.
Fortunately, he had prepared earlier. Bearing the pain, he shot out all ten fingers towards his opponentâs eye sockets to grab and pluck them out!
Gao Shengliâs line of sight was suddenly entirely occupied by Li Maoâs fingers. His heart tightened. Unless he used Force Concentration, heâd be unable to cancel out this attack!
The judge saw the situation and hurriedly rushed over, and using his right hand with lightning speed, pushed Li Maoâs shoulder slightly, moving him horizontally in order to avoid the disaster of causing Gao Shengli to go blind.
He then lifted his other hand and said,
âRound Three, Li Mao wins!â
Agh, agh! Gao Shengli gasped twice. It was unbelievable that he had suddenly lost. He still could do two more Dan Stage strikes!
Li Mao covered his right rib. It was hard to conceal his happiness.
Heâd unexpectedly won against an Eighth Pin Dan Stage fighter!
Even though it had been at the cost of an injury, even though it was because Cai Zongming had previously made him use up most of his energy, this was still an extraordinary event!
Gao Shengliâs face flushed red with scorching pain. Seeing reality clearly, he did not wish to remain there and he turned to stomp towards the edge of the arena. He went down the steps and proceeded to rush towards the Jinfeng University Martial Arts Club seating area.
On the way there, when he saw the dyed blond hair of club manager Wei Rong, he lowered his head in shame. His lips trembled and he didnât know what to say.
Wei Rong was furious, and he was bitter that Gao Shengli had not lived up to his expectations, but finally he sighed and said,
âThis is how it is. Weâre unable to win.â
He agreed with Liu Chunlai that they simply had no hope of defeating Lou Cheng. There was no other way...
Forget it, todayâs fight could be considered an experience for his pride. Afterwards, they wouldnât necessarily have the same opportunity...
He was on the verge of leaving the University Martial Arts Circle and entering professional competitions. It was quite clear that he had almost no hope of entering the Inhuman stage. Afterwards, he would likely undeservedly drift amongst districts in the north and south, punching his way through individual fights. His income would be generous and his position wouldnât be bad, but his pride wouldnât be the same as a result of today. Unless he had good luck, he wouldnât come into contact with things such as âWarrior Sageâ, âThe Kingâ, or other title match selections.
In the arena, the pain in Li Maoâs right rib intensified and he didnât dare try to go another round. Without waiting for the other opponent to enter the ring, he turned and headed towards the stone steps, strolling back.
âThird round, Wei Rong wins.â the judge calmly proclaimed, announcing the result of a fight that had never begun.
Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke bumped fists and welcomed Li Mao, asking full of concern,
âAre you okay?â
Li Mao inhaled a breath of cold air, and with not a little bit of pain, he smiled and answered,
âIâm alright, itâs most likely just a little fracture.â
A fracture and he could still say âItâs alrightâ? Lou Cheng was dumbstruck, then shook his head and said, âBrother Li Mao, you donât need to be this tough! Anyway, even if Gao Shengli had beaten you, heâd also have used up all of his strength and wouldnât have had any influence towards me.â
Li Mao lowered his head, laughed, and said,
âEveryone whoâs a Martial Arts Club member, they always see how tough you and Lin Que are, so I canât let it show that this injury is affecting me. If I do, Iâll feel very... very ashamed, very embarrassed.
âSo if I get an opportunity in the arena, I hope I can get a victory so as to be worthy of the name of a Song Cheng University Martial Arts Club substitute... â
After saying this, in order not to arouse too much sympathy, he laughed and said,
âAnyway, I probably wonât be in the rotation in the next round against, so let me show off a little bit here.
âOnly in this way can I feel that Iâm a member of the Martial Arts Club and feel that Iâm on the same team as you guys...
âIf in the end I can acclaim that supreme honor, at least thereâs something that I can say Iâve done, and that Iâve made at least a significant contribution!â
Lou Cheng sighed gloomily. He repeated himself and bumped fists with Li Mao and said,
âYou fought well. I thought you wouldnât be able to win.â
âHehe, ah... â Being complimented by him in such a genuine way, Li Mao was unable to keep from smiling even though his pain had graduated from normal to something sharper.
Crossing over to Li Mao, Lou Chengâs heart suddenly felt full of warmth, and he headed to the arena slowly and unhurriedly.
...
In the live broadcast, the guest presenter, Chen Sansheng, smiled at the host, Liu Chang.
âNext up, all there is is suspense.â
âThereâs still suspense? What?â Liu Chang expressed his disbelief.
âItâs just how long will it take for Lou Cheng to mow through them all.â Chen Sansheng chuckled.
âI reckon it wonât be too long. For the two matches, it wonât go over a minute. No, I estimate it wonât be more than 30 seconds!â Liu Chang guessed with a smile on his face.
Chen Sansheng nodded his head. âThatâs what Iâm thinking as well. Lou Chengâs methods are so plentiful, and he can directly catch up to Peng Leyun and Ren Li.â
...
Facing the arena and seeing his dyed blonde hair, Lou Cheng could see that Wei Rong had stood up a long time ago. It seemed as if he was recoiling somewhat, and he didnât have much will to fight, as if he didnât have any desire to win at all.
He doesnât have enough energy... Snickering to himself, Lou Chengâs mind schemed as he walked in front of Wei Rong and began adjusting his spirit and his bodyâs condition.
He arrived at the spot in advance, and after half closing his eyes, the judge lackadaisically directed his eyes towards the both of them, raised his hand, and waved it down.
âBegin!â
His voice still hadnât faded when Lou Cheng suddenly opened his eyes. His pupils contracted and his bodyâs power broke out!
Suddenly, Wei Rongâs eyes seemed to brighten, as if heâd seen the clouds break over and reveal a brilliant, snow white cover atop a towering and majestic mountain peak.
At that very moment, Lou Chengâs body and mind were as tall as a mountain peak, astonishingly powerful!
In a split second, he condensed his spirit and unexpectedly was baffled.
Seizing the opportunity, Lou Cheng lifted up both hands, moving towards his prize, and he stately and serenely called out,
âArmy!â