Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
It was still unsure when Pan Chengyun had finally straightened his back and placed his full attention on the arena. His expression was unusually stern, and he was fully focused on the battle.
Lou Cheng perhaps, maybe, possibly, seemed to be stronger than what he expected...
Since the Warrior Sage Challenge Tournament till now, it had been more than 20 days. Based on the scary advancing rate his opponent had displayed, knowing that he had achieved the power of a Professional Ninth Pin fighter merely within four months, there was a possibility that he had “more than enough time” to make a breakthrough within these days!
If he could use three months to upgrade from a level of Amateur First Pin to a level of Professional Ninth Pin, why couldn’t a genius like Lou Cheng accomplish much more within a month?
Moreover, he seemed to have many battle experiences, including battles against life and death, and his vibe was not any weaker than his seniors who depend on martial arts for a living.
At this moment, Lou Cheng was indeed weaker regarding strength and speed, but compared to a Professional Ninth Pin fighter, he was not far from it. Furthermore, he was good at controlling his body and was quick in grasping the techniques of exerting his strength. This included the way he adjusted his strength for every punch and kick, as well as being able to create a higher explosive degree of attacks. All these could have overcome his shortcomings.
In other words, besides the poor body quality, Lou Cheng had achieved a level of Professional Ninth Pin in all other areas. In addition, his coordination, listening skill and meditation skill were way better than a Professional Ninth Pin fighter. All in all, though one was not able to say that he was invincible among the Professional Ninth Pins, he was definitely a worthy opponent for any Professional Ninth Pin expert.
Of course, all these analyses were excluding the fact that he had just acquired the Power of Blaze, which was still too weak to affect the battle outcome!
Unconsciously, Pan Chengyun had viewed Lou Cheng as a young fighter who was much genius than him, and had somewhat taken that view for granted. His despising attitude at the start had a 180-degree change, and instead, he had now thought too highly of his opponent.
“He doesn’t have any rank yet, and there’s a possibility that he’ll sign up for the Professional Ninth Pin Ranking Event at the end of April. If only a few participants have signed up for it, we would meet again...” Pan Chengyun murmured. No matter how calm he was, he still felt that it was a pain in the ass.
His current certified rank was only Amateur First Pin, and he had signed up for Professional Ranking Event at the end of April.
Yan Zheke noticed Lou Cheng’s martial arts shoes had split open where its base was torn and tattered, looking like a hindrance for him during battle. She felt it amusing yet heart-aching. At the same, she felt that his body could deal with all kinds of trials and hardships, and handle all responsibilities.
“I don’t remember buying him a gift yet...” She suddenly recalled, feeling embarrassed yet heart-warming.
On the arena, Lou Cheng’s martial arts shoes had finally given way. He felt pain and soreness in his arms, as though he had endured a thousand hits on his arms. If he did not take the opportunity to step back when Jiang Guosheng launched the killer move “Spark Fall Move,” besides destroying his stance, he might have lost the battle. Both his arms and hands would not be able to handle that attack, and if they continued to battle on, he would have suffered from either a bone crack or a fracture!
Purely based on strength, it would be impossible for him to win Jiang Guosheng.
But in a tournament battle, pure strength only played the primary factor in determining the outcome, but not the only factor!
Under such circumstance, Lou Cheng did not think much. He knew that he had no time to delay or wait for his arms to recover from the soreness, as his opponent might take the chance to launch another explosive attack. At this time, the battle was to the strong!
He forcefully took a breath. Feeling as though it was a battle to life and death and without making any adjustment to his body, he leaped forward. He strengthened his legs, and tightened his thighs, as he drew out his right leg from the back and aimed straight in between Jiang Guosheng’s legs.
Geezer Shi, who had initially sat and watched the battle without any expression, adjusted his sitting posture upon seeing that scene. He chuckled and said,
“That’s pretty keen of him...”
On the end, Wang Hui from Hongluo Martial Arts School frowned as he murmured to himself,
“If only that’s Fang Tong...”
Jiang Guosheng was trying to regulate his breathing and preparing his body for the fourth explosive attack when suddenly, he saw Lou Cheng’s leg aiming towards him. Instead of defending, Lou Cheng chose to attack. Instead of slowing down, Lou Cheng chose to speed up, which showed that he was totally serious about this battle. This made Jiang Guosheng panicked as he immediately channeled his just accumulated energy towards his right leg. He forcefully straightened his right leg and swung it out like a whip, aiming straight at Lou Cheng.
Bam! The two shoeless legs hit one another in mid-air and withdrew. Lou Cheng sped up as he swiftly moved his back and shifted him beside Jiang Guosheng. He lowered his back and lifted with his right arm. In an instant, he ferociously launched a Downward Cut with Fist, towards the opponent’s temple.
His master had reminded him once that to disrupt the opponent’s momentum, one need not foolishly to keep attacking from the front, but to bring your strength to the play by influencing the opponent. Through influencing, one could force the opponent into a position that was inappropriate or incorrect to battle with oneself!
Because Lou Cheng had yet to regulate his breathing and due to his lack of strength, he could only attack the vital point.
Every strike needed to be fast and crafty!
“He catches it pretty fast...” Geezer Shi nodded in satisfaction.
Jiang Guosheng caught a breath before he straightened his shoulders and lifted his left arm to block the punch towards his temple. The moment their arms contacted, the muscles in his body started to expand. With his left arm as the connecting point and his back as the energy absorber, Jiang Guosheng suddenly launched a massive Swing Force, violently pushing his opponent away. This caused Lou Cheng to lose his balance as he unsteadily fell to the side.
The fifth explosive attack, “Fire-like Invasion Move”!
The moment Lou Cheng lost his balance, he was clear that he would need to recover his footwork fast, and that he would soon be welcomed by Jiang Guosheng’s sixth explosive attack. The fate of this battle was now in Jiang Guosheng’s hand, that there would not be any possibility for Lou Cheng to win.
At such desperate situation, an idea struck his mind. While he was falling off, he flicked his finger at the opponent’s temple with his right hand.
Bam!
A small fire appeared, which burnt a few strand of Jiang Guosheng’s hair.
Thud thud thud, Lou Cheng moved back three steps as he quickly adjusted his body and recovered his balance. On the other hand, Jiang Guosheng felt a scorching pain at his head. He was worried that his hair and head would get burnt, so he quickly used his hand to put off the fire, and was not in time to pursue his opponent.
Seeing such situation, an idea struck Lou Cheng as he took a breath and suddenly pounced towards Jiang Guosheng, who had just started to chase him. This had instantly drawn the two fighters closer. Lou Cheng stepped his right foot forward and with a jerk on his shoulder, he threw a blast punch towards the opponent’s abdomen.
Lou Cheng’s bravery was beyond Jiang Guosheng’s expectation. He had no choice but to push forward his sixth explosive attack. He rapidly lowered his hands, like a descending eagle, preparing to suppress Lou Cheng’s blast punch.
Seeing the situation, Wang Hui, the owner of Hongluo Martial Arts School, could not help but sigh. He initially thought that his disciple had grown through the years and was becoming more mature, which was good. He was in high hopes that he could achieve the Dan stage someday. However, with a battle experience like today, he saw its pros and cons. If nothing had forced his disciple to his edge, he would not even have the courage to take a risk and to do his best.
If today it was Fang Tong, why would he waste those opportunities away regulating his breath? Why would he care about whether his hair was burnt?
To create opportunity, one must first know how to seize the opportunity, which was the essence of Fire-like Invasion Move.
The difference between Jiang Guosheng and Lou Cheng was not only that the former had never experienced a battle with life and death, since that could be offset by the years of fruitful battle experience. It was due to his lack of courage which he had when he was young. Those who did not have much courage had their own tricked set and advantage in battle, but the main skill Hongluo Martial Arts School taught their disciples was “Fire-like Invasion Move,” which contradicted with his own personality!
And today was the day to see if he could get rid of his problem on his own!
Bam! The instant Lou Cheng’s blast punch was suppressed, he jerked his right arm and moved his wrist, drawing a small curve in the air before grabbing Jiang Guosheng’s wrist.
Big or Small Hand Wrap!
Jiang Guosheng was not an easy fellow either. He gathered all his energy to slap his opponent with his hand, as though he was a mosquito or a fly.
And at this moment, Lou Cheng, who was continuously exerting his energy forcefully, had reached his limit. He breathed out the turbid Qi from his lungs through his mouth.
He cleverly avoided the slap from his opponent. Before he could breathe out all his turbid Qi, a thought crossed his mind as he recalled seeing a broadcast. At the critical moment, when Dragon King’s body was suppressed by the opponent and was about to experience a massive knockdown attack from his opponent, he threw out fire from his mouth, which burnt the opponent’s face. This then turned the situation around and made him a winner.
Such a thought turned into an idea. Lou Cheng made use of the Jindan (the Golden Elixir) in his body to perceive his inner body. After making a slight adjustment, together with the image of Brutal Blizzard in his mind, he opened his mouth, exhaled his Qi and shouted,
“Ha!”
The turbid Qi turned into arrows and flew right into Jiang Guosheng’s face. Though no real injury was inflicted, such move had temporarily blinded his eyes, making the opponent to shut his eyes in fear.
Now is the time!
Seizing the opportunity, Lou Cheng grabbed Jiang Guosheng’s left wrist, and like lifting a snake, he swung his opponent with delicate force.
Clap clap clap! Jiang Guosheng tried to resist, but several of his joints had already loosened. His muscles had also become sore due to the injuries and dislocation of his bones, and his left arm was temporary useless!
“Ah!” He roared angrily. After being forced to such an extent, he could no longer care. He inflated his body once more, and slanted to the left. His heavy shoulder hit onto Lou Cheng.
The seventh explosive attack, “Fire-like Invasion Move”!
However, by this time, Lou Cheng had already made use of his strength, Listening Skill and Perceiving Technique. He lowered himself, bent his back and tugged in his body. His body went with the flow when Jiang Guosheng’s shoulder hit him. Making his left arm as the pivot point, he swung his opponent out and over his head. Jiang Guosheng was swung out of the arena.
The referee was slightly shocked by the situation, but he lifted his arm and announced the outcome,
“Second Round. Lou Cheng wins!”
There were still two more “Fire-like Invasion Move” remaining, but Jiang Guosheng had already lost the battle.
Dong! Watching their Senior Jiang fell in front of them and struggling to stand up, the disciples and trainees at Hongluo Martial Arts School were depressed and miserable. No one spoke a word.
Did this mean Lou Cheng had defeated the martial arts school all by himself?
Songcheng University Martial Arts Club kept silent. Everyone was stunned by this surprise outcome. It was clear that Jiang Guosheng was so much stronger and was at the upper hand throughout the battle. Why had he lost to Lou Cheng in the end? Not only that, he had lost in a way which was much uglier than Fang Tong, and the injury on his left arm would not be cured anytime soon!
Yan Zheke’s pinkish lips appeared nervous. She instantly shut her mouth, revealing a mischievous and gentle smile. This was exactly how she had reacted when she heard the news on the Warrior Sage Challenge Tournament.
Pan Chengyun could no longer suppress his anger and his rage to battle on within him, as he hurriedly stood up and stomped towards the arena.
Now, Lou Cheng, who was joyful about his achievement, swung his arms and massaged his fists. He felt some slight pains in his bones and if they were to continue with the battle, there was a possibility that he might injure himself. Furthermore, his next opponent was only of Amateur First Pin, how could he snatch all the limelights and not leave any for his future brother-in-law, wasn’t it?
As Pan Chengyun came forward, he turned his body and left the arena barefooted. He did not even take a look at the upcoming opponent.
“He walked off...” Pan Chengyun was stunned by the situation.
He just walked off like this?
I’m of Professional Ninth Pin, not Amateur First Pin!