Translator: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio
The scorching heat around Lou Cheng thickened as his opponent’s Flying Moth came in unceasing waves. Even with his Ice Mirror, the boiling environment meddled with his senses. The heat that distorted the air made it hard to see clearly. Had it been anyone else, they would have been flustered and let the haziness cloud their judgment, but not Lou Cheng. As though the heat did not affect him at all, he blocked with his arm forward using measured precision.
Against Tu Zheng’s hook, he expanded the muscles in his back and stretched his spine like a dragon or a bowstring, directing his body to slant to one side and avoid the blow perfectly. At the same time, he tensed his unmoved leg and kicked out with a snap the instant he found his balance, swinging it like a steel whip.
The decision was made based on what he gathered from the fight against Yu Wangyuan the previous week; against the shifting trajectory of Jet Spray, it wouldn’t do if he simply dodged or evaded. He had to find the chance to go from defensive to offensive. Else, it would only be a matter of time before his defense breaks!
However, though he was expecting it, Tu Zheng did not retract his fists, which were mid-air, but swung them downwards instead, propelling his body forward. His left foot went out accordingly, bringing his knee upwards and colliding into the side of Lou Cheng’s Whip Leg. Without any flashiness, he neutralized his opponent’s counterattack.
As someone who was approaching Physical Invulnerability, he too was the stage of “Encountering Gods In The Void, Self Reflection”!
His right arm shot out, and at its end there was a fist in constant motion. Halfway through the movement, he changed the direction of his punch once more, forcing Lou Cheng to retreat in defense.
Bam, bam, bam!
The brief sound of combat persisted. Tu Zheng launched a bout of attacks using Jet Spray, reducing the distance between him and Lou Cheng. Once he was in close range, it wouldn’t be that easy to dodge the trajectory shift brought by the second stage of Jet Spray!
In the process, his precise, robot-like movements went perfectly with his attacks, not giving his opponent any time or space to catch his breath.
Lou Cheng had to retreat in an orderly fashion. Every place he passed, sand and gravels were sent flying by the cold wind.
“Your Jet Spray pales in comparison to Leader Tu’s,” said Jia Lu, tilting her head with a strange, smile-like expression. Her comment was directed at Yu Wangyuan, the person who specialized in that secret art.
Anger flitted across Yu Wangyuan’s eyes. Then, as if mocking himself, he said, “Of course, I’m weaker than him. We are people of different stages. If I make the breakthrough to Encountering Gods in the Void, then I doubt mine will lose to Leader Tu.”
“Sigh. Sadly, the Fire Sect doesn’t have Ice Mirror, only weakened versions of it that don’t work well. It’s impossible for anyone to achieve the stage of All-Seeing God without enough capability,” sighed Lu Shaofei beside them.
All-Seeing God was another name for Encountering God in the Void.
Of course, God referred to oneself!
As the three Inhumans were conversing, their eyes never left the center of the arena, unwilling to miss any details.
Bang, bang, bang!
Lou Cheng left prints with every step, retreating as he fought. Gradually, he was pushed back to the edge. Right behind him was the transparent glass that separated the arena room from the training ground.
Bam!
Tu Zheng’s left fist, like a venomous snake, suddenly raised itself and slid up Lou Cheng’s blocking arm that was hammering downwards, then shot towards his throat like a bolt of lightning.
Lou Cheng bent his waist and leaned backward, making his opponent’s punch hit the air.
In that awkward pose, he did a backhand swing with his right arm and lashed towards Tu Zheng’s lower abdomen like a whip.
Composed, Tu Zheng shrunk his shoulders, swinging his arm slightly, hitting Lou Cheng’s ‘whip’ with a glancing blow.
At that moment, he suddenly heard a loud explosion from the sky, dull and unclear.
But no, it did not come from the sky! It came from Lou Cheng’s waist and fist!
Bam!
Lou Cheng’s back swinging arm sprang up, his fist, seemingly spitting out a fiery tail, shot upwards like a rocket blasting off. It went past Tu Zheng’s block and headed for the area between his throat and chest!
The 15th Style of the Fire Sect—Jet Spray!
In the past week, other than studying Devour, he had his full attention on mastering Jet Spray!
With his supreme control over his body, making a two-stage burst wasn’t difficult!
However, having a more savage nature than Fire Force, Emperor Yan Force caused greater damage to one’s body. Lou Cheng would not have been able to execute it a few times in a row had it not been for his precise control. Still, he couldn’t do it as effortlessly as Tu Zheng, who could repeat the move continuously.
Everyone has their own talents!
The fist quickly grew bigger in his eyes. Tu Zheng had a slight change in expression. The muscles on his chest sunk neatly and even produced the sound of shrinking bones.
In a moment, a massive dent formed in the area above Tu Zheng’s chest. He then floated backward, making Lou Cheng’s attack miss its mark.
Very well! Seeing that his opponent had mastered Jet Spray, a shade of red-gold flashed past Tu Zheng’s eyes. He was getting more excited.
What he thought in private didn’t matter; once he was in a battle, the stronger his opponent was, the more zealous he got!
As Lou Cheng straightened himself with the spring-like motion of his waist, Tu Zheng lowered his center of gravity and hugged his Qi and blood together, then punched forward with a burst of Dan Force.
Inch by inch, his martial arts suit bulged outwards, as though Jiaolongs (water dragons) were slithering towards his fist, where a red-gold glow condensed and sunk inwards.
The 36th Style of the Fire Sect, Devour!
Lou Cheng, noticing that, used Force Concentration at the time he straightened his hips, guiding the flow of his Jiaolongs with Dan Equilibrium. He then punched out.
The scarlet red returned to white. The flames formed a ball and instantly contracted inwards. The same Devour was being powered by a different Force!
A searing white fireball appeared, heavy and dense, immediately tugging at Tu Zheng’s red-gold glow.
Boom!
Light erupted, limning the entire arena. The fully formed shockwaves were mostly directed towards Tu Zheng. Flame, accompanied by the wind, splattered at him like unceasing rain!
Just as Jet Spray was more compatible with Fire Force, Devour was a perfect match with Emperor Yan Force. It was not just better than Fire Force, but also a counter to it!
Lou Cheng’s guiding of force with Dan Equilibrium also greatly reduced the gap between Tu Zheng and his stages, experiences, and masteries!
Using Devour before Emperor Yan, now’s my chance! With a burst of strength from his muscles, Lou Cheng pushed himself forward, sweeping up frigid winds and accelerating the flow of flames.
Tu Zheng raised his left hand quickly and blocked it before his head. His muscles expanded like a balloon, pushing outwards, negating the shockwave and deflecting the arrows of flame.
Bam, bam, bam!
The scarlet light ripped his clothes apart, leaving trails of burn marks on his skin.
While his opponent was in a passive, defensive position, Lou Cheng purposely slowed down his pace to visualize Emperor Yan with his high crown and ceremonial robe. At his heart was the heavy, dense Great Sun.
The Great Sun, donning a cape of flame, rammed into the unending, bitter cold.
Mutated Version of Severe Warning!
Lou Cheng took a half-step forward and threw a punch from his waist. Wherever the punch passed, color seemed to fade.
Tu Zheng’s eyelid twitched. A tint of glowing red leaped into his eyes, which was immediately overlapped by a layer of purple.
Puff!
He lifted both palms and pushed them outwards. A faint, purple stream of fire gushed from it, weaving into one with the flame he was breathing from his mouth. A mystical, unearthly whirlpool formed and blocked Lou Cheng’s punch in the nick of time.
The 11th Style of the Fire Sect—Simplified Physical Invulnerability Move, Purple Sun!
Poof! Lou Cheng’s left fist, enveloped in darkness, dispersed the purple whirlpool completely at the instant of contact, like a fire extinguisher. There were no continuations of Jet Spray counterattacks.
Boom!
The darkness exploded as purple sparks splashed everywhere. With a sway and dash, Tu Zheng had backed off more than ten meters. It seemed as he needed to catch a breath.
Lou Cheng reversed his Qi and blood to stimulate his body. Using the Attainment Formula, he caught up instantly and raised his right fist, where clear crystals began to gather. In a matter of seconds, the tides of the battle had turned!
Watching the process made Lu Shaofei and the others slightly flabbergasted. They seemed to have gained a greater understanding of Lou Cheng’s savagery.
Tu Zheng watched as Lou Cheng closed up to him, the tint of red-gold painting a complex scenery in his eyes.
The air around them increased in temperature once more. Lou Cheng felt as though he had been thrown into a furnace blast; his body was melting, his Ice Mirror was filled with countless cracks and being reduced to water.
That was the power of the combination between secret arts of the mind and environment-altering aura!
That was the secret art of the Fire Sect—135th Style, Infernal Hell!
Lou Cheng made a quick decision and visualized the Forwarding Formula. His Ice Mirror rapidly stabilized, but he could not prevent the delay in his movements.
The delay was what Tu Zheng needed. Without raising his leg or lifting his foot, he leapt ahead, entirely relying on the strength generated by his hips. Then, he drew his arm backwards and smashed his fist at his opponent’s head.
Just as Lou Cheng raised his arm to form a stance, Tu Zheng ignited his Fire Force, causing his fist to slant to one side and hit his opponent from the side.
Another Jet Spray!
Lou Cheng lowered his shoulders and waist, leaning back slightly to dodge the attack while swinging his other hand in an attempt to counterattack. The attack was dense and heavy.
At that moment, from the inside of Tu Zheng’s fist came another dull sound. He swung his fist to the side, using what seemed like another push momentum, stopping precisely at the side of Lou Cheng’s neck. An undodgeable attack!
Three-stage push momentum!
Tu Zheng actually made a second shift in trajectory!
That was the highest stage attainable in Jet Spray!
He only managed to master it after gaining precise control over his body with the stages of nearing Physical Invulnerability and Encountering Gods In The Void. He had done it by splitting his Fire Force into two parts— exteral and internal, independent of each other. He first exploded his external force, then detonated his internal force. This was the first time he used it!
Lou Cheng wasn’t the only one to be stunned; even Sun Jianlin—the referee—and the others were taken aback for a moment.
“Impressive!” Lou Cheng praised from the bottom of his heart as he recovered from his stance.
Nothing less of a Mighty One approaching Physical Invulnerability!
“You ain’t so bad yourself,” said Tu Zheng, sticking his thumb up. Winning the competition had put him in a great mood.
Yu Wangyuan and the others gathered around them.
“Leader Tu, you were hiding this from us earlier? For the King of Pro League? How cunning!” said Yu Wangyuan with a slightly complicated expression.
“Only recently. I only mastered it recently,” said Tu Zheng modestly. “Alright, let’s exchange some opinions on the battle.”
The sparring ended after Sun Jianlin took down Jia Lu. The Technical Support Team was busy rushing to produce the footage.
At that time, in the Longhu work chat group, someone had sent a message out of curiosity. “How did today’s Reserve Team sparring session go? Who did Lou Cheng fight against?”
“With Leader Tu,” Sun Tingting replied curtly after thinking for a few seconds.
“How did it end?” asked the gossipy girl from the External Affairs Team.
“Need I say it?” replied Sun Tingting, along with a smiley face.
“It’s to be expected...” chimed in the others.