An Unusual Love Rival
Xing Daozhuang had originally intended to criticize, but after hearing Si Ming's explanation, he swallowed his words. For a martial artist, nothing is more reliable than their own strength. If you miss this match, there will be another one, but if you miss the inspiration in martial arts, you may never get it back. Reputation ultimately depends on strength.
Si Ming added, "Besides, aren't you here? Because you're my travel companion, I dare to neglect intelligence gathering. I can just ask you about anything I don't know."
Yu Shuying said, "So, I should thank you for your trust?"
"If you insist on thanking me, I can only accept it with my humility. I can't put you in a difficult position," Si Ming said considerately.
Having gained a new understanding of Si Ming's shamelessness, Yu Shuying steered the conversation back to the main topic, asking, "Have you ever heard of the Martial King Cup before?"
"No, not really. But I don't pay much attention to martial arts competitions anyway, so it's normal to be ignorant."
"It's not that you're ignorant; it's normal that you haven't heard of it. Only a very small number of people know about the Martial King Cup. It's a competition held only within the upper echelons of society, never deliberately promoted to the outside world. Even ordinary people who are particularly interested in martial arts competitions only occasionally hear bits and pieces of information; there are no dedicated channels..."
After Yu Shuying's explanation, Si Ming finally understood the significance of the Martial King Cup. It was a stage provided for young geniuses to showcase their talents, belonging to the elite realm and having nothing to do with ordinary people.
First of all, the eligibility requirements are extremely strict. One must be recommended by a Spirit Transformation Grandmaster to participate. This alone means that even if all Spirit Transformation recommend one contestant, the number of participants would not exceed seven hundred, which is a probability of one in ten million.
In fact, there are no more than a hundred participants in each Martial King Cup. After all, young geniuses are not easy to cultivate, and not all Spirit Transformation like to take on disciples. For example, Yan Jinghong only has Si Ming as his disciple, while Xing Daozhuang doesn't even have a single disciple.
Therefore, if your martial arts skills are strong enough, you can qualify even without connections. As long as you find a Spirit Transformation Grandmaster and demonstrate your skills, they will be happy to do you a favor and mentor a promising young genius. It's a win-win situation.
However, such situations are rare in reality. Most young geniuses have one or more famous elders or connections. The kind of person who is unaffiliated with any sect, hides in the deep mountains and forests for many years to cultivate until he achieves great skill and then comes down to become famous overnight may have existed in ancient times, but it is no longer found in modern times because the experience accumulated by the two sides is simply not on the same level.
Modern people have martial arts schools, schools, and various martial arts competitions. If they can receive specialized training, they can spar with several martial artists from different schools every day. After three years, they will have seen martial arts routines from all over the country.
In contrast, those who stay in the deep mountains and forests, practicing martial arts behind closed doors, only have their own masters and the tigers, wild boars, and bears in the mountains as their opponents. They have very little combat experience and are still a blank slate when they emerge from the mountains.
This is like one person studying at home with occasional targeted lessons from one or two professors or university students, while the other is studying hard at school, doing countless practice problems, discussing and researching with classmates and teachers every day, and doing all kinds of test papers from all over the country. If these two people were to take the college entrance examination, their results would be self-evident.
Practicing martial arts is more rigorous than studying, because if you don't get good grades and high scores, you can complain that others are all high-scoring but incompetent, while you receive a holistic education, are more capable, more adaptable to society, and more likely to succeed.
But whether you've mastered martial arts well or not depends on whose punch is more powerful. No matter how much you boast, if you get knocked down by one punch, all your previous efforts will be in vain. In fact, the louder you boast, the more laughable you become.
"I understand a bit now. The Martial King Cup is actually similar to a ball or banquet held by the upper class, allowing people in a small circle to get to know each other and see which young masters have emerged in recent years. Once a young master advances to the Nascent Spirit Transformation, they are still considered one of their own. This is just a common tactic used by the upper class to protect their own interests, only in a different form," Si Ming said with sudden realization.
Yu Shuying said, "There is a difference. The ball and banquet are activities where everyone gets along well and interacts peacefully. But the Martial King Cup is a competition where you have to fight to see who is better. The elders may be hoping to get to know each other and expand their social circles, but the younger generation may not be so keen. You should know that there is no first place in literature, but there is no second place in martial arts. Nobody wants to admit that they are inferior to others."
Even so, Si Ming still couldn't muster any interest in a martial arts match. With his current strength, bullying juniors was too boring. He would be much more interested if his opponent were an elder.
Unfortunately, as far as he knew, no martial arts competition had ever specifically invited Spirit Transformation to participate. After all, no one had that much influence, and a Spirit Transformation Grandmaster didn't need to give anyone face.
Just as he was pondering how to win the championship inconspicuously in the Martial King Cup, Si Ming suddenly realized that an extremely powerful aura was approaching. Looking up, he saw a majestic figure, like a god, passing through the gate and walking towards the command platform.
War God of the Military School Ba Shenhuang!
Even though they had never met before, Si Ming recognized the other person immediately.
"The first one to arrive, Xing Daozhuang, you're still 'correct' as always." Ba Shenhuang's first words were sarcastic.
"What's wrong with being right?" Xing Daozhuang retorted.
"There's nothing wrong with it, but I just don't like it."
As soon as he finished speaking, Ba Shenhuang gathered his energy and struck Xing Daozhuang with a palm strike.
Chapter 633 A Rare Rival in Love
Xing Daozhuang seemed to have anticipated Ba Shenhuang's move. He spread his five fingers, and the Five Thunder Profound Qi swirled in his palms like a whirlwind, forming a vortex of wind. He then struck out with both palms against each other.
Suddenly, a thunderclap resounded, and a powerful force erupted from the palms of the two men, surging into their bodies and seeping into the earth through their feet. The entire command platform trembled and sank three inches, cracking the ground near the platform. A booming sound echoed across the vast training ground, and even the distant mountains and forests could be seen shaking noticeably.
Immediately following was the sound of flesh and blood falling to the ground. A flock of unfortunate geese, which happened to be flying overhead, were all shaken to death.
Both sides retreated immediately upon contact. Xing Daozhuang retreated rapidly, while Ba Shenhuang only took half a step back.
"It's been many years since we last met, and your skills haven't improved at all. It's truly disappointing," Ba Shenhuang said.
Xing Daozhuang stood with his hands behind his back, his fingers twitching slightly. He had prepared a powerful palm strike to meet a casually unleashed one, yet this was the result. The difference in their strength was far greater than it appeared on the surface.
But his expression remained unchanged, and he said righteously, "If you are concerned about Huang Yunsheng's matter back then, then I can only say that even if it happened again, I would still do the same thing. I would never risk the safety of the entire Allied Forces for one person. I have a clear conscience about this matter."
Ba Shenhuang snorted and said, "What does Huang Yunsheng's life or death have to do with me? Why should I stand up for him?"
Xing Daozhuang asked, "Then why did you strike with your palm?"
"Because just seeing your face makes me unhappy, and I can't calm down without punching you."
"... If you think you can trample on justice and order at will by relying on force, then you are sorely mistaken. Sooner or later, you will pay the price for your willful and reckless behavior. I look forward to the day when you are abandoned by everyone."
"Curse the strong is the only way for the weak to salvage their dignity. I accept this pitiful howl."
Ba Shenhuang turned and left, seemingly having lost all interest in Xing Daozhuang.
After he had walked away, Huang Tu stepped forward and said to Si Ming, "I'm really sorry, but that's just how my master is. Even in Nation of Valor, far more people see him as an enemy than want to be his friend. Basically, every Spirit Transformation Grandmaster has a grudge against him. Of course, the soldiers below still respect him."
Si Ming could understand. Even without further contact, just looking at his previous behavior, it was clear that someone like Universe-Shaking Divine General would disdain to lay a hand on people of lower status. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, and even if it was out of admiration for the strong, the soldiers would still regard him as an idol.
For example, if an outsider were to witness that scene, they would likely have one of two opinions: either they would think Ba Shenhuang was arrogant and unreasonable, or they would think Ba Shenhuang's actions were cool, stylish, and impressive, and they would yearn to be just as domineering, cool, and awesome, and not take Spirit Transformation experts seriously. But no matter which type of person they were, they would not feel any sympathy for Xing Daozhuang's plight.
It's like when a celebrity is exposed for a scandal. Apart from the celebrity's fans, most people are happy to see it happen. Because their income and status are so different, they can't feel any sense of shared sorrow. People from the lower class are happy to see the ugly side of the upper class, and an ordinary martial artist can't possibly sympathize with a Spirit Transformation Grandmaster.
In contrast, the Spirit Transformation Grandmaster would likely feel a sense of shared hatred and indignation. Because they were close enough, everyone knew what kind of person Ba Shenhuang was, had had contact with him and suffered losses as a result, so naturally they would not feel any goodwill towards him, nor could they possibly develop any feelings of worship.
On the other hand, the fact that Ba Shenhuang could still act as he pleased despite being surrounded by enemies, showing no regard for anyone's feelings or face, also proves his strength from another perspective. This left the victims with no choice but to swallow their anger and dare not retaliate, truly deserving of the title of God of War God.
No wonder he is known as the number one person below the Void Returning. Si Ming imagined himself facing this War God of the Military School and felt that without activating the Buddhist formation, he would probably have little chance of winning.
Of course, battles are full of variables, and it's never a case of the strongest winning. Without actually fighting a battle, it's hard to know who is stronger and who is weaker.