Sparring

"Xiang Jianjun?"

Seeing the Security Bureau personnel enter the Gold Shop from afar, Chen Feng slightly raised an eyebrow.

One of them looked familiar from the side—it was the middle-aged man who had handled last night's supermarket robbery case.

He wondered whether those two thugs had confessed.

The thought flashed through his mind. Chen Feng stood there for a while, somewhat regretting that he had not exchanged contact information with him last night so he could follow up on the case.

"Let's go. The Security Bureau is here, so there's nothing left to watch."

Lin Hao said this and shook his head, seeming regretful.

Chen Feng did not linger after hearing that. Sanshou class was about to begin, and he did not want to be late.

Tap, tap!

Their footsteps echoed.

The two quickly changed in the Martial Arts Hall's Locker Room and entered the Practice Field.

"A Gold Shop actually got robbed? That's ridiculous."

"Those three robbers' backpacks were full of gold. How much must that have been worth?"

"Having money means nothing if you don't live to spend it. I think I saw someone get shot just now."

The robbery at the Gold Shop had caused quite a commotion, and many disciples were still discussing it.

Even Xu Dongtai stood beside the floor-to-ceiling windows, frowning with a rather unpleasant expression.

"Interesting."

Lin Hao paused, then suddenly chuckled under his breath.

Chen Feng was puzzled. Soon, he heard the other party say gleefully, "I heard someone mention that Xu Dongtai's family has some connections."

"That Gold Shop downstairs only barely got a small share of Xu Dongtai's family's investment after they pulled some strings a while back."

Chen Feng was initially surprised, then understood.

No wonder Xu Dongtai looked so gloomy. Even his lackey, Zhou Xin, was unexpectedly quiet, barely daring to breathe.

The Gold Shop's losses this time were clearly substantial. A rough calculation put them at several million at the very least.

However—

Looking at Lin Hao's casual expression, Chen Feng was surprised again.

How could this guy's information network be so well-connected?

Whether it was the matter of the Core Disciple last time or his ability to uncover Xu Dongtai's family background, both were enough to prove that The Other Party was far from simple.

"Why are you looking at me?" Lin Hao asked curiously after noticing Chen Feng's gaze.

"Your information channels are pretty extensive, huh?" Chen Feng asked probing.

"Hah, that's all?"

"It's such a trivial matter. Anyone could find out with a little asking around." Lin Hao said with a smile.

Chen Feng could tell he did not want to say more, so he raised an eyebrow and did not press further.

The two then walked to a corner of the Practice Field and began practicing their punches.

During that time, Coach Lu arrived, right as Sanshou class was about to begin.

As usual, he first glanced at Xu Dongtai. Seeing his punches filled with violence as he struck the sandbag until it thudded and shook, he shook his head.

"A restless mind makes for unsteady fists."

The thought flashed through his mind. He more or less understood the reason and did not say much.

Soon, he looked in turn at Zheng Qiang and Yu Shan.

"Barely Amateur Third Rank. Still far behind."

"His comprehension is lacking too. He has probably hit a bottleneck."

Shaking his head slightly, he finally looked toward Chen Feng in the corner.

Straight Punch, Splitting Punch, Whip Fist.

The whistling of his strikes rang out without end. His practice did not make much noise, yet it carried a calm confidence.

"This kid..."

"Why does it feel like his Sanshou has improved again?"

"And his physique has gotten a little sturdier too. Could it be that he has truly found his knack?"

Coach Lu raised an eyebrow, becoming increasingly certain of his guess.

A sharp gleam flashed through his eyes. Without specifically stepping forward to question him, he quickly clapped his hands and drew everyone's attention.

"Today's class will focus on practical sparring."

"I'll assign your opponents now."

His voice echoed, strong and vigorous, and no one objected.

Sanshou was a combat technique by nature. No matter how much one practiced, nothing improved one faster than actual combat.

Thus, every few days, Coach Lu would arrange sparring matches to assess everyone's progress.

"Xu Dongtai and Yu Shan."

"Zhang Ping and Fang Yuan."

Coach Lu quickly called out pairs of names. Some people's eyes lit up, while others shook their heads and sighed.

"Damn it, I'm getting beaten up again."

A tall young man cursed under his breath and withdrew his gaze from Xu Dongtai.

He had thought the coach would assign Zheng Qiang instead. After all, Zheng Qiang could take more punishment and was closer to Xu Dongtai in strength.

Thinking of this, he was about to call out to Zheng Qiang.

"Zheng—"

"Zheng Qiang, Chen Feng!"

Coach Lu suddenly spoke again, cutting him off.

The Practice Field fell silent. The tall young man was stunned, while Xu Dongtai narrowed his eyes in the distance.

"What's going on?"

"Zheng Qiang is sparring with Chen Feng?"

The crowd could hardly believe it. Many looked astonished as they hurriedly turned toward Chen Feng in the corner.

"Shouldn't it be me?" Lin Hao looked utterly surprised as he turned to his companion.

Hadn't he always sparred with Chen Feng before?

A weakling against a weakling, wasn't that right?

The crowd was immediately confused. After several seconds of silence, a commotion broke out.

Until finally, a somewhat dissatisfied voice sounded, low and deep.

"Coach Lu, did you get it wrong?"

Everyone turned to look.

Zheng Qiang stood in the first row on the left. He had short hair, a black tank top, a lean and powerful build, and bronze skin.

Unlike his usual calmness, his expression was clearly unpleasant now.

Though he was somewhat weaker than Xu Dongtai, he was still a skilled Amateur Third Rank fighter.

Compared with him, Chen Feng?

Tilting his head, Zheng Qiang glanced at the person in the corner.

He had not paid much attention to Chen Feng before, but judging from Chen Feng's talent, he was at most a beginner in Sanshou.

He was supposed to spar with him?

Not only would winning be nothing to brag about, he would also have to hold back at every turn and restrain his strength to avoid killing him.

What kind of sparring was that?

"That's right. It's you and Chen Feng."

In a calm tone, Coach Lu glanced at him.

He knew these boys were proud and arrogant. They probably had not paid much attention to Chen Feng in the past.

It was perfectly normal that they could not tell Chen Feng was Proficient in Sanshou.

This was a good chance to temper their attitudes through a sparring match and, at the same time, see what foundation Chen Feng had now.

"Coach!"

Zheng Qiang shouted unhappily, wanting to argue for it once more.

He would rather fight Xu Dongtai. Even if he got beaten up, he could at least fight with all his strength and test himself. That was far better than bullying a weakling.

"If I tell you to go, then go. Why so much nonsense?"

Coach Lu barked at him. His expression turned stern, and an imposing aura seemed to burst from him.

The crowd's expressions tightened at once, and no one dared continue discussing it.

Zheng Qiang was likewise cowed into silence and did not dare argue further.

"Fine, I'll do it!"

He strode to one side and took up an open sparring area.

His face was dark with displeasure, and the anger In His Heart had nowhere to go. He soon raised his right arm, spread his palm, curled his four fingers, and beckoned Chen Feng from afar.

"Come on. Let's give it a try."

"Let's be clear—I won't go easy on you. If you get hurt, pay for the hospital yourself. It won't have anything to do with me."

His tone was provocative. Chen Feng had not said a word the entire time, nor had he even responded to Lin Hao.

He merely walked forward slowly, stopped amid every gaze, and took his position.

"Fine."

In a calm tone, Chen Feng seemed to be answering the provocation.

Through his Perception Talent, he could sense A Trace of hostility from Zheng Qiang.

It was mostly simple displeasure, mixed with contempt and arrogance in his gaze.

But it did not matter.

He only needed to beat him until he submitted.