Junior Brother Li Has Gone Mad!

The Martial Arts Tournament.

This was currently the hottest event on the entire Earth.

It far surpassed football matches, which had once been popular throughout the old era.

On Earth today, from eighty-year-old grandmothers to three- and four-year-old children, there wasn't anyone who didn't enjoy watching martial arts competitions.

As long as someone's arms and legs could move, any Earthling capable of physical activity would go and learn even the most basic martial arts training.

The Youth Cup was a city's carnival.

Compared to the completely formalized and much more serious provincial, continental, and even national competitions.

The Youth Cup still possessed more entertainment value.

And the qualifiers were one such example.

The Youth Cup competitions were divided into Group A and Group B.

Group A was the main event, with all participating contestants being registered Martial Artists, with quotas allocated based on their affiliated Martial Arts Halls or academies.

In Rong City, Chengtian Martial Arts School, Jixing Martial Hall, and the Rong City branch of Qingzhou Psionic University were the main participants in the main event.

The main members of Group B's contestants were more often martial arts enthusiasts from Rong City, along with some Martial Artists who hadn't joined any Martial Arts Hall or academy, or even those from other provinces.

Relatively speaking, only the strongest in Group B could enter the main event and compete for a spot in the top thirty-two of the Youth Cup.

Group B's qualifiers were more about livening up the atmosphere and increasing citizen participation.

At the competition registration desk.

The staff member pushed his glasses up his nose as he looked at Li Changqing.

"From Chengtian Martial Arts School? The professional division, why are you participating in the qualifiers? Is your school's quota not enough?"

"It's indeed not quite enough." Li Changqing put his ID back into his pocket.

"Our coach said he wanted me to come and gain some experience."

"Seeing as you're young, strive to achieve a good result." The staff member quickly processed his application and handed him a wristband.

"Number 037. Once you're inside, follow the signs, and you'll find your ring."

Li Changqing walked through the competition passage and entered the stadium.

The Group A and Group B matches were held separately. The former took place in Rong City's largest martial arts arena.

Group B, however, had to make do with Rong City's First Stadium, with multiple rings set up simultaneously for everyone to compete.

Li Changqing took out his phone and glanced at it. Old Man Chen Danqing had said he wouldn't watch the qualifiers, and would only come to cheer him on when Li Changqing achieved some ranking.

"Did Coach Kang forget about my match?"

Li Changqing scratched his head, looking at the location information he had sent to Kang Tianchen, which had gone unanswered.

He felt a bit dejected. He had wanted to pull off something spectacular for Coach Kang today to get him excited.

"Could it be that the coach was discouraged a few days ago and doesn't even want to watch my match, afraid of getting upset?"

Li Changqing sat in the waiting area for the match, his peripheral vision scanning the surroundings.

Many contestants were already standing there, but there were very few registered Martial Artists; most were trainees in the Transformation Stage.

Even the amateur contestants had several people who looked like coaches discussing tactics beside them.

He, on the other hand, was all alone.

With half an hour left until the match, Li Changqing decided to close his eyes and rest.

He examined himself internally.

[Vitality Concentration: 49%]

[Tai Chi (Unity of Man and Nature): 25]

[Tai Chi Fist (Thunder Department): 100%]

[Universe Breathing Technique: 100%]

In the past few days, Li Changqing's cultivation had pushed his Qi and Blood to the verge of a breakthrough. The Tai Chi Fist (Thunder Department) and the breathing technique had also been fully mastered.

The Unity of Man and Nature realm had progressed by a quarter.

He was now more than just a little stronger than when he last fought Sun Sheng.

Thinking about the last time, when he brought the heavily injured Sun Sheng back to the hall, he wondered if psionic medical treatment was truly that miraculous for such severe injuries.

The only person who piqued his interest in this competition was Sun Sheng.

After waking up from his coma, that guy had told him that he would be training at headquarters until the competition began.

Li Changqing sincerely hoped that Sun Sheng would bring something new to the table during this period.

Otherwise, this competition would be rather dull.

"Changqing!"

With ten minutes left until the match, hurried footsteps echoed from the other side of the passage.

"Junior disciple, you're here early."

Li Changqing opened his eyes to see Kang Tianchen and Huang Xuan running up, backpacks slung over their shoulders.

"Coach…" Before he could even speak, Kang Tianchen, with a serious expression, pushed him into a chair.

"Time is short, no time for pleasantries. You don't speak, just listen to me."

As he spoke, Kang Tianchen took off his backpack and handed the open tablet to Huang Xuan.

"Hold this."

"Oh." Huang Xuan took the tablet, acting as a human stand.

"Your opponent in this match is named Zhang Wei, 28 years old. He's considered a semi-registered Martial Artist. I just used the Martial Arts Hall's internal network to look up his information."

On the tablet, Kang Tianchen zoomed in on a photo.

The background showed a medium-sized Martial Arts Hall, with a young man with a robust build standing in front.

"Zhang Wei was a student at an ordinary Martial Arts Hall in Rong City six years ago. He had just graduated from university back then. Although his aptitude was decent, judging by his training regimen, this guy was very lazy, often slacking off.

"It wasn't until three years later that he successfully broke through the human limit and entered the Transformation Stage."

"However, when he entered the Transformation Stage, this guy actually spent his days going to nightclubs, drinking heavily day and night, which caused his Qi and Blood to deplete. Instead of transforming, his physical condition actually regressed."

At this point, Kang Tianchen glared fiercely at Huang Xuan, who hunched his neck, not daring to even lift his eyelids.

Li Changqing looked at the tablet in front of him. He now understood why Kang Tianchen hadn't replied to his message earlier.

It turned out that as soon as he received his match number, Kang Tianchen had immediately gone to gather information on his opponent for him.

"Coach, didn't you say you just wanted me to broaden my horizons? Why…"

"Nonsense, broadening your horizons doesn't mean going there to embarrass yourself. If we can win, why shouldn't we?"

"You think I can win?"

"Of course not." Kang Tianchen's confident tone made Li Changqing's emotions a little disjointed.

"Don't interrupt, watch." Kang Tianchen grabbed Li Changqing's ear.

"Zhang Wei did indeed fall back from the Transformation Stage three years ago, but he did break through the limit once. I just pulled up his recent public training records, and I can be sure.

"Although he has returned to the Transformation Stage and transformed successfully, his body is riddled with problems due to that previous incident, and his Qi and Blood are unstable. He doesn't meet the minimum standards for a Martial Artist, otherwise, he would have registered as one."

"Listen carefully, Changqing." Kang Tianchen placed his hands on Li Changqing's shoulders, his eyes incredibly serious.

"The rules for advancing in the preliminaries are different from the main competition. This is a points-based system. Besides wins and losses, the match duration is also a factor in the assessment. You can't win."

"But you can stall! Zhang Wei's strength won't overwhelm you, and he has hardly any actual combat training. He has a lot of raw power, but he can't utilize it all in a fight.

"In short, if the enemy pursues, I flee; if the enemy advances, I retreat. Never mind if it looks good or not, if you accumulate more points and Zhang Wei accumulates fewer, your chances of entering the next round will be much higher."

Li Changqing rubbed his nose.

"And what if I win against him?"

"Win against him? If you win, I'll treat you to a big meal today." Kang Tianchen rolled his eyes and waved his hands at Li Changqing.

"Although I said Zhang Wei doesn't meet the Martial Artist standards, his body is still not comparable to yours. Remember, listen to me, don't push yourself. Use evasive tactics. He lacks combat experience and won't be able to catch you that easily."

Ten minutes wasn't a long time, and Kang Tianchen couldn't analyze things too thoroughly.

In the end, he emphasized only one word: dodge!

Soon, a prompt sounded.

It was Li Changqing's turn to compete.

"Go, junior disciple Li! Try to stall for more time."

Huang Xuan pulled Kang Tianchen towards the spectator stands. As they left, the latter still couldn't forget, waving and shouting.

"Remember, evasive tactics!"

On the green field, the stages weren't even separated, allowing spectators to see multiple matches simultaneously.

The roof of the stadium had closed, plunging the indoor space into darkness, while the dazzling spotlights intensified the excited atmosphere.

Outside the ring, a circular track was set up, with twelve high-speed cameras ready to capture the action at any moment.

"Please have contestant number 037 proceed to Ring 3."

Following the broadcast's instructions, Li Changqing stepped onto the stage in front of him. A young man, looking much older than in the photo, was already in position.

Even though it was a preliminary match, the referee was still a professional Mid-Rank Martial Artist.

Ring 3 was located in the center of the green field. As soon as Li Changqing stepped onto it, Swish.

All the spotlights turned towards him.

"Ladies and gentlemen, let us now turn our attention to Ring 3. Taking the stage now is our popular contestant in this Group B preliminary match, a true Martial Artist, Mr. Zhang Wei—"

Thunderous cheers erupted from the surrounding stands.

In Group B, where enthusiasts and students were common, true Martial Artists were a rare sight.

A few seconds later, the commentator finally turned his attention to Li Changqing.

"His opponent is a young prodigy, 22 years old, from Chengtian Martial Arts School—"

The commentator deliberately drew out his tone. Chengtian Martial Arts School was one of the top two martial arts halls in Rong City. After the audience's cheers subsided, he continued:

"Apprentice, Li Changqing!"

The word "Apprentice" instantly deflated the atmosphere in the arena.

"What does that mean? Is he looking down on our junior brother Li?" Huang Xuan's eyebrows shot up, angered by the commentator's maneuver.

"Be quiet and watch the match," Kang Tianchen's gaze was more serious than ever.

He no longer held any illusions about the matches in Group A of Chengtian Martial Arts School.

Just making it into the top eight would be a success.

Conversely, he'd rather see how far his youngest student could go.

The referee signaled for the two to approach.

"Do you require any weapons?"

"No," both shook their heads simultaneously.

The referee retreated ten meters and raised his right hand.

On the big screen, bright red numbers began a ten-second countdown.

Li Changqing stood calmly on the stage, his peripheral vision catching sight of Kang Tianchen in the audience, his expression serious and expectant.

It's a points match, so I need to win quickly, right?

Li Changqing's chest rose and fell. Universe Breathing Technique!

Hoo—

Zhang Wei stood on the stage. He didn't look at Li Changqing; he was just an apprentice, what was there to see?

He was surveying the surroundings, waving to the audience.

He loved this feeling of being the center of attention, of being eagerly anticipated.

Just then, the ground rippled from a gust of wind. Zhang Wei froze and turned around.

Huh?

Did the wind pick up?

Just then, the ten-second countdown ended.

"The match, begins!"

As the whistle blew.

Li Changqing did not follow Kang Tianchen's plan and charge directly at Zhang Wei.

"This is bad, junior brother Li has gone crazy! He's going to go head-to-head with Zhang Wei!"

Huang Xuan's mouth hung open. He never realized his junior brother was such a little lunatic.

Kang Tianchen's pupils flickered, disbelief flashing in his eyes.

Seeing that Li Changqing truly had no intention of dodging, he grew anxious and angry, smashing the armrest of Huang Xuan's chair with a punch.

"That darn kid!"