King's Path Strategy

King's Path Strategy

Zhou Leng sensed his True Qi draining rapidly. He took a deep breath, suddenly spread his hands apart, and lunged forward with both arms outstretched like an eagle snatching chicks.

Du Qianfang's expression shifted slightly, but she said, "Classmate Zhou Leng, you're such a lecher. Why are you baring your fangs and brandishing your claws?"

The Class 03 students outside the ring shook their heads one after another. This Du Qianfang was someone who gave the whole class a headache.

Deng Zhijue nodded lightly again. Zhou Leng's tactics were exactly right.

Against someone as nimble as Du Qianfang, charging head-on was utterly useless.

Using his advantage in reach, Zhou Leng constantly interfered with Du Qianfang. Gradually, she found herself in peril again and again, nearly having her clothes or body grabbed by Zhou Leng several times.

The two drew closer and closer. Zhou Leng shuffled forward, and Du Qianfang used the same trick again, dodging left.

This time, Zhou Leng anticipated her leftward dodge and shifted position in advance. He drove forward and seized Du Qianfang's right wrist.

Du Qianfang hurriedly used a counter-grappling technique, trying to shake free.

Zhou Leng did not continue tangling with her in a grapple. Instead, he stepped forward in a rush, released her halfway through, and thrust both palms out heavily.

His two arms were like two dragons bursting from the sea.

Seventh form of the Wave Palm, Twin Dragons Emerging from Water.

With nowhere to dodge, Du Qianfang was forced to forcibly raise her qi. Before she had fully gathered it, she met the attack with both fists.

Bang!

Zhou Leng's True Qi was inferior to Du Qianfang's, but his physique and strength still surpassed hers. Added to that was the Wave Palm's layer-upon-layer True Qi, making its final power even greater.

Du Qianfang gave a soft cry and staggered backward.

Zhou Leng charged forward again, unleashing an utterly unadorned Direct Strike at the Yellow Dragon. His right straight punch blasted toward Du Qianfang's face.

Unable to steady herself and with her breath in disarray, Du Qianfang frantically raised both palms before her face and pushed outward.

Bang!

Zhou Leng's fist smashed into Du Qianfang's palms. The force behind it erupted, driving through her palms and striking her face.

Du Qianfang screamed miserably and staggered backward again.

Blood streamed from between Du Qianfang's fingers.

Zhou Leng rushed forward, took a bounding step, and side-kicked her in the abdomen, sending Du Qianfang flying.

Du Qianfang slammed heavily onto the ground.

"Ow..." Du Qianfang shrieked.

Zhou Leng stepped forward again, raising his right leg and aiming at Du Qianfang's head.

"Stop!" The Class 03 instructor finally called a halt.

Some people revealed looks of unbearable sympathy. Zhou Leng's kick had been far too vicious.

Du Qianfang was at the Blood Circulation Stage, so she could take it. Had it been an ordinary person, their intestines would already have been broken into several pieces.

"Beast!" Du Qianfang sat on the ground, her hair in disarray.

"I concede!" Zhou Leng said.

Du Qianfang shook her head and said, "My skills are inferior. You really are formidable."

Zhou Leng stepped forward and pulled Du Qianfang up.

Du Qianfang held her stomach and covered her nose, walking away with a dark expression.

It was the first time the Class 03 students had seen Du Qianfang suffer a setback. They lowered their heads and secretly laughed.

The Class 01 students stared at Zhou Leng, reassessing his footwork and practical combat ability.

Just as Zhou Leng was about to rest, he heard an instructor call out.

"Semifinal match. 0101 Zhou Leng versus 0301 Dai Gangde."

Zhou Leng stood on the makeshift ring in a daze for a moment, then looked toward Dai Gangde as he walked in—the number one of Class 03.

Dai Gangde was a full head taller than him, with conspicuous muscles all over his body. The trapezius muscles on either side of his neck were especially thick.

They could provide terrifying resistance to blows.

"Brother De, help me avenge this!" Du Qianfang called softly, clutching her stomach.

Zhou Leng slowly took a deep breath. Only half of his True Qi remained.

Dai Gangde's True Qi had been abundant to begin with, and he had been waiting at ease for the exhausted opponent.

Zhou Leng had seen Dai Gangde during military training. Because of his massive build, he had no advantage in certain endurance events and had not seemed particularly remarkable.

At the time, Zhou Leng had only felt that the man was very steady.

The two stood in the center and cupped their fists in salute.

Looking down from above, Dai Gangde said in a deep, powerful voice, "You're very strong, so I'll give it everything I have."

"Here, we only decide victory and defeat. Everything else is useless," Zhou Leng said.

"Good!"

Dai Gangde actually took the initiative, throwing a punch at Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng dodged and tried to advance, only for Dai Gangde to take a step back.

Zhou Leng knew he had encountered a true expert.

Zhou Leng stepped through the Eight Trigrams Steps, twisting his Wandering Cloud Body as he advanced and swayed at the same time.

End this quickly. Trade injury for injury!

Dai Gangde narrowed his eyes slightly and retreated step by step.

Zhou Leng kept advancing, and Dai Gangde kept retreating.

Several seconds later, just as Zhou Leng surged forward with his footwork, Dai Gangde planted his left foot firmly on the ground and swept high with his right leg.

His body was enormous and his legs exceptionally long. With Zhou Leng charging forward in his footwork, it was almost impossible for him to evade.

Yet Zhou Leng suddenly ducked with the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique. Not only did he evade the kick, he also rushed in before Dai Gangde and threw a huge uppercut from below, his arm tracing an arc like a fully drawn bow.

Tenth form of the Mountain Charge Fist, Crescent Moon Ascending.

Dai Gangde was far beyond the previous two opponents. Knowing he could neither dodge nor evade, he drove his right fist down from above like a falling boulder from the heavens.

Bang!

Bang!

Zhou Leng's punch hooked Dai Gangde beneath the chin, while Dai Gangde's punch smashed into the top of Zhou Leng's head.

One head snapped back as its body fell backward; the other head plunged sharply as its body crashed toward the ground.

They fell to the ground at the same time.

The spectators froze for a moment, then shouted their approval.

"Beautiful!"

"Perfectly matched!"

Stars filled Zhou Leng's vision as he swayed to his feet.

The towering Dai Gangde went from kneeling to standing, his body unsteady.

"Again!" Zhou Leng said.

"Again!" Dai Gangde grinned, blood flowing through the gaps between his teeth.

In that instant, the two forgot the competition and forgot the rewards. Their eyes brimmed with intense fighting spirit.

They circled each other face-to-face for several steps before Zhou Leng seized the initiative and rushed in.

Zhou Leng feinted with both feet, left and right, forward and back. His body was elusive and unpredictable as he advanced swiftly.

For a moment, Dai Gangde did not know where to attack. He feared that if his strike missed, he would expose an opening and suffer a counterattack.

The instructors nodded lightly. Fighting tall from low, Zhou Leng was advancing strictly according to the footwork described in the textbook.

The King's Path Strategy—the hardest, yet the most correct.

Then the instructors smiled.

From afar, the advancing footwork looked ordinary, but once it drew close, it generated tremendous pressure.

Dai Gangde's breathing suddenly grew heavier, because in his eyes, Zhou Leng was like a wild bull charging recklessly about, capable of sending him flying at any moment.

At last, Dai Gangde could no longer bear the pressure of Zhou Leng closing in. Forced to the edge of the ring again, he tentatively threw a feint with his left fist.

But at the instant he withdrew his hand, Zhou Leng kicked off the ground with both feet and sank his body.

Like a Crouching Ox Reclining in Water, he pushed his right palm forward levelly.

The corner of Dai Gangde's mouth twitched. Forced to redirect his left hand to block, he swung his right fist down at Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng flipped his right palm, changing the level push into an upward lift.

Mysterious Tide True Qi erupted, striking Dai Gangde's poorly circulating left forearm solidly.

Smack!

Bone-piercing pain spread through Dai Gangde's forearm, while his right punch missed entirely.

Zhou Leng shifted to the forward right and struck twice in succession, both palms landing on Dai Gangde's left arm.

Dai Gangde flailed his right hand, forcing Zhou Leng back, then glanced from the corner of his eye at his hanging left arm.

"Good!" Dai Gangde suddenly charged forward, thrusting out his left arm. Purple lines surfaced across its skin.

Zhou Leng understood at once. Dai Gangde was using his left arm as the price to stake his life against him.

Zhou Leng swung his palm toward Dai Gangde's left arm.

Gritting his teeth, Dai Gangde prepared for his left arm to be injured. His right fist suddenly exploded with force, blasting toward Zhou Leng's side of the face.

The next instant, Zhou Leng's right palm abruptly changed direction. He sank and bent down, evading both of Dai Gangde's fists at an unbelievable speed as he rushed in front of him.

Xun Wind Step of the Eight Trigrams Steps.

Leaden Cloud's Sudden Descent of the Flowing Cloud Movement Technique.

A heavy palm blasted into the center of Dai Gangde's lower abdomen. As Dai Gangde's body swayed, Zhou Leng changed his palm into an elbow.

His forearm became a horizontal blade, slicing and driving forward into the center of Dai Gangde's lower abdomen.

Had it been either of the previous two, being struck continuously like this would have scattered their Blood Qi and broken their bodies apart.

But Dai Gangde was indeed the number one of Class 03. Even with agonizing pain in his abdomen and his body retreating, True Qi still erupted from his right fist as it blasted toward Zhou Leng's head.

Yet Zhou Leng did not evade. His body suddenly straightened and rose.

He used his left shoulder to take Dai Gangde's punch head-on, then seized the chance to unleash the One Palm Strike of Twin Dragons Emerging from Water, slapping Dai Gangde squarely in the center of the chest.

Dai Gangde's upper body leaned back, and he kicked out with his right leg, cutting off Zhou Leng's attack.

He barely steadied himself as Zhou Leng attacked again.

Those outside the ring had not expected Zhou Leng to be this ferocious.

Dai Gangde let out a thunderous roar, gathered all his True Qi, and turned purple all over as he charged straight at Zhou Leng.

This time, he neither dodged nor evaded. He attacked with all his strength, trading injury for injury with Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng had almost no True Qi left, but he struck forward as well.

Bang bang bang...

The two struck each other repeatedly.

The experienced instructors silently counted the hits. Zhou Leng landed seventeen, while Dai Gangde landed eleven.

There were too many minor grazes to count.

Zhou Leng repeatedly struck Dai Gangde's chest and abdomen where his palms had landed before, while Dai Gangde's blows landed on different places each time.

The two swayed lightly, their moves distorted, their faces covered in blood.

Yet powerful will supported both of them as they continued fighting.

The Mysterious Tide True Qi had run dry, then surged back like a returning tide.

But Dai Gangde was too tenacious, and the newly born True Qi was about to run out as well.

Suddenly, Zhou Leng seized the opportunity. He stepped to Dai Gangde's left side, grabbed Dai Gangde's arm with both hands, erupted with True Qi, and violently twisted, crippling the arm.

Seeing Zhou Leng about to use the vicious grappling technique Python Embrace, Dragon Rend, which could tear off the entire arm with a single pull, the Class 03 coach hurriedly shouted, "Stop!"

Zhou Leng released him with a push, then staggered backward.

"Strong!" Dai Gangde said. Then he limped away, his left arm hanging and swaying.

Everyone looked at Zhou Leng.

Zhou Leng's left eye was swollen, blood seeped from his forehead, the corner of his mouth was bruised purple, the fingers of his left hand were slightly twisted, his left shoulder slanted, and both arms trembled. Bent over, he gulped down breaths.

Part of the outer skin of his headgear had torn open.

"Final match, championship bout. 0101 Zhou Leng versus 0201 Xu Kang'an."

Zhou Leng had already guessed that Xu Kang'an would defeat his opponent early. He raised his head and looked.

Only the corner of Xu Kang'an's mouth was bruised. Other than that, he bore no injuries.

An overwhelming victory.

As expected of the martial arts school's number one.

As Xu Kang'an walked over, he said:

"You entered a Blood Circulation Stage competition while at the Qi Nourishing Stage, and you even made it into the finals. Whether in courage or strength, you are admirable."

"I was watching the whole time. If your True Qi and stamina were equal to mine, even three of me couldn't defeat you."

"Your level of True Qi Control is so high that it makes me want to study under you and seek your guidance."

"Unfortunately, you have almost no True Qi left."

"Unlike military training, in actual combat, strong is strong and weak is weak. There are no excuses."

Xu Kang'an approached and cupped his fists. "I will give it everything I have!"

Zhou Leng straightened up and cupped his fists. "No regrets once we strike."

Everyone watched the two and sighed inwardly.

Zhou Leng took a deep breath, felt the small amount of Mysterious Tide True Qi left in his body, took a step, and rushed toward Xu Kang'an.

His footwork was slightly disordered, his body swayed faintly, and his arms trembled, but his gaze was resolute.

Xu Kang'an threw a straight punch at Zhou Leng, holding back thirty percent of his strength.

Zhou Leng raised a palm to block it head-on, but unfortunately, his True Qi could no longer keep up. Xu Kang'an knocked his palm aside and struck him squarely in the chest.

Lacking strength, Zhou Leng fell backward. He tried to force himself up, but could not stand.

"The Opening Term Test practical combat event has concluded. Champion: Xu Kang'an. Runner-up: Zhou Leng. Third place: Dai Gangde..."

Zhou Leng lay on the ground with his eyes open. His fingers twitched, and he gently exhaled.

"Thank you for letting me win," Xu Kang'an said.

"Congratulations," Zhou Leng said weakly.

Xu Kang'an said, "It won't be so easy to beat you again during the Monthly Exam."

Deng Zhijue ran over and asked, "How is it?"

"Minor injury, but it needs bone-setting."

"Stretcher!" Deng Zhijue waved his hand.