The man was built like an iron tower, the muscles on his arms knotted like coiling dragons, his temples bulging high. He was clearly a master of the fist. The instant he stepped onto the ring, the atmosphere throughout the arena changed.
The referee froze for a moment, frowning deeply. "This doesn't conform to the match schedule!"
"Rules are dead. People are alive!"
The dark, brawny man's voice rang like a great bell. He refused to yield, his lightning-sharp gaze shooting straight at Lu Jue. "Classmate Lu Jue, do you dare accept?"
A wave of startled cries immediately erupted below the stage.
"It's Yan Hao from Class One of the Fist Arts Department!"
"Holy shit, did he see the Power Elites taking a loss and rush up here to show off?"
"That's him! He just crippled several commoner contestants with thunderous methods!"
"Don't accept! You're ahead in points now. If you refuse this match, you might get the quota. But if something goes wrong after accepting, all your previous efforts will go down the drain!"
"Yan Hao entered force this year already, right? I heard—"
"Accept! He's provoking you right to your face!"
On the stage, Lu Jue understood perfectly.
Of course he knew this dark, brawny youth.
Yan Hao was ranked twenty-first in the grade. His family ran a modest processing factory, putting them at the bottom of the Power Elites circle. Yet from his first year onward, he had been one of the most formidable students in their cohort.
This man had always followed Zhao He's lead. His purpose in jumping out now could not have been more obvious: he wanted to ease his master's worries while using this opportunity to step on Lu Jue and rise higher.
Avoid the fight? That was absolutely not his style!
It would also go against his original purpose for standing here. What he sought today had long ceased to be merely an Exemption Quota.
The shadow of the crisis in neighboring Yunyuan City hung above his head like a sword suspended overhead, drawing his nerves tight as a bowstring.
He had to grow stronger—faster!
This was no longer a pursuit. It was a necessity for survival!
What he had to do was use these fists to tear open a bloody gap in this arena controlled by the children of the Power Elites!
He had to prove his value to the martial arts school and submit an "entry pledge" they could not refuse!
Only then could he truly enter the higher-ups' sights, leverage more resources, and fight for a future—for himself, and for everything behind him that needed his protection!
"Fine! I accept!"
The three words were decisive as nails driven into iron, without the slightest hesitation.
The referee looked hesitant and wanted to dissuade him further, but seeing the expectant looks of the audience below, he could only hurry toward the chief referee at the center of the ring and ask in a low voice.
The chief referee pondered for a moment before announcing loudly:
"Since both sides are willing, let them fight!"
The decision was like a massive stone thrown into a placid lake, stirring up a thousand waves.
"Holy shit! He really accepted!?"
"Go, Lu Jue!"
"He's still not calm enough. If it were me, I wouldn't accept no matter what. Yan Hao is absolutely among the best of the contestants—"
Amid the boiling discussion, Lu Jue and Yan Hao stared at each other from afar, their gazes colliding in the air as if sparks might burst forth.
This sudden duel carried things far more important than points.
Dignity, stance, and the irreconcilable conflict between two factions.
Above the ring, battle intent had already spread until it seemed tangible.
Yan Hao moved!
His burly body burst forth with agility utterly at odds with its size. He stomped hard, and the wooden boards of the ring gave a muffled boom.
Borrowing the momentum, he charged forward. His right fist was like a cannonball leaving the barrel, carrying a vicious gale as it drove straight at the opening in Lu Jue's centerline—the opening stance of his famed Collapsing Mountain Fist!
Startled cries surged from below the stage, one after another, at the force of that punch.
Yet Lu Jue's response to this fierce blow left everyone dumbfounded!
Not only did he neither dodge nor evade, a trace of ruthlessness flashed through his eyes. Rather than drawing back his chest, he pressed forward, his muscles tightening like iron in an instant as he met the blow head-on with his chest!
At the same time, his right fist swung out, striking even faster toward Yan Hao's exposed right ribs.
Caught off guard, Yan Hao could only press his left arm down to block.
Bang!
Pfft!
Two muffled impacts rang out almost simultaneously!
Yan Hao's fist landed solidly on Lu Jue's chest, while Lu Jue's heavy punch smashed mercilessly into Yan Hao's left arm!
"Urgh!"
The confidence on Yan Hao's face was instantly replaced by searing pain. It felt as if his fist had struck several layers of tough cowhide, and the recoil left his wrist numb!
That overwhelmingly powerful strike from his opponent was even more terrifying. If he had not quickly used his footwork to dissipate part of the force, his left arm might have broken.
Even so, the piercing pain made half his body go limp in an instant, bringing his offensive to an abrupt halt!
Lu Jue took the punch head-on, yet his body merely swayed slightly. The corner of his mouth even curled into a terrifying arc, as though he felt no pain at all!
"Is that all the strength you have!?"
Before his words had even faded, Lu Jue gave Yan Hao no chance to catch his breath. His left fist blasted out again like an iron hammer, his style completely one of trading injury for injury, gambling life against life!
Yan Hao was horrified. He had never seen such a reckless style of fighting!
He could only force himself to draw a breath, raise both arms to block, and rapidly retreat with his footwork in an attempt to open the distance.
Bang!
Another muffled impact rang out. Though he had blocked most of the force, the heavy impact still penetrated through him, churning his blood and energy and making even his retreating steps stagger.
Only two exchanges!
He had struck his opponent once, but his opponent had returned two blows—each one more vicious than the last! He was the one who had suffered the greater loss!
"Madman! Madman! Madman!"
"Fuck!"
Yan Hao cursed inwardly, his gaze turning incomparably grave. His footwork did not stop as he quickly pulled away from Lu Jue to a relatively safe distance, gasping wildly.
Before stepping onto the stage, he had carefully studied the information Zhao He had provided about Lu Jue.
The information clearly stated that Lu Jue possessed terrifying strength and cultivated some unknown Hardening Kung Fu, giving him a physique unlike ordinary people.
But in Yan Hao's original understanding, the Hardening Kung Fu a commoner student with no background could access was nothing more than widely circulated external hard techniques with shallow effects.
They might make one seem impervious to blades and spears against weak opponents, but before an outstanding student like him, whose fist techniques were refined, they should at most make him a little more durable.
Who could have imagined that his opponent's Hardening Kung Fu would be so resilient? And that fearless, injury-for-injury combat style had completely exceeded his expectations!
This madness, which disregarded his own safety and sought only to injure his opponent, placed even greater psychological pressure on Yan Hao than that Hardening Kung Fu!
The audience below was also stunned, their discussions rising and falling.
"He took the Collapsing Mountain Fist head-on and struck Yan Hao back!? Did I see that right?"
"Damn! Is Lu Jue made of iron? He's fine after that? And he even came out ahead?"
"That fighting style is too brutal! It's completely blood for blood, tooth for tooth!"
Yan Hao swiftly suppressed his shock and physical discomfort, forcing himself to calm down.
He realized that any form of physical contact with Lu Jue was extremely dangerous. His opponent simply did not care about getting hurt. Any head-on clash was the worst option and would only drag him into Lu Jue's fighting rhythm.
"I have to change strategies! Attack the weakest link in his defensive system, and don't give him the chance to trade injury for injury!"
Yan Hao's eyes sharpened. Another crucial piece of information instantly surfaced in his mind—Li Zhanting had publicly pointed out that the "life gate" of Lu Jue's Hardening Kung Fu lay in his head!
Having made up his mind, Yan Hao drove his footwork to the limit, circling Lu Jue like a ghost.
He no longer casually attacked Lu Jue's body. Instead, he waged a "guerrilla war" around him, with only one target: Lu Jue's head!
He wanted to force Lu Jue to defend and reduce his opportunities to counterattack.
Facing this overwhelming offensive, Lu Jue made his decision in an instant.
—He could not reveal the truth that his head was not a weakness!
Not only was this a trump card that could turn the tables at a crucial moment, it was also the best response to the person who had spread that "intelligence."
With his mind made up, Lu Jue's response strategy became clear as well.
He sank his waist and settled into a horse stance, lowering his center of gravity and responding to all changes by remaining unchanged.
But his "defense" was not merely blocking. It was filled with aggression.
Whenever he could intercept an attack with his fists, he directly smashed back with greater speed and stronger force, using absolute strength to suppress, knock aside, or force back the opponent's attacks.
He even spared no expense in using his body to block punches and kicks aimed at his head, all to create a fleeting chance to counterattack.
He combined the intention of "protecting his head" with the tactic of "fierce counterattacks" flawlessly.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Their figures crossed and interwove. In the span of barely a dozen breaths, they had exchanged dozens of moves at lightning speed, every collision making the audience below hold its breath.
Yan Hao pushed his footwork to its limit, shifting, twisting, and turning within a tiny space. Against every one of Lu Jue's heavy punches, he could always make the most exquisite response at the critical instant.
With a light turn of his feet, a strange twist of his waist, or a slight retreat, he could dissipate a large portion of the force.
But Lu Jue's fighting style kept his nerves stretched taut, as if he were walking a tightrope, draining his stamina enormously.
I have to end this quickly!
Before you continue