Trading Blows

When Chen Chuan saw Lu Ke's punch coming, he instinctively pressed both hands down to block it. But it was actually a feint. Lu Ke's prepared follow-up smashed in at once as he stepped forward. His movements flowed together swiftly. Although Chen Chuan leaned back, a punch still struck his chin guard, sending him back two steps.

Lu Ke stopped, seeming concerned as he asked, "Young Master Chen, are you all right? My fists might be a little heavy."

Chen Chuan looked at him and said with a smile, "I'm fine."

Yu Gang stood with his arms folded and said nothing. He could see through Lu Ke's little scheme. Actual combat had never been a place for reasoning, and such minor tricks were nothing.

Lu Ke had tried every way he could to land a hit on Chen Chuan right from the start. Aside from his lingering resentment and desire to vent it, there was also a tactical consideration: he wanted to anger Chen Chuan and keep him from staying calm. That would make what followed much easier.

But he soon discovered that Chen Chuan had not become angry after being hit, nor had he turned timid and hesitant. He was as calm as when he had first stepped up, and that instead made Lu Ke more cautious.

Chen Chuan had no real fighting experience, so he could only strike according to his own understanding. He recalled what Yu Gang had taught him, guarding against Lu Ke's attacks as he slowly closed in, continually using his lead hand to test the distance and disrupt his opponent.

Once he felt he had reached a suitable range, he tried throwing a straight punch with force. Not only did Lu Ke easily sway out of the way, he also returned a hook in passing. Fortunately, Chen Chuan had been mindful of that and raised his guard in time, keeping Lu Ke from succeeding.

Lu Ke should have followed up with several more punches to seize the upper hand, but instead of doing so, he rapidly retreated as if wary of something.

Over these past days, Lu Ke had learned that Chen Chuan's punches and kicks could be light one moment and heavy the next. Sometimes they were ordinary, but at other times they burst forth with tremendous force. Not only was the power immense, the speed rose along with it. He truly could not grasp the pattern, so he did not dare take a hit at all.

Since Lu Ke would not come to him, Chen Chuan took the initiative.

He tried closing in to attack, but Lu Ke's footwork was nimble. The moment he sensed Chen Chuan was about to strike, he swiftly moved away. Whenever Chen Chuan seemed to be getting close, Lu Ke would quickly kick out and shove him back, while constantly kicking at the bends of his legs. Sometimes, he would suddenly launch a surprise attack at his face.

Other than those first two punches, Lu Ke did his best to maintain the distance between them. Relying on his skilled legwork and swift movement, he kept Chen Chuan at mid-to-long range, making him unable to reach Lu Ke no matter what he did.

His thinking was practical as well. People who had only just embarked on the path of combat usually had little stamina built up. Especially in intense confrontation, a few minutes of continuous dodging would leave them exhausted and collapsed. He would barely need to lift a hand. Once Chen Chuan ran out of strength, Lu Ke would hold an even greater advantage in the next two rounds.

After trying many times, Chen Chuan found that he simply could not launch an effective attack. He knew it was because his skills and experience were lacking, which had led to his current disadvantage.

Under normal circumstances, he would lose no matter how he fought.

But he wanted to win.

If this had been a fight to the death, or under conditions like the academy's retest, then he naturally would have used the Second Self without hesitation.

But this was only a sparring match. There was little meaning in pursuing a purely formal victory, and doing so would instead cost him a chance to train. So not only did he want to win, he wanted to win without using the Second Self.

Lu Ke was not without flaws. His personal defense was tight, but he lacked sufficient pressure, giving Chen Chuan time to think of a countermeasure. After observing for a while, he really did spot a possible way to break the deadlock.

Lu Ke had a habit. Whenever he attacked in an open central area, he would move quickly on his feet. But when he was nearing a wall or pillar, he would most likely give Chen Chuan a front kick to send him away.

In that case, perhaps he could give it a try...

Chen Chuan did not rush, nor did he impatiently reveal his intentions. He simply waited patiently for an opportunity.

The two chased each other, attacking and defending, and two minutes quickly passed. The end of the first round gradually drew near.

As Lu Ke dodged, he observed Chen Chuan. He found that, even now, Chen Chuan showed no sign of fatigue whatsoever. That was nothing like a beginner.

Then he realized.

Damn it, it was the Breathing Method! With the Breathing Method continuously operating, all aspects of Chen Chuan's physical abilities had greatly improved. Even though Lu Ke had trained for a long time, Chen Chuan could still use it to catch up with him. It was foreseeable that surpassing him was only a matter of time.

At that thought, deep jealousy and envy rose in his heart again. Under the ferment of those emotions, he lost a little of the calm he should have maintained.

Chen Chuan sensed it immediately. Lu Ke's mindset seemed to have undergone a subtle change. He did not know why, but he knew the opportunity he had been waiting for had arrived.

Watching his surroundings, Chen Chuan waited until Lu Ke neared a wall pillar again, then suddenly surged forward. At the same time, aided by the Breathing Method, his abdominal muscles contracted in preparation. His gaze locked onto Lu Ke as he dropped a hand and scooped up! Just as expected, Lu Ke kicked out, almost as if he had delivered his leg straight into Chen Chuan's grasp. Chen Chuan caught it in one sweep. Since he had prepared beforehand, although the kick landed on his abdomen, it caused little harm. As he retreated with the force, he also yanked Lu Ke's heel, trying to make him lose his balance.

Lu Ke was startled when his leg was caught. He had some experience, after all, and as Chen Chuan pulled his leg backward, he smashed a fist toward Chen Chuan's face.

Chen Chuan had originally intended to strike after disrupting Lu Ke's balance, but actual confrontation was completely different from practice drills. There was no chance to fully execute every movement. Thus, he was a beat too slow, and Lu Ke's fist arrived first. He hurriedly lowered his head, letting the punch land on the protective gear over his forehead. Though his head jolted, it did not injure him.

At this point, he no longer insisted on striking. Clamping Lu Ke's leg under his arm, he stretched out one foot below, trying to hook Lu Ke's other supporting leg. He had not yet learned methods of attacking after taking someone down, so he treated knocking someone down as a win by default.

But he quickly discovered that this move was easy to perform in practice, yet in an actual exchange, the pulling and tugging between their bodies caused many snags. His foot fell just short of Lu Ke's heel, only brushing the edge. Still, Lu Ke was startled and instinctively hopped backward on one leg to evade the hook.

Yet that hop created a pause. Chen Chuan felt the force resisting his body suddenly weaken, so without thinking, he stepped forward and used a Coiling Palm Thrust from the Great Unrestrained Hands! This was a move that struck upward from below with the heel of the palm. It passed straight through the gap between Lu Ke's hands and hit him on the chin.

Struck heavily, Lu Ke's head snapped back. Even with the chin guard, his mind swam and his feet staggered.

"Stop!"

Yu Gang spoke at that moment.

Hearing him, Chen Chuan immediately stopped. Lu Ke staggered backward, shook his head, and pressed a hand against the pillar. It took him quite a while to recover.

Yu Gang waited until Lu Ke had recovered before calling the two of them over again.

He looked at Lu Ke first and commented, "Your skill and experience are both better than Chen Chuan's, yet after landing a hit at the start, you thought you had already gained an advantage. Later, you became afraid of being hit, so you kept avoiding him, trying to wear down Chen Chuan's stamina. Whether that idea was right or not aside, you repeated the same few movements over and over, without a trace of feint or variation. I'm not surprised at all that your opening was caught. Fortunately, Chen Chuan does not know how to use the Righteous Unrestrained Hands, and he was wearing gauntlets. Otherwise, think about what the result would have been."

Lu Ke's expression changed slightly.

In the Righteous Unrestrained Hands, the move most often following the Coiling Palm Thrust was the Curtain-Ripping Hand. After striking an enemy, the five fingers would exert force with the momentum, tearing away the enemy's facial skin in one grab or simply crushing the throat bones. It was an exceptionally vicious move. Though Yu Gang had not taught it to him, Lu Ke knew of it.

Yu Gang then looked at Chen Chuan and said, "Chen Chuan, when you saluted each other at the beginning, given the positions you two were standing in, Lu Ke's first punch could not have reached you no matter what. Defending was simply unnecessary, yet that gave Lu Ke his later opportunity. That came from your lack of experience, but it also shows you did not observe the surroundings carefully enough. Learn this lesson. At the very least, you must make proper judgments about distance in the future."

Chen Chuan nodded, humbly accepting the criticism.

Yu Gang continued, "But I also have to praise you. Even though you took a loss as soon as you stepped in, you never gave up looking for an opportunity. You were very proactive, and most importantly, you won. So I'll give you two points for this first round."