"First match: Li Tianyu versus Zhou Yishan."
The referee shouted loudly from the ring.
"I'm going in."
Li Tianyu said this to Li Fei and Chen Lixin, then turned and climbed into the ring.
Her opponent was 1.9 meters tall and powerfully built, his massive muscles almost bursting through his clothes!
Zhou Yishan had the best physical condition among this year's Conflict Mitigation Department trainees.
He, Li Tianyu, and Chen Lixin were the three strongest trainees in this cohort.
Li Tianyu had the most nimble footwork, Zhou Yishan possessed the greatest strength, while Chen Lixin had inherited the legacy of an eminent clan and mastered martial techniques far more formidable than those of ordinary trainees. Each of the three had their own strengths.
If Li Tianyu had not expended too much stamina in her previous matches, Li Fei felt that the odds between her and Zhou Yishan would have been fifty-fifty. But now that her stamina had been severely depleted, her chances of winning had fallen considerably.
Once the match began, Li Tianyu unleashed her footwork. Like a butterfly, she nimbly circled around Zhou Yishan, continuously striking at him with her palms.
Her primary techniques were Flower-Piercing Steps and Connecting Cloud Palm from Blue Hand.
Flower-Piercing Steps were nimble and ever-changing, while Connecting Cloud Palm attacked in an unbroken stream. Combined, they could strike over a hundred vital points across an enemy's body in the blink of an eye! But in a ring match, the fighters wore protective gear, and attacking vital points was forbidden, so it was difficult for Li Tianyu to truly inflict serious injuries on her opponent.
Relying on his powerful physique, Zhou Yishan allowed Li Tianyu to attack as she pleased, only seizing opportunities to counterattack from time to time.
His primary technique was Mountain Shattering Stance from Blue Hand.
It was a martial art of broad, forceful movements, smashing and striking head-on. Mountain Shattering Stance consisted of eight moves and was also called Eight Extremes Collapse. It was exceptionally fierce and overbearing.
Even if Li Tianyu struck Zhou Yishan ten times, she would have trouble causing him any real harm. But if Zhou Yishan landed a solid hit on her even once, she would suffer badly.
Fortunately, she did not need to knock Zhou Yishan down. As long as she lasted five minutes, the referee would score the match. Since she had maintained the initiative throughout, she would certainly have the higher score.
It was a pity that, although the idea was sound, her stamina could not support her in doing so.
After a little over three minutes, Li Tianyu's breathing grew heavier, and her speed clearly slowed.
This is bad.
Li Fei silently realized that things were going wrong.
Bang! A muffled sound suddenly rang out from the ring. Zhou Yishan had finally seized an opportunity and punched Li Tianyu, knocking her straight down.
Li Fei instinctively clenched his fists, growing tense.
After all, he had inherited all of his predecessor's memories, so his emotions were inevitably affected. Although his own will remained dominant and he no longer harbored any other feelings toward Li Tianyu, she still held a different place in his heart. The same was true of Li Lei and Zhang Yuqing.
In the ring, Li Tianyu lay on the ground for a moment before slowly getting back to her feet.
The burly Zhou Yishan looked at her mockingly and crooked a finger at her.
Li Tianyu's eyes turned cold. With a quiet shout, she charged forward again.
But the problem with her stamina remained. She had no choice but to change her strategy, focusing on evasion and no longer taking the initiative to attack.
After all, she had already earned enough "points" in the first half. That was entirely enough to ensure her score remained higher than her opponent's.
Naturally, Zhou Yishan would not let Li Tianyu evade so easily. He constantly maneuvered to pressure her, gradually forcing her toward the edge of the ring.
The ring was only so large, and Li Tianyu's speed had slowed again. In the end, Zhou Yishan forced her to the edge, where she had nowhere left to retreat.
A flash of excitement crossed Zhou Yishan's eyes. He lunged forward, twisting his waist and turning his hips. Then he turned sideways and drove out his right elbow, bringing the strength of his entire body into the strike.
Mountain Shattering Stance—Heart-Piercing Elbow!
Li Tianyu crossed both arms in front of her and could only take the elbow head-on.
Bang—
The next second, a figure was sent tumbling from the ring.
Li Fei had stationed himself below the ring a step ahead of time and caught Li Tianyu as she fell.
"Zhou Yishan wins!"
The referee announced the result.
Zhou Yishan walked to the edge of the ring and looked down condescendingly at Li Fei and Li Tianyu. He gave Li Tianyu a thumbs-up, then slowly turned it downward.
After making that gesture, he turned his head toward Chen Lixin on the other side.
"Hahahahaha!"
Chen Lixin laughed loudly and clapped, giving Zhou Yishan a thumbs-up.
The other man was clearly trying to curry favor with the young master of the Chen family, so Chen Lixin naturally had to acknowledge the gesture.
"Oh my, looks like you won't be getting that extra bonus after all. What a pity."
Chen Lixin walked over, smiling as he spoke.
Li Tianyu's face was livid. She clenched her fists tightly without saying a word.
She disliked winning arguments with her tongue. A loss was a loss, and saying more now would only make her look weak.
Li Fei helped Li Tianyu to her feet and calmly regarded Chen Lixin.
"The match isn't over yet. You're laughing too soon."
"I—"
Chen Lixin still wanted to say something, but Li Fei had already turned and left with Li Tianyu.
That left Chen Lixin feeling rather displeased.
"Young Master Chen, if I get matched against that kid later, I'll beat him even worse than I beat his sister."
Zhou Yishan spoke from inside the ring.
The two of them were in the same half of the bracket. If Li Fei made it into the top four, Zhou Yishan would be his next opponent.
Chen Lixin turned to look at him and smiled. "Good. I'll look forward to it."
The second elimination match of the afternoon began soon after. Li Fei faced the group champion from the "Yellow" division.
This time, Li Fei changed his previous strategy. Instead of immediately assuming a defensive stance and letting his opponent attack, he launched an assault the moment he entered the ring.
He stepped forward, twisted his waist and turned his hips, then turned sideways and drove out his elbow.
He used Mountain Shattering Stance as well!
Mountain Shattering Stance involved broad, forceful movements and fierce bursts of power. It was suited to tall, sturdy people, like Zhou Yishan.
Li Fei's physique was not actually all that suitable for Mountain Shattering Stance. With his strength, the technique's threat was not particularly great.
So when Chen Lixin saw him use it, he laughed aloud from below the ring.
"Who does this kid think he is?"
Zhou Yishan, standing nearby, laughed as well and was just about to offer a few comments.
Bang! In the ring, Li Fei's opponent chose to meet his move head-on. Since he was taller and heavier than Li Fei, he held the advantage in a direct clash.
Yet the final result was that Li Fei did not move an inch, while his opponent was forced back a step.
Li Fei continued stepping forward and unleashed Mountain Shattering Stance.
Fists, elbows, knees, head, shoulders, hips—every part of the body could serve as a weapon. Li Fei unleashed Mountain Shattering Stance with all his strength, attacking without defending, advancing without retreating!
Chen Lixin stopped laughing, and Zhou Yishan frowned as well.
Li Fei's opponent tried several times to clash with him head-on, but each time he was the one who suffered. With no other choice, he switched from offense to defense, fighting while retreating.
But this man's footwork was inferior to Li Tianyu's. Before long, Li Fei forced him to the edge of the ring, then beat him off it by force.
"Li Fei wins!"
The referee announced the result.
The entire match took less than a minute from beginning to end.
In the ring, the victorious Li Fei calmly glanced at Chen Lixin before turning and stepping down.
Chen Lixin clenched his fists and turned to Zhou Yishan. "Are you confident you can beat him?"
"Of course!"
Zhou Yishan nodded with complete certainty. "That man won because he had the advantage in strength. I won't lose!"
He believed Li Fei had fought so overbearingly by relying on his greater strength. That style might work against others, but it would not work against him.
He was extremely confident in his own strength.
The matches continued. Chen Lixin and the champion of another group defeated their opponents and advanced to the top four.
The first semifinal to follow would be Li Fei versus Zhou Yishan.