The first round of matches began very quickly.
Standing opposite He An was a burly man, upright as a mountain.
His name was Zhang Yuancheng, and he was with the Government Office. In the first test, he had lifted a Stone Lock weighing only 1,500 jin, so when he saw He An, a wry smile tugged at his lips.
After all, he had witnessed He An's performance just moments ago.
"Brother He, please go easy on me!"
"Likewise!"
He An cupped his fists.
Zhang Yuancheng let out a low shout and stamped his right foot down hard. The ground trembled, and he shot toward He An like an arrow loosed from a bow.
His fist came whistling in, without a single flashy move.
Like a hundred-jin hammer, it drove straight for He An's chest.
The style he practiced was called Mountain Splitting Fist. This punch, which broke through all techniques with sheer force, embodied its entire essence.
The next second,
a deep, thunderous crash rang out.
Without the slightest warning, Zhang Yuancheng went flying backward.
Defeated!
Everyone stared in stunned silence.
"D-defeated?"
"What kind of martial art does that kid practice? How can he be so strong?"
"I know the man on the stage. He's at the Body Refining Realm and pretty well-known around the Government Office. I can't believe he was so useless."
"What terrifying strength."
"I thought he'd won by some trick, but it turns out he really is that strong."
Discussions rose and fell among the crowd.
Master Li exclaimed in surprise, "What's going on? Wasn't he internally injured? How can he still be this strong? Could we have been wrong?"
"We weren't wrong. His opponent was just too weak." Meng Cao waved a hand and explained.
"No matter how badly he's hurt, he's still someone who can lift a 3,000-jin Stone Lock. How could he be defeated so easily?"
"Look closely. With his strength, that punch should have left the kid named Zhang Yuancheng dead or injured. But he hasn't even got a scratch."
"That means our guess was right. The kid definitely is injured."
"That makes sense."
Master Li was convinced.
Meng Cao let out a cold laugh and muttered to himself, "What good is talent? Before you've grown strong, you're just an ant anyone can crush!"
On the stage, soreness surged from Zhang Yuancheng's arm and swept through his whole body. His heart lurched, and his expression turned complicated.
Others might not know.
But as the one who'd taken the blow, he knew all too well how terrifying He An was.
If He An hadn't held back, his arm would have been ruined by that punch.
And Zhang Yuancheng practiced Mountain Splitting Fist, a style built around meeting force with force.
Anyone else might have fared even worse than him.
He slowly got to his feet and cupped his fists. "Thank you for going easy on me, Brother He!"
"You were too kind!"
He An cupped his fists in return.
He could tell that his opponent had no murderous intent. Otherwise, he wouldn't have held back either.
Not long after He An left the stage, Zuo Ying also won with ease.
With his hands on his hips, he looked smug. "Lord Wei, how was that? I'm pretty strong, right?"
Wei Yangyun gave him an absent nod.
Zuo Ying's face darkened. "Come on, tell me what you were doing just now. You weren't watching my match, were you? You were watching someone else, weren't you?"
After a round of threats and coaxing, Wei Yangyun nodded.
"I was watching Kid He's match."
At that, Zuo Ying immediately perked up. He even forgot about Wei Yangyun's "abandoning" him just moments ago.
"How strong is he?"
"Strong!"
Wei Yangyun said only one word, but it hit Zuo Ying like a bolt of lightning.
Unwilling to give up, he pressed on. "Compared to me?"
"He's several times stronger than you!"
Wei Yangyun's voice remained calm.
Zuo Ying was crushed. He glared resentfully at Wei Yangyun. "Uncle, what do you mean, several times stronger than me? I don't believe he's really that powerful."
Wei Yangyun didn't argue. He said calmly, "You'll find out when you face him. If he doesn't hold back, you won't last three moves."
Zuo Ying folded his arms, fire blazing in his eyes. He spotted He An and the others chatting in the distance. "No matter what, there's no way I'm that far behind him."
He pressed his lips together and gritted his teeth.
"I don't believe it!"
"Kid He, well done! I was worried about you just now, but it looks like I had nothing to worry about."
After he stepped off the stage,
Sun Wangxian was the first to congratulate him.
"It was nothing!"
He An waved it off, then asked, "By the way, how long until the next match?"
"Should be soon!"
Before he had even finished speaking,
a shout suddenly rang out in the distance.
He An frowned and looked toward the sound. On the stage, Li Si was walking down slowly, a scornful smile still hanging from his lips.
"What happened?"
Before He An could ask, frightened, uneasy murmurs began spreading around him.
"That was brutal. The guy had already surrendered, but he still ended up badly injured."
"You're telling me. I say he did it on purpose."
"That bastard. Let's see how long he keeps acting so high and mighty. Someone's bound to teach him a lesson next."
"Keep your voice down. He's coming..."
For a moment,
everyone around He An fell silent as if cicadas had gone mute in winter.
From the scraps of conversation, He An pieced together what had happened.
His brows knitted as Li Si emerged from the crowd. Wherever he passed, people scattered, afraid the butcher would set his sights on them.
Li Si stopped in front of He An and stared straight at him.
"Is something wrong?"
He An raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing. I just wanted to remind you that after two more matches, you'll be facing me."
"I hope you'll give it everything you've got. Don't disappoint me."
Li Si spoke coldly. "Otherwise, someone might die!"
"That's it?"
He An looked at Li Si provocatively.
His casual attitude immediately made Li Si's expression turn vicious.
If there hadn't been people watching nearby, he might already have attacked.
"Let's see if you're still so cocky after our match!"
Having said his piece,
Li Si turned and left.
Watching him go, He An muttered, "What a nutcase."
In the time that followed,
He An won two more matches.
As before, both were easy victories.
His performance made Meng Cao grow suspicious.
"Could it be... that I was wrong before?"
Master Li reassured him, "Brother Meng, it's fine. No matter how strong he is, once he faces Xiao Si and Xiao Yuan, he'll still be dead."
"Besides, we still have others, don't we?"
"If one can't beat him, surely they can't all be weaker than him?"
He suddenly lowered his voice. "I've already made arrangements. From now on, he'll face one of our people in every match. Even if we have to wear him down with one fighter after another, we'll grind him to death."
"You're right. We can grind him to death."
Meng Cao drew a deep breath and ran through the list in his mind. "Xiao Si, Xiao Yuan, and the disciples brought by Old Liu and Old Xu, plus that kid Meng Zhan."
"Five people. Five whole people, all outstanding among the younger generation."
"I refuse to believe that kid can survive!"
Once he'd thought it through, Meng Cao finally relaxed.
It was in the bag!
Before you continue