Situ Xuan's knuckles slammed against the metal shell, erupting in an ear-piercing screech of grinding metal. Yet instead of retreating, he grinned savagely and lunged forward, his arms whirling like battle-axes as he hurled two more heavy punches at the puppet's head!
North Star Hundred Rending Fists!
His punching speed suddenly surged, his fists becoming blurred afterimages as every strike landed precisely on the puppet's joint connections.
Although the Soul Power membrane dispersed the impacts, the unrelenting barrage made the puppet's mechanical frame creak under the strain.
Without the enhancement of Secret Acupoints, it was difficult for the techniques of the Fist of the North Star to truly shine. But that was exactly what made it exciting, wasn't it?!
"Useless."
Long Xiuyuan watched coldly from the side. "Without a fatal weakness, ordinary attacks can't possibly defeat it."
Situ Xuan paid him no heed. His right leg suddenly swept low, and the puppet instinctively raised a knee to block. But he abruptly changed moves, driving his knee upward—
North Star Dragon Strikes Tiger!
Boom!
His knee slammed solidly into the puppet's abdomen, denting its metal shell inward by an inch as the Soul Power membrane rippled violently.
The puppet staggered backward, but its electronic eyes immediately recalibrated, and its arms swept toward him like guillotine blades!
Situ Xuan twisted aside, sliding past the puppet's arm like a fish through water. At the same time, he brought the fingers of his right hand together into a cone and stabbed straight toward the puppet's ribs with a piercing whistle—
North Star Downfall Finger!
Sssh!
The finger strike that should have pierced Baihui shot forward instead.
The instant it entered the Soul Power membrane, the muscles at Situ Xuan's fingertips vibrated at high frequency, forcibly tearing open a fleeting gap in the membrane!
The puppet's mechanical ribs cracked under the blow, but almost at the same instant, its left fist hurtled toward Situ Xuan's temple like a cannonball!
At the critical moment, Situ Xuan raised his left hand like lightning, bracing the puppet's fist with his palm. He leaned back with the force of the impact, his legs flying up to coil around the puppet's neck—
North Star Muscle-Manipulating Free-Form Kick!
Crack!
His legs clamped around the puppet's neck like iron pincers. The muscles of his waist and abdomen unleashed terrifying twisting force, wrenching the several-hundred-kilogram puppet off the ground and smashing it viciously into the floor!
Rumble—!
The thunderous collision between metal body and floor made the entire Training Room hum. Yet the puppet's combat program did not lag in the slightest. The moment it landed, it sprang back up, its right leg chopping toward Situ Xuan's chest like a battle-axe!
Situ Xuan crossed his arms to block. The heavy kick sent him skidding back several meters, plowing two deep furrows beneath his feet. His arms had already bruised purple, but the fighting spirit in his eyes only burned brighter.
"This is your family's martial art?"
Long Xiuyuan's voice sounded indifferent.
Situ Xuan spat out a mouthful of bloodied saliva, yet the corner of his mouth curled into a savage grin. He slowly assumed an unusual stance—his left fist tucked at his waist, his right arm extended as though cradling the moon, his legs slightly bent like a drawn bowstring.
"Oh?"
Long Xiuyuan raised a brow. "A new move?"
"No, an old one..."
Situ Xuan muttered. The rhythm of his breathing abruptly changed, and even the sound of blood rushing through his body became clearly audible. "It was just that before... I never had a chance to use it!"
Before his words had even faded, his figure blurred!
At that moment, Situ Xuan's speed exploded! Every step he took left a cracked footprint in the floor, while his fist hurtled toward the puppet's chest wrapped in shrieking air pressure.
The puppet hurriedly raised both arms to block, only to see Situ Xuan's punch abruptly bend in an eerie turn—
North Star Soft Rending Slash!
The seemingly fierce straight punch suddenly transformed midway into a supple palm blade, slicing into the blind spot of the puppet's defense and chopping heavily into its throat! The Soul Power membrane rippled violently as the puppet's head snapped backward beyond its control, a stream of garbled data flashing through its electronic eyes.
Seizing that fleeting opening, Situ Xuan whipped his right leg toward the puppet's knee joint—
Crack!
The armor around the metal joint finally shattered. The puppet swayed, but its combat program immediately adjusted its center of gravity, and its fists counterattacked like a torrential downpour!
Bang, bang, bang—!
Situ Xuan neither dodged nor retreated. He actually exchanged blows at the same speed!
The intense battle made him roar uncontrollably!
Every one of his punches precisely intercepted the puppet's attacks, sparks continuously exploding between them as their fists collided.
"Not bad."
Long Xiuyuan's voice came from the side.
Situ Xuan's pupils contracted slightly. He suddenly stepped back and leaned away. The puppet's fist skimmed past the tip of his nose, while his right palm shot out like a venomous snake, his five fingers clawing around the puppet's wrist—
North Star Steel Rending Grip!
Creak—!
Amid the teeth-grinding sound of twisting metal, Situ Xuan actually crushed the puppet's wrist joint out of shape with his bare hand!
The Soul Power membrane flickered wildly, yet it could not completely offset that terrifying grip strength.
The puppet's right arm immediately suffered a 30% loss of function, but it instantly launched its left fist at Situ Xuan's face!
Situ Xuan tilted his head aside. The force of the punch made his cheek sting, while his left knee rammed into the puppet's chest and abdomen like a battering ram—
Boom!
That strike finally caused the Soul Power membrane to collapse briefly! A sharp light flashed in Situ Xuan's eyes as the muscles throughout his body compressed to their limit like springs, then—
North Star Hundred-Cracking Kick!
Bang bang bang bang—!
His legs became blurred afterimages, delivering twenty-seven consecutive kicks within three short seconds, every one striking the exact same spot on the puppet's chest!
The Soul Power membrane finally could not withstand such high-frequency impacts and burst like a bubble!
"The final blow—!"
Situ Xuan roared, drawing his right fist back to his waist as all the strength in his body surged into it like converging rivers. His fist even glimmered with a dark red light from the high-speed friction—
North Star Face-Breaking Fist!
Boom—!!!
His fist punched through the Soul Guidance Core in the puppet's chest, and metal fragments burst outward like fireworks.
The Black Iron Puppet's crimson electronic eyes flickered twice before going completely dark. With a clang, it dropped to its knees.
The Training Room fell completely silent, filled only by the echo of Situ Xuan's ragged breathing.
His right fist was a mangled mess of flesh and blood, and his forearm was covered in bruises, but the burning heat in his gaze had not diminished in the least.
Long Xiuyuan slowly walked over, his gray-blue eyes unfathomably deep. "You won."
Situ Xuan tugged at the corner of his mouth. "It... hasn't fallen apart yet."
"But its core has been destroyed."
Long Xiuyuan kicked the scrapped puppet. "By East Sea Legion training standards, that counts as 'training complete.'"
Only then did Situ Xuan relax his tense muscles. The weakness and soreness after such intense exertion washed over him like a tide. He looked down at his trembling hands and suddenly chuckled. "That felt good."
Long Xiuyuan stared at him for several seconds before suddenly tossing him a towel. "Starting tomorrow, add two hours of training every night."
Situ Xuan caught the towel and raised a brow. "Still fighting puppets?"
"No." Long Xiuyuan turned and headed toward the door, the sound of his military boots striking the floor especially clear. "You'll fight me."
The instant the door closed, Situ Xuan's smile widened, and that crazed longing made him burst into wild laughter.
"Ha ha ha ha ha!"
After a long while, he lowered his head to look at his battered fists and murmured softly, "Now that's more like it."
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