Fighting for Meat

Actually, everyone had originally wanted to challenge him on the second day, but because they were so exhausted and sore from training that they couldn't bear it, they waited until the third day.

The reason everyone collectively challenged An Jing was not because of the "top talent" remark made by the One-Eyed Instructor.

Over the past half-month, everyone had seen An Jing's capabilities very clearly.

Simply put, he was proficient in both literature and martial arts.

Those who were better at literature than him were not as good at martial arts, and those who were better at... well, there really wasn't anyone better at martial arts than him.

To name one instance, during a drill at the manor, a big guy named Zhan Feng got into a conflict with some other children.

Although he was only twelve, he stood eight feet tall, and his opponent, while looking dark and thin, actually possessed astonishing strength.

When the two fought, the wind whipped around them, and others couldn't even get close.

Yet, An Jing had pressed both of them onto a table with one hand each, leaving them unable to move and begging for mercy.

Therefore, even if it was only "tacitly accepted" at first, after half a month, everyone acknowledged An Jing as the de facto senior brother.

The results of the limit test also showed that An Jing's stamina was the best among everyone present.

But this acknowledgment was built on the absence of conflicting interests.

On the day of the test, An Jing's dinner included an extra bowl of braised pork ribs and a bowl of vegetable and tofu soup.

The steaming ribs were incredibly fragrant, and the brown sauce had a slightly spicy medicinal scent that was very appetizing. The vegetable and tofu soup looked ordinary, but it seemed to have been boiled with bones, carrying a rich aroma that would be considered a master chef's work even outside.

Xuanming Manor provided sufficient food: chestnut rice, meat soup, and bean rice, with occasional eggs and tofu—not much, but stable.

But that was all.

A large bowl of braised pork ribs—the scent of the oil and the savory sauce—caused the entire cafeteria to become restless the moment it appeared.

An Jing didn't look back, but from the sound of the rapid breathing, he knew that the eyes of everyone looking at him were green with envy.

In fact, his own eyes were green too.

Without the slightest hesitation, An Jing finished the meat in front of him as quickly as possible.

That night, the sound of teeth grinding that An Jing heard in the dormitory was twice as loud as before, and the sleep-talking was all about "roast meat" and "pork ribs." The nearly tangible resentment almost kept him from sleeping. He was amused.

He knew very well that for the next period of time, he would definitely not have any peace.

But An Jing was not afraid in the least.

Competing with him for meat?

Ha, what a joke!

No matter who it was, he wouldn't lose!

An Jing had eaten the pork ribs for three days, and once everyone had recovered, ten out of the thirteen who had completed the full course under the instructor's supervision demanded to challenge An Jing.

"Consecutive battles?"

Upon hearing the rules announced by the instructor, Gu Yeqi, who was following behind An Jing, opened her already large eyes even wider.

She asked with some confusion: "Instructor Li, this doesn't seem very fair, does it? Brother Jing... does An Jing have to defeat all the challengers in a row to continue being the senior brother?"

This girl, who came from the same place as An Jing, had a rather lively personality. Every time she met An Jing, she would happily call out "Brother Jing," and after training, she would bring An Jing a bowl of water.

This feeling was quite novel to An Jing, who had never had a younger sister, so he was willing to look after her and often gave her pointers on her martial arts, which made their relationship quite good.

Of course, An Jing also knew that if he really had a younger sister, she could never be as warm and sensible as Gu Yeqi.

"That's right." Following behind An Jing, Zhang Ying, who still had a bruise on her forehead, said indignantly: "And this is too favorable for those who challenge later! Even if he wins, I'm afraid no one will be convinced!"

"If his stamina fails, it means his training is insufficient. If others are not convinced, they can naturally continue to challenge him in the next ten-day cycle."

The One-Eyed Instructor was named Li. He looked at An Jing with a playful gaze, clearly intending to test An Jing's foundation: "For you apprentices, it doesn't take much time to decide a winner. It's impossible, and you don't have the skill, to engage in a long struggle. A single mistake can decide the outcome."

"If he truly has the level, it won't even take half an hour to defeat ten people in a row."

"Wanting to be the senior brother, the 'top talent' of this batch, is not that simple."

Instructor Li was right. An Jing didn't think this was unfair at all; rather, it was a good opportunity.

A good opportunity to subdue everyone who was not convinced by him!

This challenge did not forbid weapons. Everyone could choose training equipment they were proficient in, such as wooden sticks, wooden knives, or wooden swords. After all, the martial spirit in Da Chen was very strong, and many young people had been influenced since childhood and were skilled with weapons.

An Jing chose a short stick to use as a mace, mostly to block the challengers' weapons.

The first challenger used a knife, likely passed down from a butcher's family, and his strikes were quite ruthless.

It wasn't that he had deep hostility, but because he understood An Jing's strength well and knew that if he didn't use his full strength, he might be knocked down in one go. He didn't think he could win either, but for the sake of the meat, he had to fight!

After bowing to each other, he struck first, stepping forward. The long knife carved an arc, cutting toward An Jing's inner circle from a tricky, low angle. However, An Jing saw at a glance that the knife technique this person used was not meant for a long knife but for a pointed meat-cutting knife, which was why he needed to close the distance for close-quarters combat. But the long knife in his hand was already long enough, and after lunging, it became awkward to swing, causing his center of gravity to shift.

Seizing the opportunity, An Jing made his move. With one strike of his stick, he deflected the challenger's long knife, and then stepped forward and pushed, sending the off-balance opponent stumbling backward to the ground.

The second challenger's ancestor was likely a woodcutter. He used his axe very well, and the weapon he chose was quite handy. He swung it with great force; if it hit someone, it would definitely break bones. Even if An Jing took one hit from the axe, he would be knocked unconscious on the spot.

The only problem was that An Jing was neither firewood nor a tree.

He could move.

An Jing easily dodged the powerful axe swing, then tapped the opponent on the side of his chest under the armpit with his stick, making him stagger and causing him to voluntarily give up.

The third and fourth opponents that followed were not particularly tough; one used a sword, the other a short spear. After a brief scuffle, An Jing found their openings and defeated them one by one.

Although they possessed good stamina and decent talent, most of them had survived the Frost Calamity by relying on the protection of their parents or sheer luck. Even those who had killed before had mostly done so through fortune, and their martial arts skills could only be described as "functional."

However, An Jing had practiced martial arts since he was a child. On the Northern Frontier, he had killed horse bandits alongside his mother and had even faced off against cannibalistic, crazed refugees four or five times. Whether it was ambushes or head-on clashes, the gap in their actual combat experience was simply too vast.

An Jing even had to constantly remind himself to hold back; otherwise, his short staff would have instinctively thrust toward their hearts or slashed at their necks.

This was the reason he had chosen the short staff in the first place. Defeating numerous challengers to become the legitimate "Meat-Eating Senior Brother" was one thing, but accidentally killing his classmates and peers would be an entirely different matter.

"Too far behind."

Instructor Li watched as An Jing dealt with the fifth and sixth opponents as easily as chopping melons and vegetables, and he couldn't help but shake his head. "I originally wanted to test this kid's ability, but I didn't expect the gap to be this wide."

He looked at the remaining four challengers, feeling even more dissatisfied. "None of them will do."

Among these four challengers, only one had decent martial arts skills; the others could only bully the other children. Even so, compared to the level An Jing had just displayed, they were at least three or four tiers behind.

Furthermore, it was evident from the look of awe on that girl's face that she had recognized An Jing's level and now possessed no fighting spirit at all; she would likely just concede directly when her turn came.

At this moment, An Jing had already defeated the seventh challenger—this time, he hadn't even used a weapon. He caught the incoming long staff with his bare hands and kicked the opponent, sending him stumbling back ten feet, coughing and waving his hand to concede.

Only a quarter of an hour had passed, and the ten people wouldn't even be able to hold out for a quarter and a half, let alone half an hour.

Instructor Li frowned deeply. He had come here with a mission; while An Jing's high level was certainly a good thing, crushing everyone's spirit was contrary to his goals.

He scanned the crowd of over two hundred Children of Calamity. There were definitely those whose talent was not inferior to An Jing's, but precisely because they were talented, they had long since realized their lack of combat experience and knew they were no match for him.

Those who did have combat experience and decent strength could also see the gap between themselves and An Jing.

Instructor Li swept his gaze over several potential seeds he favored, but they showed no fighting spirit. After looking around, he finally found a guy who was watching the fight without being intimidated; instead, he was clenching his fists in excitement. He had decent strength and might be able to pose a threat to An Jing.

"You."

Instructor Li walked directly up to the boy, patted him on the shoulder, and pointed at An Jing. "Go and knock him down."