First Trial of the Mountain-Suppressing Fist

Evening.

Lin Ye appeared on the fifth floor of the Martial Arts Pavilion and headed toward the Virtual Combat Room.

The entry-level progress he had made with Lost Track Steps that afternoon gave him quite a bit of confidence.

However, the thought of the Mountain-Suppressing Fist—which he had been contemplating in his mind for many days—not having been tempered through actual combat left him feeling uneasy, so he decided to use virtual combat to put it to the test.

It just so happened that he had learned from his teacher, Zheng Huai, that the school's virtual pods were connected to Martial Arts, so he decided to give it a try.

Martial Arts was a virtual combat game, reportedly launched by the Star Alliance Human Martial Arts Association, aimed at honing the skills of martial artists.

It was very popular among the martial artist community; back in high school, Lin Ye had often heard classmates who intended to apply for the martial arts track discussing it.

He hadn't paid much attention to it before and had never played it, but now that he was ultimately walking the path of a martial artist, he certainly had to give it a try.

Inside the Virtual Combat Room, there were many virtual pods. Lin Ye walked toward an empty one, his fingers brushing over the smooth surface, and the pod door slid open silently.

He lay inside, closed it, and connected his consciousness.

After a slight sensation of weightlessness, Lin Ye found himself on a pure white initial platform, searched for Martial Arts, and logged in.

Instantly, his field of vision reorganized.

"Welcome to your first login to the Martial Arts public training platform."

"Please create your virtual character."

A gentle, guiding voice echoed in his ears.

Immediately, a character creation interface appeared before Lin Ye, where he could adjust details such as the virtual character's physique and facial features.

However, he had no intention of dwelling on this, so he chose "Standard Physique" and used the "Common Face Template 3" provided by the system—a young male face that looked completely unremarkable and was easy to forget.

"Character creation complete."

"Please name your character, or choose to generate one randomly."

Lin Ye thought for a moment and entered "Night Walker," but the system immediately prompted that the name was already taken. Too lazy to think of another, he chose "Random Generation."

[Nickname generating...]

[Your virtual character nickname is: Ye 12138]

"Ye 12138?"

Lin Ye read it once, felt it was quite catchy, and stopped worrying about it, confirming the choice.

"Character [Ye 12138] created successfully."

"Loading beginner tutorial..."

After a concise beginner tutorial, Lin Ye clicked directly on the most important module in Martial Arts: [Ranked Match].

He had long heard of the ranking system in Martial Arts, or rather, it was similar to a game he had played in his past life, divided into: Unranked, Black Iron, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Diamond, Meteor, Sun, Master, Grandmaster, and King.

At the same time, each major rank was divided into five minor tiers. Once victory points reached 100, a promotion match would be triggered; winning one out of three matches would allow for a successful promotion to the next rank.

"Ding, starting Ranked Match matchmaking... You need to complete 5 ranking matches to determine your initial rank."

The system's notification sounded in his ears.

Immediately, Lin Ye appeared on a standard metal ring with a diameter of twenty meters. Looking ahead, his opponent's figure slowly solidified—a lean young man with an ordinary face and sharp eyes, with the ID [Gale 24568] floating above his head.

"Start!"

As the countdown in mid-air ended, the lean young man with the ordinary face took the initiative to attack. His figure darted forward, his legs carrying the sound of wind as he struck directly at Lin Ye's lower body and torso.

He truly lived up to his name!

Lin Ye mused, feeling that the attributes of this virtual body were restricted to a relatively low level—the mid-stage of Body Tempering. Specifically, it was lower than his real self, likely around 200.

Facing the aggressive onslaught, Lin Ye did not panic, nor did he immediately use the Mountain-Suppressing Fist to defend. Instead, he responded with the basic stance of the Rolling Stone Fist, blocking his opponent's attacks steadily while moving his feet to adapt to the rhythm of this body and his opponent.

Seeing that Lin Ye was actually responding with the most basic Rolling Stone Fist, the lean young man with the ID [Gale 24568] felt victory was within reach. A smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he immediately accelerated his attack rhythm, creating a wave of offensive pressure.

Unfortunately, Lin Ye had a solid foundation. Relying on his mastery of the Rolling Stone Fist, his defense was airtight, and his occasional counterattacks were quite threatening.

After twenty moves, seeing that he couldn't break through, the lean young man grew impatient. A side kick left him exposed, and Lin Ye seized the opportunity. After blocking, he countered with a solid step-in punch straight to the chest. The opponent stumbled back, and Lin Ye pressed his advantage. With the momentum accumulated, he ultimately secured the victory.

[Victory, Ranking Match (1/5)]

A moment later, the second match followed in quick succession.

A lean young man with the ID [Blade 28725] appeared. This opponent was not skilled with his legs; as his name suggested, he wielded a fast blade. The blade light flashed, quite intimidating, but Lin Ye still circled him using the Rolling Stone Fist. The difference was that he began to incorporate some moves from the Mountain-Suppressing Fist. His steps became heavier, his dodging range decreased, and most of the time, he used small-scale footwork combined with the Rolling Stone Fist stance to block and intercept, giving people the illusion of being "immovable as a mountain."

Facing Lin Ye's "immovable as a mountain" stance, the young man with the ID [Blade 28725] gradually grew anxious. His fast blade was repeatedly blocked by Lin Ye's steady defense, and his rhythm became chaotic due to his flustered state of mind. Finally, he was shaken by a powerful attack from Lin Ye that knocked the long blade from his hand, and then a punch from Lin Ye landed squarely on his chest, causing his body to dissipate instantly.

[Victory, Ranking Match (2/5)]

The third and fourth matches were much the same. Although the opponents Lin Ye encountered had different styles—some strength-based, some technique-based—by focusing on the Rolling Stone Fist and mixing in moves from the Mountain-Suppressing Fist, he not only became more proficient with the Mountain-Suppressing Fist but also gained better control over his virtual body.

Especially when combined with the "intent" of the Mountain-Suppressing Fist that leaked out inadvertently, his defensive counterattacks always carried a special sense of pressure. It made his opponents feel anxious while finding him impossible to shake, causing their mental states to collapse, and thus he won both matches.

[Ranking Match (4/5), four-game winning streak.]

The fifth match was also Lin Ye's final ranking match.

This opponent was slightly different; he was a burly man with a massive frame, and the ID floating above his head read [Iron Wall 24685].

Judging by this stance, Lin Ye didn't need to think twice to know what type of fighter his opponent was.

As the countdown ended, the battle commenced.

From the start, the burly man named [Iron Wall 24685] adopted a defensive strategy, guarding his vitals with both fists, his footing solid and his gaze calm, waiting for Lin Ye to attack and reveal an opening so he could take him down in one strike.

Lin Ye tested his opponent a few times with Rolling Stone Fist, only to find that the man's defense was indeed airtight, making ordinary attacks ineffective.

"Perfect, then I'll use you to test Mountain-Suppressing Fist."

Seeing this, Lin Ye didn't intend to hold anything back. He sank his breath, and his movements seemed to slow by half a beat, but an invisible "momentum" began to permeate the air, pressing down on his opponent's mind.

Following that, he stepped forward, clenched his five fingers into a fist, and the aura around him transformed into a heavy, rumbling mountain, slowly moving toward his opponent and exerting pressure.

Feeling the heavy pressure from his opponent, the burly man frowned slightly. Even though he felt his resolve wavering, he persisted with his defensive strategy.

As the distance between them closed, Lin Ye threw a punch. He didn't use any flashy feints; he simply pulled his right fist from his waist, twisted it, and unleashed it in a direct, straightforward strike.

Mountain-Suppressing Fist: Mountain Collapse!

This punch wasn't particularly fast, but the fist, steady as a mountain and heavy as a peak, carried an inherent "crushing" momentum, as if he weren't throwing a punch with flesh and blood, but hurling a massive, crumbling boulder.

For a moment, alarm bells rang in the burly man's heart. He crossed his arms, sank his hips, and braced his stance, pushing his defense to the limit to take the blow head-on.

"Boom!"

Fist met arms; there was no massive explosion, but rather a strange, dull vibration.

Both sides retreated several steps.

Despite having the same physical attributes, Lin Ye only retreated three steps, while the burly man was forced back five, making the difference in skill immediately apparent.

But this was only the beginning.

Seeing this, Lin Ye pressed his advantage. Once his body stabilized, he stomped his left foot forward, his body tilting like a collapsing mountain, and his left fist followed up with a strike. It was still the style of Mountain-Suppressing Fist, but this punch added a sense of "toppling" force.

Mountain-Suppressing Fist: Mountain Tilt!

The wind from the punch compressed the air, emitting a low, mournful whistle.

The burly man was horrified. His opponent's martial art was too bizarre; not only was the power immense, but it also carried an eerie momentum that affected his mind and shattered his fighting spirit.

Facing the incoming punch, he could only barely gather his breath and push his palms out in a stack, attempting to neutralize the force with soft energy.

"Bang!"

Fist met palms.

The burly man felt an irresistible, heavy force traveling up his arms. His body, which had just steadied, trembled again, and he stumbled back three large steps, his face flushing red and his breathing becoming chaotic.

This time, his defense had been broken head-on by Lin Ye.

Seeing this, Lin Ye followed like a shadow. He didn't give his opponent a chance to catch his breath or regroup. His fists rotated, and the techniques of Mountain-Suppressing Fist were unleashed in a continuous stream. With the accumulation of his momentum, each punch was heavier than the last, every strike carrying that heavy, crushing, and suppressing force.

After a few moves, the burly man was sent flying, landing outside the ring.

[KO! Perfect victory!]

[Ranking Match (5/5) completed. Record: 5 wins, 0 losses.]

[Evaluating initial rank based on your combat performance...]

[Evaluation complete: Congratulations, [Ye 12138], your initial rank is: Black Iron II.] [Starting from the next match, your virtual physical attributes will be dynamically adjusted based on your rank, bringing you closer to a contest of true skill. May your martial fortune be prosperous!]