Yang Xingyong

Between martial artists, close-quarters combat is undoubtedly the ultimate test of basic reflexes and the truest measure of technical skill.

The cultivator from Three Mountains City had grown up leaping across mountains as if they were flat ground, wrestling lions and slaying tigers—naturally no ordinary man. Though his close-quarters strike was a risky gambit, he had some confidence in it.

But the Four Spirits Body Refining Technique that Jiang Wang cultivated was a unique method passed down by the Military School, perfected through the Dao Evolution Platform of the Great Void Illusion Realm. At the current stage, it was a first-rate body refinement art.

Jiang Wang's muscles and sinews, while not quite surpassing steel, were not far off. A surging tide of blood and qi lay dormant in every fiber of his flesh, usually inconspicuous, but on an occasion like today, it erupted with unprecedented ferocity!

Bam bam bam bam bam!

Fists met feet, knees clashed with elbows.

The two exchanged blows, fist against fist, producing sounds like drumbeats.

Such pure, intense hand-to-hand combat was something Jiang Wang had never experienced before. In this battle, he felt the Four Spirits Body Refining Technique gradually merging into his body. Though he had trained relentlessly before, his origins lay in the Dao Academy, and he had never truly understood what real body refinement meant.

In these direct collisions, he felt his blood and qi grow fuller, his physical form stronger, his Dao Essence more lively, and also... the strength of his opponent gradually waning.

Boom!

On the final headbutt, the cultivator from Three Mountains City staggered backward.

It wasn't that he didn't want to continue—it was that he truly could no longer squeeze out even a shred of strength.

How hard he had tried, how desperately he had fought, perhaps only Jiang Wang, who faced him, truly understood.

Several times, Jiang Wang thought the battle was decided, only for his opponent's fist to come again.

He clearly felt the steel-like will of this cultivator from Three Mountains City.

He had given everything to win.

They didn't want to be called barbarians!

But the tragedy was, the more desperately they fought, the more people said, "Look, that's just how barbarians are—they don't value their lives."

The referee raised his flag; the victor was decided.

The watching crowd fell silent for a moment, then erupted in cheers.

After all, this was Maple Forest City, Jiang Wang's home ground. Not to mention the several burly men Zhao Rucheng had hired to shout themselves hoarse for generous rewards. Their roaring seemed even more fervent than Jiang An'an's feelings for her brother.

Amid the boiling cheers, Jiang Wang reached out and caught his opponent, keeping him from falling.

"May I ask your esteemed name?" Jiang Wang looked at this admirable opponent, offering his respect.

In truth, before the match began, the referee had announced both contestants' names, but Jiang Wang hadn't bothered to remember them.

Like so many vulgar people, though he hadn't shown it, he had grown up steeped in such attitudes and inwardly looked down on these so-called "Mountain Barbarians."

The cultivator from Three Mountains City stood swaying, nearly all his weight supported by Jiang Wang's hand. His eyes were swollen high, narrowed to mere slits.

"Yang Xingyong!" he said happily. "My name is Yang Xingyong!"

Outside the arena, Jiang An'an was clapping for her brother when she suddenly heard her friend's voice, "An'an!"

Little Qingzhi jumped up from the crowd in the distance, cheerfully squeezing her way toward Jiang An'an.

Beside her followed an old man, thin and gaunt, with a severe hunchback. Yet amid such a dense crowd, they moved through without any hindrance, seemingly without disturbing anyone else.

Everyone was curious about Jiang An'an's friend, especially the little girl who had wanted to punch Jiang Wang.

Huang Azhan's perspective was always unique—his eyes landed first on the hunchbacked old man.

The old man's face... was strange. Though his expression was stern, it naturally gave off a sleazy feeling.

Huang Azhan elbowed Zhao Rucheng. "Hey, look at that old man."

"What about him?" Zhao Rucheng asked.

Huang Azhan lowered his voice. "Don't you think his head looks a lot like... like..."

"Like what?"

Huang Azhan didn't answer, only glanced down at his own crotch.

Zhao Rucheng first tensed up. "What are you looking at!"

Then he caught on, glanced over in that direction, and rubbed his chin. "Hey! It does look a bit like..."

They were chatting quietly, but suddenly the hunchbacked old man lifted his head and glared at them furiously, having clearly heard every word.

"Let's stop talking, stop talking, watch the match." Huang Azhan guiltily turned his head away, trying to look nonchalantly at the arena.

"Ahem." Zhao Rucheng coughed twice, reached out to take Jiang An'an from Ling He's shoulder and set her on his own. "An'an, your Brother Ling He is tired. Sit on my shoulder for a while."

He thought to himself, surely this old man wouldn't beat up someone holding a child?

Jiang An'an was already quite familiar with Zhao Rucheng, so she didn't mind whose shoulder she sat on, happily chatting away with Qingzhi.

"My brother just won, you know! He's so amazing!"

Yang Xingyong was eventually carried off by others.

The other two battles had already ended early. Another cultivator from Three Mountains City had defeated his opponent from Wangjiang City with overwhelming force, while Wangjiang City's Lin Zhengli had easily overcome the other first-year student from Maple Forest City.

But the audience's attention was clearly drawn to the battle between Jiang Wang and Yang Xingyong—after all, that was a fierce, flesh-to-flesh clash.

"Just two weaklings pecking at each other. Maple Forest City really is something—even the common folk have no taste." Lin Zhengli sneered at the other victor, perhaps seeking some agreement.

But the victor from Three Mountains City clearly wasn't buying it.

He said coldly, "Please show some respect for your opponent."

In his view, Lin Zhengli wasn't just disrespecting Jiang Wang—he was also disrespecting Yang Xingyong, a cultivator from his own Three Mountains City.

Lin Zhengli's warm face had met a cold backside, and his displeasure only grew. "Hah, barbarian."

The Three Mountains City cultivator's eyes practically blazed with fury, but he said no more.

The first round was over, with each city having one victor left—a fairly even split. Next came the rotation round, with the order decided by drawing lots. In this round, luck mattered a great deal.

The referee, who came from the Prefecture Academy, was responsible for the draw, ensuring the greatest possible fairness.

Taking one slip from the cylinder, he read it and announced, "Jiang Wang!"

Ling He and Zhao Rucheng both breathed a sigh of relief offstage. This meant the first match would be between Lin Zhengli and the Three Mountains City cultivator, after which Jiang Wang would face each of them in turn. It was undoubtedly the best possible draw.

Jiang Wang withdrew to the edge of the arena, yielding the center to the two about to fight.

In the moment they passed each other, Lin Zhengli chuckled lightly. "You're lucky. You get to stick around for one more round."

Jiang Wang smiled. "I hope you'll be lucky too. Then you'll still get to meet me later."

When it came to trading barbs, he had been steeped in Zhao Rucheng's influence for long enough that he wasn't entirely defenseless.

Still, he couldn't quite understand where Lin Zhengli's hostility toward him came from. Was it just because of the slogans Zhao Rucheng had someone put up, too flashy and loud?

This man didn't seem the type to speak bluntly. A cultivator who had received a proper Dao Academy education, and an elite disciple sent to represent Wangjiang City's Dao Academy at that—could he really be so impatient?

Jiang Wang was actually quite curious about the answer behind all this.

As for the battle itself, he only felt anticipation.

Compared to Lin Zhengli's flippant irritability, the cultivator from Three Mountains City remained silent throughout, simply fixing his gaze on his opponent.

In this fight, the attitude he displayed was undoubtedly far more proper.

It also showed that he had a much stronger desire for the outcome of the battle.

Thanks to fellow readers Shen Ayao, reader 20191009193419665 (please pick a nickname, friend...), reader Xi Zichu, reader Ah Shen's Little Padded Jacket, and reader Ye Songsong for their rewards!