The Wise and the Foolish

Tien Shinhan unleashed his signature technique once again.

This was a finishing move unique to the Crane School, an original creation by Tien Shinhan that would go on to shine brightly in future battles against various powerful foes.

"Solar Flare!!" A blinding, unexpected light instantly engulfed the entire Martial Arts Tournament arena.

It wasn't just Zhang Wutian on the ring; the audience below was also caught in the blast, their eyes stung by the intense glare, rendering them unable to keep them open.

"What is this? Damn it!!" Shielding his eyes with his hands, Son Goku, who had also been caught off guard, was forced to close his eyes temporarily. Only when the stinging sensation faded and his vision gradually returned did he manage to force his eyes open to see what was happening on the stage.

The situation on the ring, however, was completely different from what Son Goku had imagined. In his mind, Zhang Wutian, who should have been defenseless due to his lost vision, had instead countered by punching Tien Shinhan in the abdomen as he launched his attack, leaving Tien Shinhan with an expression of mixed pain and disbelief.

Clutching his stomach, Tien Shinhan trembled with pain and stammered, "How could you see through my technique?"

"I didn't see through it." Zhang Wutian, still keeping his eyes closed, replied calmly, "Even without sight, I can track your every move. This is an advanced application of ki."

Noticing that Son Wukong at the edge of the ring also seemed unaffected, Son Goku frowned.

"So there is a method like that? Is it about controlling one's ki?"

Son Goku closed his eyes, attempting to replicate the feat, but he found no leads and instead let his mind wander.

At this moment, the situation on the ring took a sharp turn.

"I know you have one more lethal move, but there's no need to use it. Let's end this."

For the first time in this fight, Zhang Wutian took the initiative. Just as he was about to strike, his movements suddenly paused.

This hesitation gave Tien Shinhan an opening. Having been completely unable to track Zhang Wutian's movements, he finally caught a glimpse of his trajectory and hurriedly moved to parry.

Zhang Wutian stopped abruptly, leaped backward, and took a moment to glance at where Master Shen and Chiaotzu were standing, curling his lip.

"I almost forgot about that. Psychic powers? How annoying."

He then clenched his fists tightly and released the ki within his body in one explosive burst.

"Get out of my way!!"

The ring began to crack, and Zhang Wutian's body was surrounded by a faint, shimmering radiance. It was a phenomenon caused by ki leaking out and reacting with the air.

"M-my psychic powers aren't working!" Chiaotzu cried out in dismay as he felt his power suddenly rebound.

"This match shouldn't be tainted by anything else. It ends now!!"

With unprecedented speed, Zhang Wutian lunged forward. Although Tien Shinhan had exhausted his strength to defend himself after hearing Zhang Wutian declare the end, Zhang Wutian's heavy blow left him with no room to resist.

The punch broke through Tien Shinhan's defense, shattered his arm, and sent him flying off the ring, where he slammed into the wall bordering the perimeter.

"Zhang Wutian is the winner!!" After a moment of stunned silence, the Announcer shouted.

The audience erupted into wild cheers, excited to have witnessed such a high-quality battle.

Zhang Wutian walked over to the collapsed Tien Shinhan and fed him a Senzu Bean.

"What did you give me? This is incredible!" Tien Shinhan, who had been resigned to the idea that he might be crippled, recovered instantly. He looked at Zhang Wutian with eyes full of disbelief.

Being stared at by three eyes, Zhang Wutian shifted slightly, feeling a bit uncomfortable, and said, "It's a panacea called a Senzu Bean. By the way, I'll tell you something good: go to Karin Sacred Land. Once you climb Korin Tower, the hermit there will teach you how to become stronger."

"Karin Sacred Land? Why tell me this?"

"Because I believe you can still get stronger. Let's have another match next time!"

With those words, Zhang Wutian reached out and pulled Tien Shinhan to his feet.

Looking at Zhang Wutian, who was completely different from anyone he had met before, Tien Shinhan felt his worldview shaken to its core.

With a head full of confusion and a heavy heart, he walked over to Master Shen and Chiaotzu. "Chiaotzu, tell me, did you use your psychic powers on Zhang Wutian earlier?"

Facing Tien Shinhan's questioning, Chiaotzu nodded timidly.

"Why interfere in my fight? Even if I couldn't win, as a martial artist, I wanted to face him fair and square."

"It was I who told Chiaotzu to do it," Master Shen interrupted angrily. "What good is 'fair and square'? If you lose, you have nothing! Winning is the only thing that matters!"

"But these kinds of methods are meaningless!"

"Are you questioning my orders, you ungrateful disciple!!" Master Shen shrieked, spraying saliva all over Tien Shinhan's face.

"No, I wouldn't dare..." Without Master Roshi there to stand up for him, Tien Shinhan lacked the resolve to defy his master, but a seed of rebellion had been planted in his heart.

Zhang Wutian stepped off the ring, and Son Wukong immediately greeted him.

"You won! That was amazing!"

"This Tien Shinhan hasn't trained in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, so beating him was simple—it was almost like bullying."

"Bullying the weak is fun, isn't it? That was quite a show." As they spoke, Son Goku walked over and said arrogantly, "Zhang Wutian, was it? You have some skill. I hope you can bring me some entertainment in our fight."

"You are too arrogant, Son Goku." Looking at the prince before him, Zhang Wutian suppressed the urge to call him Vegeta and said, "Before me, you have other enemies to deal with, don't you?"

"You mean this little girl? Heh..." Son Goku laughed dismissively. "I hope that strange medicine of yours can save your life."

"I don't need a Senzu Bean to beat you!" Son Wukong clenched her fists, her fighting spirit soaring.

"Heh..." Son Goku sneered again.

Regardless of the dark clouds gathering off the stage, the second match began on the ring.

King Chappa vs. Pamput.

"I forfeit!" King Chappa said calmly.

"Oh, so you've realized how formidable I am." The young Muay Thai master, Pamput, laughed smugly.

"Foolish youngster. You fail to see the true strength of those people; you are just waiting to meet your doom." As a former Martial Arts Tournament champion, though his combat power could not compare to Zhang Wutian and the others, King Chappa was a battle-hardened martial artist with a keen eye. He could roughly gauge the gap in strength between himself and Zhang Wutian's group, and realizing he wouldn't even have room to strike, he decisively chose to surrender.

However, Pamput did not see it that way; he believed King Chappa had simply lost his edge and fighting spirit.

As for the previous battle between Zhang Wutian and Tien Shinhan, Pamput dismissed it all as boring special effects.

Even he, a world champion, couldn't pull off that movement style of disappearing and suddenly reappearing, and the strange light erupting from their bodies was utterly ridiculous! It had to be some kind of sleight of hand, and Tien Shinhan's unscientific Four Witches Technique, which seemed like sorcery, only solidified Pamput's judgment.

"To be scared off by such circus tricks... the former Martial Arts Tournament champions have truly fallen."

Thinking this, Pamput cast a contemptuous glance at his semifinal opponent, Zhang Wutian, before walking off the ring.

"From now on, this world belongs to me, Pamput!"

Then, the third match arrived.

"Don't go crying on the ring, little girl."

"Who's going to cry! You shorty."

Curling his lip, Son Goku decided to go all out from the very beginning to properly teach a lesson to this little girl who, like him, had a tail and might just be one of his own kind.