"Too arrogant! I can't take it anymore! Someone come teach him a lesson!"
"He hit our man that hard and still dares to run his mouth? Does he really think there's nobody in Kaishan Martial Hall?"
"Someone with only D-Grade Bone Structure dares to act so brazenly? Is there a Grade C-Upper senior brother who can show him the difference?"
The Outer Court disciples of Kaishan Martial Hall erupted in an uproar, indignant on their fellow disciples' behalf.
They had already disliked Chen Yuan's character. Now he was publicly slapping every one of them in the face, and their anger flared all at once.
Hong Tao narrowed his eyes slightly, feeling a flicker of displeasure himself.
After considering it for a moment, he spoke.
"Brother Chen Yuan, to have reached this level in such a short time with D-Grade Bone Structure, you must have exceptional comprehension. In that case, I'll have a Grade C-Lower disciple compete with you. He's been practicing martial arts for only a little over two months. What do you think?"
Chen Yuan had given his bone structure and training experience, clearly trying to avoid facing an opponent who was too strong by setting some limits.
But Hong Tao knew that they couldn't afford to lose this match. Another defeat would hurt the Martial Hall's morale.
He could only cite Chen Yuan's talent for comprehension and send out a junior brother with a better chance of winning. That was at least a reasonable arrangement.
Chen Yuan cupped his hands slightly. "I'll leave it to you, Senior Brother Hong Tao. I have no objections."
"Good." Hong Tao nodded and beckoned a disciple over. "Hu Feng, you'll fight Brother Chen Yuan."
As they passed shoulder to shoulder, he whispered a few words. "Don't underestimate him. His Six Harmonies Mind Boxing is no weak technique. Use your qi and blood to suppress him. Given enough time, you'll win."
Hu Feng nodded firmly.
Amid the deafening uproar, a white-bearded figure slowly walked over. He had a square face and an imposing air that commanded respect even without a show of anger.
It was none other than Shi Yue, the current master of Kaishan Martial Hall.
Hong Tao had sharp eyes and was about to step forward to greet him, but a glance from Shi Yue stopped him.
He hadn't expected to have alarmed his master. Hong Tao shook his head, hoping Hu Feng would win the match.
Tao Ping's expression turned more serious.
Although Chen Kai had struck first and gone too far in the opening match, they were the ones who had come to challenge the Martial Hall. They had beaten one of its disciples until he was sprawled on the ground, even knocking him unconscious. That had certainly felt provocative.
And Chen Yuan's boastful, showy remarks while warming up had only stoked the disciples' resentment.
It seemed unlikely that they would leave peacefully today.
In the long run, offending Kaishan Martial Hall might do Chen Yuan's martial arts career more harm than good.
What puzzled Tao Ping even more was that Chen Yuan wasn't the sort to make such a high-profile show of himself.
Could he simply have succumbed to youthful pride, getting carried away by the occasion?
Tao Ping shook his head and sighed inwardly.
The match began again.
Hu Feng was on guard and went all out from the start. His Stone-Splitting Palm struck out, each blow shrieking through the air.
He was nothing like Chen Kai, who had only half-learned the technique.
The longer he fought, the more at ease he became. The Martial Hall disciples' rousing cheers sent his blood surging, and he fought with growing ferocity.
He kept the arrogant Chen Yuan on the defensive from start to finish, then finally knocked him back with a punch. As Chen Yuan said, "I concede," Hu Feng won the match.
"I've learned a lot." Chen Yuan brushed off his sleeves and cupped his hands in salute.
"You were too kind." Hu Feng lifted his chin high, his smugness practically spilling from his eyes.
He had defeated the enemy who'd come to provoke their Martial Hall, avenged his junior brother, and upheld the Hall's prestige—all in front of a crowd. Everyone looked up to him.
At that moment, Hu Feng was so triumphant he felt as if he could float away.
He'd never felt so good. If only his master had seen it...
As the thought crossed his mind, he spotted his master behind the crowd. Some of the disciples were already greeting him.
He'd had heaven, earth, and everyone on his side. He'd looked impossibly cool—just like the hero of a martial arts novel!
His only regret was that he hadn't beaten Chen Yuan to the ground and made him cough blood. That would have been truly satisfying.
But as soon as the thought occurred to him, he noticed something was off...
He spun around, only to see Chen Yuan sitting calmly and cross-legged as he regulated his breathing, not the least bit dejected or angry about losing.
Tao Ping folded his arms and shook his head with a soft laugh, as if he understood.
Once Chen Yuan had finished regulating his breathing, he stood and prepared to fight again. Hong Tao gave him a meaningful look before arranging another opponent.
This time, his opponent had Grade C-Lower Bone Structure and had likewise been practicing martial arts for more than two months.
But he was a little weaker than Hu Feng.
The fight began. His opponent attacked with a fierce, unrelenting barrage that barely gave Chen Yuan room to breathe. Chen Yuan panted and retreated step by step, struggling to hold on until he had no choice but to concede. That was his second defeat.
The Outer Court disciples of Kaishan Martial Hall were overjoyed! They looked ready to wave flags and celebrate their victory.
They'd won two out of three matches. Kaishan Martial Hall had come out on top!
Naturally, their celebration included taunting and jeering at Chen Yuan.
They told him he was nothing special, that he was useless in a fight, and that he'd better keep his tail between his legs from now on, finally letting out all their pent-up frustration.
Chen Yuan, for his part, put on an appropriately reluctant and frustrated expression. He walked over to Hong Tao and sighed.
"Senior Brother Hong Tao, your Martial Hall's Stone-Splitting Palm is indeed incredibly powerful. I concede. I'll need to go back and work on my fundamentals, so I won't impose on you any longer."
Hong Tao patted him on the shoulder, his expression meaningful. "Brother Chen Yuan, you're quite the interesting fellow. I'll see you out."
He'd already figured it out. The kid had been putting on an act for the last two matches.
So he'd come all this way just to beat up Chen Kai?
He'd gone to all that trouble just to have an excuse to vent his anger.
But Hong Tao didn't call him out. Let it be. It was better for both sides.
They had settled their grievances then and there.
After seeing the two visitors off, Hong Tao returned to report to his master, Shi Yue.
They talked as they walked.
"Master, what do you think? If Chen Yuan had fought for real, how would he have measured up to Hu Feng?" Hong Tao asked.
He knew Chen Yuan had deliberately held back, but he still had confidence in Hu Feng.
"Ten to zero." Shi Yue gave an unhappy snort. "He couldn't even tell whether his opponent was using his full strength. What's the point of practicing martial arts?"
Hong Tao shook his head with a laugh.
That was true. But Junior Brother Hu had been under a lot of pressure at the time, so it was understandable. He should have realized something afterward.
"So young, and already hiding his true strength instead of learning what he should. He doesn't have an ounce of sharpness." Shi Yue continued to criticize Chen Yuan.
"Still, with only D-Grade Bone Structure, he's managed to train Huo Lin's Six Harmonies Mind Boxing to this level in just a month and a half. Even if Hu Feng could match him evenly right now, that would still count as a loss."
Then he changed the subject and talked about other Martial Hall affairs.
A Huo Academy disciple with D-Grade Bone Structure wasn't enough to hold his attention.
He had heard, though, that old Huo Lin had taken on a personal disciple with Grade B-Upper Bone Structure. What was his name again? Xu Heng, was it?
On the way back to Huo Academy, Tao Ping laughed. "Junior Brother Chen, I thought you were going to fight them to the bitter end. I didn't realize you'd planned this out in advance."
One win and two losses were both acceptable.
Chen Yuan could only reply helplessly, "I really was outmatched. Besides, I'm nobody important. I'm not stupid enough to swagger around on someone else's turf."
If he'd won all three matches, he was certain he'd have caused trouble—and they might not even have let him leave Kaishan Martial Hall.
As for losing the last two matches in a row, that had been his plan from the start.
After all, he had only one goal: to cripple Chen Kai.
He'd broken several of Chen Kai's ribs this time, which was bound to keep him in bed for a while.
That would give Chen Yuan enough time to build his strength and widen the gap between them.
His boastful warm-up had been part of the plan, too. Beating Chen Kai had already earned him the disciples' resentment. The more he showed off, the more satisfying they'd find it when he was defeated later. They wouldn't take a man who'd lost twice and slunk away seriously.
It couldn't eliminate the consequences entirely, but he'd brought them down as low as possible.
Tao Ping gave a dry laugh, a flash of understanding in his eyes. "You're too modest, Junior Brother Chen. The progress you've made with your Six Harmonies Mind Boxing has surprised me."
Facing the fierce attacks of two disciples trained in Stone-Splitting Palm and walking away unscathed was proof enough of Chen Yuan's strength.
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