Preliminaries Begin, Crushed in One Touch!

The World Martial Arts Tournament preliminaries were held in a large venue within the Martial Arts Temple.

Though it was not as large as the main arena outside, it could still accommodate several thousand spectators and over a hundred contestants.

At that moment, the venue was noisy and heated.

The air was filled with the smell of sweat, the aroma of food, and an atmosphere that stirred excitement.

Martial artists from all over the world were assigned to different waiting areas according to their numbers.

Lin Xuan and his group had been assigned to Area B.

Looking around, they saw nothing but strange characters.

There were three-meter-tall muscular giants, small but cold-eyed ninjas, and even a freak with wings growing from his back.

All of them carried powerful ki and unconcealed fighting spirit.

"Wow, there are so many strong people."

Son Goku's eyes shone as he grew especially excited, looking as if he could not wait to rush over and fight every single one of them.

Krillin, on the other hand, was somewhat nervous. He clenched his fists and quietly said to Lin Xuan and Goku, "Teacher was right. There really are so many strong people in the outside world."

Bulma was simply curious. She took out her miniature scanner and swept it across the people around them, continually exclaiming in surprise.

"Wow, that big guy's muscle density is five times that of an ordinary person."

"That masked guy's heart only beats thirty times a minute. Is he some kind of cold-blooded animal?"

"And that one..."

Only Lin Xuan still looked as though none of it mattered.

He found a corner, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes to rest, as if the noise around him had nothing to do with him.

In his perception, these so-called powerhouses were not all that impressive no matter how strong their ki was. They were not worth a second glance.

Compared to the martial artists around him preparing to fight, he certainly looked strange.

Before long, someone clueless noticed him.

"Hey, look at that kid. Is he here to play around?"

A bald, burly man with a scar across his face curled his lip at his companion, his eyes full of disdain.

"Look at those skinny arms and legs. He probably won't even make it past the first round of preliminaries. I really don't know what someone like him is doing at the tournament. What a waste of a spot."

His companion chuckled and lowered his voice. "Maybe he came to broaden his horizons with those pretty girls? Look at that blue-haired one beside him. She's really not bad."

Their discussion was not loud, but every word reached everyone's ears.

Bulma immediately furrowed her brows and was about to lose her temper.

"Quiet."

Without opening his eyes, Lin Xuan merely said two words.

His voice was not loud, but the anger in Bulma's heart instantly subsided.

She huffed and decided to spare those two fools for now. Once Lin Xuan beat them until they were crawling around on the arena, she would mock them properly.

Just then, the broadcast in the center of the venue sounded.

"Attention, contestants. The first round of preliminaries begins now."

"At Arena One, contestant number 33, Son Goku, will face contestant number 78, Giant Axe Barton."

"Oh, it's my turn!"

Son Goku leaped up excitedly and, amid Krillin and Bulma's cheers, bounded onto Arena One in a few jumps.

His opponent was a large man wielding a double-bladed battle axe. He stood over two meters tall and looked highly intimidating.

"Kid, it's not too late to kneel and beg for mercy." Giant Axe Barton laughed as he dragged the blade of his axe across the arena floor, sending sparks flying.

"Hehe, you look really strong." Son Goku rolled his wrists, his eyes filled with the desire to fight.

"The match begins."

At the referee's command, Giant Axe Barton let out a roar and swung his massive axe, kicking up a gust of wind as he brought it down toward Son Goku's head.

The spectators below cried out in alarm, as if they had already seen the small boy split in half.

However, Son Goku merely smiled faintly.

Just as the giant axe was about to fall, his figure suddenly vanished from where he stood.

The next second, he appeared behind Barton.

"Too slow."

Son Goku extended one finger and lightly tapped Barton's thick neck.

Thud.

Barton's towering body suddenly stiffened. His eyes rolled back, the giant axe in his hand clanged to the ground, and he fell straight backward, instantly losing consciousness.

The entire venue fell silent for a moment before erupting into thunderous cheers.

"So... so fast."

"I didn't see how he moved at all."

"One move, with just one finger."

Next, it was Krillin's turn.

His opponent was a boxer with extremely fast movements.

After Master Roshi's hellish training, Krillin's strength had long since surpassed what it used to be.

Unlike Goku, who pursued speed, Krillin relied on his solid fundamentals. After easily evading his opponent's rapid combination punches, he seized an opening and delivered a crisp side kick, sending his opponent straight off the ring.

It was another easy victory, drawing wave after wave of cheers.

Master Roshi stroked his white beard and nodded in satisfaction.

The performance of these two disciples had completely exceeded his expectations.

"Next match, Ring Three."

"Contestant No. 66, Lin Xuan, versus Contestant No. 108, 'Bulldozer' Huka."

Upon hearing Lin Xuan's name, Bulma and Yamcha immediately began cheering loudly.

The martial artists who had mocked Lin Xuan earlier, meanwhile, wore expressions of eager amusement.

"Ha, that kid's opponent is actually 'Bulldozer' Huka."

"Huka may not be too bright, but his strength is the real deal. I hear he can flip over a tank with his bare hands."

"Now this will be entertaining. I bet that kid will be thrown out of the ring within ten seconds."

Lin Xuan slowly opened his eyes, rose to his feet, and walked up to Ring Three at an unhurried pace.

His opponent was a burly man nearly two meters tall, covered in muscle, with a fierce-looking face.

Seeing Lin Xuan's slender frame, the big man bared his mouth in a wild laugh.

"Hey, kid, did you come to the wrong place? This is a martial arts tournament, not a kindergarten."

Huka pointed a thick finger at Lin Xuan and shouted to the crowd below, "Everyone, look! What kind of opponent did the organizers find for me? One punch from me, and he might die."

The audience immediately burst into laughter.

Lin Xuan ignored his shouting and merely stood calmly at the center of the ring, his expression unchanged.

"Begin."

The instant the referee's words fell, Huka let out a roar. His massive legs exploded with force, and even the floor beneath his feet groaned as though it were about to give way.

Like a crazed bull, his entire body became a flesh-colored blur as he charged fiercely at Lin Xuan.

The immense pressure made even the spectators in the front rows instinctively retreat.

Bulma clenched her fists nervously, while Goku widened his eyes in curiosity, wanting to see exactly how Lin Xuan would respond.

Yet to everyone's surprise, Lin Xuan remained where he was, completely still.

He did not even assume a defensive stance. He simply watched quietly as that "bulldozer" drew nearer and nearer.

Five meters, three meters, one meter.

A triumphant grin had already appeared on Huka's savage face.

He could practically see it already: in the next second, this ignorant kid would be smashed into broken bones and sent flying out of the arena like a torn sack.

Just as Huka's fist was about to strike Lin Xuan's face, at the very instant the force of the punch stirred the hair over Lin Xuan's forehead—

Everything suddenly changed.

Lin Xuan's foot shifted ever so slightly to the left, by less than a centimeter.

The movement was far too small, far too fast.

So fast that even Goku, with his sharp eyesight, failed to catch it.

To everyone else, Lin Xuan had not moved at all.

And yet, that insignificant motion—

Huka, charging forward at full speed, suddenly felt as if he had slammed into an invisible, slick wall.

A strange force he could not comprehend surged up from beneath his feet, instantly destroying his balance.

"Huh?"

Huka's mind went blank. He only felt his left foot trip over his right, and the entire world spun around him.

Under the stunned gazes of thousands throughout the arena, the "Bulldozer" renowned for his strength tripped himself in an utterly ridiculous posture.

Carried by the momentum of his charge, his enormous body traced an ugly arc through the air. His hands and feet flailed wildly before he finally crashed down face-first onto the ground outside the ring with a heavy thud, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The entire venue fell into a strange silence.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

The audience was dumbfounded, the referee was dumbfounded, and even Goku and Krillin, who had just won their matches, were dumbfounded.

What... had happened?

Huka lay sprawled on the ground, unable to get up for a long while—not because he was injured, but because he was completely dumbfounded himself.

How had I fallen?

I was clearly about to hit him.

Why had my foot moved out of my control?

He raised his head blankly, looked at his own feet, then looked at Lin Xuan on the ring, who had not even changed his stance. His eyes were filled with a confusion more terrifying than seeing a ghost.

"Uh... Contestant Number 108 fell out of bounds... therefore, Contestant Number 66, Lin Xuan... wins?"

After standing there in a daze for quite some time, the referee finally stammered out the result.

Following a brief silence, the stands erupted into an uproar more intense than any before.

"You've got to be kidding me! He won just like that?"

"That big guy fell off by himself? That's way too fake. Did he take money to throw the match or something?"

"No, didn't you see it? Right when that big guy was about to hit him, his foot seemed to move... or maybe it didn't..."

In the contestants' area, the martial artists who had mocked Lin Xuan earlier had their smiles completely frozen, their mouths hanging wide open.

Behind his sunglasses, Master Roshi stared fixedly at Lin Xuan, deeply shocked.

It wasn't a coincidence.

Absolutely not.

Others could not see it, but he had seen it clearly.

At that critical instant, Lin Xuan's toe had tapped the ground with extreme subtlety.

That tap had not used any "ki."

It was pure, ultimate control over physical strength.

Through the solid ring, that step sent out a faint vibration, so weak it was nearly negligible.

Yet that vibration had struck Huka's supporting ankle at the precise instant he exerted force, throwing the power throughout his body out of alignment for one-hundredth of a second.

For a martial artist charging at full speed, such a misalignment at the core point of exertion was fatal.

So Huka had not fallen on his own.

Lin Xuan had "tripped" him with a terrifying technique of using four ounces to deflect a thousand pounds—no, using a single thread to shift a thousand pounds.

Using the slightest force to lever an overwhelming momentum.

This... this had already surpassed the realm of martial arts.

This was the "Way," the deepest understanding and application of the very origin of power.

Master Roshi's throat felt dry. Looking at that young man who remained so calm, he questioned his centuries of martial arts training for the first time.

"The second round of preliminaries is about to begin."

The announcement sounded again, pulling everyone back from their shock.

Lin Xuan slowly stepped down from the ring and returned to his corner.

Just then, a sharp gaze fell upon him from another corner of Area B.

Sensing it, Lin Xuan looked up.

It belonged to a short ninja dressed in black night attire, his face covered by a mask that revealed only his eyes.

Unlike the others, he was neither shocked nor clamoring. His eyes were filled with gravity and wariness.

Clearly, he had seen through at least part of it.

He slowly nodded at Lin Xuan. His gaze held both a challenge and a martial artist's reverence for a higher realm.

Lin Xuan returned a calm look, then paid him no further attention.

He knew that this ninja might be a somewhat interesting opponent in these preliminaries.