Chapter 159. So, You Think You Can Fight?
"Kid, you think you are pretty good at fighting, do you?"
The corners of Sun Ba’s mouth lifted with the confidence of someone who believed victory was already in his grasp.
"So what if you can fight? If you want to survive out there, you need power. You need backing!"
Truth be told, he had not wanted to come here in the first place.
As one of the Third Young Master’s trusted men, the Fengyun Escort Agency already had its own methods to help him advance into the Organ-Nourishing realm.
But since his master had spoken, then coming onto the ring and throwing a few blows was no trouble at all.
Xu Yuan said nothing. He merely looked at him quietly.
That gaze was so calm that it felt almost strange.
Sun Ba felt a chill crawl through his heart under that look, and from shame and anger he snapped, "You are courting death!"
Before his words had even fallen, his figure flashed forward like a streak of black lightning as he lunged straight at Xu Yuan.
The force of it was so great that it looked as though he could tear apart tigers and leopards with his bare hands, drawing cries of alarm from the crowd below.
Yet Xu Yuan still did not move at all.
And then, at the very instant that sharp palm wind was about to strike his face...
He moved.
No one could even see how he did it. He simply shifted slightly to one side and avoided the deadly blow.
Sun Ba’s palm missed, and his heart jolted. He wanted to change moves, only to realize that Xu Yuan’s hand was already resting on his wrist.
In the next instant, a vast and irresistible force surged through him. Sun Ba was lifted bodily into the air and smashed viciously into the center of the ring!
And it did not end there. A faint red glow flickered across Xu Yuan’s body as he followed with two consecutive kicks, as though he were toppling a golden mountain and smashing down a jade pillar.
Bang!!
A heavy impact exploded across the ring. Sun Ba was kicked flying high into the air, nearly sent straight off the stage.
He spat a mouthful of blood with a choked cry, his eyes full of shock. "You..."
Xu Yuan walked toward him step by step, looking down at him from above, then smiled and said, "And here I thought it was someone important. So it was just a little nobody."
"You bastard..."
Sun Ba’s face flushed red, overcome with humiliation and fury, yet his body would not obey him. It had gone strangely stiff, and he could not move.
By now, he understood perfectly well that Xu Yuan was also at the Extraordinary Meridians level.
But that was exactly what made no sense.
They were both Extraordinary Meridians martial artists, so how could he have lost so miserably? How could he have failed to withstand even a single move from Xu Yuan?
Whoosh!
An explosive cry of shock erupted from below the ring.
"Good heavens, it was over in one move?!"
"They are both Extraordinary Meridians martial artists, and he got thrown out just like that?"
"Xu Yuan is actually at the Extraordinary Meridians level too? Did he not break into the eight-meridian stage only recently?"
"That is monstrous!"
On the viewing platform, Shangyang Qingzhen’s expression had turned extremely ugly.
He had never expected the outcome to be like this.
Could it really be that Sun Ba was just too useless? How could he have failed to withstand even one move?
Beside him, Zhang Cheng was completely dumbfounded. He subconsciously rubbed his eyes, as though thinking he still had not fully woken up.
This is impossible!
Xu Yuan broke through to the Extraordinary Meridians level?
No, how long had it even been?
Good heavens, is there any justice in this world at all?
I fought through untold hardship just to break into the six-meridian stage, and Xu Yuan quietly blasted straight through the nine levels of the Meridian Opening Realm!
For a moment, regret, jealousy, resentment, and all sorts of emotions surged through his heart, leaving his chest tight and heavy, impossible to ease.
At another spot,
Shangyang Qingyu lounged lazily in a soft chair, her gaze resting on Xu Yuan. Suddenly, she gave a soft sound of surprise.
"This one is rather interesting."
...
"Lord Xu... broke through to the Extraordinary Meridians level?"
Yuan Danqing’s mouth fell open, her voice full of disbelief.
"Is that really the important part? All right, fine, that is important too... but why could that Extraordinary Meridians martial artist not even withstand one move from him?!" Xiao Han felt as though his entire understanding of the world was collapsing.
How could the gap between martial artists of the same level possibly be this great?
He asked himself honestly, and even if he were fighting a six-meridian martial artist, he absolutely would not be able to win so easily.
"You... what kind of martial art was that?"
Sun Ba struggled to get up, only to find his blood and qi in chaos, his body stiff, and his strength difficult to muster.
He stared fixedly at Xu Yuan, his eyes filled with unwillingness and fear.
Xu Yuan looked down at him and said flatly, "Why does it matter what martial art it was? Beating you was enough. Why ask so many questions?"
Sun Ba’s face turned ashen. He wanted to retort, only to realize that he had no words to say.
Some of the martial artists below the stage had returned from outside and did not yet know Xu Yuan’s reputation, so they immediately began asking around.
"Who exactly is this man? Extraordinary Meridian martial artists look like children in his hands."
"I heard that a little over a year ago, he was still a menial worker. This speed of cultivation is simply unheard of!"
"What? A menial worker!"
"No wonder even the Second Young Master frequently sends him gifts. If someone like this enters the mountain gate, then his future accomplishments will be beyond measure!"
On the viewing platform, Shangyang Qingcheng had also arrived. A smile lifted the corners of his mouth as he gently waved his folding fan.
"Interesting. Truly interesting."
He turned to Gao Sheng beside him. "Tell me, what expression do you think my third brother is wearing right now?"
Gao Sheng lowered his head and replied softly, "The Third Young Master’s expression... is probably not very pleasant."
"Not very pleasant? It is far more than that."
Shangyang Qingcheng smiled. "Both of the people he sent have folded. One was publicly humiliated, and the other was defeated in a single move. If it were me, I would probably want to find a crack in the ground and crawl into it."
Gao Sheng did not answer. He merely kept his head lowered in silence.
...
On the ring,
Sun Ba sprawled on the ground, staring up at the figure looking down on him from above.
Xu Yuan lowered his eyes to him and said in a level tone, "Are you not getting up yet? Do you want me to send you down myself?"
Sun Ba’s face flushed red with rage. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Do not be so pleased with yourself. Today’s humiliation, one day I will surely..."
Before he could finish, Xu Yuan stepped on his chest and said flatly,
"One day? Right now, standing up is already a question for you. What talk is there of one day?"
Sun Ba let out a muffled groan. His chest throbbed with pain, and he could no longer force out another word.
Below the stage, those who had previously been hoping for Xu Yuan to be crippled now all fell silent as cicadas in winter. None of them even dared breathe too loudly.
The steward swallowed and carefully stepped forward. "Lord Xu, you have won this match. Will you continue defending the ring?"
Xu Yuan glanced at him and answered flatly, "I will."
The steward hurriedly nodded, then turned and announced in a loud voice, "Ring B, Defending Champion Xu Yuan, victory!"
Xu Yuan withdrew his foot and stood in the center of the ring with his hands clasped behind his back, his gaze sweeping across everyone below.
Wherever that gaze fell, no one dared meet his eyes.
After a moment, he suddenly spoke.
"Then let us continue according to the order, shall we?"
The instant those words were spoken, silence fell over the crowd below.
Those eight-meridian martial artists who had originally been eager to try now all lowered their heads, wishing they could bury themselves inside the crowd.
What a joke. Even an Extraordinary Meridians martial artist had been knocked down in a single move. Who would still dare go up there and court death?
The steward coughed twice and called out loudly, "Everyone, please take the stage according to the names on your wooden tokens."
Hearing that, the martial artists assigned to Rings A, B, and D all revealed despairing expressions.
In sharp contrast, the people at the other two rings immediately brightened up.
They still had a chance to fight for a spot!
Not far away, that burly Extraordinary Meridian's martial artist glanced at Xu Yuan, a trace of approval flashing through his eyes, before withdrawing his gaze and turning toward the opponent on his own ring.
...
"A bunch of trash!"
On the viewing platform, Shangyang Qingzhen slowly rose to his feet, his eyes fixed coldly on the receding figure in the distance.
"Young Master..." one of the attendants beside him began cautiously.
"Shut up."
Shangyang Qingzhen spat out the two words coldly, then turned and left.
The attendants hurried after him, none of them daring to breathe too loudly.
Then, suddenly, a crisp voice drifted leisurely through the air.
"Third Brother."
Shangyang Qingzhen abruptly lifted his head. In the distance, Shangyang Qingyu was watching him with easy composure.
"I never expected that after all these years apart, you would still handle matters in such a rash and clumsy way. When is a little brat like you ever going to grow up?"
"How I do things is none of Eldest Sister’s concern," Shangyang Qingzhen replied expressionlessly.
Then, without stopping his stride, he walked out of the viewing platform and passed through a corridor. Only when there was no one around did he suddenly slam a punch into the wall.
Bang!
A deep fist mark was left in the wall, and shattered stone rained down in a rustling shower.
"Bitch!"