fantasy novels Chapter 102 Fighting Yang Blade
Chapter 102 Fighting Yang Blade
"I heard that the two gangs have been fighting fiercely over those alleys in the commercial district recently."
"Shh, keep your voice down, look, those three families are here too!"
The crowd parted, and the descendants of the Kang, Yin, and Yan families, surrounding their elders, entered one after another.
An elderly man with a gloomy face came from the Kang family; he was the uncle of County Magistrate Kang. A middle-aged noblewoman with a graceful demeanor came from the Yin family; she was said to be Yin Wuji's aunt. The Yan family sent their third master, Yan Yong, who had recovered from his injuries and came today to support his son, Yan Zhan.
The members of the three major families each occupied a spot with a good view, exchanging only polite greetings. It was already a miracle that they didn't start fighting.
At three-quarters past Chen hour, General Wang, the chief judge of the provincial examination, took to the stage. Today, he was not wearing his mountain-patterned armor, but had changed into a light red official robe. He called out to stop the proceedings—
"quiet!"
His voice was booming, drowning out the noise of the entire venue.
General Wang Jingyi looked around and said loudly:
"The second round of the provincial martial arts examination is a ring battle, with forty-eight participants divided into four groups, competing simultaneously on four rings representing the east, west, south, and north. Those who win two consecutive matches will directly advance to the third round and secure the title of Martial Arts Scholar!"
"If there are fewer than twelve players on a winning streak, then those with one win and one loss will play an additional match until the total number of players is reached!"
He paused, his gaze sweeping over the eager candidates below the stage, his tone turning stern:
"On the arena, fists and kicks have no eyes. Before the match, you must sign a waiver of life and death! Each match is limited to the time it takes for an incense stick to burn. The winner is decided when one side concedes defeat, falls off the arena, or remains on the ground for ten breaths. Gentlemen... your martial arts future is important, but your life is even more precious. If you feel you are no match for them, concede early, and we can fight again in three years... Let's begin!"
As soon as the words were spoken, the four deputy examiners each carried a death warrant and went to the four arenas. The candidates stepped forward one by one to sign the death warrant and press their fingerprints, and the atmosphere instantly became tense.
"Number 25, Crescent Moon County, Liu Sheng!"
"Number 42, Huangqu County, Yangren!"
On the East Arena.
Yang Ren stood with his hands behind his back, squinting as he sized up Liu Sheng as he slowly walked onto the stage.
He has practiced the Rock Sheep Fist for several years and has reached the eighth rank of minor mastery. He is quite famous among the younger generation in Huangqu County.
The Rock Sheep Fist, inspired by the rock sheep climbing rocks and leaping across streams, is characterized by its agile movements, like the wind. Practitioners can even summon the spirit of a rock sheep to possess them, granting them superhuman eyesight. They excel at spotting their opponent's weaknesses and, combined with their punching speed, achieving a decisive victory in one strike.
Looking at Liu Sheng's physique, he seemed unremarkable. Shi Suo's weightlifting was only at the second-best level of 400 jin, so he was probably just a ninth-rank martial artist.
A ninth-rank official versus an eighth-rank official is insignificant in the face of such an absolute difference in strength.
"please."
Liu Sheng followed the rules and bowed to the other party.
Yang Ren, however, showed no manners. He snorted and moved the instant the referee struck the gong!
Yang Ren moved with lightning speed, darting around the field!
His movements were unpredictable, shifting from left to right, so fast in Liu Sheng's vision that they were almost blurry.
This is a common opening move used by rock sheep boxing practitioners. The intention is to move at high speed to confuse the opponent, causing them to make a hasty move, while observing their breathing, starting stance, and changes in center of gravity.
Search for the slightest possible flaw.
"Hmm, how could that be?"
Seeing that Liu Sheng was only a ninth-rank martial artist, and that he hadn't even started his stance yet, his whole body was full of openings.
If it's full of flaws, how can we even make a move?
Looking at it from another angle, it's full of flaws.
That means there are no flaws.
It was as if Liu Sheng had grown out of the arena and had long since become one with it.
His Yang Blade was actually superfluous.
"Impossible, why haven't they made a move yet... Hmph, could it be a bluff?"
Running for a long time is quite physically demanding.
Without a second thought, Yang Ren abruptly stopped, shifting from motion to stillness. He slammed his feet against the table, launching a surprise attack on Liu Sheng like an arrow released from a bow.
With this punch, he was going to make this arrogant brat kneel down and beg for mercy!
Liu Sheng stood there, seemingly unable to react in time.
Just as the force of the Yang Blade Fist was about to touch his face, Liu Sheng finally moved!
There was no dodging, no blocking.
Liu Sheng lowered his waist slightly, and his right fist, without any fancy movements, struck straight at Yang Ren's lower abdomen from below.
"not good!"
Yang Ren's pupils shrank sharply. His lower abdomen was where he had hidden the silver notes. If he had persisted in his attack, he might have been able to win, but with a strike from a rank-1 martial artist, the silver notes would probably have been shattered to pieces!
In a flash, Yang Ren couldn't bear to part with the silver notes. He abruptly pulled his fist back in mid-air, pressing down with both fists to protect them.
"laugh!"
Liu Sheng's fist subtly changed midway, drawing a tricky arc and striking Yang Ren's neck side precisely!
"Uh... how did he discover my weakness first..."
Yang Ren felt a sharp pain in his neck, his vision went black, his legs gave way, and he collapsed to his knees.
The world spun around, and darkness surged in like a tide.
He was filled with disbelief.
puff.
He collapsed unconscious on the ring.
From beginning to end, it takes no more than ten breaths.
There was a moment of silence in the audience, followed by uproar!
"One move!?"
"Isn't Yang Blade an eighth-grade weapon? Judging from the opponent's appearance, he's only ninth-grade. How come..."
The assistant examiner stepped forward to check and confirmed that Yang Ren had lost consciousness, then shouted:
"Eastern Arena, Winner—Number 25, Crescent Moon County, Liu Sheng!"
Liu Sheng calmly finished his stance, bowed to the referee, and stepped off the ring.
In the past, he would have definitely kept a low profile, or at least pretended to fight a few more rounds.
But perhaps last night the senior brother had a new assessment of his own strength.
Perhaps because he could become a martial arts scholar by winning two consecutive rounds, Liu Sheng didn't want to hide his talents and take risks.
More likely, he simply disliked Yang Ren for daring to launch a sneak attack without bowing to him.
Does this person deserve to be called a martial artist?
And coincidentally, he now finally has the means to defeat his enemy.
There's no need to hide it anymore.
Yes, Liu Sheng first used his spiritual eyes to observe the Yang Blade, but it only emitted a white light.
The weakness of the Yang Blade lies primarily in the lower abdomen.
Based on his conversation with his senior brother that day, Liu Sheng had already guessed that the other party most likely had valuables in his lower abdomen, perhaps just money, but the real weakness was probably something else entirely.
Sure enough, after the opponent parried, the weakness mark that Ling Tong saw immediately jumped to the side of Yang Blade's neck.
"So, the weakness mark changes depending on the items carried and the method of defense... Unfortunately, with my current strength, I still can't keep the Spirit Eye active all the time, as it consumes too much stamina."
He pondered for a moment and gained a more comprehensive understanding of the new function of the Spirit Eye.
On the judge's bench, General Wang Jingyi frowned.
He could clearly see Yang Ren's strength; he was at the eighth level of minor mastery, and had mastered the essence of the Rock Sheep Fist. He shouldn't have been so easily defeated.
But the more important question is—
This arrangement is wrong!
He clearly instructed the clerk to arrange a boxing opponent for Liu Sheng, and according to custom, the opponent should be someone of similar or even weaker strength.
Why would they arrange someone like Yang Ren, whose strength is far superior to that of an ordinary ninth-rank martial artist?
While I was pondering this.
The deputy examiner of the East Arena had already read the list and loudly announced the next matchup:
"Number 25, Crescent Moon County, Liu Sheng!"
"Number 96, Huangqu County, Xiong Li!"
Wang Jingyi suddenly raised his head!
Xiong Li? The Xiong Li who can easily lift a 500-jin stone lock and is at the eighth-grade mastery level?!