Invincibility Begins with Mastery of Fist Techniques-Chapter 65: Invitation to Battle
Noticing the subtle peculiarity of He Runlin’s palm, and combining it with the fight he just had with Wu Tianhe, Zhou Yuanjue seemed to be starting to understand the characteristics of the Hunyuan Sect’s Martial Dao.
Meanwhile, Wu Tianhe, who had taken a heavy blow to the abdomen, was curled up into a ball. He felt his stomach and organs churning violently, and even his circulation was sluggish. The stagnation of his vital energy caused his Free Will state to vanish, and his body shrank back to its normal size.
That said, Wu Tianhe was truly unlucky. First, Zhou Yuanjue had broken his Divine Strike Secret Skill, causing him spiritual damage. Then, he ran into an opponent of He Runlin’s caliber, preventing him from using even seventy percent of his abilities.
If he had been able to use his Divine Strike, He Runlin likely would not have been able to defeat him with such ease.
ROAR!!
After a moment of silence, the venue erupted in a clamor of discussion.
"To block such a terrifying attack entirely with one hand... the Primordial Water Avoidance Palm certainly lives up to its reputation. A pity we didn’t get to see his Heart’s Desire Bursting Out. Logically, this Wu Tianhe shouldn’t be so weak, right? As an heir to the Spirit Communication Fist who has reached such a level, there’s no way he can’t use the Divine Strike technique, is there?"
In the control room, the man in a suit with a buzz cut watched as the temporarily incapacitated Wu Tianhe was carried away on a stretcher. He then looked at the indentations He Runlin had left on the ground as he turned and left the arena, asking with some confusion.
"I don’t know, but let’s put a special note on this He Runlin in the Data. Perhaps the Eldest Brother will be interested."
The other man in a suit, this one with slicked-back hair, mused for a moment before replying.
"So? Any thoughts?" Li Qingxuan asked, noticing the interested look in Zhou Yuanjue’s eyes. She knew he had taken an interest in the man.
Lu Ming clearly misunderstood Li Qingxuan’s intention and chimed in, "A master like that... he’s a prefectural champion, same as you. Judging by his fight with Wu Tianhe, the gap between you two can’t be that wide, can it? It’s better not to face him so early and risk injury. The tournament has a long way to go, after all. Should I make some arrangements so you can avoid him?"
"No need," Zhou Yuanjue said, his expression calm. "You said that starting from the next level, I can freely choose my opponents, right? Go and issue a challenge to him now."
"Now?" Lu Ming asked, astonished.
"Yes. If I wait, someone else might get to him first," Zhou Yuanjue said with a nod.
"..."
Lu Ming opened his mouth, then closed it. ’Besides you, who would possibly want to face a guy like that in the first few rounds?’
Backstage at Arena Four, in the fighters’ lounge.
Having just finished his match and taken a shower, He Runlin had changed his clothes and was about to leave the venue when a fellow disciple in a sea-blue Martial Arts Uniform opened the lounge door and walked in.
"What is it?" He Runlin asked with a smile.
"Just now, after the match ended, someone sent you a challenge through the tournament system. They want to fight you in the next round," the disciple in the sea-blue Martial Arts Uniform said in a grave tone.
"Oh?" He Runlin’s eyebrow twitched in slight surprise. ’I just finished my match and advanced, and someone’s already sent me a challenge?’
A look of amusement crossed his face. "Who is it?" he asked.
"His name is Zhou Yuanjue," the Hunyuan Sect disciple said in a low voice. "I looked into his Data. He practices a Fist Technique called Red Falcon Fist. Not long ago, he appeared out of nowhere and became undefeated throughout Tianlu Prefecture. He’s the new number one in Tianlu. Furthermore, the Data suggests he’s likely Tianlu Prefecture’s ’seed’ fighter."
"The number one of Tianlu?" He Runlin smiled slightly, his eyes narrowing to slits.
"So? Will you accept? It’s still the early stages of the tournament. Facing an opponent like this could force you to reveal some of your trump cards and make you a target for everyone else," the Hunyuan Sect disciple said.
"Accept. Why wouldn’t I? He had the courage to issue a challenge. Do you think I lack the courage to even accept it?"
He Runlin said with a laugh as he stood up. His massive frame blocked the light, casting a shadow over the Hunyuan Sect disciple. The smile on his face gradually faded, replaced by a placid expression:
"We Martial Artists... if a god stands in our way, we slay the god. If a Buddha blocks our path, we slay the Buddha. When our vital energy erupts, the world itself is overturned. We cast aside all thoughts of life and death, victory and defeat. Though thousands or millions stand against me, I will advance. Why would I fret over such trivial details?"
"If he wants to fight, then we will fight."
...
...
「The next night, at the Ji Po Jue Arena.」
No one had expected the first major highlight of the tournament to arrive so quickly.
The number one of Tianlu versus the number one of Hua Xi.
And it wasn’t a match made by the system’s random assignments, but a direct challenge!
This added even more hype to the duel, causing quite a stir in the Guangpu City Martial Arts Realm. The Ji Po Jue Arena was also quite shrewd, specifically scheduling their duel as the final, headline match in Arena One, which made the entire arena’s atmosphere even more feverish.
Of course, this move was not without its price. The management of the Ji Po Jue Arena contacted both He Runlin and Zhou Yuanjue, promising one-tenth of the total betting pool for their match as a prize for the winner. By the time of the fight, this amount would likely be in the tens of millions.
From the moment the matches began, Arena One had been packed with enthusiasts from all over the Southern region and figures from the Martial Arts Realm. Everyone patiently watched over two hours of matches of varying skill levels. As time went on, the crowd in Arena One grew larger and larger, until even the back corridors were filled with people.
Finally, amid the buzz of the crowd, the last match in Arena One was about to begin.
In the arena, a clear bell rang, and the entire venue fell silent. Two figures slowly emerged from the entrances at opposite ends of the arena.
Meanwhile, in the control room, the two men in suits—the one with the buzz cut and the one with the slicked-back hair—stood in the center of the hall, watching through the one-way glass as the two fighters slowly entered the arena.
"It’s about to start. I never thought these two would face each other..."
"It’s bound to be a spectacular battle between a dragon and a tiger. I wonder who will win?"
BANG!!
Just then, however, the control room door was thrown open with a bang. A tall, powerful man in a suit with an incredibly cold expression appeared in the doorway. On the lobes of both of his ears was a semicircular notch.
"Eldest Brother?!"
Seeing this man, the pupils of the buzz-cut and slicked-back-haired men contracted, and they couldn’t help but gasp in shock. 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢
In the arena.
He Runlin and Zhou Yuanjue stood facing each other.
"The moment I received your challenge, I knew you had already cast aside life and death, victory and defeat, and were simply searching for a worthy opponent."
"That is also what I was thinking. The Southern fighting tournament, the number one fist in the South... tsk, what a grand title. How many people are shackled by such empty fame, their eyes blinded, forgetting the true purpose of this tournament."
"But they are all mundane people, lost in a fog, gazing at the moon’s reflection in the water. They see the illusion, not the reality."
"To use battle to stir one’s blood, to use a powerful opponent to create a resonance of the Spirit, to find clarity for one’s own path in the midst of combat, and to achieve a sublimation of life—that is what we Martial Artists truly seek."
"Come. This duel is not for victory or defeat, nor for fame or fortune. It is only so that our Martial Daos may advance another step!"
