My Martial Dao Has No Bottlenecks

Chapter 16: Chapter 16: An Eye for an Eye

On the tournament stage.

Liang Cheng and Wu Xiao stood thirty feet apart.

"Liang Cheng?" Wu Xiao flicked the blood from his hand—Zhao Yuan’s blood. "Never heard of you. Has old man Yang Wei run out of people to use?"

Liang Cheng remained silent, slowly assuming the opening stance of the Mixed Element Stance. His feet were slightly apart, his back was as straight as a pine, and his breath instantly sank into his Dantian.

The surrounding hall masters and the City Lord’s emissary focused their gazes. Such profoundness could only be achieved through a Great Success Pile Skill. ’Did old man Yang Wei put up a smokescreen before? Is this his true trump card?’

’What a calculating mind!’

"Just for show!" Wu Xiao’s eyes flashed fiercely as he moved again. It was the same move, Eagle Claw Heart-digging, but this time his speed was greater, and the Claw Wind was sharper!

His five fingers tore through the air, aimed straight for Liang Cheng’s throat. He wanted to kill his opponent in a single move and utterly crush the spine of the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall!

A wave of gasps erupted from the sidelines, but Liang Cheng neither dodged nor retreated. He met the attack head-on with his fists, without a trace of hesitation.

The instant Wu Xiao’s claw struck for his heart, Liang Cheng sank his stance, his right fist exploding upward from his waist. The Mixed Element Stance of the Great Success Realm, combined with the power of the Great Success Fierce Bull Force, sent a tide of Dark Force surging from his fist, blasting straight toward Wu Xiao’s left shoulder.

This punch had no flourish—it was simply fast, heavy, and precise.

Wu Xiao reacted instantly and tried to retreat, but Liang Cheng’s footwork shadowed his every move, constantly blocking his escape and forcing him to take the blow head-on.

BANG!!!

The two crashed into each other with a dull thud like the beat of a war drum. Liang Cheng seized the opportunity to land his fist on Wu Xiao’s left shoulder. Wu Xiao’s clothes instantly exploded into fragments, and his shoulder blade shattered with a sickening CRACK.

Wu Xiao was sent flying backward, his feet leaving the ground, but Liang Cheng’s left hand shot out like lightning and seized Wu Xiao’s right wrist before he could pull it back.

He yanked Wu Xiao’s right arm, pulling him back, and then drove his left knee upward like a heavy hammer!

PTHOO—!

The knee strike landed precisely on Wu Xiao’s abdomen—the very same spot where he had grievously injured Zhao Yuan, but this blow was far more vicious.

"WAAAGH!"

Wu Xiao’s eyes bulged. The intense agony was so great he couldn’t even scream as a foul mixture of stomach fluid and blood clots spewed from his mouth.

Only then did Liang Cheng release him. Wu Xiao collapsed to his knees like a pile of mud. His left arm hung limply, shoulder shattered, and his internal organs were damaged. He had no strength left to fight.

The entire arena fell deathly silent.

From Wu Xiao’s ferocious opening attack, to Liang Cheng’s counter, to Wu Xiao kneeling on the ground vomiting blood, barely thirty breaths had passed.

The reversal had been too sudden, too violent.

"You..." Wu Xiao struggled to lift his head, his eyes shot with blood and filled with venomous hatred. "You dare to injure me..."

"In a martial arts exchange, it’s hard to hold back." Liang Cheng looked down at him, returning Wu Xiao’s earlier words. "My apologies, Senior Brother Wu."

With that, he turned to leave the stage.

"You little bastard! DIE!!!"

Just then, a furious roar exploded like thunder. From the Zhen Nan Martial Arts Hall’s seating area, a burly, dark figure shot out like a tiger uncaged, lunging straight for the stage!

Before the person even arrived, a blazing and ferocious Fist Wind pressed Liang Cheng’s robes tight against his back—it was a rage-fueled strike from a Dark Force Peak expert!

It was Zhen Nan Martial Arts Hall’s head disciple, Zheng Biao!

"Zheng Biao, you dare?!" Yang Wei roared, leaping to his feet, but it was too late to stop him.

Just as the punch, powerful enough to shatter stone tablets, was about to slam into Liang Cheng’s back, a green shadow inserted itself like a phantom, blocking the way.

Somehow, Zhou Hu was now standing behind Liang Cheng. His expression was calm as he clenched his right fist and met Zheng Biao’s incoming strike head-on, perfectly centered.

Fist against fist!

VMMMM—

As their fists collided with a hum, Zheng Biao’s rampaging Fist Force vanished as if a clay ox had fallen into the sea. Both men took a step back simultaneously.

"Your Dark Force is both hard and soft, penetrating the body like needles... You’ve also touched the threshold of Transformation Force?!" Zheng Biao stared at Zhou Hu, his face grim.

Zhou Hu retracted his fist and stood with his hands behind his back. "Senior Brother Zheng, this is just a match between juniors. It’s not appropriate for us to interfere, is it?"

Zheng Biao’s face was ashen. He stared daggers at Zhou Hu, then glanced at Wu Xiao, who was still kneeling and vomiting blood on the stage. Finally, he grit his teeth without a word, scooped up the nearly unconscious Wu Xiao, and leaped off the stage.

Below the stage, Yang Wei and Wu Tianxiong were glaring at each other, the atmosphere tense.

Only then did the crowd by the stage explode into an uproar.

"He won?! That Liang Cheng from the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall actually won?!"

"Great Success Pile Skill and Great Success Fierce Bull Force... Where did this genius come from?"

"And that final knee strike! It was clearly deliberate revenge, an eye for an eye. This guy is ruthless!"

The merchants’ section was in an even greater frenzy.

A portly merchant shot to his feet, his eyes gleaming. "Great Success Pile Skill, Anjin Cultivation, and he’s only sixteen or seventeen. This boy has great potential!"

Someone next to him immediately scoffed, "Fatty Wang, weren’t you just saying you wanted to focus on recruiting Wu Xiao?"

"What do you know! Wu Xiao is vicious, but Liang Cheng is calm and measured! No, I have to strike while the iron is hot..."

He wasn’t the only one. Representatives from three or four other influential merchant families whispered instructions to their confidants, who then hurried toward the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall’s section.

On the high platform, the emissary from the City Lord’s Mansion stroked his beard and smiled, whispering to the scribe beside him, "Make a note: Liang Cheng of the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall, Great Success Pile Skill. Can be listed for Grade B observation."

"Yes, sir."

On the stage, the referee finally snapped back to his senses and announced loudly, "Liang Cheng of the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall wins and advances to the next round!"

Liang Cheng gave the referee a slight nod and walked slowly off the stage.

The disciples of the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall were already in an uproar. Li Cheng and the others were flushed with excitement, but they saw that Liang Cheng’s expression was as calm as ever. Only his breathing was slightly heavy, and there were several tears on the front of his green robes.

"Junior Brother Liang, are you alright?" Zhou Hu came up and asked in a low voice.

"I’m fine. My Qi Blood is just a little turbulent. I’ll be fine after a moment of meditation," Liang Cheng said, shaking his head.

Yang Wei looked at Liang Cheng with a complicated expression, finally just patting him heavily on the shoulder. "Good! We’ll talk when we get back."

Liang Cheng nodded, returned to his seat, and sat cross-legged to regulate his breathing.

He could feel countless gazes focused on him.

With this one battle, he was no longer a nobody.

A mayfly had flapped its wings and finally revealed its edge.

「In the distance, at the Zhen Nan Martial Arts Hall’s seats.」

Wu Tianxiong’s face was so dark it looked like water could drip from it. He looked at Wu Xiao, who had been carried back by Zheng Biao, then glanced toward the Yangwei Martial Arts Hall, a cold light flickering in his eyes.

"Wu Xiao’s injuries are the same as Zhao Yuan’s, only worse," Zheng Biao said in a low voice. "His left shoulder blade is completely shattered and his internal organs are damaged. Without at least half a year of recuperation with Spirit Medicine, I’m afraid he’ll be left with permanent hidden injuries."

"We’ll talk when we get back," Wu Tianxiong squeezed out through clenched teeth. "Against Zhou Hu, what are your chances?"

Zheng Biao’s heart tightened. "Master, your disciple cannot guarantee victory. He has also touched the threshold of Transformation Force. I’m afraid it would be a fifty-fifty chance..."

"Don’t worry. The next matches will follow the lottery order, so you probably won’t be on stage until tomorrow," Wu Tianxiong sneered. "Your master has his own methods."

"Yes, Master."

Hearing this, Zheng Biao’s head snapped up, his face filled with pleasant surprise.

Meanwhile, as soon as Liang Cheng was steady on his feet, a merchant’s confidant eagerly ran over and handed him a slip of paper. They didn’t speak; the confidant merely showed his face to leave an impression.

The slip of paper naturally contained an expression of their master’s sincerity. As for how to proceed with negotiations, that would have to wait until after the tournament was over.

Liang Cheng silently accepted the slip of paper without looking at it. He turned to look at the wealthy merchant, who quickly offered a friendly smile.

’If the City Lord’s emissary wasn’t still here, there’s no way I’d let such a brilliant talent get away!’