Free Web NovelChapter 1473: Chapter 756: Lonely Fist (Part 2)
Standing at the bottom of the judges’ area were the members from each judge’s Clan. For example, the third generation members of the Qing Family were gathered together with the second generation members. It was the same for the Lan Family, the Feng Family, and the Tang Family. Of course, there were also many scattered crowds standing around, but these people had neither status nor power.
Qing Shui walked toward the members of the Qing Clan.
"Oh, Qing Shui is here. I thought you always hated watching these annual competitions?" Qingzi cast a glance in Qing Shui’s direction and said with a smile.
"Haha, this event is so lively that everyone around me says this year will be interesting. Besides, this might be my last chance to watch this tournament. After the coming-of-age ceremony, I don’t know where my path will lead me." Qing Shui smiled faintly and replied.
Greetings came continuously from the people around him, and Qing Shui smiled back at them. All the third generation members had already arrived, and they were all Sixth Grade and above Military Warriors; Qingzi, Qing Youu, Qing Hui, Qing Yang... Qing Hu and Qing Bei.
At present, Qing Bei’s cultivation level had already reached the peak of the Seventh Grade, just a step away from breaking through to the Eighth Grade. She truly lived up to her name as the little genius of the Qing Clan. Although she was one of the youngest Martial Arts practitioners, her Martial Arts had already surpassed many others.
A short while later, Qing Yi and the other second generation members arrived. On the stage was Qing Shui’s grandfather; naturally, Qing Shui knew that. Standing beside him was Lan Yu from the Lan Family, whom Qing Shui had met several times. However, as for the judges from the Tang Family and the Feng Family, Qing Shui had never seen them before. The Tang Family’s representative was a burly middle-aged barbarian-looking man, while the representative from the Feng Family was a charming young woman.
Qing Shui couldn’t help but take a few more glances at this charming young woman. Her skin was fair and smooth like white silk, and her Phoenix eyes were extremely enchanting. She wore a sky-blue dress that tightly embraced her curvaceous figure, and a faint smile hung on her mature and seductive face, accentuating the contours of her entire body. Qing Shui couldn’t tell her exact age, but he guessed she was not that young.
As Qing Shui got lost in appreciating the beauty of the Feng Clan woman, he was jolted back to reality when he saw Situ Nantian standing on the stage. To think that the representative judge of Hundred-Mile City was this cunning old fox, Situ Nan Tian. After noticing Situ Nantian’s arrival, Qing Shui couldn’t help but sweep his gaze over the crowd a few more times, because he didn’t know whether Situ Bufan would also appear among the spectators together with Shi Qingzhuang. Deep down, Qing Shui harbored a strong desire to once again look upon Shi Qingzhuang’s icy cold face...
Just as Qing Shui had expected, among the five main judges, that cunning old fox! Situ Nan Tian was the one who explained the rules, his loud and sonorous voice carrying across the crowd.
The rules were very common: no killing, no poison, no hidden weapons, and once an opponent surrendered, the victor had to show mercy.
After explaining the rules, the start of the matches was announced immediately. This made Qing Shui wonder whether all Middle Cultivators shared this straightforward manner.
However, what surprised Qing Shui was that the rules also stated that among all the competitors today, the last one standing could be considered the strongest among the third generation.
Even so, the situation was still acceptable, because everyone had three chances to go on stage. This meant that even if you were defeated in the first round, you could still choose to fight until you were defeated three times. The only prerequisite was that you still had to be capable of participating!
After the matches began, the chief judges stepped back. Silence prevailed in the courtyard as the spectators waited to see who would be the first participant. A moment later, Qing Hu stepped forward.
The Qing Clan knew that since this was their home ground, this Martial Arts tournament should naturally begin with one of their own! Although there were no restrictions on the number of participants each Clan could send, the Clan would only choose those who had at least cultivated to the realm of a Sixth Grade Military Warrior. The reason was that the gap between Fifth Grade and Sixth Grade could be said to be the first great chasm a Cultivator would face. Fifth Grade Cultivators could at most be considered slightly stronger individuals. Only when one advanced to the Sixth Grade would they be considered to have truly set foot on the path of cultivation. As a result, no matter how many Fifth Grade warriors were sent out, they would be powerless against a Sixth Grade warrior. They would be defeated in a single breath, with just one move, like eggs smashed against a rock.
Qing Hu was the first competitor. Having just advanced to the Sixth Grade in the Martial Arts Warrior realm, he decided to test his newly discovered strength on the stage. Shortly after he entered, an opponent of about the same age stepped into the arena.
Perhaps because Qing Hu was unarmed, his opponent also entered the arena without bringing any weapon.
"Qing Clan, Qing Hu!"
"Lan Clan, Lan Xing!"
After the two fighters introduced themselves, Situ Nantian lightly announced the start of the battle.
Qing Shui wasn’t sure whether Qing Hu had learned any other Martial Arts techniques from the Qing Clan, but he was certain that the technique Qing Hu was currently using was just the Lonely Fist that he had taught him! In Qing Shui’s eyes, Qing Hu’s strikes and posture looked incredibly clumsy, but they were clearly enough to hold his own against Lan Xing.
The spectators below the arena could tell that in terms of strength, offensive speed, and bodily movements, Qing Hu was slightly inferior to Lan Xing. However, based solely on the bizarre fist technique he was using, Qing Hu relied on his nimble hands to fully defend against Lan Xing and even managed to force Lan Xing back by a step. After an exchange, both sides retreated. Lan Xing twisted his numbed hands, a frown creasing his brows, as though in disbelief.
Qing Hu did not give his opponent any time to rest. After carefully considering the best approach for attacking, he charged forward. Qing Hu was already known to be well-versed in the weakest acupoints and vital meridian locations on the human body. However, when facing an opponent of similar strength, even though he knew their positions and his own disadvantages, the likelihood of striking specific acupoints was not very high. Even so, Qing Hu’s execution was excellent, and after their second clash, Lan Xing was forced into retreat.
Although his hands were numb, Lan Xing still clenched his fists tightly and roared as he rushed at Qing Hu. It seemed he had learned his lesson and wanted to rely on his superior speed and bodily movements to fight Qing Hu, instead of engaging him head-on.
Although Lan Xing’s speed was fast, Qing Hu calmly held his ground. Qing Hu knew that if Lan Xing wanted to defeat him, it would not be an easy task. Every time Lan Xing wanted to attack Qing Hu, he had to step into Qing Hu’s fearsome fist range. Qing Hu slightly raised both arms, fists at the ready, prepared to launch a destructive strike whenever there was an opportunity. Gradually, Lan Xing’s reactions grew slower, while Qing Hu’s punches became increasingly agile! This was the result of experiencing actual combat!
Because the rules forbade attacks that might cause death, and because there was no hatred between Qing Hu and Lan Xing, Qing Hu avoided attacking any lethal acupoints in the head region of his opponent. He bided his time, waiting for the right opportunity. At last, Qing Hu dashed forward, catching his opponent off guard. Using his nimble arms, he executed a series of rapid Lonely Fist strikes, positioning himself behind Lan Xing and skillfully striking the Tianzhu, Fufen, Dazhu, and Feiyu acupoints on the back of Lan Xing’s neck.[1]
Even Qing Shui felt a sense of awe at Qing Hu’s graceful execution. When Qing Hu looked up, Qing Shui’s eyes met his, and Qing Shui’s lips curved slightly as he nodded in Qing Hu’s direction.
After the battle, the Lan Clan sent out two more Sixth Grade warriors, who were defeated by Qing Hu using the same technique. At this point, not only were the other Clans shocked by Qing Hu’s performance, even the second and third generation of his own Qing Clan felt that he was too incredible.
Eventually, Qing Hu was defeated by a Seventh Grade warrior. Even in defeat, there was honor. After that, the Tang Family’s Seventh Grade Martial Arts warrior defeated the Lan Family’s Seventh Grade Martial Arts warrior, but in turn lost to a girl from the Feng Family.
By the time the battles between the Seventh Grade Martial Arts warriors concluded, Lan Yan’er was the only one left standing. At the Eighth Grade, there was simply no one who could be her match. Looking at the unyielding woman he liked standing proudly on the stage, a bittersweet feeling surfaced in Qing Hu’s heart.
Indeed, Lan Yan’er was a genius among geniuses. Even Qing Yang and Qing Hui had suffered defeat at her hands. The brief glory that Qing Hu had brought to the Qing surname quickly dissipated after the Lan Clan stole the limelight.
Watching the currently high-spirited Lan Yan’er standing on the stage, displaying unrestrained arrogance, Qing Bei clenched her teeth and leaped into the arena after Lan Yan’er defeated another Seventh Grade warrior at the peak of the Seventh Grade.
"Sigh, forget it. Letting this child experience the pain of defeat will only benefit her future growth." Qinghai said bitterly.
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