Ji Feiyan chuckled and said,
"That makes it a foregone conclusion, junior brother can sweep across the competition effortlessly."
Shi Ruyu also expressed strong agreement. Even without Hard Qi Gong, junior brother’s mastery of the Tiger Form was a cut above the rest at Eighth Rank. He was virtually unbeatable among his peers.
And indeed, that proved to be the case.
In the following match, in less than thirty moves, Lu Chenzhou defeated his opponent, advancing to the semifinals, and his popularity soared to the third position.
"Lu Chenzhou has quietly made it to the top four?"
"Could he be the dark horse?"
Someone looked up Lu Chenzhou on their smartphone and exclaimed,
"He is actually the champion of the Su City Martial Arts Tournament."
"No wonder he’s the city champion, he’s no ordinary person."
"I’ve noticed this guy has really good luck, in these two competitions, he’s always been matched with non-popular contenders. If he were up against someone like Ye Chen, he’d probably be eliminated."
"How is that considered good luck? There are only a few favorites to win the championship, it’s quite normal not to be matched with them. He’s fought his way here on merit alone."
Some had been followers of Lu Chenzhou back in Su City. Seeing their city’s contender making it to the semifinals, they were extremely excited. This is what competitions are all about. Everyone can always find a surprising sense of belonging, be it because of the city, school, Martial Arts Academy, or faction.
As the list of the top four was announced, the presenter exclaimed excitedly,
"Yong Chun Ye Chen, Eighth Ultimate Lin Zirong, Elephant Form Lu Chenzhou, Bai Mei Zhang Bing, which of these four young masters will summit the peak of Denglong today?"
On the big screen, only four faces were left, each accompanied by their respective Martial Arts Academy and school. Ji Xuantong, seeing his own Martial Arts Academy featured on the big screen, couldn’t contain his excitement.
Reaching the top four, he was already more than satisfied.
The other three, all Ninth Rank elites, were indeed tough competitors.
From the stands, Grandmaster Zhou looked at the only Eighth Rank contender among the top four.
"The championship for Ye Chen doesn’t seem so secure."
During the quarterfinal fight, he noticed that Lu Chenzhou bore signs of Cross Training.
And not at the basic level.
Perhaps, that might be enough to compensate for his lower cultivation.
"Interesting, if this young man manages to win the championship, it would probably set off a minor craze for Cross Training... following which, many would fall into this pitfall and then quickly give it up."
As a Grandmaster, he had seen this happen many times.
The semifinal matchups were released.
Ji Xuantong’s expression darkened slightly upon seeing them.
He turned to Lu Chenzhou, who was stepping onto the stage, and said,
"Chenzhou, safety first."
"Rest assured, master."
Lu Chenzhou rarely made such confident remarks.
"Good! Then let’s beat the shit out of him!"
Old Ji was spirited, already fantasizing about the championship.
Such a tone from his disciple meant the match was as good as won.
On the other side, Ye Chen also stepped onto the stage under the eager anticipation of Ye Xiao.
"Brother, it’s all on you!"
Ye Chen couldn’t be bothered with his brother and strode away. Updates are released by novｅlfire.net
From what he had seen of Lu Chenzhou’s performance, he was no match.
This heavyweight match directly set Denglong Hall ablaze with passion.
"Yong Chun Ye Chen, currently the top in popularity by a wide margin! Elephant Form Lu Chenzhou, the equally brilliant dark horse, such a clash of titans really pumps up the blood!"
Countless eyes focused on the ring.
Ye Chen was an overwhelming force.
He took his stance and stretched out both hands forward, flipped his palms, left palm and right fist, with the standing palm resembling the moon and the clenched fist like the sun; sun and moon emerging together... symbolizing "Brightness"!
"Su Ye Martial Arts Hall, Yong Chun Ye Chen!"
Lu Chenzhou returned the gesture and set his stance, sealing entrances and circulating Qi around his body, his muscles coiling like a black python. He advanced towards Ye Chen, engaging in a slow exchange.
After observing for a moment, Ye Chen swiftly charged forward, closing the distance. His hands, like phantom shadows, delivered a constant barrage of Sun-shattering Charging Punches, causing the air to crackle and the invisible shock waves, like tidal waves, lifting the dust on the ring with each pulse.
His presence far exceeded that of any other opponent.
"Holy shit, those punches are fast; you really can’t see them clearly."
"You’d need a camera at ten times slow motion to catch that, right?"
"Truly worthy of Ninth Rank, worthy of Yong Chun, too strong!"
"Yong Chun is invincible!"
The Yong Chun enthusiasts in the audience were all shouting.
"Whatever Elephant Form, it doesn’t compare to Yong Chun!"
"Exactly, Tiger Form just sounds fierce."
In Martial Arts competitions, attacking an opponent’s spirit with words is also allowed.
Martial Arts is, after all, the cultivation of both spirit and flesh.
If one’s emotions are easily provoked, it shows their training is lacking.
Lu Chenzhou’s Tiger Form hands flipped and twisted, constantly retreating to defend against Ye Chen’s tempestuous attacks. Ye Chen’s punches were too fast and dense, each one carried elbow Dark Force, not terribly powerful, but in the world of martial arts, speed is key. As soon as the fight began, Lu Chenzhou was on the defensive, but he did not panic. Black Tiger was a Fist Technique for counter-attacking, his body shook and dodged, the Hua Realm continuously neutralizing Ye Chen’s punching force.
"Yin Yang Umbrella Spin?"
Ye Chen’s expression flickered slightly.
"Brother Ye has good Eye Power!"
Lu Chenzhou replied with a light laugh.
His defending right palm suddenly clenched into a Tiger Claw, aiming to lock onto Ye Chen’s left arm. Ye Chen’s left arm suddenly wiggled like willow branches, limp and dodging the Tiger Claw attack.
"Old Willow Accepts Wind Force."
Lu Chenzhou muttered under his breath.
"Ha ha ha, Brother Lu’s Eye Power isn’t bad either."
Ye Chen straightened his left arm, transmitting Hidden Force as he opened his left fist and thrust forward, the palm rotating to face right, wrist of the left palm bending, palm fingers first towards the ground, then suddenly whipping upward towards the sky!
Sun-shattering·Sky-flying Arrow!
The strike was like a taut vine or a straightened whip, with a sky-splitting intensity.
Lu Chenzhou blocked with his lower arm and immediately felt a scorching pain in his limb.
"Such powerful finger techniques... If it weren’t for my Hard Qi Gong for protection, it would indeed be difficult to withstand such blows. Ordinary Eighth Rank couldn’t possibly handle several strikes. Worthy of a regional tournament, truly a den of hidden dragons and crouching tigers. This trip has been truly worthwhile!"