But Ji Xinghuo’s combat talent...
Tu Hongda realized something.
Whenever Ji Xinghuo made a mistake, even if he himself didn’t point it out, Ji Xinghuo wouldn’t repeat it; and any counterattack techniques he used, as long as they were used once, it would be challenging to apply them effectively again, as Ji Xinghuo would learn them on the spot and use them against him.
Although it was just a clumsy imitation, not having been trained specially, it still looked quite convincing.
"A genius gifted by heaven!"
"Given time, he will definitely become a Martial Arts master, perhaps even a Grandmaster!"
Although Tu Hongda showed no emotional change on the surface, many ideas had already sprung to his mind, "Such a Martial Arts genius must be recruited into the Extreme Martial Arts Academy, it’d be best if he could apprentice..."
In Martial Arts competition, the most forbidden thing is distraction.
Just as Tu Hongda was about to refocus, a blade light suddenly flashed before his eyes, reacting a split second too late, Ji Xinghuo’s War Blade slashed downward.
Ji Xinghuo withdrew his blade and stepped back, not attacking further.
There was complete silence in the arena, everyone saw the slash on Tu Hongda’s shoulder, the knife mark slanted across his neck, leaving a white mark on it.
If it were an enemy of the same rank fighting seriously, Tu Hongda would have been decapitated.
Tu Hongda’s face turned red, having made such a rookie mistake because he was too excited.
Although it’s inevitable that accidents happen during Martial Arts sparring,
it’s not necessarily the case that a higher-ranked individual will always win against someone of a lower rank. Even masters capsize in the sewer sometimes, but under the scrutiny of an audience, losing to an opponent three ranks lower was really embarrassing.
"Instructor, there’s no need to let me win specifically..."
Ji Xinghuo was a bit puzzled himself, but he wasn’t smug and gave his opponent a way out.
However, Tu Hongda waved his hand to interrupt, admitting, "You don’t need to make excuses for me. I was distracted, and you beat me this time."
The expressions of everyone present were quite spectacular.
A Martial Arts Seventh Dan had actually beaten a Martial Arts master. Although before this, Coach Tu had already won over a hundred times consecutively, one defeat was shocking enough to overshadow all his previous victories.
It is worth mentioning that Coach Tu had never lost to a member before, not even once!
"No one can win forever."
Tu Hongda guessed what everyone was thinking and said solemnly, "I’ve lost many times before, lost to friends, to senior brothers, to fellow instructors, to other Martial Arts masters. But it is these defeats that taught me how to progress and grow, reaching the Martial Arts rank I am at today."
"Losing normally doesn’t matter, what is most important is that in the fights that decide the direction of your life, or even life and death, you must win!"
After saying this, Tu Hongda began to critique Ji Xinghuo’s performance.
He pointed out many of Ji Xinghuo’s deficiencies, where he could improve, including timing of strikes, power techniques, and more.
Ji Xinghuo listened intently.
Chi Zhonglin was also close to a Martial Arts master’s rank, using a long spear too, but his experience was far less rich than Tu Hongda’s, nor did he know how to teach as well.
Not every Martial Arts master is suited to be a teacher, but Tu Hongda was undoubtedly a good one.
Tu Hongda lectured continuously for about fifteen minutes, then arranged for others to take the field.
Ji Xinghuo, while observing the battle, assimilated what he had just learned. After half an hour, it was his turn again.
This time his opponent was no longer Tu Hongda but a member who was also a Martial Arts Seventh Dan.
The spar ended in less than three minutes.
During those three minutes, they clashed seven times, Ji Xinghuo won all seven, his opponent, though uninjured, had his morale completely shattered, prompting Tu Hongda to call a halt.
Another half hour passed.
Ji Xinghuo faced an opponent of Martial Arts Eighth Dan ranking.
They fought five times, Ji Xinghuo won four and lost once.
The only defeat was a victory that his opponent achieved despite getting injured. Ji Xinghuo, apart from not using Myriad Phenomena, had gone all out, but still lost.
The eight hours of practical training ended in the blink of an eye.
Ji Xinghuo fought fifteen rounds, winning more than losing, with an overall win rate of about 65%. Although not the highest in the field, it was still remarkable.
Those with a higher win rate than him were both Martial Arts Ninth Dans.
Ji Xinghuo’s improvement was obvious to all. Tu Hongda had arranged opponents for him, mostly of Martial Arts Eighth or Ninth Dan, and who had abundant practical experience, all of them advanced mutants.
These few were somewhat famous in Olympia, basically all captains of Hunting Teams.
After the training, some people immediately invited Ji Xinghuo to join their teams. They were sorry to find out Ji Xinghuo already had a team, but they still left their names and contact information.
"Five hundred Ya Yuan an hour, well worth it!"
Ji Xinghuo was very satisfied with the outcomes of today’s training; the Extreme Martial Arts Academy truly lived up to its reputation.
After washing up, he was about to leave when a staff member of the Martial Arts Hall, who had been waiting for a while, came over and said softly, "Mr. Xin, Coach Tu invites you to his office."
Ji Xinghuo was not surprised, "Sure, please lead the way."
In the Director’s office, he saw Tu Hongda, who, without preamble, asked, "Liaoyuan, would you like to join the Extreme Martial Arts Academy?"
"Does Coach Tu want me to apprentice?" Ji Xinghuo countered.
The Extreme Martial Arts Academy initially started as a private Martial Arts Hall but quickly evolved into a large company and went public. As it expanded, its scale grew larger and its market value increased, establishing branches in every country worldwide. Now, with tens of thousands of branches of various levels and over a hundred million long-term members,
the academy still retained some of its traditions.