"People are sparring."
"I know Qin Zheng. Who's Lu Chenzhou?"
"He's the guy who just came three months ago, the one who's supposed to be brave and righteous."
"Oh, him; I saw his video, he's pretty skilled."
"Qin Zheng is probably not his match. That guy trains every day; I see him every time I come. However, Qin Zheng is at a higher rank, so he does have an advantage... I guess it's fifty-fifty."
The other students whispered among themselves.
They didn't know that Lu Chenzhou had already reached Second Rank.
Qin Zheng regretted raising his voice.
He lacked confidence in winning against Lu Chenzhou and was afraid of losing face.
But now that he was on the tiger's back, it was hard to get off; he had to grit his teeth and go on.
"Watch the fist!"
Qin Zheng moved gracefully, like a swallow in flight.
The style of "Swallow Return Fist" focuses on agility and grace, aiming to win with speed and clever moves. Qin Zheng had been practicing it for over two years and had reached a proficient level; it wasn't bad at all.
"Black Tiger Fist" was strong and fierce but not a clumsy fist technique.
A tiger hunting is very agile.
Black Tiger Six Forms·Tiger Shadow in the Forest!
Lu Chenzhou's figure was elusive. He dodged Qin Zheng's straightforward punch in inches, followed by a Black Tiger Heart Pluck that aimed directly at Qin Zheng's left chest, just like a black tiger hunting for the heart.
But then, Qin Zheng made a strange step back and dodged Lu Chenzhou's punch, then he stomped with his right foot, agile like a swallow in the sky snapping at insects.
Swallow Return Nine Forms·Yan Return!
"Not bad!"
Lu Chenzhou sincerely praised. He hadn't practiced it, but he knew that Yan Return was one of the more difficult moves to master in the "Swallow Return Fist," and it was also a core technique!
The retreating Qin Zheng thrust two fingers like blades toward Lu Chenzhou's Dantian. As the saying goes, "A thousand punches are not as good as one stab, a thousand slaps are not as good as one finger." When launching an attack, a point is more damaging than a surface, and fingers can cause more harm than the palm of the hand.
Better to endure a thousand slaps than one finger jab!
In plain words, "Poke him to death!"
But, the premise is that the fingers must be trained as tough as iron nails.
Otherwise, it's definitely not as effective as a normal fist.
Clearly, Qin Zheng's wasn't effective. His "Flying Swallow Pecking Mosquito" had no effect, as Lu Chenzhou's core tightened, abdominal muscles layered like scales while he chopped down with a palm!
"Ouch."
Qin Zheng winced in pain, subconsciously shaking his palm. Lu Chenzhou took the opportunity to unleash a "Black Tiger Tail," his right leg shooting out in a whipping kick; it was then that Qin Zheng managed to block with both arms.
Bang.
He was forced to retreat several steps vehemently.
Lu Chenzhou with "Black Tiger Pounce," seized the chance to press on, leaped forward in several bounding steps to Qin Zheng's face, and combined lateral hooks with whipping kicks; Qin Zheng was utterly unable to defend.
"I lose."
Qin Zheng hurriedly declared.
Lu Chenzhou didn't use full strength, and he had a hard time defending.
His rhythm had been disrupted by Lu Chenzhou's move, and his mindset wasn't right either; he failed to quickly return to the rhythm, and then he was completely disorganized.
How could he fight like that?
Lu Chenzhou said,
"I accept your concession."
Honestly, considering Qin Zheng's level of effort, his skill was commendable, showing that his comprehension was decent, but he was just too inexperienced and lacked sparring experience.
Not like Lu Chenzhou, who had been trained early by Shi Ruyu.
Qin Zheng felt somewhat discouraged,
"Without hard work, it's really not possible."
"Just practice more to get the hang of it."
Lu Chenzhou comforted the newbie club president.
The onlookers withdrew their attention. Some who originally thought Qin Zheng would win were a little surprised; they hadn't expected Lu Chenzhou, who'd been here only three months, to be so formidable.
It seemed that practicing with the teacher indeed had its benefits.
"Lu Chenzhou, right? My name is Du, and my Qi-Blood is at Third Rank. Would you like to spar with me?" A young man about one meter seventy-eight walked over and asked with a smile.
Lu Chenzhou also wanted to try out the gap between himself and Third Rank.
"Sure."
Du said,
"Junior brother, you should wear some protective gear, after all, I am one rank higher than you, and I'm afraid I might hurt you accidentally. Oh, I also practice 'Swallow Return Fist' and am a senior in high school."
Lu Chenzhou put on the protective gear, considering his own safety.
"I use Black Tiger Fist. Please enlighten me, senior brother."
Now the training field got even livelier.
No one expected Lu Chenzhou would dare to challenge a Third Rank.
For each rank higher, the Qi-Blood is 1.2 times greater!
The gap is not small!
"Who do you think will win?"
"Do we even need to guess? It's obviously Du."
"Du is no Qin Zheng."
"But I feel like Lu Chenzhou didn't give his all just now."
Everyone eagerly awaited the match.
All Qin Zheng could feel was admiration for Lu Chenzhou!
"Chenzhou, if you win, I'll let you be the president of the Martial Arts Society!"
So badass, brother, daring to spar with Du.
Du, that guy, is also a boxing maniac.
Saying he is a leading figure among young students of the Martial Arts Academy isn't an exaggeration.
Martial Arts Room.
Ji Xuantong had no class and sat upright before a tea table, watching the training room through the monitor.
"Qin Zheng, this dummy, he doesn't remember a thing I teach him! Who loosens their defense because of pain during a match? Lu Chenzhou not using Perfect Level Basic Boxing already gave him too much advantage. But the fight with Du seems more interesting. I hope Du puts up a good fight, otherwise it'll make my 'Swallow Return Fist' seem weaker than 'Black Tiger Fist.'"
Outside.
After Lu Chenzhou regulated his breath.
"Let's begin, senior brother."
Du said,
"Alright! Be careful, junior brother, I strike hard. Don't tough it out if you can't handle it; I'll stop right away. Let's limit our sparring to points!"
He threw the first punch.
Using the same Swallow Return Fist, he was much stronger than Qin Zheng, nearly reaching Small Success, and he even planned to take the special admissions exam for Pingjiang Martial Arts University this year.
Swallow Return Seven Forms·Flying Swallow Chain!
Du feinted with several fake punches, attacking from multiple directions. Lu Chenzhou's expression turned serious as he stood three feet away, using unchanging defense for all variations, readying his Black Tiger Fist to strike.
Bang!
He moved swiftly, exchanging punches with Du.
His punch shifted into a palm, grasping Du's wrist fluently, and another hand intercepted Du's momentum, sinking his elbow heavily, followed by a move "Black Tiger Hugging Tree"!
Lu Chenzhou let out a shout, bolstering his presence.
Compared to Qin Zheng, Du had higher Qi-Blood and all-around stronger attributes. In a head-on exchange of punches, Lu Chenzhou definitely wouldn't surpass the other party, so he had to try to utilize finesse. Du became unsteady, and as Lu Chenzhou threw him to the ground, he violently kicked the floor and sprung upright.
"Not bad, junior brother."
He realized that Swallow was inferior to Black Tiger in close combat, so he quickly changed his tactics, maintaining distance and waiting for an opportunity with the agile advantage of Swallow Return Fist.
Du was stronger than Qin Zheng in this aspect.
Lu Chenzhou no longer limited himself to Black Tiger Boxing alone but integrated Basic Boxing into his style; otherwise, he certainly wouldn't stand a chance against Du, who was one rank higher.
He still wanted to test the limits of his own strength.
The ensuing fight was incredibly intense.
Du was shocked to find that this junior brother seemed to have perfected his Basic Boxing. Du was also hardworking and diligent, yet he was still a bit shy of reaching Perfection.
After an intense scuffle that lasted ten minutes, with both rapidly depleting their stamina, it seemed like a draw to the spectators. Lu Chenzhou knew that with Du's advantage in Qi-Blood, a war of attrition would mean a sure win for Du, so he eventually stopped and conceded with a fist salute,
"Senior brother is formidable; I am not your match."
Having tested his own limits, Lu Chenzhou didn't stubbornly resist.
It was alright to admit defeat when bested by a higher rank.
Their fist techniques were also equally matched.
One reached Perfection in Basic Boxing, the other approached Small Success with Swallow Return Fist.
In terms of practical combat skills, Du was not lacking either.
"Brilliant! Junior brother Lu lost with honor, and senior brother Du was also very impressive."
A clear voice came through, it was Shi Ru Yu.