High Martial Arts: Enlightenment after Practices

Chapter 51: Chapter 51: The Second Day of the Candidate Battles

The first day of the joint exam’s combat portion officially came to a close, and Honghe First Middle School’s overall performance was impressive.

Aside from Xu Wuyi decisively defeating Zhao Ding to secure a high score of 85.5, the other students also had their own victories.

Liu Jing relied on her nimble Body Technique to maneuver around her opponent for several minutes before finally seizing an opportunity to win with a single strike, earning her a respectable score of 75.

But the biggest surprise was Zeng Bonan.

His opponent was a top student from United Middle School with a Life Energy Level of 11.3, whose strength was not to be underestimated.

But Zeng Bonan played to his strengths—a solid foundation and steady defense—to perfection.

Throughout the entire battle, he was like a boulder. He let his opponent launch a frenzied barrage, yet his footwork remained flawless and his Qi and Blood circulated smoothly.

The moment his opponent’s Qi and Blood and composure wavered after a prolonged, unsuccessful assault, Zeng Bonan threw a single, precise, and concentrated straight punch. It broke directly through his opponent’s defense, struck a vital point on his chest, and ended the fight cleanly.

[Honghe First Middle School, Zeng Bonan, Rating: B-level, Match Score: 79.5!]

”Excellent!”

Seeing this score, even their teacher, Wang Wenhai, couldn’t help but exclaim his approval from the sidelines.

A score of 79.5 was extremely close to the 80-point minimum for an A-level rating, making it a top score in the B-level bracket.

This showed that Zeng Bonan’s performance had earned the recognition of the Intelligent Brain System.

Zeng Bonan let out a long sigh of relief and calmly walked off the stage. He was met by the admiring gazes of his classmates, but his eyes sought out Xu Wuyi, and he gave him a nod.

This was because his fighting style this time was, in fact, an imitation of Xu Wuyi’s: defend, counter, and deliver a single, fatal blow.

The only difference was that although he wasn’t too far behind in his Body Refining Technique, he didn’t have a powerful Spear Technique to rely on, so it was difficult for him to fight against someone of Li Mo’s caliber.

After the first day’s battles, the rankings on the score screen appeared. Su Yueling and Li Mo were temporarily in the top two, with Xu Wuyi close behind.

However, this was only the first day. The real competition was yet to come.

...

「The next morning.」

The Martial Arts Center Dojo was once again buzzing with activity. After a night of rest and emergency medical treatment, most of the students had recovered considerably.

Li Mo flexed his brawny arms, that familiar, slightly simple-looking smile returning to his face.

His sister, Li Shuang, had used some unknown medicine to mostly heal his wounds. While he might not be at one hundred percent, it at least wouldn’t stop him from unleashing his full power.

Hu Haobo, on the other hand, was in worse shape. His arms were still wrapped in special bandages to stabilize and help heal his fractured bones, and his face was a little pale.

The Federation’s medical technology was remarkably effective, but to fully recover from bone fractures in one night was obviously impossible.

His spiritual state wasn’t perfect either. The ferocity in his eyes from the day before was gone, replaced by a sober intensity.

The match-up list quickly refreshed on the large screen.

The first feature match immediately caught everyone’s attention—[Silver Port First High School, Li Mo vs. United Middle School, Zhao Ding!]

One had been defeated by a bizarre Hidden Force, the other had been neutralized by an elusive Body Technique. Both of them were nursing a simmering rage.

Now, facing each other, it was a classic case of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object.

Zhao Ding walked onto the stage, his expression grim. He was well aware of how terrifying Li Mo was and didn’t dare to be the slightest bit careless.

He activated his Iron Wall Technique to its fullest. Beneath his bronze-colored skin, his Qi and Blood seemed to surge, emitting a steady and formidable aura.

Li Mo’s approach was much simpler. He grinned, revealing his bone-white teeth.

”Begin!”

As soon as the referee’s voice fell, Li Mo shot forward like a tiger released from its cage, roaring as he charged at Zhao Ding!

He didn’t bother with any probing attacks, going all out from the very beginning. His massive fist created a sonic boom as it tore through the air, crashing down on his opponent!

Zhao Ding gave a low shout, crossed his arms, concentrated his Qi and Blood to a single point, and took the punch head-on.

BOOM!

A huge sound like the beat of a war drum echoed throughout the dojo!

Zhao Ding’s body shuddered violently. He staggered back three steps—THUMP, THUMP, THUMP—each one leaving a deep imprint on the specially made stage. A wave of aching numbness shot through his crossed arms.

’What terrifying power!’

He was horrified. Li Mo’s power was even more ferocious than he had imagined!

The Iron Wall Technique was certainly powerful, able to greatly enhance his surface defense, but it was not completely without flaws.

For example, he had just reached Minor Achievement and hadn’t had time to strengthen his internal organs yet. Yesterday, Xu Wuyi had exploited this very weakness, using a Hidden Force to obstruct his Qi and Blood circulation.

Today, however, Li Mo demonstrated another way to fight—

If his power was great enough, he could dislocate Zhao Ding’s internal organs with sheer concussive force!

Refusing to give up his advantage, Li Mo’s massive frame displayed a surprising agility. He stuck to Zhao Ding like a shadow, his fists like two heavy hammers, raining down blows from left and right in a relentless storm.

BANG! BANG! BANG! BOOM!

The sickening thuds of flesh-on-flesh impact echoed endlessly.

Zhao Ding pushed his Iron Wall Technique to the absolute limit. He was like a great iron ingot, desperately holding on.

If he were truly made of iron, it would have been one thing. But alas, only his skin was like iron; his insides were still made of mortal flesh and blood.

He tried to find a chance to counterattack, but Li Mo’s assault was too fierce, too dense, giving him no room to breathe, let alone mobilize his Qi and Blood to find an opening.

Under the overwhelming pressure of absolute power and speed, his meager Martial Arts skills seemed pathetic and useless.

He was like a living punching bag, mercilessly bombarded by Li Mo’s unrestrained assault.

His Protective Qi and Blood wavered violently under the repeated heavy blows. His face went from bronze to a flushed red, then gradually turned pale.

”PWAH!”

Finally, after taking dozens of heavy punches from Li Mo, Zhao Ding could no longer suppress his churning Qi and Blood. He spat out a mouthful of blood as his Protective Qi and Blood instantly collapsed.

A vicious glint flashed in Li Mo’s eyes, and he mercilessly threw a final punch, aiming straight for Zhao Ding’s wide-open chest.

”Stop! Li Mo wins!”

The supervising teacher intervened just in time, stopping the punch.

Zhao Ding’s body went limp and he collapsed to the ground, his eyes filled with a trace of despair.

In the face of Li Mo’s pure, crushing power, the defense he had been so proud of seemed utterly laughable.

[Li Mo, Victor! Match Score: 86! Zhao Ding, Match Score: 80.5!]

Li Mo shook his fist, quite satisfied with this score. Although it wasn’t as good as yesterday’s, it was a little higher than Xu Wuyi’s.

This proved that, at least when it came to beating up Zhao Ding, he was stronger than Xu Wuyi!

He didn’t even glance at the collapsed Zhao Ding as he walked straight off the stage.

...

The next match, however, was a cruel twist of fate.

[Honghe First Middle School, Zeng Bonan vs. Honghe First Middle School, Hu Haobo!]

An internal match.

The two exchanged a look, and both could see the complex emotions in the other’s eyes.

Hu Haobo took a deep breath, enduring the dull pain in his arms as he walked onto the stage. He knew his condition was poor, but a Martial Artist’s dignity would not allow him to back down.

Zeng Bonan’s expression was calm. He was very familiar with Hu Haobo’s fierce Palm Technique and was well aware of his opponent’s current state.

”Begin!”

Hu Haobo forced his Qi and Blood to surge and attacked first. His left palm, carrying the last vestiges of its power, swung toward Zeng Bonan.

He was trying to end the fight quickly to avoid a prolonged battle aggravating his injuries.