I Level Up By Making Enemies

The second platform felt larger once Lin Feng stepped onto it. The noise of the plaza pressed in from all sides, but the space between him and his opponent was strangely clear. Pan Qing already stood at the far end with neat robes and a straight posture. Unlike Huang Fei, he did not immediately start talking. He simply watched Lin Feng climb the steps.

Around the platform, more disciples had gathered than during the first match. Word had moved quickly. The troublemaker under observation had won once. Now he was facing someone with an actual reputation.

Lu Cang’s anxious face flashed briefly in the crowd before disappearing behind taller disciples.

An Enforcement disciple raised his hand between them.

”Lin Feng of Block C versus Pan Qing of Block A. No killing. No intentional crippling. Begin on my signal.”

Pan Qing finally spoke.

”I don’t like people who rely on tricks and noise. This match will be short.”

Lin Feng tilted his head slightly.

”That’s fine.”

The Enforcement disciple’s hand cut down.

”Begin!”

Pan Qing moved first.

There was no wild charge. His steps were measured, and the qi around his right arm gathered cleanly before he struck. The punch itself was straightforward, but the control behind it was solid.

Lin Feng activated Fleet Footed Coward Dash at once.His body lightened, and he slid off the line of force by a narrow margin. The punch passed close enough that the air pressure brushed his shoulder. Pan Qing immediately followed, shifting his stance and sending a second strike toward Lin Feng’s ribs, then a low sweep aimed at his legs. The combinations were tight. No obvious openings.

Lin Feng gave ground, using short bursts of the dash skill to keep from being cornered. Each near miss drew low murmurs from the crowd.

”Pan Qing’s basics are clean.”

”He’s not Huang Fei.”

”Lin Feng is only dodging.”

Pan Qing pressed harder. His attacks remained controlled, but the pace increased. Lin Feng blocked one strike with his forearm and felt numbness race up to his shoulder. He clicked his tongue internally. Pure hard defense would get him beaten down. So he changed methods.

As he slipped past another palm strike, he activated the Thin Face Amulet. The cool sensation spread across his skin, sharpening the edge of his next words.

”No wonder you hang around the class monitor circle,” Lin Feng said clearly enough for the front rows to hear. ”Your punches look almost good enough to take you seriously. Almost...

Pan Qing’s next step faltered by half an inch. It was small, but Lin Feng saw it.

”Hey now, I’m helping the audience understand your style,” Lin Feng replied, circling to the side. ”Stable and very concerned with looking better than the opponent.”

Several disciples in the crowd reacted at once. A few from Block A looked offended. Others suppressed short laughs. Pan Qing’s jaw tightened, and the clean rhythm of his attacks shifted. He closed in faster.

Lin Feng was forced to the edge of the platform under a sudden flurry of blows. One strike clipped his upper arm hard enough to sting. Another brushed his side. For a moment it looked like Pan Qing would simply shove him out through superior pressure. Then Pan Qing overcommitted.

Anger made the final palm heavier than necessary, the shoulder turning too far, the recovery half a breath slower than before. Lin Feng’s eyes sharpened. Fleet Footed Coward Dash flared under his feet again. Instead of retreating, he slid inward under the attack, close enough that Pan Qing’s extended arm became a liability.

Lin Feng hooked that arm, drove his weight forward, and slammed his shoulder into Pan Qing’s chest while kicking the inside of his front foot.

Pan Qing’s balance broke. His rear foot scraped the platform, found only the edge, and then there was nothing under it. Lin Feng gave one last shove. Pan Qing toppled off the platform and hit the ground outside with a heavy, humiliating thud.

For a short moment, the area around the second platform went quiet.

Then the Enforcement disciple’s voice rose.

”Winner: Lin Feng!”

The plaza reacted harder than it had for Huang Fei.

”He won again?”

”Against Pan Qing?”

”He’s shameless. But it worked.”

Pan Qing pushed himself up from the ground, face dark with shock and fury. His neat robes were scuffed, and the composure he had carried onto the platform was gone. He glared up at Lin Feng as if he could knock him down by eyesight alone.

Lin Feng stood at the edge of the platform and looked down at him. For a second, his fingers brushed the Echo Mockery Bell in his sleeve. Then he let it go. Pan Qing already looked angry enough. There was no need to waste the tool.

He stepped down calmly.

[ Pan Qing’s pride has been heavily damaged ]

[ Rage Value +210 ]

[ Current Rage Points: 1,349 ]

[ Milestone Progress: 8/10 ]

Lu Cang shoved through the nearby disciples and grabbed Lin Feng’s sleeve with both hands.

”You won. You actually won again.”

Across the platform area, Block A disciples were already gathering around Pan Qing with ugly expressions. Further away, Zhou Ming’s gaze had turned colder. On the far side of the plaza, Zhao Feng watched the result without moving.

Lin Feng felt the weight of more eyes on him than before. He have their undivided attention now if he hadn’t it before. An Enforcement disciple updated the bracket board. Lin Feng’s position advanced again, deeper into a section that looked much less comfortable than the opening rounds. Somewhere further along that same path, stronger names waited. Including Zhao Feng.

Lin Feng glanced once at the board, then at the crowd still buzzing over the result, and his smile widened by a fraction.Good. Let them watch.