Chapter 53: The Attack
Chapter 53: The Attack
“Brother Zuo, have at you!”
Chang Qi executed a move called “Black Tiger Steals the Heart”, and clawed straight towards Zuo Zhicheng’s chest.
Facing these “slow” and “soft” tiger claws, Zuo Zhicheng thought for a moment, and then directly used a defensive posture to block the opponent’s tiger claws.
Although Chang Qi was an ordinary person who lacked the Innate Primordial Breath, he had practiced martial arts for several years and had good physical ability and fighting proficiency. It was seen that Zuo Zhicheng was “barely” resisting under his attacks, and in an instant, he took several punches.
Xiao Changhe, standing behind the crowd, showed a smile on his face when he saw this. The opponent was indeed as “weak” as he had seen last time.
Standing beside him, Zhou Xingyun showed a disapproving look: “Brother Xiao, is it necessary to go this far against such a poor boy?”
“It’s just to expose his true level. He only has himself to blame for being so shallow.”
The people around also showed contempt or puzzled expressions. In their view, it seemed none of them expected that the so-called personal disciple of Master Jiang could be so ordinary, or rather, weak.
Just as Chang Qi was getting more and more into the flow, pressing Zuo Zhicheng with a series of punches like a storm, he unconsciously gave up defense and exposed his own openings.
Then, they heard Zuo Zhicheng let out a suppressed “roar”, and then charged forward recklessly.
Chang Qi, on the other side, was taken aback when he saw Zuo Zhicheng take several punches just to attack him. Wasn’t this kid focused on defense earlier? Why did he suddenly explode?
The Sumeru Long Fist moves Zuo Zhicheng executed were also different from the standard ones, slightly altered, but they happened to hit Chang Qi’s chest. Chang Qi felt a suffocating pain in his chest and a great force pushing him. He staggered back several steps and fell to the ground on his bottom. When he realized what happened, his face was full of shame and anger.
Zuo Zhicheng raised his head and waved his hand: “Brother Chang, I concede.”
Everyone around stared dumbfounded at Zuo Zhicheng, not expecting the spar to end this way. Xiao Changhe, hiding behind the crowd, also showed a flash of surprise on his face.
According to his plan, Chang Qi was supposed to beat up Zuo Zhicheng, revealing that he was not a personal disciple but merely a laborer.
Who would have thought that the opponent actually won, and in this manner.
Zhou Xingyun beside him chuckled a few times: “Looks like this kid has some talent.”
“Just lucky,” Xiao Changhe said with a frown.
On the other side.
“What was that? Chang Qi lost just like that?”
“Must be a coincidence, but that Zuo Zhicheng has quite some strength.”
“Is Zuo Zhicheng really Master Jiang’s personal disciple? It doesn’t seem like he learned much.”
The silence lasted only a moment. Looking at the outcome on the field, everyone started buzzing with discussion again. Just then, Jiang Qing rushed over, touched Zuo Zhicheng’s head, and asked worriedly, “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”
“I’m fine.”
Jiang Qing looked around and frowned: “What are you all doing? Zuo Zhicheng is my father’s personal disciple. My father has already taught him the entire Heavenly Gate Fist.”
Behind the crowd, Xiao Changhe’s face showed surprise again. He never expected Jiang Qing to defend Zuo Zhicheng like this. He didn’t know that although Zuo Zhicheng and Jiang Tianzheng didn’t have the title of master and disciple, they already had the relationship. Besides, Jiang Tianzheng himself didn’t care about such formalities. He also didn’t know that Zuo Zhicheng had made some “progress” these days and was no longer fighting like an ordinary person.
Over there, Jiang Qing continued, “But he has been learning martial arts for less than a month. What do you mean by sparring with him?”
“Junior brother, let’s go.” With a cold snort, Jiang Qing pulled Zuo Zhicheng away, leaving the crowd standing there awkwardly, not knowing what to say.
At this point, someone seemed to have realized something. Wang Qiang, the talented disciple of the Xinlu Boxing Club, was the first to speak: “I understand. Zuo Zhicheng was pretending to be weak on purpose, luring Chang Qi to go all out and expose his flaws. Then, despite taking a few punches, he struck Chang Qi’s vital spot.
Moreover, his Sumeru Long Fist moves weren’t rigid; he adapted flexibly.”
“Exactly, exactly. It seems Zuo Zhicheng hasn’t been learning martial arts for long, but he’s quite clever.”
“He managed to knock down Chang Qi; even if he hit the vital spot, his strength is impressive.”
Several martial artists in the crowd analyzed the sparring with ease. Behind the crowd, Xiao Changhe watched as Jiang Qing held Zuo Zhicheng’s hand with a concerned expression, and his anger grew even more. In his mind, Zuo Zhicheng had become a weakling protected by Jiang Qing, equivalent to a pretty boy relying on a woman. And this pretty boy had actually shown off under his scheme.
“That damn kid. Is Jiang Qing blind?”
Zhou Xingyun also said with some surprise, “Hehe, Brother Xiao, it seems your rival in love has some skills.”
“Hmph,” Xiao Changhe said, “Just wait. In at most a month, I’ll make that girl Jiang Qing devoted to me.”
If he were defeated by a better man, it would be one thing. But according to his investigation, Zuo Zhicheng was just a poor, powerless boy who had just started learning martial arts, yet he managed to get Jiang Qing so concerned. This made Xiao Changhe even more jealous and unable to bear it. With an ugly expression, he walked out of the courtyard, not wanting to see Jiang Qing and Zuo Zhicheng anymore.
On the other side, Jiang Qing held Zuo Zhicheng’s hand. When they were away from the crowd, the anger on her face instantly disappeared. She happily patted Zuo Zhicheng’s shoulder and said, “Not bad, you actually won.”
As she patted his shoulder, she said, “It seems the special training I gave you these past few days has been quite effective. You don’t have much talent when just practicing martial arts, but who knew you’d be so clever in a fight? Not bad, not bad. We’ll continue tomorrow.”
“So you were watching all along, Senior Sister?” Zuo Zhicheng found Jiang Qing’s behavior somewhat amusing. When he wasn’t familiar with her, Jiang Qing acted like an ice beauty. But once you got to know her, you realized she was just a violent woman with a twisted heart.
“Of course, I just wanted you to gain some experience from this real fight. It’s not like it could kill you anyway.” At this point, Jiang Qing pointed at Zuo Zhicheng and said, “Also, I already told everyone in the Xinlu Martial Hall today that you’re my father’s personal disciple. We can use the short time as an excuse for now, but that won’t work later. So starting tomorrow, you’ll double your training. Don’t embarrass me.”
“And Chang Qi is just an amateur. Beating him is nothing to be proud of. Train hard and aim to punch that Xiao Changhe’s face into a panda one day!” As she said this, Jiang Qing waved her fist angrily.
Zuo Zhicheng naturally nodded obediently, thinking this was good. He could gradually reveal his strength in front of everyone, so he could openly use his martial arts and avoid some trouble.
Thinking about trouble, Zuo Zhicheng looked at Jiang Qing’s face as she continued to chatter and remind him to train seriously, and he thought of Xiao Changhe in the crowd earlier. Another small trouble caused by a beauty.
The people in the courtyard soon dispersed, as if the sparring incident had been forgotten. But from time to time, someone would point in Zuo Zhicheng’s direction and whisper something.
Starting from that evening, information about Zuo Zhicheng—Master Jiang’s personal disciple, somewhat clever, and with decent strength—gradually spread in the martial arts circles of Xinlu. It could be considered Zuo Zhicheng’s debut day.
Zuo Zhicheng also took this opportunity to observe the strengths of the various martial artists in the Chaoyang Martial Hall. But after looking, he could only shake his head. Most were ordinary people without the Innate Primordial Breath. A few had the Innate Primordial Breath, but their levels were average. It could be said that even those comparable to Jiang Qing numbered only five or six.
Seeing this, he felt even less optimistic about the plan of uniting the martial halls. No matter how many sheep there are, when united, they are still just sheep.
About two hours later, the secret talks among the more than ten hall masters ended. They came to the courtyard together, as if they wanted to announce something.
Standing at the front were Jiang Tianzheng and Xiao Jingyang. The latter clapped his hands and said, “Everyone, quiet please. We have some things to announce today.”
But before everyone could quiet down for long, a series of charming giggles echoed in the air. Under the moonlight, a fiery, alluring figure stood on the wall, looking down at the people below with disdain: “From today onward, Xinlu Port no longer needs martial halls.”
“Who is that!”
“Audacious! Catch her!”
“It’s Blood Rakshasa!”
Hearing the panicked, excited, or fearful voices around, Blood Rakshasa slowly drew the two soft swords coiled around her waist. With a shake of her arms, the two soft swords, each over three meters long, fluttered like ribbons.
The next moment, the fiery figure shot into the sky and descended into the crowd. Roars, exclamations, and screams erupted continuously. In just a few seconds, the center of the courtyard was covered in a bloody hue.
“Everyone, charge with me!” Xiao Jingyang led the charge: “She’s alone. I don’t believe so many of us can’t handle her.”
“Charge!”
“Capture this demon woman!”
Seeing more than ten renowned martial artists closing in, Blood Rakshasa let out a charming laugh. Her entire body spun rapidly like a top, her twin swords constantly shaking like flowing clouds and sleeves, surging in all directions.
Zuo Zhicheng stared fixedly at the fiery figure and sighed inwardly: “So… it has come.”