Chapter 11: Di Xuanluo

The contestant who finished the elimination matches the fastest was the very famous Di Xuanluo of this graduating class, a gifted young man who could defeat a fourth-level apprentice martial artist as a third-level apprentice.

Some groups had only completed one elimination match. Given the pace, it would be good if all the group elimination matches could be finished today.

“Yang Tong, you are free to move around now. However, you cannot go home for the time being. When the schedule progresses further, we will notify you of the Grand Final Tournament list,” the head judge in charge of this group said to Yang Tong. “But, I do suggest you walk around and observe your opponents. Watch and learn. I see potential in you.”

“Thank you, Teacher,” Yang Tong thanked him.

The people here soon dispersed. Feng Xiaobo, who knew Yang Tong best, came over and said, “Since we can’t go home, let’s go together to learn about your opponents.”

“Alright,” Yang Tong nodded. He also knew that Feng Xiaobo was well-informed and socially adept, completely different from himself.

Just then, a group of people walked out from the crowd. Leading them was a young man about Yang Tong’s build. Behind him followed two others, walking with a confident, imposing stride.

The young man stopped about three meters in front of Yang Tong and looked him up and down.

“Your strength is impressive. I am pleased,” the young man declared in a precocious tone. “I am Di Xuanluo. I hope we meet in the competition.” His face was full of arrogance.

“Hello. I’ve long heard of your name. I will do my best,” Yang Tong replied calmly.

“Hmm,” Di Xuanluo said, then turned and waved his hand. His followers did not say a word. They just gave Yang Tong a brief, indifferent glance before turning and leaving with him.

Among the crowd, some meddlesome or excitement-loving youngsters began to chatter.

“Yang Tong actually gained Di Xuanluo’s recognition? He must be really strong then. Why haven’t we heard his name before?” Many people didn’t know Yang Tong because he kept such a low profile.

“Yang Tong? I know him. He’s from our Class Five. His grades are always near the top in our class. He studies very hard,” this Class Five student began to boast…

Feng Xiaobo whispered to Yang Tong, “You’ve caught Di Xuanluo’s eye.”

“So what?” Yang Tong didn’t care about that, or even about the people around him looking at him with strange gazes.

“Di Xuanluo is a martial arts fanatic. He loves fighting strong opponents. He has defeated many talented fighters. I heard that to challenge the top fighter of the same grade in the Northeast Academy, he actually camped outside their classroom for three days. He came back after a crushing defeat. After that, he went to block their classroom every month for three months until he finally won. This guy is like a sticky plaster; once he sticks to you, it’s trouble to get him off,” Feng Xiaobo spoke at length. “I bet that if you don’t run into him during this Grand Final Tournament, he will seek you out alone for a duel afterwards.”

Yang Tong shook his head speechlessly. It was indeed a nuisance. However, this wasn’t entirely unexpected for Yang Tong. Youthful arrogance, who hadn’t experienced that? It was just that he himself was past that stage. Although his physical age was only twelve, his mental age…

The Way of Taiji emphasized inner peace and calmness, valuing intention over brute force. Yang Tong was somewhat a student of the Dao. Influenced by the Daoist principle of non-action, he had long passed the stage of being fiercely competitive.

As for this competition, if it were in the past, reaching this point would be enough to step back. However, for the prize, he had to fight for it, as it concerned his own interests.

“It’s not just him. The two followers with him are not to be trifled with either. I fought that tall, skinny guy called Ma Jiao and lost miserably. His defensive techniques are extremely strong. It seems he has specifically trained in a defensive art,” Feng Xiaobo continued. “The other one is called Niu Yue. He’s no good either, stronger than Ma Jiao. I heard their fathers are subordinates of Di Xuanluo’s father. They’ve been following Di Xuanluo around like attendants since they were kids.”

Di Xuanluo walked around the various stages of the competition grounds with his two followers. Wherever they went, those who knew them and those who didn’t would automatically make way.

“Big Brother, what’s so great about that kid? You actually want to challenge him?”

“Yeah, I took a look. Just him? What kind of strength does he have?”

“Ma Jiao, Niu Yue, you’re underestimating him. His fist technique is extremely refined. There’s always a mysterious, hard-to-pin-down feeling and an indescribable harmony to it,” Di Xuanluo refuted seriously.

Di Xuanluo had finished his group elimination matches very early, just in time to catch Yang Tong’s final stage elimination match. After seeing the Taiji Fist Yang Tong used, he was somewhat incredulous.

“That slow, plodding fist technique? I think his opponent was just too weak,” the youth named Niu Yue said disdainfully.

“Yeah, Big Brother, who are you? You’re the top fighter of the sixth grade in the East District!” Ma Jiao flattered him.

Di Xuanluo nodded, not saying much more. He too had his own pride and confidence.

The entire group elimination matches took a full day to finish completely. A total of sixteen people were selected to advance to the Grand Final Tournament.

These sixteen were: from Class One, Yan Xiaodong; from Class Two, Li Zicheng; from Class Three, Long De; from Class Four, Xiao Jian and Qin Tianyue; from Class Five, Yang Tong and Ge Yunfei; from Class Six, Feng Jun; from Class Seven, Di Xuanluo, Ma Jiao, and Niu Yue; from Class Eight, Zheng Meimei; from Class Nine, Jiang Yifeng and Lu Guang; from Class Ten, Bei Kensong.

Clearly, the grouping for this competition had separated the top fighters from each class. All ten classes had someone enter the Grand Final Tournament. In terms of numbers, Class Seven was indeed the strongest class.

Among the sixteen, there were even two girls: Qin Tianyue and Zheng Meimei.

Not long after, the school announced the elimination bracket for tomorrow’s Grand Final Tournament.

Feng Xiaobo insisted on pulling Yang Tong to look at the bracket. As they walked, he said, “The boys of Class Eight have become the joke of the entire grade now. Not a single guy made it into the Grand Final Tournament. So embarrassing. Hahaha…”

“Gender equality, my friend. No need to gloat so much,” Yang Tong said, shaking his head.

“Hey, your opponent is actually Qin Tianyue from Class Four. Pretty lucky draw, getting one of the two girls right away. Good thing it’s not Zheng Meimei, or you’d be in trouble,” Feng Xiaobo chuckled.

“What? Is Zheng Meimei very strong?” Yang Tong asked curiously.

“That one over there is Zheng Meimei. See for yourself,” Feng Xiaobo said, pointing to the left and lowering his voice.