Chapter 38: The First “Come on”
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
“Ring Four, Round Nine. No.419 Hu Zheng, 20, Amateur Sixth Pin versus No.656 Lou Cheng, 18, no rank.”
With the pair-up arrangement coming into his sight, Lou Cheng sent a message to Yan Zheke with delight immediately. “Luckier than yesterday, the opponent is of Amateur Sixth Pin.”
After learning the drawing result that she had been waiting for, Yan Zheke replied an emoji with a proud laughing face. “Look, I bring you better luck!”
“Right! My luck yesterday was bad on account of you being on board and not keeping me company.” Lou Cheng seized the chance to give compliments to her.
“My luck is in the unexpected encounter with Jindan (the Golden Elixir) and the pursuit of you!” He thought to himself.
There were still many competitions in the second round with more than two hundred at total and at least ten fights on each ring in the morning. Even though the total number were halved, the schedule for today’s competitions was also a little bit tight, considering every match between fighters with close strength would take more time after many pure “fanciers” being knocked out yesterday.
Good luck was with Lou Cheng for he came across an opponent of Amateur Sixth Pin in the second round where the majority of the weak had almost been knocked out.
“He-heh.” Yan Zheke replied a smiley with a cheerful heart.
She quickly sent the second message, “Just go to collect the fighter’s information! Do not take enemy lightly as your opponent did yesterday!”
“Yes, Coach Yan!” Lou Cheng sent a modified version of the funny emoji to entertain his girl.
Yan Zheke replied with a serious yet cute emoji, “Good boy. Listen to your coach’s analysis of your opponent later!”
While chatting and joking with Yan Zheke, Lou Cheng got the fighter’s material from the service desk after queueing for a few minutes.
“Hu Zheng, male, twenty years old, high school degree, Yanling local, fitness coach, martial arts training partner, Amateur Sixth Pin…” Lou Cheng found a seat at corner and sent Yan Zheke the detailed information of Hu Zheng, “175 cm in height, 67 kilograms, won Ji Xiaoxing of Amateur Eighth Pin in the knockout.”
Yan Zheke sent an emoji of standing erect in the wind. “The material has been updated with the result of the first round of knockout. There is no way for you to take advantage of your opponent’s underestimation and negligence…”
Since Lou Cheng could see Hu Zheng won Ji Xiaoxing of Amateur Eighth Pin, Hu Zheng could also know Lou Cheng knocked out Liu Yinglong, the big brother of Amateur Fourth Pin from Baiyuan Martial Arts School. Apparently, Hu Zheng would be on full alert to his opponent without any underestimation and negligence today.
“I’m unlikely always to have the good fortune to encounter a conceited and thoughtless opponent. I have confidence in defeating the fighter of Amateur Sixth Pin open and aboveboard.” Lou Cheng answered calmly.
“Yes! That’s the spirit of a warrior.” Yan Zheke sent a touching head sticker. “There are some features in common for such fighters as martial art training partners and fitness coaches. These muscle fighters employ miscellaneous moves in the competition which help them adapt to various types of opponents. On the other hand, they have no specialty in a certain move… I’ll search more information for you…”
“Ha-hah!” Amused by Yan Zheke’s cuteness, Lou Cheng answered with a pretended serious face. “How professional Coach Yan is!”
Time flew by while watching competitions and chatting with Yan Zheke. Most rings had ushered the sixth pair of fighters. “It has been the sixth fight. I feel a little nervous now.”
“Moderate tension is a good thing.” Yan Zheke tried to make Lou Cheng relaxed. “Then you’d better stop chatting and do some preparations. Fix your attention, calm your nerves, try to adjust your state and reflect on your moves.
“Got it,” said Lou Cheng.
A message from Yan Zheke came to his sight when Lou Cheng was about to sign out QQ to save power.
“Cheng, wait for a moment. The last word for you!”
Followed this message was a voice one.
Clicking on it with curiosity, Yan Zheke’s soft and clear voice rang into Lou Cheng’s ears.
“Lou Cheng! Lou Cheng! Lou Cheng! Come on!”
Ecstasy abruptly hit Lou Cheng with brilliant fireworks blossoming in his heart.
The first “come on” for his ring journey!
Well over with joy, Lou Cheng replied unconsciously,
“I’ll go all out!”
Yan Zheke sent back an encouraging fist emoji without a word.
The motivated young man clenched his fist heavily in the corner as if he had won all challenge tournaments. He favorited this voice message with solemnity and played it over and over again by his ears.
With surging courage in heart, he signed out QQ, left his seat, and stroke to the fourth ring full of strength.
…
“The fourth ring…” the middle-aged man in the leather jacket came near to the fourth ring, holding the VS list and some material of over a dozen of fighters whom he had some interest in.
He found a most suitable seat to watch the fight, waiting for the dark horse who won Liu Yinglong to show up.
Five or six rows away from him was Yu Haichao the master of Baiyuan Martial Arts School, who sit upright and quietly with his eyes glancing at the screen of competition information.
Beside Yu Haichao were his knocked-out disciples in dead silence.
Because Qin Zhilin’s competition was arranged in the afternoon, he also came with schoolmates to see the undergraduate from Songcheng University who hurt and knocked out their big brother.
In the silence out of tune with the noisy gymnasium, Liu Yinglong suddenly raised his right hand.
“He is coming!”
Following the direction Liu Yinglong pointed to, Qin Zhilin saw a student-like young man in dark blue martial arts suit coming over,eighteen or nineteen years of age,of medium height, with short hair and a common face, leaving people with a gentle and composed impression.
“Perfect meditation and peace in the heart.” A low, familiar voice came to Qin Zhilin’s ear. He subconsciously took a look following the voice, realizing it was his master who had been keeping silent since entering the gymnasium. Yu Haichao, a martial art expert of Professional Fifth Pin, had participated in the competition of the second league. He started Baiyuan Martial Arts School in Yanling when getting aged after declining the invitation from the police force.
“Perfect meditation?” Qin Zhilin heard a deep breath from his brothers and himself.
Even the mighty ones of Danqi stage dare not declare themselves to be perfect meditation!
Yu Haichao stood up with his hands down to the knee. “This judgment is based on my encounters with many fighters of perfect meditation. Of course, there is no need for you to envy their genius, for your physique is also different from ordinary people.”
“The little brother has entered a perfect stage with a talent for meditation. Great chance for him to reach the Danqi stage in the future.”
Perfect meditation was not equal to absolute strength, which just meant less difficulty he’d experience to achieve Danqi stage.
Liu Yinglong turned his eyes to Lou Cheng again, realizing he still made nothing of his opponent. Every encounter with Lou Cheng brought a surprise or even shock beyond imagination to Liu Yinglong.
“Which level do you think he is of?” asked Qin Zhilin subconsciously.
Yu Haichao shook his head.
“How can this be seen directly? Watch the fight. ”
People from Baiyuan Martial Arts School fell into silence once again.
…
Lou Cheng managed to calm down his rolling power and excitement a little bit until the end of the seventh fight in the fourth ring.
He concentrated his thoughts and started to reflect on his opponent when the eighth fight was going on.
“Hu Zheng definitely would analyze my fight features in the light of my performance in the first round of knockout. Liu Yinglong is known for his Arm Boxing, specialized in flexible and swift footwork. So it makes sense for him to conclude my specialty in dealing with flexible and guerrilla hit…”
“Facing me who won Liu Yinglong, Hu Zheng is supposed to fight with great caution and avoid flexible or guerrilla hit as long as he is not playing weak or has participated in the Ranking Event in the past one or two years…Huh? Can I take advantage of this?”
With many thoughts flashing and fight scenes staging in his mind, Lou Cheng finally freeze-framed the competition between Ye Youting and Guan Yan.
“Hu Zheng will surely give weight to his defense at the beginning… Um, I can attempt beating him with my utmost strength ignoring follow-up burst moves.”
On careful comparison, Lou Cheng had confidence in winning Hu Zheng with strength. At this moment, Lou Cheng desired a carefree fight without considering whether Hu Zheng was playing weak or not.
Lou Cheng relaxed his nerves and started to watch the fight after making the decision.
The eighth fight came to an end ten minutes later. The referee announced the beginning of the ninth fight after taking a breath and some adjustment.
Lou Cheng VS Hu Zheng!
After handing in belongings and jacket, Lou Cheng stepped into the ring with the checked number card. Before him was strongly-built Hu Zheng in a karate-like suit.
The middle-aged man in leather jacket sat up straight, staring at Lou Cheng,
“A student he is! Do wonder his actual strength and specialty who beat Liu Yinglong…”
Yu Haichao, Liu Yinglong, Qin Zhilin and other disciples of Baiyuan Martial Arts School also turned their eyes and paid all attention to the ring where Lou Cheng was.
There was no need to make much ado about contemplation from the audience in the match. Vaguely sensing the atmosphere, Lou Cheng became more inspired with enthusiasm.
He had his audience in this match!
Looking at student-like Lou Cheng, Hu Zheng was weighed down with anxiety. He had been fully aware of that he would fight with a formidable enemy after receiving the opponent’s material.
Baiyuan Martial Arts School was celebrated in Yanling. Hu Zheng was keenly aware of the power of Liu Yinglong’s Arm Boxing, which he had long heard of. The young man opposite to him was exactly the one who knocked out Liu Yinglong.
Hoo… He heaved a breath and saluted with a decision made in his mind.
Anti-arm boxing was the only key to victory!
Lou Cheng returned a salute without a word. He prepared himself for meditation, adjusting his muscles little by little and compressing the strength of the whole body.
The bowstring should be pulled to the tightest to make the arrows shoot furthest, and the spring stretched to the extreme to produce most powerful recovery. Likewise, the power should be compressed to the utmost to generate “heaven falling and the earth cracking” as Ye Youting burst out a blow with force of terror.
Lou Cheng conceived a scene of towering snow-capped mountains in his mind with snow falling in a whirl which made it even more majestic. The terror was accumulated for a blow from commanding position.
“The third group of 24 Blizzard Strikes, Mega Avalanche!”
At this time, the referee raised his right hand and abruptly lowered it,
“The ninth. Fight!”
Suddenly, the snow-capped mountain started to quiver with accumulated power about to burst out. Lou Cheng felt that he became taller, overlooking Hu Zheng of similar height with himself. It was a feeling of looking down the passersby from the peak of the snow-capped mountain!
Boom!
In his conceived scene, a lightning hit the summit of the snow-capped mountain in the roaring of thunder, starting a blazing prairie fire. The accumulated snow suddenly collapsed, making a rushing and boiling flow of the snow water!
This was the most horrible blizzard between heaven and earth!
Feeling the rising hot flow from the coccygeal vertebra and ready-to-burst strength compressed in muscles, Lou Cheng took a few steps and clenched his fist at Hu Zheng with the momentum of collapsing masses of snow roaring and crushing.
With his arms raised to defend, Hu Zheng’s sight froze with shock at Lou Cheng who seemed to be a giant, a towering mountain.
In the audience stand, Liu Yinglong got to his feet with a jump.