Chapter 158 Don't Push Yourself Too Hard (Third update for monthly votes)
The ones fiercely fighting on the stage were precisely "Black Stone" Zhang Jie and "Young Lu Bu" Lu Fang.
Although Lu Fang had been humiliated by Shi Yan two days ago, he took that disgrace as motivation to fight even harder on the stage. He'd been entangled in a duel with "Black Stone" Zhang Jie for nearly seven minutes.
This also had to do with the martial paths they practiced. Shi Yan's speed was so fast that Lu Fang could hardly react, a feat Zhang Jie couldn't achieve.
However, Zhang Jie's hard-trained dominant physique was extraordinary too, solid enough to clash directly against Lu Fang's pair of fourth-stage short halberds without taking any damage.
Not only were his boxing skills wildly fierce and powerful, but his strength was also astonishing, even surpassing many junior Martial Cultivators.
This "Black Stone" was moving across the ring like an iron fortress, continuously shrinking Lu Fang's maneuvering space.
"It seems it's no good, twenty seconds at most,"
Fei Yunlai crossed his arms over his chest. "However, it's quite impressive; being able to tangle with Zhang Jie for so long already makes him a qualified vanguard candidate."
Lu Fang was fighting smartly. He appeared to be in a dire state, chased all over the ring, but he was constantly using his speed to make consecutive strikes at Zhang Jie, trying to deplete Zhang Jie's True Qi and stamina.
Yu Feicui, however, frowned without relaxation.
Lu Fang was indeed excellent, she hadn't misjudged him, but she had underestimated "Black Stone" Zhang Jie.
The latest intelligence she had collected about Zhang Jie was from a month ago, yet in this past month, Zhang Jie's improvement had far exceeded her expectations.
Lu Fang had already implanted artificial serum, his family background was good, and he had three S+ grade cybernetic enhancements on him, yet he still couldn't shake Zhang Jie's impenetrable body.
Moreover, Zhang Jie's regenerative capabilities were incredibly strong. Lu Fang had fought for so long, yet he hadn't drained much of Zhang Jie's vitality at all.
At this moment, Fei Yunlai redirected his gaze around the area and said with a smiling tone, "Where is your team captain? Why isn't he seen now? Let him witness the gap between himself and the Quasi-Hall."
Yu Feicui's lips twitched momentarily, thinking her senior brother really was petty.
Wasn't it just that Lin Rui had given him a slight shock in terms of martial talent that day?
At this time, a woman beside them interjected, "Speaking of which, I'm very curious. Who is Lin Rui, the captain from your school? My research shows he is 18 years old, a fourth-year student from Mingde University's Alien Body College, and had once secured the 11th place in the Alien Body Assessment—should be a child with outstanding talent. But why would you arrange him into the position of team captain? Do you believe his strength surpasses that of your Deputy General, Zhao Yan? Or have you already given up on the captain's battle?"
Yu Feicui turned her head to look at the woman beside her.
This was a lady around 25 years old, with exquisite features, dressed in a women's short blazer and sporting a chic short haircut, exuding an exceptionally lively and spirited aura.
She was Xie Qingtong, the host of the self-produced program "Debating Martial Arts" by 'Celestial Ring Video Network'.
Next to her, three young people were operating a high-definition holographic camera, capturing the battle on the ring.
Yu Feicui put on a smile, her demeanor pleasant, "I have nothing to disclose at the moment, but just keep watching and you'll know," she said.
In essence, they had given up, but she couldn't admit that in front of Xie Qingtong.
This exchange battle between them and Future Science University was really quiet.
Although Fang Ranran had a good idea, wanting to ride on the popularity and traffic of the two star teams, none of the journalists from the large television stations of the first and second bases came today. Only some local TV stations from the ninth base attended, recording the event as a favor to Tianlan Corporation, and whether they would broadcast it depended on Tianlan Corporation's advertising fees.
The Abyss Group and Heavenly Sword Corporation knew Fang Ranran's ploy very well and had no intention of letting her have her way.
The several well-known video websites did come to record video materials, but the audience numbers in their live streaming rooms were mostly below 400,000, with a rather low level of popularity.
The largest traffic among them belonged to the live room run by Xie Qingtong, which had 800,000 viewers, more than half of whom had come for Black Stone Zhang Jie.
All media were looking forward to the exchange battle between Tianjing Martial University and Future Science University the day after tomorrow, and were preparing for it.
They regarded this match as a preview of the Martial Arts League's finals happening two years later.
"Is that even a question? They've given up,"
Fei Yunlai, hands clasped behind his back, chuckled audibly in the face of Yu Feicui's dagger-like gaze. "I'm familiar with the kid Lin Rui. He has hall-level talent, but his current level is still lacking a bit."
Xie Qingtong's eyes lit up upon hearing this.
Hall-level talent? And coming from the mouth of Cybernetic General Fei Yunlai.
Interesting. This university, notorious for its inferior cybernetics, actually has a hall-level individual?
Just then, Fei Yunlai let out a surprised exclamation, "Hmm? The secret move 'Magnetic Thunderclap'?"
Magnetic Thunderclap was an S- grade third-stage secret move with tremendous power, but what truly surprised Fei Yunlai was the timing of Lu Fang's execution.
At that moment, Lu Fang suddenly approached Zhang Jie with a full-out burst, his pair of short halberds radiating intense electrical light, and moreover, he completely gave up on defense, opting for a tactic of trading blows for blows.
Black Stone Zhang Jie was clearly caught off-guard. Although he landed a punch on Lu Fang's face, blasting him ten meters off the stage with immense punching power, turning flesh and blood into a blur, Zhang Jie's left shoulder also suffered a fierce halberd slash from Lu Fang, cutting at least three inches deep, even revealing the tendons and bones inside!
This bloody scene caught everyone off guard and startled them.
Yu Feicui's face changed drastically, and she darted forward a few steps to Lu Fang's side.
After checking Lu Fang's injuries with the standby medical staff on the scene, she finally relaxed.
Lu Fang's body had already been implanted with nanoscale subdermal armor, and the referee on the stage had timely intervened, helping him disperse some of the punching force, so the injuries were not fatal.
But his face was smashed so badly by Zhang Jie that the bridge of his nose was flattened into a pancake, presenting a gruesome and indistinct sight too distressing to endure.
Fortunately, with the advances in current technology, Lu Fang's injuries could be completely healed in just about ten minutes in a nano-repair pod, otherwise he would have been disfigured.
As several paramedics were about to carry him onto the stretcher, Lu Fang stood still as if rooted to the spot, unwilling to budge. His fists clenched, eyes bulging; he glared resentfully at Zhang Jie on the stage.
If the ring had been a real battlefield, then his halberd strike would have been at the cost of his life.
And yet he still couldn't deal a heavy blow to Zhang Jie, just wounding his arm?
Lu Fang felt like an ant trying foolishly to shake a giant tree, his spirit overwhelmingly frustrated.
"Alright!"
Yu Feicui laughed and rubbed Lu Fang's head, "You've already done excellently. You're a good man. Now let's leave the rest to Nolan."
Lu Fang's performance had surprised her a lot.
Especially that last strike, which had reduced Zhang Jie's combat power by at least twenty-five percent.
At this moment, Nolan Wei was already taking off his coat, getting ready to hop onto the stage.
Yu Feicui immediately glanced over and said, "Nolan!"
Upon hearing this, Nolan Wei smiled and waved his hand at her, "I know how to fight, Sister Feicui!"
Their club didn't have a formal coach, so Yu Feicui took on the roles of both coach and manager.
At this time, the referee on stage deliberately glanced at the wound on Zhang Jie's shoulder, "Do you give up, or will you continue to defend the stage?"
"Defend!" Zhang Jie replied expressionlessly.
Right now, his wound was healing quickly with the help of the subdermal nanobot armor.
These tiny nanobots could not only form an extremely strong armor beneath the skin but could also repair his damaged muscle tissue.
Nolan Wei's expression tightened when he saw this. He realized that Zhang Jie could control his muscles, tendons, and even his blood vessels and nerves with his own will.
Zhang Jie's wounds were healing at a visible rate.
Was this guy's Golden Body cultivation so strong?
A mere Quasi-Hall, yet so powerful in the Blood Training realm?
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Nolan Wei pursed his lips, his smile at the corners fading away as his gaze became colder and more serious.
If he couldn't take down Zhang Jie after Lu Fang had gained him such a big advantage, then what face would he have to stay in the club?
The referee stood between them, "Please pay attention to the electronic sound. The fight will start after the countdown."
His expression was extremely serious, sensing that today's fight between the two sides could be very intense.
The two teams had started fighting fiercely right from the start, resorting to life-threatening tactics.
If he had been a bit careless just now, Lu Fang might have lost his life.
As soon as the countdown ended, Nolan Wei's figure instantly appeared on Zhang Jie's left side. Like a phantom, he stabbed at Zhang Jie's injured shoulder.
Zhang Jie reacted immediately, swinging his right fist powerfully while avoiding the sword light with the momentum of his punch.
"Boom!"
Zhang Jie's punch actually grazed past Nolan Wei's cheek, and the powerful force tore off a whole piece of flesh from his left cheek.
Facing Zhang Jie's punch, Nolan Wei only tilted his head to the side, his body not making any evasive maneuvers.
His sole purpose was to accurately plunge his sword into the wound on Zhang Jie's shoulder, further severing the connection between Zhang Jie's shoulder, arm, tendons, and nerves!
The ghastly sight caused everyone in the venue to turn solemn.
At that moment below the stage, the two team leaders from the Future Science University glared fiercely at Shi Yan.
They knew the reason. If Shi Yan hadn't provoked them, Lu Fang probably wouldn't have fought so decisively, and the subsequent battles wouldn't have been so bloody and brutal.
Shi Yan was watching the platform expressionlessly.
There was a touch of interest in her eyes. Lu Fang was not as weak as she had imagined, and the overall strength of Mingde University's martial arts team also pleasantly surprised her.
Nolan Wei's performance wasn't bad either!
Xie Qingtong's expression was gradually becoming excited.
As the fight between Zhang Jie and Nolan Wei began, the number of viewers in her live broadcast room increased significantly, now breaking through 900,000 and climbing toward 1 million.
Originally, today's match was expected to be a cakewalk for Future Science University, but looking at the current situation, Mingde University's martial arts team was also quite impressive.
Wang Sen, seated as a substitute player, had a slightly dim look in his eyes.
While he was boiling with rage, he felt powerless.
Today's exchange match with Future Science University once again made him acutely aware of how far he still had to go.
"Your teammates are all quite clever," Fei Yunlai commented with a glint in his eyes and a light praise.
Although Nolan Wei fought fiercely on stage, he always paid attention to preserving his own combat power.
At that moment, Fei Yunlai sensed something and, filled with anticipation, looked toward an elevator door to the side. "It's Lin Rui, your Captain has finally arrived, huh? Has he completed his Blood Training?"
As Fei Yunlai finished speaking, Lin Rui walked out from the open elevator doors.
He joined Yu Feicui and the others, first observing Zhang Jie and Nolan Wei locked in intense combat on stage, then turned to look at Lu Fang, who still had a blurry face inside the nanite healing pod.
Lin Rui was somewhat surprised. How had this mere exchange match become so fiercely contested?
Nolan Wei on stage was close to completely dismembering Zhang Jie's left arm, while his own body was bloodied, with several chunks of flesh blasted to a pulp.
Lin Rui frowned slightly, finding it hard to watch. "Sister Feicui, please put me in the main position later. Let Nolan not fight so hard. I can handle that vanguard Shi Yan, and their main force as well."
Upon his words, not only was Yu Feicui taken aback, but Fei Yunlai, Xie Qingtong, as well as Fang Ranran and Zhao Yan sitting in the distance, all stared at him in astonishment.