Chapter 23: One Punch, One Palm

Xu Xiaoshou on the arena stage was simply overwhelming. He looked wild, bare-chested and blood-red, with steam rising from his body—the spitting image of a god of war.

"Where is Zhang Fu? Come up and fight me!" Xu Xiaoshou shouted, partly to provoke Zhang Fu into attacking him, and partly hoping Xiao Qixiu would see the impending brutal scene and intervene to save him. Of course, the primary goal was to get rid of the "Cinderlight Seed" inside him.

In the waiting area, Zhang Fu and his friends looked worried.

"Look, I think you should just concede," one friend advised. "It's Xu Xiaoshou. After the two Innate Rankers, he's the most renowned dark horse right now. There's no shame in losing to him!"

Zhang Fu hesitated, "But..."

"Look at him! He's really on drugs. Didn't you see him when he killed Wen Chong?"

"He was nowhere near this crazy then! If you go up there, you'll be torn to pieces—literally dismembered!"

Zhang Fu shivered, feeling his friend made a lot of sense. But... He raised his hand, looking at the teeth marks on it, and frowned. "But I just badmouthed him yesterday. Wouldn't it be a bit embarrassing to concede the moment I face him today?"

"Is embarrassment worse than death?"

Zhang Fu thought for a moment, then shook his head. "He might not be able to break my defense!" He shrugged off his friend's attempt to pull him back and leaped onto the stage.

"Ah, how foolish!" a desolate sigh echoed behind him.

***

"You're Zhang Fu?" Xu Xiaoshou looked at the tall, well-built man, whose fists were the size of sandbags. Excellent. Beating someone with those would be absolutely gruesome. This was precisely the effect he wanted! He glanced triumphantly at Xiao Qixiu. With the audience's scrutiny, surely the referee couldn't just stand by and watch him die! As soon as he intervened to save him, would that cursed thing inside his body really be ignored?

Zhang Fu bowed. "Greetings, Senior Brother Xu. I cultivate the 'Great Golden Bronze Body,' which grants excellent physical defense. I hope Senior Brother will not hesitate to offer guidance."

The Great Golden Bronze Body? Xu Xiaoshou stumbled. "Isn't that a defensive spiritual skill, damn it? You're supposed to be someone I can beat up! How can you cultivate something like that? What a waste of your fine physique."

Xiao Qixiu immediately chuckled. How could he not know what Xu Xiaoshou was plotting? He waved his hand. "Let the match begin!"

Xu Xiaoshou still felt it wasn't enough. He absolutely had to force his opponent to attack, or his primary plan would be ruined! He provocatively beckoned Zhang Fu, then subtly settled into a horse stance, signaling: "If you don't move, I won't either."

Zhang Fu gave a faint smile, let out a low cry, and likewise dropped into a horse stance. Spiritual energy surged around him, and his skin turned a golden-bronze color. The scene entered a stalemate.

The audience burst into laughter.

"Hahaha, I'm done with these two! What the hell are they doing? This is a match!"

"Zhang Fu's 'Great Golden Bronze Technique' only has a counter-attack in its final form, right? What's Xu Xiaoshou doing? Doesn't he have offensive moves? Go!"

"Go? You clearly don't know Xu Xiaoshou, the human punching bag! I, Xu Xiaoshou, am always the one who gets beaten. If I don't get a beating for a day, I feel restless all over!"

"Haha, I can't take it anymore! I could watch them stand in horse stances until dark!"

Xiao Qixiu's face darkened. He hadn't frowned this much in a whole year. "What are these guys doing? It's a match!"

"Contestants, please note: the match has a time limit of thirty minutes!"

Xu Xiaoshou frowned. Zhang Fu's resolve was strong; it seemed he had no intention of attacking. Would his primary plan really fizzle out like this? Could it be that he truly had to rely on dealing damage to release the scorching energy within him? He *could* attack, but he worried the guy wouldn't be able to handle it!

Xu Xiaoshou turned back to Xiao Qixiu. "Are you really not going to save me?"

"Heh heh," Xiao Qixiu replied.

"Do you believe me if I say he'll die if I attack?" Xu Xiaoshou pointed at Zhang Fu.

Zhang Fu's face turned green. He felt his legs go numb and had to forcefully suppress the urge to jump off the stage. *If you two have a quarrel, sort it out yourselves! What kind of heroes are you, dragging me into it?*

Xiao Qixiu's eyes narrowed coldly. *This brat dares to threaten me?* "Go ahead and attack. If Zhang Fu dies, I lose!"

Zhang Fu's legs were trembling. *Damn it, I'm not some betting chip! I'm a living, breathing person!*

Everyone in the referee stands backstage was stunned.

"Boss Xiao is furious?!"

"Holy cow, Xu Xiaoshou's something else! To make Boss Xiao talk like that, I'm impressed!"

"Heh heh, I told you Xu Xiaoshou was capable. But now I'm actually quite worried about the kid he's facing."

"Ninth-level... he should be able to withstand it, right...?"

On the stage, Xu Xiaoshou slightly raised an eyebrow at Xiao Qixiu's words. He didn't even acknowledge Zhang Fu, his gaze fixed solely on Xiao Qixiu.

"Are you sure?" He channeled the aura of the "Cinderlight Seed" within him and slammed his fist into the ground.

*Boom!*

A huge crater appeared on the stage, and scorching energy instantly erupted, charring the ground for several yards around.

"I really am on drugs! Nobody can withstand this!" Xu Xiaoshou flexed his arm, showing off his muscles.

*That's it?* Xiao Qixiu showed his disdain.

Zhang Fu was exhausted. He saw Xu Xiaoshou's nonchalance and Xiao Qixiu's disdain, but most of all, he saw his own chillingly bleak future! *Help! Should I keep stubbornly holding on?*

Xu Xiaoshou's punch scared him half to death and made the audience's eyelids twitch.

"Oh my god, that destructive power..."

"Poor Zhang Fu! He won three consecutive matches in the qualifiers, yet he has no presence whatsoever against Xu Xiaoshou."

"Please, look at Zhang Fu before you speak again! His legs are shaking!"

Zhang Fu's legs indeed trembled. Not only his legs, but his voice also trembled. "Senior Brother Xu, please show mercy! Don't take what I said about 'not hesitating to offer guidance' seriously. I just meant a few exchanges would suffice." He pleaded in a low voice, "Please, spare my dignity..."

The audience burst out laughing. Seeing Xiao Qixiu remain silent, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly charged forward. "Enjoy the last moments of your life!"

Xiao Qixiu's eyes were fixed on him. Although he felt the kid was joking, what if he *wasn't*?

*Bang!*

Xu Xiaoshou's punch slammed into Zhang Fu's chest, and a torrent of scorching energy gushed out. He felt a surge of cathartic pleasure.

*Sizzle—*

Zhang Fu's hair curled up, and his clothes were slightly scorched, but he remained perfectly still. Xu Xiaoshou was surprised. He actually managed to withstand a punch that was only half of his power?

"Impressive!" Since releasing the energy truly worked and his opponent's defense was so strong, he didn't need to be saved anymore. Zhang Fu did!

*Whoosh!* He took a deep breath, settling his energy into his dantian, and for the first time, channeled spiritual power into his attack. His left hand gathered a terrifying, visible scorching power, like an invisible fire burning, subtly distorting the space around it.

Zhang Fu's pupils constricted. *Hold on, I must hold on! After this strike, I'll concede. No shame in that!*

Xu Xiaoshou said lightly, "One punch, one palm!"

Zhang Fu panicked and immediately tried to change his mind: "I con—"

*Boom!*

A streak of light flashed. Xu Xiaoshou's fist slammed into Zhang Fu's chest, an explosion echoed in the air, and a visible heatwave erupted, instantly overturning the stones on the stage and charring them black. The strike sent Zhang Fu flying, the immense spiritual power akin to a giant swatting a mosquito. The guy didn't even finish his sentence before he was knocked unconscious and sent flying off the stage, landing and skidding, carving a deep gash in the ground.

*Fwoosh!*

The moment his body stopped, sparks flew, and Zhang Fu burst into flames.

"Save him!" Xiao Qixiu roared.

The white-clad medics didn't even need his command; they moved the instant Zhang Fu was sent flying—some extinguishing flames, some healing wounds, each performing their duties.

"Ah, relief!" Xu Xiaoshou took out a crimson-gold pill, sniffed it, and let out a comfortable groan. That one strike dispelled nearly half of the scorching energy within him. Though still in pain, the release was worth it!

Glancing at the wide-eyed Head Referee Xiao, he said with an innocent expression, "I held back, otherwise he would have died."

Xiao Qixiu: "..."

The audience: "..."