Chapter 416: The Quick-Witted Lou Cheng
Translator: Transn Editor: Transn
Moved by Lou Cheng’s pa.s.sion and fighting will or aroused by his long shout, the majority of the audience in the stands were fuming with enthusiasm and began to call,
“Champion! Champion!”
“Champion! Champion!”
Today’s Songcheng University, Lin Que, and Lou Cheng deserved the champions.h.i.+p.
Xu Wannian finally broke free from Lou Cheng’s stare and thought to himself blankly, “d.a.m.n it! I’m still here waiting to fight… Don’t ignore me like that!”
To be honest, he was very disturbed and short of confidence. Lou Cheng, like Big Devil, should be high up there to wors.h.i.+p, not to fight with.
“I wouldn’t be like this if his supernatural ability didn’t restrain my Corvine Mouth…”
The middle-aged, white-haired coach Huang Qing took a silent sigh before tapping Xu Wannian’s shoulder and urging him gently,
“Don’t be afraid. Zhirong’s Dark Poison Force is much stronger than it was last year. I’m confident Lou Cheng is already at the end of his rope. Keep your mouth closed and take this fight seriously. You have a decent chance of winning!”
Comforted by these gentle yet certain words, Xu Wannian was mostly relieved from the nervousness and fear he was feeling. He nodded strongly.
“Yes, I’ll do my best!”
“I’m in my final year of university. It has been remarkable if not perfect. I don’t want a defeat to end my season!”
He stood up and took a deep breath, about to stride to the ring.
Huang Qing, his eyes sparkling, reminded him,
“Try your Corvine Mouth if you’re in a hopeless position!”
The effect of most supernatural abilities would weaken as the bearer’s physical condition worsened. As Lou Cheng was already at his utmost limit, he might no longer be able to repel the Corvine Mouth.
However, there was always an exception. Even if Lou Cheng’s supernatural ability had been weakened, it might still be able to suppress Xu Wannian’s curses. Attempting his Corvine Mouth at the very beginning would be a gambling, unwise move with a 50/50 chance of success or suicide.
So he better play this as the last attempt when he was in a desperate situation.
“Yeah!” Xu Wannian became a miser with words, imagining zipping up his mouth with a zipper as a reminder for himself not to talk recklessly.
Dong, dong, dong. He strode out with fast and heavy steps.
Fang Zhirong in the ring finally shook off the effect of the Army formula. Although he was not severely harmed, his face was pale and his eyes were filled with anger towards himself and everything.
“In front of the worn-out Lou Cheng with internal injuries after a fierce battle with Peng Leyun, I had such an utter rout from the very beginning till the end. The entire fight was pretty much a joke.
“One and a half years ago, he was a greenhorn with no martial arts experience, far from me.”
Too ashamed to stay in the ring, Fang Zhirong turned around and headed to the locker room of the Shanbei University Martial Arts Club, his face red and eyes bashful and fierce.
He clenched his teeth as Xu Wannian walked by and murmured with an att.i.tude,
“Don’t be fooled by Lou Cheng. He’s at his limits already!”
In the last bout, he had grabbed Lou Cheng’s right arm, infused his poison force, and sensed his poor health condition.
Xu Wannian nodded and his confidence was strengthened.
“I’ll finish this fight! I’ll bring the third champions.h.i.+p home!”
…
“I have to admit that the progress of this match went beyond my expectations.” Chen Sansheng in the broadcasting studio sighed.
“You didn’t think Lou Cheng would win?” asked the host, Liu Cheng, in shock.
“Didn’t Sansheng just say that Lou Cheng had a 40% chance of winning?”
“No. I knew Lou Cheng might win, but I didn’t see it come so easily. Everything was so under his control.” Chen Sansheng took a moment to think and added, “When I said ‘easy’, I was not talking about saving his physical strength. It was an easy win because he had no actual threat at all and kept the initiative throughout the entire fight. He picked the right time and the right move to take his enemy down.
“What does it mean? Not only his physical quality, moves and supernatural abilities, he is actually superior to Fang Zhirong in many aspects, maybe even more than one stage or one rank.”
It was very rare for a martial artist below the Inhuman stage to master the Ice Mirror. Most top Professional Sixth Pin fighters couldn’t do it. Of course, some favored fighters of the age, like Peng Leyun and Ren Li, were able to perform something similar more or less, yet most of them didn’t have the right martial arts style, which indirectly proved the Queen of Thought’s remarkable vision since Ann Chaoyang had preliminarily grasped the Lake and Mirror Liked Wisdom.
“That’s right… I also noticed some tempo change from Lou Cheng in this fight. He is highly gifted indeed. He had a lesson just now and mastered it at once!” Praised Liu Cheng. “The fourth round is about to start. He-heh. Sansheng, according to your earlier comments, Songcheng University has pretty much secured the champions.h.i.+p, right?”
“Not yet,” said Chen Sansheng modestly. “I just have a lyric line for Xu Wannian.”
“Which one?” asked Lou Cheng curiously.
“I can see it already. A tragedy is on…” Sang Chen Sansheng.
Liu Chang laughed. “You are spilling your poisonous milk on Songcheng University and Lou Cheng.”
“No worries. Lou Cheng has the supernatural ability to bounce away curses and poisonous milk,” answered Chen Sansheng in a humorous way.
In Lou Cheng’s fan forum, the very excited Yan Xiaoling, Eternal Nightfall, posted a whip-cracking emoji.
“What tragedy are you talking about? I’m waiting for a comedy show.”
“Alarm! No water drinking in the next couple of minutes…” replied Brahman, just as excited.
As their conversation went on, Yan Zheke’s eyes softened and shone more brightly in the Song Cheng University Martial Arts Club’s seating area. She muttered quietly, “Idiot Cheng, didn’t you say you hated that nickname? Why did you yell again and again then?
“The nickname is perfect for you.” She burst into a laugh with a very beautiful curve on her lips.
After the fight with the Old Fellow Mu, she became more confident in her boyfriend and less worried. Joy and excitement began to brew.
“Heheh. I have contributed to this champions.h.i.+p. I have worked hard for it. I’m not just a cheering spectator.”
Li Mao and Cai Zongming had stood up, waiting to get on the stage and throw Lou Cheng up into the air after the final comedy show.
Dong! Dong! Dong!
Taking his position in front of Lou Cheng, Xu Wannian suddenly felt anxious under Lou Cheng’s overwhelming gaze. His calves tightened and an idea came to his head.
“His presence is really frightening!”
Despite his tough looks and imposing presence, Lou Cheng was actually in a very poor health condition.
Fang Zhirong had improved significantly through hardcore training. His Dark Poison Force could cause chest tightness and shortness of breath and weaken and wear out the rival’s body and mind. Lou Cheng felt sleepy and numb. He could no longer maintain the Ice Mirror even with the supplementary strength from his Jindan, not to mention performing Force Concentration or simplified physical invulnerability.
The Swordsman Formula could temper one’s body and improve his body quality and mental concentration internally and help recover others’ physical strength externally. It couldn’t heal the bearer or a.s.sist him to rise up high to the peak. Fang Zhirong’s Dark Poison Force actually bore a toxin that couldn’t be efficiently reduced by the Force Concentration. Lou Cheng would have finished the fight in a much worse condition had he not completed one Dan stage explosion before the poison broke out.
“However, others can’t see my current state… I still have a chance of defeating Xu Wannian with the stratagem of the Empty City…” Lou Cheng lowered his waist slightly and resumed his stance, attempting to crush the rival with his presence.
The injury on his right arm was not much worse than earlier because Fang Zhirong’s final grab focused on infusing poison. Before he could pull and tear, he was stunned by the Army Formula. As long as Lou Cheng could bear the pain, his right hand could move about.
The referee raised his right hand and took a deep breath before calling,
“Start! ”
The possibly last match had started!
Dong! Dong! Dong! Lou Cheng lowered his back and transformed into the northerly wind again, rolling and whistling towards Xu Wannian. His imposing presence advanced ahead of his move.
Xu Wannian, short of confidence, was afraid of any frontal confrontation with Lou Cheng with fear for his Army Formula and the simplified physical invulnerability. He twisted his feet and employed the Yu footwork to duck away before taking his stance and wielding his right arm like a giant hammer.
The 24 Pounds of the Thunder Sect, Plank Shuddering Pound!
He believed he had to give Lou Cheng enough pressure to prevent him from recovery.
Xu Wannian kept his mouth shut, scared of anything slipping out of his mouth out of his usual practice. The good might fail and the bad might work.
Lou Cheng’s spine straightened and then his waist bent, his weight rolling smoothly. He adopted the guerrilla war style to dodge the strike and then slid to the side of the enemy.
Pam!
His knee joint popped and his right foot quickly kicked out towards Xu Wannian’s ankle.
“Beautiful! He’s of the Professional Sixth Pin indeed, way more flexible than me…”Never good at footwork or agility, Xu Wannian knew he wouldn’t have enough time to throw his leg out unless he wanted to offer his joint to the enemy. He pulled back his waist as well as his left foot to avoid the trample.
Lou Cheng’s right foot gently touched the floor and his left foot quickly caught up to throw another low kick, aiming at the rival’s ankle joint again.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
He kicked three times and Xu Wannian took three steps back, his panic gradually replaced by calm.
The engagement between them had revealed how weak Lou Cheng was. His lost faith began to return and his morale increased!
Lou Cheng continued with another stamp, and Xu Wannian retreated again, preparing to throw his leg out to begin a fierce wave of counter-strikes.
Lou Cheng’s body leaned back, pulling the force away from his leg as he had planned. His leg became soft, as if boneless.
Both of his hands were raised and a seal was formed, his face solemn and serious.
” This is a tempo change. This is the Army Formula!”
Xu Wannian was terrified to death. Since he was in the middle of a step back, he wouldn’t be able to avoid the frontal confrontation of secret discipline this time unless he quitted his stance.
In a flash, he stopped thinking and pressed his tongue against his teeth. He took a gentle bite in hopes of irritating his brain with pain to resist the invasion of the Army formula, which was his planned countermeasure after watching many match videos.
One of his hands lifted and the other pressed down, blocking his vital parts.
“As long as I can survive this bout, he will be at his limits and victory will be mine!”Xu Wannian cheered himself up.
In front of his eyes, the serious-looking Lou Cheng suddenly put on a smirk. His left hand, with a formed seal, reached out at lightning speed. His wrist hooked and then shook to shoot out a white beam along the floor.
“I’m sorry, but this is not the Army Formula!
“Where would I find the strength to perform another Army Formula?”
“Holy c.r.a.p!” Anger rose in Xu Wannian’s heart and the pain traveled from the tip of his tongue to his head. His stance couldn’t be changed in a flash.
“Holy cow! This b*tch!” Cai Zongming opened his mouth wide and blurted out, amused and annoyed.
“Cheng just stole my idea!”
Bang!
The cold beam hit Xu Wannian’s legs and a white crystal flame rose and froze his body.
“Now is the time!”
Lou Cheng bucked up and straightened his back to throw another beautiful kick gracefully at the vital part between Xu Wannian’s legs.
Xu Wannian was s.h.i.+vering in the cold, but his head suddenly cleared up, remembering the last words from his coach. He squeezed his a.s.s and shouted,
“Strained!”
His Corvine Mouth ability was very limited at that moment. No meteor would fall if he called for that. With such a distance between them, it probably wouldn’t work if he called for a miss.
Lou Cheng was completely unaffected, his flying kick continuing fiercely.
Bam!
The referee threw out his leg to block this kick and then raised his right hand.
“Round four, Lou Cheng!”
“The final result of the match… Songcheng University Martial Arts Club wins!”
After a second of silence, the audience began to shout,
“Champion! Champion!”
“Songcheng University! Champion!”
“Lou Cheng! Champion!”
Among the cheers and claps, Xu Wannian turned to the referee with a pained look on his face.
“Could anybody give me a hand? My a.s.s has a cramp…
“Maybe my gluteus muscles are strained…”