"Any questions? "
Qiu Yang had already escaped from the messy situation. He saw himself and Lou Cheng with fists still clenched and raised. Thoughts flew through his mind and he started to understand what had happened.
Just as he was trying to flip out from the trap, his opponent managed to capture the chance to do so too.
Qiu Yang felt awkward. He was annoyed and wanted to vent his anger. He wanted to shout, but he was in no position to do so. He was the reason why things turned out this way. He made a mistake. He was too careless. While he was being arrogant about setting up the trap, he overlooked the fact that his opponent had the same ability as him. They both went numb in their useless right hands.
Without a reason to blame Lou Cheng, and without an excuse, Qiu Yang was close to punching the referee, but he held back. He did not do so because he knew that the difference in their abilities was too great, and he had no chance of winning. All he could do was to swallow his pride.
"I'm fine. "
At the same time, Lou Cheng also understood what was going on. He sighed at the fact that his thinking was starting to slow down and how he had not reacted in time. He tried to hide his smile and said,
"I'm fine too! "
Of course he was fine. If they had continued fighting, his brains would probably be so fried he would not be able to react to anything. To be able to tie, and have a shot at victory, was the perfect situation!
He could not ask for more. Each person must know their limits!
As he was talking, he felt a sense of pride. Lou Cheng felt that he had won this fight, because he had the Jindan in his tummy. Even if the strong punch struck him, it might just change and evolve to protect him from any injury.
However, that said, who knows, maybe the Jindan would evolve and its energy would cause him to burn or freeze internally, Just like that dead fish.
He was ecstatic when he beat Wei Shengtian. Compared to those explosive feelings, Lou Cheng's level of joy for his match was much lower, simply because he could not be excited even if he wanted to.
Although his body could still go on, he was mentally worn out, just like any other fighters who had gone through a marathon of tough fights. Who would still have that energy, that strength to rejoice and celebrate their victory?
Enjoying it silently was sufficient!
Such a long drawn, difficult but magnificent match.
...
The spectators of the match did not react immediately. They were trying to understand what had happened, why there was a tie all of a sudden. Some of them missed the crucial turning point due to distance or because the referee had blocked their view. The others could not see clearly because the two fighters were too close to each other. Their fists and moves were so quick that no one could see anything.
It was only until the big screens in the arena played and replayed what happened in slow motion, from every angle possible, did the spectators realize what happened. They found out that both sides chose to move the arm that was already hurt and through it catch the rival's weak point, ending the match with both sides badly injured.
Punching the stomach would probably not cause death, neither would it result in anyone being paralyzed. In fact, the fighter could move back or retracts their torso or tummy in time, and avoid the worst impact possible. However, even after doing all this, if they were hit, they would immediately fall to the ground. It would hurt so bad that most would curl into a ball, and that gave the referee the chance to stop the match.
But for the home team, a tie meant that they had lost the match—a match that they were so confident of winning!
The spectators fell silent again. The oppressing silence froze whatever passion and expectation that was left among them. It was like a dog had swallowed all remaining desire to roar and celebrate.
Disappointment, angry and emotions of dissatisfaction were quickly brewing amongst them.
Lou Cheng enjoyed this silence. He felt that it was comparable to the cheers of home ground spectators. Then he heard the referee declare,
"Tie, both fighters please leave the ring."
He let a breath out and saw an unwilling Qiu Yang trying so hard to keep calm. Qiu Yang put his fists together and bowed. He turned away and walked down the ring without any word.
This person trying to be intelligent but end up being hurt by his own intelligence probably will be vexed for quite some time.
Just thinking about this, makes me feel happy. You guys were just asking for it when you sent such a "reserve"!
Ay, I'm no saint. I'll be furious when rivals try to make me to. Especially when they insult my family or the girl that I like, I'll remember, and take my revenge. I'll feel the need to take revenge, the need to retaliate to vent my anger, and of course, I'll gloat when my rivals fail in their attempt to ambush me.
I'm such a person. Someone with a lot of shortcomings, someone who can't tolerate insults, someone whom some may refer to as a petty person.
Yes, since I've sort of reflected, I shall continue to enjoy this moment!
Haha, feels so good!
Qiu Yang's left arm was hanging and his right fist was tightly clenched. He took two deep breaths to hold his anger and urge to burst out in. He bit his lips, walked down the steps and did not dare lift his head up. He felt that he had let his master and seniors down.
The referee massaged and stretched his arms and his legs. He signaled to Songcheng University Martial Arts Club and announced loudly,
"The third fighter."
"Huh?" Sun Jian was still immersed in the shock and joy of the earlier match tie, so he was a little flustered upon hearing the referee. After a couple of seconds, he regained his composure, pointed to him and said loudly,
"I still need to fight? "
"Yes, the rules are as such." The referee replied.
"Alright..." Sun Jian stood and went down the steps, walking towards Lou Cheng who was returning from his match.
Seeing that they were about to meet, he lifted his right hand and wanted to give Lou Cheng a high-five to celebrate.
Lou Cheng wanted to respond, but as he moved his right arm, he could feel pangs of pain rolling through his muscles. His left arm was in an awkward position, so he could not help but give up the high-five.
He could only manage a small and bitter smile for Sun Jian.
It dawned on Sun Jian what was happening. He made a fist out of his right hand and gave Lou Cheng a thumbs up. He said,
"Superb! Total respect for you! "
"Sounds like you didn't really believe in me last time..." Lou Cheng thought to himself. He nodded his head and smiled. He teased Sun Jian.
"This should mean that you have battled right? "
Sun Jian was thrown into deep confusion. "So does this mean I have fought or not?"
Lou Cheng returned to where the Songcheng University Martial Arts Club was seated. Yan Zheke was already standing and waiting for him to walk over. She went up and asked in a very concerned tone, "Are you alright? How badly are you hurt? "
"It was alright at first, but it seems to be quite bad now." Lou Cheng answered honestly.
At the same time, he saw Li Mao, Guo Qing and Li Xiaowen applauding him and giving him the thumbs up. Even Lin Que was nodding his head in approval.
Yan Zheke glared at him. Filled with emotions and glimmering eyes, she said,
"What are you trying to prove! "
She stretched her two hands and started to check Lou Cheng's injuries through his clothes.
Lou Cheng bit his lip as he hurt and said in a low voice, "If I didn't do it, I'd have lost... I was at my limits. If Qiu Yang had held on a little longer, and did his killer move again, I wouldn't be able to block it."
Yan Zheke's eyes widened. They widened so much that her pupils were clearly surrounded by the whites of the eye. She asked curiously, "This's your physical limits? "
"I meant mental limits. If we were to only talk about physical strength, I'd probably be able to battle another round." Lou Cheng chuckled. "In fact, Dong Yi and Qiu Yang, both lost at not understanding me well enough. If Dong Yi had held on another round, I wouldn't be able to oppress him any further. He needn't hurt himself more just to inflict a small injury on me. As for Qiu Yang, he was too brash. If he had lashed out guerrilla hits for another minute, I wouldn't be able to carry on. Too bad, they all felt that they were unable to reach my level, so they used other more provocative methods."
There must be a difference between these two fights. That was that Dong Yi might not have been able to withstand one round of Lou Cheng's "Brutal Blizzard" attack. No one could tell who would win. If Qiu Yang had a little more patience and not attacked carelessly, Lou Cheng would have lost.
Yan Zheke pursed her lips and smiled. She said, "Not having the same amount of information can also be an advantage. In any case, you haven't shown where your limits are. We can use this to muddle up and confuse your future rivals. "
After saying what she needed to say, she heaved a sigh of relief. "You didn't hurt your bones too badly. On the whole how would you recover, we'd have to ask Coach Shi."
Geezer Shi chuckled and said,
"Are you both done whispering sweet nothings? Now you remember this old man here?"
Yan Zheke turned red in a split second. She shook her head furiously and looked away, with her neat white teeth biting her lower lip. Amidst the bashfulness, there was a tinge of happiness. Lou Cheng could only laugh dryly and had nothing to refute.
Pleased with his humor, Geezer Shi looked at Lou Cheng and said,
"Your facias and muscles are all injured. You'll have to rest for quite a while. Let's just head to the locker room first and we can do a detailed check there."
"Mas... Coach, you can tell just by looking?" Lou Cheng was shocked. "Is this X-ray vision?"
Geezer Shi said harshly, "Haven't you heard about the Enemy Heart Freezing Move? You're within 5 meters from me. Plus you've used your right arm, and pulled along every muscle and facia there. If I can't feel anything, all my years of martial arts training would be rendered useless!"
Oh, so it was due to the advancement of the "Ice Mirror"... Lou Cheng was enlightened, and started to be more fearful of the high ranking fighters.
Geezer Shi stretched his hand out and quickly hit where Lou Cheng was injured. This scared Lou Cheng and Yan Zheke so much that they both turned purple, but neither was quick enough to stop him.
As waves of ice cold blasts traveled into his body, the pain started to subside. Although Lou Cheng still felt weak, at least he felt more normal.
"Thank you, Coach." Lou Cheng tried his very best not to call him Master.
When Yan Zheke finally realized what happened, she said, "Coach Shi, why didn't you say anything?"
Scary as hell!
At this moment, Sun Jian stood next to the referee and watched the referee raise his hand to declare,
"Final round, Songcheng University Martial Arts Club wins! "
The declaration stunned Sun Jian. He could not help but think,
"All I did was pose?"
Upon the announcement of the competition results, the spectators seem to regain life. Some cheered their team members on, others went crazy and were shrieking in disappointment. Some were so upset, they ranted at everyone. They were blaming everybody, the team they supported, Songcheng University Martial Arts Club, everybody. The scene was in a mess. Almost hysterical.
Not everyone can accept defeat gracefully!
Seeing the situation, staff and crew members immediately rushed to the side of the Songcheng University Martial Arts Club. They hurried them along and said, "Quickly return to the locker room. Five minutes. Only five minutes. Wash up, change and leave here immediately. Before the rest of them leave the arena! "
Lou Cheng and the rest were intending to celebrate this tough victory in the locker room. However, upon hearing the instructions, with no further words, after Sun Jian returned to the team, they all went back to the locker room. They hastily showered, changed into their normal clothes and followed the staff members out a side door and boarded a mini bus that was already waiting for them.
It was not until the bus had driven a good distance away from the arena, did the team heave a long sigh of relief.
Such an away ground is completely horrifying!
And, this horrifying away ground is also the one that they've defeated till all went silent.
While joy flowed, Sun Jian gave a bitter smile and said,
"What a pity. I didn't manage to have a proper match."
Geezer Shi who had just checked Lou Cheng's injury, said humorously,
"You'll have the chance. These two rascals will not be recovering so soon!"
"As Lin Que forcefully used the Yin-yang Twist, his joints are injured and his body is suffering from shakes internally. Don't talk about competition, he can't practice at all next week. He has to take a good rest. At least three weeks before he can fully recover. As for Lou Cheng, at first, his injury could be healed in a few days, but since he forced the last punch, his wound was aggravated. He needs at least two weeks before full recovery."
"The next round would be at home ground. The rivals are not difficult to deal with. Sun Jian, Li Mo, and Li Hua as leading players. Yan Zheke and Guo Qing to stand by as substitutes."