"Huh?" The youth, who had been watching An Jing demolish the opposition with great relish and was on the verge of shouting "Put some muscle into it!" and "Knock what's-his-name flat!", froze in disbelief. Raising a hand in shock, he pointed at himself. "Knock An Jing down?"
"Me?"
This youth was one of the three who had completed the entire run without challenging An Jing. His name was Cang Linzu. He was indeed quite capable and had even attended the Great Chen Martial Academy; his discernment was nothing to scoff at.
Precisely because of this, he knew very well that the day before yesterday, An Jing had likely only been a little "tired," whereas he himself had been pushed near his limit. Such a gap in stamina was hard to bridge.
Self-awareness was a virtue. Why bother?
Still, being singled out by the instructor sparked Cang Linzu's interest, and he looked toward the ring.
At this moment, after defeating nine challengers in a row, An Jing did indeed show a faint trace of fatigue.
*It's not like I'll get badly hurt anyway... This really is a good chance!*
"Alright, I'll give it a shot."
*Don't blame me, An Jing. You're too strong. Taking a bit of an unfair advantage is the only way I can stand on the same stage with you.*
With that thought, Cang Linzu stepped into the sparring circle—the original tenth challenger having already conceded defeat.
An Jing turned his head to look at Cang Linzu.
In truth, he was not tired in the slightest, but upon defeating the fifth challenger, An Jing had noticed Instructor Li's shifting demeanor.
He was no fool. A moment's thought was enough to understand that these "challenges," tacitly encouraged by Suspended Fate Manor—along with the meat he had been fed—were meant to spur competition among the disciples.
Moving forward, training in the manor would only grow harsher, and the instructors would encourage disciples to challenge and fight one another, weeding through them to select elites with both ability and martial prowess, ultimately deciding the true Eldest Senior Brother before graduation.
But this hinged on the "first place" position being contestable, enticing the disciples to vie for it.
If he was too overwhelmingly strong, it would dampen everyone else's drive; faced with an opponent they could never beat, everyone would just give up.
No wonder Instructor Li had such a headache.
However, that was none of his concern.
An Jing had no intention of losing. At most, he would pretend his victories took more effort, giving the others the impression that they had a fighting chance.
"Pardon me!"
Cang Linzu held no weapon, and An Jing cast aside the short staff in his hand, making it clear they would spar barehanded.
The two bowed to each other. In the next instant, wind whipped up as Cang Linzu lunged forward, throwing a direct Cannon Fist.
Great Chen Martial Academies were spread throughout the empire, established by the imperial court to scout talent and bring the realm's finest under its wing. Every apprentice capable of entering an academy would eventually reach at least the realm of Inner Breath Like Tide, sufficient to serve as a regional defender.
Cang Linzu had not studied at the academy for long before the Frost Calamity struck, reducing him to a displaced refugee. Yet precisely because of this, his martial skills had been forged through blood and fire. The Cannon Fist he unleashed was entirely different from those of the other challengers—tainted with ruthless venom and crashing forward like thunder, aimed straight at the chest.
An Jing narrowed his eyes. Raising his left hand in an upward parry, he met Cang Linzu head-on. Both of their bodies trembled slightly from the collision. Then, while An Jing seemed to reach forward with his right hand, he actually stepped forward with his right leg, stomping down toward his opponent's instep.
Yet Cang Linzu's footwork was equally solid. With a flick of his left foot, he dodged An Jing's stomp and hooked behind An Jing's rear leg, restricting his evasion. Twisting his waist to generate force, he unleashed a fluid follow-up punch—a heart-seeking cannon blast.
An Jing had anticipated this. Cang Linzu possessed solid punches and footwork, truly demonstrating formal academy training backed by real combat experience. Even with An Jing's superior experience, it was difficult to spot a flaw and dispatch him in a single strike as he had with the others.
Thus, well before Cang Linzu threw the punch, An Jing's already outstretched right hand exploded with power, driving straight for the other boy's right shoulder.
This trade of blow for blow went beyond Cang Linzu's experience. Struck squarely in the right shoulder, his strength plummeted and his aim wavered, landing only on An Jing's left shoulder. To Cang Linzu's fist, the impact felt like hitting a leather sack packed with solid gravel.
Each landing a blow, the two stepped back in unison. On the surface, they appeared evenly matched, but only a handful could discern who held the upper hand.
*Damn it!*
Knowing he had lost the initiative, Cang Linzu ducked down and rolled across the ground. Sure enough, An Jing had already flashed forward, his flying knee striking empty air.
Taking advantage of the opening, Cang Linzu lunged sideways, only to be met by a horizontal smash from An Jing's left elbow. Forced into another hard clash, his body froze in place.
This time, Cang Linzu was clearly at a disadvantage. He was just about to retreat a step to evade the brunt of the assault when An Jing was already slamming into him with a side tackle.
Cang Linzu meant to raise a leg and kick for the groin to force An Jing back, but An Jing had already stepped firmly onto his other foot, throwing his center of gravity off balance. In that same breath, An Jing leaned heavily into him with a ferocious body check, knocking the breath out of him so hard he nearly blacked out.
"I yield!"
Wobbling unstably before finally slumping to the ground on his rear, Cang Linzu saw that An Jing did not pursue him. He simply flopped flat on his back and brazenly shouted to the sky, "Brothers and sisters, whoever's holding back, hurry up and step forward! If you want to take down Big Brother An, today's probably your only chance!"
Breathing heavily, An Jing smiled and swept his gaze across everyone present.
Yet no one stepped forward. No matter how much Instructor Li hinted with his eyes, no one was willing to take the field.
From start to finish, the eleven consecutive bouts had lasted less than twenty-five minutes. An Jing had become the undisputed Eldest Senior Brother by overwhelming superiority, and the next challenge would not be for another ten days.
Yet everyone knew that even after ten days, no one would challenge An Jing. Barring someone making supernatural progress, no one would go looking for humiliation.
"Sigh. Fine, fine, An Jing wins!"
Instructor Li announced An Jing's victory with a distinct lack of enthusiasm, and amid the cheers of Gu Yeqi, Zhang Ying, and the others, he barked crossly, "Begin training!"
He drilled the youths mercilessly. Only after tormenting them until they cried for their mothers—and even An Jing's legs trembled under intensely targeted, grueling horse-stance squats—did Instructor Li return to the heart of Suspended Fate Manor: the Medicine Pavilion.
"Deputy Envoy Yao."
He spoke respectfully to the old man standing on the fifth floor of the Medicine Pavilion, who had watched the entire gauntlet while overlooking the drill ground. "An Jing is indeed foremost in aptitude this time, but I never expected him to be this strong. The others aren't even willing to challenge him anymore."
"If first place is set in stone, what are we to do?"
"Set in stone?" The old man turned, looking at Instructor Li as if looking at a fool. "If first place is fixed, then let second and third eat meat too. Wouldn't that get those little brats fighting over second and third?"
"Failing that, let the top five eat meat. It's just a matter of adding a few extra rations."
"Are we so poor that we lack a few pieces of meat?"
After giving Instructor Li a sharp tongue-lashing, Deputy Envoy Yao turned back to gaze at the drill ground with considerable interest. "Still, it is true... this batch of disciples is remarkably fine. There are pleasant surprises."
After pondering for a moment, the old man nodded. "Then let us begin early. Weed out the disciples with the worst physical stamina, and direct the saved resources toward the rest."
"It is time they learned to love the taste of meat."
Chapter 9