Chapter 157 - Winter Solstice Dies, Summer Perishes (V)

With a respectful bow from De Guangqing, an elderly man with full white hair and a white cloth tunic walked to the front with his hands behind his back. After sizing me up with a pair of sharp, gleaming eyes, he smiled and said, "Young man, you consecutively defeated my two disciples; you are truly formidable. I should apologize to you, as it is my failure in discipline that brought about such events."

At this point, the smile on his face instantly turned ice-cold. "However, you were far too ruthless, actually crippling the entire internal cultivation of my second disciple. Such methods force me to harbor hatred! Today, allow me to experience the skills in your hands myself!"

The moment his words fell, his entire body suddenly gave a violent shudder. With a few brisk strides, he rushed forward and leaped directly down from the second floor!

"Bravo!!" Seeing De Guangqing's master glide down to the ground like a swooping eagle, the thugs couldn't help cheering and applauding. I also knew that the master of the Lion Boxing Sect before me was entirely different from De Guangqing and his senior brother; this was a genuine martial arts grandmaster. The stunt he had just pulled was enough to prove that he possessed powerful internal energy within his body.

At that moment, my whole body felt no tension whatsoever, only a fierce sense of excitement. Ever since I learned the Ziyang Divine Art, I had never experienced a truly evenly matched battle. Today, the old man before me would certainly provide me with the opportunity to go all out in attack.

"Today, invited by De'er, I came out of seclusion to City C specifically to seek an explanation for my disciple," the old man said, eyeing me. "You and I are both practitioners of martial arts. Today's matters shall be concluded through a martial arts duel. If you win, you may take that young lady away, and my disciple shall offer an apology. If you lose, then do not blame my disciple for showing no mercy!"

"Very well, I accept. Please, senior!"

Without further nonsense, I directly assumed a stance, circulated my entire store of true essence, and watched the old man not far away with heightened vigilance. De Guangqing's master seemed exceedingly calm, simply giving me a faint nod. "Good! Truly a young hero with courage and daring. Then let me spar with you and see if you are truly as formidable as my disciple claimed. Take my move!"

As soon as his voice trailed off, his elderly body moved even faster than that of a vigorous young man. His entire person merged into a single entity, radiating a fierce and violent momentum, brimming with dominance just like the king of the forest, a lion! Within the span of a single breath, his hands formed claws and he had already rushed right before me. I clenched my fists in excitement, knowing that the true moment of testing my martial arts had arrived.

"Whoosh..." A fierce gust of wind from his claws scraped past my ear. My dodge caused the old man to completely miss, and at that moment, the Ziyang true essence-infused fists I threw were likewise completely evaded as he twisted his waist. Both of us retreated three steps, returning to a state of standoff.

A master—an absolute master! This was my only evaluation of this exchange. Until now, no one had been able to evade my full-strength attack with such ease; the old man before me was the very first. Based on this feat alone, I knew that today I had genuinely encountered an opponent who also practiced internal energy.

"Eh? You actually practice internal energy?" At this point, the old man seemed to have also discovered my secret. He frowned and asked, "Kid, what school do you study under? Why is this internal energy of yours so bizarre?"

When experts cross blows, a single exchange reveals their depth. The master of the Lion Boxing Sect before me had clearly tested that I possessed internal energy, though he presumably still had no idea of its origin.

"No school, no sect, self-taught," I casually replied with eight words. Suddenly shifting from the Tiger Fist I had just used to the Mystifying Trace Fist, I attacked him once again. As he consecutively blocked over a dozen of my offensive strikes, he counterattacked while asking in astonishment, "The Mystifying Trace Fist? Are you a member of the Huo family?"

Ignoring him, I immediately withdrew the Mystifying Trace Fist. Combining long and short fist techniques, I launched a fierce, spinning attack toward him. Seeing him hurriedly block with the Lion's Heart-Plucking Fist technique from the Lion Boxing style, his expression grew even uglier. "Shaolin Long Fist... Who, who on earth are you?"

Just as his words fell, my legs suddenly swept an arc of Tai Chi across the ground, and my arms pushed forward toward him as if possessing a magnetic pull. Realizing the danger, he executed a turn and once again evaded my attack. "Tai Chi! You... How is this possible?! You actually know three completely different styles of boxing?"

Three? I sneered inwardly. In my mind, there were hundreds, if not thousands, of martial arts and boxing styles! Having made up my mind to keep him utterly baffled, I instantly shifted my fist momentum. This time, I employed the most authentic Lion's Tail-Whip from the Lion Boxing style! Amidst his utter astonishment, my leg swept violently toward his waist. Completely caught off guard by my lightning-fast speed, he was sent heavily crashing to the ground with a dull thud.

"Impossible... How can this be, how is this possible!" Stumbling in pain, the old man scrambled back up from the ground. He was completely dizzy and disoriented by my kaleidoscopic martial arts. If I had not been reborn, perhaps not a single person could be found throughout the entire martial arts world of Cathay who was simultaneously proficient in two schools of martial arts! Yet at this moment, I had consecutively unleashed four completely different boxing styles, and every single move was so exquisite that it was nearly impossible for him to guard against. Although the old man was a martial arts master, facing a fighting style like mine where the opponent could never predict what school the next move would come from, he was completely bewildered. In a duel between experts, the most terrifying thing is not the depth of each other's cultivation; the most terrifying thing is being unable to see through the opponent's moves! Moreover, he and I were both aided by exquisite internal energy.

Lion Boxing had merely served as an opening performance; the ensuing moves left the old man before me with no choice but to purely parry. I successively unleashed the boxing styles of the five ancient major martial arts schools of Cathay—Shaolin Fist, Kunlun Fist, Wudang Fist, Emei Fist, and Huashan Fist. Furthermore, I employed the Five Elements fists, namely Tiger Fist, Crane Fist, Praying Mantis Fist, Snake Fist, and Monkey Fist, driving him to the point where he completely lost the ability to parry. Nearly every single one of my moves struck him unexpectedly in his vulnerable spots, leaving him utterly incapable of withstanding my relentless rounds of fierce attacks.

"Bang!"

With a vicious punch squarely hitting the old man's face, he let out a miserable cry and was sent flying straight back, crashing heavily to the ground. The two thugs at the side hurriedly tried to help him up, but he angrily knocked them both down with a punch each. The old man before me truly deserved to be called a genuine master; having taken no fewer than ten of my punches, he was still able to barely stand. One must know that my fists were filled with the formidable true essence of the Ziyang Divine Art; anyone who could endure these blows and not collapse was already immensely powerful in their own right.

"Pfft..."

Struggling to his feet, a mouthful of blood spewed from his mouth, instantly staining his white cloth tunic. A look of sheer disbelief mixed with a trace of reluctance flashed in his eyes. Forcibly suppressing the internal injuries within his body, the old man nodded and said, "I finally understand why my disciple could not win against you. Can you tell me where you learned all these boxing styles?"

"No comment."

I certainly wasn't foolish enough to discuss this with him. Was I supposed to tell him the secret of my rebirth? You must be kidding!

Seeing that I refused to speak, the old man sighed helplessly. "Stepping down the mountain today, I finally learned what it means when they say there are mountains beyond mountains and people beyond people. Perhaps I stayed too long practicing in the mountain ravines... Ah, so be it. Striving for dominance and superiority is not the essence of a martial artist. I admit defeat, young man. It seems I am truly old; the future belongs to you young people."

"Well conceded!"

I cupped my fists in a salute toward the old man, feeling not a shred of animosity in my heart. I knew that this old man was a true man of the martial world—he knew how to take both victory and defeat gracefully, making him worthy of my respect.

"Master? You... You actually lost to that punk? How is that possible, how could this be!" At this moment, De Guangqing had already walked down from the second floor with his subordinates. With an expression of utter disbelief, he shook his head at his master. "It's impossible! You must have lost to him on purpose, right? It has to be! Your Lion Boxing hasn't encountered a match in decades; how could you possibly lose to this stinky punk?!"

"Shut up!" Glaring at De Guangqing, the old man roared angrily, "For martial artists, experiencing victory and defeat is entirely normal! Just how long are you going to keep brooding over this? Hurry up and release the hostage and offer your apologies to them! Since I lost this time, you must honor the promise!"

"Bah! You want me to apologize to him? Master, don't you know that Senior Brother's cultivation was crippled by him..." De Guangqing's face twitched with intense anger as he tried to argue defiantly, but his master immediately cut him off.

"Scoundrel! He lacked skill in his craft, so he has no one else to blame! Besides, if you hadn't instigated your senior brother to go and assassinate little brother Xiao, how could he possibly have crippled your senior brother's martial arts? Apologize and let them go right now!"

"No, I absolutely will not let them go! Boys, grab your hardware!"

De Guangqing's face twitched with a cold, sinister expression. With a wave of his large hand, several of his subordinates behind him immediately drew the handguns from inside their coats, taking aim at me and Chu Qitong in mid-air. "Master, it's not that I intentionally want to go against your wishes, but I am not the only one who wants this guy dead. His death is tied to the lives and fortunes of myself and my friends. Please forgive your unfilial disciple!"

"You... You beast! You refuse to even listen to your master's words now? Very well, your wings have hardened and you think you can fly on your own now, do you?" De Guangqing's defiance drove the old man into such a blind rage that he saw red, his complexion flushing crimson as he shouted furiously, "If you do not release them and apologize, from this day forward you are no longer my disciple!"

Gazing coldly at me and his master, De Guangqing suddenly drew a handgun from his own coat and instantly aimed it straight at his master. "Since you show no kindness, don't blame me for being unrighteous! I've tolerated you for decades, you old immortal! Don't think you can order me around just because your kung fu is good. If it weren't for those martial arts secrets on you, I would have blown your brains out with a bullet long ago; it wouldn't be your turn to throw tantrums in front of me!"

"You... What did you say?! Good, very well! I truly was blind to take a rebellious wretch like you as a disciple. If I don't teach you a thorough lesson today, I am no longer the master of the Lion Boxing Sect! Ha-yah!!"

The old man was completely driven out of his mind with rage. The disciple he had nurtured for over a dozen years actually dared to speak such words to his face. Without a second thought, he lunged forward, intending to heavily discipline De Guangqing.

"Bang!"

A gunshot suddenly rang out from De Guangqing's pistol. With eyes widened in almost uncreadible shock, the old man slowly lowered his head to look at his chest. A stream of spurting blood caused his entire body to stagger back two steps, his trembling hands clenching into fists before instantly stiffening. Perhaps even in death, he could not believe that the disciple he had raised with his own hands would actually shoot him.

At last, blood quickly stained his entire garment, and his aging body plunged heavily straight down to the ground, filled with lingering grievance.