CHAPTER 140: SLIPPERY AS AN EEL

Chapter 140: Slippery as an Eel

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Thinking about how he would crush his opponent, Li Duoji couldn’t help but feel fired up, and seeing that the other side hadn’t made a move yet, he decided to strike first.

"Today I’ll show you how big the difference between us really is!" Li Duoji, already in attack stance, dashed forward at full speed.

Seeing him charge at his opponent, the crowd erupted with excitement, and once again everyone cheered for both fighters.

Li Duoji closed the distance separating him from Zhu Rong in an instant, and as soon as he arrived, he went straight for a thrust, only to find the other side calmly watching him, stepping aside and letting the spear go past.

But that didn’t seem to shake Li Duoji.

He had seen Zhu Rong’s earlier battles, so he knew that besides great strength, his speed wasn’t bad either.

Still, that didn’t worry him too much.

He was confident he could beat him even in that aspect.

The spear that had shot forward was pulled back to the side with force, precise and controlled movements, yet once again his opponent avoided the attack without showing the slightest difficulty.

This went on for another couple of strikes, and the audience couldn’t help but notice how easily Zhu Rong seemed to dodge the blows.

And the footwork he was using to move so smoothly was nothing more than the basic technique taught at the academy.

This made some cheer, while others didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, seeing how, even against someone like Li Duoji, the other side continued to rely on such a simple movement technique.

They were waiting for this clash not only to see the skills of the two finalists, but also to find out what else Zhu Rong had up his sleeve. Until now, he had won all his fights quickly and with relative ease, never showing signs of struggle.

And yet here he was, using the academy’s basic footwork technique to slip away from his opponent’s strikes, even in such an important fight. The most frustrating thing, for both the crowd and the instructors, was that he was doing it with ease, not showing the slightest sign of difficulty.

This irritated many, and even some of the instructors couldn’t help but shake their heads, wondering if this unexpected contestant was taking the fight seriously at all.

Chen Ao, seeing how his student couldn’t land a hit on Zhu Rong, who slipped away like a slippery eel, couldn’t help but feel frustrated as he muttered:

"This student really knows nothing but running away."

Hearing his words, many other instructors nodded, while others stayed quiet, not because they disagreed, but either because they didn’t want to argue over something so trivial, or because they simply didn’t care and wanted to see how the fight would play out.

Even Liang Yuexing, hearing his words, didn’t comment, focusing only on Zhu Rong’s battle. She couldn’t help but notice how he had turned such a basic leg technique into a deadly weapon in combat. No matter how many complained, no one could say anything about Zhu Rong’s actual skill.

After all, who else had mastered the academy’s basic footwork technique to such a level?

Who could claim to do the same in this situation?

Many realized this, but said nothing, continuing to watch the fight.

In the arena, seeing Zhu Rong continue to slip away from his spear strikes, even Li Duoji couldn’t help but get angry.

"Bastard, is running all you can do?" he shouted, channeling a bit of Wind Qi into his weapon and changing his attack style.

His earlier moves were purely offensive and fierce, but now his strikes aimed more at exhausting and confusing his opponent.

Li Duoji’s attacks grew faster and sharper, and with every move, wind currents formed, striking at his opponent even before the spear itself arrived.

Normally this would have caught someone off guard, but Zhu Rong didn’t seem bothered in the least.

"Thought you wanted to fight seriously... and yet you’re still holding back? Then allow me to give you a little push" Zhu Rong said, his words echoing through the arena.

They made Li Duoji frown for a moment, but he had no time to dwell on it, because suddenly he lost sight of his opponent.

"Where-2 he tried to spot him immediately, but he had no chance.

The next moment, someone appeared right in front of him, and a powerful strike came from below, smashing into his jaw.

Pain shot through his mouth, and he nearly bit his tongue from the blow.

Though the strike itself wasn’t devastating, its speed and force caught him off guard and hurt him badly.

He quickly staggered back a few steps, showing off his spear technique as he recovered without losing momentum, counterattacking straight at his opponent in front of him.

But it was useless. Zhu Rong, who had been right there a moment ago, vanished again, and before Li Duoji could even determine where he had gone, Zhu Rong was already beside him, landing another blow, this time on his side.

A dull sound rang out as Li Duoji was sent flying a few meters to the side.

When he stopped, he felt a strange taste in his mouth, metallic, bitter, and sharp. He had the urge to spit, but resisted, swallowing down the mouthful of blood that had formed.

His face twisted with rage as he looked at his opponent standing calmly in the same place as before, with a serene expression, as if he weren’t fighting but toying with a child.

That drove him into a fury, and without hesitation he unleashed the cultivation he had kept suppressed until now at the third stage.

The intensity of the energy around him surged, quickly pushing past the peak of the third stage and rising toward the fourth.

He hadn’t thought it necessary to go all out against someone like Zhu Rong, but those few blows had been enough to push him over the edge.