CHAPTER 141: THREE ELEMENTS?

Chapter 141: Three Elements?

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The initial exchange of blows between the two made the crowd cheer, seeing how Zhu Rong, with only basic movement techniques that even they knew, had blocked his opponent’s attacks, and not only that, but had also struck him more than once, making many of them euphoric.

None of them thought such results could be achieved with a basic footwork technique, yet here they were, watching the opposite happen.

It made them realize that their understanding of the technique and their mastery of its use was nothing compared to Zhu Rong’s. Watching how he moved smoothly through Li Duoji’s barrage of attacks stirred the blood of many who couldn’t wait to return to training and raise their own mastery of the technique.

That said, even if this excited them, just watching him dodge made some a little bored, so when they saw him deliver two quick, rapid strikes to his opponent, who couldn’t help but retreat, they got more lively. At first glance, those strikes seemed simple, but the more experienced in the crowd immediately noticed how precise they had been.

For example, the strike from below to the jaw with the palm of the hand, if enough force was used, it not only caused injuries but also clouded the opponent’s mind, giving the attacker the chance to continue pressing forward.

Of course, it didn’t have much of an effect on someone like Li Duoji, but it still did some damage, and this was clear in the second attack that used his blind spot and, with his mind clouded and Zhu Rong’s great speed, allowed him to land another strike, this time at his side, far more intense, which made Li Duoji stagger back a little.

Even if they didn’t see him spit blood, they could tell that attack had hurt and surely caused some internal damage.

The third years could sense that this strike was infused with Qi and that the point struck was a rather vulnerable one. If the attack was imbued with Qi, then the damage caused would have been greater, especially if the Qi control was good enough to inject it into the opponent and damage their internal organs.

The third years who specialized in close combat knew what was happening, and watching that strike made some shiver, while others couldn’t help but nod, impressed that a second year had such a grasp of close quarters fighting

Sure, judging from the little he had shown so far, there wasn’t much they could say about his abilities, but that didn’t matter, even that little was more than enough to draw some conclusions.

That said, when they saw Li Duoji release his full cultivation, many couldn’t help but grow even more excited.

And why wouldn’t they?

After all, Zhu Rong had managed to block and attack Li Duoji while his strength was still suppressed at the third stage. But now that it wasn’t anymore and he was at the fourth stage, what would happen?

Would he still be able to take the battle easy, or would they finally see him struggle a little and perhaps even show more of his abilities?

This fired up many, and even the instructors couldn’t help but feel more excited than before.

Seeing this, Zhu Rong smiled and said,

"Well then, now the battle will be a little more interesting."

As he said that, he manipulated his wind and fire elements within his dantian, running them swiftly through his meridians, and soon, on his right hand, a vortex of fire formed.

But it didn’t stop there.

It twisted, then began to stretch until it reached a length of about two and a half meters.

Seeing this, the crowd couldn’t help but frown in surprise as they noticed what he had in his hand.

A spear of fire?

Had he really decided to go for a spear against an opponent specialized in that weapon?

And not even a material one, but one made of condensed elemental fire Qi.

While the crowd was still surprised by this sudden choice, some of them couldn’t help but murmur,

"Is it just me, or is there a bit of wind element in that spear too?" said one third year student whose main affinity was with wind.

Hearing this, others spoke up too,

"indeed, but wait, fire, wind, and before even earth, has this madman really decided to practice three elements?" said another, immediately pointing out something nearly everyone had overlooked.

Indeed, Zhu Rong had used earth earlier to repel other attacks. Even if he hadn’t used it on a large scale, the mere fact that he used it made people assume it was his main element. But now they were seeing him use two more, and given how he had formed that spear, his control over them was clearly high.

Didn’t this mean he had actually trained in three elements? One of which was fire, an element notoriously difficult to control.

This realization made many frown while others were stunned.

Even the instructors were caught off guard by this and couldn’t help but comment,

"Tch, to think with such talent he’d decide to train in three elements. What a waste," said one of them.

"Hmm, it really isn’t the best decision, but I must admit his control over all three is rather high. Could it be that his affinity with these three elements is at an uncommon level?"

"Hmm, maybe, but even so, fire alone is powerful. To split focus into others is not a good idea.

Even two would be acceptable, but three? This boy will face problems in his cultivation later," said another, shaking his head.

Even if right now his control over the three elements seemed strong, they knew that as he progressed, those elements would need to be raised further, or else they would become dead weights.

Cultivating one element was already problematic. Three? Without abundant resources and great talent, it was nothing less than digging his own grave, which was why all of them couldn’t help but disapprove of such a decision.

Chen Ao, who had been watching the battle with a rather frustrated expression, finally found some relief and couldn’t help but to join in:

"Tch, the boy has great potential, but his choices are far from the best. What a waste. If I had been his teacher, I would never have let him make such a reckless decision," he said, not able to resist casting a glance toward Liang Yuexing.