CHAPTER 581: CHAPTER 545: BATTLE OF A THOUSAND YEARS

Sensing that the steel wire beneath his feet might break, Wu Li decisively withdrew his power.

On the other side, Adam, who had landed solidly on the steel wire, almost simultaneously eased his force.

With realms nearly at the pinnacle of Grandmasters, after a few exchanges, they had a thorough understanding of the condition of the steel wire beneath them and knew exactly how much force it could bear.

The next instant, both men made their move to attack at the same time!

There was a definite limit to the force that the steel wire below could handle, and if one of them exerted more power, the other had to use less, or the wire would break.

Therefore, whoever struck first would be able to use more force!

Boom!

Fists and palms collided, and the moment they touched, both men pulled back, and then they both lunged forward almost simultaneously to attack.

Adam threw a straight punch, while Wu Li’s right palm slashed toward the other’s wrist. Twisting his waist to redirect the power, he deflected Adam’s right fist while his arm twisted and pressed down like a snake coiling around a stick, his fingers aiming for the opponent’s eyes.

This technique was the "Golden Snake Entwining Willow" from Bagua Palm, vicious and known for its adaptability. But when Wu Li used it, the aura was completely different, emanating a ferocity like that of a python swallowing the sky!

At Wu Li’s level, any technique, regardless of the school or martial arts style, could be performed with his own unique flair—Bagua Palm’s dexterous techniques in his hands could still become as fiercely tyrannical as Xingyi.

Adam dodged his fingers by tilting his head, his right hand likewise pressing against Wu Li’s arm. In an instant, Adam employed three layers of power.

Wu Li’s right arm tensed, muscles swelling and sinews stretching, using localized "Heavenly Tilt."

The next second, his arm softened again. This alternation between firmness and softness effortlessly neutralized Adam’s power, and then his arm swelled again, thrusting like a steel spear toward Adam’s chest. Adam raised his arm to block it.

As a Xingyi Grandmaster, Wu Li’s techniques were powerful and expansive. Adam had led him here to clash in finer, more intricate Kung Fu, but after several exchanges, it had not turned out in his favor.

Adam’s expression changed, and that divine-like aura appeared on him once more as he used the Divine Descent Technique again!

This time he didn’t enhance his Body value but instead raised his Divine Value and Power value.

Through System Detection, Wu Li saw that Adam’s Divine and Power values had once again reached 199!

At this moment, they didn’t need too much strength; the contest was about Fist Intent and control over one’s body.

After employing the Divine Descent Technique, Adam suddenly retreated a step.

That step pushed the steel wire beneath down, taut to the breaking point!

Before Wu Li could react, Adam stepped forward again, a jab headed straight for Wu Li’s face.

This jab was incredibly simple, or to put it another way, extremely concise, delivering a midline strike to perfection by taking the shortest route!

To Wu Li, this punch felt like it was calculated with meticulous precision by a computer, lacking any unnecessary movements, following the absolute shortest path.

It was the most straightforward and purest punch Wu Li had ever seen!

Vroom!

As the fist hit Wu Li’s face, he heard a roaring sound, different from the resonance of Innate Gang Qi, bearing the sharpness of high-speed vibrating metal, more piercing.

Clearly, Adam’s power-release method differed from the Traditional Martial Arts of Hua Country.

Wu Li slightly leaned back to avoid the punch.

Adam advanced another step and threw another punch.

Wu Li dodged again.

In less than a second, Wu Li had evaded three times, while Adam had thrown three punches, intent on penetrating, breaking through, piercing whatever stood in his way!

Each punch stopped mere millimeters from Wu Li’s face. To many viewers watching the live broadcast, it seemed as if Adam had already hit Wu Li, causing countless fans and those concerned for Wu Li to worry.

After dodging three times, Wu Li got a rough handle on Adam’s punching style and began to counterattack.

Adam’s punches were fast; Wu Li’s were just as fast. And when Wu Li began to release power, Adam was forced to retract his.

When Wu Li struck, it was Heavenly Punishment, the first and most fundamental Ultimate Move he had created.

His right fist rose, then chopped downward.

Wu Li’s movements appeared to be more complex than Adam’s and even followed a diagonal trajectory.

Yet, remarkably, Wu Li’s right fist managed to chop precisely onto Adam’s fist.

Logically, Adam’s straight punch should have been faster, yet it was interrupted by Wu Li’s Splitting Fist.

This seemed to contradict common sense, but it did conform to the law of the Five Elements: splitting breaks through beng; metal conquers wood!

On ancient battlefields, when spears clashed, the opponent would thrust a spear, I would chop downwards with my own to knock theirs away, leading to a direct thrust to kill, and this principle was encapsulated in that action.

The "Sword Scripture" says, "One strike, one lift, the whole body becomes energized; advancing step by step, unrivaled under the heavens."

One strike is the lifting, one lift is the chopping.

As a Xingyi Grandmaster, and the world’s number one, Wu Li seemed intent on showing Adam this: what kind of fist technique was truly unrivaled under the heavens!

Wu Li’s fist chopped onto Adam’s, and in that instant, Adam’s fist whirled like a high-speed drill bit, ferociously spinning once, completely nullifying Wu Li’s force.

He then stepped back and immediately stepped forward, still thrusting a straight punch.

Wu Li also retreated a step, then advanced, unleashing a Splitting Fist.

The two exchanged blows in this advance and retreat, continuously throwing punches.

The wire beneath their feet also swayed up and down, alternately taut and slack.

The wire underfoot meant that the total force between the two remained constant, turning their contest into a tug-of-war to see who could secure more power with each technique.

So, their seemingly redundant moves of advancing and retreating contained too much significance:

A retreat was to gather strength, to seize more space for launching an attack and also to allow the wire underfoot to recoil without snapping.

An advance was to unleash force, to hit the opponent more quickly, and to push the tension limit of the wire as far as possible.

Therefore, their retreating and advancing varied in speed and distance each time, making subtle adjustments according to the opponent’s force and the condition of the wire, endeavoring to seize greater power and push the limits of what the wire could withstand!

In these advances and retreats, Adam was like a supercomputer operating billions of calculations per second, synthesizing all data to derive the optimal solution, with each strike pinpoint accurate.

His gaze bore not a trace of humanity, only the coldest calculations—this was the hallmark of his Divine Descent Technique.

In stark contrast, Wu Li’s movements were so fluid and carefree, giving an impression of such natural ease that it seemed as if every step and every punch was just as it should be.

His techniques possessed an indescribable charm, verging on the essence of Tao!

Adam’s martial arts were learned from thousands of the world’s most advanced fighters and martial artists. He categorized and summarized their techniques, carried out data analysis, and ultimately, combining his own body’s data, created this pure and exceedingly simple straight punch.

Furthermore, through the use of pharmaceuticals, genetic modification technology, and spirit hypnosis, he engineered the Divine Descent Technique, which allowed him to strike like a supercomputer—an embodiment of the pinnacle of the era’s scientific achievements in the realm of combat arts!

And Wu Li, as the foremost master of martial arts, represented the most authentic and traditional forms of Martial Arts!

The clash between the two was more like a showdown between Martial Arts and science.

Martial arts have had a splendid and bright history over a thousand years but have also experienced the embarrassment of being gradually phased out.

And now, Wu Li’s achievements in martial arts could be said to be at a pinnacle!

Even comparing him to the great masters of the Republic period like Sun and Li, or even to the legendary Dharma and Zhang Sanfeng, Wu Li could confidently say, "You have to fight to know!"

He represented the pinnacle!

As for how science might evolve in the future, whether it might manufacture many top-notch experts as Adam claimed, Wu Li did not know. But at least for now, as the pinnacle of martial arts, he was determined to separate the victor from the defeated with Adam.

This could very well be the last, and most spectacular bloom of martial arts in this era of advanced science—a battle of a millennium!