My martial arts have no bottlenecks.

Chapter 15 The Grand Competition

Juying Manor, Martial Arts Arena.

Six flag stands on the four sides, representing the six major martial arts schools: Zhennan, Yangwei, Liuyun, Tiezhang, Qingfeng, and Haichao. Their flags flutter in the north wind.

On the high platform to the north of the martial arts arena, the special envoy of the city lord's mansion sat in the main seat, flanked by the heads of the three major local clans. Behind them stood more than ten martial artists with steady auras, all of whom were at the level of internal strength.

Dozens of business representatives were also present on the sidelines, their eyes scanning the disciples of each martial arts school. The year-end competition was not only a ranking of martial arts schools, but also an opportunity for each school to select investment targets.

"Masters of internal strength can be appointed as retainers, with an annual salary of two hundred taels, and medical expenses can also be provided," a fat merchant whispered. "The best among those with external strength can also receive a settlement allowance of one hundred taels and be given special training."

"But they still have to survive." The person next to him sneered. "See? Zhennan Martial Arts School is on fire this year. Wu Xiao has already reached the mid-stage of Dark Strength, and it's said that he's only a step away from the late stage."

"Zhao Yuan of Yangwei Martial Arts School is also a master of internal strength. We'll see what he does today."

Among the six martial arts schools, the most prominent is Yangwei Martial Arts School in Zhennan. Today, each school has two disciples with hidden strength, while the other schools only have one disciple with hidden strength.

However, Zhennan and Yangwei Martial Arts Schools have a long-standing feud, and today's situation is likely to end badly. At this moment, the heads of the six schools have all drawn their lots, their faces are calm, and their emotions are unreadable.

In the arena, a gong suddenly sounded.

"Round 1: Zhao Yuan from Yangwei Martial Arts School vs. Chen Tao from Haichao Martial Arts School!"

Zhao Yuan leaped onto the blue stone arena, his tall figure accentuated by his brocade blue outfit. Opposite him was a dark-skinned, muscular man wielding two swords; he was none other than a peak-level Ming Jin disciple of the Hai Chao Martial Arts School.

"please."

Zhao Yuan clasped his hands in a fist salute, but his eyes glanced toward the Zhennan Martial Arts School, where Wu Xiao was standing with his arms crossed, sneering.

"Excuse me!"

Chen Tao wielded his twin swords and charged forward swiftly, the flashes of his blades like a tidal wave.

Zhao Yuan neither dodged nor evaded, and only moved suddenly when the blade was three feet away from him.

Raging Bull Force - Mountain-Crushing Lean!

He dodged the blade to the side, his right shoulder slamming into Chen Tao's chest like a hammer. With a muffled thud, Chen Tao was sent flying backward, his two swords flying out of his hands. He spat out a mouthful of blood in mid-air and crashed heavily onto the edge of the arena.

"Thank you for your concession."

Zhao Yuan withdrew his stance and stood with his hands behind his back.

A low cheer rose from the sidelines; the opponent was defeated in one move, clean and swift.

"Zhao Yuansheng of Yangwei Martial Arts School!"

The referee shouted.

Zhao Yuan bowed towards Yangwei Martial Arts School, Yang Wei nodded slightly, Zhou Hu remained calm, and Liang Cheng stood in the line of disciples, his expression serene.

Sure enough, before the referee could announce the next match, Wu Xiao had already leaped onto the ring.

"Wu Xiao of Zhennan Martial Arts School challenges Zhao Yuan of Yangwei Martial Arts School!" His voice was loud and clear, echoing throughout the arena. "Since we are both at the Dark Force level, let's settle this now and avoid the hassle of drawing lots later."

An uproar erupted on the sidelines.

"This is against the rules..."

The referee looked towards the platform.

The city lord's envoy, a fair-skinned, beardless middle-aged man, chuckled upon hearing this: "It's a good thing that young people have vigor. Zhao Yuan, are you ready to accept the challenge? If you do, this battle will be the first round of confrontation between the two schools."

All eyes were on Zhao Yuan. Zhao Yuan took a deep breath, his chest surging with pride. He had just defeated his enemy in one move and was full of energy. How could he back down?

"war!"

"Alright!" Wu Xiao grinned, revealing a set of white teeth. "Don't worry, I'll spare your life."

Once both sides were in position, the gong sounded, and Wu Xiao struck first.

Without any probing or initial stance, Wu Xiao shot out like an arrow, his right hand forming a claw, aiming straight for Zhao Yuan's heart!

The claw-like wind was fierce, and it even brought with it a faint sound of something tearing through the air.

"Mastery of Eagle Claw Kung Fu?"

Someone on the sidelines exclaimed in surprise.

Zhao Yuan's heart skipped a beat. He quickly took half a step back, blocked with both hands, and unleashed his full power of the Wild Bull Force, his fist as heavy as a wall.

"Sizzle—"

The fists clashed, producing a piercing sound like metal scraping against metal. Zhao Yuan felt a sharp pain in his fist and looked down to see three bloody welts on the back of his hand.

"Those claws are so hard!"

He was secretly alarmed.

Wu Xiao's attacks continued relentlessly, each claw faster than the last, targeting vital points with ruthless and cunning moves. It was less like a martial arts contest and more like a life-or-death struggle.

Zhao Yuan retreated repeatedly. Although his Wild Bull Strength was fierce, he broke through with medicinal soup, while his opponent's Eagle Claw Skill was fully mastered and completely suppressed.

After twenty moves, he was already struggling to stay afloat, and several wounds appeared on his chest.

"Zhao Yuan is losing his composure."

Zhou Hu frowned. Zhao Yuan was suppressed at every turn and was no match for Wu Xiao. Yang Wei sat to the side expressionless, but Liang Cheng noticed that his right hand clenched slightly.

At this moment on the stage, Wu Xiao suddenly changed his move. He feinted with a claw to force Zhao Yuan back, then shifted his footing and circled around to Zhao Yuan's side and back, his right claw flashing as it grabbed the back of Zhao Yuan's neck!

The attack was so sudden that Zhao Yuan hurriedly turned to the side, but he was a beat too slow.

"Pfft!"

Wu Xiao's five fingers, like hooks, dug deeply into Zhao Yuan's left shoulder. With a burst of hidden force, blood instantly stained Zhao Yuan's clothes.

"what!"

Zhao Yuan roared in pain and threw a backhand punch at Wu Xiao's face. Wu Xiao neither dodged nor avoided it. He blocked with his left hand and then twisted his right claw fiercely!

"Snap!"

The clear sound of bone cracking echoed throughout the venue.

Zhao Yuan's left arm hung limply, his face ashen. Wu Xiao grinned and delivered a knee strike to Zhao Yuan's abdomen.

"puff--"

Zhao Yuan spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs and flew off the stage. Fortunately, Zhou Hu reacted quickly and caught Zhao Yuan, preventing him from crashing to the ground.

The entire room fell into a deathly silence.

The members of Yangwei Martial Arts School stood up abruptly. Zhou Hu reached out and touched his shoulder, his face turning ashen: "His shoulder bone is shattered, and his internal organs are injured. He will need at least six months of rest."

Yang Wei slowly stood up, staring at Wu Xiao on the stage: "Such a young age, yet such ruthless methods."

Wu Xiao shook the blood off his hands and grinned, "In a friendly spar, it's easy to lose control. Please forgive me, Master Yang."

On the high platform, the special envoy of the city lord's mansion clapped his hands: "Excellent! At such a young age, to have mastered the Eagle Claw Kung Fu to such a high level is truly remarkable, even among those with hidden strength. Master Wu, your nephew has a bright future ahead of him."

Wu Tianxiong laughed heartily: "You flatter me, Special Envoy."

Among the merchants, some whispered among themselves, "Wu Xiao is someone we should focus on getting close to."

"He acted too ruthlessly; his character needs further observation."

"Ruthless is good. The guards need ruthless characters like this."

On the stage, the referee did not hesitate and announced loudly: "Wu Xiaosheng of Zhennan Martial Arts School and Zhao Yuan of Yangwei Martial Arts School are eliminated due to serious injuries."

Wu Xiao's gaze swept over the disciples of Yangwei Martial Arts School, and he couldn't help but sneer, "Is this all Yangwei Martial Arts School can do? Who's next?"

The disciples glared angrily, but none dared to speak. Zhao Yuan was already the second best in the martial arts school, yet he had suffered such a miserable defeat. Anyone who went up against him would only be throwing their life away.

Zhou Hu took a deep breath and was about to go on stage when Wu Tianxiong of Zhennan Martial Arts School suddenly laughed and said, "Master Yang, you won't let Zhou Hu bully the younger ones, will you? If he goes on stage, I'll concede defeat for Xiao'er."

Yang Wei's face was grim. He could already see Wu Tianxiong's eldest disciple eager to try. The two were evenly matched, and if Zhou Hu lost, he would lose both face and reputation.

Just then, Zhou Hu suddenly looked at Liang Cheng and asked, "Junior Brother Liang, would you like to go on stage?"

Liang Cheng?

Everyone, including Yang Wei, looked at Liang Cheng. Yang Wei had been focused on Zhao Yuan, and only then did he realize that Liang Cheng's current state was extremely different.

It wasn't that Zhou Hu's eyesight was better than Yang Wei's; it was just that he, as the senior disciple, had always been paying attention to Liang Cheng.

Liang Cheng stood up, his voice calm.

"This disciple is willing to go."

Liang Cheng stepped out of the ranks, dressed in blue robes and a black belt, his expression calm. Yang Wei looked at him intently and nodded slowly. "Be careful."

Liang Cheng nodded in agreement, then turned around and walked step by step toward the ring.

A murmur rippled through the crowd from the sidelines.

"Who is this person?"

"Never heard of Yangwei Martial Arts School having a third hidden strength technique?"

"Looks young, even if he's at the Dark Force level, he's probably just broken through. Are we just going to go up there and die?"

Among the merchants, the plump merchant squinted: "This kid has a steady gait and a restrained aura; he's probably not simple."

On the arena, Wu Xiao looked at Liang Cheng, who was walking slowly towards him, and smiled contemptuously: "Another one coming to die? State your name, I don't harm nameless nobody."

Liang Cheng stepped onto the ring and stood still.

"Yangwei Martial Arts School, Liang Cheng."

"please."