Invincibility Begins with Mastery of Fist Techniques-Chapter 36: Jingzhe

「One day later. Night. Changlong City.」

Chunlei Duel Arena.

A luxury sedan pulled up outside the club-like arena.

"Hurry up, hurry up! We’re just going to watch some dueling matches, and we have to wear masks. Why are you even putting on makeup?!"

Sun Dao’an got out of the car, dragging Xu Yan by the arm as he rushed toward the arena.

"What’s the rush? The match doesn’t start for another hour!"

Xu Yan complained.

"Weren’t you the one who told me? You heard at the Lanhai Club that this match has the attention of the entire Tianlu Prefecture Martial Arts Realm. If we’re late, do you think there’ll be any seats left? Are we supposed to watch the match with binoculars?!"

Sun Dao’an said, looking displeased.

"It’s just one match. In an arena this big, how could there not be a seat for you?"

Xu Yan said helplessly.

However, when the two of them walked into the arena, they were truly taken aback by the explosive scene inside.

With about an hour to go before the match, the circular, tiered seating, which could hold over a thousand people, was already two-thirds full. Although many spectators wore masks, their powerful builds and chiseled muscles made it almost certain they were insiders skilled in the martial arts.

And such individuals accounted for more than half of the people present.

Sun Dao’an had always thought his own physique was quite impressive compared to the average person, but measured against the crowd here, he felt so inferior he could barely lift his head.

A quick scan revealed a woman in a Nezha mask whose arms were twice as thick as his. He figured her massive palms could probably crush his skull with a single slap.

Under the gazes of this crowd, Xu Yan and Sun Dao’an cautiously entered the arena and found an empty spot to sit.

"Are all these people from the Tianlu Martial Arts Realm?"

Sun Dao’an whispered to Xu Yan, carefully surveying their surroundings from his seat.

"I think so. I heard that there are fourteen schools in the Tianlu Martial Arts Realm, but among all of them, there are no more than three Martial Artists who can compare to Qin Baisheng and Zhou Yuanjue. To ordinary Martial Artists, figures like them are idols and legends. So, after the news of this public duel spread, quite a few people from the Martial Arts Realm and martial arts enthusiasts came flocking here."

Xu Yan said in a low voice.

"Who do you think will win?"

Sun Dao’an asked with great anticipation.

"I’m not an insider, how would I know?"

Xu Yan rolled her eyes but answered anyway. "The Chunlei Martial Arts Academy didn’t set up any betting for this public duel, but with this much attention, there are plenty of outside pools. I checked beforehand. On most of them, the odds on Zhou Yuanjue are higher, which means most of the professional bookmakers think he’s more likely to lose."

"Bullshit! There’s no way he’ll lose!"

Sun Dao’an said, annoyed. Ever since Zhou Yuanjue had defeated Yan Hao and dispelled the gloomy "theory of talent" that had been weighing on his mind, Zhou Yuanjue had become his new idol and spiritual leader.

"Believe it or not."

Xu Yan rolled her eyes again, not bothering to argue with this hot-headed little fanboy.

Though they were speaking quietly, their conversation was overheard by three people sitting a few seats away.

"Master, Senior Brother, in this duel, does Zhou Yuanjue really have a higher chance of losing?" Lin Heng, who wore a mask and casual clothes, asked the two people beside him.

"To some extent, Qin Baisheng’s Thunderbolt Rushing Palm is indeed a counter to the Assassination Fist, which is likely why the outside betting pools made that judgment," the tall A Nan said, his gaze profound as he recalled their brief exchange. "However, a Fist Technique is static, while a person is dynamic. That man is far from being as simple as these outsiders believe."

’That perfectly harmonious Martial Dao, that technique refined to the absolute extreme... I didn’t even have the right to fight back.’

"That’s right. What’s powerful has never been the Fist Technique, but the person using it. Without experiencing it firsthand, they can’t possibly know how terrifying that man is. He absolutely won’t stop here. Tianlu Prefecture is not enough to contain him."

Gong Shouzhuo, dressed in a modern Tang suit, said slowly from the side.

As a Great Master of Fist Techniques who had once fought Zhou Yuanjue with all his might, his understanding was the most profound, and he had the most authority to speak on the matter.

Meanwhile, Zhao Zhengxuan and Luo Yongli, also wearing masks, took their seats in the front row of the arena. Time flew by, and the arranged duel that had captured the attention of the entire Tianlu Martial Arts Realm was about to begin.

DONG!!!

Following a drumbeat that boomed like muffled thunder, the iron grates at both entrances to the arena slowly rose, and two figures gradually emerged from the shadows.

On the left was Qin Baisheng. He wore only a pair of tight athletic shorts, revealing a lean, streamlined physique packed with explosive power.

On the other side, Zhou Yuanjue wore simple, loose martial arts pants, his upper body exposed like the statue of an epic hero from antiquity.

As the two entered, the surrounding whispers and discussions among the audience ceased instantly. A silence fell, filled with a strange solemnity.

This was respect for the strong.

In the center of the arena, the two stood ten paces apart.

"You and I have no personal enmity, but this world is one where the weak are prey for the strong. Don’t blame me for this."

Qin Baisheng said calmly to Zhou Yuanjue.

"You can say that after you’ve beaten me."

Zhou Yuanjue’s eyes were half-lidded. Before a duel, he habitually entered a state of meditative stillness to tune both his body and Spirit to their optimal condition.

"Fine. Now that we’re in the ring, more words are pointless. Let’s see what you’ve really got."

Qin Baisheng nodded.

The two assumed their fighting stances almost simultaneously.

Zhou Yuanjue noticed that the moment Qin Baisheng assumed his stance, his pupils suddenly shrank to pinpoints.

Then, he saw Qin Baisheng’s skin abruptly go from relaxed to taut. The pores on his skin tightened into tiny bumps, and the hair on his body and head stood on end. All his muscles seemed to twitch and contract violently in a single instant.

The feeling was as if Qin Baisheng’s body had been struck by an electric current.

Thunderbolt Rushing Palm, Jingzhe Force!

This method of Power Release was the result of the Spirit and body working in coordination.

When a living creature’s muscles suddenly switch from a relaxed state to a tense one, they generate explosive force. The shorter this transition time, the stronger the short-range explosive power.

And living beings, in fact, are naturally equipped with a method of explosion that surpasses their conscious control.

That is, "startle."

The moment a living being is startled, its body’s instinctive self-preservation mechanism kicks in, and its muscles automatically switch from relaxed to tense in an instant. This sudden change can sometimes even exceed the body’s limits, causing injury.

It’s like a cat encountering a stick-like object behind it, or the stress response of a frightened horse. 𝕗𝚛𝚎𝚎𝐰𝗲𝗯𝗻𝚘𝚟𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝕞

In this state, a creature’s instinctive explosive power is unimaginably strong.

As a First Grade Fist Technique, the Thunderbolt Rushing Palm uses special, secret training methods to integrate the concept of "startle" into its Power Release!

Instantly, moving from stillness to motion, Qin Baisheng’s movements were as fast as lightning. Under the lights of the night-time arena, he actually left an afterimage on the retinas of those present!

The crack of spring thunder awakens all life; a dragon rises from the earth, swift and unstoppable!