Chapter 29: Combat Examination
Within the enormous training grounds, the students taking the examination stood in neat lines, their gazes fixed on the proctor at the front.
This scar-faced, powerfully built, middle-aged man, who exuded a murderous aura, was none other than Zhang Yu’s martial arts teacher, Lei Jun.
If the five major subjects of the high school Immortal Dao—Dao heart, magic power, and physical education—were considered foundational, then martial arts and Daoist arts were the practical application of those immortal techniques.
As for whether martial arts or Daoist arts were stronger or more useful, cultivators each had their own differing opinions.
Zhang Yu still recalled a controversial rant this martial arts teacher, Lei Jun, had delivered during their very first class.
“In this world, martial arts are incredibly useful; Daoist arts are worthless.”
“Every Daoist art you practice is another path to poverty. The more you train, the poorer you become, until all your money ends up in corporate pockets and you’re left a destitute wretch.”
“But martial arts are cheaper, more cost-effective, and still highly practical. Therefore, only by practicing affordable martial arts can you build a fortune; the more you train, the wealthier you become.”
This was Lei Jun’s martial philosophy.
As today’s proctor, Lei Jun likewise refrained from using the power of any Daoist art.
His method for arranging the monthly exam was always the same: have students with similar scores from the previous month draw lots for one-on-one combat.
The two opponents would fight three consecutive matches, each with a duration of three minutes. A match would end if someone was knocked down or forced out of bounds within that time.
After all three matches were concluded, the teacher would award a score based on both combatants’ performance.
This was actually quite similar to the martial arts combat test in the college entrance examination, except that during the college exam, students fought against Yellow Turban Strongmen rather than each other.
But this was just a monthly exam, after all, so it was impossible to truly adopt the standards of the college entrance exam, especially since not hiring Yellow Turban Strongmen saved the school a considerable sum of money.
And so, after Lei Jun finished explaining the rules for the combat examination, the large screen overhead flickered to life, and as names began appearing one by one, the lottery commenced.
Once the drawing concluded, the results were sent to each student’s phone, instructing them to proceed to their designated areas to begin the combat examination.
The entire training ground had been divided by white lines into a grid of small squares, each a dozen or so square meters in size, serving as an individual fighting ring.
Following the lottery results, Zhang Yu walked into square number 12 and saw He Dayou already waiting for him.
Seeing He Dayou offer a polite smile and a nod, Zhang Yu nodded in return.
“You finally came,” He Dayou said, suppressing the violent urge in his heart as he slowly walked toward the center of the square.
In order to teach Zhang Yu a lesson under legitimate pretenses, He Dayou had used his privilege as the son of a school director to rig the lottery, matching Zhang Yu, who ranked 10th last month, against himself, who had ranked 3rd.
Of course, according to the lottery rules, their scores from the previous month were close enough that the matchup was unlikely to be questioned.
But this past month, aside from his magic power class, his progress in the other subjects has long since fallen behind, hasn’t it? His true rank should be somewhere between 20th and 30th.
He Dayou, on the other hand, considered himself to have not only maintained his top-three standing, but had also raised his Freehand Combat to level 2 two weeks ago, and had even recently mastered a new martial art at a tutoring center.
Still, I won’t need the new martial art. To deal with this pauper, level 2 Freehand Combat is more than enough.
The only question now is… should I injure his arm? Or his leg?
Lost in thought, He Dayou walked with Zhang Yu to the center of the square, the two of them taking their positions just over a meter apart.
He Dayou’s eyes began to roam over Zhang Yu’s body as he considered how he would inflict a painful blow.
Outside the square, an assistant teacher took out a phone and began to record a video.
After the examination, Lei Jun and the other first-year martial arts teachers would review all the combat videos in order to assign their scores.
“Are you two ready?”
Hearing the assistant teacher’s question, Zhang Yu and He Dayou nodded in unison.
“Then, model class students Zhang Yu and He Dayou, first combat match…”
“3, 2, 1… begin!”
The moment the assistant teacher gave the command, He Dayou struck, his right arm blurring into an afterimage as he chopped a palm strike toward Zhang Yu’s neck.
At the same time, he had already anticipated all of Zhang Yu’s possible counterattacks in his mind.
After all, as a second-generation heir, he had enough time and money to hire sparring partners for daily combat training.
He had already experienced, trained against, and developed counters for every possible reaction an opponent could have to this palm strike.
Such was the advantage of practical combat experience.
Level 2 Freehand Combat, combined with his superior experience, gave He Dayou absolute confidence in his ability to defeat his opponent.
Then… I’ll go for the arm.
The magic power in He Dayou’s body surged toward his palm…
Pow!
A loud thud echoed from He Dayou’s abdomen.
He then felt his vision spin wildly, followed by the shock of the hard ground and an explosion of pain throughout his body.
It took a full few seconds for He Dayou to gradually realize what had happened.
He had been sent flying out of the ring in a single move by Zhang Yu, and had landed hard on the ground.
I was defeated in an instant?
He Dayou’s face flushed a deep crimson.
“How is this possible?”
Seeing He Dayou’s agitation and hoping to avoid any trouble, the assistant teacher immediately played back the recorded footage of the fight for both him and Zhang Yu to see.
The video showed that just as He Dayou had launched his palm strike, Zhang Yu had moved with impossible speed, ducking under the attack while simultaneously slamming his entire body into He Dayou and throwing him out of the ring with a tackle.
The entire exchange had taken less than a second, and it almost looked as if He Dayou had deliberately allowed Zhang Yu to throw him.
Watching the playback, He Dayou grew even more indignant. He hadn’t used his full strength yet, and he still had his new martial art in reserve, yet a single moment of carelessness had…
I underestimated this Zhang Yu far too much, getting distracted during our fight…
At this thought, He Dayou felt a rising tide of indignation.
But he knew that whether it was carelessness or negligence on his part, any further excuses would only bring him more shame.
He took a deep breath and nodded at Zhang Yu.
“A good move. Let’s continue.”
The assistant teacher asked if He Dayou was physically fit to continue, and after receiving confirmation, had them both step back into the square.
Once again, they stood a meter apart, facing each other.
Zhang Yu watched He Dayou with a smile, thinking to himself,
My score for this combat exam should be quite high.
The effects of level 3 Freehand Combat were even better than he had anticipated.
Although Zhang Yu estimated his own combat experience was likely inferior to that of a second-generation heir like He Dayou.
But his level 3 proficiency meant he was intimately familiar with the fifteen moves of Freehand Combat.
In the previous match, the instant He Dayou had moved, Zhang Yu had already known what he intended to do and where the opening in his technique would appear.
The moment the idea surfaced in his mind, his body was already in motion, surging forward and channeling magic power into his arms to smoothly execute the throw.
In a fight between first-years using Freehand Combat, as long as my opponent’s skill level is below 3, their reaction time will likely be a step slower than mine.
Coupled with my current physical strength, I doubt I would lose a Freehand Combat duel against any other first-year in the entire school.
Meanwhile, He Dayou’s expression was grim, all traces of his earlier nonchalance gone.
He resolved to focus completely in this second match and use his full strength to viciously defeat Zhang Yu.
This time, he would not give his opponent the slightest opportunity.
“Zhang Yu versus He Dayou, second match.”
“3, 2, 1… begin!”
The instant the assistant teacher finished speaking, He Dayou exploded with his full power, his right fist gathering a surge of magic power as he threw a vicious punch at Zhang Yu’s face.
Boom!
Again, a tremendous impact resounded.
Again, there was the familiar spinning of his vision, the hard, cold ground, and the pain that wracked his entire body.
He Dayou scrambled to his feet in a daze.
Had he been defeated in an instant again?
He watched the assistant teacher’s recording once more.
The video showed that at the very instant he threw his punch, Zhang Yu had already landed a kick on his chest, sending him flying out of the ring.
Because they had both moved so quickly, it almost looked as though He Dayou had intentionally thrown himself chest-first into Zhang Yu’s outstretched foot.
The third match began.
This time, He Dayou did not rush to attack with his full strength, instead adopting a defensive posture and cautiously observing Zhang Yu.
Zhang Yu thought to himself, Beaten in an instant twice in a row. Is he finally starting to be careful?
The reason he had been able to defeat his opponent in an instant was that he had used his familiarity with Freehand Combat to predict his opponent’s movements and trajectory, allowing him to actively intercept the opening created by the full-force attack.
It was a tactic that used the sum of their combined speeds, causing He Dayou to lose before he could even react.
But now that He Dayou was being cautious and no longer attacking with full force from the outset, Zhang Yu could no longer replicate his previous instant victories.
But Zhang Yu had prepared a strategy for this exact situation.
In terms of both magic power and physical strength, Zhang Yu, who had recently grown by leaps and bounds, was confident he was not far behind He Dayou, the third-ranked student in their year.
In terms of pure physical power, his opponent also had a balanced build like his own, rather than relying on brute strength.
Since his opponent was unwilling to attack, Zhang Yu decided to take the initiative.
He channeled his magic power and sent a palm strike toward He Dayou’s chest.
“Here it comes!” A sharp glint flashed in He Dayou’s eyes as he threw a punch of his own, blocking the attack.
Then he saw Zhang Yu launch the exact same palm strike again.
The same move? What is he playing at?
After blocking three of Zhang Yu’s palm strikes in a row, He Dayou’s arm felt sore and numb, and the magic power within him roiled.
The sheer volume of Zhang Yu’s magic power and the strength of his physical body were far beyond his expectations.
His opponent’s strategy was also remarkably simple: to clash with him head-on.
Zhang Yu’s level 3 Freehand Combat didn’t just give him greater familiarity with the techniques. It allowed him to execute the same move with greater physical power and more abundant magic power.
This gave him a decisive advantage in a direct confrontation.
He Dayou quickly realized this as well, but a slight smile couldn’t help but touch his lips.
He wants to meet force with force?
Fine, let’s clash. We’ll see who’s tougher.
He channeled his newly learned cultivation technique, the Lesser Heavenly Star Palm, and the magic power in his dantian instantly transformed into a chilling palm force that blasted from his hand toward Zhang Yu.