Chapter 2395 - Three Palms
Matt’s sudden attack surprised everyone in the hall.
Sure enough, he can’t help himself. Fang Shihan pitied Shi Feng when she noticed Matt’s attack.
Matt was incredibly talented, and after working with the Hell Training System, the lastest training system Mythology had created, his already violent tendencies had become more prominent. Now, he was a combat maniac.
Even in Mythology, there were few people who could spar with Matt. With a neutralizing grandmaster before him, the man was naturally eager to spar with Shi Feng. He had recently gotten closer to becoming a Henglian grandmaster and hadn’t had the chance to test his strength properly. Before Shi Feng made his decision was the best opportunity for Matt to force the younger man into a fight.
Although stopping Matt wasn’t impossible, Fang Shihan thought it was necessary for Shi Feng to experience Mythology’s power.
Lei Bao, who stood by Shi Feng’s side, felt stifled when he saw Matt’s punch. This strike was completely different than the hits Matt had used during their fight. Not only did this punch break the sound barrier, but it also seemed impossible to avoid.
Lei Bao thought he could even hear the Grim Reaper call his name.
However, just as Matt’s hit was about to land, Shi Feng casually took a half step back and rotated his right shoulder as if he had expected the attack. Almost as if an invisible barrier had manifested between them, Matt’s punch harmlessly stopped a few centimeters away from Shi Feng’s shoulder.
“What? Did I scare you?” Matt quipped when Shi Feng hadn’t made another move to stop him. “What happened to all of your confidence?”
Matt was only a half-step Henglian grandmaster, and although he was more physically fit than ordinary neutralizing grandmasters, his mental processing couldn’t compare. His senses and reaction speed were just as inferior to that of a neutralizing grandmaster.
If a neutralizing grandmaster focused on evading his attacks, Matt would be helpless against them. In fact, if Lei Bao, a peak internal force master, had focused on evasion, their fight would’ve lasted a lot longer.
This was why Matt had deliberately challenged Shi Feng to last three of his punches. Otherwise, fighting Shi Feng would be a waste of time.
“Forget it, Matt. Hall Master Shi can’t take your hits. I suggest you face each other in a race. At least that will give Hall Master Shi a chance at victory,” the tall, short-haired woman behind Fang Shihan ridiculed.
The woman’s provocation enraged Heaven’s Rumble’s disciples.
Even veteran neutralizing grandmasters couldn’t help to match a half-step Henglian grandmaster’s physical fitness, much less Shi Feng, who had only recently become a neutralizing grandmaster. Asking Shi Feng to take a direct hit from Matt was a joke.
Xiao Yu began to move forward to advise Shi Feng against falling into the woman’s trap. If he fell for it and lost against Matt, Heaven’s Rumble’s reputation would be in tatters.
“I never said I wasn’t interested. I just don’t think those terms are fair,” Shi Feng said, shaking his head. “I have to sell Zero Wing’s shares if you win, yet you’ll just pack up and leave if you lose. What benefit do I get for accepting this challenge?”
“That’s simple. Head Instructor Shi, if you win, I’ll give Zero Wing a 300 million loan, plus state-of-the-art training equipment for the Heaven’s Rumble Training Center. I can guarantee that the equipment I have to offer rivals that in the country’s top dojos and training centers,” Fang Shihan declared, her lips curling into a wicked grin. She reacted as if she had been expecting Shi Feng to ask.
“State-of-the-art training equipment?” Xiao Yu’s eyes glowed when he heard this.
Three hundred million Credits would be a massive boon to the Heaven’s Rumble Training Center, but the state-of-the- art equipment would be far more important.
The equipment Fang Shihan offered might not be worth 300 million Credits, but it was impossible to purchase on the market. Only the suppliers’ partners had any access. In comparison, the best equipment available to the public was two generations behind, which was why ordinary training centers and dojos’ disciples couldn’t hold a candle to those from top dojos and training centers.
If the Heaven’s Rumble Training Center could get its hands on this equipment, its facilities would undergo a qualitative transformation. In turn, this would make the training center more attractive to far more people.
Shi Feng didn’t respond immediately, however.
“What? You’re still not satisfied?” Fang Shihan chuckled at Shi Feng’s silence. “If that’s not enough, state your demands, Head Instructor Shi.”
She already had a good grasp on Heaven’s Rumble Training Center’s situation. Although Lei Bao normally led the training center, and Heaven’s Rumble’s members received excellent training, it was nothing compared to the nation’s top dojos and training centers, particularly when it came to its training facilities.
If Heaven’s Rumble acquired state-of-the-art equipment, its facilities would be an excellent promotional tool on their own, luring in far more members. Shi Feng had no reason to reject her offer. Zero Wing desperately needed manpower, after all.
Fang Shihan assumed that the only reason Shi Feng hadn’t jumped at her offer was that he wasn’t confident in withstanding Matt’s punches. Knowing this, she wouldn’t give the younger man any excuses to refuse her challenge.
Everyone in the hall thought the same.
They had already witnessed Matt’s power. Everyone would be impressed if Shi Feng remained standing after taking a single hit, let alone three.
“Since Miss Fang has asked, I only have one condition,” Shi Feng said, smiling. “He must withstand three of my palm strikes, as well. If you win, Zero Wing will sell its shares. If I win, I want 20 bottles of Life Potion!”
For a moment, shocked silence filled the training hall.
“Are you insane?!” the tall woman behind Fang Shihan blurted, staring at Shi Feng.
“Hall Master?!” Even Lei Bao gave the younger man an incredulous look.
Henglian Style practitioners were not famed for their strength, but for their frightening defense. It was why a Henglian master would dare to fight a neutralizing grandmaster, yet refused to acknowledge apex internal force masters.
Matt was only a half step away from reaching grandmaster status in the Henglian Style, and as such, his skin and bones were as solid as steel. Trying to injure him with human strength was an utter joke. Only bullets could break though his hide now.
“Twenty Life Potions?” Fang Shihan frowned.
Life Potions weren’t like S-rank Nutrient fluids. They contained an extraordinary amount of life force. Consuming one bottle of Life Potion would restore youth to an ordinary person, and the potions were in high demand among grandmaster martial artists. Even a major corporation like Qilin Corp. could only secure a small number of bottles. Despite being the Qilin Corporation’s princess, Feng Shihan didn’t even get that many Life Potions per year.
“If Miss Fang thinks this condition is too demanding, we can forget about this challenge,” Shi Feng mused, chuckling.
Neither the Credits nor the state-of-the-art equipment was a priority for Zero Wing and Heaven’s Rumble right now. The organizations would only truly be able to develop further by improving the strength of their current combatants.
The Life Potion was undoubtedly one of the quickest ways for Zero Wing and Heaven’s Rumble to do so. As long as Zero Wing and Heaven’s Rumble became strong enough in the future, obtaining state-of-the-art was entirely possible if they were willing to spend a little money, but that wasn’t the case for the Life Potions. They were truly rare items. Not even Lu Xingluo, the Starline Corporation’s heir, could acquire many Life Potions, much less Shi Feng.
“Fine! I agree to your condition!” Fang Shihan hissed. Smiling, she continued, “But remember, you only have three palm strikes!”
“Of course.” Shi Feng nodded.
“You really think you can win, kid?” Grinning, Matt said, “Even if I stood here and let you hit me 20 times, you couldn’t force me to take a single step back, much less three!”
However, before Matt could say anything more, Shi Feng walked up to him and thrust out his palm.
The strike looked light and gentle from an outsider’s perspective; it didn’t look like it had the power to threaten anyone. That thrust didn’t even look like it could injure an ordinary passerby, let alone Matt.
However, just as Shi Feng’s palm was about to connect with his target, the movement changed, leaving three afterimages in its wake.
Thud!
A dull sound echoed throughout the hall, and Matt’s face lost color until his complexion was a deathly pale. He stumbled three steps back, clutching his abdomen as he fell to his knees, unable to speak for a long moment…