Ze Tian Ji (Way of Choices)

Chapter 954 – Another Punch

The wind had not even had time to blow or the crowd to blink, much less gasp.

The blade was already in front of Xuanyuan Po, about to sever his neck and bring his head down.

The official from the Demi-human Court had already prepared himself but realized to his consternation that Nie Chi’s blade was still faster than he had expected, that he was still too late to stop him. The minor official at the registration table had also prepared himself, but he still could not suppress the joy in his heart, though there was not enough time to form a smile.

It was such a short span of time that sound did not even have time to spread. All around the fighting platform was an eerie stillness fraught with an atmosphere of terror.

Ultimately, an extremely clear sound broke the silence and returned time to its normal speed.

It was not the shlink of a blade, not the rolling of a head off the neck, but a meaty thud.

It was like the sound of a rotten fruit crashing onto the ground in a pulpy mess.

It was like a leather bag of wine crushed flat as the Xiang clan leader sat upon it.

It was like a fist smashing into mud.

Yes, this was the sound that was the most similar, because this was almost exactly what had happened.

Nie Chi’s blade was like a bolt of lightning, but Xuanyuan Po’s fist was even faster.

No one was able to even see his fist, not even a blur.

When the blade was only half a foot from his neck, his fist had already smashed into Nie Chi’s face.

The unimaginable power of the fist was fully transmitted.

Nie Chi’s face began to deform. His nose sank, his eye sockets burst, his chin fractured. Countless streams of bod issued from his face like a blossoming flower.

Beneath Xuanyuan Po’s fist, his face was like a pool of mud.

His neck broke at almost the same moment, his head flipping backwards to hang over his back.

It was like a ripe, red fruit hanging off a tree branch.

This scene was somewhat strange and utterly terrifying.

Nie Chi lived up to his reputation as a demi-human expert, as he did not die on the spot. His ruptured throat made a few incomprehensible sounds as his body swayed on the platform. Finally, it fell to the ground, and as fetid and nasty juices splashed, he died.

Both on and off the fighting platform was a deathly stillness without the slightest noise.

The Carp tribe judge looked at Xuanyuan Po with a dazed expression.

The spectators, who still had not even had the chance to gasp, were struck dumb, forgetting to cry out.

The minor official, intending to celebrate Xuanyuan Po’s death, finally smiled, but it was even more unsightly than if he was crying.

Xuanyuan Po gazed blankly at his own fist.

He then looked at Nie Chi’s corpse and shook his head. “You were too fast.”

In today’s Heavenly Selection ceremony, he had never thought about killing anyone.

But his opponent’s blade had been too fast, his killing intent too vicious.

How could one convert strength into speed? How could utilize strength to its absolute limit?

Bie Yanghong had said to not be too deliberate.

Follow one’s heart to move.

Follow one’s heart to strike.

Although there had been no formal ceremony, Xuanyuan Po had once acknowledged Luoluo as his teacher, and Luoluo was Chen Changsheng’s only female student.

On this basis, he belonged to the lineage of Xining Village’s old temple. Moreover, he was a student of the Orthodox Academy and had lived together with Chen Changsheng for a long period of time.

Whether one followed one’s heart or acted according to one’s heart, it was all cultivating one’s heart, and the heart was the only Dao in the world that could not be cultivated.

When he had said that his opponent’s blade was too fast, it was not a sarcastic remark, but the truth.

The blade was too fast for him to consider, too fast for him to think. He could only move according to instinct.

No thought was necessary. Only by moving before thinking could one truly follow one’s heart.

.……

……

.……

……

Xuanyuan Po walked off the fighting platform.

The crowd parted like a tide.

The Demi-human Court official slightly arched his brow as he looked at Xuanyuan Po. He summoned a subordinate and ordered him to investigate Xuanyuan Po’s background.

In the first match, Xuanyuan Po had relied on his strength to beat the Xiang clan descendant silly, which was already enough to stun him and the official from the Council of Elders.

But this in no way compared to the shock delivered by this battle.

Because Nie Chi was a true demi-human expert.

When the Demi-human Court official saw Nie Chi’s lightning-fast blade, he became extremely sure that not even he was a match for Nie Chi.

Yet Nie Chi had lost to this bear youth’s fist!

If Nie Chi was a true expert, then what was this bear youth?

……

……

Xuanyuan Po walked up to the small table.

This was his third time today coming to this table.

He noticed that the minor official’s complexion had already changed many times.

At the start, the minor official’s face was all disdain and derision, then it was shock and evasion, and after that was shame and anger.

Now, this minor official was ghastly pale, like he was suffering from a cold. But he was also sweating profusely.

When Xuanyuan Po walked to the table and cast his shadow on him, he began to sweat in streams, instantly soaking his clothes.

An official on the side asked in concern, “Cao Si, are you okay?”

Xuanyuan Po finally learned the official’s name.

The minor official mumbled out a few words. He attempted to wipe the sweat off with his sleeve, but this was far from enough.

Xuanyuan Po knew the cause, but he didn’t much care. After confirming a few details on the register, he left.

The minor official raised his head and stared at Xuanyuan Po’s back, unable to suppress the memories of the words he had said in the small tavern several days ago.

He had been deeply inebriated at the time and had forgotten most of it, but today’s events had given him such a fright that he could now clearly remember those words.

“Isn’t this a cripple!”

“Do you really believe the boasts of a cripple like this? And an expert of the Tianhai clan… He might as well just say it was Tianhai Shengxue!”

“Bear cub, stop right there!”

“Just look at his arm. This is a cripple without a single bit of strength, only good for washing dishes. And he has the nerve to say that he was a supervisor of the Orthodox Academy?”

“That’s the Orthodox Academy we’re talking about here! If you have that capability, what are you doing washing dishes here?”

When he thought about all the nonsense he had said to this person, his sweat began to stream down even faster.

And then he remembered that he had even spit in front of this person, at which point he began to feel dizzy, almost passing out.

Xuanyuan Po walked out of the crowd and to the corner of the street, then he took out a beef bun from his bag and began to eat.

After the first battle, he realized that matches were truly exhausting, so he went to the steamed bun shop and bought the last tray of beef buns.

As expected, even though he had only made two punches, he felt absolutely starving.

The buns were already cold, the meat juice somewhat congealed, so they weren’t that tasty anymore, but he ate them with great diligence.

The crowd watched him with equal diligence.

Intense matches were still taking place on the platform, but nobody cared.

Everyone was looking at the street outside, at Xuanyuan Po, at his hands.

It was like the meat bun in his hands was the world’s tastiest delicacy.