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Chapter 35: Your little sweetheart is about to lose.

“What do you mean, ‘if necessary you must rush in and take a couple of punches for Lu Li’?”

Is that still my daughter? For the sake of a mere boy she is willing to abandon her old father; it really makes my jaw drop at her so-called filial devotion.

In a moment I should drag her to the hospital for a paternity test.

“Coach Shao, when do we start? You look busy, should we wait a little longer?” Lu Li walked over and asked.

Shao Kang looked at Lu Li, and his gentle expression suddenly contorted. “No, we start right now; I want to watch you die immediately.”

Lu Li froze. “Excuse me?”

Shao Kang cleared his throat, his face returning to kindness. “I mean we should start now; bouts like this should be handled promptly, neither rushed nor delayed.”

“I see…” Lu Li scratched his head, wondering if that was really what Shao Kang had just said.

Shao Kang laughed awkwardly. “Ahem, let’s get on with it, let’s get on with it.”

Although he felt a lot of irritation toward Lu Li, Shao Kang still whispered a reminder. “Xu Feng practices karate, a wide-open style with tremendous power; a single hit could cripple you.”

Never underestimate a professional fighter’s strike; one punch can generate 100 or even 200 kilos of force, and taking it is no different from being hit by a compact car, enough to kill outright if it lands on a vital spot.

Shao Kang went on. “You may be proficient in Taiji and Xingyi Boxing and can spar with Xu Feng for a bit, but his stamina far exceeds yours; once you run out of energy, defeat is inevitable.”

“So my advice is, if you feel your strength flagging, concede at once, and I will immediately stop the match.”

Lu Li first nodded and then shook his head, accepting Shao Kang’s goodwill yet refusing to yield this job.

He had lived through days so hard he had to split a single yuan in half, and it had taken great effort to find a part-time job he could do after class that stabilized his precarious life, so he could not let this chance slip away.

Nor would he.

Seeing his unconcerned look, Shao Kang felt utterly helpless; young men never admit defeat until they hit the wall and feel the pain.

The three of them left the lounge, and a crowd of Martial Arts Club students surged up excitedly. “Coach Shao, we heard Xu Feng is going to spar with the new martial-arts instructor; may we watch?” they asked.

“Uh…” How did you hear about that?

Shao Kang frowned slightly; what was there to see, Lu Li getting beaten up one-sidedly?

He was about to refuse when Xu Feng said with a grin, “Of course you can. Our new instructor is only a high-school student, so if the match looks sloppy please be forgiving.”

“A high-schooler?” The students snorted in disbelief. “Senior Xu Feng is a professional fighter; won’t a little high-school kid get thrashed?”

“Coach Shao, why did you pay a high-school kid to teach martial arts? If you’ve got money to burn, just give it to me.”

“Exactly, exactly. I joined the Martial Arts Club to learn fighting, Coach. Did you bring in a high-schooler to teach us academics? Heh, if I were good at academics would I be here learning martial arts?”

Although the students had guessed that the young man beside Shao Kang was the new instructor, that did not stop them from laughing together.

In the world of fighters, strength reigns supreme, so a newcomer like Lu Li, still in high school, was bound to be rejected.

“High-schooler, get lost! High-schooler, get lost!” the students chanted in unison.

Shao Kang’s face fell, looking very unpleasant.

“Heh, don’t worry, everyone. Watching is good, you can serve as witnesses,” Xu Feng raised his hand to stop their laughter, crossed his arms, and said, “If this little high-schooler doesn’t have real skills, I’ll kick him out today!”

The students cheered. “Senior Xu is mighty! Kick him out! Kick him out!”

While basking in their flattery, Xu Feng looked toward Zhang Cheng in the crowd; he had had Zhang Cheng summon these students precisely to humiliate Lu Li.

He tilted his head toward Lu Li, hoping to see him flushed with anger, yet Lu Li’s expression remained calm as though he heard nothing.

“Hmph, he’s probably boiling inside but pretending to be cool,” Xu Feng muttered inwardly.

“All right, all right, stop the noise and start the match!” Shao Kang’s head was pounding from the clamor.

Without further delay, he led Lu Li and Xu Feng onto the arena and had them approach for the customary handshake.

“Kid, you slapped Zhang Cheng today; I’ll pay you back tenfold,” Xu Feng said menacingly.

Lu Li blinked in surprise.

Xu Feng chuckled. “Scared? It’s too late to back out now.”

Lu Li looked up leisurely. “Zhang Cheng, who is that?”

Xu Feng: “…”

He felt as though his fists had sunk into cotton and was furious… Xu Feng sucked his teeth and opened his palm to signal Lu Li to shake.

Xu Feng thought to himself, “I may not specialize in gripping, but my hand strength is at least 50 kilos, stronger than most people. As long as this Lu kid dares shake my hand, I’ll make him suffer first!”

Sure enough, Lu Li placed his hand up without guarding, and Xu Feng secretly rejoiced as he clamped down with force.

“Hiss… what’s going on?”

Yet Xu Feng’s expression quickly turned strange, because no matter how hard he squeezed, Lu Li’s face did not change.

Was he stubbornly enduring the pain?

“Quit the act!” Xu Feng, unwilling to lose, exerted his full strength. Veins bulged on his hands and forehead, yet Lu Li remained unmoved, matching his force perfectly.

“This skinny kid’s grip is stronger than mine?” Xu Feng finally sensed something was wrong, but it was too late to pull back.

“Oh, out of strength already?” Lu Li chuckled with interest and then suddenly tightened his grip!

Pain flooded in like a tide; Xu Feng felt his metacarpals about to crack, and with a creak his palm went numb and almost lost all sensation.

Xu Feng’s face flushed red; though he fought the pain, his straight back involuntarily bent forward.

“That brat Xu Feng is already playing dirty!” The experienced Shao Kang had noticed the covert struggle and meant to intervene, but when he saw their expressions he froze.

Hiss… why did it look as though Xu Feng was the one being suppressed?

He suddenly remembered the receptionist saying that Lu Li’s grip strength was over 60 kilos.

“Trying to steal a chicken only to lose the rice,” Shao Kang chuckled wickedly, and when he saw the students whispering to each other he raised his voice. “You two separate. When I shout start, you may engage.”

Lu Li slowly released his hand and laughed softly. “Ahem, Senior Xu is a professional. I am weak and still a high-school student, far beneath Brother Xu, so please go easy on me later.”

Xu Feng’s mouth twitched; he rubbed his right hand several times, yet the pain remained unbearable.

“Who is your senior!” He glared fiercely at Lu Li, eyes vicious.

Through clenched teeth he squeezed out, “Relax, I will definitely hold back!”

Lu Li and Xu Feng stood on opposite sides and took their stances.

Xu Feng spread his legs front and back, angled his left palm forward, and bent his right hand against his abdomen… the standard kokutsu-dachi ready position of karate… looking every bit the master, if only the fingers of his right hand were not trembling like epilepsy.

Lu Li stood far more casually, raising his arms in a simple Taiji cloud-hands opening.

“Begin!”

With Shao Kang’s shout, Xu Feng attacked decisively, leaping forward and opening with a heavy left straight punch.

Lu Li shifted with a slanted step, using Taiji’s neutralizing force to lift his palm and strike the side of Xu Feng’s left forearm.

Although Lu Li diverted the punch, the vibration of its power still made his vital energy churn.

A professional fighter truly surpassed the likes of Shen Huan… impressive! Lu Li grew solemn.

When the first punch missed, Xu Feng instantly threw a right punch. After Lu Li evaded, he switched to kicks: a mid-level front kick with the left leg, a high sweeping kick with the right, then a spinning back kick with the left that changed line upward… four kicks in rapid succession!

Lu Li avoided the first two kicks but not the third; he blocked it with a horizontal arm, yet the following angle-changing kick still forced him back several steps.

“What beautiful leg work!” Though they were opponents, Lu Li could not help but praise him.

Xu Feng chuckled and sneered, “Gripping strength is all you’ve got. With your speed, let’s see you dodge my next kick!”

“Dad!” At that moment, Shao Linlin arrived at the dojo, having sprinted all the way.

Panting, she stopped beside Shao Kang, her chest heaving so violently that her loose long dress billowed.

Her little face was flushed, damp bangs clung to her rosy cheeks, and her pink lips looked dewy; it was obvious she had just finished bathing at home and had run out without even drying her hair.

Worth mentioning was the snow-white kitten perched on her tousled head; its pupils were sapphire and its bright eyes were curiously surveying the surroundings.

“Silly child, why did you rush over like this? And you even brought Little White.” Startled, Shao Kang brushed the kitten off and grabbed a towel to dry her hair.

Shao Linlin took the towel and rubbed her hair hard, asking anxiously, “Dad, how is Lu Li?”

Shao Kang glanced at the dojo and sighed. “Xu Feng’s kicking technique is extremely fierce; your little sweetheart is about to lose.”

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