Chapter 284 - 283: Opening with a Punch

Chapter 284: Chapter 283: Opening with a Punch

Shi Tiexin exited the mystical realm and let go of the man’s foot. The skinny guy was left rolling on the bed, clutching his foot.

"My foot! My foot!" he wailed, rolling around. "You’re a cheater! You used dirty tricks! This was a conspiracy! You’re despicable!"

"How is that despicable? Am I not allowed to use my strength as the Furniture Master?" Shi Tiexin was a little speechless. "Are you for real or not? You looked halfway decent last round. How did you get crushed so quickly this time?"

The roommate who had been getting dressed scoffed again. He shook his head, shouldered a yellow box with a large "Jing" printed on it, and walked out the door. The other two men seemed to agree there was nothing more to see and casually walked out, chatting amongst themselves.

Just as he reached the door, one of them seemed to remember something and turned back to the skinny guy. "Oh, right. Skinny. It’s the routine inspection today. Make sure you clean the place up."

"You got it! Just watch me!" the skinny guy replied with his usual fawning smile. Then he paused and muttered, "No, wait... It doesn’t have to be me. We should make the new guy do the cleaning!"

"I don’t care which of you two does it. Just make sure we don’t get docked!" the man stressed, his expression grim. Then he slammed the door and left. SLAM.

Suddenly, only Shi Tiexin and the skinny guy remained in the room.

Looking at Shi Tiexin, the skinny guy decided to make one last-ditch effort.

"I don’t care! That last one didn’t count. I wasn’t warmed up! We can’t just leave it at that! Best three out of five! How about it? Best three out of five!"

Shi Tiexin considered it for a moment, then nodded again. "Fine."

"Great!" The skinny guy performed a perfect kip-up, leaping to his feet. He’d learned his lesson this time. No more fighting near the bunks. He waved Shi Tiexin over to an open area in the room. "We’ll fight here this time!"

Shi Tiexin didn’t insist on using the cramped space by the bunks to his advantage. He walked out into the open area as well.

Compared to punches, Leg Techniques are more restricted by narrow spaces. Conversely, they are also more effective in open areas.

In truth, Shi Tiexin had no reason to indulge the skinny guy. But he was still extremely curious about his Wind-Stealing Leg technique. He also wanted to test a theory, so he once again stood opposite his opponent.

"Begin!"

With a do-or-die roar, the mystical realm snapped into existence. The skinny guy shouted, rushed forward in a few quick steps, and led with a snapping front kick.

Shi Tiexin didn’t let his guard down just because of his two previous comical victories. On the contrary, he focused his full attention, ready for anything.

The front kick was fast!

So fast it whistled through the air!

Shi Tiexin raised his elbow to block it. THUD! The impact forced Shi Tiexin three steps back to disperse the momentum, and a slight numbness spread through his elbow.

’It packed a punch, too!’

’Leg Techniques really have an advantage in power over punches. For a guy this skinny to kick with so much force...’

"Take another one of my kicks!"

Landing a kick on Shi Tiexin boosted the skinny guy’s morale immensely. His legs became like two clubs, whipping through the air as he unleashed a barrage of kicks. SWISH! SWISH! They were truly fast and vicious.

Shi Tiexin responded cautiously, his eyes wide as he carefully observed the man’s Leg Technique. He blocked and dodged, doing his best to keep up. Shi Tiexin had never learned any specialized footwork or Leg Technique, but even basic pugilism included some fundamental Leg Techniques.

Retreating, sidestepping, changing direction—Shi Tiexin wasn’t fast, but he kept his center of gravity low and his stance stable. He didn’t rush to attack. Instead, by changing his position and angle relative to his opponent, he prevented the skinny guy from stringing together his combos and avoided being overwhelmed by a single flurry.

He needed to get a good look at the skinny guy’s moves.

The skinny guy roared and yelled, completely disregarding his stamina as he unleashed two full rounds of his Twelve-legged Technique.

After watching the two rounds, Shi Tiexin suddenly understood.

He understood why the skinny guy’s Leg Technique seemed so fierce, yet he was still stuck on bed-making duty.

’His Leg Technique only *seemed* fierce.’

’To be precise, the Gorgeous Wind-Stealing Leg technique he’s practicing isn’t half bad. While it’s a far cry from He Chong’s Flying Sand Step, it’s definitely better than the few basic kicks that come with standard pugilism. But the skinny guy himself... his execution is just awful. His moves are stiff and rigid, with almost no adaptability.’

’He’s like one of those Elite Monsters from an action game. Intimidating at first glance, but after watching him for a few minutes, you realize you can memorize his attack pattern and beat him without taking a single hit.’

’This must be my [Fist Principles] attribute at work.’ Shi Tiexin felt his combat insight had improved, allowing him to see the method to the madness.

’This guy’s Leg Technique might be barely passable. It might not even be that. It’s so rigid and full of holes. Anyone familiar with the routine could take him out in an instant. For example... like this—’

WHOOSH! The skinny guy threw a high kick at Shi Tiexin’s head. But Shi Tiexin had already anticipated it. In the instant the man began to raise his leg but before the kick was fully launched, Shi Tiexin lunged forward, breaching his opponent’s inner guard. He brought his right fist up and planted it firmly in the skinny guy’s soft abdomen.

Shi Tiexin wasn’t using his full strength, but judging by the skinny guy’s durability, this punch would have likely ruptured his liver and spleen.

"OOF—!"

The skinny guy spat out a mouthful of air. His eyes bulged, and his body went rigid. His face flushed red, then deathly pale. Unable to utter a single word, he clutched his stomach and slowly collapsed.

CRACK. The mystical realm shattered. Shi Tiexin withdrew his fist and stood up.

The skinny guy was clutching his stomach, though the color was returning to his face. He opened his mouth to speak, but Shi Tiexin’s expression had already turned grim. "That’s three times. Know when you’re beaten. If you keep pestering me, I’ll go all out next time!"

The skinny guy immediately shut his mouth, lowering his head like a defeated rooster.

"Don’t forget to clean up."

Tossing out that last remark, Shi Tiexin straightened his clothes and walked out the door.

Starting today, he would officially begin his work as a member of the Jingtuan gang.

No matter where you went in this world, fights were unavoidable. His first battle in Jingtuan had gone smoothly. At least he’d made an impression, ensuring he wouldn’t start at the bottom of the food chain.

’The skinny guy’s skill level is pathetic, but that Gorgeous Wind-Stealing Leg technique left a deep impression on me. If I had practiced that technique back then, I wouldn’t have been so completely shut down by He Chong. I could have at least dodged a few attacks.’

And the Gorgeous Wind-Stealing Leg was just the simplest of the three main outer-sect Leg Techniques.

This showed that Jingtuan’s library of exchangeable martial arts had some real depth. This gang was worth his time.

Whether he wanted to make money, exchange for martial arts, or obtain a Nourishing Essence Technique, he needed Gang Contribution points. And Gang Contribution points were earned by taking and delivering orders. The key to deliveries was speed, and the key to speed was driving.

’And my driving skills... heh heh heh!’

Shi Tiexin smiled confidently and strode toward the personnel department with a swagger, already imagining himself rapidly farming Gang Contribution points.

Here in Tumu Castle, he would once again make a name for himself as the God of Motorcycles!

"A motorcycle?" The personnel manager was the same enthusiastic man from before. He looked at Shi Tiexin, confused. "Do you have a license?"

"No."

"How are you going to ride a motorcycle without a license?"

"Er..." Shi Tiexin was dumbfounded. He realized he might have overlooked a crucial detail.