Chapter 16: Great Calamity Fist

The referee, unable to deal with the eccentric contestant at his feet, could only wave his hand and declare, "The match begins!"

Liu Zhen charged at the referee with his fists raised, which startled Xu Xiaoshou.

Xu Xiaoshou immediately released the referee's leg, knowing that clinging to him once the match started would be a foul.

He composed himself, knowing he had to be cautious when facing a Tenth Realm opponent.

Liu Zhen was no longer the pushover from the group stage; the Tenth Realm, also known as Half-Step Innate, meant this was no time for games.

And so, as black fist shadows enveloped him, Xu Xiaoshou frantically struck back, but failed to block a single fist shadow, once again becoming a human punching bag.

Bang, bang…

The familiar sounds reappeared, and the audience couldn't sit still.

"He's here, Xu Punching Bag!"

"Is this guy crazy? He always wants to fight hand-to-hand, but when it's time for close combat, he always takes the hits with his face."

"This Xu Xiaoshou doesn't look like he knows any boxing. Liu Zhen is much stronger!"

Xu Xiaoshou inwardly thought, 'This isn't good.' Liu Zhen had truly dropped his pretense; with each punch, he felt his body was about to give out.

What kind of boxing technique was this?

It could actually cause such pain to an innate physique?

Xu Xiaoshou could only cover his groin, forced back step by step by Liu Zhen's bombardment.

"Attacked, Passive Points, +2."

"Attacked, Passive Points, +2."

"Attacked, Passive Points, +2."

What's going on?

Two passive points with every punch? That's unscientific!

The more Xu Xiaoshou fought, the more surprised he became. The info panel couldn't be wrong, meaning Liu Zhen's boxing technique wasn't just continuous, but also had a double force?

He carefully examined his body and, sure enough, found that with every one of Liu Zhen's punches, a faint, undetectable stream of black energy was secretly left inside his body.

What a treacherous boxing technique!

He didn't know what this thing would do, but if it was secretly left in his body, it surely held a hidden mystery.

Seeing that he was about to be blasted out of the ring, Xu Xiaoshou grew anxious.

He had indeed overestimated himself this time!

He should have drawn his sword immediately; perhaps then he would have had a chance to fight. But with the continuous barrage of punches, he couldn't even retrieve his sword from his ring.

"Liu Zhen, give me a chance!" Xu Xiaoshou pleaded earnestly.

However, Liu Zhen remained silent, his punches growing fiercer. He knew Xu Xiaoshou frequently used underhanded tactics and had observed his entire championship run in the group stage; how could he possibly give him a chance?

"Don't force my hand!" Xu Xiaoshou said bitterly.

Just a few more steps, and he would be blasted off the ring!

Liu Zhen ignored him, his fists tearing through the air with a swishing sound.

Xu Xiaoshou couldn't take it anymore. With extreme difficulty, he pulled out a hand from the barrage of fists, gathered his spiritual energy, and thrust it upward.

Sharp!

See if I don't pierce you!

Although I can't hit you, you can hit me. But as long as your finger is raised here, you'll bleed.

"Ah!"

Sure enough, the very next second, Liu Zhen shrieked and pulled back.

Among the thousands of fist shadows, one would inevitably strike Xu Xiaoshou's finger blade. He was unprepared, and caught off guard, his fist felt like it was about to split open from the pain.

Luckily, he had trained; although his physique wasn't Innate, it was still several times stronger than an ordinary person's. Otherwise, with that one strike, even his finger would have been severed.

"How is that possible?"

Liu Zhen's eyes were full of shock. He knew Xu Xiaoshou didn't know boxing, so how could he have pulled out a blade from his lightning-fast punches and injured him?

The next second, he saw Xu Xiaoshou's twisted right hand, dripping with blood.

His "Great Dark Calamity Fist" struck with a double hidden force; he shouldn't be bleeding, which meant the blood was his own.

So, this guy broke his "Great Dark Calamity Fist" with his finger?

How could that be!

"What kind of cultivation technique is this?" Liu Zhen asked bluntly, his thirst for knowledge overpowering his desire to attack.

Xu Xiaoshou was blasted to the edge of the ring by a punch, his finger almost broken, but thankfully, he had finally broken the stalemate.

He forcibly straightened his finger and hissed a reply: "Sharp."

"Suspected, Passive Points, +1."

Xu Xiaoshou: "..."

What's the point of asking that? I answered, and you still don't believe me?

Might as well not ask!

Many in the audience stood up and were also in disbelief.

"How did he break the deadlock? I don't understand. Why did Liu Zhen suddenly stop?"

"Look at Xu Xiaoshou's hand, it's bleeding. Could that be Liu Zhen's blood?"

"Are you kidding? Can't you tell it's Liu Zhen's spiritual technique? That's an Innate-level 'Great Dark Calamity Fist'! How could Xu Xiaoshou's finger break it?"

"What? An Innate-level spiritual technique?"

When someone astute pointed it out, everyone was immediately stunned.

Innate-level spiritual techniques were something that could only be chanced upon, not sought. How could an outer court disciple have a chance to obtain one?

Even if he did obtain it, how did Liu Zhen manage to cultivate it successfully?

Xu Xiaoshou had also basically deduced that Liu Zhen's boxing technique was of a high caliber; otherwise, it absolutely couldn't have caused him such damage.

This series of blows was countless times more painful than the group stage.

And that wasn't even counting the black energy inside his body.

Xu Xiaoshou was a little panicked; he couldn't expel this thing, and it would probably trip him up at a critical moment. Fortunately, he had the info panel; otherwise, he wouldn't even know how he died.

Seeing Liu Zhen about to charge again, he quickly moved positions, and as he walked, he pulled out a wooden sword and said, "A gentleman uses his words, not his fists. Let's not use our fists anymore. How about we compete with wooden swords instead?"

"Let's keep it light, don't get carried away."

These passive points were a bit too much to handle, so Xu Xiaoshou decided to back down.

Even the referee was shocked. "What about that last line from your previous match? Where did it go? Did you eat it?"

The audience burst into laughter, each one slapping their thighs.

"I can't take it anymore, this Xu Xiaoshou is too funny!"

"Did he forget what he said last match, 'A gentleman uses his hands, not his sword'? What, now that it's a real fight, he immediately backs down?"

"Ahhh, Xu Xiaoshou is so adorable! I can't handle it!"

With a bang, a spiritual energy shockwave erupted from the ground, pushing Liu Zhen back as fist shadows instantly enveloped him.

"Damn, he's still coming!"

Xu Xiaoshou instantly put away his wooden sword and immediately drew out "Zangku." He couldn't hold back anymore; if the opponent's next strike landed, he would definitely be knocked out of the ring!

Fortunately, I have a trump card.

"Drifting White Clouds!"

He swung his sword horizontally, and wind and sand swirled between heaven and earth. A great momentum was forming, and even the audience members sat up straight, not blinking.

"Dark Calamity, open!"

Liu Zhen knew immediately that Xu Xiaoshou was about to unleash a big move. While in mid-air, he forcibly formed a hand seal and directly detonated the hidden energy left by his previous thousands of punches.

Bang!

Xu Xiaoshou's body spewed out a mist of blood, his eyeballs almost popped out, and veins bulged all over his body; one could imagine the immense pain he was enduring.

He knew the opponent also had a trump card, but he hadn't expected it to be so terrifying!

Xu Xiaoshou clenched his teeth tightly, his mouth pursed like a toad, but he still didn't spit out blood.

Everyone in the audience was stunned; they hadn't expected the situation to take such a drastic turn. This battle was actually so brutal. This was too cruel!

"Xu Xiaoshou... hold on!"

Each of them cheered for Xu Xiaoshou in their hearts. After all, although this guy was unreliable and annoying, he was also the one who had been taking hits from beginning to end.

A Tenth Realm beating up a Sixth Realm made people feel pity!

The referee bent his calves and rushed forward. He couldn't let Xu Xiaoshou take Liu Zhen's next punch; someone would die.

He knew how powerful the "Great Dark Calamity Fist" was; as the number of punches accumulated, the hidden energy became more terrifying. Xu Xiaoshou had taken thousands of punches, and the hidden energy was enough to make an Innate master explode!

Fortunately, he had an Innate physique, the referee thought with relief.

Just as he was about to get close to Xu Xiaoshou, he suddenly noticed that while the guy was desperately holding back from spitting blood, he was secretly giving him a hand signal from behind.

You don't need me?

The referee's heart pounded. Logically, he should have intervened, but for some reason, at this moment, he chose to trust Xu Xiaoshou and stopped himself.

Everyone held their breath, because Liu Zhen's punch had reached its peak, aiming directly for Xu Xiaoshou's chin.

"Pfft!"

At the critical moment, Xu Xiaoshou suddenly spewed blood, spitting out a large amount he had accumulated, instantly splattering it across Liu Zhen's face and blurring his vision.

But what good would that do?

The audience members saw clearly that Xu Xiaoshou no longer had the ability to dodge; he had lost his mobility, blasted by the hidden energy.

"Get out!" Liu Zhen roared.

With a bang, he punched Xu Xiaoshou's forehead, directly sending him flying.

The next second, he felt himself being lifted into the air as well. What was going on?

He wiped the blood from his eyes and found that he had actually been wrapped up and carried into the air by this guy's legs.

Xu Xiaoshou's forehead was bleeding, but his legs were clamped tightly around Liu Zhen's waist like pincers, and they flew out of the ring together!

The sight of the two entangled in mid-air was so bizarre, time seemed to freeze at that moment.

A mutual defeat?

Everyone in the audience was shocked. They had seen it very clearly: as Xu Xiaoshou's forehead was punched, he actually actively leaned into Liu Zhen, seizing that split second when Liu Zhen couldn't see, and wrapped his legs tightly around him.

First, using blood to obscure vision, then wrapping legs around the waist—was this really a tactic conceived in the brief moment of being punched?

Unbelievable!

"Let go of me!"

The two plummeted from high in the air. Liu Zhen finally prepared to punch again; if he didn't strike, falling three meters from the air and landing headfirst, he would surely be in big trouble!

He didn't have Xu Xiaoshou's physique.

Xu Xiaoshou laughed loudly, wrapping around Liu Zhen's body and instantly spinning like a fiery wheel, making it impossible for Liu Zhen to hit him.

In the high-speed rotation, he pressed his head against Liu Zhen's feet, his hands gripping Liu Zhen's ankles, while his feet released Liu Zhen's waist, using the momentum to hoist Liu Zhen upside down in the air and violently smash him towards the ground.

Bang!

Dust billowed as Liu Zhen hit the ground first, landing in a daze.

Thump!

Dust billowed as Xu Xiaoshou landed with extreme elegance on top of Liu Zhen.

He spat out a mouthful of blood, and while waving to the stunned, speechless audience, he murmured:

"Liu Zhen, you're amazing!"

"Liu Zhen, what kind of boxing technique is that!"

"Liu Zhen, you taught me not to be careless, I'll remember that!"

These three consecutive remarks targeting Liu Zhen finally brought him back to his senses. He cast aside his usual silence and exasperatedly said:

"Get the hell off me!"