Breaking Limits in Martial Arts: Grinding Your Way to Becoming a Martial Saint in a Chaotic Era

Li Chong showed no intention of going down.

He stood on the stage, his gaze slowly sweeping across the three martial arts schools of the Zhao family, the Shi family, and Jingtao, a slight smile playing on his lips.

"Who else?" His voice wasn't loud, but every word was provocative.

One of the disciples from the Shi Family Martial Arts School couldn't contain himself and leaped onto the high platform. The two exchanged blows for dozens of moves. However, the disciple from the Shi Family Martial Arts School was still a step behind and was forced off the platform by a single punch.

Li Chong's chest rose and fell slightly, and sweat appeared on his forehead.

He smiled smugly at Yu Tai on the second floor, a smile that seemed to suggest he was taking credit. Then he jumped off the stage and went to rest.

"Li Chong of Benlei Martial Arts School, two wins in two battles! Let's take a break for now, next up—" Constable Qi spoke up at the right moment, his voice loud and clear.

Before the words were even finished, a young man had already jumped onto the stage.

He was dressed in a white, close-fitting outfit with the words "Flying Clouds" embroidered on his chest. He was fair-skinned and looked rather frail, not like a martial artist, but more like a scholar.

He cupped his hands in a gesture of respect towards the audience: "Yu Hao, from Feiyun Martial Arts School. Please enlighten me."

This person was not well-known, and after some whispering among the audience, few people could tell him who he was.

Wu Mingyuan's eyes lit up.

He had been waiting for this opportunity for a long time.

He'd been waiting since he started standing here this morning. Waiting for an easy target, waiting for an opportunity to shine.

He wanted to defeat his opponents in front of all these important figures, to show his master, his family, the county magistrate, and everyone else that he, Wu Mingyuan, was not someone to be trifled with.

He was afraid of being overshadowed, so he strode out of the crowd, his steps quick and hurried.

Today, he was also dressed in a white outfit with a dark belt around his waist. His hair was neatly combed. Standing on the stage, he looked quite dashing at first glance.

He cupped his hands in a respectful gesture towards Yu Hao, his voice clear and resonant: "Zhao Family Martial Arts School, Wu Mingyuan. Please."

At the main table on the second floor of Tingfeng Tower, Wu Boyong, the head of the Wu family, and Wu Boxian, the head of the second branch, both nodded slightly, their faces showing a hint of expectation.

Wu Mingyu sat at another table, took a sip of tea, and smiled. Although his half-brother was not well-liked, he was still a member of the Wu family, and winning brought him honor.

But the smile on his lips lasted only a few breaths.

Wu Mingyuan only lasted five moves.

Yu Hao's boxing style was seemingly gentle yet deadly; every punch landed squarely on vital points. Wu Mingyuan's stance was stable, but his reaction time was too slow. Yu Hao feinted past his defense and landed a solid punch on his ribs. Wu Mingyuan grunted, staggered back three steps, slipped, and fell off the stage.

Wu Mingyuan lay on the ground below the stage, unable to get up for a long time. His white clothes were covered in mud, his hair was disheveled, and a few strands of hair hung down in front of his forehead. He looked quite pathetic.

The training ground was quiet for a moment, then erupted into a burst of laughter.

The young noblemen at the table on the second floor were laughing so hard they were doubled over. Some were slapping the table, others were clutching their stomachs. The young master of the Li family pointed at Wu Mingyu, laughing until tears streamed down his face: "Wu Mingyu, is your brother going on stage to perform wrestling? His posture is quite standard!"

Wu Mingyu's smile froze, and his hand holding the cup trembled slightly. He gritted his teeth, not saying a word, but his face flushed red.

Wu Boxian narrowed his eyes and frowned slightly.

Wu Boyong sat at the main table, his expression unchanged, but his hand holding the teacup tightened.

Zhao Yan's expression was also not good.

The smile on County Magistrate Su Zhengyuan's face faded. He picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said nothing.

Yu Hao stood on the stage, cupped his hands in a slight bow, and casually said, "Thank you for the compliment," his face expressionless. There was nothing to be proud of in defeating Wu Mingyuan.

Then he turned to face the audience, waiting for his next opponent.

The county magistrate's faction suffered three consecutive defeats, truly losing face.

Pei Xin from Jingtao Martial Arts School jumped onto the stage.

He was one of the top disciples of the Ming Jin school at Jingtao Martial Arts Academy, having achieved the perfection of Ming Jin and possessing a fierce fighting style.

He and Yu Hao exchanged more than twenty blows, their palm strikes whistling and each one more ferocious than the last. On the twenty-third move, Pei Xin struck Yu Hao in the chest with a powerful palm strike, causing Yu Hao to stagger back several steps. Realizing he was no match for Pei Xin, Yu Hao conceded defeat and jumped off the stage.

Another disciple from Changfeng Martial Arts School stepped onto the stage to challenge Pei Xin. The two exchanged more than thirty blows, but Pei Xin, equally skilled, forced his opponent back with a single palm strike. The opponent then ceased his pursuit and conceded defeat with a fist salute.

Jingtao Martial Arts School finally managed to save face for the county magistrate's faction.

Pei Xin was slightly out of breath, sweat beading on his forehead. He bowed to the audience below the stage and went down to catch his breath.

The competition continued. Disciples from each family took turns going up on stage, with half winning and half losing.

The atmosphere in the training ground grew increasingly heated, with cheers, sighs, and jeers mingling together like a boiling pot.

Some were triumphant when they won, some were dejected when they lost, some fell off the stage and caused a burst of laughter from the audience, and some defeated their opponents with a few punches and won a round of applause.

Soon, the competition was halfway through.

After resting enough, Li Chong went on stage again.

This time, he's going to make a big splash.

He stood on the stage, looked around, and finally his gaze settled on the group from the Zhao Family Martial Arts School. His voice wasn't loud, but everyone in the audience could hear him clearly:

"Zhao Family Martial Arts School, could someone come and let me experience their skills?"

His tone was casual, but the contempt in his eyes was almost overflowing.

The entire room fell silent for a moment, then erupted in a buzzing commotion.

This is a roll call challenge.

This wasn't a friendly exchange or a competition; it was a slap in the face to the Zhao family's martial arts school in front of all the powerful and influential people in the city.

If your Zhao Family Martial Arts School doesn't dare to accept the task, you'll lose face in the county town. If you do accept it, the people you send won't be up to par, and you'll be even more humiliated.

Li Chong's move was ruthless and vicious, putting the Zhao family martial arts school in a very difficult position.

On the second floor, Zhao Yan's face darkened.

Sitting opposite him, Yu Tai had a look of smug satisfaction on his face. He smirked, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and looked as smug as if he had drunk honey.

Below the stage, Xu Qing frowned and took a step forward when Chen Wang grabbed her sleeve.

"Junior Brother Xu," Chen Wang said in a low voice, speaking quickly, "Li Chongming is at the peak of his Ming Jin (vital energy) realm. He's a formidable figure among the Ming Jin disciples at the Benlei Martial Arts School. You're only at the minor Ming Jin stage; you can't fight him!"

Xu Qing opened his mouth, wanting to say that he had actually already reached the Great Perfection of Ming Jin, and that in these eight days, his strength had quietly increased significantly.

Before he could speak, Chen Wang had already untied his sleeve, strode onto the stage, and turned back as he walked, saying, "I'll fight this one."

Xu Qing reached out to stop him, but couldn't.

Chen Wang has already taken the stage.

He stood in the center of the stage, cupped his hands in a fist salute, and smiled: "Chen Wang of the Zhao Family Martial Arts School, please enlighten me."

Li Chong glanced at him, and the corners of his mouth curved slightly. His eyes changed, like a cat spotting a mouse.

Chen Wang's gaze was solemn. He knew there was some gap between him and Li Chong, but the gap shouldn't be too large.

Everyone here has reached the peak of Ming Jin (明劲), so how bad could we be?

He assumed a horse stance, with his fists positioned one in front of the other to protect the center line. He took a deep breath and adopted the stance of the Five Elements Fist.

He's practiced this stance for over a year, and he can do it with his eyes closed without making a mistake.

He made the first move.

A standard, conventional punch aimed straight at Li Chong's chest.

This punch was a test, holding back some of its power, ready to change its move at any moment.

Li Chong did not dodge.

He didn't even change his posture much, just slightly turned his shoulder, letting Chen Wang's fist glide past his clothes. In that instant, Chen Wang's fist was only an inch away from his chest, but even that inch was impossible for him to reach.

At the same time, Li Chong's right fist suddenly flipped out from his waist.

That punch was too fast.

This was not a test, nor was it a full-force punch.

The fist whistled through the air with a muffled "whoosh," like a large rock being thrown. The fist landed solidly on Chen Wang's chest.

Chen Wang's eyes widened suddenly.

He felt as if he had been hit head-on by a galloping horse. He was thrown into the air, his feet off the ground, his back arched backward, and he crashed heavily off the stage.

With a loud "bang," a tightness gripped my heart.

The audience was silent.

Li Chong stood on the stage, slowly retracting his fist, his face expressionless.

He didn't want to spar with Chen Wang; he wanted to humiliate the Zhao family martial arts school. So his first punch was all-out, leaving no room for retreat and showing no mercy.

Chen Wang was no match for him; the gap was too great, so great that he couldn't even withstand a single punch.

One punch.

Just one punch.

Upstairs and downstairs, there was a moment of deathly silence, and then—

Someone chuckled at the main table on the second floor. It wasn't a loud laugh, but a soft, smug chuckle that came from under their nose. The laughter wasn't loud, but it carried far.

"Is there no one left at the Zhao Family Martial Arts School?" someone said slowly, in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for Zhao Yan to hear.

"Chen Wang? Never heard of him." Another voice chimed in, "I thought the Zhao Family Martial Arts School would send some formidable figure."

"Going up and punching him and then coming down, what do you call that? That's just making a fool of yourself."

Zhao Yan ignored the sarcastic remarks. He looked at Chen Wang lying on the ground, his eyes filled with worry.

The sons of the magistrate's faction also became more active.

Some people slapped their thighs and laughed, while others pointed at the audience with folding fans, whispering to those next to them and laughing so hard they were doubled over. Those words, neither too loud nor too soft, pricked at them like needles:

"Is this all the Zhao Family Martial Arts School is capable of?"

"I thought he was some kind of powerful figure, but he was sent flying with just one punch."

"Isn't this Chen Wang Wu Mingyuan's senior brother? If the junior brother is no good, the senior brother is even worse. Is the Zhao Family Martial Arts School sending its brothers to embarrass themselves together?"

The county magistrate's faction didn't look happy.

Some people lowered their heads to drink tea, some pretended not to hear, and some twitched their lips as if they wanted to say something but then swallowed it back.

Today's competition was supposed to be an opportunity for each martial arts school to showcase their strength.

As a result, the Zhao family martial arts school was so disappointing, losing two matches in a row. Wu Mingyuan was knocked off the stage in five moves, and Chen Wang was even sent flying by a single punch. The county magistrate also lost face.

I've embarrassed myself again.