Chapter 61: Chapter 58: Victory in the Octagon

The incandescent lights of the bar cast their glow on the floor.

Huddled in a shadowy corner, Xiaoyang watched from afar with a complicated expression.

Lu Chao had arrived with such confidence, so calm and unbothered, that he showed no fear even when threatened at gunpoint by the Iron Blood Gang.

But on the other side...

"This is madness."

Zhou Qiang snapped out of his stupor and barked, never having expected Lu Chao to suddenly show up at the bar.

He strode forward, reaching out his right hand to pull Lu Chao away.

THWAP.

However, Lu Chao’s movements were faster.

His left hand was clamped on Zhou Qiang’s wrist, the force steady and solid, not one bit weaker than that of an old-school fighter like himself.

Zhou Qiang froze, stunned. On the second floor, Chen Junhao also paused, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

"You..."

"Brother Qiang."

Meeting his gaze calmly, Lu Chao smiled. "I’m a fighter too."

At these words, Zhou Qiang’s expression shifted. He knew exactly what Lu Chao meant.

’But how can I let him get involved in a grudge like this?’

He subconsciously started to shake his head, but before he could...

"Well, well, is this another one of you from the Hongyi Society?"

On the stage, Liu Hong shot him a hostile look, sizing Lu Chao up from head to toe.

When no one answered, he seemed to guess the truth.

"Heh, he’s not... That’s fine, too."

"It’s only three matches anyway. The result will be the same regardless."

He directed his taunts toward the second floor. "Ah Hao, am I right?"

Their eyes met. Chen Junhao, a cigarette dangling from his lips, ignored him.

Instead, he looked at Lu Chao. He saw the earnestness and confidence in the young man’s eyes and sensed a certain aura about him—the kind only veteran fighters who had been through life-and-death battles possessed.

"Xiaochao."

He finally spoke, his voice as steady as ever. "I’ll leave it to you, then."

No explanation was given, but Lu Chao could feel the trust in those words.

He smiled and nodded, then patted the stunned Zhou Qiang on the shoulder before handing him the two gifts he was carrying.

"Brother Qiang, I originally only prepared two gifts for you."

"However..."

He brushed past Zhou Qiang’s shoulder and, under the watchful eyes of the entire bar, walked step by step toward the octagonal cage.

"Now, it seems there will be three."

THUMP! THUMP!

His steps came to a halt. Ignoring all the stares, he now stood firmly inside the octagonal cage.

The blood-soaked member of the Hongyi Society was helped away by bar security. The hard mat underfoot was firm yet resilient.

Lifting his gaze, he saw the man opposite him, Ge Tao, whose hands were hanging loosely at his sides. Their eyes met.

"Interesting." His knuckles, wrapped in hand wraps, looked abnormally large. He licked his lips as he spoke, breaking into a savage, bloodthirsty grin.

"I’ve never met someone who willingly serves themselves up to die before."

He sneered and made a throat-slitting gesture with his hand. "It’s not too late to kneel and surrender."

"Don’t wait until it’s..."

"You talk too much!"

THOOM!!

The hard mat beneath Lu Chao’s feet suddenly sank!

He shot forward like a heavy arrow loosed from a bow, launching a devastating punch!

Without a moment’s hesitation, his fist tore through the air with a sharp gust, aimed straight at his opponent’s chest.

The principles of a Mystical Skill, like a stone shattering the sky, flooded his mind. His eyes saw nothing but his opponent.

His decisive attack momentarily stunned the onlookers.

Ge Tao, who had been about to continue his trash talk, narrowed his eyes. He let out a cold laugh and sidestepped the attack.

WHOOSH!!

As if possessed by a cheetah, he moved so fast he left an afterimage.

Lu Chao’s right fist hit empty air, unleashing a shockwave. A fierce gust of wind whistled past Ge Tao, went through the chain-link fence, and left a dull hum in its wake.

Lu Chao’s body faltered in his lunging stance, as if thrown off balance by his own momentum. He was left wide open, a fatal flaw exposed.

"You’re a real idiot!"

Ge Tao mocked him, his movements agile as he instantly stabilized his center of gravity.

A vicious glint appeared in his eyes. Not about to let this opportunity pass, he curled his fingers into a claw. Transforming into a ferocious beast, he swiped straight for Lu Chao’s throat.

HUM!

But the unexpected happened.

Lu Chao, who should have been staggering and off-balance, was perfectly stable. The muscles of his core were visibly tightening like steel.

SWISH!!

His right leg whipped through the air in a high, semicircular arc.

The vicious, unavoidable kick flew straight toward Ge Tao’s neck.

In that split second, both fighters unleashed killing blows. Lu Chao had opted for a trade that would injure them both.

Ge Tao’s eyes narrowed at this development.

Making a split-second decision, he immediately pulled back his attack and retreated, once again changing direction with uncanny speed and vanishing from his spot.

WHOOSH!!

The perfect kick sliced through empty air. The shockwave from the semicircular arc seemed to take physical form, leaving a fleeting white trail.

Ge Tao, now a blur, reappeared behind Lu Chao from an impossible angle.

He leaped into the air like a pouncing cheetah.

His vicious claws, one striking after the other, seemed to be covered in a silvery aura, making them look like a pair of cold iron hooks.

SHRED!

The air itself seemed to tremble, torn apart like a piece of cloth.

The iron hook-claws aimed for the back of Lu Chao’s neck and his spine. The distance closed in an instant, as if to rip his flesh and sever his arteries.

Outside the cage, Zhou Qiang’s expression shifted as he watched the scene unfold. On the second floor, Chen Junhao’s eyes narrowed, his right hand, previously hanging at his side, now gripped a metal lighter.

HUM!

However, it was as if Lu Chao had eyes in the back of his head.

Using the momentum from his kick, Lu Chao twisted his body explosively, spinning a half-circle on the spot.

His feet screeched against the mat as he instantly changed his position, turning from back-facing to front-facing.

In that instant, their eyes met.

Lu Chao’s eyes were cold as he unleashed the left fist he’d been holding ready at his waist.

SWOOSH!!

A whitish-gray sheen appeared from nowhere, rapidly spreading to cover his entire fist.

His clenched fist, imbued with the power of Rock Hide, shot through the air like a stone projectile, smashing toward his opponent without holding back.

BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!!

In just a few seconds, the two had exchanged over a dozen heavy blows!

Streaks of afterimages crisscrossed the air as the tough, whitish-gray of Rock Hide and the steely silver of the claws flashed simultaneously. The exchange lasted for over ten seconds before they finally broke apart.

SKRRRT!

Lu Chao slid back several steps, seemingly overpowered.

A closer look revealed his clothes were slightly torn, with several claw marks marring his shoulders, elbows, chest, and abdomen.

And on the other side,

"Not bad, kid."

Ge Tao had also slid back two steps. He frowned, his arm trembling slightly, feeling a little numb.

His steel-like claws, enhanced with Martial Arts Power, had failed to completely break through his opponent’s defense, inflicting only minor wounds.

Seeing his opponent seemingly panting for breath,

A bloodthirsty, vicious look appeared in Ge Tao’s eyes. He immediately pressed forward, his claws slashing through the air several times with a ripping sound.

The surrounding light seemed to flicker with the movement of his claws, becoming bright and dark in turns, disorienting the eye.

Lu Chao was instantly overwhelmed by the flurry of claws. He could only manage to block, constantly dodging within the confines of the iron cage.

On the second floor, Chen Junhao’s eyes grew cold as he keenly sensed the signs of a finishing blow.

WHOOSH!!

Suddenly, in the midst of the close-quarters assault,

An Eagle Claw took advantage of an opening. Its cold, silvery arc was like an iron hook, shooting straight for Lu Chao’s waist.

If it landed, it could easily tear through flesh and heavily damage his internal organs.

"Kid..."

Ge Tao sneered, the power in his hands increasing rather than diminishing, his face a mask of cruelty.

He loved the feeling of crippling other fighters.

Especially the moment he snuffed out all their hope.

"It’s over!"

THUD!

But the floor trembled.

Lu Chao, who had been dodging left and right, suddenly stopped. He grinned, baring a set of chillingly white teeth.

"Finally... caught you."

Ge Tao froze at his words.

Just as the silver claw was about to tear into Lu Chao’s abdomen,

BOOM!!

The air cracked!

The muscles on Lu Chao’s already thick right arm suddenly tensed, seeming to stack upon themselves layer by layer.

Veins bulged like serpents coiling around his arm, and wisps of white energy swirled around it.

Ge Tao’s pupils contracted as a sudden chill crept into his heart.

But before he could react,

THOOM!!

The fist landed!

The whitish-gray fist, brimming with power, merged with the killing blow of the Stacked Force Fist and struck Ge Tao squarely in the chest.

CRACK!

PTUI!!

His sternum fractured, nearly shattered from the impact.

Ge Tao’s face twisted in agony, his eyes bulged, and he violently spat out a mouthful of blood.

WHOOSH!!

The next instant, his entire body bent like a shrimp as he was sent flying backward.

Then, with a loud THUD,

He slammed into the chain-link wall of the octagon, causing the steel mesh to buckle and deform.

Finally,

THUMP!

His body bounced off and fell, crashing to the mat face-up.

Blood poured from his mouth, his face so pale you could almost see the veins beneath. His breathing grew visibly, rapidly weaker.

"This..."

Everyone who saw this was stunned. Xiaoyang, the other staff, and the patrons all wore looks of horror, their eyes wide.

All eyes turned to the other side of the cage.

There, Lu Chao, clad in his gray sweatshirt, was still in a slight crouch, holding the finishing pose of his devastating punch.

His entire right arm was extended like a cannon barrel, cutting across the empty space. It was a long time before anyone could recover from the sight.