Chapter 13 Iron Lotus Cloud

In reality, it was noon.

In the suburbs of Jinmen City, inside a large factory building, besides a few tables, equipment in the corner, and two maintenance robots, the place was mostly empty.

In the empty factory, a short, stout man was barefoot, holding a shield in his left hand and a saber in his right.

"Huff." He took a step, his figure blurring as he shot out more than ten meters, a saber strike following, tearing through the air with a cracking sound.

Another step, and he shot out another ten meters, a shield slamming out, the impact creating a booming sound in the air.

Advancing slash, advancing shield slam... step after step, the short, stout man practiced in silence, his feet shaking the factory floor, the shield slams and saber strikes causing the air to rumble within the large factory.

Seemingly simple actions, but any expert would be astonished.

The momentum generated by his steps was completely transformed into the force of the 'saber strike,' or the force of the step was converted into the power of the shield, making each strike terrifyingly powerful. Most frighteningly, for the short, stout man, these moves were as natural as eating and drinking, requiring no thought at all, completely instinctive.

"Click—" The factory door opened, and a slightly chubby woman walked in carrying a large lunchbox. After she entered, the factory door closed automatically.

"Shixiong," the slightly chubby woman called out with a smile.

Tie Lianyuan stopped, turned to see the woman smiling, put down his shield and saber, and walked over. "Wife, what's for lunch today?"

"Of course, it's your favorite." The slightly chubby woman walked to the dining table in the corner, took out layers of small lunchboxes, and placed them on the table: five dishes, a soup, and a large portion of rice.

"Smells great, I'm really hungry." Tie Lianyuan simply washed his hands at a nearby sink and sat down to eat, devouring the food quickly.

"I'm telling you, now that we have the virtual world, it's one thing for you to practice in there for sixteen hours a day, but you still continue to practice in reality?" his wife said. "You don't care about the children, and you don't care about business matters either."

"Isn't that what I have you for?" Tie Lianyuan said with a smile. "You told me to join the Golden Peng Battle Team, so I joined! Besides, our family doesn't lack money anymore, so business matters can take their natural course. As for the children? Wife, thank you for your hard work."

"I knew what kind of person you were a long time ago. When I married you, I was prepared for this," his wife said helplessly. "It's just that you're not young anymore, almost forty years old. Are you just going to work this hard for the rest of your life?"

"Wife, you may think it's hard work, but I find it enjoyable," Tie Lianyuan said. "The pursuit of being the world's best, the feeling of becoming the strongest in the world, is so interesting! When a powerful opponent appears, I try every means to defeat him! Every time I surpass an opponent, it's wonderful."

His wife nodded. "Are you confident about the second round of the competition?"

"No."

Tie Lianyuan said, "My shidi, Xu Jingming, is a true genius! If he wasn't so monstrously talented, entering the World Martial Arts Tournament so early... If he had accumulated two more years, he could have won the world championship in his early twenties. As for me? Among Shifu's many disciples, my talent can only be considered average. I realized this a long time ago."

"But you've won the world championship three times, the most of anyone in Xia country," his wife said.

"Because I train the most crazily," Tie Lianyuan said. "I train in the morning and evening, and I train at night. Except for sleep, I'm almost always training. When my body is tired, I simply practice the moves. When my body has recovered enough, I train my body."

"I'm thinking about martial arts even when I'm eating. I'm dreaming about martial arts even when I'm sleeping."

"Naturally, I've become one with martial arts techniques," Tie Lianyuan said.

His wife looked at her husband, feeling the intangible pressure emanating from him.

"Shifu's talent was exceptional, winning the world championship even in his old age. Lei Yunfang is also monstrously talented, making his debut as the world's number one in footwork! As for me? I stumbled and bumbled, losing to many opponents," Tie Lianyuan said. "But I surpassed opponent after opponent, and finally managed to win the world championship time after time."

"I believe that I may fall behind temporarily."

"But... the ultimate world champion will definitely be me!" Tie Lianyuan said. "Because they are all practicing martial arts. But me? I am a part of martial arts!"

Tie Lianyuan's eyes burned with passion.

His wife smiled as she watched this scene. That night, on the national team's training ground, she saw this man practicing his saber barefoot all alone, and she was attracted to him.

"I believe in you. You will definitely be the world champion," his wife said.

"Becoming the world champion isn't the most fascinating thing," Tie Lianyuan said. "The most fascinating thing is the process of becoming the world champion! Defeating one powerful opponent after another!"

After lunch, Tie Lianyuan picked up his shield and saber again and continued to practice alone in the factory.

One must have a powerful heart to endure this loneliness forever.

...

That night, the second round of the Huozhong Cup National Competition officially began.

"The competition has started." The six members of the Pearwood Battle Team gathered, sitting in the stands, watching the exciting duels taking place.

The first match: Willow Sea Oldies vs. Frost Whisper Battle Team!

"Dad and the others aren't having it as easy as they did in the first round," Xu Jingming observed, saying.

"The Frost Whisper Battle Team has Gu Chong, Lian Shuang, and several other experts," Li Miaomiao said. "Four against five... Uncle and the others are still a bit short."

In this match, the four older members of the Willow Sea Oldies team coordinated well, their moves were skilled, but after the sharpshooter 'Zhou Fan' was forcibly rushed down and killed by the Frost Whisper Battle Team, they fell into a complete disadvantage.

They fought until only Xu Hong, wielding two shields, was left before Willow Sea Shifu finally made his move.

The remaining two members of the Frost Whisper Battle Team also coordinated to besiege Willow Sea Shifu.

"Whoosh."

One saber strike.

The saber light flashed, simultaneously slashing through the two members of the Frost Whisper Battle Team, cutting through their heavy armor and light armor, killing them both.

Willow Sea Oldies, wins!

"That's the Global Number One!" Host Liu Xin couldn't help but say. "He even split heavy armor with a single strike, and he killed two people with one strike."

"The strength of the Global Number One is truly terrifying," male guest Jin Fan said. "Other experts can't even block one move in front of him."

Female guest Ju Wenqing said with a smile, "As of now, only six people in the world have passed the third level of the Star Tower. Willow Sea Shifu cleared it a month ago! And he cleared it as soon as the Star Tower opened! His strength gives him a huge advantage over everyone else on the rankings, not to mention ordinary experts."

"The next match features Teacher Lei Yunfang, who is the Global Number One in footwork," host Liu Xin said. "He and Willow Sea Shifu haven't publicly fought in the virtual world yet."

...

Second match: Lei Yunfang Battle Team vs. Hundred Sparrow Battle Team.

"The four teammates Lei Yunfang chose are a bit weak," Heng Fang said with a sigh. "Although Willow Sea Shifu chose amateur players, each of them has powerful skills. The four amateur players Lei Yunfang chose are much more ordinary."

"Lei Yunfang alone is enough to win," Wang Yi said.

Xu Jingming was also watching.

Lei Yunfang's four teammates barely restrained two opponents. Senior Lei Yunfang, dressed in green, carrying two sabers on his back, moved with seemingly casual steps, but he was terrifyingly fast. In a blur, he quickly caught up to one enemy after another.

Every time he approached an enemy, it was one saber strike! Although he carried two sabers, drawing one was enough.

Forcing three members of the Hundred Sparrow Battle Team to gather and fight Lei Yunfang, it was still one saber strike that easily killed all of his opponents. The people from the Hundred Sparrow Battle Team couldn't even touch Lei Yunfang's clothes.

His teammates killed one person; Senior Lei Yunfang killed four, ending the match.

"How can his footwork be so terrifying?" Xu Jingming watched intently. His footwork was still stuck at Tier 2 99%, while Senior Lei Yunfang's footwork was already at Tier 3 when the virtual world first opened. Now, it was even more miraculous. Xu Jingming only felt that it was an art.

He was clearly only taking two steps, but it was as if space itself had changed.

...

Third match: Shield Axe Battle Team vs. Sword Pure Battle Team.

"Qin Ge from the Sword Pure Battle Team is a very talented amateur player, and he should be able to grow if he has enough time," Xu Jingming praised. "But his opponent is Xiong Tianshan, who has already broken through to Tier 3 and has abundant combat experience. The Sword Pure Battle Team has no chance at all."

A crushing victory.

...

Fourth match: Thunder Battle Team vs. Cloud Mountain Battle Team.

"My God." Yang Qingshuo stared.

"They're going crazy!" Heng Fang also exclaimed in surprise.

Xu Jingming also watched solemnly. This match was unexpectedly exciting, with a fierce and evenly matched fight.

"Xia country has a total of five players who have won the World Martial Arts Tournament, including Yang Yu and Gao Chong," Liu Chongyuan said. "They are very strong when they team up. And although Huo Qingshan and Chang Qingpeng from the Cloud Mountain Battle Team haven't won the world championship, they are also two martial arts grandmasters. The two grandmasters coordinating... are not at a disadvantage at all."

The core of the two teams was Gao Chong and Yang Yu on one side, and Huo Qingshan and Chang Qingpeng on the other. The other teammates were clearly inferior.

"The two teams are very close in strength. It all depends on their performance on the spot," Xu Jingming could also see that the two teams were pulling back and forth, calculating and coordinating.

This battle lasted for more than nine minutes, a rare occurrence, and in the end, only the one-armed Huo Qingshan was left standing.

Cloud Mountain Battle Team wins! Thunder Battle Team is eliminated!

"This match was the most evenly matched of the first four matches," Wang Yi praised.

"The next match is our turn," Xu Jingming said. Wang Yi, Heng Fang, Yang Qingshuo, and Liu Chongyuan were also full of fighting spirit. After watching the first four matches, they were all eager to fight.