Chapter 18

Facing Yiwu Shen Si's question, Jiecheng Wu did not answer.

He simply tossed the tennis ball in his hand up once more.

His racket flashed, the speed of his swing so fast that the naked eye could not even capture it.

Boom!

Another flash of white light flickered on the court, and at the same time, a muffled sound appeared behind Yiwu Shen Si, yet he still could not take a single step.

"30-0!"

Boom!

Boom!

Jiecheng Wu continued to fire off two more balls, successfully taking the service game.

"Game, Jiecheng Wu, score 2-0."

The match continued.

But calling it a match was not quite appropriate; this was simply a one-sided slaughter.

When Yiwu Shen Si served, the ball Jiecheng Wu returned with a half-volley was even faster than his serve.

And when it was Jiecheng Wu's turn to serve, Yiwu Shen Si could not even see the shadow of the ball, and his body could not move even a fraction.

This cruel scene made the spectators on the sidelines almost unable to bear watching; some looked at Yiwu Shen Si with worry, silently cheering him on in their hearts.

While playing the match, Jiecheng Wu also kept an eye on Yiwu Shen Si's situation.

Although he did not use his full strength, he certainly did not go easy on him.

After all, he had made up his mind from the very beginning to let Yiwu Shen Si witness the cruel side of the National Competition in advance.

The strong dare to draw their swords against the even stronger!

Everyone aiming to be a professional tennis player knows clearly that facing a formidable enemy is an indispensable part of their path forward.

Ji Bu went to Li Hai Da alone, constantly enduring the wild bombardment of Sanada's Wind, Forest, Fire, and Mountain.

He did so just to break his limits, hoping to take another step forward on the road to the national level.

Bu Er, in order to test the gap between himself and national-level players, also sought out Ju Juping.

After witnessing with his own eyes the scene where his Triple Counters were crushed by a basic attack, he transcended the framework of the Triple Counters from then on.

Even Jiecheng Wu himself had encountered a bottleneck half a year ago where he could not awaken his Wildness for a long time.

It wasn't until he saw Bu Er's match that he felt something in his heart, and he immediately went to challenge Bu Er Zhou Zhu, who was far stronger than him at the time.

He crossed the limit in his heart and awakened his own Wildness.

Only then did he successfully return the Swallow Return, thereby stepping into the Kanto-level realm.

The strong do not fear the power of their opponents; they dare to hold their heads high, face the formidable enemy, and draw their swords to fight!

This is the admission ticket needed to reach the national level.

And many people have already given their answers.

Now it is your turn, Yiwu Shen Si; do you dare to bare your fangs at me?!

Boom!

Jiecheng Wu swung violently, the tennis ball instantly caved in, and then it erupted with astonishing speed, passing by Yiwu Shen Si's feet.

"Game, Jiecheng Wu, score 5-0!"

In the final game, Jiecheng Wu served.

"Huff, huff... that kind of serve is coming again..."

Yiwu Shen Si was panting heavily, his heart trembling incessantly; Jiecheng Wu's fierce offensive brought him unimaginable pressure.

This one-sided match completely shattered the small sense of self-satisfaction he had developed from past matches.

Facing a true expert, his bit of strength was simply vulnerable.

Boom!

Another flash of white light, and rampant electric arcs tore across the court, while Yiwu Shen Si could only watch the ball fly past his side.

"I'll die!"

Yiwu Shen Si felt a chill on his scalp; the terrifying aura he felt made him afraid to take a single step.

It was as if the moment he moved, a hungry tiger would bite through his throat.

Clatter—

Only when the tennis ball smashed into the wire fence did Yiwu Shen Si let out a sigh of relief, temporarily escaping Jiecheng Wu's intimidation.

"15-0!"

"Are you afraid?"

Jiecheng Wu suddenly shouted.

Boom!

A muffled thunderclap echoed on the court as the tennis ball whistled toward Yiwu Shen Si.

The roaring tennis ball arrived in an instant; this time, Yiwu Shen Si could see the shadow of the ball.

But he still could not break through the intimidation of this aura, standing blankly in place, Jiecheng Wu's question echoing in his mind.

Am I... afraid?!

As if realizing his own weakness for the first time, a huge sense of humiliation welled up from the bottom of his heart.

"30-0!"

"Are you afraid of your own weakness, or are you afraid of my strength?!"

Jiecheng Wu's interrogation rang out again.

And accompanying his question was another terrifying serve.

Boom!

The rapidly spinning tennis ball struck the ground, emitting a harsh friction sound, like the roar of an electric current.

Once again enduring Jiecheng Wu's intimidation, Yiwu Shen Si's inner self was in a fierce battle.

"This time I saw the ball, move! Give me a move!"

He shouted fiercely in his heart, his face contorted, revealing his scarlet gums.

Scrape, scrape.

His right foot lifted.

Yiwu Shen Si withstood the intimidation and resolutely stepped forward, but by then the tennis ball had already flashed behind him, too late to react.

"40-0!"

"That's right, just like that; if you have the guts, try to return it!"

Although Yiwu Shen Si only moved one step, Jiecheng Wu finally let go of his worries.

"The ball is coming!"

Boom!

The tennis ball broke through the air, stirring up the airflow, the sound of a howling gale ringing in Yiwu Shen Si's ears, and that aura of a wild beast descending the mountain appeared right on cue.

But this time, Yiwu Shen Si finally moved.

His knees bent slightly, and the moment the tennis ball landed, he performed a quick hop to activate his body.

And in an instant, he took a step.

Step, step.

He finally caught up to the serve, aimed at the direction the tennis ball bounced, and swung his racket violently with his right hand.

"I can return it!"

He gritted his teeth and shouted.

The crowd outside the court also held their breath at this moment, preparing to witness the important moment of Yiwu Shen Si's first return.

However, the moment the racket made contact with the tennis ball, a huge force came from the racket and erupted in his hand.

Boom—

Yiwu Shen Si's expression changed suddenly.

Clatter!

His racket had already flown several meters away and dropped to the ground.

"Game, Jiecheng Wu, score 6-0."

"The match is over, Jiecheng Wu wins."

Yiwu Shen Si stared blankly at the racket on the ground, lost in thought.

This was the first time in his life he had suffered such a crushing defeat.

He was still doubting himself, but the cheers of the crowd reached his ears.

"Yiwu Shen Si!

Yiwu Shen Si!

Yiwu Shen Si!"

He stood up and looked around; excited faces appeared before his eyes, everyone was cheering for his final struggle!

"I lost..."

He was a bit dazed, his mouth opened, wanting to tell everyone that he had lost, not won.

But at this moment, Jiecheng Wu walked over and patted him on the shoulder.

"Well played."

Inside the Principal's Office.

Shuidao Zhengzhang looked at the landline phone with some hesitation, not yet having decided whether to dial his old classmate's number.

But at this moment, the sudden noisy sounds from the tennis court attracted his attention.

He looked out the window at the tennis court not far away, watched the lively scene on the court, and after pondering for a moment, he put down the phone.

"Forget it, let's see just how far you all can go first."

Suddenly, he seemed to lose interest, casually tossing the documents waiting to be processed to the side.

Then he picked up a tennis magazine, lay on the sofa, crossed his legs, and began to read with great interest.

Humming an old-fashioned tune, he would occasionally click his tongue in wonder at some tennis news.

When he saw a scandalous story about a professional tennis player, he would let out a long "Oh," but his eyes were very honest as he read it carefully.

It was completely different from the dignified image he had deliberately maintained in the past.

This is the first time I've done a double update in the true sense, it's worth commemorating.

When writing this plot, a scene suddenly appeared in my mind.

Under the sunset, at the tennis court near the overpass, Tezuka and Yueqian.

Later, I thought of the inheritance between the Bing Di and Qingxue captains at the U17 training camp.

Ji Bu kept letting the ball go, dragging the match into an endless endurance battle, wanting to let Riji Ruo overcome the flaws of endurance battles.

While Tezuka made Hai Tang fall into a ball that could not end the match, stimulating Hai Tang's fighting spirit.

So Jiecheng Wu did the same, but his method was to make Shen Si unable to touch the ball except for the serve, thereby stimulating Shen Si's courage to face the strong.

(End of chapter)