Chapter 26: Hungry Tiger Kills Sick Goose

Yanxing Quan!

Lu Zhigang's primary fist technique is named for its form, which resembles a wild goose in flight, leaving traces as it cuts through the air.

Once the fist technique is fully unleashed, it stirs up wild winds on flat ground and sends yellow sand into the eyes, leaving the enemy with no room to maneuver.

As force is channeled into his shoulders, the air trembles and gathers, twisting to outline the silhouette of wings.

Lu Zhigang has been starving severely; his eyes are a ghostly green, his thick arms spread wide, and his physique expands into that of a lean wild goose.

A grave expression appears on Zhou You's face; the opponent is a formidable enemy.

If it were the old him, he would have had no intuitive concept of force and would not have known the danger.

But now...

"Getting hit by that really could kill a person!"

Lu Zhigang curls his arms, striking like a pitch-black, sharp blade; it could easily carve away 30 jin of flesh.

Zhou You feels his neck burning hot; this is the acceleration of blood brought on by excitement.

He immediately moves his force, his body temperature rises sharply, and with every breath, the heat gathers into two white waves of Qi.

"Awoo!"

Zhou You's opening move is 'Hungry Tiger Pounces on Prey'; his expression is ferocious, and the muscles and bones of his entire body are twisted into a single strand.

As he leaps, his body tenses like steel, his fists tearing through the air, aiming to gouge at Lu Zhigang's chest.

"Force, it's actually force; that wretch has doomed me."

Seeing the force in Zhou You's strike, the hairs all over Lu Zhigang's body stand on end.

This is bad; he had thought he was bullying the weak and could cripple Zhou You in two or three moves, then leave at his leisure.

But the opponent opened with force, and things have become troublesome.

Having endured hunger for many days, his muscle and fat have been reduced by nearly half; even with force, he cannot exert more than 40 or 50 percent of his usual power.

Conversely, the Zhou You opposite him has well-proportioned muscles, a healthy flush to his face, and his essence, blood, and vitality remain at their peak.

Thinking of Tu Laosan, who provided the false information, Lu Zhigang wishes he could drag him before his eyes and tear him to shreds.

"The tiger that sits in Gongliang City, its cubs and descendants compete in bravery and ferocity."

The tiger that sits in the city described by this saying is none other than the famous martial arts master of Gongliang City, Wang Jianxiong.

Wang Jianxiong is famous for his Jade Tiger Art and Subduing Tiger Fist, and he has raised a group of capable, loyal Disciples.

Back when he was in Su Cheng, Lu Zhigang had heard of his great reputation; if he hadn't been starving, he would never have dared to lay a hand on Wang Jianxiong's Apprentice.

"No, after finishing this job, I cannot stay in Gongliang City for long."

An Apprentice who has cultivated force is already a matter concerning the face of a martial arts school.

If Lu Zhigang cripples Zhou You today, tomorrow he will face the iron-blooded retaliation of the Jian Xiong Martial Arts School.

Wang Jianxiong wouldn't even need to take action himself; any Qi and Blood Disciple from the school could easily kill him.

Lu Zhigang swings his arms out, colliding with Zhou You's fists; the force of the two men clashes like refined steel weapons striking with full power.

The leaking force directly collapses the nearby wall, and broken bricks and stones scatter across the ground like flowing water.

Zhou You stomps on the ground, mud splattering everywhere, leaving a basin-sized pit in the flat earth.

The next moment, he transforms into a nearly transparent afterimage, pouncing above Lu Zhigang's head.

In Lu Zhigang's pupils, the silhouette of Zhou You's form almost turns into a long, lean tiger, forcing him to pull back and retreat.

Thud—a large willow tree by the road is snapped directly by Zhou You's pounce, kicking up dust that fills the sky.

"Wild geese fly south, snow flutters down."

The muscles in Lu Zhigang's arms ripple frantically, fanning the air in all directions like feathers as he jumps 7 or 8 meters high into the air.

He turns and leaps over Zhou You's head, kicking down from a position of superiority.

The style of Yanxing Quan uses lightness against heaviness and agility against clumsiness, often employing attacks from a superior position.

"Not good!"

Just as Lu Zhigang channels force into his toes, a sudden wave of dizziness washes over him.

Although he had eaten a full meal with money before coming, the long-term starvation had still caused a significant drop in his physical strength.

The short, intense burst just now had already consumed most of his energy, and at this critical moment, the feeling of exhaustion sets in.

This is his body issuing a warning, urging him to end the fight quickly.

For those who practice martial arts, often ending up vomiting blood or fainting after a fierce battle is due to overdrawing too much physical strength, causing bodily damage.

Lu Zhigang does not have the capital to drag this out; he channels full force into his toes and kicks toward Zhou You's temple.

If this move were aimed at an ordinary person, their head would explode like a watermelon on the spot, red and white matter splattering everywhere.

But Zhou You has cultivated force, and his defense is greatly enhanced; at most, he would be stunned on the spot.

Taking advantage of him being stunned and unable to resist, Lu Zhigang intends to execute a chain of moves, sweeping his arms to break Zhou You's leg bones.

"Well come."

Zhou You's pupils contract sharply; the needle-sharp force is aimed at his temple, locking onto the target firmly.

No matter how he dodges, the enemy waiting in mid-air can calmly shift direction.

The advantage of Yanxing Quan lies in its flexible and varied footwork, often capable of launching attacks from incredible angles.

Conversely, Subduing Tiger Fist specializes in offense and defense, with speed being its shortcoming.

Therefore, there is only one path: to meet it head-on.

Zhou You sinks his waist slightly, channeling the unique energy-storing method of Subduing Tiger Fist, and the force in his four limbs becomes increasingly fierce.

He is a Hungry Tiger, a Hungry Tiger eyeing its prey.

The prey is a wild goose; seemingly robust, but in reality, it is starving to the point of death—a sick goose.

Today's act shall be called... Hungry Tiger Kills Sick Goose.

A fierce wind roared in his ears, and a slight stinging sensation spread across the surface of his skin.

Lu Zhigang glided down from mid-air to strike, his toes chiseling down fiercely like a sharp iron awl.

"Suckling Tiger Rolls."

In an instant, Zhou You curled into a ball and rolled on the spot, taking the force of the strike on his back as the opponent's toes landed.

The toes pierced the ground like a sharp blade, and the blasted earth splattered in all directions like raindrops.

Zhou You rolled five or six times in succession, then suddenly sprang to his feet, stepping out a pattern to turn and counter-attack.

His footwork was highly distinctive, possessing both the fierce tiger-steps of the Crouching Tiger Fist and the agile variations of the Square-Circle Steps.

Within two or three breaths, he darted in front of Lu Zhigang using an arc-shaped path.

Lu Zhigang had just exerted too much force, and his legs were buried in the ground below the knees; before he could pull them out, Zhou You had already arrived before him.

A gale carrying a fishy stench rushed toward his face, accompanied by the roar of a fierce tiger.

Zhou You hooked his hands onto Lu Zhigang's shoulders and tore outward with all his might; flesh turned inside out, revealing ghastly white bone.

"Why doesn't he leave a live captive to interrogate me about who my employer is?"

Lu Zhigang still held this doubt before he died; his corpse split into two halves and landed with a muffled thud like a broken sack.

Zhou You wiped the blood splatters from his face, expressionless; he didn't need to interrogate anyone to know that the person behind this was undoubtedly Tu Laosan.

If there was anyone who least wanted him to master internal force and gain the qualifications to enter the martial arts hall, the prime suspect was Tu Laosan.

Moreover, he was the only enemy who could afford to pay 60 taels of silver.

The dismembered corpse on the ground was still steaming, and the soil had long been soaked through with blood.

Zhou You was not squeamish; he rummaged through the corpse and had a small harvest.

There was the 60-tael silver hiring fee, and a yellowed little booklet, "Yanxing Quan."

He flipped through a few pages; the content recorded in the booklet was the fist technique that Lu Zhigang practiced.

This fellow was literate, and since his memory wasn't very good, he had specifically written down the essentials of the fist technique.

The grade of this Yanxing Quan was no less than the Crouching Tiger Fist, and it would serve as a useful reference for Zhou You's own cultivation.