The scarred man grunted and charged him; his steps were sloppy, but they held a certain edge. De Ming could tell that this man was not to be underestimated
The man approached, unsheathing his large Dao from a worn leather pouch strapped on his back, and slashed at De Ming
De Ming stepped back, keeping a safe distance out of his reach while assessing the man's form
"Boooooo"
"Coward!"
"Kill that kid, Da Bao!"
The crowd of ragged Beggar Sect members booed loudly, rumbling the dilapidated temple
They were not fond of De Ming's "cowardly" tactics
"Quit running, kid!" Da Bao roared as he raised his Dao high, flared his Qi, and gathered it along the Dao's edge
"Mountainous Cleave!" the man announced with bravado as he slashed down, standing nine to ten meters away from De Ming, his strike had no chance of hitting him, or so De Ming thought
Suddenly, strong wind currents brushed against his skin.
Alarmed, his body instinctively dodged out of the way. A whistling zipped past him and flew into the bystanders behind him
De Ming heard a blood-curdling scream and turned back
A guy's hand was cut clean off, blood fountaining out of his wound as the crowd's cheer grew louder
De Ming shuddered. If that had hit him, who knows what damage it could've done
"Haha, you're scared now, kid?"
The scarred man taunted, the evil smile revealing his ugly yellow teeth as he once again raised his dao and gathered Qi
Keeping his distance was no longer an option; the man's Qi slash gave him an attack range that De Ming couldn't counter
De Ming was scared, the moment seemed to freeze as he stared at the impending death that was Da Bao's Mountainous Cleave
But adrenaline kept him moving. De Ming jolted himself awake, biting his tongue
Da Bao swung down his dao, and a fleeting aura of Qi flew out from its edge. De Ming quickly dashed to the side, narrowly dodging another of the thug's slashes
Seizing the moment, while Da Bao had to recuperate, De Ming opened his dantian briefly. Letting the chaotic Qi ravage his body as he directed it to his legs
De Ming moved gracefully with Flowing Reed Steps, quietly gliding towards Da Bao
De Ming made it in front of him and prepared to do a Crimson Flame Palm. Unfortunately, Da Bao didn't let him get into stance, using his right leg to kick at De Ming's stomach
woooosh
It struck air, De Ming side-stepped and closed off his dantain due to strain. He had lost his opportunity to attack
Da Bao grunted and followed it up with downward strikes in rapid succession. De Ming used his keen eyes to catch the blade's trajectory and dodge in between
"Dammit runt!" Da Bao yelled as he panted in frustration. His speed started to slow
Catching the shift, De Ming slipped in within arm's reach, took a deep breath as he opened his dantain slightly, letting just enough Qi to slip out without pain.
The Staggering Tiger's claw!
De Ming ducked through a formidable slash and swiped up with a clawing motion, ripping through at the thug's Dao-holding hand
"Arghhhhh!"
Da Bao screamed out as his right wrist started to spurt out streams of blood. He dropped his Dao and used his other hand to restrict the blood flow
De Ming tried to follow it up with another swipe, but Da Bao had learned his lesson.
He yanked both of his hands away and lowered his body
Underhanded Thug Sweep!
Using his left leg as an anchor, he charged the other with Qi and swept it at De Ming, who was still in motion
Hitting De Ming straight on the sides of his knee. Unnaturally bending his knee joint and knocking him prone in an instant
His back hit the ground with a solid thud, De Ming choked on his saliva as his vision spun wildly
"Not so high and mighty now, eh?" Da Bao sneered, spitting on the fallen De Ming
He raised his right leg, the air trembling as Qi gathered around the sole of his foot. De Ming could tell that it was the last of his Qi he was channeling; this attack was Da Bao's finisher
Flattening Curb Stomp!
His whole body weight shifted onto his leg, launching directly at De Ming's unprotected chest
De Ming instantly rolled over to dodge. He managed to avoid his ribcage getting crushed and survived, but his left hand wasn't as lucky
Da Bao's foot slammed against De Ming's left forearm, hitting it with the full brunt of a nearly 200 lbs man
De Ming screamed out in agony as it dug into his muscle, the stomp had shattered his arm bones, and the intense shock had nearly fainted him
"Yer done, runt! Hahaha!"
Da Bao let out a hearty laugh, convinced that the fight was over
"Fuck off!!"
De Ming yelled out uncharacteristically and gritted his teeth. He opened his dantian completely, the volatile Qi flooded his frame
With his left arm still stuck under Da Bao's foot. De Ming bent his knees and planted both of his feet on the ground, torqued his body in the dirt, and pulled his right arm back into a palm
Crimson Flame Palm!
The smug thug didn't know what hit him. De Ming's palm absolutely clobbered his femur, snapping it immediately in half before he was launched away by the impact and torched by the erratically bursting flames
The shock of pain and heat caused Da Bao to start frothing from his mouth, his body went into shock, and he lost all strength to resist
De Ming picked himself up and limped menacingly to the fallen thug
Da Bao's eyes widened in terror. he gathered all the power he had left and even used his still bleeding hand to grapple the earth and try to drag himself away
At that moment, De Ming's mind was set on one thing and one thing only: making this bastard suffer
He raised his hands up high, his void-like pupils dilated wildly as a slight grin grew on his face
The Staggering Tiger's claw!
Slash after slash, De Ming mutilated Da Bao's face relentlessly, ripping off his ear, maiming his lips, gouging his nose. De Ming started to lose himself in hysteric anger, handling Da Bao like butchering a chicken
"P-pleas… Stop… " Da Bao muttered weakly, desperately begging for his pitiful life
His plea snapped De Ming out of it, Ba Dao wasn't some animal. He was a human, and this wasn't right
He stopped. Zhu Lian wouldn't want him like this, and a ruthless martial artist wasn't who he wanted to become. He wanted to fight against fate, but this was not the path he wanted to go down
He released his grip, dropping Da Bao's torso to the ground
"Scram, I'll spare you this time, don't ever let me see you again." De Ming grumbled, and he turned away, leaving Da Bao disfigured, but alive nonetheless
The audience exploded in a mix of cheers and boos, some amazed with De Ming's skills, others disappointed at him sparring Da Bao.
De Ming walked with a limp and a broken arm back to Bu Li's and Lao Jiu's direction
That wasn't a martial bout, no. It was raw, dirty, and frenzied. It was a Gu battle.
De Ming looked back at his maniacal state as he staggered off, then interrupted
Before he managed to leave the "ring", a beggar pushed through the crowd and hastily jumped in
He dusted his rags for clothes and bent down to pick something up, De Ming didn't notice; he was still focused on leaving this hellhole
"Round two!"
The beggar yelled out abruptly, and the crowd went wild
De Ming turned back, shocked
"Wha–"
"–I've also finished my first round, so we're doing round two, you and me," the scrawny and haggard man spoke out, his fox-like eyes gleaming with mischief and cunning
"Back off ya bastard! He's in no condition to fight!" Lao Jiu yelled out from the sidelines
"You have gone senile, Professor. He's still standing, is he not? So he's eligible!!"
"Yo-you–"
The crowd roared out in excitement, rules were being disregarded, but the crowd didn't care, nor did any of the so-called "judges" from the Beggar Sect
Whoever this guy was, one thing was crystal clear: he had pulled some strings
"It's fine, I'll fight."
De Ming spoke with resolution as he turned back into the ring
"Benefactor! You can't be serious!!" Bu Li cried out, biting his nails in anxiety
De Ming didn't stop, he knew that backing out wasn't an option, not with the whole Beggar Sect conspiring against them
"Smart move!"
The skinny beggar ran at him, his hands clasped into fists
Expecting a direct confrontation, De Ming widened his eyes to study the man's movements
But then unexpectedly, not even midway within punching range, the man swung his fist back, and threw hot sand!?
Heated Sand Splash!
Sand, heated with Qi and thrown with precision, splattered onto De Ming's eyes, sealing them shut
De Ming screeched out as the grains burrowed in and burned his eyes, the sensation was one of pure suffering
Using the opportunity, the cunning man slipped in and punched De Ming's guts
De Ming stumbled back, disoriented!
"Now that's how we fight round here!"
"You mothefu–" De Ming roared in unadulterated anger, his voice pained and ferocious
The man chuckled as he prepped another swing
Unable to see, De Ming could only stand still and brace himself
The beggar punched his head, his broken arm, his ribs, and stomach repeatedly
Over and over, blow after blow landed on De Ming's already battered body
The strikes themselves weren't particularly strong, but their sheer quantity gradually broke De Ming down
De Ming resisted; his dantian was mostly drained from the Crimson Flame Palm and Flowing Reed Steps from earlier. The situation was dire
But De Ming, ever the specimen of resilience, didn't give up; he couldn't lose, not to such a cunning bastard!
He wasn't taking blows for nothing, no
He was studying the man's attack patterns. He would hit places in cycles, and his tempo was predictable
As the man aimed a fist at De Ming's stomach, De Ming swiftly intercepted and grabbed his wrist
"How!?"
The man gasped
De Ming opened his eyes, now bloodshot and terrifying
"You're too predictable, motherfucker." he growled hysterically and just absolutely yanked down his hand, hard
With the motion of The Staggering Tiger's Claw. De Ming swung down, his grip tight as steel on the beggar's wrist, which the force snapped instantly
The man screamed out, but it was to no avail. De Ming repeated the motion several times. His superior physical strength from years of labor, he whipped the man's body towards him.
With each stroke, the man's face slammed into De Ming's shoulders
Crash
Crash
Crash
De Ming kept going until the man stopped struggling. He was unconscious, and his face was a disfigured mess of blood and pulp beyond repair
The crowd boomed
"Brutal!!!"
"This kid is ruthless!!!"
"Wooooo yeahhh, beat his ass!"
De Ming dropped his body, it fell to the ground like a thrown-out rag doll
De Ming walked away, limping, left arm broken, eyes burnt, body battered, but unapologetically victorious