Bang!
Liang Feng's lightweight body was blasted backward by Cao Yang's strike. He crashed to the ground, clutching his left side, unable to get up for a long while.
"Nice! Beautiful!" Tie Xiong roared from the stands. Even Jim couldn't help rising to his feet, applauding.
"Finish him! Now! End him while he's down!" Tie Xiong screamed hysterically.
But Cao Yang didn't follow up. Instead, he stood still, calmly waiting for Liang Feng to recover.
More than ten seconds later, Liang Feng finally staggered to his feet. He no longer dared underestimate Cao Yang. He circled cautiously, unwilling to strike first again.
In the previous exchanges, except for the very first sneak attack that caught Cao Yang off guard, the following two assaults had gained him nothing.
All three exchanges had been initiated by him—and Cao Yang was merely defending.If Cao Yang actually took the initiative… he might be in far worse shape.
"Hurry up! Quit circling like a dog!" the crowd shouted, impatient for the fight to end so they could collect their winnings.
Liang Feng pretended not to hear them. He stared intently at Cao Yang, searching for an opening.
To him, Cao Yang was full of openings. The guy stood there like a complete amateur. But something felt off—those flaws looked deliberate.
A stance this loose could only belong to two types of people:a true master… or a total novice.
And after those exchanges, he absolutely didn't believe Cao Yang was the latter.But to say he was a master? With this age and casual posture? Hard to accept.
"Go! Finish him already!" Tie Xiong urged Cao Yang next.
Cao Yang finally lost patience. Is this guy planning to stall forever?
"Hey, idiot," Cao Yang said calmly. "I'm attacking first."
The moment the words left his mouth, he shot forward like a fired cannon, fist driving straight toward Liang Feng.
Even before the punch landed, the wind pressure reached him.
Liang Feng didn't dare take it head-on. He crossed his arms in front of his chest, trying to block.
BOOM!
The impact was far beyond what he imagined. He was sent flying, slammed into the fence, and fell heavily to the ground.
He had barely stood up when something tightened around his neck—Cao Yang's hand.With one motion, Cao Yang lifted him into the air, spun him twice by his throat, and hurled him across the cage.
CRASH!
Liang Feng smashed into the metal fence again, bending the steel.
His whole body screamed with pain, as if all his bones had scattered.He tried to stand—too late.Cao Yang launched himself like a hungry tiger, crashing down with the weight of a falling mountain.
Liang Feng tried to lift his leg for a counter-kick, but his legs trembled uncontrollably—they no longer obeyed him.
Cao Yang pinned him effortlessly, one knee pressing into his lower spine, a large palm pushing his face into the mat.Liang Feng couldn't move even an inch.
"Nice!""Insane!"
The sequence of smooth, brutal moves sent the entire arena into a frenzy.Jim and Tie Xiong were ecstatic—they could already taste victory.
Meanwhile, gamblers who bet on Liang Feng cursed nonstop.They refused to believe Liang Feng could lose—calling him a fraud again, claiming he was throwing the fight just to scam their money.
"Do you admit defeat?" Cao Yang asked from above.
Liang Feng said nothing. Though he could not move, he gritted his teeth stubbornly.
The audience howled:"Kill him! Kill him!"
But Cao Yang hesitated.
The rules were simple:Either the opponent surrendered, died, or lost all ability to fight.
Liang Feng wasn't completely disabled. If he let go, Liang Feng still had some fight left.Was he supposed to kill him?
They had no personal feud.Even though killing someone here might not bring consequences… Cao Yang wasn't willing.
So he released him and stepped back.
If you won't surrender, he thought, I'll give you another chance. I'll beat you until you understand.
"You idiot!" Tie Xiong shouted furiously. "Why would you let him get up?! This is your chance to finish him!"
Cao Yang wasn't being merciful.If Liang Feng were truly dangerous or difficult, he would have ended him instantly.
But Liang Feng's performance convinced him otherwise. He was simply too far below him.
Liang Feng slowly got up and spat a mouthful of blood to the side. Then he bowed deeply to Cao Yang—thanking him for the second chance.
He respected this young man.But he wouldn't surrender.Mercy was the greatest flaw inside the octagon.
He let out a sharp cry and suddenly leaped—three meters into the air—aiming a flying kick at Cao Yang's face.
Cao Yang merely watched him and shook his head.
He clenched his right hand into a fist.Though he moved later, his punch landed first.
His fist drove straight into Liang Feng's stomach midair.Liang Feng's body folded as he was blasted backwards, vomiting everything he had eaten.
THUD!
He crashed to the mat, curling like a shrimp, unable to rise.
Cao Yang walked to him and said calmly, "You're not my opponent. You're too slow."
With that, he turned away.Liang Feng had no fight left.Victory was his.
But then—Liang Feng suddenly grabbed his calf and sank his teeth in.
Cao Yang froze for a second, startled by the sheer savagery.
"Let go!" he barked.
But Liang Feng didn't release. He bit down even harder.
Cao Yang kicked him in the head, but Liang Feng clamped on like a rabid dog.
With a grimace, Cao Yang stomped down with full force.
Liang Feng was kicked away at last, but the pain followed instantly.
A chunk of flesh was missing from Cao Yang's calf.Two of Liang Feng's teeth were still embedded in the wound.
"You son of a—" Cao Yang felt disgust and fury surge.
He channeled power through his whole body and swung a killing kick toward Liang Feng's face.He was confident—this kick would kill him.
But the kick stopped.Three centimeters from Liang Feng's face.
Liang Feng was crying.
He wasn't sobbing, but tears flowed silently.His eyes were filled with a kind of release.
When Cao Yang halted his attack, Liang Feng's eyes showed… disappointment.
Cao Yang stared at him quietly, unable to understand.
Did this man want to win? Yes.Did he want to die? Also yes.
From the first few exchanges he should have known—he wasn't Cao Yang's match.Why did he refuse to surrender? Why fight to the death?
Perhaps… he couldn't afford to lose.Maybe losing cost more than dying.
The staff rushed up, grabbed Cao Yang's arm, and raised it high.
"Winner—Cao Yang!"
The arena erupted—some cheering, more cursing.
Behind the stage, medics tended to Cao Yang's calf.Liang Feng, too badly injured to move, was carried on a stretcher.
As the stretcher passed Cao Yang, Liang Feng gave him a long, deep look.
"You useless trash! You're a waste of oxygen!"the Guangxi gang leader, Sida, shouted at Liang Feng.
Then he turned, instantly switching to a smile as he faced Cao Yang.
"Brother, you really opened my eyes today. I'm Chen Sida, the person in charge of the Guangxi crew here."
He pulled out a business card and handed it over.
"Let's be friends. If you ever need something around here, give me a call. One word from me and it'll be done."