High Martial Arts: Grinding for the Supreme Talent

Chapter 470: Chapter 452: Too Brutal

Lin Qi’s gaze swept over the 31 match-ups, and he quickly spotted his opponent.

[Match 4: Lin Qi (Xia Country) VS Hattori Chouzai (Japan)]

...

A playful smile appeared on Lin Qi’s face when he saw who his opponent was.

Next to him, Jiangtao’s expression instantly became excited.

”Brother Qi, your opponent is Hattori Chouzai from Japan. You have to teach him a good lesson.”

Lin Qi laughed. ”Do you want me to take him out in a single blow, or should I toy with him for a while?”

Jiangtao was stunned. ”I get to choose?”

”Brother Qi, you decide. Just don’t lose the match because of me!”

Lin Qi clapped Jiangtao on the shoulder and laughed. ”Don’t worry. I’ll give him a thorough thrashing.”

”He’s just Hattori Chouzai. This won’t affect the final outcome.”

...

In the spectator stands for Japan,

Hattori Chouzai, who stood only 1.75 meters tall and had a rather sleazy face, broke into an excited smile when he saw his opponent was Lin Qi.

”Lin Qi of Xia Country. I can’t believe we’re this lucky.”

”We actually got matched.”

He turned to look at the beautiful Kitano Wakana in the distance, his eyes lingering on her prominent chest for a moment.

”Kitano-chan, I will avenge you with my sword.”

”I will eliminate him.”

Kitano Wakana immediately shook her head. ”That’s not necessary. I don’t need revenge!”

”Besides, you’re not guaranteed to win!”

After watching Lin Qi defeat Trish, the SSS-level genius from the White Eagle Federation, she believed Lin Qi was stronger than Hattori Chouzai.

Hattori Chouzai’s face instantly darkened. No man could accept being told to his face that he was inferior to another, and he was no exception.

If Kitano weren’t also an SS-level genius, he would have taught her a lesson.

...

The seventh round of the main tournament officially began.

Everyone who made it to this round was a master, so matches ending in a single blow were a thing of the past.

Shen Heng and Ivan were exceptions, as they were already Seventh Realm Martial Artists.

After a full ten-minute wait, it was Lin Qi’s turn.

[Will the two contestants for Match 4 please enter the arena!]

Lin Qi looked at the message that popped up before him and slowly rose to his feet.

Jiang Miaoyin pumped her fist. ”Go, Brother Lin Qi!”

Lin Qi nodded. The next moment, he was enveloped in a crimson pillar of light and teleported to the arena.

Seeing the two opponents face off, some of the tens of millions of spectators in the stands began to analyze the match.

”Hattori Chouzai from Japan... gotta say, he’s really short.”

”Ever since the Martial Arts Era began, you almost never see a male martial arts genius under 1.8 meters.”

”And he looks so sleazy, too. It’s strange. But his Talent is undeniably incredible.”

”A fourth-year, SS-level genius, and incredibly strong. He might even make it into the top 16.”

”But his opponent is Lin Qi. Lin Qi of Xia Country.”

”He’s supposedly an SS-level genius, but I feel like he has SSS-level Talent.”

”He’s only a second-year, but his Talent and strength are abnormally powerful. He even defeated Trish, another SSS-level genius, with ease.”

”This is bound to be an exciting fight.”

”But I have a feeling Hattori Chouzai will win. Lin Qi is just too young.”

One spectator concluded after running through his analysis.

”Pfft, what kind of bullshit reason is that?”

”I bet Lin Qi will easily crush Hattori Chouzai.”

”I’ve never seen Lin Qi lose before, and this time won’t be any different,” another person retorted.

...

The arguing wasn’t just in the stands; the citizens of the two countries were also fighting in the live chat.

Hattori Chouzai might not have been good-looking, but he was still a genius from Japan.

「Back in the arena.」

The crimson pillar of light dissipated. Lin Qi, clad in a black, form-fitting Combat Suit, emerged holding a spear in one hand.

Opposite him stood Hattori Chouzai, only 1.7 meters tall, also in a black Combat Suit, with a silver longsword at his waist.

Both men wore black Combat Suits, but they were like polar opposites.

As the saying goes, it’s not about who wore it first, but who wore it better.

Lin Qi was tall, handsome, and well-proportioned, while Hattori Chouzai was short and ugly.

Hattori Chouzai looked at the man opposite him, a flicker of self-loathing in his eyes. He sneered and said,

”So what if you’re handsome? You’ll still fall to my sword in the end.”

”Lin Qi of Xia Country, this is your last match.”

”I’ll give you a memory you won’t soon forget.”

Lin Qi scoffed. ”Clown.”

[Countdown: ...3, 2, 1]

[The fourth match of the seventh round now begins!]

The AI voice rang out from above the arena.

WHOOSH!!

In an instant, amidst the dilapidated ruins of the arena, streams of water materialized out of thin air, making the air feel damp.

Blue markings appeared on Hattori Chouzai’s body as streams of blue water materialized, condensing into a sharp aura of light that enveloped his sword.

SWOOSH!

A powerful aura erupted from Hattori Chouzai. He was only 1.7 meters tall, but his build was lean and wiry. Pushing off with his feet, he vanished on the spot.

He thrust his longsword, unleashing his swordsmanship.

His whole body shot forward like a laser beam. As he watched Hattori Chouzai charge toward him, Lin Qi’s body erupted in a golden light, and his golden eyes activated instantly.

In his vision, Hattori Chouzai’s movements began to slow.

Hattori Chouzai certainly had the qualifications to be arrogant.

According to the information gathered by Dean Liu and Wan Ming, he was at the Late-stage of the Sixth Realm, and very close to the Peak of the Sixth Realm.

He was also an SS-level genius. Though he lacked height, he was innately agile, possessing incredible coordination, agility, and flexibility.

When he unleashed his full power, his speed was incredible.

Due to being born ugly and sleazy, he had an obsessive personality. After awakening his Special Ability, [Flowing Water], he threw himself into his Cultivation with a mad fervor.

His Swordsmanship Realm was superb; he had already reached Tier Four Mid-stage and was only a hair’s breadth away from the Late Stage.

In terms of speed, he was even faster than Trish from the White Eagle Federation.

It was pure speed, quite similar to Miyamoto Genichiro, and characteristic of the Japanese style—swordsmanship that pursued the pinnacle of swiftness.

The power generated by this unorthodox approach was also quite impressive.

Moreover, Hattori Chouzai was like a swordfish—the fastest creature in the water.

He controlled his Special Ability, [Flowing Water], like a high-pressure water jet to achieve ultimate speed.

SWISH! SWISH!

His sword cut through the air, whistling sharply as it arced.

Through Lin Qi’s eyes, the trajectory of Hattori Chouzai’s sword was perfectly clear. He had even predicted his opponent’s attack was aimed at his face.

’He wants to scar my face?’

’How interesting. So he’s jealous of my looks.’

Lin Qi planted his feet firmly on the ground. Under his control, the Golden Sharpness in the air condensed into a volley of sharp blades that shot toward Hattori Chouzai.

BANG! BANG!

Hattori Chouzai swung his sword, creating a sky full of afterimages.

The sword’s aura shot out, colliding with the golden blades and canceling them out.

And he, moving like a swordfish, was now only a meter away from Lin Qi.

SWISH! SWISH!

At that very moment, Lin Qi violently swung his Black Great Spear.

CLANG! CLANG!

Their weapons collided as their Power clashed in the air.

Hattori Chouzai was supremely confident in his swordsmanship, unleashing it without holding anything back.

The Sword Technique Secret Manual he used was the ?Ten Thousand Waters Swordsmanship?. This swordsmanship was a balance of hard and soft styles, but during his Cultivation, he had honed the ”soft” aspect to its absolute limit.

Combined with his Special Ability, [Flowing Water], his speed was pushed to the extreme, becoming both light and incredibly swift.

Each swing of his sword was like ten thousand streams of water jetting out at once.

He was determined to scar Lin Qi’s handsome face. He hated good-looking men more than anything.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

The great spear and longsword collided. As their Power clashed, the air crackled with sonic booms.

It was Jin Feng versus Flowing Water, a head-on clash!

Lin Qi swung his great spear with ease, his spear technique as fluid and relentless as a flowing river.

Each collision was perfectly timed, effortlessly deflecting Hattori Chouzai’s sword moves.

”How is this possible!”

After dozens of exchanges, Hattori Chouzai sensed that something was wrong.

He instantly unleashed his full power, increasing the frequency of his sword thrusts.

SWISH! SWISH!

CLANG! CLANG!

Lin Qi spun his great spear, using it like a shield to block every strike.

At the same time, he mobilized the power of [Jin Feng], forming it into streams of sharp blades that shot out.

SLICE! SLICE!

The highly condensed Golden Sharpness cut across Hattori Chouzai’s face like razor blades.

’It hurts!’

Hattori Chouzai was inwardly shocked. He was in the Sixth Realm; his skin had been tempered until it was tougher than leather.

Even a cleaver swung with full force couldn’t break his skin.

And yet, it had been cut by a mere construct of energy. ’Just how powerful is that Sharpness?’

”Too slow! You’re too slow!”

”How did you ever get an SS-level title with speed like this?”

”With speed like yours, you’d only be considered an S-class genius in Xia Country.”

Lin Qi taunted, looking at the bloody gashes that now marred Hattori Chouzai’s face.

The pain in his face, combined with Lin Qi’s mockery, sent him into a burning rage. He frantically mobilized his Special Ability.

His swordsmanship grew faster and faster as he integrated his Ten Thousand Waters Realm into his attacks.

Lin Qi shook his head. In this entire Global Martial Arts Tournament, not even the fourth-year SS-level or SSS-level geniuses like Shen Heng and Ivan had achieved Perfection in their mastery over their Special Abilities.

They were all at the Realm of Great Success, which provided a combat power boost of 1.8 times at most.

To say nothing of the Hattori Chouzai standing before him.

SHNK! SHNK!

Golden Sharpness continued to lance out. Lin Qi felt he’d seen enough. Hattori Chouzai hadn’t managed to cultivate a Little Divine Power.

This was his limit.

BOOM!

At that thought, Lin Qi suddenly put forth his strength. A vast power was unleashed as his own Power surged forth, combining with the Golden Sharpness to strike out like a Spiritual Snake.

The golden great spear in his hand lashed out!

A twofold combat power boost!

BANG!!

The great spear and the longsword collided. The Golden Sharpness erupted like ten thousand arrows firing at once, surging forward with his Power.

The air cracked. Hattori Chouzai’s eyes flew wide as the Golden Sharpness pierced his eyeballs, sending blood spraying everywhere.

The terrifying force traveled through his body, instantly tearing him apart from the inside.

Though he possessed extreme speed, his body’s durability was far too low.

His bones shattered, and his body was sent flying like a broken doll.

THUD!

His body slammed onto the ground, his face a bloody, mangled mess. He looked utterly wretched, muttering, ”Impossible...”

His entire body was consumed by excruciating pain.

Finally, he faded into nothingness and disappeared.

[Match 4: Lin Qi (Xia Country) wins!]

The AI voice announced impassively from above the arena.

In the stands, Wan Ming couldn’t help but sigh as he watched the scene unfold.

”How brutal!”

...