Martial Arts Master - "Fall Asleep"

The audience cried out his name in unison and the entire arena brimmed with sadness. Tears were springing to his eyes when Dong Yi heard those screams, he bore the pain and lifted his uninjured left hand, waved at the audience, turned around and left the ring desolately.
    

He had been longing for these cries and attentions for such a long time…
    

Unfortunately for him, these cries stemmed from his failure instead of victory.
    

Also luckily for him, his effort was rewarding because he had injured Lou Cheng’s right arm, which enabled him to fight with only one hand in the following matches. He had laid a solid foundation for his squad winning in the finals. At least he had done his job and lived up to the expectation.
    

“Dong Yi! Dong Yi!” Cheers for him grew fiercer and louder as he stepped out of the ring while waving goodbye. Lou Cheng quietly watched him leave and could not help sighing in his heart.
    

Despite that I could not understand his plan and choice, I respected his resolution, determination, and courage. It was not like every warrior would have his gut.
    

Lou Cheng slightly moved his right arm to see how serious his injury was. There were no bone fractures. It was just the part that was hit had swollen up. That attack must have hurt his fascia and muscles, incapacitating him to pull any strength from his right arm. In another word, it would only take a short time for him to recover, but the problem also lied in here. “A short time” would mean quite a few days, so his right arm was busted in the upcoming match.
    

Never mind, I’ll just do my best. Even with one disabled arm, I won’t let an Amateur First Pin fighter take me down easily. The least I could do was expending his energy as much as possible and creating an opportunity for Sun Jian to win the entire match.
    

Among amateur fighters, the difference of their abilities wasn’t big between one rank.
    

At this moment, Lou Cheng noticed the third participant from the Fearless Squad stayed put. He was supposed to rush to the ring, leaving Lou Cheng no time to catch a breath. How strange! It seemed like he was discussing something important with Qiu Yang.
    

Has he already given up the match? Or does he realize that I have the infinite strength? So there is no point for him cutting short of my recovery time.
    

Ridiculing himself optimistically, Lou Cheng did not waste this opportunity. He closed his eyes, concentrated on the concealment of spirit and qi and soon meditated. His body was in a state where he was about to fall asleep.
    

He tried to recover as much as possible before the third round.
    

Like a nebula which constantly expanded and shrank itself, Jindan (the Golden Elixir) slowly turned, revealing to Lou Cheng a view of his inner body. His every thought either subsided or flowed high into the sky. Right now, nothing left in his heart but silence.
    

…
    

Yan Zheke was relieved upon seeing Lou Cheng could still move his arm. She fell back to her seat, pouted and complained,
    

“How could he do that?”
    

It’s not an important match. Even if he loses the game, his squad is still likely to qualify for the knock-out stage. Why does he act like a maniac and hurt Lou Cheng at the price of getting himself a severe fracture?
    

Cheng only takes ten days at best to recover from his injury, but Dong Yi’s injury is a lot more serious. As the saying goes, if one’s bones and sinews are hurt, he or she might need one hundred days to recover. Although Dong Yi is a strong fighter who has an incredible recovery capability, still he is human. He can no longer fight without taking 50 or 60 days to recover from such a severe injury. And by that time, the knockout would already finish.
    

Is he a fool to miss the following five matches just to win this round?
    

Where do his hostilities and hatred come from?
    

Suspicious and angry, Yan Zheke felt painful at Lou Cheng’s suffering. Meanwhile Geezer Shi commented in a downcast and lamented way.
    

“There’re so many stubborn people in this world, and sometimes we as spectators can’t understand what he values.”
    

“Considering the Fearless Squad’s strength and its warriors’ fighting styles, without today’s move, Dong Yi would lose his last chance to be remembered by others. When Qiu Yang and Wei Shengtian recover, with these two taking care of everything, he might not be able to step into the ring.”
    

“Being ignored for so long, he is dying to prove himself.”
    

“Perhaps this is also one of the spirits a fighter should have.”
    

Wei Shengtian worked on Bright Stone Style but Lou Cheng withdrew his strength meanwhile pulled a Delicate Force, so Wei Shengtian’s injury wasn’t bad although that strike looked harsh. What really tortured Wei Shengtian was his internal organs which had gone through turbulence. He had to rest for a few days, allowing the body to return to his level of play.
    

Yan Zheke was born in an aristocratic family of martial arts, so she understood Dong Yi’s choice and slightly nodded her head to show her reluctant recognition.
    

Still, she did not like Dong Yi since it pained her to see Lou Cheng got hurt.
    

…
    

Inside the studio, the television presenter of Yimo was stunned by Dong Yi’s resolution when he decided to exchange injury for injury and the sadness filled in the auditorium. After a moment of silence, he started talking in a hesitant tone. “He doesn’t have to do this… Xiaowei, what do you think of this?”
    

He Xiaowei smacked his lips and said, “This match… was fierce. Without knowing the background, I’d take it as a decisive match where two squads fought for a qualification place in Songcheng city division.”
    

“I admire Dong Yi’s courage but I can’t understand his choice. Judging from Fearless Squad’s position in martial arts circle, they’re still likely to qualify in the knick-out stage after losing this match. And they’ve already defeated another biggest hit, Azure Dragon Squad. The disparity between them and their following opponents is big. So losing this battle would only make their squad look bad for a moment. But now, Dong Yi has to skip all the matches in group competition. Will he be able to participate in the knock-out competition in May? That has to depend on how he recovers. And I have to say it’s definitely not a bargain for him.”
    

“Of course, without Dong Yi in the following group competitions, the Fearless Squad is still a rookie defeater. Remember their away match with Azure Dragon Squad, Qiu Yang won two matches in a row and Wei Shengtian took care of the last round. Dong Yi only pretended to be a coach and cheered for his pals.”
    

Wei Shengtian led the Fearless Squad and they had no coach.
    

There were two powerful rivals in Lou Cheng’s group. Fearless Squad in Yimo had one player in Dan Stage and two of Professional Ninth Pin while Azure Dragon Squad in Songcheng had four of Professional Ninth Pin. Many people guessed these two teams might get the qualification place in the end. If their strength was assessed in a lateral comparative way, they would enter into the second stage of the knock-out without any troubles in Xiushan division. And in some divisions, many squads had only one Professional Ninth Pin fighter lead the team. If a squad like this was placed in a good group, then it was very likely to get qualified and participate in the knock-out competitions.
    

And there were two average squads in their group as well. They were Hongluo Squad and Songcheng University Martial Arts Club, and both squads had two Professional Ninth Pin fighters. The rest four squads were rather weaker because two squads had only one of Professional Ninth Pin while the other two were all amateurs who came here to widen their view and experience more because there were no restraints in signing up for preliminaries.
    

That’s to say, even if they lost their match with Lou Cheng’s squad, Hongluo was the only enemy left who had the power to compete with them, let alone Hong Luo was their last opponent. Although He Xiaowei exaggerated when describing Fearless Squad as a Rookie Defeater in the following matches, yet he was right about it.
    

The television host agreed. He was also incapable of understanding Dong Yi’s choice and could only lessen the awkwardness by saying, “No matter what, Dong Yi has demonstrated his courage and spirit. He was a real warrior. Xiaowei, what’s your opinion on the following matches?”
    

He Xiaowei chuckled. “Although Lou Cheng’s right arm was busted, he has mastered the mercurial balance, plus his infinite stamina, I bet he’ll not fear for an Amateur First Pin fighter. He’ll exhaust his enemy. Suppose he reaches to his limit at the half time, there’re other warriors from Songcheng University Martial Arts Club to replace him. If you let me predict, the failure rate of the Fearless Squad will be around 99%.”
    

When He Xiaowei finished this line, the facial expression of the television host suddenly became odd upon receiving a message from the director.
    

“Xiaowei, Tan Ming, the third warrior of the Fearless Squad, was replaced by a substitute, claiming he suffered from an acute disease and could no longer fight anymore. ”
    

He Xiaowei chuckled at once. “Did he freak out? Did he?”
    

The television host soon added, “His substitute is Qiu Yang.”
    

He Xiaowei paused for a while and said,
    

“Interesting…”
    

Those gamblers who was watching live broadcasts was thrilled at this good news, and they were about to go around spreading it.
    

Good news! Good news!
    

That narrator just supported Songcheng Martial Arts Club, and that guy is famous for cursing somebody by foretelling his victory.
    

His support immediately works. The trend is reversed in the ring.
    

…
    

Right now Lou Cheng’s personal forum exploded again with numerous posts. Before that, most posts read like “God bless him,” “Is he a fool?” or “Lou Cheng beat another Professional Ninth Pin fighter!”
    

“All Good Names Are Taken by Dogs” sent the first post: “What the heck, won’t they be ashamed of their behaviors?”
    

“Shameless! I’m so angry but I have to keep smiling. Lou Cheng winning two matches in a row is enough for me.” Eternal Nightfall Yan Xiaoling replied after him.
    

The Unparalleled Dragon King said weakly, “According to rules, it’s normal to see somebody come off the bench, otherwise what’s the point of having substitutes… However, having an acute disease is indeed a bad excuse…”
    

Rules were set to decide under what conditions a substitute may step into the ring. The coach could not change players on a whim. If that was allowed, then there was no need to choose three leading players and decide their order. They could just decide who was the first to go and place their leading players on the bench to arrange orders flexibly.
    

So the supervisor of this competition would be the decision-maker, confirming leading players’ physical injuries and mental breakdown. Normally, identity changes only took place when there were no alternatives.
    

Nie Qiqi bitterly replied, “Even if they win this match by despicable means, judging from the progress Lou Cheng and Lin Que made recently in martial arts, they’ll defeat those men in knockout after group qualifications. Our anger can only be vented by blocking them at the gate of getting a qualification place!”
    

“… I still want to say, kick that crazy dog’s ass!” Brahman blurted out.
    

Humph, kids did not have to think about reality anyway!
    

…
    

“F*ck, I’m expecting Lou Cheng’s triple victories!” Cai Zongming cursed in his dormitory in Songcheng University.
    

Other roommates all swore at the Fearless Squad, and it took them a while to calm down. Zhao Qiang gave a push to his black-rimmed glasses and said, “Lou Cheng successfully pushed the entire Fearless Squad over the edge. It doesn’t matter now whether he wins or loses. His failure is worth it.”
    

Little Ming looked at him with a groan.
    

“But I bet on him…”
    

Although the money was not much, it cost him 200 Chinese yuan!
    

…
    

In the arena where people from Song Cheng Martial Arts Club were seated, Yan Zheke showed no anger as one of the puzzles in her heart had been solved. She turned to Geezer Shi and said, “Shame on them.”
    

She was neither angry nor surprised but she was disappointed. She felt sorry for Lou Cheng as all his sacrifices were wasted for nothing. These injuries and pain Lou Cheng had to suffer were wasted for nothing.
    

Geezer Shi let out a ‘heh’ and said,
    

“Put it in a nice way, the Fearless Squad has an abnormal craving for victory.”
    

People standing beside and behind Geezer Shi, such as Li Mao, loosened their clenched fists. They sighed with complex emotions. Lin Que closed his eyes and seemed to heave out a breath lightly.
    

…
    

“Qiu Yang! Qiu Yang! Qiu Yang!”
    

When Qiu Yang stepped into the ring, all the spectators, who immersed themselves in desperation and sadness a minute ago, gave him a thunderous cheering. His name echoed in every corner of this arena.
    

Standing in the center of the ring, Lou Cheng fell asleep. He could feel everything around was driven away from him. Although he sensed the surrounding noises became louder, he failed to hear anything.
    

After a moment, he suddenly opened his eyes as he sensed something. A refreshing boy was climbing up the flight of stairs into the ring.
    

“Qiu Yang?” Lou Cheng blurted out in astonishment.
    

Qiu Yang, puzzled as well, frowned his eyebrows slightly and said, “You just found out?”
    

You should have known it when the supervisor of the match started to check Tan Ming’s physical condition.
    

“I fall asleep…” Lou Cheng answered silently.
    

Of course, he could not speak out this line because he thought others might take him as a weirdo.
    

“Yep.” He, still wearing a mysterious smile, gave no explanation and took a light breath, which sobered him up a lot.