Proving God begins with the principle that no effort is wasted.

Chapter 69 Severed Meridians

The commotion at the command platform was deafening.

Everyone was excited, their eyes filled with eager anticipation, and they were all chattering away.

"Has Zhou Liang gone mad? Daring to challenge Jiang Lan, who has just broken through nine acupoints?"

"What's wrong with you! This is the way to make a name for yourself! If you win, you'll overpower the newly promoted nine-aperture disciple and become famous; if you lose, you'll still be a brave warrior who dared to leapfrog levels. Either way, you win!"

"Jiang Lan has just broken through to the ninth acupoint, his foundation is very unstable, and he can't even stabilize his breathing. How can he fight Zhou Liang? Zhou Liang has been cultivating the threshold of the ninth acupoint for three months, practicing the Cangsong Gangquan (Pine Tree Fist), and has countless real combat experiences. He's guaranteed to win this round!"

The discussions grew louder and louder, and no one was optimistic about Jiang Lan.

Under the eaves, Shi Yunshan stood with his hands behind his back, his brocade robe fluttering without wind, his face indifferent, watching the two figures on the stage.

A close disciple leaned closer, lowered his voice, and said with concern, "Master, are we really going to let Zhou Liang run wild? Jiang Lan looks gloomy; we don't want anything to happen to him."

Shi Yunshan's lips curled into a faint, cold smile, his voice extremely low: "Nonsense? This is Zhou Liang's opportunity."

The disciple, puzzled, frowned and waited for the rest of the story.

"Zhou Liang is stuck at the bottleneck of the Nine Acupoints realm, making slow progress. What he lacks is a fierce battle to hone his skills. Jiang Lan has just broken through, making him an excellent whetstone. Only by sharpening his skills can he break through the bottleneck."

Shi Yunshan's gaze swept over the escort agency referee sitting on the side of the platform. He had arranged for him to do so beforehand. His tone was confident. "Don't worry, with the escort agency referee in charge and me here, even if Jiang Lan has the guts, he won't have the chance to kill Zhou Liang."

From the very beginning, this competition was a path he had paved for Zhou Liang; the outcome was entirely in his control.

The disciple instantly understood. His gaze toward Zhou Liang on the stage held a newfound reverence, while his view of Jiang Lan was now that of an insignificant stepping stone.

The referee stood up, his gaze sweeping over the two men, and loudly proclaimed, "The match begins! It ends when the point is reached; fists and feet have no eyes, so let fate decide!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Zhou Liang moved.

With a stomp of his foot, the bluestone floor tiles cracked open, and the force surged through his meridians to his right fist. His fist taut, the starting stance of the Cangsong Gangquan, "Stone Crack," aimed straight at Jiang Lan's face, carrying a devastating and ruthless force, clearly aiming for a quick victory to establish his prestige and fame.

A roar of cheers erupted from the audience, and applause filled the air.

Jiang Lan stood in the center of the stage, her posture upright, her feet slightly apart, her aura as steady as a deep pool.

Only when the force of the punch reached his brow, causing a sharp, piercing pain, did he slightly shift his feet, taking a half-step back with his left foot, rotating his body to the side, and naturally lowering his right shoulder to precisely avoid the straight punch.

Zhou Liang's fist grazed Jiang Lan's left shoulder, the internal force striking the air with a dull thud. The moment the force dissipated, Zhou Liang's shoulder and back muscles tensed up abruptly, and he staggered slightly.

He was slightly startled, but did not hesitate. He retracted his left fist and then charged forward with the "Mountain Crash" of the Cangsong Gangquan!

With his shoulder and elbow moving in unison, he concentrated his power at the elbow tip, aiming straight for Jiang Lan's chest and abdomen. This close-quarters combat move, leaving no way out, was a deadly technique that he had never failed to use.

Jiang Lan's eyes were calm. He raised his left hand, palm down, and precisely pressed it on Zhou Liang's elbow. He gently guided and deflected the force of Zhou Liang's attack to the side.

With a muffled thud, the internal force in Zhou Liang's elbow was completely dissipated, his entire arm went numb, his attack missed again, and he lost his balance, staggering forward two steps before regaining his footing.

The cheers from the audience instantly fell silent.

Zhou Liang's expression darkened slightly, and he stopped holding back. He stepped out with his feet in the basic footwork of the martial arts school, and his fists struck alternately, aiming for Jiang Lan's face and waist. His legs flew, and he occasionally kicked out with hidden kicks to sweep at Jiang Lan's lower body. Every move was real, and the collision of internal forces made a whooshing sound. When his fists and legs landed in the air, they could shake the table slightly.

Jiang Lan still did not retaliate.

When Zhou Liang's fist came crashing down, Jiang Lan blocked it with his forearm, his muscles tensing as he forcefully caught the opponent's internal force. With a muffled "thump," the two limbs collided, but Jiang Lan's body remained motionless, and the bluestone beneath his feet only slightly sank.

As Zhou Liang swept his leg over, he lifted his foot and lightly touched the opponent's shinbone with his toes. The force was not great, but it always managed to disrupt the rhythm of the opponent's leg technique.

Every movement of his was extremely simple, without any unnecessary frills. They were all instinctive reactions honed in actual combat. His blocking, dodging, and deflecting were precise to the millimeter. Zhou Liang's punches and kicks either landed on empty air or were completely deflected. He couldn't even completely tug at Jiang Lan's clothes.

After a dozen or so moves, Zhou Liang's breathing became increasingly erratic, his forehead was covered in cold sweat, his chest heaved violently, his arms were numb and sore, and he had exhausted more than half of his internal energy.

His all-out attack was completely futile against Jiang Lan!

gap……

A chasm-like gap stood between the two.

Only then did he realize that his so-called deep cultivation of the nine caves was nothing more than a mayfly trying to shake a tree in front of Jiang Lan, a futile overestimation of his own abilities.

His opponent's control over internal energy, prediction of moves, and close combat experience far surpassed his own by a hundred or a thousand times. All his attacks were nothing but a laughable farce in the opponent's eyes.

"How could this be...?"

Zhou Liang managed a hoarse murmur, his voice trembling, his composure crumbling instantly.

He doesn't agree!

He was a prized disciple of the Cangsong Martial Arts School, from a well-off family, and highly regarded. How could he lose to Jiang Lan, an unknown man who had worked his way up from the bottom?

He was absolutely unwilling to accept this, and he would never allow himself to become a stepping stone for Jiang Lan to make a name for himself!

Obsession grows wildly, overwhelming reason.

Zhou Liang's eyes were bloodshot, and his fist technique was completely distorted. The originally powerful and orderly Cangsong Fist had turned into a chaotic and disorderly swinging and punching.

His energy was chaotic and disordered, his meridians ached faintly, his steps were unsteady, and he completely lost his defense, leaving only a frenzied attack, like a mad beast that had lost its mind, rushing towards Jiang Lan.

Jiang Lan remained indifferent.

As Zhou Liang's flurry of punches came crashing down, he turned his head to dodge, the wind from the punches sweeping across his cheek and lifting a strand of hair.

Zhou Liang raised his leg to kick, but he moved to the side and grabbed the other's ankle with his hand. With a gentle pull, Zhou Liang lost his balance and almost fell. After finally regaining his footing, he pounced on him again.

Jiang Lan was completely at ease throughout, as if watching a clown jumping around.

enough.

Jiang Lan raised her eyes, her icy gaze falling on Zhou Liang. She spoke, her voice low and cold, devoid of any emotion, yet clearly echoing throughout the entire command platform: "You've had enough, haven't you?"

Before he could finish speaking, Jiang Lan made a move.

fast.

It was so fast that the audience below the stage only saw a blur. The escort agency referee on the side of the stage had just stood up and his fingertips hadn't even touched the token at his waist, so he didn't have time to stop it.

In the blink of an eye, Jiang Lan had already closed in on Zhou Liang.

Zhou Liang instinctively threw a punch, but Jiang Lan raised his hand, his five fingers as hard as iron, gripping Zhou Liang's right wrist joint tightly, his thumb pressing firmly against the bone joint, and suddenly channeling his inner force into it, twisting it upwards sharply.

"Click—"

A crisp, piercing sound of bones cracking instantly shattered the silence. Wrist and arm bones snapped inch by inch, muscles were pierced by the broken bones, and blood instantly soaked through sleeves.

Zhou Liang's right arm bent at an eerie angle, and excruciating pain swept through his body like a tidal wave. He opened his mouth and let out a heart-wrenching scream that echoed throughout the martial arts hall, making the disciples below the stage tremble and their scalps tingle.

Before the screams could subside, Jiang Lan released his grip, then bent his knee, gathering internal force in it, and slammed it hard into Zhou Liang's left knee.

Another ear-piercing sound of bone cracking rang out as the kneecap shattered and the hamstring snapped instantly.

Zhou Liang's legs went weak, and he could no longer support his body. He knelt down on the bluestone slab with a "thud," his whole body convulsing violently. The pain made his face contort, and blood gushed from the corner of his mouth, dripping down his chin onto the table.

He looked up, his eyes filled with terror, staring intently at Jiang Lan, wanting to scream, but only able to whimper.

Jiang Lan lowered her eyes, looking at Zhou Liang at her feet, her gaze devoid of any pity.

With his right fist clenched tightly, he concentrated his inner strength at the knuckles and slammed it down without holding back, landing directly on Zhou Liang's third cervical vertebra.

"Bang—"

The muffled sound was deep and resonant; the internal force penetrated through the skin and flesh, shattered the meridians of the cervical spine, and crushed the dantian and dantian.

Zhou Liang's neck tilted to the side, his head drooped limply, and he fell straight onto the stage, his limbs twisted and deformed. All his cultivation was completely wiped out, and he became a cripple from then on!

This swift and decisive action is exactly the same as when Zhou Liang deposed Zhao Heng!

The whole thing took no more than three breaths!

The escort agency referee froze on the spot, his movement of getting up suspended in mid-air, his face filled with horror, his body ice-cold, completely unable to react.

All the disciples of Cangsong Martial Arts School stood there dumbfounded. Zhou Liang, who had never been defeated, had actually lost.

Shi Yunshan's expression changed drastically. He stood up abruptly, his aura suddenly erupting with murderous intent. He stared intently at Jiang Lan on the stage, his anger reaching its peak.

What he thought was a whetstone turned out to be the guillotine for Zhou Liangwu's martial arts journey!

The entire command platform was deathly silent.

The cold wind carried the stench of blood from the stage, wafting towards us with a bone-chilling cold.

All the disciples froze on the spot, not daring to breathe, their eyes filled with fear as they looked at the young man standing in the pool of blood, his clothes stained with blood, his body exuding a chilling aura. Only endless fear remained in their hearts.

Jiang Lan slowly withdrew her hand, and drops of blood from her fingertips fell onto the bluestone slab, spreading into dark red blood flowers.

He raised his eyes, his gaze icy, and slowly surveyed his surroundings, sweeping over the enraged Shi Yunshan, the stunned referee, and the terrified disciples.

The words, each one resounding, struck the hearts of everyone: "Fists and kicks have no eyes; life and death are left to fate."

"These are the rules set by Cangsong Martial Arts School itself."

As soon as he finished speaking, a bone-chilling cold swept across the entire command platform, enveloping everyone and making them feel as if they had fallen into an ice cave.