Chapter 118 - 104: Fight

Chapter 118: Chapter 104: Fight

The midday sun was scorching.

It was mid-June, nearly summer, and the weather on Immortal Mountain was already growing warm.

The sky was dense with drones, and armored robots rushed to the scene.

Supersonic fighter jets had arrived nearby.

It was a deployment fit for a full-scale war.

A smirk played on Zhang Ji’s lips, his blood boiling with a rare excitement.

’When was the last time I’d felt like this?’

’I think it was when I fought Falin, punching above my weight class.’

...

「Meanwhile.」

The citizens of the Eastern Extreme Country discovered that the signal for an official live broadcast channel was having issues.

After a brief moment of black screen, a drone’s-eye view of Immortal Mountain appeared in the live stream.

It was brazenly displayed on the platform’s homepage.

The sight of armored robots and a sky swarming with armed drones captured the audience’s attention.

[What’s going on? Where is this?]

[Immortal Mountain? Why are there so many armed drones and armored mechs? I’ve never seen this model before. It’s not the advertised Pioneer Type II, nor is it the Razor or the Spirit Soldier...]

[Did terrorists attack Immortal Mountain again? But isn’t there nothing left there?]

There was no commentary, and the government offered no explanation.

The camera angle quickly switched to the center of the encirclement.

In front of the great Buddha statue stood a lone figure.

A young man with short hair, about six-foot-one.

At that moment, it dawned on everyone.

Could it be that this entire massive deployment was for him, and him alone?

[This guy looks so familiar. Is that the martial arts tournament champion, Zhang Ji?]

[Wasn’t his Five Elements Sect wanted for attacking a council member?]

[He’s still alive, and he’s back!]

...

「In a conference room in the Capital City.」

The other council members looked at Liu Hetong.

Liu Hetong remained unfazed, his expression calm.

He was the one behind this operation.

Zhang Ji had him do it.

The other council members all thought Liu Hetong was a little crazy.

Liu Hetong thought so himself.

But he had made the gamble anyway.

Because the power Zhang Ji had displayed was worth betting on.

He had long been dissatisfied with being constrained by the other seven council members.

’As long as Zhang Ji doesn’t die in this encirclement, I’ll be able to stand against the others on equal footing. And if Zhang Ji actually wins...’

...

「The Capital City Martial Arts Association Headquarters.」

After the "Martial Arts Suppression" incident, many of the Northern Dao Sect’s enterprises had shrunk.

Fortunately, they had managed to retain enough to barely keep the Martial Arts Association running.

Ma Rui knew all too well that times were changing. The martial arts world of the Eastern Extreme Country was in a transitional period, with a younger generation not yet ready to take the mantle, and public tolerance for Martial Artists was relatively low.

So he had accepted this outcome.

He was also changing with the times, allowing the disciples of the Northern Dao Sect to join the government and become a part of the system.

In a hundred years or so, the strongest martial artists would no longer be found among the populace, but within the government.

History had always been this way, repeating in cycles.

The Elder Ancestor of the Northern Dao Sect had foreseen this, which was why he chose not to contend.

When facing the government’s "Immortal Suppressor" sent for a "sparring match," the Elder Ancestor conceded after just two moves.

Was it because he truly couldn’t win?

Ma Rui refused to believe it.

The Elder Ancestor had lived for nearly eight hundred years; he had simply become indifferent to worldly affairs.

’If he had really wanted to fight for it, these mortals would never have stood a chance.’

"Grandmaster, Grandmaster!"

Suddenly, Wang Pinghong ran out of the training hall to Ma Rui’s side, holding up his phone.

"You are a Daoist of our Northern Dao Sect, after all. Compose yourself. What is the meaning of this frantic rushing? It’s unseemly," Ma Rui scolded.

"But Grandmaster, it’s Zhang Ji!" Wang Pinghong said, pointing at the screen of his phone.

"Zhang Ji? That young man from before?" Ma Rui frowned and asked, "What about him?"

"He... he’s become a Terrestrial God!" Wang Pinghong exclaimed.

"What?" Ma Rui’s eyes widened.

...

BOOM!

With a single palm strike, he sent an Immortal Suppressor flying.

BANG!

He flew forward with a knee strike, crushing the head of an armored unit.

WHIR!

He took a bullet head-on, and with a flex of his muscles, Zhang Ji clapped his hands and actually deflected the sniper round back.

BUZZZZZZ!

A dense barrage of bullets flew at him from all sides. A current of air surged around Zhang Ji, and Primordial Qi flickered, blocking some of the rounds. At the same time, his figure moved swiftly through the crowd of Immortal Suppressors. In just a few dozen seconds, he had scrapped thirty of the units on the ground.

Electromagnetic weapons, vibroblades, sniper rounds, plasma shields...

All of these measures were useless against Zhang Ji.

Instead, he easily evaded or resisted their attacks and destroyed them with ease.

In the sky, the Immortal Suppressors’ thrusters flared with blue Fire, not daring to land.

The armed drones did the same, only daring to strafe Zhang Ji from the sky.

They all maintained an altitude of over three hundred meters.

Far outside the attack range of Zhang Ji’s Spirit particles.

’But I have no intention of using that method to bully these tin cans, anyway.’

’It wouldn’t be much of a show, and the audience wouldn’t be impressed.’

RAT-A-TAT-TAT-TAT!

Countless bullets strafed toward Zhang Ji, forcing him to keep moving.

...

「In the conference room in the Capital City.」

"Thank goodness he can’t fly," one of the council members remarked with a sigh of relief.

The very next second, Zhang Ji crouched slightly. Air currents and Primordial Qi surged beneath him, then suddenly erupted.

BOOM!

Zhang Ji’s figure vanished from the ground, reappearing in the sky less than a second later.

Then, with Primordial Qi swirling around his right fist, he threw an explosive punch.

BOOM! KABOOM!

A shockwave rolled out, and the aftershock of Primordial Qi blasted the nearest Immortal Suppressor into dust.

Beneath his feet, the air churned and Primordial Qi exploded again, allowing him to shift his position in midair.