Chapter 173 - 98: Displaying Might in the Army, Suppressing Han Hu with Fists

Chapter 173: Chapter 98: Displaying Might in the Army, Suppressing Han Hu with Fists

Seeing Zheng Jun’s saber strike approach with the overwhelming momentum of a landslide and tsunami, Han Hu’s pupils shrank drastically. In that split second, his resolve wavered.

"He actually swung his saber? Is he trying to kill me? Does he dare kill me?" he thought. "It must be a bluff. He wouldn’t dare let this strike fall. If I die, how would he escape the Commandery City? But this kid is acting like a mad dog! What if he really wants to kill me? What should I do?"

For a fleeting moment, Han Hu hesitated. The next second, he abruptly retracted his fists and began to retreat rapidly, intending to dodge the incoming blade.

Seeing this, Zheng Jun immediately and forcibly halted his saber. Having cultivated the Wave-Treading Blade Technique to Perfection, he could naturally retract and release his attacks with ease. After sheathing his blade, the muscles in his arms instantly bulged. Using his spine like a great dragon to drive his waist and hips, his figure moved with tyrannical force as he threw a punch. It was none other than the Ma Family Fist!

Although the Ma Family Fist was mediocre and merely a Lower Grade Fist Technique, its effectiveness depended entirely on who was using it. Thrown by Zheng Jun, this punch carried an overwhelming, mountain-toppling might!

BOOM!

The punch erupted with the ferocity of a leaping dragon and pouncing tiger. Han Hu couldn’t dodge in time. Struck squarely in the chest, he was blasted backward like a snowball in a winter snowball fight. He smashed directly into the wall at the edge of the training ground, causing it to collapse and sending a thick cloud of dust into the air.

Zheng Jun watched with an impassive expression, calmly sliding his Beirong Saber back into its sheath. He then picked up the Coiling Dragon Staff from the ground. Ancient, weighty, and perfectly uniform in thickness, it looked quite extraordinary.

Han Hu had disappointed him. Zheng Jun originally thought that someone in the military would possess more brilliant methods, but he hadn’t expected the man’s actual combat experience to be so abysmal. All the rumors he had gathered beforehand had been a waste of time.

Even a Jianghu Han who had mingled in the Jianghu and reached Minor Achievement in the Heavenly Gang Nine Staves would have handled that better than Han Hu. Once the distance was closed, the man completely forgot how to fight! Moreover, he was foolish enough to gamble his own life on the assumption that his enemy wouldn’t dare swing their blade. How could a sane person do such a thing?

At that moment, Zheng Jun also realized he had fallen into a misconception. Because of the reliance on Military Arrays, the generals in the army—aside from the Main General and specialized Combat Generals—were probably not very strong in one-on-one combat. They couldn’t compare to Jianghu Martial Artists.

Zheng Jun felt that Han Hu’s level was about on par with True Man Yuan Yi; they would likely be evenly matched. If Zheng Jun went all out, he could easily defeat him. However, actually killing Han Hu would be rather difficult. Unless Han Hu acted stupidly and made a mistake like he just did, if he was dead set on running, Zheng Jun wouldn’t be able to catch him.

"In that case, I have a clear understanding of my current standing," Zheng Jun thought, exhaling a long breath. Ordinary Outer Gang Martial Artists were no match for him. Only long-established experts in the Outer Gang realm—meaning those in the Second Layer of the Outer Gang—or the cream of the crop within the First Layer could pose a threat. With this realization, Zheng Jun knew exactly who he should seek out for sparring in the future. At this thought, his mood lifted considerably.

Lifting his head, a line of small ink-wash text surfaced before his eyes.

[Leapfrog combat, establishing prestige in the military. Wave-Treading Blade Technique repayment progress +394. Current repayment progress: 7668/10000.]

"It only added nearly four hundred points?" Zheng Jun thought, feeling slightly underwhelmed. It made sense. After all, it was merely a scuffle, not an actual kill. If he had followed through with that Slash and killed Han Hu just now, the points would have likely skyrocketed. But as things stood, 400 points wasn’t too shabby.

Thinking of this, Zheng Jun looked toward the dust-filled crater where the wall had collapsed. Han Hu was scrambling to his feet, looking thoroughly disheveled.

Zheng Jun’s Ma Family Fist attack had looked incredibly imposing, but when it actually landed on Han Hu, it hadn’t caused any serious damage. Han Hu only felt a flash of pain; he wasn’t injured. Among all of Zheng Jun’s Martial Arts, only the Perfection-stage Wave-Treading Blade Technique could wound or kill Han Hu.

However, Han Hu’s face was dark and gloomy. He refused to accept this defeat. He felt this young man had no Martial Virtue, and that he himself had merely been careless and underestimated his enemy for a moment.

Meanwhile, the soldiers below the arena were dead silent. Seeing this, Zheng Jun scoffed coldly. He jumped down from the arena, Coiling Dragon Staff in hand, and glanced at Wang’s Staff, who was standing dumbstruck to the side, before heading straight for the exit of the military camp. As he walked, he declared loudly:

"This staff is truly extraordinary. Since General Han has no money to pay me back, he has used this as collateral. Whenever he returns the silver, this item will be returned to its rightful owner! Tomorrow, I will come back to spar with General Han. If he still hasn’t paid back the silver, I’ll have to find other things to cover the debt!"