As the crowd erupted in surprise at their entrance, the sheer swagger of Harbor City's team made a bunch of teens and young adults cheer uncontrollably.
"Damn, who said Harbor City was lame? They look badass to me!"
"Yeah, check out their leader—he's got serious style! Not losing out to any of the other team captains!"
"I think they're pretty awesome too. Young people should have this kind of spirit—bold and full of energy!"
......
Watching Ryan Ling and his crew enter, a ton of young people in the crowd got hyped. Compared to the other teams, they just fit that whole rebellious, fearless, challenge-everything vibe.
"Son of a bitch, that punk's hogging all the spotlight!" Walter Dai clenched his fists, while Quentin Qiu glared, eyes red with jealousy. Both of them were dying for Ryan Ling to get beaten to death as soon as he stepped onto the stage.
The other teams weren't happy either. Plenty of them had orders from above to put Harbor City in their place during the tournament, and now their killing intent was even stronger.
After ten or so minutes, things finally calmed down. The tournament host strolled out with a mic, exchanged some pleasantries, and went over the rules and schedule. Most of the crowd totally tuned out the formalities, but all the fighters perked up their ears.
This time, the teams included not just the famous top dogs, Wuzhou City, and the universally recognized underdogs, Harbor City, but also Bazhou, Hengzhou, Jinzhou, Linzhou, and Huazhou—seven squads in total. The big screen showed off each team's highlights and even listed every member's full resume.
But when the screen switched to the Harbor City Team, it was just a couple of bland lines—no highlights at all, almost like they were being deliberately mocked. The rich and powerful in the crowd just shook their heads nonstop.
Harbor City has always finished last in every tournament, so the upper crust knew the deal. Seeing their lackluster profile, everyone just laughed it off and didn’t take them seriously at all.
"Alright, I bet everyone’s getting impatient, so I hereby declare the Seven-City Martial Arts Tournament officially open! Who wants to be the first platform lord?" The host shouted, and all eyes turned to the seven teams.
"We’ll go first!" a burly guy yelled.
"That’s the Huazhou Team. Pretty sure they went first last time too, and immediately wrecked Harbor City. Are they planning a repeat performance?"
"Probably. Didn’t you see how all the Huazhou guys are staring at Harbor City? Huazhou’s not exactly top-tier, so bullying Harbor City is all they’ve got!"
"Haha, Harbor City really is cursed. Every time they show up, they just get trashed. I bet this time they’ll get stomped six rounds in a row—next year, they won’t dare show their faces, just hide behind that 'Sick Men of Harbor City' plaque like turtles!"
......
Some of the old tournament regulars immediately started chatting with absolute confidence, acting like they already had everything figured out.
And sure enough, just as everyone expected, the Huazhou guys stepped up and pointed straight at Harbor City. Clearly, they’d rehearsed their lines ahead of time, and now they yelled, "Come on, Harbor City heroes! Last time wasn’t nearly brutal enough—this time, we want an even wilder fight! Hahaha!"
"Alright, Huazhou challenges Harbor City! Harbor City Team, either get up here right now or surrender—ten seconds to decide!" The host repeated loudly, just to make sure everyone heard.
That was actually just part of the tournament rules. But with the whole province watching, nobody would ever surrender—even if the odds were hopeless, everyone would fight to save face for their city, even if it meant getting beaten to death.
Harbor City's predecessors always came into the tournament ready to die for honor. Sure, losing was brutal, but it was also thanks to all the trash talk and deliberate provocations from the other teams.
"Looks like Harbor City made a flashy entrance, but someone's probably gonna die this round. Huazhou already called it—last time they only killed one Harbor City guy at the start, this time they're going for two. Just watch, the real show is about to start!" A rich kid next to me couldn't help chiming in.
Everyone nodded, and the first-timers in the crowd stared wide-eyed. I mean, seeing someone get literally beaten to death on stage? Not many people have witnessed that kind of action.
"Ryan Ling, quit stalling! I know you've got some tricks—get down here now! I, the Huazhou Money Leopard, want a piece of you!" Seeing Harbor City not panicking like usual, the Huazhou team captain actually started getting impatient.
"Heh." Ryan Ling sneered, voice dripping with contempt. "You're not even worthy of me making a move."
His words were quiet, but they hit the Huazhou captains like daggers. Instantly, the whole Huazhou team and their fans exploded, jumping up and yelling.
"Enough, this is a tournament, not a trash-talking contest! Harbor City Team, get on the platform now or I'll disqualify you!" The host had real authority—he was already ready to pull out a yellow card as a warning.
Right then, Ryan Ling shot the host a look, then turned to the weakest member of his squad, Tom Tang, and said calmly, "Tom, you go show our faces first."
"Me? You want me to go?" Tom Tang lit up, clearly not expecting to be sent out first.
"Yep, go for it. You’ve been training hard lately—it’s time to show what you’ve got!" Ryan Ling nodded at him, and the rest of the team looked on with anticipation.
"Alright! Thanks for the chance, guys!" Tom didn’t hesitate—he hopped onto the platform like a monkey. On the other side stood all nine Huazhou fighters, each one a wall of muscle. Next to them, Tom looked like just skin and bones, like a single breath could blow him away.
(This chapter isn’t over yet~.~ Click next page to keep reading the good stuff!)
"What are these Harbor City guys thinking, sending out a skeleton like that? Are they straight-up mocking Huazhou’s strength?"
"Right? I heard these guys were just picked last-minute from random crappy dojos in Harbor City. They’ve barely even trained—like, what, seven or eight days total?"
"They really have the nerve to send out this kind of trash? Harbor City must be trying to piss Huazhou off on purpose!"
......
With a nine-on-one setup, the mockery from the crowd only got louder. Even the Huazhou guys felt like Harbor City had just slapped them in the face.
"Seniors, it’s my first time in a tournament like this—please go easy on me!" Right then, Tom Tang even bowed politely, which made the entire Huazhou Team absolutely furious.
One of the Huazhou fighters—a hulking, mean-looking fat guy—suddenly roared, sounding just like a pissed-off tiger.
"You little bastard, I’ll crush you right now!" The giant charged forward, his massive body making the whole stage shake.
Seeing this crazy mismatch, a bunch of girls in the crowd instantly covered their eyes, too scared to watch.
But right then, skinny little Tom Tang—who’d been all goofy and relaxed—suddenly got serious. In a flash, he leapt behind the giant, moving so fast people thought, 'Hey, this monkey’s got some skills. Maybe he’ll last a few seconds up there.'
But before anyone could finish that thought, Tom Tang shot out his right hand, grabbed the fat guy from behind, and yelled, "Get lost!"
The giant let out a shriek as Tom hurled him straight off the three-meter-high stage.
The rest of the Huazhou Team was instantly stunned.
The whole crowd froze too!
Then Tom Tang, oozing swagger, shouted, "You guys think you’re worthy of making my boss fight? I’m doing you a favor just handling you myself. Come on, all of you—I'll wipe out your whole city single-handed!"