One Versus Four, The Fusion of Internal Energy and Martial Arts

The Grand Brothel was surrounded by dense woods, with slender willows hanging low and towering trees reaching skyward. In the midst of the forest, Jack Young stood face-to-face with the Four Vagabond Knights. Instead of immediately surrounding Jack, the four lined up in a straight row, three feet apart. Yet all eight eyes were fixed on Jack, scanning him up and down as their expressions grew serious and their auras began to surge and intensify.

Jack's stance was loose and relaxed, one hand behind his back and the other raised, his body slightly turned. His eyes were half-open, half-closed, exuding a composed and dignified air. The four sent waves of pressure crashing over him like the tide, but not one ripple disturbed Jack in the slightest. When it came to a contest of aura, Jack was restrained but still had the upper hand.

Simon West made the first move. In a blur, his figure silently shot right up to Jack. His masterful hands formed sword fingers, and streams of internal energy crackled from his fingertips, sweeping toward Jack’s vital acupoints like an artist splashing ink. Simon West’s speed was astonishing—Rachel Luo thought it was like something out of an anime, as if he’d suddenly grown several extra arms, each targeting a deadly spot.

Even though she knew it was just a friendly contest and not a fight to the death, Rachel Luo couldn’t help but cry out, “Careful!”

But Simon West’s attack missed.

Because Jack simply sidestepped.

“Huh?” Simon West raised an eyebrow. He’d seen that step clearly—it was nothing fancy. Just lift, move, drop, follow through. Simple as that. But the way Jack did it was almost magical—and way too fast. He expected Jack to be slick, but the speed was unreal, like he’d skipped the whole acceleration-deceleration bit and just blinked from one spot to another, dodging every finger strike.

“Again!” Simon West perked up, both hands flying, internal energy flickering between his fingers. This time, his attack was fiercer and his focus sharper. It was as if a flower had burst into bloom—each drifting petal was a finger strike, coming at Jack from every direction.

Jack kept his posture, feet shifting once, then again, every movement crisp and rhythmic. It was like a master film editor had cut out every unnecessary part of walking, then sped it up tenfold. All Rachel Luo saw was Jack taking a step here, then there, flickering through three positions and dodging every attack.

From start to finish, Jack’s upper body didn’t budge. His right hand stayed behind his back, and his left made no move to strike.

Whoosh—Simon West drifted back to his spot, his face full of shock and confusion. "How is he so fast? Twenty years of internal energy can't give you lightness skill like that!" He frowned and muttered, "Is that even lightness skill? It feels so weird."

Jack just grinned. This was the result of blending all his strengths, so of course it wasn’t that simple. He beckoned to the four, "I told you—come at me together."

"Alright, not bad—worth making a move!" Easton grinned, a wild gleam in his eye that only a true martial artist could have. "Let’s go!"

Whoosh! In a flash, all four made their move. Like arrows from a bow, Easton, Simon West, and Northon split off in three directions. Their lightness skill in full display, they became three shadowy streaks, tracing dizzying arcs through the woods. The wild wind they kicked up sent leaves flying, high and low, dazzling the eye. The three auras—bright and dark—slithered like venomous snakes, ready to strike at any moment.

Meanwhile, South Elder Qi strode straight in, each step huge and heavy but eerily silent. The weird mismatch would make a normal person dizzy and nauseous, like motion sickness. South Elder Qi took a deep breath, his whole frame swelling even larger, then unleashed a ferocious punch. Internal energy crackled around his fist; before it even landed, the punch wind shattered every leaf in its path.

Roaring Sky Fist! South Elder Qi’s signature move—a punch that roars like a beast, the concentrated force able to injure a whole crowd. If his postnatal internal energy had color, you’d see a semi-spherical burst of power charging at Jack. "Ha! Ha! Ha!" He threw three more punches, knowing Jack’s internal energy wasn’t strong enough to take them head-on, so he went all out. Attack long, defend short—that’s the game.

"He can’t block, so he’ll have to dodge. The only way out of four Roaring Sky Fists is—backwards!" The brothers were in perfect sync; as the force of the Roaring Sky Fist bore down, the other three became shadows, lunging at Jack from every angle. Easton struck with his palm, Simon West with his fingers, Northon with his claws. Energy blasted from above and below as all four closed in.

But in the next instant, Jack vanished from their sight. If Lady Simone were here, she’d be extra careful—she knew Jack had a totally unconventional fighting style. But the four didn’t know, so all their crisscrossing attacks missed.

Jack suddenly leaned forward, almost flat to the ground like a Michael Jackson move—only way more exaggerated. Even at that wild angle, he managed not to fall, twisting and turning like a snake, his feet grabbing every ounce of ground.

Jack dodged every attack in a blink, then surged forward. Suddenly, South Elder Qi felt his heels grabbed from behind. Before he could react, he was tossed sky-high, yelling as he soared—he’d be up there at least ten seconds before coming down.

Ten seconds—plenty of time for Jack to get a lot done.

He kept his feet planted, but his whole body, from head to ankle, twisted in a huge arc like he didn’t have any bones. In the most unbelievable way, he swept around in a circle. His left palm hadn’t even landed, but the three had already dodged far away.

This chapter isn’t over ^.^, click next page to keep reading!

Whoosh—Jack straightened up again. After sweeping a circle close to the ground, his clothes were spotless.

"How... how did he do that?" Fang Lingji’s jaw dropped—she looked up, she looked down, South Elder Qi was already five stories high and still rising, and she didn’t know where to look.

Easton, Simon West, and Northon exchanged glances, all a bit hesitant, thinking about how to attack. Jack’s unpredictable moves weren’t just novel—the real kicker was that, even though he hadn’t left his spot, his dodging space had suddenly gotten way bigger. Normally, if your feet stay put, you’ve only got about two feet of space to dodge, high or low. Everyone can duck, but you can’t really go beyond those two feet. And the better your kung fu, the less room you have to dodge—because ducking just isn’t fast enough to keep up with attacks.

Gravity’s only so fast. But the Golden Blade King can slice a bullet—no need to explain speed differences there.

But Jack’s falling speed was way too quick—faster than you’d think, way beyond what gravity could do. It was like a spring fixed to the ground, pulled way back and then snapping forward in a flash. In the blink of an eye, he was gone—and that’s how he dodged all four attacks. At that speed, hitting him was nearly impossible.

While the three were still figuring things out, Jack just grinned and said, “Not coming over? Then I’ll come to you.”

For the first time in the fight, Jack moved proactively to attack. The crowd gasped in surprise. His first step was like a rocket launch—where his foot landed, dirt exploded out behind him. Jack broke through the limits of friction, instantly accelerating to insane speed, charging at the three like a blur.

The three shrieked and darted in different directions as waves of finger and palm strikes flew past. Jack switched up his footwork again—like he was skating on ice, gliding and weaving, dodging attacks while tracing arcs to chase his opponents.

Jack had been pondering his new combat style, and now it was finally taking shape. He’d summed up his strengths: powerful, quick reflexes—perfect for fast, unpredictable fighting, and hitting weak points with deadly precision. But in this martial world, he had two weaknesses to fix: mobility and defense.

Defense—specifically against internal energy attacks—takes slow, steady work to build up. There’s no shortcut for internal martial arts. But mobility? That’s a weakness he just couldn’t tolerate.

Compared to true lightness skill experts, his mobility was way behind. Sure, in a long-distance run, it’s anyone’s race, but when it comes to short-range dodging and shifting, his acceleration just couldn’t match the masters. The Golden Blade King left a deep impression with his teleport-like movement—Jack often thought about it. If he had that kind of mobility, he’d cover his weak spots. Even if he couldn’t beat the Golden Blade King outright, he wouldn’t get sliced up as soon as the fight started.

Quick reflexes were already his specialty, so he had to boost his speed to really play to his strengths. After long thought, he finally found a way to get high speed—even before his power reached top level.

"How is he so fast!" Northon shouted, tearing through the woods like the wind. With a kick, he floated up, leaping from treetop to treetop like a bird. Jack followed on the ground, every step leaving a frosty footprint, stalking patiently like a hunter, never missing a beat.

And with every bit of real experience, he kept inventing new ways to use it. One moment he was a snake slithering through the woods, the next a bird tracing an arc in the air. Northon was the first to get caught—seeing no escape, he tried his claw technique to stall. But he soon realized Jack’s bizarre style was scariest up close; Jack darted left and right so fast, Northon’s eyes couldn’t even track him.

With a twist of his feet, Jack vanished from sight—then Northon felt a palm strike on his lower back. It wasn’t strong, but Northon froze, then toppled over in a classic faceplant, yelling, "No way! Not even fifty years of training could be that fast! How do you do it?"

"You can’t learn my trick," Jack said, kicking up a cloud of dust as he instantly closed in on Easton, who was rushing over to help.

Northon scratched his head, staring at the icy footprints on the ground. Suddenly, it clicked. "I get it!" he shouted, clapping his hands. "Your secret’s actually pretty simple!"

"Yep, it’s simple," Jack replied, knocking Easton down with a slap. "I used all my power for one thing—rooting my feet to the ground."