The three Dragons of the Long River Triad were truly running wild. With a flash of his blade, Fang Hailong (Fighting Dragon) swung his knife straight at the sect leader. It was like that classic "draw and slash" move in video games—the blade cut through everything in its path, coming down hard on the sect leader. Fiona Fang and Rachel Luo nearly gasped at the sight, because this move looked a lot like the Golden Blade King's signature Ghost-Slaying Slash.
Ferocious, direct, razor-sharp—and absolutely murderous.
"Nice blade work!" Jack Young couldn't help but let his eyes light up, raising his brows in admiration. "Straightforward and domineering—now that's some power."
Clang! The sect leader drew his sword just in time to block the slash. His eyes flashed with anger as he flicked his wrist, sword energy bursting forth—he launched into a set of Iron Thread Sword techniques. The moves weren't complicated, just straight and to the point, but the sect leader had clearly mastered them: sword energy flowed like water, sweeping across the area.
"Great swordplay!" Jack Young's eyes danced with excitement. "Balanced and steady—classic technique, no frills."
Meanwhile, Li San and Wen Hanlong (Flying Dragon) kicked off a showdown of agility. One was a former river bandit, the other—according to the gossiping crowd—was the current top dog of the Long River Triad, splitting his business fifty-fifty between legit and not-so-legit deals. In other words, a full-time river bandit. The moment they moved, both shot up into the air.
Jack Young and the other two from the Flower Palace finally got to witness some real rooftop action. The two men zipped across the walls, darting back and forth, flinging hidden weapons with a whoosh—if your eyesight wasn't up to snuff, you'd swear you were seeing afterimages. The clanging of their weapons never stopped, and neither did their feet—they didn't touch the ground once. One moved like a swallow skimming the hall, the other like a dragon twisting through the air. It was enough to make your eyes spin.
"Now that's some serious agility!" This was the contest that really blew Jack Young's mind. Of all the lightness skill masters he'd seen so far—let's not even mention the ones above the innate level—these two were top-tier among the postnatal crowd. If anyone could outdo them in agility, it'd have to be one of those mutant weirdos from the North.
While the aerial battle raged above, down below Xiang Xiaolong (Fierce Dragon) and Master Leonard Liu were duking it out with iron fists. Master Liu was having a rotten day—one ridiculous mess after another had pushed his anger to the max. Every punch was thrown with all he had, holding nothing back. Meanwhile, Xiang Xiaolong just kept grinning wickedly, swinging his fists—each one the size of a soup pot—without taking a single step back. The thuds echoed like drums, shaking everyone to the core.
"Hmm, that body-protecting technique's not bad either—looks like some kind of hard qigong." Jack Young kept his eyes on all six fighters at once. Since the battle started, these six had put on the highest-level show, so he watched them like a fan glued to the latest episode of Gintama.
Every move and technique was etched into his mind, sparking new flashes of inspiration. The six fighters had no idea that someone sitting off to the side was analyzing their skills from every angle, turning it all into his own martial fuel.
"Master..." Fiona Fang whimpered, eyes spinning. "What if I can't keep up?"
"Just pick whichever fight you like best and watch that one." Jack Young had enough spiritual cultivation to multitask and still look after his disciples.
"But I don't get it, Master. Can you explain what's going on?"
"Hmm..." Jack Young hesitated for a moment. Suddenly, he understood why Dr. Thomas Tang used to just let him watch and learn on his own. When pros go head-to-head, how much you learn and understand is all up to you. No matter how well a master explains, it's still their own insights—and that can end up limiting the student's growth.
For genius disciples, you just need to point them in the right direction, lay out the basics, and let them grow on their own. But... genius disciples, huh... Looks like my two still have a ways to go. Oh well, guess I'll keep the training wheels on a bit longer until they learn to ride on their own.
"These three all have less power than their opponents—over forty-five years, but definitely not fifty. But martial arts isn't just about the years of internal energy. It's about the purity of your power, the skill in your moves, your experience, your vision, and most of all—your fighting spirit and guts. Put it all together, and that's what makes a real fighter." Jack Young explained casually. Simple as his points were, both girls suddenly felt enlightened.
They were thrilled, but honestly, Jack Young was even more excited. He still couldn't see through the power of someone with fifty years of cultivation—the purer it got, the harder it was to read. But the Three Dragons' internal energy was right on the edge, so he could clearly follow their energy flow. The fight hadn't been going long, but Jack had already learned a ton.
"Outrageous! This is unacceptable!" The last sect leader with fifty years of cultivation couldn't take it anymore. In the martial world, everyone's interests rose and fell together—sure, the sects might scheme against each other, but if they wanted a piece of the Herb Boutique's rare medicine, they had to team up. If Master Leonard Liu and his group lost, his own interests would go down the drain too. So, he jumped up, ready to join the fray.
The moment he moved, the energy of all six fighters subtly shifted.
But someone suddenly spoke up: "You want to fight too? Perfect—come on, let's have a go!" It was none other than Jack Young. He was so pumped from watching that he couldn't wait to jump in himself. Especially since this last sect leader probably had some killer moves—no way he was letting that slip by! Time to get some real action.
"If that's how it is, don't blame me!" the sect leader shouted, shoving his palms forward like he was pushing a mountain. His wide sleeves billowed out like a gust of wind—turns out, this guy's specialty was internal energy.
This was Jack Young's weakest area, honestly the only part where he was below the innate martial artist level. If it were a fight to the death, Jack had plenty of ways to dodge and counterattack—the easiest being his sheer physical advantage. But right now, Jack just laughed and met the attack head-on, not dodging at all: "Bring it on!"
(This chapter isn't over yet ^.^, please click next page to keep reading!)
With a loud smack, their four hands collided. Jack Young didn't use full force; both men stood firm, arms locked together. In just a split second, Jack's face flushed red—clearly, the other's internal energy was surging in, unstoppable.
In that instant, the sect leader realized Sam Lee hadn't been lying—this young guy really only had ten years of cultivation. Ten years versus his own fifty-five, and this was a pure, brute-force internal energy duel—how could the kid possibly turn it around? "Ha! Let's see you try any tricks now—you're finished!" the sect leader shouted, still holding back some strength.
"Idiot!" Fiona Fang shot to her feet, tense with worry. She and Rachel Luo gritted their teeth, ready to rush in. But just then, disciples from the other sects jumped up too, charging over to attack the girls. Some saw an opening and swung their weapons at Jack Young—after all, who could move during an internal energy duel?
But as the lead disciple ran past Jack Young, Jack's right leg shot out like a phantom, kicking the guy square in the waist.
Bang! The crash was so loud, everyone near the Drunken Moon Pavilion heard it. People looked up to see a hole blasted in the fourth-floor wall. Amid flying splinters, a man shot out like a pool ball, finally landing with a thud on a rooftop more than two hundred meters away.
No screams—just, a moment later, blood started dripping from the eaves, like a crimson beaded curtain.
"What?!" the sect leader shouted in disbelief. "You actually..."
"You mean I can still move, huh?" Jack Young retracted his side kick, eyes flashing. "Well then—" Suddenly, he gripped the old guy's hands tight. With a swing of his arms, Jack spun the elder around like a human meteor hammer, smashing him into the other disciples. "Heads up!"
Crash, crash, crash—the sound of bodies hitting and screams echoed nonstop. Anyone who tried to attack got clobbered by the human meteor hammer. It was like mowing down minions in a hack-and-slash game—sect disciples went flying in every direction. The fourth-floor wall of the Drunken Moon Pavilion kept breaking apart, with disciples flying out through the holes.
At least this time, nobody flew too far—they all crashed down, howling, and who knows if anyone below managed to catch them.
The chaos was so intense, everyone on the fourth floor was stunned. The Iron Thread Sword sect leader lost focus and nearly got his head chopped off by Fang Hailong's blade. "Run!" The henchmen finally panicked, scrambling down the stairs. Even the sect leaders who'd been hoping for a cheap win were too shocked to move.
"Gotta say, 'Elder' is pretty handy!" (Gintama reference~) Jack Young flipped the old guy down, but their hands stayed locked together—the internal energy duel wasn't over yet.
After a round as a meteor hammer, the old man's head was bleeding. He roared, "Watch me destroy your dantian foundation!" He still had a clear advantage in the internal energy contest.
But Jack Young just snorted, "Don't get cocky—you sure it's not you who's going down? Besides, what do you think would happen if I suddenly kicked you again?" The fact that Jack could still move—and fight hard—during an internal energy duel was the scariest part. The old man's breath faltered at that, his energy scattering. Their energies clashed, and Jack seized the split-second opening: "Now's my chance!"
Pop-pop-pop—little explosions rippled all over Jack Young's body, surging through his meridians and finally into his hands.
With a soft snap, their hands suddenly parted. The old man stumbled back four or five steps and collapsed into a chair, gasping for breath. When he looked at Jack Young again, his eyes were filled with shock: "You—you actually..."
"Yeah. Thanks for the internal energy."