20demayo Chapter 43 Tenacious Sparring
Chapter 43 Tenacious Sparring
The He brothers were so angry that they lost their temper and only focused on urging people to enter without making any technical adjustments, which gave Hong Liguo's side an opportunity to take advantage of the situation.
Everything is progressing according to Hong Liguo's plan.
That dragon and tiger... the thirteenth brother was big and burly, with skin as rough as sandpaper and a bloated figure. At first glance, he looked somewhat similar to Liu Lianbo, only slightly smaller.
This man was covered in fat, and his greatest strength was his ability to withstand beatings; his resilience was unparalleled. Hong Liguo's initial plan was to leave the thirteenth brother to Liu Lianbo—while Liu Lianbo might not have an overwhelming advantage against such a big guy, winning would definitely not be a problem.
Now that there was really no other way, he had to hand this tough nut to Hong Bo. He could only silently hope that Hong Bo could drag the game out until the end of the competition. Even if he didn't win, it would still be considered a draw based on the number of matches, which would be the best possible outcome, given the vast difference in strength between the two sides.
He Yunlong was already furious from the series of defeats. He never expected that today's challenge would turn out like this.
He had previously been confident that he could sweep his opponents with an absolute advantage, but he had underestimated them because he relied too much on his own strength.
In fact, he had vaguely sensed Hong Liguo's intentions in the middle of the competition. Overconfident, he simply did not believe that his side would lose, so he did not adjust his strategy in time.
By the time he belatedly realized something was wrong and wanted to change his mind, it was already too late, because all the experts on his side had already appeared, while the opponent's best had not yet made an appearance.
It wasn't until just before the start of the final round that He Yunlong suddenly realized that Hong Liguo's insistence on him signing the sparring agreement to let his side go first was a setup!
He Yunlong thought to himself, "Oh no! I've fallen for Hong Liguo's trap! I had such a good hand, and I've ruined it all! Hong Liguo, you've really screwed me over! It's all my fault for underestimating you."
At this point, the score was tied at 7-7, making the final round crucial in determining the winner. He Yunlong grabbed Lao Shisan's arm and shouted three times, "You must win!" His tone was full of exasperation, and he even threatened, "If you don't win, don't come back to see me!"
The people from Longhu... all felt that this round was a sure win—in terms of height, physical strength, and sparring experience, Lao Shisan was far superior to Yu Hongbo.
They surrounded Old Thirteen, putting pressure on him with their words, saying that if they lost, Longhu... would completely lose face today. Old Thirteen was also concerned about his reputation, and in front of He Yunlong and all the brothers, he patted his chest and guaranteed that he would definitely win this last match.
On the other side, Hongbo looked at the big guy in front of him who was a size bigger than himself. He was indeed unsure of himself, but he didn't back down at all. He spoke boldly and there was no fear on his face.
Hong Liguo was afraid that Hong Bo would push himself too hard to win and suffer a greater loss, so he quickly came to his side and instructed him: "Do what you can, and if you really can't beat us, just admit defeat. The seven-on-seven result is already very good, enough to make the He brothers angry for half a month. Don't take it too seriously."
Hong Bo nodded to him, his tone firm: "I will never give up until the very last moment. Don't worry, I know what I'm doing."
No sooner had the words left his mouth than the two began to fight in the center of the arena.
Initially, Hongbo planned to use his agility to lead Lao Shisan around the field, exhausting his opponent. However, he hadn't anticipated that Lao Shisan, despite his seemingly clumsy appearance, was far more astute than Liu Lianbo—he didn't fall for the trick, refusing to chase after Hongbo, instead standing still and turning around, closely watching Hongbo's movements. This thwarted Hongbo's plan, putting him in a passive position.
Although the thirteenth brother was also a big guy, he was more agile than Liu Lianbo. He would launch surprise attacks from time to time, and hit Hongbo several times, and Hongbo was clearly struggling to hold on.
Hongbo also tried to launch several attacks, but the thirteenth brother seemed to have mastered the Iron Shirt and Golden Bell Technique, and did not dodge or evade at all.
Hongbo's punches were like tickling him, completely ineffective. Instead, after each attack, Lao Shisan would seize the opportunity to counterattack.
Each time he fell, Hongbo would grit his teeth and quickly get up to resume his sparring. But gradually, his stamina became increasingly insufficient, and after each fall, he was not as quick to get up as before.
Seeing this, the thirteenth brother became even more smug and pointed at Hong Bo with his finger, provocatively signaling him to get up and try again.
It was this arrogant demeanor that provoked Hongbo's stubborn temper—several times he wanted to give up, but seeing Lao Shisan's provocation, he forced himself to get up again.
Hong Liguo, Sun Changlin, and the others watched with bated breath. Seeing that Hong Bo had no chance of winning and was in such a miserable state, they couldn't help but shout at him to stop competing and just admit defeat.
Liu Lianbo stood to the side, his fists clenched so tightly they cracked, his heart filled with resentment. He knew better than anyone that if he were the one on the field now, taking down Lao Shisan would be no problem at all. He regretted being too impulsive earlier, going on the field early and losing the match. If he hadn't been so reckless, Hong Bo wouldn't be suffering like this now—he could easily take down someone like Lao Shisan with a single takedown.
Seeing Hongbo being thrown to the ground by Lao Shisan once again, Liu Lianbo couldn't hold back any longer. He rolled up his sleeves and wanted to rush onto the field to help Hongbo...
Hong Liguo reacted quickly, grabbing him and scolding in a low voice, "What are you doing? Are you trying to harm Hong Bo and everyone else? Old Thirteen could have ended the sparring quickly, but he deliberately dragged it out, just to provoke us and force our people to enter. Then He Yunlong will have an excuse... We can't fall for He Yunlong and his brother's trick!"
Hong Liguo's guess was absolutely right—long before Lao Shisan went on stage, He Yunlong had specifically instructed him not to win too quickly, but to deliberately provoke Hong Liguo and his group by tormenting Yu Hongbo. If they couldn't stand it and entered the arena, it would be tantamount to them breaking the gentleman's agreement first, and then…
Right now, the only thing Hong Liguo and his group can do is to get Hong Bo to admit defeat as soon as possible and stop him from suffering this physical pain.
But Hongbo refused to admit defeat. He was calculating in his mind: even if he couldn't win, he would drag the match to the end—once the time was up, the match would be a draw, and a draw was better than a loss. According to the comparison of the strength of both sides, a draw was equivalent to a victory for his side.
Seeing Hong Bo's indomitable spirit, Hong Liguo, Sun Changlin and others had tears in their eyes. Even Sun Changlin, who was usually the most tough, couldn't help but wipe away his tears, unable to bear watching any longer.
Hong Liguo shouted repeatedly into the arena, urging Hong Bo to admit defeat, but the stubborn Hong Bo acted as if he didn't hear him. As long as he could still stand, he would never choose to give up.