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Lin Hao moved as well. He simply took a step back, twisting the right hand that held the gun behind his head in a circle. With a swift motion, the White Wax Staff lunged toward Old Bi's face like a striking python. The staff was long, and if Old Bi did not dodge, he would inevitably take a hit.
With no choice, Old Bi had to change the direction of his raised stick and smash it against the White Wax Staff, deflecting the strike. Unexpectedly, Lin Hao's White Wax Staff had excellent elasticity; after being struck at the upper part, his right hand followed through, swinging it back and forth in an arc before stabbing toward Old Bi's left thigh.
In that moment, Lin Hao turned defense into offense with one swift move. I was secretly astonished; while I hadn't yet grasped the full extent of his strength and speed, it was clear that Lin Hao's observation and judgment were remarkably keen. He seized the opportunity to shift the balance of attack and defense in an instant.
Old Bi had also fought with Ah Huang and knew that a long weapon was stronger the longer it was kept at a distance. The key to dealing with a long weapon was to engage in close combat, using the stick to block and strike, which could easily take the initiative and force the opponent to abandon their weapon or concede.
I watched as Old Bi thrust his stick sharply upward to deflect Lin Hao's strike, then quickly stepped forward, pushing down hard with his right arm. With a swift motion, he aimed the tip of his stick directly at Lin Hao's left knee. The distance had closed significantly; there was no time for Lin Hao to adjust the White Wax Staff to fend off Old Bi.
In a split second, Lin Hao pushed down on the lower section of the White Wax Staff with his left hand. The lower half shot up like another head of a double-headed snake, suddenly blocking Old Bi's strike.
Old Bi's attacks were repeatedly thwarted by Lin Hao's thrusts and sweeps. The tip of the White Wax Staff moved like a venomous snake—flexible and unpredictable—always keeping Old Bi at bay. Even when Old Bi managed to close in within a meter of Lin Hao, he was still forced back by Lin Hao's powerful swings.
In just a few minutes of intense combat, their exchanges were rapid-fire and fierce, echoing with loud thuds as they clashed. The nearby Cadets cheered continuously; it seemed they had never witnessed such a duel between weapons before. However, I noticed several things: Lin Hao held his gun in a mid-to-low grip, which was standard technique, unlike Ah Huang who used an end grip out of extreme confidence and exceptional skill. I recalled my first encounter with Ah Huang; I couldn't even get within two meters of him. He believed that wielding a gun meant maximizing its advantages—striking from afar using strength and speed. Clearly, Lin Hao did not match Ah Huang in power or speed; thus he adopted a more cautious approach. The advantage of holding the gun in a mid-to-low grip is that when an enemy closes in within a certain distance, one can block effectively and counterattack from close range.
To be fair, I felt that Old Bi and Lin Hao were roughly on par at this point. Old Bi had strength on his side, but Lin Hao excelled in speed and reaction time. Due to their different weapons, perhaps Lin Hao was slightly better than Old Bi; however, under normal circumstances, either could win or lose.
Yet now I found myself worried about Old Bi. Lin Hao's tactics were clever; he consistently used thrusts or sweeps to keep Old Bi confined within two meters in front of him. Whenever Old Bi attempted to break through, Lin Hao would change tactics or rapidly maneuver the White Wax Staff to push him back or use the butt end of the staff to clash with Old Bi’s weapon, creating space again.
The problem was that Old Bi had just finished fighting Sun Hu and wasn't at peak stamina. It was evident he recognized this issue and was eager to take down Lin Hao quickly; hence he launched continuous aggressive attacks in hopes of breaking through Lin Hao's defenses. If he had approached Lin Hao steadily from the beginning, over time both would tire out; eventually, Lin Hao’s White Wax Staff would become less agile compared to Old Bi’s stick. At that point, Old Bi would have held the advantage—but now it was Old Bi who was being worn down.
My concerns finally materialized when Lin Hao seemed to deliberately favor thrusts and sweeps. After Old Bi deflected another strike from him, Lin Hao quickly retracted and lunged toward Old Bi’s face again. Due to a slight delay in reaction time from having been engaged for so long, Old Bi couldn't evade in time; although he didn't get hit directly in the face, he felt a sharp graze across his cheek. When he looked up again, I noticed a deep scratch marred his face.
"Dammit!" I heard Old Bi growl lowly, twisting his body to swing his stick, ready to launch the next round of attack.
At that moment, I heard a gasp and turned to see Xiao Yu. "Are they going to be okay?" she asked softly. I frowned; it was a question I had been pondering as well. Old Bi was clearly losing control, and Lin Hao, having gained the upper hand, wouldn't hold back. This was different from fighting Sun Hu; when one had a clear advantage over the other, they could control their strength and pull back. But when two opponents were evenly matched, it became difficult to hold back.
Sure enough, Old Bi began to go wild. He spun around, raising his stick high above him and bringing it down towards Lin Hao. Lin Hao's defensive thrust was easily shattered; Old Bi didn't retract his stick but instead bent his legs slightly and spun again, increasing the momentum of his strike with a whooshing sound as he swung from below to above, aiming for Lin Hao's upper body. Lin Hao's attempt to parry was also deflected, forcing him to take two steps back with his gun raised. Old Bi let out a roar and stepped forward, bending low again for another spin. The stick continued to whirl in a circle behind him before sweeping towards Lin Hao at high speed. This was a combo that Old Bi had invented himself; he jokingly called it the "Mad Stick Technique." Once unleashed, its power was immense—after all, sheer strength could overpower skill. In the face of such overwhelming force, no technique could withstand it. If Lin Hao tried to block directly, he would only be knocked off balance by the White Wax Staff. Even if he managed to hold on, the staff's elasticity would cause vibrations that would make it difficult for him to maintain his grip and resist against the advancing Old Bi.
Old Bi's series of spins flowed like water, without any awkwardness. He utilized inertia to increase the speed and power of his strikes, making the stick dance with ferocity. I could vaguely hear a series of whooshing sounds; even Team Leader Ding couldn't help but exclaim, "Impressive!"
As Old Bi pressed forward relentlessly, Lin Hao chose not to fire again but continued retreating. It looked like he was about to back into the edge of the sand pit; they were now just over a meter apart, yet he still showed no intention of shooting. I saw Old Bi roar once more and leap into the air, preparing to spin again and strike down at Lin Hao! Was he about to finish this?
Suddenly, Lin Hao moved as well. Seizing the moment while Old Bi was airborne and spinning in mid-air, he summoned all his strength and thrust the White Wax Staff forward with a swift motion, like a giant python emerging from its den. With a loud thud, it slammed into Old Bi's back! Old Bi lost his balance in mid-air and crashed face-first into the sand with a tremendous thud, dropping his stick aside. Lin Hao quickly stepped forward, holding his gun single-handedly with the tail end tucked under his arm and pointed the head at the downed Old Bi, shouting, "Still not admitting defeat?!"
Everyone was stunned; no one expected that Old Bi, who had been dominating moments ago, would suddenly be taken down. A heavy silence fell over us as we watched the two in the arena. After quite some time passed without any movement from Old Bi!
I panicked and shouted "Old Bi!" as I prepared to rush in.
"Don't come over!" I heard Old Bi's deep voice call out, causing me to halt in my tracks.
I saw Old Bi move slightly before slowly propping himself up with one hand while kneeling on one leg in the sand. He coughed a few times and spat out some sand while gasping for breath; clearly, he had been winded from the fall.
"Old Bi, are you okay? Don't scare me!" I shouted again.
Old Bi ignored me but began making strange sounds on his own. Just as I was puzzled by this behavior, the sounds grew louder until I finally recognized them! "If you can laugh, you won't cry; if you find a confidant, you won't be lonely..." Old Bi was singing that Cantonese song! He swayed while trying to reach for his stick on his right side. After several attempts, he finally grasped it and pushed himself up unsteadily. My heart sank; I knew how proud Old Bi was—there was no way he would admit defeat in front of so many people or especially in front of Xiao Yu after losing to Lin Hao! Without hesitation, I dragged my Refined Steel Rod into the sand pit, determined to bring Old Bi back into the fight.
"Dreams of home and country do not end; yet a heart stubbornly resists surrender..." As the fragmented singing continued, Old Bi slowly turned to face Lin Hao, raising his stick. Without the support of the stick, Old Bi swayed again and then spat out a mouthful of blood onto the ground. It was unclear where he was injured, causing great concern.
At this moment, all the Cadets had regained their composure. They looked at the swaying Old Bi, who still refused to give up, and many couldn't help but shout, "Just admit defeat, stop fighting." "Brother, it's enough, don't push yourself." Even Xiao Yu behind me cried out with a choked voice, "Stop it!" Grabbing the medical kit that I was supposed to carry, she rushed into the arena to support Old Bi. I even noticed Old Li and a few others standing up, anxiously watching Old Bi in the ring.
When I reached Old Bi's side, he had already collapsed into Xiao Yu's arms, gasping like a bull. Seeing me approach, he managed a faint smile and said, "Brother, just a little bit more. I didn't embarrass myself, did I?"
Faced with this dear friend and mentor, my nose tinged with emotion as tears threatened to fall. I quickly changed the subject to distract myself. "No! You sang beautifully; remember to teach me next time we go karaoke." Old Bi chuckled lightly before coughing. I turned to Xiao Yu urgently, "You need to help him get checked out; see if anything is broken or wrong."
Watching as Team Leader Ding arrived with several Cadets to carry Old Bi away, I steadied myself, gripping the Refined Steel Rod tightly. Slowly turning around to face Lin Hao, who was still stunned in place, I calmly said, "Now it's our turn."
(To be continued; tomorrow will be even more exciting!)
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