The two faced each other. A breeze blew by, flowing through both boy’s black hair. Shibi sat to the side, nervously shifting his weight from side to side, unsure what to do. Then it happened, Yin Zheng charged at Wang Zen.
Zheng’s fist curled into a tight ball, ki gathering there. “Stone Fist!”
Zen sent his ki through his body to harden his body and he raised his arms. The hit slammed into him, knocking him off his feet and falling onto the hard floor.
Shibi flinched, as if he was also taking the punches along with Zen.
Zen grimaced, clenching the spot where the attack had connected. He did not stay on the ground for too long as he got to his feet and took a fighting stance.
Zheng charged forward, once again charging up his Stone Fist with ki. Zen tried to dodge, while raising his arms to block. He was too slow and took the hit on his shoulder, sending him flying back again.
“I don’t know how good that healer was,” Zheng began, “but it’s obvious you are not ready for this fight, any fight for that matter.”
“Oh yeah,” Zen said, getting to his feet. “We’ll see!” He shouted as he charged forward.
Zen pulled his fist back and thrust it forward for Zheng’s face. Zheng was able to lower his stance and block the badly telegraphed punch with his forearm. He retaliated with a reverse punch, glowing with the Stone Fist technique. The punch connected to with Zen’s abdomen, driving all the air from his lungs and making him cough out white bile before he was sent rolling on across the ground where he landed face down.
“Zen!” Shibi cried when Zen’s body stopped.
Zheng stood straight and began walking towards the downed Zen, with his clanged fists at his sides. When he was upon Zen, he simply continued walked on past his prone body.
“Shibi,” he said, not bothering to slow down or look back, “help him out of here and tell him not to come back here.”
Zheng continued to walk on. Shibi approached Zen’s unmoving body.
“Where…”
Zheng stopped and stood still. Shibi froze, partway to Zen.
“Where… do… you think… you’re going.” Zen said as his body began to stir.
Zheng hung his head in frustration and disappointment.
Zen began to stir. He clenched his fingers as he rose up to his knees. “I’m not done yet!”
“Stay down, Wang Zen!” Zheng said, anger in his voice.
A moment later, Zen was back onto his feet. “Make me!”
Zheng turned around and charged at him. Zen swivelled, slower than Zheng but this was an advantage.
“Blitz Punch!” Zen shouted as he sent the ki through his meridians. By the time the technique was activated, it was too late for Zheng to dodge, so he raised his arms and blocked the 50 punches that came at him in a single second. When Zen was done, Zheng as still blocking. He used his technique again.
Zheng leapt up in the air, the move missing him below. Zen looked up as Zheng landed on his face, slamming his foot into Zen’s face on the way down. Zen was sent rolling on the ground. Grimacing, Zen quickly rose to his feet and wiped away a section of the shoe mark on his face.
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“Shuddering Shield Aura.” Zheng said as he activated the technique. “This is my defence.”
“I know,” Zen said, “I gave it to you.”
“No, you gave me a scroll to sell. You never thought I would be able to figure this technique out, if you had, you would’ve never parted with it.”
Zen shrugged. “Yes, I couldn’t figure the technique out, so instead of tossing the scroll, I thought I’d give it to my best friend so he could make some money off it. I guess that’s one of the reasons you want to destroy me and my family.”
Zheng charged forward.
Zen threw a punch, his fist entered the Shuddering Shield Aura field, his punch was slowed by the pulses of ki. Zheng diverted the punch and retaliated with an elbow to his abdomen, sending Zen stumbling back while coughing.
Zen stood to a stop. He knew Shuddering Shield Aura was more useful against Ki techniques that shaped ki outside of the body, such as Exploding Coin and Dazzling Jab but it was a good thing that he had at least one offensive technique that did not use ki outside of his body.
He started with Hardening his body. He charged forward, spending ki to make himself move faster. Even then, Zheng’s Shuddering Shield Aura still slowed his attacks down, not as bad as before though.
He tried to sweep Zheng low, but Zheng planted himself firmly on the ground, blocking the attack. Zen tried to press forward, hoping at least one of his punches would find an opening but Zheng blocked each and everyone of his attacks. But Zheng’s counterattacks found always found their mark on either his face or chest.
When Zen thought that Zheng had lowered his guard, he activated his Blits Punch. The gatling gun of punches sped out.
Zheng stepped back, putting himself inches away from the punches. When the technique had ended, he dashed forward. Zen realised he was open and focussed more on hardening.
Zheng’s fist began to glow with ki.
“Stone Fist?” Zen thought to himself.
To Zen’s surprise, the punch began to pulsate with ki like the Shuddering Shield Aura.
“Shuddering Stone Fist!” Zheng said as the punch connected with Zen’s abdomen.
Zen could feel his Hardening melting away when the punch made contact, making him take the full brunt of the attack. He was sent flying back and hit the wall behind him hard, he stayed there a moment before sliding down onto the ground.
Zheng looked sadly at his friend’s body lying on the ground. He shook his head sadly before turning his back and starting to walk away. That is until he heard groaning. Zheng just sighed in frustration.
“Stay down!” he angrily said as he turned to glare at Zen.
Sure enough, Zen was already getting back to his feet. “If there is something you should know me for, its that I can take a punch.”
Zen hoped his words of bravado hid how much he was in pain. The darkness of unconsciousness was growing on the sides of his vision. His body was still trembling. He was amazed that Zheng could make such an effective ki technique by combing the power of Stone Fist, with the ki disrupting effects of Shuddering Shield. He was able to overcome the weakness of Shuddering Shield and gained the ability to disrupt ki, even when it had not left the body!
“You have no chance,” Zheng said, as his body once again began rippling with Shuddering Shield Aura. “Give up.”
“I can’t. I need to stop you.” Zen said as he began gathering his ki. “I need to make you come to your senses!” His ki began taking physical form around his body, appearing as a murky white geyser. “Even if that means I have to beat the sense in you!” The flow of his ki increased violently along with his determination.
Although Zen knew that Shuddering Shield Aura would disrupt ki, he also knew that it could be overwhelmed. If he used a strong enough attack, he could overcome Zheng’s defences. He leapt up into the air.
“Meteor Kick!” Zen outstretched his foot and he began to shoot towards Zheng, his murky white ki twisting around him before coalescing at the end of his foot, making him look like a ki covered meteor.
Zheng’s eyes widened when he saw the attack coming for him. He lowered his stance and thrust his hands out in preparation of blocking the move. “Shuddering Shield Aura: Focus Point!” The rippling of the Shuddering Shield Aura moved to the front of his hands, its ki pulsated with such vigour that even the air around it shimmered and vibrated.
The two attacks met, Zen’s spear like attack with Zheng’s ultimate shield. The ground beneath them shook and cracked, debris was sent blowing away as they two attacks clashed and fought for dominance. Zen’s attack slowly getting dispersed into a mist of ki while the potency of Zheng’s shield was beginning to be smothered by the power before it. In the last moment, Zen’s attack was fulled disrupted, leaving him in the air with no ki and his attack having failed.
Without the ki at his foot, Zhen was able to grab Zen’s leg. He spun around and slammed Zen hard into the ground. Zen spat out blood as he landed and it was then that he finally lost consciousness.