After they finished eating, they took a taxi straight to the sales office. Since the deposit had been paid and all the paperwork was ready, they quickly paid and signed the purchase contract.
Someone from the sales office took Long Xiao and the others to see the apartment. They registered their fingerprints on the smart lock and were handed the keys on the spot.
With two days to spare, Long Xiao, with Sun Sizhu's help, bought some simple furniture and daily necessities, and also a car, which was parked in the garage.
Two days later, Xiao Ming and Zheng Dongyang arrived in the capital. After receiving Xiao Ming's call, Long Xiao went to the hotel where Zheng Dongyang and the others were staying.
This was the first time the Donghai Martial Alliance had participated in the national competition in several years, and both Zheng Dongyang and Chen Meijia were very excited.
After Long Xiao settled in, Zheng Dongyang called him to his room and chatted with him for a while about the competition.
The country was divided into four regions, with five people selected from each region, totaling twenty people to participate in the national competition.
The competition format was simple: twenty people would draw lots and be divided into four groups, five people per group. There would be one defending champion and four challengers. Whoever won would advance to the finals.
The four finalists would then draw lots for a defending champion. The one who defeated the other three would be the first place. The remaining three would draw lots for a defending champion, and the one who defeated the other two would be the second place.
"President Zheng, is there a prize for first place?" Long Xiao asked.
"Yes, this year's prize is a set of boxing manuals."
"What kind of boxing manuals?" Long Xiao asked.
Zheng Dongyang shook his head and said, "It is said to be a set of ancient boxing manuals that have been lost for many years. As for what kind of boxing manuals, I haven't found out."
Long Xiao was participating in the competition to get a ranking for the Donghai Martial Alliance. He was not interested in any rewards.
After dinner, everyone gathered in the room of Lu Xin, the president of the Huanan Martial Alliance, to discuss the next day's competition.
Among the five contestants, Long Xiao had the highest strength, but Lu Xin and the other two presidents all believed that Long Xiao had won the regional competition by luck, and they did not think highly of him.
Mei Xiaotian, knowing the truth, sat aside and said nothing.
"Xiaotian, tell us what you think," Lu Xin said.
Mei Xiaotian looked at Long Xiao and said, "Senior Brother Hu's strength is greater than mine. I think..."
Lu Xin glared at Mei Xiaotian and said, "You disappointing fellow, haven't you ever thought of winning first place?"
Zheng Dongyang chuckled and said, "Senior Brother Lu, Hu Lei's strength is clearly superior to Xiaotian's. I think it's more realistic for Hu Lei to compete for first place."
Long Xiao stood up and said, "There's no point in us discussing this. We'll talk about it when we're on stage tomorrow. I'm tired and need to rest."
Long Xiao left without giving the presidents any face. After he left, there was nothing else to discuss, so they adjourned.
Early the next morning, a car from the Beijing Martial Alliance arrived at the hotel to pick up Long Xiao and the others to the Martial Alliance Arena located in the eastern suburbs.
This competition was a grand event for the Martial Alliance and a grand event for the Chinese martial arts community. The Martial Alliance had begun setting up the venue days in advance. Television stations and reporters from various news media had also arrived early, and the stands were already filled with people.
Long Xiao and the others took their seats in the designated area, and soon reporters rushed over to interview them.
Xiao Ming crossed his legs and, seeing a reporter about to ask Long Xiao something, waved his hand and said, "Don't bother him. Brother Hu hates reporters."
A large portion of Chinese martial artists have low skill and bad tempers. Incidents of martial artists assaulting reporters are common in various competitions every year. Seeing Xiao Ming's fierce demeanor, the reporter had no choice but to interview others.
Before 8 o'clock, the venue was already packed, and major television stations had begun broadcasting live. On the five large screens scattered throughout the venue, last year's matches were being replayed.
People from the various regional Martial Alliances entered one after another. Mei Xiaotian pointed to a group that had just entered and said in a low voice, "Hu Lei, see the young man walking in the middle? His name is Zhu Kai. He's from the Northeast region and was last year's champion."
Long Xiao nodded slightly. Mei Xiaotian continued, "He is a master of hard qigong. His boxing is both fast and fierce. He once punched a cow to death. If he hits you with one punch, you'll basically lose your ability to fight back."
"Can't your 'Ghost Xuan' step evade his attacks?" Long Xiao asked.
"I couldn't evade it last year. I was hit by him and was recuperated for two months."
"It seems that when absolutely necessary, I'll have to go head-to-head," Long Xiao said with a smile.
This was not a fight to the death, so Long Xiao did not plan to use his five-element qi. In that case, Zhu Kai's punch would likely be far more powerful than his own.
He glanced at his left hand and thought that if it came down to it, he would use his left fist. His five-element qi couldn't enter his left fist, but the power of his left fist was not much lower than his right fist injected with five-element qi.
Long Xiao had tried to observe the condition of his left arm by internal vision many times, but all attempts ended in failure.
After the silhouette of the Qilin entered his left arm, it occupied the entire arm. He had only observed it once when it first entered. After that, his five-element qi was blocked.
At nine o'clock, after a vice president of the Martial Alliance gave a speech, the referee announced the competition rules, and the participants went on stage to draw lots.
The twenty people drew twenty lots, which were opened simultaneously.
A short and chubby man, only 1.5 meters tall, drew the defending champion's lot for the first group.
The others stepped down, and the little胖子 was left alone in the center of the ring.
All the cameras focused on the little胖子. Xiao Ming was a little confused and said, "Brother Hu, this little胖子 doesn't look happy."
Long Xiao, who had just returned to his seat, chuckled and said, "If it were me, I wouldn't be happy either. The first one to fight has to fight more times and is at a disadvantage."
Soon, a strong man walked towards the ring and challenged the little胖子.
Lu Xin said in a low voice, "Don't underestimate this little胖子. He was third in the last competition. He's not weak."
The strong man didn't take the little胖子 seriously. He went up and showed off his muscles, walking around the stage. He was then pulled to the center of the ring by the referee and stood there obediently.
The referee made a gesture and said, "Begin."
As soon as the strong man finished speaking, the little胖子 charged forward like a cannonball and slammed into the strong man's stomach. With a bang, the strong man was propelled five or six meters away.
Before the strong man could regain his balance, the little胖子 rushed at him again and punched him in the inner thigh.
Being short, the little胖子 targeted the strong man's lower body, attacking his stomach or thighs, leaving the strong man flustered.
Cheers erupted from the audience, and the referee, holding a microphone, loudly recounted the little胖子's past victories to build excitement.
The strong man became increasingly desperate as the fight progressed, and soon he was chasing the little胖子 around like a game of whack-a-mole, trying to stomp on him.
After more than ten minutes, the first round ended. The referee separated the two, and they returned to their respective positions to rest.
The president of the Martial Alliance from a certain southwestern province and several of his disciples stood beside the little胖子, some massaging his shoulders and legs, some whispering to him.
"This strong man is going to lose," Long Xiao said quietly.
"How can you tell?" Chen Meijia, who was sitting behind Long Xiao, asked.
"The little胖子 hasn't exerted himself yet. He's using this strong man for warm-up."
The two started again. The little胖子 charged at the strong man with all his might. Just as the strong man dodged to the side, the little胖子 suddenly stopped, turned around, and swept his leg across the back of the strong man's knee.
The strong man fell to the mat with a thud. The little胖子 jumped up and punched the strong man in the stomach.
The strong man clutched his stomach, struggled for a few moments, but couldn't get up.
The referee waited for more than ten seconds and, seeing that the strong man still hadn't gotten up, announced the little胖子 as the winner.