Chapter 1 A Cold Awakening

A bucket of cold water, mixed with ice, woke Zuo Xiaotang instantly. He shivered and jumped up, his head hitting the ceiling. He felt full of power, completely refreshed, and even thought Anlita was more beautiful and strangely familiar.

Anlita felt the familiarity too. "Damn it," she thought, "Li Hao is a real bastard." This only made her angrier.

"Miss Anlita, what happened?" Zuo Xiaotang felt like he'd slept for a century—comfortable, fragrant, and soft—but he couldn't remember anything.

"Get out!" Anlita didn't want to say another word and simply threw Zuo Xiaotang out.

Zuo Xiaotang was still confused. What had happened? But Zuo-ge was open-minded. He stood up, straightened his clothes, and suddenly felt happy. It was a little violent, but this seemed to be the first time he'd spent so long with a girl. Why did he smell so nice?

Li Hao was in a very good mood. He'd completed the main task of this exchange competition. They were all good people, contributing money and effort, making him feel a little embarrassed. Should he be a little lighter when he took the things later? It seemed like Xili'an didn't really care about these things.

Li Hao happily returned to the training ground. "Lao Li, I remember your close combat skills are excellent. Let's spar and change things up."

"The Tianxun call is over, Li Hao. I've noticed you've made quite a few connections. When did you get so familiar with Anlita?" Ditta said suspiciously. She didn't like Anlita; the woman seemed like the type who liked to seduce people, exuding a flirtatious aura. And this guy actually dared to call such a woman on Tianxun.

"Ah, Ditta, were you eavesdropping?" Li Hao widened his eyes. Now was the time to remember Master Ma's teachings: strike first.

"Eavesdropping? You guys were so loud!" Ditta blushed. "Besides, am I not allowed to listen?"

"Ah, it's not that. I was telling her to treat our Zuo-ge well," Li Hao said. "Our Zuo-ge is an honest man. We can't let her lead him astray."

"Heh, you Tianjing people are all handsome men that everyone loves!" Ditta mocked. Although she didn't like Anlita, unless Anlita was blind, she definitely wouldn't have any ideas about Zuo Xiaotang.

Li Xiangshan knew it wasn't that simple. Although he didn't know exactly what had happened, judging from Li Hao's expression, Anlita must have suffered a big loss. He didn't know what she was thinking, trying to play tricks on Li Hao.

Li Xiangshan didn't know what to say. Tianqi had disbanded, and now everyone was facing the S-match, competing for the highest honor of a mech pilot, the dignity and glory of a warrior. He didn't want to bother with the past anymore; he just wanted to finish his last S-match without regrets.

"Close combat? I can play around a bit if Li-ge is interested," Li Xiangshan nodded and said.

"Shan-ge, what's the point of close combat? Swordsmanship is much better. That's what this guy is best at," Ditta had coveted Li Hao's swordsmanship for a long time.

Li Hao shook his head. "The ultimate close combat is an art. Lao Li is one of the best in our circle, but I feel like your style has changed a lot in the past few years."

Li Xiangshan was stunned. He had switched to heavy armor because he thought he was better at it, but after the real switch, there was very little room to play. "Some close combat skills aren't suitable for mech use. Sometimes, if the angle and speed are a little slow, the result is very bad, especially now that I mainly use heavy armor."

"Li Hao, Shan-ge is right. Don't mislead us. Even if you do mislead us, it's not your Tianjing's turn to take advantage," Ditta said. She couldn't let Li Hao lead him astray. Li Xiangshan was the face of the Moon's heavy armor, shouldering not only the heavy armor mission of Hailong, but also participating in the heavy armor ranking battle.

Li Hao didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Don't you know that I'm famous for not liking to take advantage of others?"

"I won't comment on that," Li Xiangshan and Ditta couldn't help but laugh.

"Come on, let's try first. Let me see how your so-called close combat can win against me. You're only allowed to use close combat, nothing else. I want to see how you break my swordsmanship." Ditta looked eager to try. She had only been showing Li Hao around, so how could she let him off so easily? ノ亅丶說壹2З

Li Hao was stunned, glanced at Li Xiangshan, and smiled helplessly. "Okay, let's not use the Zone. Let's just purely exchange techniques."

"Whatever! Watch me take you down!" Ditta said fiercely, but her face was very happy. Actually, everything about Ditta, except her mouth, was soft.

In the training ground, Ditta was very considerate and chose a wooden sword. It would be a bit of a bully to use a titanium sword.

The two stood still, and Ditta quickly got into the zone with the sword in one hand. "Li Hao, in my hands, a wooden sword is no different from a titanium sword."

Before Li Hao could speak, Li Xiangshan smiled. "Ditta, don't be polite. Just go all out, or you'll suffer."

"Okay!"

Li Hao stretched his body and smiled, while Ditta's expression was serious. The wooden sword locked onto Li Hao's possible paths. In her mind, she replayed Li Hao's takedown of Fan Liweite, the submarine suplex. The move was sudden, but it could only catch someone off guard. If she was prepared for someone charging in headfirst like that, she would split his skull with one sword.

"Start!"

*Teng.*

Li Hao moved, slowly approaching Ditta. When the distance between them was about two meters, he suddenly launched. Ditta's pupils contracted. She knew he was fast, but she didn't expect him to be this fast. However, she was even faster. The wooden sword in her hand directly stabbed towards Li Hao's head. At this position, Li Hao could never possibly get close. At this speed, he would only crash into her sword.

However, the next moment, his figure disappeared. Immediately after, her waist was grabbed, and she felt like she was flying through the clouds. *Bang!*

Ditta was thrown to the ground, seeing stars.

Li Xiangshan shook his head helplessly. This little junior sister never learned her lesson. "Round one, Li-ge wins."

The moment Ditta struck with her sword, Li Hao dodged the attack with a sideways half-spin, got close, and grabbed Ditta's waist. A harder throw could have broken her neck.

Ditta's training system didn't include this. She mainly focused on mech combat skills, while Tianqi started with the individual.

Ditta stood up, glaring at Li Hao angrily. "Best two out of three! Again!"

Li Hao smiled. "Don't get angry."

"Who's angry at you? Stop talking nonsense. It was just luck. Let me show you my lightning sword!" As she spoke, the wooden sword in her hand made a swooshing sound, full of killing intent.

Li Hao and Li Xiangshan both laughed. Li Hao opened his arms and struck a stance.

There were about two meters between the two of them. Actually, Ditta could launch an attack with her speed. But with the sword in her hand, Ditta hesitated. Because as long as she missed, she could imagine Li Hao pouncing on her like a hungry tiger, leaving her with no resistance. Not attacking was still a deterrent, allowing her to target her opponent's attack points and utilize the advantage of her weapon.

The two faced off. Li Hao's body swayed slightly, but Ditta didn't fall for it. The shifting of his center of gravity was also extremely important in her attack routine. After several unsuccessful attempts to test her, Li Hao suddenly lunged forward. Ditta reacted quickly and struck with her sword, but Li Hao tilted his head, and the wooden sword missed. Before Ditta could feel that something was wrong, she was lifted off her feet and thrown to the ground by Li Hao, who then straddled her. His fist, as big as a sandbag, gently tapped Ditta's nose, and he said with a grin, "You lost again."

Ditta lay there, feeling hopeless. Li Xiangshan smiled. "Two to zero."

Li Hao stood up. "Want to continue?"

Ditta's body was limp. She gritted her teeth. "I'm not continuing. You're just bullying me. How long are you going to ride me? I'm going to complain. You have no gentlemanly manners at all!"

Li Hao was startled and realized that the position was a bit awkward. He quickly jumped up. "When did I bully you? This was a normal spar. Lao Li is a witness. Don't slander me."

Ditta snorted. "I don't care. You're treating me to coffee later. The expensive kind, or I'll slander you!"

Hearing about coffee, Li Hao calmed down. "That's no problem."

He might be poor, but he could still afford a cup of coffee.

Ditta was happy now, her face beaming with smiles. "I'll be the referee now. Shan-ge, go for it! Teach this arrogant guy a lesson!"

Li Xiangshan entered the ring and warmed up before the match. Li Hao moved his wrists. "Thinking about it, it's been many years since we last sparred."

"Yeah, many things are the same as yesterday. The experiences back then had a profound impact on me. Childhood trauma, you know. I haven't let my skills slip over the years."

Li Hao and Li Xiangshan smiled at each other. Li Hao didn't know what Li Xiangshan's lineage was, but his close combat skills were very comprehensive. It was a pity that he had switched.

The two stood still, their aura completely different from before. Ditta's eyes were shining. Men were indeed more attractive when they were facing off against each other.

At this moment, Li Hao and Li Xiangshan were crouching slightly. In Ditta's eyes, one was a fierce tiger, and the other was an explosive bear. The person she had just fought was just playing around.

The two began to circle around each other, moving their hands up and down, constantly shifting their center of gravity. The distance closed to only one meter, but neither of them rashly made a move. Li Xiangshan's right hand proactively made an aggressive feint, but Li Hao parried it, maintaining his own rhythm.

Li Xiangshan suddenly lunged forward, and Li Hao immediately pulled back slightly, but his center of gravity didn't shift immediately. Li Xiangshan didn't follow up with an attack either. The two were still probing. Ditta also realized that she had completely underestimated this type of close combat. Her assumption that she could grasp the other person's trajectory at the moment of attack was completely wishful thinking. The opponent was not only fast when attacking, but also predicting her attacks, instead of charging in recklessly.

This was a very systematic fighting skill.

Suddenly, Li Xiangshan made a sudden advance and directly grabbed Li Hao. Li Xiangshan had a complete advantage in terms of body shape. Without using the Golden Zone, Li Xiangshan should also have the advantage in pure strength.

The moment he grabbed Li Hao, Li Xiangshan's eyes widened, and the muscles in his arms bulged like steel bars. The usually gentle Li Xiangshan looked like a monster. The two men's bodies pulled and wrestled against each other, and the ground thumped. Li Xiangshan, so strong, couldn't completely suppress Li Hao. At this moment, Li Xiangshan made a sudden close-quarters pull, and his right leg kicked directly towards Li Hao's legs, while his arms exerted force again, directly lifting Li Hao into the air.

Power that could uproot mountains and spirit that could cover the world – so handsome!