Volume 3 Chapter 69: Absolute Strength and Skill
He threw a clean and direct punch. In the empty hall, it even made a sharp sound in the air.
The very first move was already so powerful that Lin Lin couldn’t help taking a deep breath.
This guy…
He’s really scary strong.
Then Gao Liang showed several more moves. It was clear that his style was not fancy like many traditional martial arts. But it was very practical and fit real fighting.
Almost every move attacked common weak points of an opponent. Even while attacking strongly, he kept his body in a position that was hard to hit.
Of course, under such strong attacks, it was already very difficult for anyone to fight back.
Amazing… really amazing.
Lin Lin watched his fists move quickly. Sometimes he added a kick. Watching him made her want to try kicking too, just for fun.
“For this move, step forward with your left foot, left hook punch, then right hook punch, then left hook again. Keep your right fist near your chin, and look forward.”
Gao Liang felt a bit awkward. It was hard to demonstrate and explain at the same time while just punching the air.
He was about to demonstrate again when Lin Lin, who had been sitting on the floor, suddenly spoke. She sounded a little embarrassed.
“Wow… since you’re so strong, how about… how about in a few days, you be the main fighter? Ahem, I can support you or something.”
“You…”
Gao Liang turned around helplessly and pointed at her, looking a little unhappy.
“Lin Lin, stand up. Practice with me.”
“Huh?”
She was caught off guard. Why did her rival suddenly become so serious?
Hmm…
Maybe what she just said was a bit wrong?
Thinking about it carefully, it really sounded like, ‘You go fight, I’ll just watch.’
“I know…”
Under his sharp gaze, Lin Lin walked over unwillingly and stood beside him, lowering her head lazily.
“Practice properly, Lin Lin. Didn’t you say you don’t want to embarrass yourself by fighting randomly? Then at least learn these few moves well.”
Seeing her expression, Gao Liang felt confused. Why did she look like she had done something wrong, as if he had bullied her?
“Okay, I know,” she replied reluctantly.
“Alright, let’s start!”
They stood side by side. Gao Liang raised his fists and began to demonstrate again. Lin Lin followed him.
She tried her best, but…
She couldn’t keep up with his rhythm at all!
If Gao Liang’s punches were as fast as lightning, then Lin Lin’s movements were slow and weak.
She felt that just copying his speed for a few punches already made her muscles ache. The big movements were hard for her body to handle. And she couldn’t follow his rhythm. She had to watch him and move at the same time. It felt very uncomfortable.
Meanwhile, Gao Liang kept demonstrating while watching her movements, quietly judging how much she could handle and how far she could go.
Lin Lin’s movements were a bit clumsy, but in Gao Liang’s eyes, they were actually not bad. Her posture was quite standard. It seemed that she could improve with more training. Although, it was clear that her coordination still had some problems.
“Mm, not bad, Lin Lin. Try to keep up with me. Let’s repeat these moves again!”
“Ah… slow down! Wait, wait! Don’t go so fast! Hey—!”
For a moment, the scene became very chaotic. After following Gao Liang through several sets of moves, they repeated them two more times.
Since there was no punching bag or dummy, they could only punch and kick the air, which felt awkward. Lin Lin couldn’t judge the right distance for attacking at all. Gao Liang felt uncomfortable too, because there was no feeling of actually hitting anything.
Even so, in this strange situation, they slowly started to find a better rhythm.
After practicing for half an hour, Gao Liang nodded and signaled that she could rest.
“Hoo~”
Lin Lin immediately sat down on the wooden floor again and fell into deep thought.
So…
So tired.
Gao Liang wiped the sweat from his forehead, went to get some bottled water, and handed one to Lin Lin. She looked up, thanked him, and then said a little shyly,
“You… you should rest too.”
“Mm.” Gao Liang nodded and sat down. They sat facing each other, and the air felt a bit awkward.
Lin Lin tried to open the bottle cap, but her hands were sweaty from practice. She couldn’t open it at all.
Gao Liang watched her struggling and smiled. He reached out, took the bottle from her surprised hands, and twisted it open easily.
Done.
When he handed the bottle back, Lin Lin felt a little embarrassed.
This…
Sigh.
The strange atmosphere made her feel discouraged. She couldn’t even open a bottle cap, but Gao Liang opened it with one twist.
“Gao Liang…” she suddenly said in a low voice, “Do you think we’re just playing around? I mean… fighting is kind of like opening a bottle cap, right? The one with more strength wins.”
“Mm…”
Gao Liang nodded. She had a point. Strength was indeed a very important factor in winning a fight. Just like when people compare animals, they first look at weight class. Animals of very different sizes can’t really be compared. It’s unfair.
But…
“Skills still help. For example, when I opened the bottle just now, I found a good point to apply force. Skill can’t completely make up for a big difference in strength, but it can help you use less energy.”
“Mm…” Lin Lin nodded.
But when she thought about comparing her strength with the group of boys she would fight later, she felt… she really didn’t have much chance.
“In the end, it still comes down to strength… Without strength, no matter how many skills you have, it’s hard to win.”
For a moment, she felt a little discouraged.
But what was the point of saying that now? She had already bragged before. It was useless to complain. It would be better to think about how to learn more skills.
“Forget it. I won’t think about it too much!”
Gao Liang was about to comfort her, but she had already cheered herself up.
She looked at him seriously.
“Gao Liang, let me ask you something. When you watched my movements just now… h-how were they? Is there anything I need to improve?”
Facing her sincere question, Gao Liang hesitated.
Mainly because… he wasn’t sure how to start answering her.