Chapter 71 - Chapter 70 – Battle Against Buakaw

At the Santai Boxing Gym on the outskirts of Bangkok, Yogan encountered the retired legend known as "Lightning Elbow" Saenchai, a master whose reputation was built on venomous, snake-like elbow strikes. Saenchai had left the ring years earlier and carried extra weight now, yet when he laced up his gloves and demonstrated those deadly blows at close range, the Grandmaster's aura still sent a chill through the room.Yogan explained the structure of his developing "Law Net" system. Saenchai listened in silence, then said pointedly:> "Your net is strong. But when prey is trapped and can't move, you still lack a dagger to finish the hunt."Under Saenchai's guidance Yogan began weaving elbow strikes into his system. Instead of always retreating when an opponent attacked, he learned to slip in at a slight angle, turning what had been a defensive elbow into a battering ram capable of ending a fight in the clinch.---Absorbing creativityNext Yogan visited "Tough King" Saenchai—famed for his unpredictable, almost playful leg attacks. Though not tall, Saenchai's fighting intelligence and creativity were unmatched. For hours the two men sparred and discussed technique inside the ring.Saenchai demonstrated his signature "cool kicks," showing how to feint, mislead, and create impossible angles. Yogan realized that while his calf kick was deadly, his attack lines were still too singular. Under Saenchai's tutelage the Law Net began to grow more deceptive.For example, after repeated low-kick harassment, Yogan could suddenly feint low and whip a high kick toward the head, turning expectation into vulnerability. Like a greedy apprentice, he drank in the essence of decades of stand-up fighting history in Thailand: Yodsanklai's toughness and power, Saenchai's elbow-strike philosophy, Saenchai's creativity. One by one these elements clicked into place inside the Law Net under Yogan's exceptional fighting IQ and athletic ability.---Reputation in ThailandWord of Yogan's journey spread quickly through Southeast Asia's fight circles. At the very height of his UFC career, a champion worth tens of millions of dollars was wandering from one dusty gym to another instead of indulging in Las Vegas excess. This near-monastic devotion to the "Peak of the Dao" earned him widespread respect within the Thai fighting community.His final stop pointed to a name of global prestige: "White Lotus" Buakaw.Unlike legends of the past, Buakaw was still in his prime—two-time K-1 champion, the most successful symbol of Muay Thai's internationalization, and actively competing at the highest levels. His training base in picturesque Chiang Mai, the Banchamek Gym, looked more like a modern combat institute than a traditional gym.Thanks to the commercial coordination of David Chen's team and Yodsanklai's mediation, a "closed-door exchange" was arranged. When the news broke, combat-sports media erupted:> "UFC Featherweight King Yogan to Challenge Kickboxing Legend Buakaw in Thailand!""Cross-Style Battle! MMA's Hottest Star Faces Muay Thai's Number One!"Both camps insisted it was merely a technical exchange to avoid injury, but fans framed it as the ultimate showdown between MMA and Muay Thai, between a new king and a living legend.---The day of the exchangeOn the appointed day Banchamek Gym was cleared of non-essential personnel. Only core members of each team and a few revered Thai veterans were allowed inside. In the center of the ring Buakaw stood as ever: dark skin, chiseled muscles, eyes sharp as a hawk's.Yogan appeared calm, his intensive Thai training having tempered his demeanor. The champion's sharpness lay hidden under a still surface. There was no referee, no round limit—only a gentleman's agreement to trade knowledge. Yet as they squared off, the air thickened with tension.Buakaw didn't probe or circle. He launched immediately into a storm of pressure, his trademark axe-like front kicks and roundhouse kicks slicing through the air with terrifying precision. Each strike cracked like a hammer on an anvil; the gym echoed with dull thuds and the whistle of displaced air.---Willow in the windTo the astonishment of the spectators, Yogan's figure swayed like a willow in the wind, slipping between Buakaw's textbook attacks with impossible rhythm. His Godlike Reflexes were peaking. High kicks grazed his hair; deadly knees whistled past as he sidestepped; heavy punches missed by inches.He seemed to move just before Buakaw attacked, as if reading the future. In a single minute Buakaw unleashed more than thirty heavy blows, yet he hadn't brushed Yogan's clothing. The Thai Grandmasters held their breath. They had never seen anyone neutralize Buakaw's onslaught so effortlessly.Buakaw's eyes, initially sharp with confidence, grew serious. The reaction speed before him exceeded ordinary human limits. This was no typical MMA champion.---The counterstrikeAt last one of Buakaw's roundhouse kicks swept wide, its old force spent before new momentum could build. Yogan's opportunity opened. He sank his weight, footwork firing.The calf kick he had perfected in the previous month lashed out like a venomous snake. Short, precise, and explosive, it slammed into Buakaw's supporting leg."Pat!"A clear but muffled crack—different from Buakaw's thunderous strikes—echoed through the gym.Buakaw's iron calf shuddered; pain and numbness shot upward, halting his forward surge for the first time. Silence fell over the room. Faces froze in disbelief.They were witnessing the impossible: the fighter whose kicks could fell banana trees—White Lotus Buakaw—had been visibly stopped in a leg exchange by an MMA athlete.---Beyond the clashFor Yogan it was more than a single kick. It was proof that the Law Net could function even against the strongest Muay Thai weapon. His training in elbows, feints, and deceptive lines had given him the dagger Saenchai spoke of; his calf-kick system had become a scythe cutting at the roots of even the mightiest tree.Buakaw straightened slowly, eyes bright not with anger but respect. In that silent moment two paths crossed: the tradition of a national art and the evolution of a global one.Around them the Thai veterans began to murmur, already sensing that the sport they loved had just shifted a little.---