"Phoenix Possession!"
A purplish-red light erupted from Ma Hongjun's body. His short hair suddenly grew longer and converged in the middle, forming a mohawk-style haircut. Long feathers extended from his thick, bare arms, and his hands transformed into claws. Two yellow Spirit Rings materialized beneath his feet.
Ning Rongrong frowned and couldn't help but comment, "What an ugly Martial Soul. And he's only a Spirit Grandmaster."
"Seven Treasures Appear as Glazed Tile," she chanted.
"First, Strength."
"Second, Speed."
The Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda in Ning Rongrong's palm resonated with the Golden Bell around her body, and she instantly cast two support buffs on herself. Her strength and speed were both increased by thirty percent.
Seeing Ning Rongrong cast support buffs on herself, Ma Hongjun couldn't help but laugh, and Oscar was equally baffled.
What's the use of that?
"Hmph, go ahead and laugh," Ning Rongrong snorted. She had her reasons for doing this.
"Little chick, don't blame this young master for bullying you. You're the one who started it. Today, this young master will conquer you, you savage little support-type," Ma Hongjun jeered.
"Phoenix Fire Line!"
The yellow Spirit Ring at Ma Hongjun's feet flashed. He opened his mouth wide and shot a stream of high-temperature, purplish-red flames toward Ning Rongrong. The pervert aimed the fire line just below her abdomen, apparently trying to burn off her clothes and expose her.
But to his surprise, when the Phoenix Fire Line hit Ning Rongrong, it was like spraying fire on a golden bell. A layer of Golden Bell Qi swirled around her, making it seem as if she were encased in an indestructible bell tower, completely unharmed by the flames.
The sheer impact of the fiery blast, however, forced Ning Rongrong back several steps. If she hadn't stacked the strength buff from her Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Pagoda, she might have been pushed back more than ten steps or even knocked over.
Even so, she was almost completely unharmed. Only a small crack appeared on the golden bell of qi surrounding her. This was enough to fill Ning Rongrong with delight. This was the result of a month of arduous training under Teacher Su Ran. Before she had started practicing the Seven Treasure Golden Bell Shield, a direct hit from that Phoenix Fire Line would have been enough to severely injure her.
"She's fine?"
"What is that?"
"Aren't you a support-type Spirit Master? How could you possibly withstand my Phoenix Fire Line?" Ma Hongjun's eyes widened in disbelief.
Oscar was even more shocked. As a fellow support-type, he understood better than anyone how terrifying it was for a support to tank an attack from a power-attack type Spirit Master.
"Teacher wasn't lying. Just the first layer of Golden Bell Qi has this much defensive power. How tough would two layers, three layers, or even seven layers of the Golden Bell be?"Ning Rongrong thought to herself. "When I've mastered all seven layers, I'll go back and compete with Grandpa Bone to see whose defense is stronger!"
"What? Is there a rule that says a support-type Spirit Master can't add some defense? You're just a weakling who likes to run his mouth, hmph!" Ning Rongrong shot Ma Hongjun a disdainful look.
"Me, weak? I'll show you how powerful this young master is! There's no way I'd lose to a mere support-type!" Ma Hongjun flew into a rage. The second Spirit Ring around him flashed, and his entire body burst into flames.
Phoenix Bathing in Fire!
ROAR!
Engulfed in flames, Ma Hongjun charged toward Ning Rongrong, continuously spewing the Phoenix Fire Line from his mouth. It was a terrifying sight, like a perverted human torch rushing at her.
"Wing Chun."
"Little Idea Fist."
At that moment, Ning Rongrong brought her legs together, her feet turned slightly inward, assuming a perfectly stable Wing Chun stance. Her hands, both gentle and powerful, moved forward in a series of motions like brushstrokes—simple horizontal, diagonal, vertical, and downward strokes... which actually managed to deflect the force of the Phoenix Fire Line that Ma Hongjun was spewing.
The first layer of her Golden Bell was nearing its breaking point.
Just at that moment:
"Wing Chun, One-Inch Punch!"
After a month of painstaking practice, and with the sturdiness provided by the Golden Bell's protection, Ning Rongrong's hands snapped from open palms to fists. All her power erupted in a single instant as she punched through the Phoenix Fire Line and slammed her fist into Ma Hongjun's mouth.
In that same instant, the first layer of her Golden Bell Shield completely shattered.
Simultaneously, the terrifying burst of power sent Ma Hongjun flying backward. His head felt as if it had been struck by a sledgehammer, his mouth was full of blood, and his front teeth had been knocked out.
Ning Rongrong's blood surged with adrenaline. She could hardly believe the power she had just unleashed. In the past month, her teacher had taught her only two things. The first was the Golden Bell Shield. The second was this Wing Chun fist technique.
When she first started learning it, she had thought Wing Chun was all for show, a soft and powerless "woman's punch." She had spent every day punching the iron training posts in the academy's training ground until her hands were bruised and ached so much she couldn't sleep at night, all without knowing what use it had.
This was her first time using it in a real fight. She never expected that this seemingly soft and powerless fist style, when combined with the defense and sturdiness of the Golden Bell Shield and her own strength and speed buffs, could unleash enough power to knock down a power-attack type Spirit Grandmaster with a single punch!
It was simply... too incredible!
The ultimate techniques her teacher taught were no simple matter! A support-type like her could now take on a power-attack type Spirit Master! This Seven Treasure Golden Bell Shield felt like it was tailor-made for her!
"Holy crap, Fatty! You lost to a support-type, and a female one at that?" Oscar, who had been watching from the sidelines, was completely dumbfounded.
"Oscar, are you just going to watch the show? Get over here and give this young master a recovery sausage, damn it!" Ma Hongjun yelled. "This young master was careless and didn't dodge! Otherwise, there's no way I'd lose to her! I could have just burned her to a crisp from a distance!"
"My teeth!" Ma Hongjun spat out a mouthful of blood and saw that his two front teeth were gone, filling him with resentment. Damn it, if this woman doesn't want to be my girlfriend, fine, but why did she have to hit me?
"Here." Oscar chanted a spell, and a Recovery Big Sausage materialized, which he gave to Ma Hongjun.
Ma Hongjun swallowed it down with the blood in his mouth. The pain in his body quickly subsided, and his wounds began to heal rapidly.
Slightly recovered, Ma Hongjun glared viciously at Ning Rongrong. "You damn woman! I'm not Ma Hongjun if I don't pin you down and make you scream tonight!"
ROAR—
After eating the Recovery Big Sausage, the evil fire in Ma Hongjun's body erupted, and the flames he released were even more intense than before.
Ning Rongrong's expression changed. Her first layer of Golden Bell Qi was already broken. To re-form the shield, the qi would have to complete a full circulation through her meridians, a process that would take at least four hours.
BOOM—
This time, Ning Rongrong was struck by Ma Hongjun's Phoenix Fire Line, sending her skidding back more than ten meters.
Ma Hongjun had learned his lesson. He stayed at a medium-to-long range, blasting her relentlessly with his fire line, giving her no opportunity to get close and use her One-Inch Punch. He grew even more excited as her clothes were burned full of holes.
But just then, Ning Rongrong felt a strong hand press against her back, steadying her. A single pink peach blossom petal drifted past.
She turned her head and her face lit up with joy. "Teacher, you're here!"
Su Ran said calmly, "I noticed you were late today and hadn't returned at your usual time, so I came out to check."
"Rongrong, watch closely. This is the One-Inch Punch of Wing Chun."
Su Ran reached out a hand from beside Ning Rongrong. His hand shifted from an open palm to a fist, and in an instant, an inch of focused power erupted, completely annihilating the Phoenix Fire Line that Ma Hongjun had unleashed.
The force continued onward, slamming into Ma Hongjun and sending him tumbling seven or eight times across the ground, leaving his face covered in dirt...
(End of Chapter)