Chapter 78: Fuu vs Bao

“Fine,” she heard Zen said, “I’ll be in your hands then.”

Fuu nodded.

“But, I need to warn you, Fuu.” Zen said before coughing out blood, causing her to look back in worry. “Don’t get hit by his ki technique, Vibrational Power Punch and don’t attempt to block it either.”

“Alright,” she said.

“You should stall him, so that we can escape…”

“Stall him?” Fuu felt her irritation grow at Zen’s suggestion. “I plan to beat him.”

“You can’t!” Zen began coughing up blood again. “Unless you have a powerful technique, you’ll stand no chance.”

“Hmpf, you disappoint me, Zen’er.” She said. “You know Blits Fist, right?”

“Yes.”

“Then you must know, that what one powerful punch can do, a hundred smaller ones can do too.”

“I tried that!” Zen said. “And it didn’t work.”

“Don’t paint me with your brush of failure.” She said. “Your Blits punch, how many attacks can you deliver with it?”

“Attacks?” Zen said. “80 punches in a second.”

“No wonder,” she shook her head before dropping to a fighting stance, with her palms open, “I can deliver 160 punches in a second.”

“Wh-What? Nearly twice…”

She smirked to herself at Zen’s disbelief.

Bao laughed, “Have you no shame? Four boys hiding behind the skirt of this girl?”

“Xaun Bao, I’ve never liked you.” Fuu said. “Your arrogant and I find your condescending attitude towards women especially distasteful.”

“Well, I don’t usually like to beat up girls with faces as pretty as yours but in your case I’ll make an exception.” Bao took a fighting stance. “It’s time I put your stuck self in your place.”

They charged at each other, with Fuu gaining more ground. She spun around his vibrating fist, feeling her bones rattle at the proximity. She swept low with her foot, bringing him to his knee as she sent her ki roiling in her meridians.

“Blits Palm!” she said before her palms sped out. More than 80 palm strikes found their way into Bao’s body, the last one sending him hurtling down onto his back.

Bao gritted his teeth as he got back up, his killing intent roiling.

“Oh put that killing intent away,” she said. “It will only work on the weak willed, “and I can assure you, I am not weak willed.”

This seemed to spur Bao on as he attacked with abandon.

Fuu danced around his attacks, countering whenever she saw an opening, which was often. She even found space to deliver two more Blits Palms. After the second one, Bao’s anger doubled.

“You… You stupid wench!” Bao said. “You ugly witch! You should know your place!”

“I my place looking down on you?” Fuu said. “Cause I’d say I’m doing that well.”

“I’ll… I’ll… Bao’s breathing became shallower and shallower until his arms exploded in vibrational energies as he slammed his fists together, “I’LL KILL YOUR WHOLE FAMILY!” He charged at her.

Fuu dodged his fists, each one sending her bones rattling even more than before. Her movement became sluggish around his attacks. She knew that she could not risk getting too close to him when his attacks were as powerful as they were at that moment.

“Hidden Vibrational Power Punch Technique…!” Bao shouted before he punched the ground, “Vibrational Dome!” The air around him rippled and this rippling spread out like an explosion.

Fuu tried to distance herself from the expanding ripple but was caught in it. She felt her insides quake in her ribcage. When the dome had passed, she was left swaying on her feet. Seeing Bao coming for her, she tried to leap back and away from him but her movement came to a sudden stop. She looked at her arm in horror as Bao had an iron grip on her skinny arm.

“No,” she whispered in horror.

“Sister!” Cong shouted.

Bao clutched his hand into a vibrating fist and slammed it toward her.

Fuu gathered her ki and intercepted his fist with her palm. Their attacks met and she felt vibrational energy emit through her arm and into her body. She yelped in pain and collapsed to her knees before coughing out blood.

“I… I don’t understand,” Jao Cong said. “Yu were able to take two shots of those attacks and were still able to stand. My sister intercepted the attack and yet she can’t even get up? But she’s even stronger than you.”

“It’s not all about power,” Deng Ai said, drawing the boys’ eyes to him. “I took only one of Bao’s hits and I was out, mind you, I actually blocked the attack that put me down.”

“So how can you and my sister get taken down by only one shot even though your both at different power levels?”

“Like I said, it’s not merely about power… or at least, its not about the amount of ki you have.” Deng AI explained. “Its more about the constitution of the body. The major meridians that carry ki run across and around our inner organs. Using this fact, some cultivators spend time strengthening their organs by infusing them with ki but this option is usually available when one has cultivated to the rank of Expert when a certain meridian path is unlocked. However, that is only one option.”

“Yes,” Cong said, “the other option is to undergo intense exercise. Because major ki meridians naturally run across organs, some of the ki that passes through will be naturally infused with the organs, naturally strengthening them.”

Deng Ai nodded, “I have seen Wang Zen train. He focusses more on the physical attribute of his body then sitting quietly collecting ki like the majority of us.”

“I… I understand,” Cong said.

“Well I don’t.” Li Ao said. “One of you eggheads care to explain why Wang Zen can take the punch but the rest of us can’t.”

“Wang Zen has naturally strengthened his inner organs thanks to how he trains.” Deng Ai said. “Xaun Bao’s attack targets the inner organs mostly and out of all of us here, Wang Zen has the most strengthened organs.”

She felt horrible. Like she was at death’s door. All her insides were in extreme pain. Fuu did not understand how Wang Zen could stand so much pain. Was he really just an Intermediary cultivator? She was able to weakly look up, her vision blurring and turning black at the corners.

“Now, where was I,” Bao smirked. “Oh yeah! Give me a moment while I do this…” He raised his fist and vibrational energy covered it as his smirk widened.

All she could do was watch helplessly as Bao prepared to end her.

No…

She mustered all her will. If someone like Zen can take this, then there’s no reason why I cannot! From sheer will, she gathered her ki and fought off the pull of unconsciousness. She knew she could not use her other arm but for now, all she needed to do was get free.

“Bli-Blits Palm.” She weakly said as her palm thrust forward and drew back to thrust out again. At first it did not help her get free but after the 40th palm strike, she was able to loosen his grasp on her arm to allow her to escape two seconds later, twice the time it would’ve normally taken her.

“No!” Bao tried to punch her but she leapt out of her reach.

Fuu raised her arm, seeing the red imprint of Bao’s hand on there. A white spherical flame made of ki grew from her raised arm while her other arm hung uselessly by her side. She coughed up blood once the ki sphere had been complete. “One will have to be enough,” she said weakly before swiping her hand, sending the sphere spinning around her as she leapt in the air, spinning counter clockwise from the sphere.

“Windmill Kick, Level 1!” She shouted as he legs split in the air, her foot catching the ki sphere, changing its trajectory and its shape into an arrowhead at the end of her foot. The attack made contact with Bao’s skull, taking him off his feet and hurtling back along the ground.

Through the whole movement, Fuu Jao was spitting out a spiral of blood from her mouth. She landed on her front, unmoving and unconscious.

“A draw,” Li Ao sighed in relief. “That’s acceptable.”

“Sister!” Cong ran to his sister, leaving Zen to support himself, causing him to fall forward.

Cong inspected her sister. “She may need a healer.”

“We all might,” Li Ao said.

Zen nodded, “We should probably get out of here just in case Bao wakes up again. If he does, it will be up to you, Jao Cong along with Li Ao to take care of him.”

“Woah, then we better move fast!” Li Ao said as he helped Deng Ai to his feet.

Cong lifted his sister into his arms. “What about you, Cousin Zen? Will you be able to move on your own?”

Zen gritted his teeth as he made his way back to his feet. “I should be fine,” he nodded, something he instantly regretted for the headache that flared up from the action.

“Alright, let’s move.” Cong and Li Ao began moving with their burdens.

Zen took a moment to look at the body of Bao and he hoped with his heart that this would be the last time he would see Xaun Bao. He became aware of a floating, white particle falling before him. His hand rose up to catch the snowflake which disappeared into his palm, seconds later more snow flakes fell from the sky. Winter had come.