Situ Xuan's knuckles slammed hard against the metal shell, erupting in a piercing screech of metal friction that grated on the ears. Instead of retreating from the pain, he leaned in with a savage grin, his eyes wild. His arms swung like heavy battle axes as he launched two more punishing punches toward the Puppet's head.
Big Dipper Hundred Rending Fist!
His punching speed suddenly accelerated beyond what seemed humanly possible. His fist-shadows turned into blurred afterimages, a storm of violence where every strike accurately slammed into the Puppet's joint connections.
Although the spirit power membrane surrounding the machine dispersed the worst of the impact, the continuous heavy strikes caused the Puppet's mechanical skeleton to emit an overburdened creak.
Without the enhancement of hitting secret pressure points—which the Puppet lacked—the fist techniques of the Big Dipper Divine Fist were difficult to fully manifest. But wasn't that exactly why it was so exciting?! The challenge made his blood sing.
"It's useless," Long Xiuyuan stated coldly, watching from the side with arms crossed. "Without a fatal weakness, ordinary attacks simply cannot destroy it. You are wasting energy."
Situ Xuan turned a deaf ear to the discouragement. He suddenly dropped his stance, launching a low sweep with his right leg. The Puppet instinctively raised its knee to block the low attack, but Situ Xuan abruptly changed his move mid-motion. He drove his knee upward in a vicious rising strike.
Big Dipper Dragon Strikes Tiger!
Boom!
The knee strike landed solidly on the Puppet's abdomen. The force was immense, causing the metal shell to dent inward by an inch. The spirit power membrane fluctuated violently, flickering like a dying bulb.
The Puppet staggered back, its gyroscopes whining. However, its electronic eye immediately recalibrated. Its arms swept across horizontally like guillotine blades, aiming to take Situ Xuan's head off.
Situ Xuan dodged to the side, his body sliding past the Puppet's arm smoothly like a swimming fish. Simultaneously, he pressed the five fingers of his right hand together into a sharp cone shape. He drove it straight toward the Puppet's ribs with a high-pitched whistling sound.
Big Dipper Falling Strike Finger!
Ssh!
The finger strike, which in a human opponent would have been aimed at lethal pressure points, pierced forward with brute force.
The moment he touched the spirit power membrane, the muscles in Situ Xuan's fingertips vibrated at a high frequency. He actually tore a brief rift in the protective energy by sheer physical intensity!
The Puppet's mechanical ribs cracked audibly under this blow. But almost simultaneously, its left fist smashed toward Situ Xuan's temple like a cannonball.
In the nick of time, Situ Xuan's left hand flew up like lightning. His palm braced against the Puppet's fist, catching the blow. Using the force of the impact to lean back, he swung his legs into the air and coiled them tightly around the Puppet's neck.
Big Dipper Restraining Tendon Free Foot!
Crack!
His legs locked onto the Puppet's neck like iron pincers. The muscles in his waist and abdomen exploded with terrifying torsional force. With a roar of effort, he actually flung the several-hundred-kilogram Puppet off the ground and slammed it hard onto the floor!
Rumble—!
The loud crash of the heavy metal body hitting the floor made the entire training room buzz and vibrate. However, the Puppet's combat program showed no stagnation or pain. It bounced up the moment it hit the ground, its right leg splitting downward toward Situ Xuan's chest like a battle axe.
Situ Xuan crossed his arms to block.
The heavy kick sent him sliding back several meters, his feet plowing two deep furrows into the ground as he fought for traction. His arms were already bruised and purple from the relentless impacts, but the Battle Intent in his eyes grew increasingly fierce.
"Is this your family's heirloom combat technique?" Long Xiuyuan's voice sounded indifferent, though his eyes were sharp.
Situ Xuan spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the floor. A savage grin lifted the corners of his mouth. He slowly assumed a peculiar fist stance—his left fist pulled back to his waist, his right arm extended forward as if embracing the moon, and his legs slightly bent like a tensioned bowstring.
"Oh?" Long Xiuyuan raised an eyebrow. "A new move?"
"No, it's an old thing..." Situ Xuan whispered. The rhythm of his breathing changed abruptly, becoming deep and resonant. The sound of blood rushing through his veins was clearly audible in the quiet room. "It's just that before... I didn't have the chance to use it!"
Before his voice had even faded, his figure suddenly blurred!
At this moment, Situ Xuan's speed surged! Every step left cracked footprints on the floor as he closed the distance. His fist, accompanied by a shrieking wind pressure, slammed toward the Puppet's chest.
The Puppet hastily raised its arms to block, only to see Situ Xuan's fist path take a bizarre, sudden turn.
Big Dipper Soft Breaking Slash!
The seemingly fierce straight punch suddenly transformed mid-way into a soft palm-blade. It cut into the blind spot of the Puppet's arm defense and chopped heavily against its throat!
The spirit power membrane fluctuated violently under the precise strike. The Puppet's head tilted back uncontrollably as a string of chaotic data flowed through its electronic eyes, disrupting its sensors.
Situ Xuan seized this fleeting opening. He snapped his right leg like a whip toward the Puppet's exposed knee joint.
Crack!
The armor at the metal joint finally shattered. The Puppet's figure swayed, losing balance. But its combat program immediately adjusted its center of gravity, and its fists counterattacked like a rainstorm to force him back!
Bang bang bang—!
Situ Xuan neither dodged nor avoided. He actually traded blows with the machine, matching its punching speed strike for strike!
The high-intensity combat made him roar involuntarily!
Every one of his punches accurately intercepted the Puppet's attacks. Sparks from the colliding fist-fronts exploded continuously between the two, lighting up the dim room.
"Not bad," Long Xiuyuan's voice came through the din.
Situ Xuan's pupils constricted slightly. He suddenly stepped back and leaned away; the Puppet's fist grazed the tip of his nose. While leaning back, his right palm darted out like a venomous snake, his five fingers forming a claw to grab the Puppet's wrist.
Big Dipper Steel Fracture Grip!
Creeeeeak—!
Amidst the tooth-aching sound of twisting metal, Situ Xuan actually crushed the Puppet's wrist joint out of shape with his bare hands!
The spirit power membrane flashed frantically, trying to repair the damage, but it could not completely negate this terrifying grip strength.
The Puppet's right arm functionality immediately dropped by 30%. However, it instantly launched its left fist toward Situ Xuan's face in a desperate counter!
Situ Xuan tilted his head to dodge. The wind from the punch made his cheek sting. At the same time, his left knee smashed into the Puppet's chest and abdomen like a battering ram.
Boom!
This strike finally caused the spirit power membrane to briefly dissipate entirely!
A sharp light exploded in Situ Xuan's eyes. His entire body's muscles compressed to the limit like a coiled spring, and then released.
Big Dipper Hundred Crushing Kicks!
Bang bang bang bang—!
His legs turned into blurred afterimages. He kicked twenty-seven times in just three seconds, all slamming into the exact same spot on the Puppet's chest!
The spirit power membrane finally couldn't withstand this high-frequency assault. It popped like a soap bubble!
"The final blow—!"
Situ Xuan shouted fiercely. He pulled his right fist back to his waist. His entire body's strength surged into this punch like a converging river breaking a dam. His fist-front even emitted a dull red glow due to the high-speed friction with the air.
Big Dipper Face-Breaking Fist!
Boom—!!!
The punch penetrated the Soul Guidance Core in the Puppet's chest. Metal fragments exploded outward like fireworks.
The Black Iron Puppet's crimson electronic eyes flickered twice before finally extinguishing completely. With a final mechanical 'clack', it knelt to the ground, defeated.
The training room was dead silent, with only Situ Xuan's heavy breathing echoing through it.
His right fist was a bloody mess, and his forearm was covered in deep bruises. But the heat in his eyes hadn't diminished in the slightest. He looked alive.
Long Xiuyuan walked over slowly, his gray-blue eyes looking bottomless as he assessed the damage. "You won."
Situ Xuan twitched the corner of his mouth into a tired smile. "It... hasn't fallen apart yet."
"But the core has been destroyed." Long Xiuyuan kicked the scrapped Puppet. "In the training standards of the East Sea Legion, this counts as 'finishing training'."
Only then did Situ Xuan relax his tense muscles. The soreness from the intense exercise washed over him like a tide, making his knees weak. He looked down at his trembling hands and suddenly let out a low laugh. "That was satisfying."
Long Xiuyuan stared at him for a few seconds before suddenly throwing him a towel. "Starting tomorrow, add two hours of extra training every night."
Situ Xuan caught the towel and wiped the sweat from his face. He raised an eyebrow. "Still fighting Puppets?"
"No."
Long Xiuyuan turned toward the door. The sound of his military boots hitting the floor was exceptionally clear in the silence.
"Fight me."
The moment the door closed, Situ Xuan's smile widened. That craving madness rose in his chest, making him laugh wildly.
"Hahahahahaha!"
The laughter echoed in the empty room. After a long while, he looked down at his scarred fists and whispered to himself, "Now this is more like it."