: Ning Zhuo vs Zhou Zeshen (Part 1)

Author: Gu Zhenren

Date: 2024-07-31

Everyone arrived at the Ning family's training ground.

Ning Zhuo had originally intended to rent a training ground in Huoshi Immortal City, but Zhou Zeshen said it was unnecessary to spend that money. There was also no need to specially go to the Zhou family; it would be better to have a small sparring match right at the Ning family's training ground.

This statement made Ning Zhuo glance at Zhou Zeshen at the time, thoughtfully pondering something in his heart.

Ning Yong immediately stood up, raising his hand, and said, "Then I'll go ahead and contact the family's training ground."

Seeing Ning Zhuo nod, Ning Yong excitedly ran out of the small courtyard.

Zhou Zeshen, with a smile on his face, suggested, "Big bets harm the body, small bets please the mind. Brother Ning, how about we make a little wager?"

Ning Zhuo also smiled and said, "It seems Brother Zhou came prepared."

Zhou Zeshen spread his hands. "Brother Ning saw right through me. I thought about it and couldn’t come empty-handed to visit you, so I brought this."

As he spoke, Zhou Zeshen took a crossbow from his storage belt.

The crossbow was quite small, only slightly larger than an adult's palm, exquisitely crafted and made of bronze.

Notably, it lacked a traditional arrow rest, replaced instead by a small rectangular wooden box.

"This is a Rivet Bolt Crossbow, modified slightly by me. It packs quite a punch," Zhou Zeshen said with a confident smile. "Brother Ning, if you win, I'll give this to you, along with the blueprints."

Ning Zhuo's heart stirred, and he took out a mechanical Blaze Monkey. "If you win, I'll give this to you, also with the corresponding blueprints. My only worry is that I might not get the chance to give it away."

"Hahaha." The two looked at each other and laughed simultaneously.

Ning Yong soon returned, panting, and said he had reserved the Ding字号 training ground.

The group immediately left the small courtyard and headed to the training ground together.

The branch clan cultivator in charge of the training ground was respectful and enthusiastic toward Ning Zhuo, asking what kind of battlefield was needed.

Ning Zhuo looked at Zhou Zeshen.

Zhou Zeshen said, "Since our area is mountainous, let's go with a mountain terrain."

Several formations in the training ground activated one after another.

The originally flat ground immediately churned with red soil, piling higher and higher.

As if shaped by an invisible giant force, the red soil formed two small hills, significantly taller than the Ning family compound's walls.

But that wasn’t all.

Wood-element energy acted upon the hills, causing grass and trees to grow and mature within a dozen breaths, forming a dense forest.

A dark cloud gathered above the battlefield, releasing a downpour along the way.

A large amount of water appeared out of nowhere, forming a small river between the two hills.

As per Zhou Zeshen's request, the training ground did not activate any concealment formations.

The commotion quickly attracted other members of the Ning family.

Through explanations from Ning Zhuo's classmates, everyone soon understood the situation.

"Young Master Ning Zhuo is going to spar with the Zhou family's genius, Zhou Zeshen!"

"Why?"

"Zhou Zeshen requested the match himself."

"Oh no, Zhou Zeshen looks sneaky. Is Young Master Ning being set up? Is Zhou Zeshen trying to make a name for himself at Ning Zhuo's expense?"

"Ahem, that’s a bit much. Zhou Zeshen is already well-known, much earlier than Young Master Ning."

"Didn’t you see they were getting along quite well? Both were smiling."

"This might be bad. I’ve heard of Zhou Zeshen. He has the talent 'Water Accumulates into an Abyss' and must have been trained by his family for a long time. Although Young Master Ning has talent, it hasn’t even been identified yet. How can he fight?"

"Young Master Ning, do your best!"

"We all support you!!"

More and more Ning family members gathered. After some discussion, they began cheering for Ning Zhuo.

Ning Zhuo waved in acknowledgment, making the cheers and shouts grow even louder.

Once the battlefield was set, Ning Zhuo and Zhou Zeshen entered the training ground simultaneously, each standing atop a hill, facing each other.

Zhou Zeshen transmitted his voice: "Brother Ning, after you."

Ning Zhuo replied, "Brother Zhou is the guest. You should go first."

"Alright, then I’ll make a fool of myself." Zhou Zeshen patted his storage belt and released ten mechanical burrowing mice.

The mechanical mice were fast and agile, moving effortlessly through the dense forest.

Each mouse dragged a mana thread. As the distance between the mice and Zhou Zeshen increased, the mana threads lengthened, floating steadily.

Ning Zhuo also patted his belt, releasing five mechanical Blaze Monkeys.

He similarly used mana threads to control them, making the monkeys leap and swing through the branches.

The training ground was limited in size, and both sides' mechanisms were fast. They soon met at the foot of Ning Zhuo's hill.

The mice had sharp spiral drills at the front, capable of piercing holes in the monkeys upon impact.

The monkeys were much larger and stronger than the mice. Their movements were quite agile, and they could coordinate with each other, quickly gaining the upper hand.

*Snap, snap, snap…*

Zhou Zeshen's mana threads were connected to his ten fingertips. After the clash, three of his fingertips trembled slightly, and the mana threads snapped.

This meant he had lost three mechanical burrowing mice!

Seeing the situation turning unfavorable, Zhou Zeshen curled his ten fingers inward, and the remaining seven mice retreated simultaneously.

"Good!" The watching Ning family members erupted in cheers.

Earlier, their view had been largely blocked by the trees. Moreover, with so many mice and monkeys, the battlefield was chaotic, making it difficult to discern the details.

Now, with Zhou Zeshen's mice retreating, the two sides separated, and everyone could see clearly.

Zhou Zeshen had lost three mice, while Ning Zhuo had almost no losses. Only one Blaze Monkey lagged behind during the pursuit.

Clearly, its mechanical leg had been damaged, affecting its mobility.

In this first probing exchange, Zhou Zeshen decisively retreated, wanting to create distance between his mice and the enemy.

Ning Zhuo, of course, was unwilling to let that happen. He increased his mana output, directing the Blaze Monkeys to press the advantage and pursue.

However, the mice were slightly faster than the monkeys, giving them a clear advantage.

Seeing that the Blaze Monkeys couldn’t catch up, Ning Zhuo said, "Brother Zhou, be careful. I’m going to use weapon attachments."

The next moment, the Blaze Monkeys spat out red firecrackers from their mouths.

The monkeys threw the firecrackers with force.

*Bang, bang, bang!* The explosions shattered rocks, toppled trees, and kicked up dust everywhere.

When the dust settled, only a few mechanical remnants remained at the explosion sites.

It turned out that, at the critical moment, the burrowing mice had escaped underground.

Only two mice, unfortunately caught in the concentrated blast zones of the firecrackers, were blown to pieces even after burrowing underground.

"Only five left," Ning Zhuo calculated silently.

He frowned slightly.

The burrowing mice had entered the mountainous terrain, causing Ning Zhuo to lose track of their whereabouts.

They might have returned to Zhou Zeshen's side, or they might be tunneling underground toward Ning Zhuo.

"Should I continue attacking, or use detection spells?"

Ning Zhuo chose to cast a spell to survey his surroundings.

"He chose to defend first?" Zhou Zeshen, standing on the hilltop, saw this and a glint flashed in his eyes.

He mentally noted this detail.

Battles often reveal a person’s temperament more directly and honestly.

This was one of the reasons Zhou Zeshen had proposed the sparring match.

The Zhou family wanted to win Ning Zhuo over. Zhou Zeshen deeply understood that Ning Zhuo had immense potential. Given the current trends, he was bound to become a significant figure in Huoshi Immortal City in the future.

To win over a key figure, the first step was to understand them thoroughly.

A friendly sparring match often allowed cultivators to quickly build rapport and deepen their understanding of each other.

"With only five Blaze Monkeys, Ning Zhuo isn’t under much pressure controlling them."

"He could have cast detection spells while commanding the Blaze Monkeys."

"As expected."

"He understands the main purpose of my sparring invitation!"

"Truly a genius of the same type as me."

Zhou Zeshen curled the corners of his mouth, feeling that dealing with someone as clever as Ning Zhuo was comfortable! Many things didn’t need to be said outright for mutual understanding.

Ning Zhuo deliberately slowed the pace of the battle, while Zhou Zeshen threw out a storage pouch.

The pouch landed on the ground, its opening wide, and more than ten mechanical bats—Night Sky Bats—flew out.

The Night Sky Bats soared through the air toward Ning Zhuo.

Seeing this, Ning Zhuo patted his belt and released a flock of Thunder-Silent Birds.

This type of mechanism was very common, widely praised for its simple controls and ease of use.

The Thunder-Silent Birds and Night Sky Bats collided mid-air, marking the second direct confrontation between Ning Zhuo and Zhou Zeshen.

The Thunder-Silent Birds attacked directly, while the Night Sky Bats were erratic, turning nimbly, with evasion capabilities far surpassing those of the Thunder-Silent Birds.

The Night Sky Bats were mechanisms from the Mud Flow Sect, clearly superior in performance to the common Thunder-Silent Birds.

Ning Zhuo had more Thunder-Silent Birds than Zhou Zeshen had Night Sky Bats, but after the clash, the Thunder-Silent Birds quickly dwindled in number, clearly at a disadvantage.

The Ning family members looked serious, some frowning worriedly for Ning Zhuo.

"He’s going easy on me," Zhou Zeshen thought, his heart stirring.

Earlier, when controlling five mechanical monkeys, Ning Zhuo had shown high dexterity and skill.

But in this aerial battle, Ning Zhuo’s Thunder-Silent Birds showed almost no maneuvering, moving straight forward, making their attack paths easy to predict.

This gave Zhou Zeshen a significant advantage.

"Because my burrowing mice retreated in the first exchange, Ning Zhuo is intentionally losing here to save my face."

"This guy…"

Zhou Zeshen gritted his teeth, his feelings complicated.

He was grateful for Ning Zhuo’s consideration and their默契 (tacit understanding), but also somewhat displeased. Being shown such mercy was a rare experience for a genius like Zhou Zeshen.

"Although this is a friendly spar, I’ve been taking it seriously."

"I’m giving it my all, but you’re holding back…"

"Even if it’s well-intentioned, it feels like a different kind of insult to me."

"Ning Zhuo!"

"I want you to take me seriously!!"

Zhou Zeshen shouted inwardly.

Spurred by this, he took out a medium-sized mechanism from his storage belt.

The construct resembled a fierce tiger. It was about 2.5 zhang in length, 5 chi tall at the shoulder, with 3-cun-long claws and 2-cun-long teeth. Its skin was white with black stripes, and its tiger eyes were golden yellow—quite imposing.

(End of )