Huayu97: Starting with Wu Song Fighting the Tiger

He took a deep breath, suddenly lowered his body, and used the solid footwork he learned at Songshan Martial Arts School, combined with the Hong Kong drama martial arts moves taught by Ching Siu-tung. He moved like a slippery fish, weaving between the wielding sticks and spears.

The first servant brandished a wooden stick and swung it menacingly at his head, the wind whistling through the air, a truly frightening sight. Liu Xiang was prepared; he shifted his body to the left, barely dodging the stick, and at the same time extended his right hand, seemingly pushing the servant's chest with force—in reality, he only used a fraction of his strength, just enough to make the servant lose his balance.

The servant cried out "Ouch!" and staggered back two steps before falling hard on his backside, kicking up a cloud of dust as he did so with great skill.

Just then, a "ding" sounded in Liu Xiang's mind—it was a system notification!

[Host detected to have effectively beaten someone +1, progress 51/400]

At that moment, Liu Xiang's eyes lit up instantly!

He was worried about how to complete the task of beating up 400 people quickly; he couldn't really go out and beat people up, could he? Unexpectedly, filming fake fight scenes actually counted! Maybe the system thought that fake fights counted as injuries to the other side? Using fake fights to advance the task was like a windfall!

Liu Xiang was overjoyed, but she didn't show it on her face at all; instead, her hands moved even more nimbly.

Another guard, wielding a spear, pretended to thrust it at his chest, the tip still half a foot away from his clothes. Liu Xiang leaned back, dodging it as lightly as a falling leaf, then reached out and grabbed the spear shaft, giving it a gentle tug. The guard lost his balance, stumbled forward, and fell heavily to the ground, his mouth full of yellow dirt.

[Ding! Effective beating +1]

Good heavens, this fake fight is even more exciting than the real one! Liu Xiang got more and more into the fight, his movements became more and more agile, and he used the Lingbo Weibu (a martial arts technique) with ease, moving freely through the encirclement of two hundred people without being taken down.

A servant lunged at him from the side, trying to knock him to the ground. Liu Xiang's ears twitched; he judged the direction by the sound of the wind. He whirled around, his elbow seemingly striking the servant's ribs hard, but in reality, it was just a light touch. The servant obediently clutched his ribs, wincing in pain, and rolled on the ground.

[Ding! Effective beating +1]

Two more servants attacked him from both sides, swinging wooden sticks at him. Liu Xiang remained calm, crouching down to dodge the blows, then simultaneously striking with both hands, pushing them down on their knees. Their knees buckled, and they fell to their knees with a thud, still crying out, "Great hero, spare our lives!" The fall was remarkably realistic.

Seeing this, Ching Siu-tung on the sidelines nodded repeatedly, gave the assistant director next to him a thumbs up, and praised him in Cantonese: "This kid is really good! He's much better at fighting than Benny Chan, his positioning is accurate, and his sense of the camera is amazing!"

Li Tiansheng smiled with his eyes narrowed, stroking the beard on his chin.

Group scenes are the most time-consuming to film, requiring repeated rehearsals and takes, all in pursuit of the ultimate visual impact. Liu Xiang had no idea how many people he pushed or how many times he tripped and fell; all he knew was that the system's notification sounds kept ringing in his mind like firecrackers.

After the first take, the director yelled "Cut!" saying the servants' battle cries weren't loud enough. After the second take, he said the guards' spears weren't planted in neat rows. By the time the third take was finished, Liu Xiang's mission progress had skyrocketed to 108/400.

He was drenched in sweat, the hem of his white robe covered in dust, and the fake abrasion on his forehead blurred with sweat, making it look even more realistic. But he was secretly delighted, wishing the scene could be filmed all day long, and ideally, completing the task involving 400 people in one go.

Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned. Ching Siu-tung reviewed the replay, clapped his hands in satisfaction, and shouted through a megaphone, "Perfect! That take is a wrap!"

Liu Xiang then stopped what she was doing, let out a long sigh of relief, rubbed her sore arms, and still felt a little unsatisfied.

"Kid, not bad!" Cheng Xiaodong walked over, handed him a bottle of mineral water, and patted him on the shoulder with a smile. "It's just that you dodged too quickly during one of those moves and almost bumped into the camera. Be more careful next time; the camera is more important than anything else."

Liu Xiang nodded and replied, "Understood, Coach Cheng! I'll definitely be careful not to touch the camera next time!"

As he was speaking, he suddenly felt a piercing pain in his left ankle, so painful that he couldn't help but gasp.

He looked down and saw that, during the third take, while trying to avoid a servant's stick, he had accidentally stepped on a protruding bluestone slab, twisted his ankle, and scraped against the edge of the slab, tearing a hole in his trouser leg. A large piece of skin underneath had been scraped off, and beads of blood were seeping out, staining the white silk red.

Liu Xiang frowned but didn't take it seriously. Scratches and bumps were commonplace for stunt doubles; what was this little injury? He tore off a clean piece of his clothing, casually wiped the blood, and prepared to rest under the shade of a nearby tree, as they might need to reshoot other scenes later.

As soon as he turned around, he heard a familiar voice behind him, tinged with urgency: "Liu Xiang! You're injured!"

Liu Xiang turned around and saw that it was Li Ruotong!

She had just finished filming the dialogue scenes at Mantuo Manor and hadn't had time to remove her makeup yet; she was still wearing Wang Yuyan's plain-colored long dress.

At that moment, with petals still clinging to her skirt, she walked towards him.

Liu Xiang quickly said, "Sister Ruotong... I'm fine, it's just a minor injury, it's nothing serious."

"You said you were fine! You're bleeding!" Li Ruotong walked up to him and grabbed his arm without saying a word. Her strength wasn't great, but it carried an undeniable gentleness. "Come on, let's go to the infirmary to get it treated. There's a lot of dust around the training ground, and the wound is prone to infection."

Liu Xiang's arm was being pulled by her, and he felt the warmth of her palm, soft and comforting, like holding a small sun. He said softly, "There's no need to trouble yourself... the crew has other things to do."

"The crew's affairs are taken care of; your wound is more important." Li Ruotong ignored his refusals and pulled him towards the infirmary. The infirmary was a small bungalow next to the training ground. It was usually deserted, and even more so now, with only distant noises drifting in.

Li Ruotong pushed open the door, took the first-aid kit from the side and placed it on the table, then helped Liu Xiang sit on the wooden stool next to her and said softly, "Sit still and don't move, I'll treat your wound."

Liu Xiang obediently sat down, but she couldn't look directly at anything and could only stare at the "Instructions for Wound Treatment" posted on the wall.

Li Ruotong immediately opened the medicine box, which was fully stocked with iodine, mercurochrome, gauze, cotton swabs, and hemostatic ointment. She took out a cotton swab, dipped it in iodine, and then gently lifted Liu Xiang's ankle.

Her movements were light and gentle, as if she were afraid of breaking some precious treasure. Liu Xiang's ankle was held by her, and a tingling sensation shot from his ankle to the top of his head, feeling a slight itch. He couldn't help but pull his foot back and whispered, "Sister Ruotong, I can do it myself..."