A muscular girl is presented to the passionate world of crossover anime.

Section 403, Chapter 397: Please Prepare an AK47 for Me

Hanon followed Retsu Kaioh outside the room, curiously watching this man who was known as the number one sea king.

A faint sense of oppression filled the air; perhaps what this Sea King was about to say was not well-intentioned... After all, although he claimed to be the best in character, he was ultimately a martial arts master from the North.

Then Retsukai-oh revealed his purpose.

Then came Hanon's not-too-shocked reaction: "Oh, so you want to fight me too?"

Lie Haiwang was somewhat embarrassed: "I'm sorry, saying such things at this time seems a bit inappropriate, and it looks like I'm bullying you along with the elders of the Martial Arts Department." He said sincerely: "However, I did this not because of a request from the Martial Arts Department, nor will it damage your status as Haiwang... The Martial Arts Department strictly prohibits fighting among fellow disciples, so we were just having a friendly spar."

Hanon scratched her head: "Why... is this?"

Lie Haiwang looked at the northern sky: "This is the will of my master, Liu Haiwang. Our Bailin Temple does not care that the number of Haiwangs in Guangdong exceeds that in Heilongjiang. What we care about is whether the newly promoted Haiwangs are worthy of the title. As long as they are genuine Haiwangs, each additional one is a step forward for Chinese martial arts. My master sent me here to test Ye Haiwang's level."

Hua Yin frowned and said, "But I have already passed the three trials and become the Sea King. You said it wouldn't damage my Sea King status, so what's the point of fighting you?"

Kanon's question is very pointed. Retsu Kaioh has no right to strip Kaioh of his title. Even if he defeats Kanon, what difference will it make? The only result will be proving that the Northern Kaioh is stronger than the Southern Kaioh! It looks like he's supporting the Northern Martial Arts Province.

Therefore, Lie Haiwang could only smile wryly and try to explain: "My master believes that passing the three tests is not enough to prove the strength of a Haiwang, but only the passing grade for a high-level martial artist. Trials like the one for exerting force were originally a recommendation qualification exam invented by my master, which only counts as the entry level of a Haiwang. The challenge of hitting rocks and the challenge of Yangwang are similar... Therefore, when Elder Wang came to Bailin Temple to invite me to participate in the ceremony, my master said that since I am going down the mountain, I must fulfill my duty and make sure that I have a match with Ye Haiwang no matter what, so as to personally test whether your strength is up to par."

Lie scratched his cheek and continued, "If you can't pass the three tests, then you are naturally unworthy of the title of Sea King, and I won't need to challenge you; in the 'Seeking the Dao' test just now, you encountered the Martial Arts Province's trap. If you hadn't passed, I was going to publicly challenge you and then use the result of our martial arts competition to replace the result of the 'Seeking the Dao' test..."

"But I didn't expect to pass the review?"

“Yes, it was a bit unexpected.” Retsu Haiwang readily admitted his misjudgment: “If I were to issue a challenge now, it would be like bullying you. I originally intended to wait a few days before challenging you to a duel, but after speaking with Van Haiwang, I think it’s better to do it sooner rather than later.”

"Hey!" Hana suddenly shouted into the house, "What did you say to him? You're really stirring up trouble!"

Then the window of the room was pushed open, and Fan Haiwang was there, along with Li Haiwang, Sun Haiwang, and Mao Haiwang. Lie Haiwang was talking to Huayin, and they were all very curious, so they kept eavesdropping by the window.

"Hey, are you middle school students? I'm the one who's a minor!" Hana was speechless. It was rare for her to complain after returning to Japan, and it felt pretty good, sweeping away the gloom of the past few days.

It seems that without the influence of the martial arts provincial bureaucrats, relatively young martial artists with shared interests are happier when they get together.

Fan Haiwang said somewhat awkwardly, "I just told Lie Haiwang that Ye Haiwang is still in school and might be going back to Japan soon."

“And I will be leaving soon,” Retsukai added. “There’s no time like the present, so let’s do it now.”

In fact, during the ceremony of Hua Yin seeking enlightenment and receiving her title, Fan Haiwang tried to get close to Lie Haiwang and said many clever things to provoke him. This inspired Lie Haiwang's fighting spirit. However, Fan Haiwang was clever, eloquent, and very talented, so Lie Haiwang did not notice the hidden guidance in his words.

“…Alright.” Kanon finally nodded: “I accept your challenge.”

"Wow, that's fantastic!" Fan Haiwang cheered as he finally got the result he wanted after all his hard work.

Then he noticed that the other Sea Kings were also very excited. For example, Sea King Mao was saying, "Sea Kings fighting is a very rare occurrence. This time it's the same Sea King Lie and the rising star Sea King Ye fighting. Coming to witness this is really a great opportunity!"

Kanon easily passed all three challenges, demonstrating her strength. Although they had never seen Kanon go all out, the Sea Kings had already acknowledged her as a top expert.

The group headed towards the martial arts arena. The temple was vast, and it had more than one arena; the largest one, used as the arena for the Sea King's assessments, was currently having its makeshift stands dismantled. So, led by Sea King Fan, they arrived at a smaller arena, nestled in a more secluded courtyard. The courtyard was filled with sycamore trees, their fallen yellow leaves carpeting the ground in winter, rustling softly in the breeze—a truly picturesque scene.

Upon entering the training ground, Hana was immediately stunned to see Retsukai-oh take a long staff from the weapon rack: "What? Using...using a weapon?"

Lie Haiwang nodded: "I will use a long staff in this sparring match. I have no objection whether Ye Haiwang fights unarmed or uses any weapon."

Hanon pouted: "But I don't know how to fight with weapons! Isn't this a bit of a foul? If weapons are allowed, please prepare an AK47 for me..."

“Little girl… no, Ye Haiwang.” Li Haiwang, who was standing next to him, spoke up for the first time. Since he was unhappy with Huayin at the last banquet, this was the first time the two had spoken: “Lie Haiwang is just being polite. Don’t be ungrateful.”

"Huh? Politeness?" Hanon was utterly embarrassed: "Then I thank your whole family."

“Hey, Ye Haiwang, you don’t know this.” As Li Haiwang’s family member, Fan Haiwang, who had been blown in by Huayin, also explained: “The lethality of a martial artist who uses no weapons is not necessarily inferior to that of one who uses weapons. The wooden staff that Lie Haiwang uses has been a weapon of monks since ancient times. Its moves tend to injure rather than kill, and it is a weapon of ‘divine martial arts that does not kill.’ Lie Haiwang’s use of the staff is actually a way of indicating that he will stop when he has made a point.”

At this moment, Lie Haiwang himself spoke up: "Fan Haiwang is right. We are sparring, not fighting. The strength of the long staff can be controlled. Moreover..." He paused, and Huayin noticed that Lie Haiwang's dark skin seemed to be turning a little red: "Ye Haiwang is, after all, a woman. Men and women should not touch each other. In terms of unarmed combat..."

Wow, I didn't expect Retsu Kaioh to be such a pure-hearted gentleman.

Hanon was speechless. This reason was indeed hard to refute. Was she supposed to angrily shout things like "Gender equality," "No sexism," or "There are no men and women in the world of martial arts, I am a man"? That would truly turn her into a "feminist"...

So Kanon could only nod and agree to let Retsu Kaioh use the staff: "Go ahead and use it, I'll stay empty-handed."

Amidst a cluster of yellow leaves, Hana stood tall and graceful, as awe-inspiring and unapproachable as a goddess. Retsu Haiwang also assumed a stance, the tip of his staff pointing at Hana. The internal sparring between the Haiwangs was about to begin.

Author's Note: Four updates today as usual~

The China arc of Kanon has more story to follow, after the battle with Retsu is over... of course, please read on.

Also, I feel that some recent scenes are quite visually appealing, but I haven't been able to find suitable images to accompany them. I think to better illustrate these scenes, I should download a photo editing app and do some simple image processing. I've been using Windows Paint in the past; I'll try it tonight…

Section 404, Chapter 398: She's still just a child!

A standoff between two heroes... well, it's more like a standoff between a male and a female! Retsu Kaioh is a "traditional" person who cares about Kanon's gender. Like Li Haiwang, he doesn't think much of female martial artists and has some prejudice against Kanon, just like the blind confidence that the entire martial arts province has in Chinese martial arts.

Among the observing sea kings, only Van Sea King was young and open-minded, and he was the least concerned about Kanon's female identity. He didn't think much about Kanon's gender, but instead stared excitedly at the confrontation, carefully observing Retsu Sea King's every move.

"Just from his stance, I can tell that Lie Haiwang truly deserves to be called a master of all kinds of martial arts~" Fan Haiwang thought to himself, "Then let me start with the staff technique and find your weaknesses and flaws one by one!"

As for Kanon, she still adopted the starting stance of Cosmic Illusion.

Normally, facing a powerful opponent like Retsu Kaioh, Kanon should have adopted a safe approach like "pre-feather" to start the fight. However, since the opponent clearly underestimated girls, Kanon insisted on a fierce start to give Retsu Kaioh a taste of his own medicine.

"You can make your move once you're ready—hmm!" Before Retsukai-oh could finish speaking, Kanon's cosmic phantom arrived.

Kanon hadn't launched such a powerful attack in a long time. A while ago, when she played American football, her opponents were all high school students. Although there were some strong men, using too much force could really hurt people... But this time, Kanon broke free of her self-seal and threw a heavy punch while running at high speed. The force of the punch was something that Retsu Kaioh had never seen before!

"So fast!" The surrounding sea kings exclaimed in surprise, expressing their admiration for Retsu Sea King, while Retsu Sea King himself grunted and took a step back.

Yes, in just one step, as Hana's momentum dissipated, she was surprised to find that Retsukai-oh had accurately blocked her fist with his long staff.

The stick was just an ordinary wooden stick, but it had been bent to an exaggerated degree under the pressure of enormous force, yet it did not break.

It was Retsu Kaioh's step back! That step served as a very subtle way to deflect the force, and combined with the cushioning effect of the wooden stick bending, it completely neutralized Kanon's momentum just as it reached its limit!

But even though Lie Haiwang had demonstrated his superb skills, he couldn't help but be a little shocked: "Although I had seen Yang Wang's challenge several times, this kind of impact... I have never felt it even from my master Liu Haiwang."

Looking at Hanon's pretty face, Retsu Kaioh felt a sense of unreality: "Is this really a woman's punch?"

But this look was all the more glaring given the disdain for women. Huayin curled her lip and said, "Tch, is this all the martial artists in the country know? When it comes to the power of their fists, I've seen far stronger ones."

That's true. In terms of punching power, Kanon is definitely in the top tier worldwide. However, at the very top, there are also muscle-bound powerhouses like Wakatsuki Takeshi and Julius, and there might be even more unimaginable monsters like that...

"Hehe, Chinese martial arts have no weaknesses." Retsukai-oh laughed. Impact was impact, and although Hanon's attack was astonishing, he had still managed to block it. Next, it was Retsukai-oh's turn to counterattack.

Force is reciprocal. Since Kanon's impact bent the stick but didn't break it, it meant the stick's rebound force would be very strong. Kanon was very sensitive to the flow of force and immediately sensed Retsu Kaioh's exertion.

But Kanon did not back down—she was not only sensitive to the flow of power, but also able to manipulate it with extremely high efficiency!

"Huh?" Retsukai-oh realized something was wrong halfway through his attack. Instead of using the rebound of the wooden stick to counterattack Kanon, he jumped back.

"What's going on?" Fan Haiwang and the others watching were dumbfounded. They didn't know the inside story, except for Mao Haiwang, who had practiced internal martial arts for many years and noticed something: "It seems that Ye Haiwang has a great understanding of the flow of power..."

Seeing that Retsukai-no-Wang had been forced back six or seven meters in one breath, Hana couldn't help but smile: "Do you still underestimate women now?"

Retsukai's expression was complex, it was hard to tell whether it was joy, embarrassment or seriousness, but his words acknowledged Hana's strength: "I really didn't expect that at such a young age, Ye Haiwang's martial arts have already reached an extremely high level of combining strength and gentleness."

He had just used the rebound force of the stick to counterattack. If successful, the stick would have lashed out at Hanon like a whip. Even if he failed, the immense force would have forced Hanon back. However, Hanon redirected all the rebound force elsewhere, leaving her arm completely still. The stick's rebound hadn't applied any force; it was as if it had deliberately collided with Hanon's fist. If he had used that move too forcefully, the stick would have broken! That's why Retsu Kaioh chose to retreat a second time.

If you think about it carefully, this first round alone is worth studying, but once the battle begins, the pace won't stay this slow forever! Lie Haiwang swung his wooden stick and launched an attack on Hanon. This time, he no longer used wide and sweeping movements, but instead used light and delicate stick techniques. He didn't clash head-on with Hanon, nor did he give Hanon time to channel her power. His stick techniques were beautiful and intricate, yet they were also full of hidden killing intent, with each strike aimed at Hanon's vital points.

Retsu Kaioh has shown through his actions that he has realized his initial mistake. Judging from the ferocity and sharpness of his new attack, he clearly did not hold back because of Kanon's female identity.

Kanon had fought against powerful individuals wielding weapons before, such as during the elimination tournament when several guardians under Toyo Electric Power were quite strong. But when it comes to top-tier weapon masters… Retsu Kaioh was the first person Kanon had ever encountered!

Weapon combat and unarmed combat are quite different. It's not that they are completely unrelated, but rather that adapting to each other requires ample experience. Although Kanon is strong, she has only been practicing martial arts for a year. While she has a lot of combat experience, she has very little experience fighting with weapons, so her skills are actually quite superficial.

For example, when facing an enemy's unarmed attack, Hanon could extend her finger to stab the pressure point on the opponent's elbow to disrupt them. However, when she instinctively met Retsukaioh's attack, she found that her finger had missed its mark. The slender wooden stick swung gently, bypassing her finger, and suddenly hit her shoulder!

"Snapped!"

"Ah, he hit!" The Sea Kings heard and saw it. Retsu Sea King's staff technique was extremely exquisite, and he quickly struck Hanon's shoulder. With Retsu Sea King's strength, this blow would probably have broken Hanon's bones...

But Retsu Kaioh's attacks didn't stop. Taking advantage of the pause in Kanon's movements after being hit, he swung his wooden stick, sweeping, chopping, thrusting, and slashing upwards, using many different methods to smash the stick into Kanon's body.

"Crack, crack, crack..." The sound of a wooden stick striking muscles, when repeated frequently, can evoke primal fears deep within human genes!

"Hey, isn't Lie Haiwang going too far..." the kind-hearted Mao Haiwang muttered, "Is he trying to kill Ye Haiwang? She's still a child!"

As for Van Sea King, he was rather ruthless. All he cared about was how much of his true strength Lie Sea King had used: "It's over so quickly? The observation wasn't even complete..."

But only those involved truly understand the situation.

Although Retsu Kaioh kept hitting Kanon, he was the one who was panicking.

"This feels wrong, like hitting steel! Is the human body really that hard?"

Author's Note: Is something as inconvenient as a little subscription, collection, and recommendation?

Section 405, Chapter 399: Ye Haiwang's Indestructible Body

Ear and eye skills are both essential basic skills in Chinese martial arts, and martial arts masters are often those with keen hearing and sharp eyesight. Lie Haiwang is proficient in all kinds of martial arts, with no blind spots in his techniques, so his senses are naturally extremely sharp.

Now he could clearly hear, in addition to the cracking sound of muscles, a faint tearing sound as the thin wooden stick struck Hanon's body—if it kept hitting, the stick would break!

So Retsukaioh stopped attacking, jumped back, and carefully observed Kanon's situation.

The other sea kings thought this was a signal that the battle had stopped and were about to come over to check when they realized something was wrong—Ye Huayin did not fall to the ground as expected.

On the contrary, Hanon's posture was very steady.

"Amazing." Retsukai exclaimed in admiration: "This stance is called 'Sanshin' in karate, right? It's said to be the strongest defensive stance. When Retsukai used it, it was indeed as solid as steel! I couldn't feel that I was hitting a human body at all."

In fact, after Retsu Kaioh's fierce attack, his wrist was somewhat numb from the recoil.