Chapter 1697
When the referee announced the match between Evan and Shekao, the crowd thought they had misheard. It was only when they saw both Evan and Shekao step onto the stage that they believed their ears. They stared wide-eyed, a single thought running through their minds: “Good Lord, the kid has lost his mind-” The whistle blew, and the arena fell utterly silent. Everyone held their breath, their eyes glued to the two figures on the stage. Shekao frowned at Evan, his eyes devoid of mockery. He didn’t waste a single word, his face just showing pure impatience. Evan could tell that Shekao felt it was beneath him to fight a child and wanted to end it quickly. Coincidentally, Evan had no intention of dragging it out either. Defeating Shekao was his ticket into the Thyanian Martial Arts Association’s line of sight. This was the first step in his plan to tear down their school, and he had to make it a spectacular victory. Evan’s expression hardened, and he took the initiative. Before Shekao could even move, Evan was in front of him, his speed astonishing. Shekao froze for a split second, then quickly retreated to dodge. But before he could catch his breath, a powerful kick landed on the back of his knee, forcing him to drop to a reflexive one- knee kneel. The next second, a crushing blow struck the back of his head. Shekao’s eyes widened in sheer realization. He remained frozen for three seconds, then collapsed face-first onto the mat. Unconscious. The entire arena: A dead silence. An unknown amount of time passed before Evan turned and called out to the referee, finally snapping him back to his senses. He scrambled over to Shekao, checked him, and then looked at Evan in utter shock. “!” Evan just stared back at him. “Announce the result.” The referee swallowed hard, his voice trembling as he stood up and blew the whistle. “Sh-Shekao is unconscious! Number 9 wins!” The arena remained silent until Elliot stood up and started clapping. Only then did the fiercely proud Zhinoran fighters erupt into a frenzied celebration. “Zhinora Forever! Zhinora Forever! Zhinora Forever!”… The news spread like wildfire to the back rooms, shaking the entire Thyanian Martial Arts Association. Shekao’s master looked on in disbelief. “Shekao lost?” The Thyanian fighter reporting the news nodded timidly. “Yes, he lost. He was knocked out.” Everyone: A group of old masters huddled together, frowning as they watched the video of the match. The clip was pathetically short. From the moment Shekao stepped on stage to the moment he collapsed, less than ten seconds had passed. They watched it over and over, then pulled up videos of Evan’s previous fights and watched those twice. Their faces collectively darkened. Against him, these other fighters are just punching bags. We can’t gauge his true strength at all!” “And his fighting style… it feels familiar, but I can’t place who he learned from.” “We’ve studied all the major Zhinoran schools. His moves don’t match any of them.” “I heard he registered as an independent fighter. No personal information, just the name ‘Mr. Gage.”” The old masters all pressed their lips together. A five-year-old Mr. Gage… “Is there any information about him from Zhinora? Has he competed in any tournaments there?” The young fighter who brought the news quickly replied, “No, we’ve already investigated him. Before coming to Thyania, he’d never made a public appearance. Even the Zhinoran Martial Arts Association doesn’t know about him. He’s a complete dark horse.” Shekao’s master asked, “Have you found anything on his family background?” “We have. His parents are business people, but we couldn’t find out what they do specifically. It seems they’ve deliberately hidden their identities.” They had mistaken the bodyguard couple for Evan’s parents and had investigated them, but they only found the fake information deliberately planted online.