At the same time, he punched Xiong Li in the side, the sound of the fists colliding making people's eardrums hurt.
"Bravo!" Cheers erupted from the audience, everyone watching intently.
A moment later, Xiong Li seized an opening and slammed a punch into Xiong Hu's shoulder.
Xiong Hu grunted and staggered backward. Xiong Li seized the opportunity to step forward and punched him in the chest, knocking him off the stage.
"Xiong Li won!" The cheers from the audience grew even louder. Xiong Li stood on the ring, raised his hand and pounded his chest, making a "thump thump" sound, his face full of pride.
Xiong Yue pointed at Xiong Li on the arena and smiled at Shi Tou, "This Xiong Li is one of the strongest in terms of physique among the new generation in the village. His physical strength is about the same as yours now. How about it, do you want to go up and try it out with him?"
Shi Tou had been itching to fight for a long time, his blood boiling. Hearing Xiong Yue's words, he nodded without hesitation, his eyes full of fighting spirit: "Yes! I'll fight him!"
After saying that, without waiting for Xiong Yue to speak again, he leaped up and landed steadily on the arena like a nimble cheetah.
The immense impact caused the stone slabs of the arena to tremble slightly, drawing everyone's attention.
When Xiong Li saw Shi Tou suddenly appear on stage, he was taken aback for a moment, then frowned and said with a hint of disdain, "An outsider? You want to fight me?"
In his eyes, although the stone was tall, it was an outsider and certainly not as durable as himself.
Without wasting words, Shi Tou simply cracked his knuckles, a determined smile spreading across his憨憨 (simple and honest) face: "You'll know once you try!"
The villagers in the audience also quieted down, all looking at the two people on the stage.
One is a local expert with exceptional physical strength, and the other is an outsider who has just broken the record for "carrying a stone against the waterfall." This competition is clearly more exciting than the previous one!
Xiong Yue stood below the stage with a smile on his lips. He wanted to see just how much power the stone could unleash after being tempered by the "reverse waterfall carrying stone".
The air in the room instantly tensed up as soon as Xiong Yue uttered the word "begin".
Xiong Li grinned, revealing a set of white teeth, his eyes gleaming with fighting spirit, and suddenly exerted force with his feet.
With a loud "thump," a shallow crater was created in the ground, and he shot towards the stone like a cannonball, his right fist slamming straight out.
There was no fancy technique whatsoever; only the bulging muscles propelling the punches, tearing through the air with a deep, thunderous sound.
Even the surrounding villagers couldn't help but squint, as if they could see the powerful wind emanating from the fist.
"Good timing!"
Shi Tou roared, the sound so loud that the leaves around him trembled.
His left arm muscles suddenly bulged, the bulges were distinct like protruding rocks, and the dark blue veins coiled around them like dragons. He then threw a straight punch.
This punch, though devoid of any magical light, seemed to compress the air in front of him, forming an invisible yet substantial wall that, with overwhelming force, crushed towards Xiong Li's fist.
"boom!"
The two fists clashed head-on without any fancy moves, and the dull thud of the impact exploded like thunder in the arena.
The villagers below the stage felt a slight tremor beneath their feet, and then saw Shi Tou's figure stagger backward.
He took five steps back in quick succession, each step leaving a footprint about an inch deep in the ground.
Xiong Li stood firmly in place, though his arm was slightly numb, but the fighting spirit in his eyes intensified: "Interesting! Let's go again!"
Stone didn't reply, only wiping the blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, before lunging forward again.
This time he held back, his fists slamming down on Xiong Li's head like heavy hammers, the force of his punches carrying dust and producing a sharp, piercing sound.
Upon seeing this, Xiong Li burst into laughter: "Just what I wanted!"
With his left arm blocking, he simultaneously slammed his right arm towards Shi Tou's ribs, and the two were instantly locked in close combat, with no time to dodge.
The elbow strike landed on the shoulder blade with a dull thud, like someone hitting solid wood with a hammer, making the villagers in the audience's teeth ache.
Shi Tou winced in pain, but retaliated with a knee strike aimed at Xiong Li's abdomen, only to be firmly blocked by Xiong Li's palm.
The two men's forearms touched and their knees pressed together. Their calves, which were trembling violently from the struggle, slowly sank into the mud, soon reaching their ankles.
"Bravo!" Someone in the audience shouted first, followed by a wave of applause.
The villagers forgot that Shi Tou was an outsider; they only stared at the two figures entangled in the arena: they were so fast they were almost two black lines, only briefly solidifying at the moment their fists and feet collided.
Each collision produced a thunderous roar and sent a blast of milky-white air about.
Clear away all the rubble and dust around them to create a clearing around the two of them.
Shi Tou was hit in the back by Xiong Li's elbow strike, staggering half a step forward, but took the opportunity to turn around and sweep his leg towards Xiong Li's lower body.
Xiong Li planted his feet firmly in the ground, withstanding the blow. He grabbed Shi Tou's ankle, trying to flip him over, but Shi Tou kicked him hard in the chest with his other foot.
The two separated again, both panting heavily, their clothes soaked with sweat and covered in mud, but neither of them backed down.
"Well done, Brother Stone!"
Villagers below the stage shouted loudly, waving their straw hats rapidly; those around them echoed, "Go Xiongli! Don't let our village down!"
The cheers and shouts of encouragement were all mixed together, making it impossible to tell who they were cheering for.
In the eyes of these simple and honest villagers, whether it is Xiong Li from the village or Shi Tou from outside, as long as they dare to fight and do their best, they deserve to be respected.
Xiong Yue stood to the side, stroking his beard and nodding, his eyes full of approval.
He had thought Shi Tou would be at a disadvantage, after all, Xiong Li's brute strength was unmatched in the village, but he never expected that Shi Tou could not only withstand Xiong Li's punches.
The fact that they were able to launch a counterattack shows a rare courage and strength in their fight.
In the arena, Shi Tou took a deep breath, his right arm tensed up again, this time the veins bulged even more, and his skin even turned a faint bronze color: "Xiong Li, I won't hold back!"
Xiong Li wiped the sweat from his face and grinned, "I've been waiting for you to say that! Come on!"
Before the words were even finished, the two moved simultaneously. This time, it wasn't a series of scattered punches and kicks, but rather a concentration of all their strength into a single point.
They blasted towards each other. The two figures collided again, this time with an even louder thud, as if the surrounding air itself was trembling.
The ground cracked with tiny lines, and layers of milky white air waves spread out, making the hems of the villagers' clothes flutter in the wind.
Stone's throat bobbed, and he spat a mouthful of bloody saliva onto the ground with a "pui" sound, mixed with half a broken white tooth.
He paid no heed to the wound on his lip; instead, his eyes gleamed like those of an enraged beast, his pupils filled with a fierce light, and even his breathing became heavy and rumbling.
The internal organs he had injured during the clash were still throbbing with pain, but the pain did not make him back down; instead, it ignited an even stronger fighting spirit.
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