pertwk Chapter 34 Establishing Rules
Chapter 34 Establishing Rules
Sun Changlin was clearly not satisfied with Hong Liguo's statement. He glared at Hong Liguo, his eyes seeming to say, "How could you say that? Aren't you just boosting their morale and diminishing our own? We can't show weakness in front of them!" Hong Liguo quickly gave him a wink, signaling him not to act impulsively, to suppress his anger, and to proceed according to plan.
Hong Liguo continued, "I've carefully considered this for a long time, and no matter how we compete, our chances of winning are slim. Therefore, I hope you two can be lenient and withdraw your challenge. Wouldn't it be better if we could coexist peacefully and not disturb each other in the future?"
Sun Changlin immediately felt embarrassed. He opened his mouth, but before he could utter a single "you," Hong Liguo quickly stopped him. Hong Liguo knew that every word and action at this moment was crucial. The slightest mistake could ruin the entire plan. He couldn't let Sun Changlin ruin everything.
He Yunlong watched their subtle exchange, a mocking smile playing on his lips: "I'd like to withdraw my challenge to avoid hurting anyone, but I doubt Sun Changlin will accept it! He's not the type to give up easily."
Sun Changlin was already furious. His fists were clenched so tightly that his knuckles turned white and even cracked. Normally, he would have rushed over and given He Yunlong a good beating. But he knew that there were only two of them, and even if they joined forces, they had no chance against the He brothers alone. Moreover, He Yunlong's henchmen were nearby, like a pack of hungry wolves ready to pounce, vigilantly observing and circling the area. They would attack at He Yunlong's command.
Hong Liguo pressed down on Sun Changlin's arm again to stop him, then turned to He Yunlong and said calmly, "I know it's not easy to get you to take back your challenge, since you've already made your statement. How about we change the rules? Maybe it'll be better for both of us."
He Yunlong raised an eyebrow, a puzzled look on his face, and asked, "How will you change it? What new tricks can you come up with?"
Hong Liguo said neither humbly nor arrogantly, "In the past, when we all fought together, it was all underhanded stuff, relying on numbers to defeat the few and the strong. It didn't sound good if word got out. This time, why don't we compete in a gentleman's game? It's fair and it will show our true skills. What do you think?"
Upon hearing this, He Yunlong and He Yunhu exchanged a glance, their faces full of confusion: "Gentleman's Battle Gameplay? What is that? We've never heard of it before."
Hong Liguo smiled slightly and patiently explained, "This gentleman's duel is a one-on-one match, not a fight to the death, but mainly for exchanging martial arts skills, stopping when the point is reached. The match ends when either side falls first, or willingly concedes defeat. Finally, the winner is determined by the number of wins; the side with more wins wins. This is fair and avoids unnecessary harm. What do you think?"
"One-on-one, one-on-one?" The He brothers muttered to themselves, a thoughtful look in their eyes, as they began to calculate in their minds.
He Yunhu stretched out his hand, counted on his fingers, and suddenly his eyes lit up. He said excitedly, "Hey! We Dragon Tigers... exactly fifteen brothers! You nine dragons and one phoenix, plus your six swordsmen—oh, no, now it should be five swordsmen—make a total of fifteen. Fifteen against fifteen, and an odd number at that, so there's absolutely no chance of a draw. It seems this gentleman's game works! It'll give us a good chance to compete with them."
He Yunlong pondered for a moment, carefully considering the situation, and felt that this way of playing wasn't inappropriate for them. After all, even in one-on-one combat, each person on their side was stronger than their opponent, so their chances of winning were still very high, even practically guaranteed. Therefore, he nodded slightly and said, "That's fine, let's play it the way you've suggested, so others won't say we're bullying you."
Seeing their interest, Hong Liguo pressed his advantage, continuing, "Since this is a gentleman's game, we must abide by its rules. No one can break them. To avoid injuries, we'll focus on friendly sparring. The match ends when either fighter falls, regardless of injury; the standing fighter wins. If neither fighter is knocked down, or if both fall simultaneously, the match continues until one voluntarily concedes, and the other wins. We have fifteen against fifteen, a perfect one-on-one format. No one can participate twice. If anyone breaks the rules and participates twice, that side wins the entire match. Do you think these rules are fair and reasonable?"
The He brothers thought about it carefully again and felt that the rules were indeed fair and did not favor either side, so they nodded and said, "Okay, it's a deal. We'll play according to your rules. The side that wins more matches in the end will be the final winner. Don't try to deny it when you lose."
Sun Changlin listened from the side, his expression a mixture of helplessness and dissatisfaction. He couldn't understand why Hong Liguo would set such a rule. Knowing full well the opponent was stronger and that he had no advantage in a one-on-one fight, wasn't this just courting defeat? He was about to retort when Hong Liguo stopped him with a look. Hong Liguo leaned close to his ear, lowered his voice, and said with an undeniable air of authority, "If you don't do as I say, I'll withdraw. Then you'll have to deal with it yourself. Don't expect us to help you anymore."
Sun Changlin sighed helplessly. He knew better than anyone that the reason he insisted on inviting Hong Liguo and the others for help was because he had absolutely no confidence in winning. Even if he had a 50% chance of winning, he wouldn't have involved Hong Liguo and the others. Without their support, they were destined to lose this sparring match, not only miserably but also ridiculed by He Yunlong and his group. Left with no other choice, he gritted his teeth and nodded in agreement: "Fine, we'll do it your way. I want to see what kind of method you have to win."
Afterwards, the two sides sat down and carefully discussed the time and place of the competition. To ensure fairness, they also agreed that during the competition, only hand-to-hand combat could be used, and neither side could use any weapons. Using any weapon would be considered a violation and a forfeit, without exception.