Chapter 36: Sanda Upgrade

A rainy night descended quietly.

It was as if the entire city had been shrouded in a veil of mystery.

Global Elite Combat Club.

After finishing work at 8 o'clock, the venue became empty and desolate.

Under a few dim floodlights, a figure was incessantly shifting shoulders, stepping, and throwing punches and kicks.

There was an inexplicable rhythm in the rise and fall of the movements.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Accompanied by dense, muffled striking sounds.

The heavy sandbag hanging from the rack, which was a size larger than the 90kg class, trembled incessantly as if struck by lightning.

Suddenly, the sound stopped.

The figure retreated a few steps, then immediately lunged with the right leg, pivoted the hips, and launched a flying kick.

The spinning kick carried a whistling sound through the air, striking the center of the black leather sandbag with a loud "thwack."

The iron chains and the rack rubbed together, emitting a piercing noise.

The 150kg sandbag, weighing nearly as much as two ordinary adult men, swung out instantly.

It only swung back with powerful inertia after reaching a 70-degree arc with a loud whoosh.

The acceleration of such weight was akin to a massive black siege hammer.

At that moment, the figure suddenly lunged forward, meeting the "giant hammer" head-on.

Extending both arms forward, he gripped it firmly and held it aloft in mid-air.

Simultaneously, his whole body jolted, his feet retreated half a step, and his fingertips sank into the leather with a creaking sound.

A few breaths later.

His fingers released, and the sandbag returned to its original position.

【Sanda Experience +5】

【Boxing Experience +2】

【Focus Experience +3】

Three lines of notification messages floated before his eyes in succession.

Fang Cheng took a breath, his eyes shining.

He then looked at the other several new messages that popped up, glowing brightly.

【You have practiced Sanda diligently, integrating your skills to reach Expert level】

【Sanda Lv1 (0/250)】

【Congratulations! You have received a skill enhancement reward: 5 Free Attribute Points】

As Fang Cheng steadied his breathing, he looked at the panel with a hint of pleasant surprise.

Finally, Sanda had leveled up!

An afternoon sparring session with Goro Majima had earned him 50 Sanda experience points.

His skill progress had surged instantly from 45 to 95.

Fang Cheng felt that if he pushed himself today, he could break through to Sanda Lv1.

Thus, after work, he stayed in the gym alone, focusing on practicing various techniques of striking, kicking, wrestling, and grappling.

He finally managed to grind up the skill level just before the shopping center closed its doors.

"If I couldn't see the experience progress bar, I definitely wouldn't have worked this hard..."

Fang Cheng gave a slight smirk and wiped the sweat flowing down his face.

In a single day, his skill experience had increased by nearly 60 points.

Such an increase was unimaginable in the past.

Upon careful analysis, however, it was only natural.

Fang Cheng's punching and kicking techniques had actually long since entered the Lv1 level.

His wrestling techniques were also just one step away from entering the expert domain.

The only shortcoming was grappling.

The "grappling" in Sanda is not entirely equivalent to the "locking techniques" in Karate, yet they share similarities.

Both use joint-manipulation techniques to control various parts of an opponent's body, stripping them of their ability to resist.

Sanda grappling emphasizes intercepting the opponent's offensive; once successful, it is often followed by a takedown, then a punch or a kick.

Locking techniques are rarely used this way, focusing instead on the single point of "locking the joint" through relentless grinding.

Consequently, many ruthless moves have been developed.

However, in practice, neither Sanda nor Karate instruction places much emphasis on these techniques.

Aside from being banned in competitions, the main reason is that it is difficult for practitioners to execute them effectively in real combat.

When facing an enemy, it is crucial to accurately judge which hand or leg the opponent will use to attack first.

If you misjudge—if you should have grabbed with the left but used the right, or vice versa—you are in trouble.

Or, if you realize you made a mistake and try to pull back mid-motion to switch hands, your subsequent moves will be completely disrupted.

Grappling is a game of speed; the difference between victory and defeat is decided in an instant.

In the lightning-fast moments of offense and defense, wouldn't such a mistake result in a lost opportunity?

This isn't a demonstration or a routine practice.

It is unlike boxing or kicking, which emphasize being clean and decisive—where a failed strike means exiting the combat range.

In a clinch, if you lack strength, you cannot twist the opponent; if you lack flexibility, you will be countered; if you lack awareness, you are merely delivering yourself to them.

During close-quarters combat, any flaw is infinitely magnified.

Many traditional martial artists suffer from similar issues.

They can easily subdue an opponent during demonstrations with disciples, but the moment they step into a ring or a street brawl, they resort to wild, uncoordinated flailing.

Ultimately, it comes down to either a lack of combat experience or slightly sluggish reaction speeds.

Grappling, however, is a combat technique that places particular emphasis on the integration of body and consciousness.

It demands seizing the initiative—being one step ahead of the enemy: staying still when they are still, and moving the moment they show the slightest movement.

Only by striking first can its true effectiveness be realized.

After Fang Cheng's mental attribute exceeded 20 points.

His sensory perception, neural reactions, and observational skills had all received unprecedented enhancements.

Facing an opponent of Goro Majima's caliber, he could easily predict every move and respond swiftly.

After successfully mastering this concept of "interception," he could even gain a slight upper hand during close-quarters grappling.

The first time his grappling techniques were used in actual combat, they yielded significant results.

Now that his shortcoming had been addressed.

With his Sanda experience surging, breaking through the skill level became a matter of course.

Fang Cheng adjusted his breathing and heartbeat, reaching out to pat the slightly swaying sandbag.

Shadowboxing is a great way to simulate combat.

But hitting a sandbag is a different experience entirely.

It allows one to feel the visceral satisfaction of impact while testing physical fitness and receiving more realistic dynamic feedback.

With his current boxing skills, he could arguably overpower Coach Hu and dominate him.

Even against that Black boxing champion, he would only be slightly inferior.

The main gap between them lay in the fact that during imaginary combat, he could not accurately assess physical attributes.

Fang Cheng habitually perceived his opponents as stronger and more physically enduring.

However, if he were to enter an unrestricted real fight.

He could utilize various techniques such as kicking, wrestling, and grappling.

He could also act like he did against Goro Majima.

Relying on his preemptive reaction speed to disrupt the opponent's rhythm and create brief suppression.

Ultimately defeating enemies much stronger than himself.

Moreover.

Since becoming a sparring partner, Fang Cheng could openly continue learning other combat techniques, possessing "tools" to help him gain experience.

His rate of progress was beyond doubt.

In time, these opponents would be completely crushed.

Thinking of this, his gaze focused on the enhancement reward from this upgrade.

【5 Free Attribute Points】

Although the reward was not as eye-catching as previous upgrades, it made Fang Cheng even more excited.

Because his Constitution was already at 16 points.

With just 4 more points, he could reach 20.

In other words.

Following his mental breakthrough during his pull-ups in the rain, another attribute was about to hit a critical threshold.

"Perhaps... I can experience that wonderful feeling again?"

Fang Cheng's eyes flickered as he muttered to himself.

After considering it for a moment, he decided to hold off for now.

"I'll prepare for it tomorrow..."

With other plans in mind, Fang Cheng quickly turned and walked toward the bathroom.

The pitch-black rainy night outside reminded him that it was time to leave.

(End of Chapter)