Chapter 46: Two Tigers on One Mountain

Seeing that Qi Xia wasn't making another move, he immediately took a large step forward and charged ahead.

Qi Xia didn't hesitate at all. He pushed the two chairs beside him forward again, placing them between himself and Zhang Shan.

The tall and burly Zhang Shan was already a bit slow, and with the chairs in his way now, he nearly tripped and fell.

"Long zhan yu ye, qi dao qiong ye."

Qi Xia took a running start, stepped onto the chair, and leaped up. Before Zhang Shan could steady himself, Qi Xia pounced and mounted him.

He knew that Zhang Shan was fundamentally different from Xiao Yanjing and Lao Lü, and there was no way intimidation would make him back down. So, before Zhang Shan could react, Qi Xia straddled him and unleashed a flurry of punches at his face.

Zhang Shan quickly bent his arms to protect his chin and the side of his face, while keeping his eyes fixed on Qi Xia's shoulders. By judging the punches, he continuously blocked the attacks.

Qi Xia's fists rained down on Zhang Shan's arms, feeling as hard as hitting a wall.

"Boy... you're asking for death!"

Seizing the moment when Zhang Shan spoke, Qi Xia slipped his fist between Zhang Shan's arms and aimed straight for his nose.

But Zhang Shan seemed to anticipate it perfectly. He clamped his arms together, stopping Qi Xia's fist in its tracks. He locked Qi Xia's joint, grabbed his arm, and twisted it to the side, sending Qi Xia rolling away and freeing himself.

"I really underestimated you..." Zhang Shan slowly got up, dusted off his clothes, and said, "You must have been some kind of killer before you came here, right? Who fights like that?"

Qi Xia also stood up with a serious expression, breathing heavily.

That attack had been his all-in gamble, but Zhang Shan was almost completely unaffected.

"Hey, hey, hey!!" Xiao Yanjing ran up, looking anxious. "Why did you two start fighting out of nowhere... Everyone just calm down..."

"I can't calm down." Zhang Shan said with an angry laugh, "Today, I'm going to beat this kid until he admits defeat."

Before Qi Xia could think of his next move, Zhang Shan flipped all the chairs out of the way and rushed at him, swinging his thick arm like a pillar toward Qi Xia's face.

In the nick of time, Qiao Ji Jin reached out and hooked Zhang Shan's arm.

"Big guy, you can't hit him."

Zhang Shan saw that he was being held back and increased his force, but he realized that this lean, tattooed man in front of him was incredibly strong and completely immovable.

"Another one jumping in." Zhang Shan snorted coldly, "Why can't I hit him?"

"Because he's my 'brain'." Qiao Ji Jin smiled innocently, "If you damage his head, we'll both end up dumb."

"He's your 'brain'?" Zhang Shan found the man intriguing, "Then what are you?"

"Me... well..." Qiao Ji Jin released Zhang Shan's arm, took off his jacket to reveal his full-body tattoos and hardened muscles, "If I have to say, I'm his 'fist'."

Zhang Shan raised an eyebrow and said, "Interesting, then I'll spar with you, his 'fist'."

With that, Zhang Shan assumed a boxing stance, one arm curled to protect his chin while the other swung with his hip toward Qiao Ji Jin.

Qiao Ji Jin ducked forward, dodging the punch and closing in on his opponent in an instant. He swung his right hand in an uppercut.

Zhang Shan tilted his head back to evade it, then quickly adjusted his position, extending his right hand in front to create distance from Qiao Ji Jin.

In just that brief exchange, both men realized the other had real skills; otherwise, they wouldn't move like that.

Zhang Shan thought for half a second before stepping forward again, throwing a heavy punch with his left hand.

Qiao Ji Jin didn't dodge this time. Instead, he grabbed Zhang Shan's entire arm, leaped into the air, spun around, and hooked one leg around Zhang Shan's neck, using his body weight to pull him down to the ground.

Qiao Ji Jin gripped Zhang Shan's arm between his thighs and pulled back hard, while positioning his legs—one pressing on Zhang Shan's neck and the other about to pin his chest.

Zhang Shan was in disbelief, but he quickly came to his senses. This was the common ground technique in mixed martial arts called shi zi gu, and if his arm got fully locked, he was done for.

Thinking fast, he clasped his right hand tightly with his left, interlocking his fingers to prevent Qiao Ji Jin from straightening his arm.

He couldn't fathom how a rough-looking thug could execute such a precise move, but luckily, he had some knowledge of fighting techniques himself. Though he hadn't broken free from the shi zi gu, he wasn't letting Qiao Ji Jin win yet.

Seeing that he couldn't pull Zhang Shan's left arm, Qiao Ji Jin extended a leg to press against Zhang Shan's right arm and used his thigh strength to force their hands apart.

Zhang Shan was now sweating profusely; his interlocked fingers weren't holding up under the pressure.

Soon, Zhang Shan's hands separated, and his left arm was pulled straight. The intense pain made him cry out.

But his massive build gave him an advantage. He twisted his body and swung his right fist toward Qiao Ji Jin's abdomen.

Qiao Ji Jin retracted his right leg from Zhang Shan's neck and used his knee to block the strike.

Zhang Shan saw an opportunity and kept pounding with his right fist, forcing Qiao Ji Jin to block repeatedly with his knee.

To successfully apply shi zi gu, you need to control one arm firmly and pin the opponent's neck and chest with your legs.

With Qiao Ji Jin focused on blocking, he had to pull his legs back, losing his hold with the right leg and allowing Zhang Shan to get up.

Zhang Shan yanked his left arm free, flipped over, and tried to turn the tables by pinning Qiao Ji Jin.

Qiao Ji Jin saw Zhang Shan breaking loose and immediately extended his right leg to hold him off.

Unable to get close, Zhang Shan unleashed a barrage of punches at Qiao Ji Jin, who kept his arms up to block while maintaining distance with his right leg.

Seizing a moment when Zhang Shan least expected it, Qiao Ji Jin brought his raised right leg down hard, kicking Zhang Shan's shin.

Zhang Shan lost his balance and started to fall. Qiao Ji Jin capitalized on it, circling behind him, wrapping his right arm around Zhang Shan's neck, and locking it with his left hand for added force. He jumped back, pulling them both to the ground in a luo jiao guillotine.

Qiao Ji Jin was about to tighten the hold on Zhang Shan's neck when he noticed something was off.

Upon closer inspection, Zhang Shan had one hand blocking his neck, preventing the luo jiao from fully forming.

Although he had blocked the attack, Zhang Shan wasn't in a good spot either—his hand was now trapped too.

The two were locked together, neither able to break free.

"Hey... big guy..." Qiao Ji Jin gritted his teeth and said, "How about you give up? Call me boss, and I'll let go right now..."

"Damn it! Even if I die here, I'll never give up..." Zhang Shan tensed his muscles, desperately looking for a way out, but Qiao Ji Jin's hold was rock-solid with no weaknesses in sight.