Chapter 295: Fancy Beatdowns, Maddening Torture

By this time, Lin Shao was already testing the waters. A single round of King of Fighters allowed for a choice of three characters, meaning they could each take control of one. With Kyo Kusanagi out of the picture, the next fighter in line was Yashiro Nanakase.

"This white-haired guy looks pretty imposing, he must be quite formidable, right?" Lin Shao muttered as he experimented with the basic moves.

"How come this guy only uses bare fists and kicks?" Watching Yashiro strike on the screen without a single visual effect, Lin Shao grew thoroughly disappointed. The previous character had been thoroughly thrashed by Owner Fang, but at least he looked flashy. "This is even worse than the last one. No way, this young master is switching characters!"

"Why don't you play mine?" Owner Fang offered nonchalantly.

Having won the previous round, the post-match settlement had restored a decent chunk of vitality, bringing Iori Yagami's health bar up by a fair margin.

"Now this works!" Lin Shao's hands itched with anticipation. He had noticed earlier that this character possessed fierce close-quarters claw techniques and a ranged projectile in Yamibarai. He was far superior to the one he was currently using. Leaving everything else aside, being able to shave off half of Owner Fang's health bar would give him serious bragging rights.

The two swapped positions. Out of habit, Lin Shao tested the skills first. A few standard projectiles and a triple-strike Aoi Hana later, Owner Fang's Yashiro was rapidly approaching half health.

"Come on, come on!" Seeing Owner Fang's health bar closing in on his own, Lin Shao's confidence soared. "Have some purple flame first!"

On the screen, Iori flicked his right hand, unleashing the Yamibarai. A cluster of purple flame skimmed the ground, hurtling toward Fang Qi at blinding speed.

"Heheh!" Lin Shao watched with immense satisfaction as Fang Qi retreated into the corner to block twice. The greatest advantage a cultivator held over a warrior lay in ranged attacks. Now that he commanded the ranged advantage, why should he fear this white-haired man who only knew how to punch?

"This character really is incredibly strong..." Xu Luo murmured from behind.

Ruan Ning stared at the screen and remarked, "The difference between a cultivator and a warrior."

"Could this warrior be practicing both spells and martial arts simultaneously?" Huangfu Tao asked in bewilderment.

Lin Shao was in the zone, his left hand violently thrashing the joystick while his right hand pounded the buttons with a thunderous clatter. Suddenly, a flash of light erupted on the screen, and a vast shroud of purple flame ignited in Iori Yagami's hands.

Ura 108 Shiki: Ya Sakazuki!

A thick, towering pillar of purple fire erupted, sweeping forward as if to pierce the heavens and the earth, rapidly advancing toward the opposite side of the screen.

"Is that a spell?!"

"How domineering!"

"As expected, this character is too strong! The owner actually chose such a powerful character to bully people!" Already, some among the crowd began to protest.

Song Qingfeng and his companions stared with wide eyes.

Watching from the rear, Huangfu Tao was utterly dumbfounded. "Is this still a warrior?!"

The next scene left the onlookers even more bewildered. Owner Fang merely manipulated Yashiro to execute a rolling dodge past the flame, hopped lightly to avoid the subsequent projectile, and brought a heavy kick down. When Lin Shao blocked it, Yashiro swiftly transitioned into a crouching heavy kick to trip him.

"Your lower stance is unstable, Young Master Lin." The near-depleted health bar of Yashiro suddenly flashed with a crimson light!

The very instant the opponent stood up, the heavy punch of the Final Impact was already unleashed!

Boom!

A colossal force of the earth erupted from the fist, shattering the defense instantly. The character was sent flying eight yards away. The spectators behind winced at the sight, knowing without a doubt that the character was completely ruined.

Orochi Yashiro, possessing the power to dominate the earth, stood at the head of the Four Heavenly Kings. His true strength was second only to the three main protagonists: Iori, Kyo, and Chizuru. Naturally, he would not be weak in the game.

"How could this not be blocked!"

Slap, slap, slap! Lin Shao pounded the keyboard again in frustration.

Xu Luo shouted, "You're all trash! Let this young master try!"

Ruan Ning chimed in, "Me next, me next!"

One minute later...

Staring at Chizuru Kagura and Shermie lying defeated on the ground, someone cursed, "Dammit, trash owner, you must have given yourself private lessons beforehand!"

"Damn it, blaming my private lessons just because you're weak!" Owner Fang's face was filled with disdain as he instantly turned on his mockery mode. "Come on, who else wants a piece of this? This owner will play with one hand!"

"One hand?" Many in the crowd were instantly displeased. This game required simultaneous manipulation of both controls to issue commands. Operating with a single hand meant one would inevitably fail to coordinate the joystick and the buttons. How could anyone hope to execute smooth combos under such conditions?

"Isn't it just a little game?" The spectators present all felt that this kind of arrogance needed to be ruthlessly suppressed.

"I'll do it!" Liu Ningyun reasoned that a mere game couldn't be that difficult. Even if she had only just started playing, she had watched a few rounds. The moves and combos were clear enough to her. If she couldn't beat your two hands, could she really fail to beat your single hand?

It was practically an insult!

With that thought, she sat down on the seat beside Owner Fang with a look of sheer disdain and began selecting her characters.

First, Iori Yagami, a mandatory choice.

Second, Chizuru Kagura; since Xu Luo had just played her, the moves were easy to remember.

Third, Shermie; this character could utilize lightning and seemed far from weak.

Meanwhile, Owner Fang selected a martial artist wearing large shorts, Joe Higashi.

He then casually picked two others.

Joe Higashi was placed in the first slot.

Before the round commenced, Liu Ningyun tested the controls to get a feel for them. It felt excellent. She also recalled Iori Yagami's combos—the Scum Gale and the heavy claws transitioning into the Aoi Hana were highly memorable.

She simulated the joystick movements twice before the start: forward-circle plus punch, heavy claw, reverse-circle, reverse-circle. It felt remarkably fluid.

The game began, and Liu Ningyun, displaying great intuition, started with a Yamibarai to test the waters.

"Orakua!" A fist swung out, and a gale-force whirlwind immediately surged toward Liu Ningyun's Iori Yagami at extreme speed.

Immediately following...

"Orakua!"

"Orakua!"

An incessant barrage of Hurricane Upper punches was unleashed. One small tornado after another manifested continuously across the screen. Liu Ningyun had only just executed her first projectile when the second whirlwind smacked her squarely in the face, followed by the third, the fourth, the fifth...

The continuous whirlwind punches could not form a true combo, but...

Just as Liu Ningyun attempted to jump over the whirlwind to attack Fang Qi, he struck.

"Don't move!" Owner Fang's whirlwind punch slammed directly into the opponent's leg.

Scrambling back up and refusing to yield, Liu Ningyun executed a dodge to slip through.

"You dare to dodge?" Owner Fang's second whirlwind punch, arriving at a blistering frequency, smacked her straight in the face.

Getting up, she tried a projectile, then another projectile! Then...

On Owner Fang's side: "Orakua! Orakua!"

Iori Yagami was utterly submerged beneath countless whirlwinds!

"Ahhhhh!" Liu Ningyun's inner frustrations instantly boiled over. Her delicate fists frantically pounded the buttons, and she shook the joystick like mad.

Clack clack clack! Clack clack clack!

The din was deafening as she gritted her teeth, yet she simply could not force her way through.

Then came the second character, Chizuru Kagura.

Tenjin no Kotowari!

Tamayura no Sotsuin!

At the start, Liu Ningyun played with great caution and stability.

Yet, Owner Fang once again brought out the tactic that was thoroughly unfriendly to newcomers, shouting, "Orakua! Orakua!"

Massive gusts of wind fanned out once more, instantly leaving Chizuru Kagura staggering and swaying in total disarray.

*Smack-smack-smack! Crack-crack-crack!*

Liu Ningyun shook the joystick frantically and slammed the desk in a frenzy, sending Chizuru Kagura into a chaotic flurrying frenzy on the screen!

It was the third character, Shermie.

Owner Fang taunted: "IQ card! IQ card!"

It was pure, unadulterated torture.

Bound and helpless, unable to move or execute a single move, Liu Ningyun’s eyes turned crimson. She gritted her teeth in sheer fury, pounding her delicate fists against the desk's keys, desperate to leap over the console and give Owner Fang a taste of her own punches!

*Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!*

Even the monitor shuddered violently with every strike.

"Don't you dare smash my damn desk!" Owner Fang finally snapped, unable to take it anymore.

.