Chapter 543 Sparring with the Grandmaster Level
Raymond's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree when he heard that, like he finally got what Ethan was getting at.
"Dude, it's not every day you see someone stay chill after hitting master level. Since you're itching for a go, I'll give you a shot." Raymond nodded, looking all pleased with himself.
He figured Ethan was just trying to keep himself grounded, remembering there's still grand master level to hit.
Ethan, knowing Raymond totally missed the point, turned redder than a tomato. All he could do was let out a couple of awkward chuckles.
Next thing, Raymond and Ethan are up on the mountaintop.
"Hey, what's going on over there?"
"Isn't that Raymond? And Ethan too? What are they up to?"
"Looks like they're about to throw down. Has Ethan lost his marbles?"
"Seems like Ethan's leveled up too, hitting the peak of initial master level."
"Big whoop, he's still no match for Raymond, who's at late grand master level."
People started noticing the duo on the mountaintop, buzzing with all sorts of theories. Most of them thought Ethan was biting off more than he could chew by challenging Raymond.
"You ready for this?" Raymond asked, grinning at Ethan.
"Yeah," Ethan nodded, all serious.
"Cool, I'll take it easy on you. If it gets too much, don't push it." Raymond nodded, then slowly moved his hands, sending two palms Ethan's way.
Even though Raymond's moves were slow, the spiritual energy around them seemed to dance with his actions. Ethan felt like the air around him turned to concrete, making it tough to move.
Two golden palm imprints formed from Raymond's hands, getting bigger as they closed in on Ethan. Even before they reached him, Ethan felt like a mountain was about to crush him.
For a split second, Ethan regretted his choice, realizing how dumb it was to pick this fight. But he'd already opened his mouth, so there was no backing out now. He had to suck it up and face Raymond's palms.
"Rolling Wave Palm!" Ethan yelled, busting out the Rolling Wave Palm, a move from the ZF knack. Each palm strike got stronger, but his movements got slower.
The Rolling Wave Palm's power ramped up with each hit, but it also drained a ton of energy. Ethan had only managed ten strikes before, but now he was up to eighteen, which was a big deal. Still, he couldn't pull off the nineteenth strike no matter how hard he tried.
Soon, waves of energy rippled from the mountaintop as Ethan's eighteen palms clashed with Raymond's two. Palm imprints shattered, with fifteen of Ethan's palms getting obliterated by Raymond's first strike.
It wasn't until the sixteenth palm that Raymond's imprint even slowed down. But that pause was short-lived before the sixteenth palm shattered too.
The seventeenth and eighteenth palms quickly followed suit, leaving Raymond's first palm dimmed but still kicking, with the second palm still barreling towards Ethan.
Ethan's heart sank. Not ready to throw in the towel, he threw a punch at the last second, just as the first imprint reached him.
It felt like punching a boulder, his whole body straining under the pressure, legs shaking. But he kept at it, and finally, Raymond's first palm imprint shattered after taking eighteen palm strikes and one solid punch. But the second, more solid imprint came right after, sending Ethan flying like a ragdoll.
Seeing this, Raymond quickly waved his robe, dissipating the force of the second imprint, letting Ethan land wobbly but safe.
"Thanks for going easy on me." Ethan was floored, finally getting just how scary grand master level power was. And this was Raymond holding back. If Raymond had wanted to end him, it would've been game over in a heartbeat.
"Honestly, you're pretty badass. Didn't think you'd break through my first palm," Raymond nodded, looking all pleased, giving Ethan some props.
But to Ethan, the praise felt kinda backhanded. Breaking through one palm had taken everything he had, and that didn't feel all that impressive to him. What he didn't realize was that the onlookers were floored. Even they couldn't easily break through one of Raymond's imprints unless they were at late master level. Mid-level masters would struggle. But Ethan, at the peak of the initial stage, had broken through one imprint.
Ethan straightened his messed-up clothes, thinking about whether to use his soul attack, but decided against it. Soul attacks were his ace in the hole, meant for surprising stronger enemies, so it was best to keep it under wraps.
"Getting to trade moves with you today is an honor. Thanks for the chance." Ethan conceded, giving Raymond a respectful bow.
"As long as you're not hurt." Raymond nodded with a smile.
Ethan asked, curious, "By the way, what were those two palms?"
Raymond explained with a grin, "Those two palms are my signature move. If you could withstand one, you would've won. But the palm imprints need both hands, so I had to use two palms."
"So it's your signature move. Getting beat by your ultimate technique is kinda cool." Ethan nodded, finally getting it.
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