bioinnovel Chapter 28 Arriving with a Coffin
Chapter 28 Arriving with a Coffin
"A test?" Ma Cong raised an eyebrow.
He roughly guessed that a collaboration of this level couldn't be finalized with just a few words. The other party needed to witness his capabilities firsthand, and in a more convincing setting.
"That's right, a test." General Zhou's expression returned to the seriousness characteristic of a soldier. "This is an opportunity to prove your ability to us, and also to prove your qualifications to your future students."
He took a tablet computer out of his briefcase, opened a video, and pushed it in front of Ma Cong.
"Take a look at this first."
The video footage is somewhat shaky, suggesting it was filmed in an indoor training facility.
In the video, two men are engaged in a fight.
One was a Chinese soldier wearing camouflage training uniform, with a lean and strong build. His movements were standard Sanda stances, and his combination of punches and kicks was very skillful.
His opponent was a tall, burly white man.
The white man didn't adopt any fighting stance; he just stood there casually, his body swaying slightly, like a polar bear ready to pounce on its prey.
The Chinese soldier launched the first attack, delivering a swift low sweep kick to the white man's supporting leg.
However, just as his leg was about to strike, the white man moved.
His body sank and contracted in a very strange way, like a spring being compressed instantly. The Chinese soldier's low sweeping kick seemed to have hit a piece of cotton that had lost its force, having no effect whatsoever.
Immediately afterwards, the compressed "spring" suddenly sprang open.
The white man's body, in a manner that defies the laws of physics, instantly came close to the body of the Chinese soldier.
There are no fists, no legs.
He simply leaned against it lightly with his shoulder and his body.
In the video, the lean and capable Chinese soldier was thrown backward as if he had been hit by a speeding truck, and crashed heavily onto a mat several meters away. He struggled for a few moments but was unable to get up.
The whole process took less than three seconds.
Ma Cong's pupils contracted slightly.
He saw it very clearly.
The white man wasn't using brute force.
At the instant of physical contact, he used an extremely skillful technique—through instantaneous changes in breathing and body structure—to transmit a wave-like impact force into the body of the Chinese soldier.
This is the core technique of Systema, a combat style used by Russian special forces: the "shockwave."
"This is a video recording from last month of our internal exchange with the Russian Alpha Special Forces," General Zhou said in a low voice. "Our 'King of Soldiers' couldn't even last three seconds against their ace."
He swiped the screen again and played another video.
This time, the opponent was a man of average build who didn't look particularly remarkable.
His opponent was another Chinese special forces soldier.
This special forces soldier learned from his experience and did not launch a rash attack, but instead engaged in hit-and-run tactics with the enemy.
But the man of medium build moved like a ghost. Every step he took seemed precisely calculated, always appearing in the most vulnerable positions of the Chinese special forces soldiers.
In a close-quarters combat encounter, he used an extremely cunning technique to instantly lock the arm of a Chinese special forces soldier.
"Snap!"
A sharp cracking sound, and you could feel the excruciating pain even through the screen.
The Chinese special forces soldier's arm was broken by him using an extremely vicious joint lock.
"This is an Israeli Krav Maga expert," Qin Lao added from the side. "Their fighting style has no superfluous movements; everything is aimed at destroying the enemy's body structure as quickly as possible. Every move is aimed at the vital points and weak points of the human body."
General Zhou turned off the tablet, looked up, and stared at Ma Cong.
"We conduct similar exchanges every year. The results are largely the same."
"We lost without even a hint of resentment."
"Over the years, we've tried many methods. We've hired the country's top Sanda and wrestling champions as instructors. We've even sent people to learn their fighting techniques."
"But the results were not ideal." General Zhou shook his head helplessly. "In a free-fighting match without gloves and rules, a Sanda champion can only perform at half the level of his skills if he can. And when we try to learn from them, we always manage to imitate the form but not the spirit. We are always just a little bit short."
"Because we have no roots," Qin Zhenshan continued. "Their fighting techniques are based on their national culture and physical structure. If we simply transplant them, it's like a tree without roots or water without a source."
"Our roots are in Chinese martial arts!" Old Master Dong slammed his hand on the table, his emotions running high. "We have the most complete and profound fighting theory system in the world! We have Bagua, Tai Chi, Xingyi, Bajiquan... any one of them, if practiced to its fullest extent, is far superior to their Systema and Krav Maga!"
"The problem is, no one can actually use these things in real combat and teach them to our soldiers!" Master Zhang sighed.
All eyes were once again focused on Ma Cong.
Their meaning couldn't be clearer.
"Next week, a new round of exchange meetings will be held at a secret base on the outskirts of Beijing," General Zhou said, looking at Ma Cong and emphasizing each word. "This time, the team coming is the U.S. Navy SEALs."
"Their fighting system integrates various techniques such as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Muay Thai, and Filipino stick fighting, making it very comprehensive and extremely fierce."
"My request is very simple."
General Zhou held up one finger.
"This exchange meeting will include a total of three unarmed combat matches."
"I hope you can represent us and play in one of the games."
"And we must win!"
"This is your test." General Zhou's eyes were sharp as knives. "If you can win decisively and cleanly in a real, unregulated, live-fire match against the world's top masters using traditional Chinese martial arts, then no one will object to your position as chief instructor. The entire military will allocate all its resources to you and fully support your 'Practical Application of Traditional Chinese Martial Arts' project."
"Conversely, if you lose, or win badly, then our conversation today can only be considered a dream."
Ma Cong did not answer immediately after hearing this.
The images from the video were still replaying in his mind.
Systema's shockwave, Krav Maga's joint lock.
These are indeed the world's most advanced military combat techniques.
They abandoned all frills and only pursued the most efficient way to kill enemies.
This aligns perfectly with the essence of Chinese martial arts.
But Ma Cong also realized that these fighting techniques had their advantages and limitations.
They rely too much on physical confrontation and the application of skills, and their understanding and application of "energy" are still at a relatively rudimentary stage.
Compared to traditional Chinese martial arts, which have already perfected the art of "strength" and even touched the threshold of "divine skill," these are still far behind.
For example, Systema's shockwave seems mysterious, but in the face of true Tai Chi "listening to the force," as soon as the opponent makes contact, the direction of the force will be instantly discerned and then easily neutralized.
For example, the joint lock in Krav Maga looks fierce, but against the footwork of Baguazhang, the opponent might not even be able to touch the hem of your clothes.
Not to mention, he also possesses the ferocity of Bajiquan and the penetrating power of Xingyiquan.
Is it really that hard to beat them?
A confident smile curved at the corners of Ma Cong's mouth.
He raised his head and looked at General Zhou.
"Not even one game."
"Huh?" General Zhou was taken aback.
"I played all three matches." Ma Cong's tone was as calm as if he were talking about something trivial. "I didn't want to waste time."
The entire courtyard fell into a deathly silence in an instant.
Qin Zhenshan, Elder Dong, Master Zhang, and even General Zhou all stared at Ma Cong in disbelief.
The expressions on their faces were as if they had seen a ghost.
One person against three?
Take on three top combat instructors from the U.S. Navy SEALs?
Is this kid crazy? Or is he talking in his sleep?
They had anticipated various reactions from Ma Cong: confidence, seriousness, or even rejection.
But to their utter surprise, Ma Cong said something like that.
"Young friend, this...this is no joke." Qin Zhenshan was the first to react and quickly advised, "The SEALs' combat instructors are all veterans who have crawled out of mountains of corpses and seas of blood; their combat experience is extremely rich. Even we aren't confident of winning one-on-one, let alone you taking on three..."
"I know," Ma Cong interrupted him. "I just think that doing it one by one is too slow."
His gaze swept over everyone present.
"Don't you want to see if traditional Chinese martial arts can actually be used in combat?"
"Then I'll show you clearly."
"Let those Americans see this clearly too."