The First Stance of Awe’s Nineteen Forms

Yan Lian’er’s agreement to join put Songyuan Mingyi in an excellent mood. Truly, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for—money can make even ghosts work for you.

Six days remained before the school ranking tournament. Songyuan Mingyi resolved to intensively train in the days ahead. With his current strength, without the aid of his external abilities, he could only spar with Tezuka if the latter used thirty percent of his power. But opponents at the level of Tezuka and Fuji weren’t ones who could simply be defeated with Shinra Tensei or Bansho Ten’in. With his mastery of the Ultra Instinct technique unavailable, Songyuan Mingyi still needed to rely on his Flash Time skill.

Flash Time’s heavy consumption of stamina couldn’t be replenished or increased by the system—there was only one way: real, rigorous physical training! Though only six days remained, with Qian Zhizhi and Yan Lian’er by his side, Songyuan Mingyi believed that after intense practice, his physical abilities would surely reach new heights.

It was worth remembering that in the original story, Seigaku held special training just a week before the National Tournament, which enabled them to defeat Shitenhoji and Rikkai. Of course, some of that was thanks to the protagonist’s aura, but they truly did sweat and toil for their victory. Even in the world of Prince of Tennis, sometimes one must believe in the power of science!

Songyuan Mingyi made a rough calculation. With Yan Lian’er’s last-minute addition to Evergreen Academy, the official tennis club members now numbered eleven. Besides the seven powerful new regulars, including Tezuka and Fuji themselves, there were four veteran regulars: Ueguchi, Shimozawa, Sakyo, and Yojin. Eleven players couldn’t be evenly distributed among the matches; Songyuan Mingyi figured Tezuka would surely include the non-regular club members as well, and their number certainly wouldn’t be small.

No matter how many cannon fodder were added, Songyuan Mingyi knew he would ultimately face the strongest opponent—none other than Kunimitsu Tezuka. Even injured, Tezuka still had his domain and zero-shot available, and since he wasn’t overly concerned with his injury at this stage, he might even use the Pinnacle of Perfection.

Against Tezuka’s domain, Songyuan Mingyi could use Bansho Ten’in to counter and play hit-and-run, but breaking through would require Shinra Tensei. Just like Sanada’s Thunder, only by exerting repulsive force equal to that level could he crack Tezuka’s domain. As for the Pinnacle of Perfection, with Ultra Instinct off limits for now, only Flash Time could be considered. But no matter how one looked at it, to defeat Tezuka, talent alone wasn’t enough—what he needed most was unyielding physical prowess!

Thus, after leaving his grandfather’s school, he sought out Qian Zhizhi and the bus-riding Yan Lian’er to devise a training regimen that would rapidly boost his stamina over the next six days.

Staring at the densely written notes in his notebook on his way home, Songyuan Mingyi was utterly overwhelmed. He’d already prepared himself for hellish training, but the volume set by his two friends was far beyond what he expected. After finishing, would he even be able to attend the ranking matches?

But recalling Qian Zhizhi’s words—that this was the only way to swiftly improve stamina—Songyuan Mingyi slowly closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and reaffirmed his original intention for building the team. With renewed enthusiasm, he cheered himself on, “Hang in there!”

On his way home, Songyuan Mingyi decided to stop by the sporting goods store to have his racket repaired. During his previous match against Akutsu, the excessive repulsive force he applied had caused the racket’s strings to slightly cave in.

Inside the sporting goods store, the female clerk in charge of restringing was shocked to see Songyuan Mingyi had managed to damage a 50-pound racket like that. She questioned whether he was really using it for tennis—such a degree of indentation made her seriously suspect he’d been using it to hit people instead!

The boy could only scratch his head and apologize, insisting he was just a middle schooler. If he ever used the racket to hit someone, he’d likely be the first to get injured. Yet the clerk’s expression only grew more bewildered upon hearing this.

After restringing, Songyuan Mingyi bought two new rackets suited to him. Just like the original characters, he prepared himself with two backup rackets. He’d wanted to pick his favorite color, but the clerk’s gaze felt rather unfriendly, so, embarrassed, he quickly paid and left.

Because Qian and Yan’s training plan was so intense, after leaving the sporting goods store, Songyuan Mingyi immediately began a five-kilometer weighted run. Barely halfway, his breathing became rapid, his heart uncomfortable, and his legs felt as if they were filled with lead.

His pace slowed, and before he could come to a full stop, a familiar female voice shrilled from afar!

“Someone catch that thief! Help!”

A man on roller skates swiftly entered Songyuan Mingyi’s sight. Seeing a short boy blocking his way, the man shouted, “Get out of my way!”

Songyuan Mingyi’s attention was fixed on that female voice. When the thief drew near, he clapped his hands.

“That’s Oda Fuyuka’s voice!”

The thief, seeing the short boy unmoving, gritted his teeth and tried to dodge around him.

A gleam flashed in Songyuan Mingyi’s eyes. He cupped his hands like flower petals and pushed forward, intent on stopping this brazen thief from escaping right under his nose.

“One of the Nineteen Styles of Awei! Super Fierce Dynamic Light Wave!”

Trying to channel Shinra Tensei’s repulsive force through his hands to knock down the thief, the latter instinctively side-slipped away. At that moment, Songyuan Mingyi’s stamina failed him.

“Damn it… running just now almost drained me…”

Breathing heavily, the boy watched as the thief turned back, made a mocking face, and darted around the street corner out of sight.

“It’s Songyuan!”

Oda Fuyuka, followed closely by Iwamura Yuna, called out in surprise as she recognized the boy in the Evergreen Academy uniform.

“Songyuan! Please stop him, he stole my wallet!”

“Leave it to me!”

Songyuan Mingyi dashed off. Even with his stamina depleted and unable to use his special abilities, he could still manage a short sprint. Within seconds, he caught sight of the roller-skating thief ahead!

“Bastard! Idiot! Scoundrel! Stop right there!”

The thief glanced back, astonished to see Songyuan Mingyi still hot on his heels. “He caught up? How is that possible?”

“What a cheat… using roller skates… If only I had a motorcycle!”

As the thief sped up, Songyuan Mingyi, despite his best efforts, found himself falling further behind, the gap widening.

Just as the thief grew blurry in his vision, Songyuan Mingyi happened to spot a motorcycle beside the roadside barrier. Next to it stood a boy in the same school uniform, sporting a watermelon-shaped haircut, and a short companion wearing a green sweatband. The two seemed deep in conversation, but Songyuan Mingyi’s arrival abruptly cut them off.

“Let me borrow your bike!”

The motorcycle was an electric scooter, and since the key was still in, Songyuan Mingyi hopped on and sped away in one smooth motion.

“Damn it!”

Akutsu Jin was caught off guard by Songyuan Mingyi’s sudden theft, nearly toppling over in anger, veins bulging on his forehead. “Damn thief, how dare you steal my scooter! Don’t think you’ll get away so easily…”

He tossed his bag to Tan Taichi, crouched into a sprinter’s stance.

Tan, witnessing this rather embarrassing pose, blushed, recognizing his brother Akutsu’s serious demeanor.

“Ahhh!”

From childhood, Akutsu had possessed extraordinary talent. His start was like a cannonball bursting forth, and within a few breaths, he vanished from Tan’s sight and that of the two girls approaching from behind.

Seeing someone dart away in a flash, Oda Fuyuka and Iwamura Yuna exclaimed in unison, “What… what was that?”

Tan Taichi, holding Akutsu’s bag, glanced at the girls with utter indifference, then shifted his gaze, staring off where Akutsu had disappeared. In a soft voice, he said, “Akutsu brother…”