374: Chapter 374 It's just a game, but it's really too hard for me.

"Yo! Yo! Look at this ball, it's big and round!"

Boom!

Sander suddenly slammed her shoulder forward, accompanied by a coarse roar.

A load-bearing stone pillar in the City Lord's Manor hall instantly exploded with spiderweb-like cracks.

Gravel fell in a shower; fortunately, Chen You dodged quickly and wasn't hit.

"Stop!" Chen You covered his ears.

Sander maintained her shoulder-leaning posture, the basketball bouncing frantically between her broad palm and the floor, creating afterimages.

"Mentor, is my momentum not enough?"

"The momentum is too much!" Chen You pointed at the tottering pillar.

"You're going to an audition, not a demolition site! The core is rhythm and attitude, not vibrating the judges to death with sound waves!"

Sander put away the basketball, her two-meter-tall frame looking somewhat aggrieved.

"But my ancestors' combat techniques were originally meant for killing enemies."

"Times have changed, Sander." Chen You walked around her with his hands behind his back, speaking with deep sincerity.

"This is an era of peace; we must conquer the audience with love and peace."

"Come, take off your leather armor."

Sander froze, protecting her chest with her hands as she took a wary half-step back.

"Mentor, art is art, but I don't sell my body."

Chen You rolled his eyes, nearly spitting out a mouthful of blood in frustration.

"What are you thinking! I'm telling you to change your look! This outfit doesn't match the stage."

"Go find two sturdy beast-hide straps to hang on your pants. And your hair..."

Chen You stared at Sander's wild dreadlocks and gestured.

"Unravel them, part them from the middle, and comb it into a middle-part."

Ten minutes later.

Sander was wearing a tight linen shirt, loose beast-hide trousers on her lower half, and two thick leather straps cinched over her shoulders.

Her dreadlocks had been forcibly unraveled and combed into a middle-part that felt extremely out of place.

Combined with her dark brown skin and explosive muscles, the visual impact was comparable to a Tyrant from Resident Evil wearing a sailor suit.

Chen You suppressed his laughter, pinching his thigh to keep a serious face.

"Very good, now you have the basic look of an idol."

"Next, we will combine singing, dancing, RAP, and basketball."

"Watch my movements carefully."

Chen You walked to the center of the hall and took a deep breath, casting aside his dignity as a Cultivator.

He bent his waist slightly, dribbling an imaginary ball with his right hand while his left hand mimicked pulling a strap, his shoulders shrugging to the rhythm.

"Ji ni... cough, remember this shoulder-shaking frequency. Then turn, toss the ball, catch it, and you must have lyrics in your mouth at the same time."

Chen You quickly demonstrated the set of movements etched into his DNA.

Sander was stunned.

"Mentor..." She swallowed, a fanatical light flashing in her eyes.

"These steps seem disorganized, but they actually hide murderous intent."

"The shoulder shaking can deflect an enemy's force at any time, and the moment of the turn and ball toss is a perfect lure to draw the enemy in deep!"

"Is... Is this a high-level combat technique?"

Chen You's mouth twitched.

If you insist on interpreting it that way, there's nothing I can do.

"Exactly!" Chen You went along with it, nodding heavily. "Add the rap lyrics, and it will absolutely blow the whole place away."

Sander scratched her bare forehead.

"Mentor, what lyrics should I say?"

Chen You sighed.

He suddenly missed the Star Sea King.

If that guy were here, he could have saved himself a lot of trouble.

"Listen carefully, I'll only teach this once."

"This is called RAP, a high-end vocal technique. The core lies in rhyme and attitude."

Chen You snapped his fingers with one hand, stepping to the beat.

"Yo, yo. Hear my name. The King of Cangxing City."

"Two meters tall. Muscles stronger than iron."

"You ask me what art really looks like."

"A Four-Step Layup will break your defense!"

Sander's eyes widened, a fanatical light erupting from them.

"This..." Her breathing was rapid, her chest heaving violently.

"Is this the true essence of art? Every word, every sentence, strikes the soul!"

"Correct." Chen You crossed his arms. "These are your exclusive lyrics."

"Now, try it with your Iron Mountain Lean and dribbling."

Sander took a deep breath.

She closed her eyes.

Thump! Thump!

The basketball flew up and down in her hands.

She snapped her eyes open and slammed her shoulder forward.

"Yo! Yo! Hear my name! The King of Cangxing City!"

The voice was deafening.

"Two meters tall! Muscles stronger than iron!"

Sander spun around, passing the basketball through her legs.

She followed up with a powerful Iron Mountain Lean.

Boom!

"Keep going! Don't stop! More emotion!" Chen You shouted through gritted teeth, while discreetly moving two steps to the side.

Sander was completely immersed in her own world.

"You ask me what art really looks like!"

She suddenly leaped up, her massive body performing an extremely distorted double-clutch in mid-air.

"A Four-Step Layup will break your defense!"

The moment she landed, the basketball hit the ground.

A visible shockwave mixed with sound waves rippled outward.

"Mentor! I feel it!" Sander stopped her movements.

She rushed toward Chen You with a face full of fanaticism, "My blood is boiling! The power of my ancestors is awakening in my song!"

Chen You looked at the faint red status icon appearing above her head, his eyelids twitching wildly.

[System Prompt: Cangxing City Lord James Sander has comprehended the self-created skill 'Sonic Vibration: Iron Mountain Lean'. Currently in an excited state.]

She actually practiced her way into a skill.

"Very good." Chen You steadied his mind.

He glanced at the system interface; the Guild BOSS Battle icon had already appeared, with a countdown below it.

21 minutes and 35 seconds.

Less than half an hour left.

"Your basic skills are already solid, but if you want to take the Center position in tomorrow night's audition, these lyrics aren't enough."

Chen You's brain worked rapidly.

He began to pour out the catchy songs and internet buzzwords he had heard before.

"Next, I'll teach you a higher-level technique—Flow transformation."

Sander immediately stood straight, holding the ball in both hands with a face full of reverence.

"Listen well." Chen You cleared his throat.

"The pace quickens, and your pronunciation must be clear."

"I've practiced for two and a half years, sweat soaking through my clothes."

"You laugh at me for being too crazy, I laugh at you for not seeing through it."

"Basketball is my sword, the stage is my sky."

"If you provoke me, I'll send you straight to the Western Heaven!"

Sander muttered the words, trying to keep up with Chen You's rhythm.

At first, her tongue frequently got tied.

She mispronounced 'two and a half years' and 'Western Heaven'.

Chen You interrupted her ruthlessly.

"Again! Your enunciation must be fierce! Your attitude must be wild!"

Sander showed astonishing persistence.

The dull thuds of the basketball hitting the ground and Sander's coarse RAP echoed continuously in the hall.

"I've practiced for two and a half years! Sweat soaking through my clothes!"

Accompanied by the song, Sander's dribbling became smoother and smoother, and the transition to the Iron Mountain Lean was flawless.

Chen You sat on a chair, crossing his legs and offering critiques from time to time.

"Put more emphasis on the word 'crazy'!"

"Watch your expression during the turn! Bring out that three-part sneer!"

Sander immediately squeezed out an extremely distorted smile.

She roared wildly while dribbling.

The guards outside the City Lord's Manor looked at each other.

Hearing the commotion from inside, no one dared to approach even a single step.