Qin Fengyun and Fan Lei, among others, were clearly not expecting Zhao Yi to say such a thing, and their faces were all filled with surprise.
Immediately after, the three of them reacted, especially Qin Fengyun.
After the initial surprise, he narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze becoming sharp:
"Chief, when you say I'm not as good as you, do you mean my ability in training Special Forces, or various military skills...?"
"In all aspects, including close-quarters combat, which you, Qin Fengyun, are most proficient in."
Zhao Yi smirked, his tone exceptionally confident.
In the future, even the Military Region's top soldiers would only have the qualification to apply for the Special Forces.
There were countless examples of those top soldiers from other units going to the Special Forces and finding their performance at the bottom.
He and his comrades, every single Special Forces soldier, were once the cream of the crop in their respective units.
Someone at Qin Fengyun's level would only just meet the threshold to even see them.
As soon as he said this, Li Daniu's expression was stunned, and Fan Lei's eyes widened.
Zhao Yi's words could only be described with one word.
That was — arrogant!
Too arrogant!
When it came to military theory and training methods, they admittedly felt inferior to Zhao Yi.
But Zhao Yi claimed his military skills were also superior to theirs.
This was something the few top soldiers could not accept; they were all outstanding individuals forged in real combat and military competitions.
Anyone who could dominate the entire army in a certain aspect and win the championship was undoubtedly a hero among men.
Qin Fengyun also showed a look of defiance:
"Chief, although you are a leader and your rank is higher than mine, I don't quite agree with what you just said."
Hearing this, Zhao Yi chuckled softly:
"There's an old saying that goes, 'Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth.' Whether my skill is higher than yours, wouldn't we know if we tried it out at the training ground?"
Qin Fengyun frowned: "Chief, do you mean that you want to have a combat match with me?"
"Of course, if you don't believe I'm stronger than you."
Zhao Yi smiled.
After receiving various Special Forces skills as system rewards, Zhao Yi really wanted to find someone to practice with, but Special Forces matters had always been busy, and he hadn't found an opportunity.
Now, Qin Fengyun, the champion of close-quarters combat, was a good training partner.
Moreover, as a former Special Forces soldier, Zhao Yi, even without the system's enhancement, was confident that his combat skills were not inferior to Qin Fengyun's.
And his words further ignited Qin Fengyun's fighting spirit.
"Good! Then let's compete! I'll take you to the regiment's training ground!"
Qin Fengyun said almost without thinking.
Beside them, Li Daniu and Fan Lei exchanged glances, both seeing strong curiosity and doubt in each other's eyes.
Clearly, neither of them quite believed that Zhao Yi, an Instructor and an officer from an administrative background, could defeat the top soldier Qin Fengyun in close-quarters combat.
However, this was also an opportunity for them to see if Zhao Yi, this Special Forces Instructor, truly had capability and real talent, or if he was just a 'Zhao Kuo' who only knew how to talk on paper.
A few minutes later, Zhao Yi, Qin Fengyun, and their group of four arrived at an open training ground.
"This spot will do, Chief."
Qin Fengyun looked at the ground beneath his feet, then adopted the stance used in Military Region competitions:
"Chief, please excuse me."
Zhao Yi chuckled softly, likewise taking up his stance:
"Just treat me as an enemy on the battlefield. Give it your all; don't let me look down on you, the competition champion."
Qin Fengyun's eyes narrowed. He had originally planned to use only eighty percent of his strength, out of respect for Zhao Yi being a leader, but now that Zhao Yi had spoken, it was as if the honor of all soldiers in the army was placed upon him.
Whether for himself or for the comrades he had defeated in competitions, Qin Fengyun had to give his all to show Zhao Yi that he, a top soldier, was not famous for nothing!
Thinking this, Qin Fengyun no longer hesitated and threw a punch at Zhao Yi, taking the initiative!
Li Daniu and Fan Lei, who were watching from the side, both had their eyes fixed. Although their strongest area was not close-quarters combat, being top soldiers meant that even their weaker areas were stronger than those of regular soldiers.
Qin Fengyun's moves were pure Southwest Military Region military boxing, with standard, swift, and powerful actions, almost flawless.
If it were them, although they could parry, if Qin Fengyun maintained this level of close combat, they would at most hold out for a while before being defeated.
"Good move!"
Zhao Yi sidestepped and clapped his hands, deflecting Qin Fengyun's punch while simultaneously closing in to attack Qin Fengyun.
"Bang!"
"Such great strength!"
Qin Fengyun was startled. Zhao Yi's block and counterattack were not only full of skill but also incredibly powerful!
Fortunately, he had decided to go all out from the beginning; otherwise, if he had been careless and underestimated his opponent, Qin Fengyun would have been overwhelmed by Zhao Yi's raw power and exposed a weakness.
"Slap!"
"Slap!"
"Slap!"
After a few more moves, Qin Fengyun's expression completely changed.
Zhao Yi was not just a little stronger than he had imagined!
Zhao Yi not only steadily suppressed him in combat techniques, but he was also stronger and reacted faster! In terms of physical fitness, he was completely dominant!
At this moment, Qin Fengyun was being forced back repeatedly. Zhao Yi's punches and kicks were both fast and heavy. He was already exerting all his strength just to react and parry, with no way to counterattack.
"Bang!"
"Oh no!"
Due to his inner shock, Qin Fengyun's footwork faltered for a moment, and Zhao Yi seized the opportunity to take him down directly.
Then, Zhao Yi raised his fist, and before Qin Fengyun could react, he slammed it hard into the sand next to his head.
"Bang!"
Sand sprayed onto Qin Fengyun's face, causing his body to instinctively jolt.
"Alright, the match ends here."
Zhao Yi stood up with a smile, extending his hand to Qin Fengyun to help him up.
This display was enough; he didn't need to continue bullying Qin Fengyun.
And aside from the one mistake where he was distracted and taken down, Qin Fengyun's overall performance also satisfied Zhao Yi.
Qin Fengyun's skill level, even among new recruits for future Special Forces recruitment, could be considered above average and showed talent.
On the other side, Qin Fengyun, who was pulled up by Zhao Yi, and Li Daniu and Fan Lei, who were watching from the side, all had their mouths wide open, speechless.
None of them had expected such a result!
The seemingly refined Zhao Yi had actually easily defeated the close-quarters combat champion, Qin Fengyun!
Especially Qin Fengyun himself, having competed against Zhao Yi, had the most profound understanding of Zhao Yi's strength.
An expert's first move reveals everything.
Zhao Yi had beaten him to the point where he could barely retaliate, whereas even when he, as a top soldier, competed against other soldiers, it was usually a back-and-forth affair.
He had only seen a few instances of soldiers competing in the Military Region where one side completely overwhelmed the other.
And in these few instances, it was usually an Instructor teaching military boxing to new recruits, picking out a troublemaker among them for a match to establish authority.
In other words, in front of Zhao Yi, he, the top soldier, was no different from a raw recruit!