Hollywood: The Greatest Showman

Chapter 286: Bloodied Clash

The tense and bloody atmosphere slowly permeated the air, the intense exchange of offense and defense was so rapid that it left no room for distraction. This was no longer just acting; it was a real one-on-one battle, as if the two men were truly standing in a boxing ring, fighting with every ounce of life they had. A single moment of carelessness could mean being pinned to the ground, completely losing the duel.

Renly's balance faltered slightly, and he was quickly knocked to the ground.

Gal, unable to bear watching, averted her eyes. The dust dancing in the dim light made her throat dry, and the surging testosterone made it almost impossible to breathe, her chest tightly compressed with burning intensity. She could almost see it: after Renly fell, he had completely lost the upper hand. Vin only needed to take one quick step forward to pin Renly down and beat him until he spat blood. The sight was unbearable.

But unexpectedly, Renly didn't use his hands. With just the strength of his core, he flipped back onto his feet with a nimble kip-up. Before he even had time to catch his breath, his power had already regained balance. The fierce and rapid exchange was so intense that it seemed to ignite sparks in the air.

Renly knew he couldn't give Vin any breathing room. Supporting himself on his right foot, he launched himself forward, leaping high into the air, and brought his tightly clenched right fist crashing down from above. The forceful dive sliced through the air, and with precision and ferocity, he struck Vin in the neck and shoulder area. The powerful blow sent Vin flying backward, slamming him into the wall with a painful groan.

But Vin would never surrender. Without waiting for his body to react, and without giving Renly any time to respond, he reflexively swung his fist.

Renly, who had the upper hand, swiftly dodged Vin's punch, propelled himself forward like a bullet, and rammed his shoulder into Vin's waist. However, he didn't immediately strike with his fists; instead, he used his shoulder to lift Vin. The heavy, cumbersome body weighed down on Renly's shoulder, his chest nearly bursting. Renly had to clench his teeth, holding his breath entirely, and using the strength of his legs and core, he hoisted Vin up and threw him out with momentum.

Crash! Crash!

Vin crashed directly into the nearby glass window, falling helplessly into the shards of glass. Even someone as tough as him couldn't help but let out a short cry of pain, every muscle in his body seemingly protesting, and the scorching breath raged in his lungs, making it impossible to catch his breath.

Seeing Vin lying in the shards of glass, Renly knew this was a golden opportunity! Just moments ago, he had been the one on the ground, but Vin missed the chance to strike, allowing him to find a way to turn the tide; but now, Renly wouldn't let that happen.

Raising his fist, Renly was about to climb over the windowsill to continue his assault when Justin's frantic shout echoed in his ears, "Cut! Cut! Cut!"

Renly's steps hesitated slightly, his boiling mind cooling down a bit. Then he saw Justin stride forward, standing between him and Vin. In those brief two breaths, Vin had already gotten back on his feet, his eyes fierce and venomous as he glared at Renly, like a wounded wolf, his bloodshot eyes filled with madness.

But in the end, neither of them stepped forward again.

Justin looked at Renly, then at Vin. He wanted to scold them both harshly, but after thinking about it carefully, he didn't know where to start. It was Vin who had pushed harder first, but then Renly had fought back in kind. The two of them were evenly matched, neither willing to back down.

Unbelievable, wasn't it?

In a straightforward confrontation without any tricks, Renly had withstood Vin's storm of attacks and even countered, once again!

Although in terms of raw strength, Renly was no match for Vin, completely overpowered; in terms of combat intelligence, Renly had successfully outmaneuvered him. Whether it was the use of moves or the timing of dodges, Renly had maximized his advantages.

What was expected to be a one-sided massacre turned into a stalemate—just what "Fast & Furious 5" was hoping for. This was perfect.

But with enemies confronting each other, their animosity grew, and it was clear that some real heat had been exchanged. Both of them were injured, and that's only what was visible on the surface; the extent of their internal injuries was unknown. This was becoming tricky.

Justin hesitated for a moment, the words stuck in his throat, but ultimately, he didn't say anything to stop them. Instead, he loudly said, "Let's change the angle and reshoot the next part," effectively interrupting the previous scene.

Renly and Vin remained poised to strike, their fists still clenched, as the tense atmosphere continued to spread between them. Justin felt like he was about to suffocate, unable to move. He stared at the two of them in terror, swallowing hard and breaking into a sweat—what if he became collateral damage?

After a brief pause, Renly was the first to slowly lower his stance, but his eyes remained locked on Vin, not relaxing his vigilance for a moment. Then Vin slowly straightened up, releasing his tension, but his muscles were still taut.

Justin turned around and noticed the blood on Renly's cheek—real blood. Earlier, Vin had landed a heavy punch on Renly's cheekbone, causing blood to splatter. The sight was terrifying. Now, the blood was still slowly trickling from the wound, which was quite alarming. If Renly's face was permanently scarred, the consequences would be dire. Just thinking about it made Justin shudder.

"Renly, are you okay?" Justin asked, worried.

The response was a spit, but it wasn't from Renly. Turning his head, he saw it was Vin, giving a disdainful look as he spat out a mouthful of thick blood. His gaze never wavered as he scrutinized Renly up and down.

However, Renly didn't care. He raised his left hand and slowly wiped the blood from his cheek with his thumb, his eyes never leaving Vin. The fiery gaze radiated a bloody aura, filled with a dangerously seductive menace that sent chills down the spine.

The tension spread around them, and then a large group of people rushed between them—Renly's team, Vin's team, the crew... A crowd of people completely separated the two.

Amidst the hustle and bustle, they broke off their eye contact. Neither said much, retracting their gazes and walking briskly in different directions.

Renly sat down nearby, and Nathan, who had been standing by in shock, finally snapped out of it. He hurried over, staring at the blood on Renly's face. "Renly, are you okay?" Nathan's voice trembled slightly as he spoke.

Vin Diesel, currently the leading action star of the younger generation, was recognized for his physical prowess, the epitome of a strength-based action actor. Apart from Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, getting the better of Vin in a direct confrontation was incredibly difficult.

Renly knew that in a head-to-head clash, he wasn't Vin's match, both in terms of strength and skill. But he also knew that if he allowed himself to be overwhelmed, Vin wouldn't stop and might even take advantage of the situation—Vin still harbored a grudge over the "Buried" screening incident.

This was a vicious cycle with no clear solution. The only way to deal with it was to face it head-on. Vin was the type to stick to his guns. Only by withstanding his onslaught in a direct confrontation would he back off. For the sake of "Fast & Furious 5" and for himself, Renly had to fight back with all he had.

Renly's only advantage was his agility and quick thinking in the moment.

Vin was a traditional American action star with relatively few martial arts moves, mostly straightforward. If he were up against one of the top Chinese martial arts stars, Vin would be the one getting crushed; this was Renly's only chance. He could predict Vin's moves, which were mostly limited to a few combinations. If it were Vin versus Dwayne, it would be combination punches clashing, but Renly could break the routine and gain the upper hand in the duel.

Judging by the earlier scene, Renly succeeded.

"I'm fine," Renly waved his hand, still a bit out of breath. Vin's punches were really heavy; every blow made his muscles feel the weight of the pressure, even his internal organs ached slightly, and every inch of his body was in pain, making it hard to focus.

In his field of vision, a fist-sized ice pack appeared. Renly frowned, looked up, and saw Nathan's worried face, along with the makeup artist standing beside him, looking troubled. Paul's voice came to his ears, "Renly, for continuity in the next scene, you'd better apply the ice pack and redo your makeup."

This time, Renly didn't refuse. He took the ice pack and pressed it against the wound. The cold touch made his face burn, and Renly couldn't help but grit his teeth, letting out a long breath as the boiling blood finally started to cool down. Noticing Nathan's nervous gaze, Renly lowered his eyes and half-jokingly said, "It's nothing, just a scratch. The wound looks scary, but it should be fine in a day or two."

Renly hadn't seen the wound, but he could feel that his facial muscles were intact. He figured that Vin hadn't expected that punch to land, so the force went off target, resulting in a scratch.

"Compared to a rock, this is nothing," Renly said, ice pack pressed to the wound, in all seriousness.

"Phfft," Paul couldn't hold back and burst into laughter. "Rock" was Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's nickname. On the surface, Renly's comment suggested that he'd been hit by a fist, not a rock, so the damage wasn't that bad; but beneath that, there seemed to be an underlying message—was Renly implying that Van didn't measure up to Dwayne?

Gal and the others soon grasped the situation. Observing Renly's bedraggled appearance while still maintaining a sense of humor left them both amused and exasperated. Nathan crouched stupefied in his spot, nearly breaking into tears.