Zhou Lie, standing over six feet tall, underwent a sudden transformation. The Qi around him swirled like flames, his short hair stood on end, and his muscular frame erupted with a shocking, oppressive presence.
He stomped his feet violently on the ground, shattering the concrete, and launched himself toward Lu Yun like a tiger pouncing down a mountain.
Lu Yun stood his ground, motionless, until the distance between them closed to five meters, then three, then one.
Just as Zhou Lie’s claws were about to touch Lu Yun’s body, a dull impact resounded.
No one saw how Lu Yun moved. They only saw his arms, like iron floodgates, positioned beneath Zhou Lie’s wrists, so precise it was as if they had been waiting there all along.
Zhou Lie’s eyes bulged, the blood vessels covering them clearly visible.
In that instant of contact, he felt as if his wrists hadn’t struck flesh and blood, but rather a piece of steel that had been tempered a thousand times.
No, it was harder than tempered steel. The rebound force traveled up from his wrist bones to his elbows, then jolted his shoulder blades, leaving both of Zhou Lie’s arms numb.
Pain. A long-forgotten sensation shot up from his wrists. ’I haven’t felt pain like this in years!’
Zhou Lie began to speak in disbelief, "Elder Lu, you—"
"Master Zhou, remember not to get distracted in the middle of a fight!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, Lu Yun’s blocking arms suddenly flexed. An irresistible, immense force struck Zhou Lie, sending him staggering backward uncontrollably.
He stomped his feet repeatedly, trying to regain his balance, but he couldn’t stop his backward momentum.
At that moment, Zhou Lie’s center was wide open, his chest completely exposed.
A sharp glint flashed in Lu Yun’s eyes. His right fist shot out like a shooting star and struck Zhou Lie square in the chest!
A sound like muffled thunder erupted. Zhou Lie felt as if his chest had been hit head-on by a battering ram, and his internal organs trembled from the impact.
His muscular, 220-plus-pound frame flew backward like a cannonball.
In an instant, Zhou Lie’s body hurtled toward a stone wall fifty meters away. With a deafening "BOOM!", the wall shattered on impact, sending stone fragments flying and kicking up a cloud of dust.
He lay in the rubble, letting the sharp fragments of stone dig into his back. At the same time, a trickle of warm blood suddenly spilled from the corner of his mouth.
’It hurts so much!’ Zhou Lie felt as if the bones in his chest were about to crack. Even breathing sent a stabbing pain through him.
This pain was so familiar, like a key unlocking memories that had been sealed away for years.
He remembered the hellish days of his childhood when his father had trained him relentlessly. He’d stood shirtless in the dead of winter, practicing his stances and arduously cultivating the Iron Bone Technique.
Back then, he was beaten black and blue every day. At night, the pain would keep him awake, and he’d cry into the corner of his blanket.
But of course, the most important thing was the sliver of long-forgotten fear that rose from the bottom of Zhou Lie’s heart.
It was the shadow of death, so real it made him shudder.
In that fleeting moment, where fear and excitement intertwined, a dark shadow fell over him.
Lu Yun stood before Zhou Lie, his face impassive, as a fist the size of a sandbag slowly drew near.
Seeing this, a blazing fighting spirit ignited in Zhou Lie’s eyes.
He had now confirmed it: this Elder Lu’s physical body was far superior to his own.
’In that case, there’s no need to hold back anymore. I can go all out and have a good fight!’
The next moment, Zhou Lie pushed off the ground with his hands and leaped up. As he clenched his fists, the Qi within his body, like a volcano that had been dormant for years, finally erupted.
A torrential power surged and roared through his meridians, seeping out from every pore.
His muscles bulged and his veins popped. The formless Qi around him steamed like scorching vapor, and the heat it radiated made the surrounding air shimmer and distort.
At this moment, he seemed like a Pure Yang True Body descended upon the world.
"Tiger Roar Golden Bell!"
Zhou Lie roared, the sound shaking the surroundings. As Qi shot through his bones, his joints let out a series of sharp CRACKLES.
He threw a right hook at Lu Yun, his fist wreathed in all the Qi in his body. In response, Lu Yun didn’t dodge or evade, meeting the blow with a punch of his own.
When their fists collided, a shockwave erupted from the point of impact, and the force of the blow made the air itself boom.
The surrounding rubble was kicked up by the blast wave. Zhou Lie gritted his teeth and threw a second punch, then a third, pouring his all into every blow. His Qi surged like the tide, each wave stronger than the last.
However, as time went on, his heart began to sink.
Because Zhou Lie could feel it: every time his Qi invaded Lu Yun’s body, it vanished without a trace, like a stone thrown into the ocean.
On top of that, the pain in his fists was constantly intensifying—the kind of pain that made his very bones and flesh scream in agony.
One punch, two punches, ten punches... Every time he hit Lu Yun, it was like striking indestructible divine iron. The rebound force threatened to shatter his knuckles.
Zhou Lie’s movements grew slower and his form began to fall apart. His breathing became heavy and ragged.
Lu Yun, in contrast, was still moving as if on a leisurely stroll, his breathing terrifyingly steady.
He was like a tireless fighting machine, the force of each of his punches perfectly controlled.
From time to time, Lu Yun would even swing a fist at Zhou Lie’s face, the power behind it controlled with exquisite precision—just enough to not knock him unconscious.
’He’s too strong.’
As their fists continued to clash, Zhou Lie began to question his life. His prized Iron Bone Technique and his immense Qi were so fragile before Elder Lu.
The gap in their power was despair-inducingly vast.
Just as Zhou Lie was succumbing to despair, Lu Yun swung another right hook, which smashed squarely into his face.
Zhou Lie was sent flying through the air, his vision of the world spinning. Finally, with a loud THUD, he crashed heavily onto the rubble, pain flooding him from all directions.
Lying on his back, Zhou Lie gasped for breath, his chest heaving violently. He gazed up at the blazing sun, and the corners of his mouth curved into a gratified smile.

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