"This kid’s got tough bones."
By the edge of the training ground, Wang Ta narrowed his eyes slightly. The two had exchanged ten moves in the blink of an eye.
Liu Man’s Toad Fist became increasingly unpredictable—crouching, bouncing, side-shoveling, and back-sweeping. His entire body flipped and shifted around Chen Yuan. His palms acted like two iron shovels, digging at Chen Yuan’s joints and soft spots from all sorts of tricky angles. However, Chen Yuan’s defense was airtight. When Liu Man shoveled at the back of his knees, he would raise his knee in the Rooster Form to block; when Liu Man swept at his waist, he would resolve it with the Snake Form to entangle the wrist; when Liu Man struck at his heart, he met it head-on with the Beng Fist. Meeting every attack with a fitting counter, he didn’t fall at a disadvantage in the slightest.
Liu Man gradually felt something was off. He had reached Minor Achievement in Muscle-refining for quite a few years now. The muscle strength of the Muscle-refining stage was far beyond what a Bone-refining Martial Artist could compare to. If an ordinary martial artist who had just broken through the Muscle-refining stage traded punches with him, their arms would definitely turn to jelly within three strikes. Their muscles simply wouldn’t be able to withstand the recoil. Yet this Chen Yuan had met him head-on for over a dozen punches. Every strike clashed solidly together, but the young man’s arms didn’t weaken, nor did his punching power diminish. Instead, the edges of his own palms were turning slightly red from the recoil.
Little did he know, Chen Yuan’s foundation of confidence didn’t lie in his muscles at all. Iron Bones was the first refinement of his skeleton, and Elephant Bone Perfection was the second. With these two foundations stacked together, Chen Yuan’s skeletal strength had long surpassed the limits of an ordinary Muscle-refining Martial Artist. Every time their fists and palms clashed, the recoil force transmitted to Chen Yuan’s bones would be mostly neutralized. The remaining force wasn’t nearly enough to shake his stance. Meanwhile, although Liu Man’s muscles were thicker and tougher, his skeletal strength was nowhere near Chen Yuan’s. Every head-on clash felt like slamming his fleshy palms against an iron plate. His flesh didn’t hurt, but his bones did.
What made Liu Man suffer even more in silence was Chen Yuan’s Dragon Sinews, which had also reached Minor Achievement. Under the initial refinement of the fascia, Chen Yuan’s tendons were far more resilient than an ordinary person’s. When Liu Man’s Hidden Force penetrated, the fascia would Unload three-tenths of it, and the Iron Bones would withstand another four-tenths. The force that actually managed to harm the muscles and meridians was barely one or two-tenths.
Another dozen or so moves passed.
The more Liu Man fought, the more alarmed he became. He thought, "This is wrong, completely wrong!" This was no longer just a matter of having tough bones. His Toad Fist had a killing move called "Crashing Toad," which involved throwing his entire body forward to ram the opponent’s chest and abdomen with his shoulder and elbow. Just moments ago, he had found an opening and landed a Crashing Toad squarely on Chen Yuan’s chest. Yet, Chen Yuan only took half a step back before steadying his posture. On the contrary, his own shoulder felt as if it had crashed into an iron wall, leaving his entire shoulder blade numb from the impact. Was this really the physique of someone who had just broken through the Muscle-refining stage? He even felt that Chen Yuan’s body was sturdier than his, someone who had achieved Minor Achievement in Muscle-refining.
However, he was ultimately at the Minor Achievement in Hidden Force; his technical advantage was still present. He noticed that although Chen Yuan’s physical strength didn’t lose to his own, his application of Hidden Force wasn’t smooth and unified enough. The force exerted from the Beng Fist was heavy and ruthless enough, but there was always a trace of sluggishness when retracting the force. This trace of sluggishness was completely imperceptible to onlookers, but in front of a veteran like Liu Man, who had immersed himself in Hidden Force for years, it was enough for him to maintain an equilibrium. Whenever Chen Yuan’s combo was about to connect, he would use the Toad Fist’s "Bouncing Toad Step" to spring back, using this split-second gap to readjust his rhythm.
But what Liu Man failed to notice was that Chen Yuan’s footwork was silently turning the tide of the battle. His Bouncing Toad Step was fast, but Chen Yuan’s footwork was even faster, moving in stepping arcs. Every time Liu Man sprang backward, Chen Yuan would be waiting for him at the flank of his landing spot, forcing him to meet the next punch head-on from the most uncomfortable position.
This was the result of Chen Yuan’s refined footwork after practicing the Ripple Step. The Swallow Form was already known for its agility and lightness. By integrating the "Swallow Skimming the Water" footwork into his offensive and defensive transitions, Chen Yuan could always seize the most advantageous position for exerting force during his advances and retreats. Liu Man’s attention was entirely captivated by Chen Yuan’s absurd strength, completely unaware that the trajectory of his every retreat was within Chen Yuan’s prediction.
By the edge of the training ground, Wang Ta’s brow furrowed tighter and tighter. He could see it. This Chen Yuan wasn’t taking a beating at all; he was controlling the entire field. Chen Yuan applied Yin to draw every punch and palm strike from Liu Man toward the angles he excelled at handling, and every one of Chen Yuan’s counterattacks landed exactly in Liu Man’s most awkward spots. To be able to fight to such an extent against Liu Man—who had reached Minor Achievement in Hidden Force—right after breaking through the Muscle-refining stage, what would he be capable of given time?
Zheng Suifeng’s expression had long lost its previous composure. He originally thought Chen Yuan was just young, arrogant, and trying to show off. A beating from Liu Man would surely make him back down. But looking at it now, it was hard to say who was teaching who a lesson.
Another dozen moves passed. The two had exchanged nearly fifty moves.
Liu Man’s forehead was already covered in a fine layer of sweat, and his breathing began to grow heavy. The Toad Fist excelled in explosive power. Every move required mobilizing the muscles of the entire body, resulting in immense stamina consumption. Meanwhile, Chen Yuan’s breathing remained steady and long. His Three-Body Stance didn’t waver in the slightest, and every Beng Fist he threw out was still just as heavy, just as stable.
Suddenly, Liu Man bounced backward, retreating three steps in a row. Spreading his hands open, he shouted at the top of his lungs, "I’m done fighting!"
This action came so abruptly that Chen Yuan’s fist stopped a mere two inches from his chest. The wind from the punch flattened the collar inward against his chest. The onlookers exchanged confused glances, wondering why Liu Man had suddenly called it off.
Liu Man took a deep breath and straightened his clothes. Then, he did something that left all the Zheng Family disciples dumbfounded. He cupped his fists and bowed deeply and formally toward Chen Yuan. With unprecedented respect in his tone, he said, "Brother Chen, I had eyes but failed to recognize Mount Tai. Please forgive me for my earlier insolence."
He straightened his back. The caustic bitterness on his face had completely vanished, replaced by an expression of utmost sincerity. It even carried a hint of wariness.
He had lived long enough to know who he should provoke and who he shouldn’t. The young man before him had clashed head-on with him for fifty moves without his strength waning or his footwork faltering. What was even more terrifying were those eyes, which remained as calm as still water from beginning to end. Even fighting to this extent, he didn’t show a single trace of anger. This kind of person wasn’t a soft persimmon to be bullied; he was a blade with its sharp edge concealed within a sheath. He had a brain; otherwise, he wouldn’t have survived until now.
"From today onward, I, Liu Man, will no longer interfere in the matter regarding Third Miss Gu." He paused, turning to look at Zheng Suifeng with an expression that clearly stated he had been beaten into submission.