Failure!

"Brother Shi, it's not that I'm being disloyal. You were the one who insisted on seeing our Gambling House Master. Since that's the case, Feng Zai, go invite the master over. The rest of you, clear out the backyard."

Old Fourth sighed, then gave orders to his men.

Shi Lei gave a mocking laugh.

Clearing out the backyard—were they planning to fight?

Before long, the backyard had been tidied up, leaving a large open space.

Then, less than a moment later, a young man about the same height as Shi Lei emerged from the inner room. Feng Zai followed several steps behind him, barely daring to breathe, as if the young man radiated an utterly terrifying aura that kept him from approaching.

"You're that so-called damn Gambling House Master? I thought you'd have Three Heads and Six Arms."

Shi Lei snorted.

He sounded unconcerned, but Zhang Lingshan could clearly sense that Shi Lei was nervous.

After spending so much time with Shi Lei, Zhang Lingshan knew exactly what kind of person he was.

If this guy had not been nervous, he would definitely have cursed arrogantly and smugly. He would never have spouted such a useless, fierce-on-the-outside but weak-on-the-inside remark as this.

That showed that although this young man looked utterly ordinary, only somewhat sturdier than the average person—

In Shi Lei's eyes, he might not be so simple.

This involved a level that Zhang Lingshan, a beginner who only knew the Standing Posture, could not see.

Sure enough.

The young man uttered a term Zhang Lingshan had never heard before.

"Skin Grinding."

The young man sized Shi Lei up for a moment, then grinned and crooked a finger. "Shi Lei, right? A fine disciple of Hong Clan Martial Hall. My hands happen to be itching today, so let's have a spar and see which of us Skin Grinding practitioners is superior."

"You dare oppose Hong Clan Martial Hall?"

Shi Lei shouted fiercely.

The young man said, "It's only a spar, not opposition. Besides, you owe our gambling house so much money. If I report this to Hall Master Hong, how do you think he'll view you?"

"You!"

Shi Lei's expression changed instantly.

He had never imagined a situation like today's in his entire life.

All along, he had relied on the name of Hong Clan Martial Hall to do whatever he wanted. As long as he did not go too far or provoke people he could not afford to offend, everyone would give him some face.

But today, this man refused to play by the rules.

He actually wanted to report his gambling debts to his master!

He had never been particularly favored, nor did he possess exceptional talent. He had only come this far because he knew how to flatter people and was skilled at reading faces and watching moods.

If this man reported him to his master, then with his master's temperament, who knew how he would deal with him.

At that thought, Shi Lei's back turned cold.

No one had ever played things this ruthlessly. After all, one never knew when they might have matters that required his help, when they might need him to pull strings for them.

The martial world was not merely about fighting and killing; it was also about human connections and worldly dealings.

But clearly, the young man before him understood nothing of human connections and worldly dealings. He simply wanted to fight and kill with him.

What should he do?

Shi Lei panicked.

"Don't be nervous."

Seeing sweat on Shi Lei's forehead, the young man smiled faintly. "Reporting you to Hall Master Hong does me no good either. So how about this? Fight me once. If you win, every debt will be written off."

Shi Lei was delighted upon hearing this. There was such a good deal?

But he quickly calmed down and asked, "What if you win?"

"If I win, everything stays as it is. You lose nothing anyway, because today is essentially me paying to invite you to spar with me. As long as you don't go to Hall Master Hong to complain after losing, everyone will be happy."

The young man said with a genial smile.

Shi Lei gritted his teeth at the jab and shouted, "Fine! Then today, I'll properly spar with you on behalf of Hong Clan Martial Hall!"

"No!"

The young man hurriedly waved his hands. "Not on behalf of Hong Clan Martial Hall—on behalf of yourself. And I represent only myself as well. Everyone here shall serve as witnesses. I am Chen Hui. Please enlighten me."

As Chen Hui spoke, he performed a cupped-fist salute.

He was very courteous.

Seeing that the other man had left no openings, Shi Lei could not invoke the banner of Hong Clan Martial Hall. He could only cup his fists as well. "Shi Lei. Please instruct me."

After the two finished their formalities, they stepped forward and took their positions in the center of the courtyard.

Whoosh!

Shi Lei exerted force through his fingertips, stretching out his five fingers before clenching them into fists with a snap.

At that moment, anyone looking closely would have seen red blood vessels at his wrists.

Then, with a fierce shout, the blood vessels immediately spread to his finger bones.

"Take my punch!"

Shi Lei roared as he charged forward, both fists smashing viciously toward Chen Hui's chest.

"Good!"

Chen Hui laughed loudly. He immediately pressed his forearms together, sank his legs, leaned forward, then drove forward with a plain, unadorned thrust.

But anyone with sharp eyes would have seen that, at that moment, the skin and muscles on Chen Hui's arms had swelled.

Bang!

The fists and forearms collided, then separated at the first touch.

Thud, thud, thud!

Shi Lei staggered back several steps before finally steadying himself. Yet his hands hung trembling at his sides, his face green and white, his breathing ragged.

Chen Hui, on the other hand, had not moved from his spot. He merely exhaled softly, lowered his arms slowly, and smiled faintly. "You let me win."

With that, he turned and left, tossing back a mocking remark: "With that level of skill, you dared play peacemaker? Listen up, everyone. Don't let word of today's fight get out. If Hall Master Hong learned of it, that would be a grave disrespect to Hall Master Hong. Who would have thought that a disciple of the great Hall Master Hong would be so utterly unable to withstand a single blow?"

Pfft!

Overcome with shame and fury, Shi Lei spat out a mouthful of blood. His face went deathly pale.

He saw the looks in everyone's eyes, then glanced back at Zhang Lingshan. Feeling so ashamed he wished the ground would swallow him whole, he could no longer bear to remain here and turned to run.

Zhang Lingshan froze, still not having recovered from the battle just now.

With only one strike, the two had decided victory and defeat?

And what exactly was the Skin Grinding Realm? He had not seen anything particularly extraordinary about it.

The only things he had noticed were that both men were strong and their steps heavy. In just a few steps, they had sent dust flying all over the courtyard.

And when they collided, the sound had been crisp yet heavy, creating an oppressive feeling in one's chest in that instant.

But apart from that, he could see nothing else.

Was it because the Skin Grinding Realm itself was not that strong, or because his eyesight was too poor for him to understand what he had seen at all?

Zhang Lingshan truly did not understand, but Li Fu understood even less.

The man he had hired had taken his money, accomplished nothing, disgraced himself and run off—and had taken his money with him!

"Xiao Shan, my money, my money! Your Senior Brother Shi took my money away. He didn't rescue Xiao Dong. Instead, he took my money away. You have to get it back for me!"

Li Fu cried anxiously, trembling all over in agitation and nearly fainting onto the ground.

Zhang Lingshan could only support him and say, "Let's go home first. Senior Brother has already run far away. I'll find him tomorrow."

"Go home?"

Old Fourth sneered and swiftly led his men to block their path.

The more amiable he had been toward Shi Lei just now, the more ferocious and vicious his expression was now!

"You old bastard, instead of bringing money to redeem your son, you went and found someone to act as a mediator. Very good. I don't think you need to leave either. As for you, for Shi Lei's and Hong Clan Martial Hall's sake, this matter has nothing to do with you. You may go."