A Show of Force

"There are quite a lot of newcomers this time!" a young man suddenly laughed.

"Have you forgotten? This is the once-every-five-years mountain-opening selection!" another young man said.

"No wonder so many trash have come all at once!" The first young man stepped forward. He looked at most eighteen years old, yet his aura had already reached the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, and it was exceptionally condensed.

He clasped his hands behind his back, circling around Zhou Heng and the other eight like a general, then stepped back two paces and placed one foot on a nearby flower bed. "Trash, crawl through my crotch!"

What? This was too much!

The newcomers all burned with rage. Each of them was a local genius who had never suffered such humiliation, and their faces twisted with fury.

This was a show of force!

"Not crawling? Then we'll beat you until you do!" The second young man also stepped forward, his Ninth Layer of Body Refining aura rolling out.

"What good could come from disciples taken in through the mountain-opening selection?" muttered the third young man, cracking his knuckles with a series of sharp pops as he released his own Ninth Layer of Body Refining aura.

The last young man didn't move, but if he could stand alongside the other three, how could he be any weaker?

As expected of the Nine Spirits Sect—four random people who walked out all possessed Ninth Layer of Body Refining cultivation. In any small town, they would be absolute peak geniuses!

"Then let's fight!" Shi Qingfeng was the first to step forward. "This Young Master wants to see just what kind of goods you are!"

"Sticking your neck out means you're asking for trouble!" The first young man's figure flickered with incredible speed, appearing before Shi Qingfeng in an instant. His right hand clenched into a fist and punched out. Boom! Shi Qingfeng's entire body was sent flying backward, bent like a bow.

Slap! Shi Qingfeng crashed heavily to the ground, his face pale. "Wa!" He spat out a mouthful of blood, struggling to get up before collapsing again.

So strong!

Both were at the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, yet the gap in strength was this enormous!

"Remember my name—Kong Xiang!" the first young man declared arrogantly, walking over and stepping on Shi Qingfeng's face, grinding his foot down a few times. "Tenth-ranked outer disciple!"

No wonder he was so strong—he was the tenth-ranked among the outer disciples! But thinking further, if the tenth was this powerful, then what about the ninth, eighth, seventh... first and second?

Shi Qingfeng was inherently proud, and being publicly stomped on the face sent him into a rage so intense that he fainted on the spot.

"Any other trash not convinced?" The second young man picked at his ear. "Forgot to introduce myself—I'm Wei Quanhe, ninth-ranked outer disciple. And this one, Ren Anyi—doesn't live up to his name, not 'any ease' at all—eighth-ranked. Then this one, Wei Jinping, seventh-ranked!"

Tsk! Kong Xiang was this formidable, yet his strength was the lowest among the four!

"Crawl through obediently!" Kong Xiang pointed at his crotch, his gaze sweeping over Zhou Heng and the others. When it landed on Shen Xinqi, it heated up. "What's this junior sister's name? You're quite alluring!"

Shen Xinqi smiled sweetly, walked over, and whispered a few words to Kong Xiang. Instantly, his arrogance vanished, replaced by a fawning expression like a dog in heat.

Wei Quanhe and the other two also crowded around her, like stars encircling the moon, fawning over Shen Xinqi.

Zhou Heng knew she had connections with Elder Tianzhu and was a supreme existence at the Third Heaven of Spirit Gathering. These lowliest outer disciples wouldn't dare offend her—they could only flatter her in return.

Zhang Zijun also stepped forward, whispering something, and passed through without a fight.

Clearly, he too had an elder-level backer.

But the rest were truly "ordinary people."

"Hey, don't dawdle. Hurry up—I still need to go train the 'Crimson Bright Fist'!" Kong Xiang said impatiently.

"Kong the Tenth, no matter how hard you try, you'll never become Kong the Ninth!" Wei Quanhe laughed loudly, blowing on his finger as if flicking away earwax, his disdainful expression infuriating Kong Xiang.

Everyone turned their gazes to Shen Xinqi and Zhang Zijun, hoping they might plead for them. But the two showed no expression, ignoring their looks entirely.

With Shi Qingfeng's fate still fresh in their minds, the youths exchanged glances, gritted their teeth in bitter indignation, then lowered their heads and hunched over, crawling through Kong Xiang's crotch.

A gentleman's revenge is never too late—ten years is fine!

Endure!

Not everyone was spineless. Chang Kang jumped out to force his way through, but Wei Quanhe kicked him in the chest, and he too couldn't get back up.

In the end, only Zhou Heng remained.

Shen Xinqi smiled brightly. She was curious about Zhou Heng and wanted to use this chance to see just how much potential this kid had. If he was worth cultivating, she might ask her grandfather to take him on as a nominal disciple.

"You—" Kong Xiang saw Shen Xinqi suddenly smile at Zhou Heng, and a wave of discomfort rose in his chest. He stared at Zhou Heng darkly, strode over, and reached out to grab his chest.

Zhou Heng activated the Flying Cloud Steps, dodging the grab. He frowned slightly. "I won't trouble others unless they trouble me!"

"Hahaha, are you saying you want to fight me?" Kong Xiang laughed loudly, but his gaze turned even more sinister. "So what if I trouble you?"

"You're asking for a beating!"

Zhou Heng snorted coldly, suddenly stepping forward and throwing a punch!

"A mere Seventh Layer of Body Refining little—"

Boom!

Kong Xiang naturally dismissed Zhou Heng entirely, but just as he reached out to grab him, the other's figure vanished! At that moment, he felt a sharp pain in his back—he had taken a solid punch.

Kong Xiang stumbled forward three or four steps, turned around, and saw Zhou Heng standing behind him, looking completely at ease.

This stunned everyone.

Earlier, Zhou Heng had also punched Shi Qingfeng down, but that was mainly because Shi Qingfeng was too careless and never expected Zhou Heng to dare strike! But this time? Kong Xiang was the man who had taken down Shi Qingfeng in one blow—how could he also fail to dodge Zhou Heng's attack?

"Hahaha, Kong the Tenth, you're regressing. Just go buy a piece of tofu and bash your head against it!" Wei Quanhe seized the chance to mock him.

—The top ten outer disciples were a great honor, bringing abundant cultivation resources. And the higher the rank, the greater the honor and resources, making internal competition fierce!

Kong Xiang was ranked tenth, so his eyes naturally fixed on the ninth position held by Zhou Heng. Thus, although the two seemed to be on the same side, they were actually locked in a fierce covert struggle. If not for the need to put the newcomers in their place, they would never have joined forces.

"Hmph!" Kong Xiang's face was ugly. Regardless of whether it was carelessness, the fact that Zhou Heng had landed a punch on him was an ironclad truth—a great humiliation! His figure shot out, and he grabbed at Zhou Heng again.

"Incorrigible!" Zhou Heng snorted coldly, once again executing Flying Cloud Steps.

Boom!

Kong Xiang took another punch, this time with even greater force, nearly sending him face-first into the ground.

Everyone showed shock, even Wei Quanhe and his two companions.

The first time could be dismissed as Kong Xiang's carelessness, but what about this time?

What a miraculous movement technique!

That was right—Zhou Heng had relied on this very technique to break through the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining's Bronze Man Formation. Even if Kong Xiang was unmatched among his peers, could he compare to the Twelfth Layer of Body Refining?

If Kong Xiang and the others knew that Zhou Heng had cleared the entire Bronze Man Formation, they probably wouldn't be making trouble for him now, would they?

The newcomers all sneered coldly, hoping Kong Xiang would be beaten bloody to vent their own grievances.

"Kid, think a fancy movement technique lets you walk sideways?" Kong Xiang said coldly, quickly calming his raging anger. He clenched his fists and assumed a starting stance.

He was originally renowned for his fist techniques; earlier, he had used claws only because he looked down on Zhou Heng's weak cultivation. After eating two punches, he finally dared not underestimate Zhou Heng and brought out his strongest fist technique.

—He would break at least ten of Zhou Heng's bones!

Zhou Heng shook his head and laughed, "What a joke. You've been the ones pressing and bullying, and I'm just defending myself. How is it my fault?"

"Less lip service!" Kong Xiang roared, his body moving as he threw wild punches like a madman.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! The air howled with fierce gusts, showcasing his terrifying strength and speed.

"Is this... really the power a Ninth Layer of Body Refining cultivator can possess?"

"Judging from the aura of his cultivation, it is indeed the Ninth Layer of Body Refining, but his True Essence Power is exceptionally pure, allowing for faster circulation and unleashing even greater strength and speed!"

"So this is what a disciple trained by the Nine Spirits Sect is like?"

The newcomers' hearts pounded wildly. While Kong Xiang and the others had brought them great humiliation and pressure, they also showed them hope—one day, they too could become such experts, or even stronger!

Boom, boom, boom!

Yet Zhou Heng's performance stunned everyone!

He was actually suppressing Kong Xiang!

No, calling it suppression was somewhat off, because Zhou Heng was merely relying on his bizarre movement technique to constantly land a punch on Kong Xiang, then another, then another!

Even in broad daylight, watching Zhou Heng appear in front one moment and behind the next, everyone still felt a chill as if seeing a ghost in the daytime.

How could such a terrifying movement technique exist in this world?

Kong Xiang, caught in the midst of it, felt this even more intensely. Zhou Heng was clearly right in front of him, but the moment he threw a punch, the other would instantly shift his position and dodge elsewhere, leaving Kong Xiang to waste his strength!

This feeling of having power with nowhere to use was driving him crazy!

He had never encountered such a battle—fighting for five or six minutes without a single direct exchange with his opponent!

"If you've got the guts, fight me head-on! What kind of skill is it to keep dodging?" he shouted loudly.

Everyone was full of disdain. You, a Ninth Layer of Body Refining cultivator, want a Seventh Layer of Body Refining cultivator to fight you head-on? Have you no shame? Why don't you go fight a Blood Refining Realm expert head-on?

"Then take this punch!" Zhou Heng stopped his Flying Cloud Steps, stood before Kong Xiang, and threw a straight punch.

"Haha, you're asking for death!" Kong Xiang never expected Zhou Heng to fall for such a childish provocation. Overjoyed, he threw a punch in return!

He would cripple one of Zhou Heng's hands!