Three Punches

"Interesting, but violence is unavoidable."

Shen Qingxue's eyes brightened slightly; it seemed she had heard the name Lu Meng before.

Wasn't he the gang disciple her father had arranged for her to meet tomorrow? Word was he hadn't even reached the Bright Force stage yet, having only opened six apertures of the Martial Pass.

What a coincidence. If the younger brother of the Sea Whale Gang leader showed up at the Jade Pavilion tomorrow with a bruised and swollen face, that would be quite amusing indeed...

"Then it shall be as you say. Brother Lu Meng, if you can last a quarter of an hour under this Brother Xiong, you may take this junior brother away."

Wang Lan narrowed his eyes and smiled, "Furthermore, I will gift you a Blood Coagulation Pill."

As soon as he finished speaking, the burly man surnamed Xiong rubbed his knuckles and said with a cold face:

"Little brother, I see your vital energy hasn't reached the Heaven Gate yet; I reckon you haven't even opened seven apertures, have you? Apologize to me now, and I might let you off the hook..."

Bang!

Before the man surnamed Xiong could finish his sentence—having heard of his opponent's reputation, he had intended to offer him a way out.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Yun flashed right in front of the big man, his fist landing solidly on the center of his face.

In that instant, not a single person watching reacted in time, including the man surnamed Xiong himself.

Everything happened too quickly; Zhou Yun's expression was ruthless, and he did not hesitate for a moment when throwing his punch.

He knew the gap in vital energy between them, so he immediately unleashed the Black Ape Movement Technique at full power. He struck with a killing blow, never intending to last for a quarter of an hour.

The man surnamed Xiong was indeed careless, even daring to talk, leaving his vital energy gate exposed.

He never expected Zhou Yun to lead with a killing blow, aiming straight for his face!

An ordinary six-aperture martial artist's punch might have been blocked, but he was facing the Black Ape Movement Technique.

The burly man surnamed Xiong swayed, his whole body tottering. Just as he managed to steady his spirit and recover, a massive fist came hurtling toward him again.

He tried to dodge by force, the vital energy of his seven Martial Pass apertures surging as he pushed the power in his legs to the limit.

"I dodged it!"

The burly man felt a surge of joy, his vital energy immediately flooding into his fist, intending to counterattack against Zhou Yun.

But suddenly, he saw clearly that the fist before him was merely an afterimage.

Bang!

The real Zhou Yun had already flashed behind him, landing a solid punch squarely on his back.

The burly man spat out a mouthful of blood. Before he could regain his senses, Zhou Yun struck his chin with another punch.

His entire jaw was completely dislocated, and his thick, heavy body collapsed to the ground, falling into a state of unconsciousness.

Three punches. It took only three punches.

Zhou Yun, a martial artist with only four apertures, had knocked a seven-aperture expert—who had half-stepped into the threshold of Bright Force—completely unconscious!

And this was only because he didn't want to offend the two men before him too deeply and had held back; otherwise, if he had followed up with two more punches, the big man wouldn't have just been knocked out.

"Six apertures, and he can knock out a seven-aperture expert in three punches?"

Shen Qingxue was quite astonished. She did not know Zhou Yun's true identity, assuming he possessed the strength of six apertures, but that alone was enough to showcase his talent.

And such a genius was the very person she was scheduled to meet tomorrow.

Although everyone below the Bright Force stage was considered a mortal, the gap between six and seven apertures was as vast as the difference between the first and sixth.

Opening seven apertures of the Martial Pass meant one had touched the threshold of Bright Force and gained the qualification to truly step into the martial arts system.

But at six apertures, one could not compare to a seven-aperture expert in terms of vital energy reserves, let alone the tempering of the body.

There was only one possibility for achieving such a one-hit victory... movement technique.

"Senior brother, I accept your concession."

Zhou Yun's expression remained as calm as usual. He knew full well that he had only seized the opening when the big man's breath was unsettled while he was talking.

Combined with the Black Ape Movement Technique executed at extreme speed, he had struck the opponent's weakest point, allowing him to win by luck.

But in the world of martial arts, no one cares about your methods; they only care about who is left standing at the end.

"Junior brother's movement technique is truly very interesting."

Wang Lan had originally thought that even if this Lu Meng had the vital energy of six apertures and knew a technique or two, he shouldn't have been able to last a quarter of an hour.

After all, this big man named Xiong Meng was a death-sworn follower who had been by his side since childhood, having trained his skin and flesh to a high degree.

Ordinary martial artists below the Bright Force stage couldn't last three rounds under Xiong Meng, and even against truly troublesome opponents, he could wear them down with his thick skin and sturdy build.

But today, it seemed he had capsized in the gutter...

As a senior brother of the inner courtyard of the Black Stone Martial Hall, even though Wang Lan was often away from the hall, he could recognize the Black Ape Movement Technique Zhou Yun had displayed, which made him feel even more favorably toward him.

For a mortal martial artist with only six apertures to comprehend a technique that usually required the Bright Force stage was proof enough of his extremely high aptitude.

Perhaps, there was a possibility of recruiting him to Xiang City for the Martial Hall Ranking Tournament?

No, it still required observation; such a spot was too precious to be given to just anyone.

"Pure luck, that is all. Might I ask if Senior Brother intends to honor his promise?"

Zhou Yun did not let arrogance get the better of him; he could tell that this well-dressed inner-court senior brother was, at the very least, an expert at the Bright Force level.

It was unwise to provide resources to a potential enemy right now; it was better to avoid unnecessary trouble.

Besides, he possessed a golden finger. As long as he cultivated steadily, the path of martial arts would be smooth and unobstructed.

Once his realm was high enough, wouldn't everyone be just a single punch away from defeat?

"That goes without saying. Catch."

Wang Lan tossed a small porcelain bottle to Zhou Yun. Zhou Yun opened it to find a Blood Coagulation Pill, a treasure even Bright Force martial artists found in short supply.

"This Blood Coagulation Pill is yours."

Zhou Yun put the small bottle away, carefully tucking it into his robes.

This single Blood Coagulation Pill provided him with the capital needed to break through to the Bright Force level; he only needed to open the seven apertures of the Martial Pass.

One had to know that many martial artists failed their breakthrough to Bright Force due to insufficient blood and qi, sometimes even suffering signs of physical decline.

The path of martial arts is like rowing against the current; if you do not advance, you retreat.

"Many thanks, Senior Brother. Actually, that garment also belongs to this junior brother. Might I trouble Senior Brother to..."

Before Zhou Yun could finish his sentence, he saw Wang Lan toss the brocade robe over.

Wang Lan could not help but laugh, "I said this garment didn't look like something this kid would wear. Returning it to its rightful owner, then."

"If there is an opportunity, you are welcome to visit my Xiang City Wang Clan."

With that, Wang Lan let out a hearty laugh and departed with Shen Qingxue.

"Xiang City Wang Clan? One of the great families of the Twelve Main Cities, then."

Zhou Yun was stunned for a moment as he recalled something.

The Emperor of Great Jing divided the territory of the Jing Kingdom into seventy-two counties, twelve main cities, and several islands.

Among them, Black Stone County was a vassal territory of Xiang City, along with five other counties that were all subordinate to it.

Generally speaking, one only possessed the qualifications to venture into the Twelve Main Cities after developing Dark Force. That was still a long way off for Zhou Yun; for now, it was better to focus on steadily knocking on the door of the Bright Force realm.

"Let's head back, Huzi."

Zhou Yun bent down and hoisted the unconscious Zhang Hu onto his back.

After all, the two were childhood friends from the same hometown. He would not leave him to fend for himself. Zhang Hu's mother had also taken good care of him when he was young; even the tuition fees for joining the martial arts school had been borrowed from the old woman's funeral fund.

Although it was his predecessor who had been cared for, and it was not the current Zhou Yun who had borrowed the money, he still remembered that she was a kind old woman.

It was just a pity that in this world, being too kind only led to an earlier death.

Therefore, Zhou Yun would not be that kind person.

The debt he owed the Zhang family had been paid in full by Zhang Hu's leg.