Returns

The Thunder Dragon, which had been roaring deafeningly, fell silent for a few seconds.

The audience was dumbfounded.

That god of slaughter, Li Jun, had actually rolled away with such practiced ease?

Tsk, somehow this scene felt familiar...

Then the audience all turned to stare at Chen Chong, their eyes full of shock.

Had he really defeated Li Jun too?

The "God of Slaughter," whose punches always drew blood, had been beaten so badly he'd rolled off the ring and into the passageway?

The audience's breathing grew ragged. Then, someone let out a howl, and the whole venue erupted.

"Chen Chong!"

"Chen Chong!"

Many of the patrons shouted Chen Chong's name, though some did so through gritted teeth.

But this hard-fought battle, with every punch landing solidly, had clearly made many people feel they'd gotten their money's worth.

Chen Chong watched Li Jun "unconsciously" roll away, his eyes full of surprise.

Wang Li still had a lot to learn from his senior when it came to rolling away smoothly.

He covered his mouth and coughed twice, then opened his hand and saw the bright red blood on his palm.

Li Jun's punches had naturally been extremely heavy, heavier than his own.

Without the Devour Form, he would probably have been the first to fall during their exchange of blows.

Even with that talent, the force that remained had shaken his internal organs and left him seriously injured.

He'd have to chew down a few more tubes of Nutrient Paste later.

Looking at the frenzied spectators around him, Chen Chong calmly waved to them, then stepped down from the ring.

In the Waiting Room on the other side, the short-haired woman and Peng Wei were both there, silently watching Chen Chong through the window.

"He actually won... and like that, too."

After a long pause, Peng Wei said with some difficulty.

"You weren't wrong to lose."

The woman's eyes flashed.

Peng Wei nodded silently.

The woman slowly took off her jacket. Underneath, she wore a tight sports bra and snug athletic shorts, leaving her strikingly long, snow-white legs completely exposed.

She strode out with a spirited gait, her tone full of fighting intent.

"If I get the chance, I'll have to fight him."

She turned the doorknob. A staff member had just appeared outside and was reaching for it; he froze for a moment.

"Oh? Oh, Pei Li, it's your turn to go on."

"Mm."

In the private room.

Listening to the uproar outside, Zhou Hu smiled slightly.

"Old Yu, you've brought back quite a promising young talent this time."

Yu Feng nodded silently.

Zhou Hu glanced at him and said calmly:

"Since he's already beaten Li Jun, let's forget what happened before. For now, give him the same treatment as Li Jun. Go check on him and see when he might break through. I want to sign him."

Yu Feng turned to look at him.

"That soon?"

"Real talent deserves special treatment. I think once he signs, he might even be able to bring honor to Thunder Dragon at other boxing venues!"

"Breaking through isn't that easy. Besides, I think he's still a little short of it."

"Of course we'll wait until he breaks through. Otherwise, it's all pointless!"

Zhou Hu calmed down a little.

"Breaking through... So many seemingly formidable fighters have fallen at this step. I hope he won't disappoint us."

Yu Feng nodded.

Zhou Hu suddenly remembered something and slapped the table.

"Give him the qualification to buy Earth Dragon Meat first! Let him buy some once he's ready. But the situation at the Hunting Grounds hasn't been good lately, and the kitchen is badly short on ingredients. We'll see how lucky he gets."

After Yu Feng left, Zhou Hu slowly tapped his fingers against the table, making a "tok... tok..." sound.

A thoughtful look filled his eyes. He couldn't help glancing once more at the wall of the inner room, then looked away.

"So he really is a naturally tough kid? He should be useful... Let's wait until he breaks through, then."

"Chen Chong, you're amazing!"

Wang Li hurried over to the Waiting Room, congratulating Chen Chong with an excited look.

Chen Chong smiled and continued chewing on Nutrient Paste to replenish his energy.

"Are you badly hurt?"

Seeing this, Wang Li immediately asked.

Chen Chong shook his head.

"It's nothing serious. Where's Liu Hetao?"

"He's being treated in the Infirmary."

At the word "treated," Chen Chong's brows twitched involuntarily.

But his condition probably wasn't that bad yet...

Chen Chong nodded.

"Come on, let's go check on him."

Clack.

The door opened just then, and Yu Feng squeezed inside.

Chen Chong and Wang Li immediately stood up and greeted him.

"Coach Yu."

They were somewhat surprised. What had brought Yu Feng here? After the first fight, he hadn't even shown up when Li Xiaoguang died.

Yu Feng glanced at Wang Li.

"Next time, it won't be so easy to roll away."

Wang Li's expression shifted several times before he nodded.

"I know."

"I have a couple of things to tell Chen Chong."

"Oh, right. I'll go outside and get you something to eat and drink."

Wang Li hurried out of the Waiting Room and closed the door behind him.

Yu Feng looked at Chen Chong, sizing him up from head to toe, but said nothing.

The bald coach, built like an iron tower, stared at him for a while. Chen Chong was beginning to feel puzzled when Yu Feng finally spoke.

"The Second Boss says you'll now receive the same treatment as Li Jun—in other words, the top tier for an Official Fighter. Here's your share from this fight."

He took a stack of bills from his pocket and tossed them onto the table with a solid smack.

Chen Chong picked them up and saw that they were all green hundred-yuan notes.

The bills were patterned with blue-green clouds, with a snow-covered mountain and lake on the front and a forest cabin on the back. The old-style characters "Settlement 97" were printed on them.

Settlement 97 was the official name of this town.

This was the currency used within the Settlement. Outside, it was worthless, but in this town, it was still quite useful.

In terms of purchasing power, the same 100 yuan was worth more here than 100 yuan in Lichuan. Prices followed the same system as outside, but transactions were completely unrestricted.

This stack was probably around ten thousand yuan.

Chen Chong's expression shifted.

His uncle, Shen Jianping, was a veteran workshop director with thirty years on the job, yet his monthly salary was only a little over three thousand yuan. His aunt, Chen Liping, made around one to two thousand yuan in monthly profit from her breakfast shop.

The average salary for ordinary workers in Lichuan was around one thousand yuan, and many laborers earned only a few hundred a month.

This ten-thousand-yuan share was equivalent to nearly half a year of the family's total income.

Bare-knuckle fighting really did pay, as long as you didn't die.

While he was planning whether to spend the ten thousand on high-grade nutritional supplements or something else, Yu Feng added:

"The Second Boss approved your application for Earth Dragon Meat. Earth Dragon Raw Meat is the best aid for breaking through. But supplies have been scarce lately, so you can take it easy with your money."

Chen Chong raised his eyebrows.

The Earth Dragon Soup he drank every day was made by simmering and diluting Earth Dragon Meat, and it was already quite effective.

Earth Dragon Raw Meat for breaking through? Its effects had to be excellent.

A thought crossed his mind, and he asked:

"Does the Second Boss think I'm close to breaking through?"

"He hopes you'll break through soon. He thinks you have potential."

Yu Feng looked at him.

"How much farther do you have to go?"

"I can't really say."

Chen Chong shook his head.

Yu Feng pondered for a moment, then said:

"At least, from the way you do the Combat Drill, you've already got a good grasp of it. Have you run into any problems lately?"

Chen Chong hesitated but said nothing.

As far as he was concerned, the Combat Drill's structure was simple. With plenty of food to support him, he'd practiced day and night until he knew the moves by heart.

Even in actual combat, he'd felt something like what Yu Feng had once described as "winning without a move." The movements and principles of the techniques had already become instinctive.

So if he had to name a problem, all he lacked was more real combat experience. Otherwise, he had no problems at all.

Yu Feng saw what he was thinking and said calmly:

"Do you think this is all there is to the Combat Drill? That you've completely mastered it?"

Without waiting for Chen Chong to give him a perfunctory answer, he continued:

"The Combat Drill is just a framework, like the Breathing Method when you've only just started learning it.

"What's truly formidable is the Combat Technique that comes afterward.

"Watch closely."

As soon as Yu Feng finished speaking, he suddenly threw a punch!