A Punch Equal to the Fifth Realm!

He walked toward the next machine.

It was a massive pool filled with black, frigid water that emitted a biting chill.

A plaque was mounted on the edge of the pool, inscribed with the words: Ice Pool.

"Ice Pool. Water temperature ranges from negative ten to negative one hundred degrees Celsius. It can activate blood energy and strengthen the physical body. The longer you soak, the better the effect. Current record: two hours."

"Two hours?" Ye Xiao asked. "Whose record is that?"

Fatty Wang shook his head. "I don't know. The plaque only lists the record; it doesn't mention a name."

Ye Xiao crouched down and reached a hand into the water.

The cold was bone-piercing, like needles stabbing into his marrow.

He kept his hand in the water for ten seconds, and by the time he pulled it out, his fingers were already stiff.

"This water is truly cold," he said. "If someone accidentally fell in, they could freeze to death."

"Indeed," Fatty Wang said. "That is why no one dares to come near this place."

Ye Xiao stood up and shook the water from his hand.

He walked toward the final machine.

It was the machine located in the deepest part of the venue.

It was enormous, occupying an entire wall.

Its surface was made of black metal, featuring a recessed groove shaped exactly like a fist.

The edges of the groove were covered in cracks, as if something had shattered it.

"What is this?"

Ye Xiao looked up at the fist-shaped groove, which sat at the center of the dense web of cracks.

Fatty Wang looked at the machine and answered.

"It is called One Punch."

"One Punch?"

"That's right, One Punch!" Fatty Wang's voice was soft. "This machine doesn't train anything else; it only trains a single punch. You strike that groove with a punch, and the machine measures your power, speed, angle, and penetration, then gives you a score. The maximum is one hundred."

"What is the highest score?"

Fatty Wang recalled for a moment before stating a number.

"Eighty-seven points."

"Who?"

"I don't know. The plaque only lists the score, not the name. But that crack—that was caused by that very punch."

Ye Xiao stood before the machine, staring at the groove.

The cracks radiated from the edges of the groove like lightning or tree roots, as if someone had shattered something in silence.

He placed his hand into the groove; it was the perfect size for a fist.

"Has anyone ever scored a perfect mark?"

"No," Fatty Wang said. "No one has ever been able to land a perfect punch."

Fatty Wang seemed to read Ye Xiao's mind.

He took the initiative to ask, "Brother Xiao, do you want to try One Punch? I'll help you start the machine."

Ye Xiao nodded. "Sure, I'll give it a try."

Afterward.

Fatty Wang activated the One Punch machine.

The machine, which had been silent, suddenly roared to life.

Furthermore, Ye Xiao could see an LCD screen on Fatty Wang's side.

It displayed: 0 points.

This meant that once Ye Xiao unleashed his punch at One Punch, the result would be displayed there.

Ye Xiao took a deep breath, calm and composed, slowly mobilizing all the strength in his body.

He moved unhurriedly, eyes fixed forward, casting aside all distracting thoughts.

His gaze remained locked onto the groove ahead.

The next moment.

He pushed off with his feet, rotated his waist, and drove his shoulder forward, drawing power from the ground.

The force traveled from his feet, through his waist and shoulder, concentrating into his fist to strike the target.

His body rotated to drive the arm's force; his front foot remained planted while his back foot pivoted appropriately, his legs clamped tight as if holding a balloon.

When throwing the punch, his entire body remained relaxed, tensing only at the very instant of impact!

BOOM!!!

With this One Punch, Ye Xiao curled his four fingers tight into his palm, striking the indentation in front of him dead center!

The entire One Punch machine began to shake and vibrate violently.

Ye Xiao felt a sharp, searing pain across the back of his hand.

After all, force is reciprocal.

The amount of power he unleashed in his strike was the exact same amount his own body had to endure.

[Ding!]

[You have completed a punch. The force of this strike is: 88%!]

That was quite a powerful punch!

Ye Xiao felt as if a dam had burst within him, his strength instantly draining away.

He looked up, slightly breathless, toward Fatty Wang.

At this moment, Fatty Wang's eyes were wide with shock.

He was utterly terrified.

He stared fixedly at the score displayed for the punch.

It read: 41 points.

After seeing the score for his punch, Ye Xiao felt a slight chill in his heart. Is it that bad? My punch didn't even reach the passing line?

However, Fatty Wang was already so shocked he was stuttering.

"Ye, Ye Xiao! You, you're simply a monster, aren't you? How, how did you manage to score 41 points with that punch?"

"Is the machine broken? That's impossible!"

Now it was Ye Xiao's turn to be confused.

"It's only 41 points. I didn't even pass, so this result must be pretty poor, right?"

"Fatty, I know you're trying to comfort me so I don't get discouraged, but you really don't need to do that."

Fatty Wang shook his head frantically, his mouth stuttering as he explained.

"Ye Xiao, it, it's like this!"

"This One Punch machine can only withstand the power of the tenth realm, and its scoring system actually corresponds to one's cultivation realm!"

"Normally, the first realm corresponds to a score between 0 and 10!"

Fatty Wang likely felt that words alone weren't persuasive enough.

So, he walked over to Ye Xiao's position.

He swapped places with Ye Xiao.

Immediately after.

Fatty Wang threw a punch of his own!

Boom!

The shaking of the One Punch machine was clearly not even a tenth of what it had been with Ye Xiao.

Following that.

Ye Xiao could see that the score for Fatty Wang's punch was: 11 points.

Although Fatty Wang's punch was not as powerful as Ye Xiao's.

In terms of this single strike alone, the force was still significant—enough to kill a tiger.

After Fatty Wang finished his demonstration.

He continued to explain: "Ye Xiao, do you see? My punch only scored 11 points, which actually corresponds to the strength of the second realm."

"In other words, although my current realm has stepped into the third realm, my overall combat power is still stuck at the level of the second realm."

"But Ye Xiao, you just scored 41 points—that is simply heaven-defying and breathtaking!"

"If I remember correctly, your current realm is still only the first realm, right?"

Ye Xiao nodded.

Fatty Wang swallowed hard in shock.

"Ye Xiao, your physical strength and punching power are too terrifying. How on earth do you train?"

"Even though you are only in the first realm, this punch of yours has already reached the power of the early fifth realm!"

After Fatty Wang finished his explanation.

A look of sudden realization dawned on Ye Xiao.

So, the scoring of the One Punch machine was based on evaluating which realm of power that punch roughly corresponded to.

The upper limit of the One Punch machine was 100 points, meaning the highest realm it could measure was the tenth realm.

Ye Xiao had come here specifically to test his current combat power using various machines.

Now, after Fatty Wang's explanation.

Ye Xiao had a brand-new understanding of the power of his punch.