After eating a bowl of braised pork, Ye Wudao ate a steamed chicken, a steamed fish, and a pound of beef.
The sight of him eating so much made Zhang Hankuang click his tongue in admiration. "Not bad, not bad! You've got quite an appetite. You're a fine prospect for martial arts."
Ye Wudao glanced at Zhang Hankuang, somewhat embarrassed, and smiled. "Sorry for the trouble, senior!"
Zhang Hankuang shrugged. "What's there to be embarrassed about?"
"Your unreliable master was right. When you're starting out in martial arts, you need to eat a lot, especially meat, to keep up with what your body burns."
"When I first embarked on the Martial Path, I ate just as much as you."
"It's just that my meals back then weren't nearly as good as yours. Most of the time, I got by on steamed buns and rice."
"If I hadn't been held back in my training because I wasn't getting enough nutrition, I might have reached the Xiantian realm by now."
Hu Lianfeng, standing nearby, heard this and said scornfully, "You think reaching Xiantian is that easy? You can count all the Xiantian-stage martial artists in Haicheng City on your fingers."
"How long have you been stuck at Houtian Peak? Don't you know?"
Those words struck a nerve with Zhang Hankuang. He rolled his eyes, lay down on the bed, and snorted. "Hmph! I'm not talking to you."
Hu Lianfeng shrugged and said no more.
Life in Cell No. 1 was painfully dull, so the two had fallen into the habit of bickering.
But the truth was, they had no real grudge against each other.
Though they always seemed on the verge of coming to blows, they had never actually fought.
Both he and Zhang Hankuang knew that rather than waste their strength on pointless fights in the cell, they were better off saving it for killing monsters in the Rift.
Unfortunately, with his strength, he had little chance of shortening his sentence by killing monsters and earning his release.
Zhang Hankuang still had a slim chance, but he would probably be seventy or eighty by the time he got out.
Thinking of this, Zhang Hankuang glared at him, narrowed his eyes, and sank into thought.
Ye Wudao lay on the bed with a full belly, watching the values on the system panel steadily rise.
At the same time, he wondered what technique Hu Lianfeng would teach him next.
Before he knew it, an hour had passed.
"Disciple, get up. Your master is going to teach you a fist technique."
Just as Ye Wudao was nodding off, Hu Lianfeng came to his bedside and spoke softly.
Ye Wudao scrambled out of bed and looked at Hu Lianfeng with eager anticipation.
Hu Lianfeng cleared his throat, bent his knees slightly, and struck a stance. He stood as solid as a mountain.
"What I'm going to teach you is Eight Extremes Fist!"
"As the saying goes, Taiji can pacify the land, while Eight Extremes can stabilize the world."
"Eight Extremes Fist has been a killing technique since ancient times. It doesn't care about forms or flashy moves. It cares about one thing: how to knock someone down as fast as possible."
"Remember, the essence of Eight Extremes Fist lies in these eight words: burst, shake, thrust, strike; move like a drawn bow. When your fist shoots out, your body must go with it. You aren't fighting with just one part of yourself. You're fighting with the strength of your whole body."
As he spoke, Hu Lianfeng began to move.
"Thump... thump... thump..."
Every movement was like a car speeding along before coming to an abrupt halt. Each punch produced a faint sonic boom.
Between each movement, there wasn't a single wasted motion.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
"Old Ghost Hu, your Eight Extremes Fist is pretty good!"
"But this kind of beginner fist technique is fine for dealing with ordinary people. If you expect him to use it against monsters, you're sending him to his death."
Nearby, Zhang Hankuang watched Hu Lianfeng finish a set of Eight Extremes Fist, then sat on his bed and criticized him.
Hu Lianfeng curled his lip. "What do you know? He hasn't entered the Body Tempering Realm yet. Eight Extremes Fist is the most suitable for him."
"It can temper his body while also giving him a way to defend himself."
Zhang Hankuang curled his lip in disdain, stood up, and said to Ye Wudao, "Kid, your master won't teach you a real killing technique, so I'll show you a few moves."
"Watch closely!"
As he spoke, he didn't take a stance at all. He suddenly sprang forward a step.
"Thump..."
Then he stopped abruptly and threw a punch, the blow unleashing a thunderous sound.
"Mountain Crushing Fist? Zhang Hankuang, have you lost your mind?"
"He hasn't even entered the Body Forging Realm yet, and you're teaching him a Houtian-level fist technique?"
"With his frail physique, can he withstand the explosive force of Mountain Crushing Fist?"
Hu Lianfeng was stunned when he saw Zhang Hankuang use the technique.
Then he hurriedly said to Ye Wudao, "Whatever you do, don't learn this fist technique. It isn't for beginners on the Martial Path."
Zhang Hankuang snorted. "What does Houtian or anything else matter? When I first started learning martial arts, Mountain Crushing Fist was the first thing I learned."
He looked at Ye Wudao and said, "Kid, don't let the fact that Mountain Crushing Fist has only one move fool you."
"It's much stronger than that Eight Extremes Fist your master taught you."
"Mountain Crushing Fist doesn't rely on cleverness to win; it breaks through with force. The fist falls like a collapsing mountain. It seeks no variation, only an unstoppable advance."
"This Mountain Crushing Fist has only one move. But once you've mastered it, it's more useful than all those flashy fist techniques."
"At the start of the Martial Path, you don't need to learn too much. One punch that can kill is enough."
Hu Lianfeng snorted when he heard this. "Hmph! What nonsense!"
"When you're just starting out, you need to build a solid foundation. Your Mountain Crushing Fist only knows how to attack. It's a technique for risking your life."
"My Eight Extremes Fist can attack and defend, and it trains your stance, too. It develops every aspect of your skills!"
Zhang Hankuang replied with equal disdain. "Hmph! What good is developing every aspect of your skills?"
"When you run into a powerful opponent, if you can't kill him, he'll kill you."
"If you're dead, what good is being well-rounded?"
Ye Wudao stood by the bed, watching the two argue endlessly over fist techniques.
The corner of his mouth twitched as he looked at the system panel.
The system had already recorded both fist techniques.
At the same time, a new section appeared on the system panel.
Beneath the [Techniques] section, a new [Martial Skills] section had appeared.
[Martial Skills: Eight Extremes Fist (Uninitiated) (0/1000), Mountain Crushing Fist (Uninitiated) (0/10000)]
Looking at the proficiency required for the two fist techniques in the Martial Skills section, Ye Wudao pressed his lips together.
Zhang Hankuang was right. Mountain Crushing Fist was indeed stronger than Eight Extremes Fist, clearly a full tier higher.
Eight Extremes Fist required only 1,000 points of proficiency to reach the entry level, while Mountain Crushing Fist required 10,000.
The tenfold difference made it obvious which of the two martial skills was stronger.
"What are you two arguing about?"
"Hu Lianfeng is right. When you're just starting out in martial arts, it makes sense to learn Eight Extremes Fist. It can temper your body and help you develop in every way."
"Zhang Hankuang is right, too. Although Mountain Crushing Fist is a Houtian fist technique, you can practice it in the Body Tempering Realm, and it has some real killing power."
"If you want to practice, learn both!"
Just then, Elder Qin spoke from the first bed.
This time, he wasn't lying down. He had sat up.
The moment he spoke, Hu Lianfeng and Zhang Hankuang immediately fell silent.
Elder Qin glanced at Ye Wudao and said, "You have half an hour to familiarize yourself with both fist techniques."
After a pause, he looked at Hu Lianfeng and said, "After half an hour, we're going into the Rift."
"You keep an eye on this kid."
Hu Lianfeng quickly nodded. "Yes, Elder Qin!"
After answering Elder Qin, he looked at Ye Wudao and asked in a low voice, "Did you understand the fist technique I just demonstrated?"
Ye Wudao nodded. "I understood it!"
Hu Lianfeng raised an eyebrow and asked again, "What about the Mountain Crushing Fist One-Eyed Dragon taught you?"
Ye Wudao nodded again. "I understood that, too!"
He had come to terms with it. Once the techniques began circulating on their own, there was no way to stop them.
Rather than hiding his abilities, he might as well show them. That way, everyone in Cell No. 1 would think he was a martial arts genius.
If so, maybe Hu Lianfeng would think twice before trying anything against him.
He glanced at Elder Qin on the first bed. He could clearly sense that Elder Qin's attitude toward him had changed somewhat.
Perhaps it was because he had mastered the Northern Dark Divine Art in just one hour, catching Elder Qin's attention.
If Elder Qin thought he was a martial arts genius, then maybe he would help Ye Wudao if Hu Lianfeng tried to make a move against him.
Hu Lianfeng looked at Ye Wudao with some surprise and said softly, "I didn't expect it. You really do have some talent for martial arts."
"Looks like this Old Hu has pretty good luck!"
Before you continue