Fist Master

As the bandits of Black Wind Stronghold retreated from the north slope, the Snow Wolves were slaughtered until they scattered and fled.

Amid the wind and snow, the wolves' howls gradually faded into the distance.

Wang Zhong did not dare delay. He immediately led Qi Jin, the "Heavy Cannon Fist," to reinforce the east.

Qi Jin was a Blood-Moving minor accomplishment martial artist Wang Firm had recruited from another county. He had cultivated his Heavy Cannon Fist to the major accomplishment realm and had been hidden in the herb garden all along, working with Wang Zhong, one in the open and one in the shadows.

Just moments ago, he had smashed Xue Sangui's shoulder bone with a single punch on the north slope, helping stabilize a dangerous situation there.

The two hurried through the snow.

Wang Zhong's heart remained suspended.

The eastern side was close to the greenhouses. If the Snow Wolves broke in, the winter herbs would all be ruined.

Yet when they reached the eastern gate, they could not help but freeze in surprise.

The place was already calm.

The cries of battle were gone, and so were the wolves' howls.

Torches had been planted along both sides of the fence again. Several herb garden guards were busy propping up broken wooden stakes, using ropes and crossbeams to reinforce the fence temporarily. Others dragged Snow Wolf corpses into the herb garden, leaving streaks of dark-red blood across the snow.

"Put some muscle into it! This one has plenty of meat—enough for several good meals!"

"Snow Wolf meat is far better than wild boar! The flesh is firm and packed with vitality. It's the most nourishing thing for soup!"

Some laughed as they panted, their voices filled with the excitement of having survived a disaster.

Though Snow Wolves were dangerous, once killed, they became excellent meat.

Especially for martial artists, these huge mountain beasts brimming with vitality nourished the body far better than ordinary pigs and sheep.

Quite a few Snow Wolves had died at the eastern gate tonight. Handled properly, they would be enough to feed everyone in the herb garden through the winter.

Wang Zhong swept his gaze around and found more than a dozen Snow Wolf corpses sprawled across the ground, yet not a single eastern herb garden guard had died.

Only a few had suffered superficial injuries.

Only then did he let out a long breath of relief.

"Lu Chen!"

Wang Zhong strode forward, his gaze landing on Lu Chen.

Lu Chen stood beside the eastern gate, his back against a wooden stake. His face was several shades paler than usual, his arms hanging naturally at his sides, while blood still stained his fists.

"How is it over here? Are you all right?"

Concern filled Wang Zhong's voice.

Qi Jin also walked over. His eyes first swept across the wolf corpses littering the ground before turning to Lu Chen, his gaze tightening slightly.

Many of these Snow Wolves had collapsed rib cages and shattered skulls. They had clearly not been killed by bows and crossbows, nor pierced to death by spears.

They had been beaten to death by fists.

Qi Jin's heart jolted.

The power of those punches was no less than his own—perhaps even greater.

Lu Chen took a deep breath and said slowly, "I'm fine. My arms are just numb from the blows, and they're swelling and aching badly."

Qiu Heixiong's force was strange and vicious. Lu Chen's arms felt as though they had been pricked by icy needles, numb and swollen, and even the slightest exertion brought a dull pain.

Wang Zhong's expression changed.

"Heart-Shattering Force?"

He immediately looked at Lu Chen. "You fought Qiu Heixiong?"

The nearby herb garden guards heard this and immediately gathered around.

One of them could not help saying, "Captain Wang, just now, Black Wind Stronghold's Fourth Chief, Sun Liancheng, tried to ambush Guard Lu, but Guard Lu killed him with one punch!"

"After that, Qiu Heixiong came personally and fought Guard Lu for quite a while!"

"If not for Guard Lu, we might not have been able to hold this side!"

Wang Zhong's eyelids twitched at the words.

Qi Jin was stunned as well.

Sun Liancheng was dead?

Qiu Heixiong had come too?

Wang Zhong fell silent for a moment, his expression gradually turning grim.

He had pieced together Black Wind Stronghold's entire plan.

First, they lured the Snow Wolves into charging the herb garden and creating chaos.

Then they launched a two-pronged pincer attack.

Zhao Xiao and Xue Sangui led the north slope assault, while Qiu Heixiong and Sun Liancheng struck from the east.

If either side breached the gate and allowed the Snow Wolves or bandits into the herb garden, the herb farmers would panic, the greenhouses would be destroyed, and the guards would be unable to attend to both ends. The entire herb garden would collapse in an instant.

At that point, never mind saving the herb garden—it would be uncertain how many of them could survive.

The more Wang Zhong thought about it, the more afraid he became.

But then he looked at Lu Chen with deep admiration and gratitude.

In such a dire situation, Lu Chen had held back both Qiu Heixiong and Sun Liancheng alone.

He had even killed Fourth Chief Sun Liancheng, causing Black Wind Stronghold to lose a minor accomplishment martial artist and suffer grievous losses.

Lu Chen had not been at the herb garden for long, yet he had already rendered such great service and saved it once.

Lu Chen looked at Wang Zhong and asked, "Heart-Shattering Force? Is that Qiu Heixiong's martial art?"

"That force is exceptionally unusual. It can disrupt one's vitality and blood, and numb the muscles!"

Wang Zhong nodded, his expression grave.

As he spoke, he stepped forward and reached out to squeeze Lu Chen's forearm.

There seemed to be no serious injury on the surface of Lu Chen's arm. The skin and flesh were only slightly bruised, but the instant Wang Zhong's fingertips pressed down, a wave of soreness and numbness surged up from deep within Lu Chen's muscles and tendons, as though fine needles were swimming inside.

Wang Zhong's face darkened slightly.

"Fortunately, it hasn't damaged your tendons or bones."

He sighed in relief, then continued, "Black Wind Stronghold's chief, Qiu Heixiong, has mastered an extremely formidable hidden-force method called Heart-Shattering Force."

"This art cultivates a special kind of force that can pierce through skin and into flesh. It is exceedingly insidious. If it strikes the chest or abdomen, there may appear to be no injury on the surface, but the heart channels and internal organs may already have been pierced through."

"With this Heart-Shattering Force, even when facing a Blood-Moving major accomplishment martial artist, he can still contend with them for a while."

"He is extremely difficult to deal with."

"It is already a stroke of great fortune that he did not cripple your arms."

Lu Chen nodded slightly.

He could tell that if not for the Coiling Dragon Body dispersing most of the hidden force, he would not merely be suffering from swollen, numb arms right now.

Afterward, Wang Zhong summoned a physician to treat Lu Chen. At the same time, he said, "Don't worry. Wang Firm has dealt with Black Wind Stronghold in the mountains for years, and this is not our first time seeing Heart-Shattering Force. The herb garden has a prescription specifically for treating injuries from this kind of hidden force. Apply the medicine and rest for a few days, and you'll be fine."

Hearing that, Lu Chen felt much more at ease.

He had truly been worried that this hidden force lurking in his muscles and tendons might plant a future hazard in his martial path.

Then Wang Zhong introduced Qi Jin to Lu Chen.

Lu Chen immediately felt that Shopkeeper Wang Shouyi had hidden his cards deeply. He had been here for so long, yet he had never known that Wang Shouyi had concealed another trump card in the herb garden.

That old fellow is truly shrewd and calculating, with depths beyond measure.

After examining the Snow Wolf corpses, Qi Jin asked Lu Chen, "Brother Lu, were these Snow Wolves... all killed by your fists?"

Lu Chen nodded. "Most of them."

Qi Jin's mouth twitched slightly.

He practiced Heavy Cannon Fist, which excelled most at explosive power, but looking at these corpses, he had no choice but to admit that the destructive power of Lu Chen's punches was already astonishing—definitely greater than his own.

Qi Jin could not help asking, "Brother Lu, your attainments in fist arts are probably no lower than my Heavy Cannon Fist."

At this point, his tone became more serious. "Have you already cultivated Hidden Dragon Martial Hall's Azure Dragon Through-the-Arms Fist to the perfect realm?"

Lu Chen did not feel there was anything to hide.

He had made so many moves tonight that any martial artist with a discerning eye could see that his fist force was far from ordinary.

So he nodded.

"That's right."

"I broke through to the perfect realm a few days ago and cultivated Azure Dragon Force."

Amid the wind and snow, Wang Zhong and Qi Jin froze at the same time.

Qi Jin's eyes widened. "Really?"

Wang Zhong could not help asking as well, "What? You're only sixteen, and you've already cultivated Azure Dragon Through-the-Arms Fist to the perfect realm?"

Seeing their reactions, Lu Chen was somewhat surprised instead.

Although he had expected that cultivating a fist art to the perfect level would astonish people, he did not fully understand what it meant in others' eyes for a sixteen-year-old to master a perfect fist art.

Qi Jin fell silent for a moment, then suddenly gave a bitter laugh.

"I've practiced this Heavy Cannon Fist for fifteen years."

"Yet I've only reached major accomplishment."

"I used to think my fist arts were not bad, but only after meeting Brother Lu today did I understand what it means for heroes to emerge in their youth."

Wang Zhong also let out a long breath.

"No wonder."

"No wonder you could kill Sun Liancheng with one punch, then force Qiu Heixiong back."

"A perfect fist art, and the Azure Dragon Force of Hidden Dragon Martial Hall..."

He looked at Lu Chen, his gaze complicated—shocked, delighted, and carrying a trace of relief.

Fortunately, Lu Chen belonged to Wang Firm.

A fist master this young was something Scarlet Cloud County might not produce even once in several decades.