Flowing Water Rock-Shattering Fist Enhanced with Soul Power

Lu Chen's fingers moved like gentle flowing water, lightly brushing along the inside of Wu Gang's forearm.

With only a slight sidestep and deflection, Wu Gang felt an irresistible force strike him.

The charging force he had poured his entire body into was forcibly diverted by Lu Chen's ingenious technique of using four ounces to redirect a thousand pounds!

"What?!"

Wu Gang's eyes bulged as he watched his heavy fist skim past Lu Chen's afterimage.

Inertia threw his center of gravity completely out of control, sending him stumbling forward without any defense.

His wide-open back and side ribs were fully exposed before Lu Chen.

Lu Chen's gaze instantly turned icy as his offense abruptly shifted.

If his defense moments ago had been a soft stream, then his counterattack now was a roaring tidal wave.

Borrowing Wu Gang's forward momentum, he seized the web between his opponent's thumb and forefinger and spun sharply around his spine as the axis.

His fists followed like shadows, transforming into a sky full of afterimages in the instant Wu Gang lost his balance.

They pounded his opponent's chest, abdomen, and joints in a dense rain of blows.

Not a single punch carried any outward pushing force.

Instead, Wu Gang's own charging force and Lu Chen's strength were driven into his body through vibrations.

Crack!

A succession of bone-splitting sounds rang out, making teeth ache.

Wu Gang's prized Iron Armor Soul Power Layer shattered inch by inch like fragile porcelain beneath that wave-like barrage.

Lu Chen stepped into Wu Gang's guard, his right fist suddenly shooting up from his waist.

At a distance of less than three inches, it erupted with thunderous force.

At that instant, the air seemed to have been sucked dry.

Boom!!

A muffled explosion erupted in the silent Soul Arena.

Wu Gang's body, weighing over two hundred pounds, was like a target struck head-on by a heavy hammer.

His chest caved in grotesquely, the bones within breaking apart inch by inch.

His entire body spun as it flew into the air, tracing a miserable arc.

Amid a spray of blood mist, he slammed heavily into the defensive barrier fifty meters away.

Then he slid limply to the ground, without another sound.

Silence!

Deathly silence!

The host, Lele, stood with her mouth agape, her pretty face filled with shock.

Everything had happened far too quickly.

From the start of their battle to its end, fewer than ten breaths had passed.

"What an exquisite combat technique!"

Du Bushi's emerald eyes shone brilliantly as he abruptly rose to his feet, his voice unable to conceal his excitement:

"It isn't simply using softness to overcome hardness. Through the body, it senses the direction of the opponent's force in advance, guides it, dissolves it, then returns it with doubled force!

This sort of rebounding, force-borrowing combat technique is something this old man has never seen before."

Du Bushi had grasped the attack method of the Flowing Water Rock-Shattering Fist after merely one look.

Precisely because of that, he was even more astonished.

"If this old man used this technique, I could definitely battle a Rank 99 Limit Douluo for hundreds of rounds!"

Princess Vina sat at the edge of the sofa, her silver-gray eyes fixed tightly on Lu Chen's retreating back.

In her spiritual vision, not a single movement Lu Chen had made was wasted.

Every ounce of strength had been used with perfect precision.

"What terrifying talent!"

She parted her red lips slightly, a deep interest appearing in her eyes.

On the arena stage, Lu Chen slowly withdrew his stance and let out a long breath. The pale-blue glow around him quietly faded away.

He looked at the corpse in the distance, his expression remaining calm.

He had long since grown accustomed to death.

Only then did the referee snap out of his daze and announce in a trembling voice:

"The winner of the second death match—Lu Chen!"

The next second, overwhelming applause and cheers erupted throughout the arena.

Tang Ya wildly waved her betting slip in the private room, her shrieks nearly lifting the roof:

"Lu Chen! You won! Gold soul coins! My gold soul coins are here!"

Bei Yuxuan snapped his folding fan shut, his face full of excitement. "Brother Lu's strength exceeded my expectations. As expected of a genius from the Body Sect!"

Behind him, Old Chen also nodded slightly, his eyes full of amazement. "Using softness to overcome hardness—a truly marvelous combat technique."

At the same time, in another private room.

"Bastard!"

Luo Du crushed the wineglass in his hand. "My five hundred thousand gold soul coins just vanished like that!"

His eyes locked onto Lu Chen's departing figure. "Did this Wu Gang grow up eating shit? He couldn't even beat a Soul Scholar!"

"Young Master, that little fellow is not weak. Ordinary Soul Masters are no match for him."

Wang Ou's aged voice sounded from behind him at just the right moment. "And... he still hasn't released his martial soul."

At those words, the veins on Luo Du's forehead twitched slightly.

His sinister eyes suddenly swept toward the black-clad girl standing nearby.

"Meiying, are you confident you can defeat him?"

Meiying frowned slightly. "His close-combat ability is very strong. I..."

"I don't care what method you use. You must kill him, even if you have to take pills."

Luo Du gave Meiying no chance to explain.

Meiying's expression changed slightly, but in the end, she respectfully nodded. "Understood!"

"Little Chen, we're rich!"

The moment Lu Chen returned to the private room, a figure pounced on him.

Tang Ya tightly wrapped her arms around his neck, her face full of irrepressible excitement, her voice trembling:

"We earned ten gold soul coins from that bet alone! With the reward for winning the match, we already have twenty gold soul coins now!

No wonder those Soul Masters love coming to the Great Soul Arena. Getting rich overnight is way too easy!"

Lu Chen spread his hands helplessly. "Sister Ya, you're going to strangle me."

Upon hearing that, Tang Ya immediately loosened her arms, though her smile had yet to fade.

A trace of shyness flashed quickly through her eyes.

"Brother Lu, congratulations on your first victory." Bei Yuxuan raised his wineglass with a smile.

"Thank you."

Lu Chen picked up his glass and lightly clinked it against Bei Yuxuan's.

The matches outside continued in full swing.

Lu Chen sat on the sofa and began reviewing the battle from earlier.

Though the battle had been brief, he had clearly felt the difference between Soul Masters and martial artists in combat.

Martial artists placed greater emphasis on techniques and skill, while ordinary Soul Masters relied heavily on soul skills.

To be honest, Wu Gang's talent was not weak. Otherwise, his first soul ring would not have been a hundred-year one.

But his fighting style was far too simplistic: soul skills to open the attack, then relying on his martial soul's traits to clash head-on.

"This style of fighting suits conventional Soul Masters, but not Body Martial Souls, and even less so me."

Lu Chen lowered his head in thought. "I already have three fist techniques as offensive methods. Absorbing more skill-based soul skills seems to have little use.

I'd be better off seeking soul skills that provided percentage-based boosts and thoroughly strengthening my body.

Long Aotian's Demonic Ape Transformation, Heaven and Earth Transformation, and Dark Gold Power would all be excellent choices.

Or I could fuse a soul bone skill similar to [Golden God's Wrath].

Changing my body's form and diversifying my combat methods would allow me to perfectly bring out the qualities of Super Recovery."

After giving it some thought, Lu Chen had formed a rough plan for his future path of cultivation.

"Little Chen, what are you thinking about? It'll be your turn to fight again soon!"

Tang Ya leaned close and curiously poked his arm.

Lu Chen froze. "So soon?"

He looked up at the screen and discovered that seven matches had already ended.

At that moment, Lele's voice spread through the entire venue via a soul tool as she announced the next battle:

"The ninth death match! Buck the 'Explosive Bear,' a Level 19 assault-type Soul Master with ten consecutive victories, versus Meiying the 'Shadow Cat,' a Level 19 assault-type Soul Master with six consecutive victories!"

Lu Chen raised an eyebrow, his gaze settling on the sexy black-clad girl on the screen.

He had seen her before.

Bei Yuxuan's expression darkened as he said solemnly, "Brother Lu, this Meiying is the one who made that wager with you.

Her martial soul is the Spectral Shadow Cat. Her speed is astonishing, and her strength rivals that of an ordinary Great Soul Master.

Moreover, her first soul skill is the extremely rare [Phasing]!"