6: Chapter 6: Playing dumb to outwit the enemy, easily defeating them.

The burly man remained frozen in place, his fist suspended in the air, his face turning the color of pig liver.

The street instantly erupted in an uproar.

"Is this kid crazy?"

"Brother Hu has practiced the Iron Cloth Shirt; he can smash a stone pillar with one punch!"

"He's going to be beaten into pulp!"

The crowd scattered, opening up a small space the size of a palm.

The old woman selling sugar cakes hugged her wooden box and shrank back, while a few children clung to their mother's skirts, peeking out.

Leng Shuang stood with her arms crossed, lingering cold Qi condensing at her fingertips, her gaze as cold as frost.

Zhao Hongling, however, grew anxious, stomping her foot and hissing, "Just do it! Don't just talk!"

A muffled sound rolled from the burly man's throat, like a wild dog whose tail had been stepped on.

He abruptly pulled back his fist and flexed his arms, tearing his black leather vest with a "rip," revealing a back full of knotted muscles.

He took a large step forward, causing the ground to tremble, and bellowed, "If I don't dismantle your bones one by one today, I won't be called Tie Hu!"

As his voice fell, he lunged forward.

His right fist, like a hammer, whistled through the air as it struck directly at Chen Xuan's face. This punch was fast, fierce, and heavy; an ordinary person would have already shut their eyes and retreated in fear.

But Chen Xuan only tilted his head slightly, and the fist grazed his nose, the wind it brought causing the stray hair on his forehead to flutter.

"First punch," he said, his tone like someone critiquing a street performer at the market, "you were half a beat slow, and your strength was wasted on your shoulders. You practice external body tempering, but you haven't trained your reactions; you can't beat an expert."

Tie Hu was stunned, looking down at his fist, then up to glare at him.

"Second punch," Chen Xuan continued, "your left leg is unsteady, your center of gravity is off, your hips didn't follow through when you punched, and your True Qi was cut off at the waist. Never mind three punches; you haven't even managed to put the full force of a single punch into it."

"What nonsense are you spouting!" Tie Hu roared, sweeping his left fist horizontally, creating a whistling sound.

Chen Xuan nimbly retreated half a step, twisting his body, and the fist brushed past his clothes.

He seized the opportunity to inch half a step forward, getting closer to Tie Hu—so close he could smell the sour sweat on him.

"As for the third punch..." He suddenly lowered his voice, a smile curling at the corner of his lips, "If you dare to strike again, I will let you know what a true Martial Artist is."

Tie Hu's heart skipped a beat.

He had practiced martial arts for over a decade and had run rampant on this street for seven or eight years; no one had ever dared to speak to him like this.

Yet this person before him, dressed in ordinary linen clothes with a slouching posture, gave him the feeling of stepping on thin ice; while his footing seemed solid, there were actually undercurrents surging beneath.

Refusing to believe it, he bellowed and unleashed both fists simultaneously, attacking from both sides, determined to trap Chen Xuan in the middle and defeat him in one move.

The crowd watching held their breath.

Leng Shuang's gaze tightened slightly.

Zhao Hongling gripped the hilt of her blade tightly.

But just as Tie Hu's fists were about to close in, Chen Xuan moved.

He tapped his left foot on the ground, his whole body sliding to the side like a slippery fish, perfectly wedging into the gap between his two fists.

Tie Hu couldn't retract his momentum in time, and his left and right fists collided, numbing his own hands.

Chen Xuan didn't stop.

Utilizing the momentum of his slide, his figure flashed, and he was already behind Tie Hu.

He pressed his two fingers together and lightly brushed them across his nose, a movement as casual as brushing away dust.

The next instant, he raised his right leg, knee slightly bent, and kicked Tie Hu in the Mingmen Acupoint below his lumbar spine.

"Thump!"

A muffled sound, like a heavy hammer smashing into a sandbag.

Tie Hu's eyes bulged, his body stiffened, his True Qi instantly spiraled into chaos, his legs went weak, and with a thud, he knelt to the ground, only managing not to collapse completely by supporting himself with his hands.

He opened his mouth to curse, but only a half-choked sound squeezed out of his throat.

The entire scene went silent.

Chen Xuan clapped his hands, tucked them back into his sleeves, and said calmly, "You failed to take three punches, so you should admit defeat."

Tie Hu gritted his teeth and struggled, trying to stand up, but it felt as though the tendons below his waist had been pulled out, leaving him with no strength.

Veins bulged on his forehead, his complexion turned from red to purple, and in the end, he could only kneel there, panting heavily, unable to say a word.

Leng Shuang stepped forward slowly, her fingertips lightly tapping the ground. A chill spread from her fingertips, condensing into a ring of frost patterns on the bluestone slabs around Tie Hu, a vast expanse of white that looked like a circle drawn to trap him.

"If he moves again," she said coldly, "freeze his legs off."

Zhao Hongling put her hands on her hips and sneered, "Now who is the dog? Hmm? Weren't you quite majestic just now? Why aren't you shouting for people to make way?"

The crowd was silent for two breaths, then erupted into cheers.

"Good guy! This pretty boy looks thin, but he's really nimble!"

"Tie Hu has been used to bullying people for years; today he finally kicked an iron plate!"

"That young lady is even more impressive, making ice form on the ground—could she be a strange person from the Northern Territory?"

Someone started asking, "Who is this young man? Where is he from?"

"Never seen him before, must have just entered the city?"

"Doesn't matter who he is, at least this street will be peaceful from now on!"

Chen Xuan listened to the discussion, still wearing that lazy smile on his face.

He turned and cupped his hands to the crowd, his tone teasing, "Today's matter was only to protect my companion; I have no intention of competing or fighting. Everyone, go about your business, let's disperse."

Once these words were spoken, their favorability rose a bit more. Not bullying others, not being arrogant after winning, and instead persuading people to disperse—it appeared polite and measured.

Zhao Hongling walked to his side and lowered her voice to ask, "You aren't going to make him shout 'I am a dog' in public? That would be so satisfying."

Chen Xuan shrugged, "He's already knelt; forcing him further would just make me look petty. We are new here, it's not good to make too many enemies."

"That sentence you said just now didn't look like you were being petty." She glanced at him sideways.

"That was just to scare him." He grinned, "If we really fought, I wouldn't be sure of taking him down in three moves. But!"

He rubbed his chin, "People like him are strong on the outside but weak on the inside; the more arrogant they are, the more they fear losing. As long as he hesitated, I had already won."

Zhao Hongling curled her lip, "You act the coward quite convincingly."

"This is called tactics." He winked, "You don't understand."

Leng Shuang walked over, stood on his left, and swept her gaze around. She didn't speak, but that chill remained, reminding everyone that she was also not someone to be trifled with.

The three of them walked side by side, slowly leaving the open space.

The buzzing of discussions behind them continued incessantly.

"That heroine in white clothes must have practiced some evil art, right? Just a tap of her finger and it freezes."

"I think it looks like immortal magic! Perhaps a hidden expert descended to the mortal world."

"And that girl in red, her temper is fiery, but she seems quite obedient to that kid."

"You think they are a group? Could they be running away from a marriage elopement?"

Chen Xuan's ears twitched, and he almost laughed out loud.

Zhao Hongling heard it, her face turned red, and she raised her foot to kick his calf, but he dodged it nimbly.

"Stop messing around."

"Who is messing around with you!"

Zhao Hongling snorted and quickened her pace to walk ahead.

Leng Shuang glanced at her, the corners of her mouth lifting imperceptibly, before quickly returning to her cold indifference.

Chen Xuan walked in the middle, feeling the morning breeze on his face, the wound on his shoulder where Zhao Hongling had bitten him aching faintly.

He touched the spot, thinking: This System is annoying, but the rewards are real. Saving Leng Shuang last night increased his cultivation from Ninth-grade Peak to Eighth-grade Early Stage; saving Zhao Hongling this morning pushed it up another notch. Although he hadn't figured out the specific rules yet, one thing was clear: getting involved with women was definitely the right way to go.

Of course, he couldn't say this out loud.

He looked up toward the streets in the city, where wine banners fluttered, vendors hawked their wares, and people came and went—it was bustling and extraordinary.

Although this place was small, it was a good place to gain a foothold. First, settle down, then plan slowly.

Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard a muffled sound behind him.

Looking back, Tie Hu had finally struggled to crawl up and was being helped away in a sorry state, his back hunched, no longer possessing a shred of his arrogant aura.

Chen Xuan smiled but didn't speak.

He knew that after this battle, his name would slowly spread across this street.

Not because of how strong he was, but because he dared to make Tie Hu kneel and rendered him unable to say a single word.

This was the most daunting part.

He turned his head back and continued walking forward.

Leng Shuang followed closely on his left, her steps steady.

Zhao Hongling walked in front, her back straight, her steps light and quick.

Sunlight spilled onto the three of them, casting three shadows of different lengths.

At the corner of the street, a child dropped a sugar cake on the ground, staring blankly as they walked past.

As Chen Xuan passed by, he casually reached into his bosom, pulled out a copper coin, and tossed it into the child's open hands.

The child looked up, his eyes brightening.

Chen Xuan smiled at him, waved his hand, and walked away.