"Young Master Xu is truly worthy of being the successor of the Soul Shattering Saber. In the future, you will definitely be able to make your name known throughout the martial arts world," Jia Hong praised sincerely, her lips parting slightly.

Upon hearing this, Xu Haoren's face broke into a smile, and his gaze towards Jia Hong grew even more eager.

Next, disciples from large families and sects like Fulin Escort Agency and the Tian Family all came out to showcase their family-inherited martial arts skills.

Noble family heirs touted and interacted with each other, making the atmosphere increasingly lively.

Jia Hong stood in the center of the crowd, her charming smile as engaging as a fish in water.

Occasionally, just a word from her could elevate the atmosphere to a climax.

Meanwhile, Lou Yi, Zhan Weida, and seven or eight other ordinary disciples from the Extreme Fist Sect were sitting by the table at the edge of the hall.

Almost no one paid them any attention, which was quite embarrassing.

"Damn it, I knew coming here wasn't a good idea. That woman Jia Hong is really something else!" Zhan Weida said resentfully.

"Why do I feel like we're just here to play second fiddle?" a disciple from the Extreme Fist Sect whispered.

As they say, flowers need green leaves to accompany them.

Without them, these ordinary disciples without background, how would the noble family heirs in attendance stand out?

Upon hearing this, everyone felt a mix of awkwardness and anger.

They were invited over, but not even introduced.

Moreover, they were seated separately, with their fellow sect members placed in the farthest corner, showing that Jia Hong's attitude was dismissive enough to chill the heart.

Lou Yi sat at the table without speaking, focusing solely on picking up food with his chopsticks.

He had come from a hard life and couldn't bear to see so much good food go to waste.

Delicacies like flower chicken, vinegar fish, lion's head meatballs, and drunken crabs were things he couldn't even dream of eating during his tree-chopping days.

"Were you born in the Year of the Pig?" Zhan Weida couldn't help but scold when he saw this.

In the hall, Jia Hong's clear voice rang out.

"All the young talents have shown their skills, so I naturally can't fall behind. The fist techniques of our Extreme Fist Sect..."

"The fist techniques of our Extreme Fist Sect emphasize the word 'extreme'," Lou Yi suddenly stood up, interrupting Jia Hong.

Then, he strode towards the middle of the hall, "The essence of 'extreme' is limits, pinnacle, and utmost!"

"If my will is strong enough, I can shatter a lump of ten-refined steel with a single punch!" Lou Yi's words left many disciples of the Extreme Fist Sect stunned.

Jia Hong, who always had everything under control, was momentarily agape, clearly not expecting Lou Yi to step forward and cause a scene with such outrageous remarks.

"So powerful? I don't believe it!" A disciple from the Yuan Family stood and loudly challenged.

The Yuan Family, on the same level as the Zhan Family and Huang Family, primarily dealt in silk, monopolizing over half of Tai City's market.

His skepticism of Lou Yi partly stemmed from distrust of his words, but mainly because Lou Yi had no background.

If the Xu Family's heir had said it, even if he didn't believe it, he wouldn't show it on his face.

"Can you crush ten-refined steel? Are you a martial artist? Even if you were a martial artist, it wouldn't be so easy!" A member of the Su Family's branch appeared agitated.

"I am not that talented, only just breaking through the first stage," Lou Yi replied calmly, "However, our Extreme Fist specializes in turning the impossible into possible.

As they say, 'The larger the heart, the grander the world, the stronger the fist technique.'"

"Pfft!" A cute, young girl from Fulin Escort Agency, dressed in a black, waist-cinching dart uniform, couldn't help but laugh.

"Oh, young lady, you don't believe it?" Lou Yi approached her, staring at her fair cheeks.

The girl blushed but shook her head vigorously like a rattle drum.

"Well, then, should we make a bet?" Lou Yi suggested confidently, "Bring out a piece of ten-refined steel, and I'll smash it. If I lose, I'll give you a thousand taels of silver.

If I win, I don't want silver; as long as you have any Phoenix Blood Stone, White Dew Stone, Bone-piercing Orchid, or Earth Dragon Essence Tendon, it can be used to offset."

"I don't have any of those things you mentioned," the girl softly replied.

"What a pity," Lou Yi showed a look of regret.

"Stop the big talk!" Xu Haoren interjected, annoyed, "Do you think anyone will believe you?"

"Bet or not?" Lou Yi asked.

"If you were a martial artist, there might be a slight chance, but with just the first stage..."

"Bet or not? If not, then shut up."

"You!" Xu Haoren felt his qi and blood surge, hardly anyone dared speak to him that way.

"Brother Liu, please don't make trouble," Jia Hong regained her composure, trying to pull Lou Yi back down.

But Lou Yi ignored her, leaping aside to evade her attempts.

Fixing his gaze on Xu Haoren, he said, "Didn't expect the great Xu Family heir to not even dare to bet. Such lack of confidence?"

"Why not? But do you have the silver?" Xu Haoren sneered.

A thousand taels of silver was inconceivable for ordinary families.

'Slam!'

A silver note worth a thousand taels was boldly slapped on the table by Lou Yi.

"My family has a White Dew Stone; I'll bet!" The Yuan Family heir who first doubted Lou Yi stepped up, "The White Dew Stone is worth more than a thousand taels. You need to put down at least three thousand taels!"

'Slam!'

Over a dozen silver notes were directly tossed out by Lou Yi, stunning many noble family heirs.

Even they found it hard to possess so much wealth at once.

"Anyone else want to bet?" Lou Yi taunted arrogantly, "Silver, I have plenty of it!"

"I'll bet, my family has Bone-piercing Orchid!" another disciple from the Feng Family, a large herbal distributor, declared loudly.

"I'll put in a thousand taels!" someone else joined with silver, and Lou Yi didn't refuse them.

In the blink of an eye, over a dozen people partook in Lou Yi's gambling setup.

What was initially a long-planned martial arts exchange gathering had seemingly turned into a gambling event.

Jia Hong's eyebrows twitched, eyeing Lou Yi angrily.

The carefully orchestrated exchange event was thus disrupted by Lou Yi.

If looks could kill, Lou Yi would have been dead hundreds of times by her glare.

Lou Yi remained oblivious, and once no more bets were added, he shouted, "Alright, let me show you the true power of Extreme Fist!"

"Who has ten-refined steel?" Lou Yi asked.

"I do." The cute girl from Fulin Escort Agency brought forth a fist-sized Iron Gall and placed it on the table.

She explained crisply, "This is my grandfather's Iron Gall, made of ten-refined steel, with even a bit of Profound Iron mixed in, making it harder than regular ten-refined steel."

Upon hearing this, the Yuan Family heir drew his sword and struck the Iron Gall.

With a 'clang' sound,

the Iron Gall remained as shiny as new, while a small notch appeared on the sword's edge.

"This sword is made of ten-refined steel; it seems Miss Lin speaks the truth," the Yuan Family heir remarked.

"I want to see how you can smash it!" Xu Haoren sneered.

Everyone's eyes turned to Lou Yi, eager to witness his performance.

Lou Yi was in no rush, nonchalantly sitting on a chair, "Bring over your precious bets first; what if you back out later?"

"We come from reputable families; we wouldn't be dishonest."

"That's not guaranteed."

Hearing this, Xu Haoren and the others felt a blaze in their hearts, but they had no choice but to call their servants outside to fetch the items.

A moment later,

Bone-piercing Orchid and White Dew Stone were brought out, making Lou Yi's eyes light up.

Not expecting the items he coveted for so long to come so easily.

Indeed, many hands make light work; the ancients didn't lie to me.

Too bad the Earth Dragon Essence Tendon is too rare; even the noble heirs here don't have it.

Lou Yi greedily thought.

"Move aside, or I might punch through the floor."

Lou Yi led everyone outside to the first floor, placing the Iron Gall on the ground as he leisurely said, "I'll only use one punch; watch carefully."

Then, he slammed his right fist towards the Iron Gall!

The moment he made contact, the surface of his fist turned jade white.

But due to the viewing angle, no one noticed this change.

'Duang!'

The Iron Gall nearly sank into the ground,

its surface instantly caving in a large chunk, transforming from a sphere to a boat shape.

Lou Yi raised his right hand to show everyone, with the skin slightly red, but not even a scratch.

"Impossible!" Xu Haoren exclaimed, his face full of disbelief.

...

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