That was right. As a cultivator of the "Chaos Gang Fighting Scripture," Lin Ming's strongest form of attack wasn't a dagger, but his fists!
Currently, Lin Ming's strongest Attack Power was enough to leave a six-inch-deep fist print in ironwood with a single punch. Ironwood was no less durable than steel; if he were punching stone, he could shatter it with ease!
Lin Ming stared intently at Wang Yigao, his eyes locked on his chest. He darted forward and threw a punch!
THUD!
With a muffled thud, Wang Yigao was sent flying backward, spitting blood. Even with the protection of his Soft Armor, and even though he had reached the Body Cultivation Second Layer of Muscle Training and had tempered his flesh to be exceptionally tough, he still couldn't withstand Lin Ming's incredibly heavy punch.
Watching Wang Yigao hit the ground like a dead hog, the onlookers were too stunned to speak. Wang Yigao had boasted that he would defeat Lin Ming in three moves, but the result was the exact opposite—Wang Yigao had been defeated by Lin Ming in three moves!
In this three-move duel, Lin Ming had dominated every single exchange. If not for the Soft Armor Wang Yigao was wearing, he would have been defeated long ago. This didn't look like a duel between someone at the Body Cultivation First Layer and someone at the Body Cultivation Second Layer at all. It was more like the other way around!
"Elder Liu, what do you make of this?" Halfway through the duel, an elderly man had appeared in the square. In his youth, this man had once reached the Body Cultivation Fifth Layer, the Bone Forging Realm, and was only a single step away from the Meridian Condensation Realm. However, Elder Liu ultimately failed to cross that threshold. The lifespan of a Martial Artist in the Bone Forging Realm is the same as an ordinary person's, and their bodies cannot resist the erosion of time. Now, Elder Liu was over seventy and had no combat ability left, but his sharp eye for martial arts remained.
The elder contemplated for a moment before saying, "This young man has Innate Divine Power!"
When Martial Artists spoke of First-Grade Talent or Second-Grade Talent, they were actually referring to the speed and ease with which the body absorbed True Essence. The faster the absorption speed, the higher the talent grade.
However, a Martial Artist's inherent physical strength was not included in this talent grading, because most people had similar strength before they began Martial Cultivation. Their starting line was the same.
But a rare few were born with Innate Divine Power, making them ten, or even more than ten times stronger than an ordinary person!
Great strength often came with great speed, which naturally provided an advantage in a fight.
However, such Martial Artists were extremely rare, and it wasn't guaranteed they would achieve greatness. After all, the further one progressed in Martial Cultivation, the more important True Essence became, and the effect one's inherent strength could have would correspondingly diminish.
"I see..." The onlookers nodded; the explanation was indeed quite reasonable.
Lin Ming picked up his dagger and walked step by step toward Wang Yigao. Wang Yigao was a miserable sight—his clothes were in tatters, he was spitting blood, and his face was covered in dirt. At that moment, he wished he could just smash his head against the ground and die. He had been utterly humiliated. He was afraid he would become the laughingstock of all the young nobles in Tianyun City.
Lin Ming said, "You said it yourself. One thousand taels of gold. Pay up."
'Fuck!'
Hearing those words, Wang Yigao nearly coughed up another mouthful of blood.
'Damn it, why did I have to get cocky and say one thousand taels instead of eight hundred! Even though I'm from a Noble Family, one thousand taels of gold is definitely not a small sum!'
This was absolutely the most miserable and unforgettable day of his life. In front of so many people, Wang Yigao couldn't possibly go back on his word. And because this was a formal Martial Arts duel, he couldn't even retaliate openly in the future, or he would be ridiculed—unless he resorted to some dirty tricks in secret.
"Money! Get the money!" Wang Yigao roared at his group of lackeys. He would accept his loss for today, but this wasn't over. He swore he would tear Lin Ming to shreds!
The group was stunned by Lin Ming's strength. Even if all six of them ganged up on him, they weren't confident they could win. 'Is he really just at the Body Cultivation First Layer?'
"Xiaodong, collect the money," Lin Ming said. One thousand taels of gold was no small sum. Although Wang Yigao was rich, he wouldn't be carrying that much on his person, so his group had to scrape it all together.
Lin Xiaodong had been in a daze ever since Wang Yigao had started coughing up blood. It wasn't until Lin Ming called his name that he snapped out of it with a dramatic reaction. 'Holy crap, this can't be real! We actually won?'
'And we won one thousand taels of gold! That's one thousand taels of gold! My entire fortune is only a little over two hundred taels, and I spent most of it just buying a single Blood Ginseng!'
As the gold notes, large and small, were placed into his hands, the expression on Lin Xiaodong's face morphed from astonishment to ecstasy, and then from ecstasy to a sleazy grin.
His eyes weren't large to begin with, and when he grinned like that, they almost disappeared into slits.
"Haha, we're rich! We're rich! My, you're all too kind, truly! What can I possibly say? Thank you all for your generosity. Knowing we were having financial troubles, you came all this way to deliver spending money right to our door. Thank you, thank you."
"And a special shout-out to Brother King Gao Yi! He felt that eight hundred taels wasn't enough and just had to make it one thousand. For this kindness, I thank you on behalf of the people!"
Hearing Lin Xiaodong's taunts, especially the "King Gao Yi" part, a sweet, coppery taste filled the already-injured Wang Yigao's throat, and he coughed up another mouthful of blood. He had once said that if he couldn't finish off Lin Ming in three moves, his name would be read backward.
'Motherfucker!'
Wang Yigao gritted his teeth in hatred. As for his cronies, their expressions were just as grim. But Lin Xiaodong was the type who delighted in being obnoxious without consequence. After gathering the gold notes, he made a show of spitting on his hands and began to count the bills one by one.
"Twenty, thirty, fifty, one hundred, one hundred and fifty, one hundred and seventy..."
After counting the thick stack of gold notes three times, Lin Xiaodong grinned from ear to ear and said, "Eight hundred and fifty taels. You're still short one hundred and fifty. I thought you guys were all rich? How can you not even scrape this little amount together?"
At Lin Xiaodong's words, Wang Yigao nearly spat blood again. His expression darkened. With a flick of his right wrist and a sharp CLANG, his Longsword embedded itself in the flagstones of the square. "This is a Cyan Blade Sword. Any weapon shop will buy it for two hundred taels of gold. We're leaving!"
Six of them had come seeking revenge and to put someone in his place, but they ended up leaving behind everything they owned, right down to the swords in their hands. Wang Yigao had never been so utterly humiliated!
The moment Lin Xiaodong saw the Cyan Blade Sword, his face lit up. He knew a thing or two about swords, and this was clearly no common blade. It was leagues better than the one he owned.
Lin Ming said, "If you like the sword, take it."
"How could I do that?" Lin Xiaodong replied. "Brother Min, you don't even have a Weapon."
Lin Ming said, "My fists are enough. I don't need a Weapon for now. I'll get one that suits me later. This Cyan Blade Sword is sharp, but it's too light for me."
Lin Xiaodong recalled Lin Ming's final, savage punch and had to agree. The sword wouldn't be enough for him.
"Alright, I'll use this sword then. But man, Brother Min, you're a beast! I had no idea." Since Lin Ming had begun his Martial Cultivation, Lin Xiaodong had never seen him in a real fight. He never imagined Lin Ming had already become so powerful, and he assumed it was all due to his hard work.
Lin Ming said, "Wang Yigao's skills are unrefined. He only just entered the Body Cultivation Second Layer, and his foundation is very unstable. His Cultivation was probably propped up with medicines, and his Martial Skills are nothing special. Beating him is nothing to brag about. My first true target is Vermilion Flame."
Vermilion Flame was different from Wang Yigao. He was powerful, with a solid foundation. His Fourth-Grade Talent was not to be underestimated, and he was also a diligent cultivator. As he was now, Lin Ming was nowhere near his match.
Lin Ming casually took the gold notes, separated a stack without counting, and handed it to Lin Xiaodong. "Here, take this."
"What's this for? You earned all this money. I already took the sword, I don't need the gold. At my level of Cultivation, ten taels of gold a month is the absolute most I can use."
Lin Ming was silent for a moment, then relented and tucked the gold notes into his robes. There was no need to draw such clear lines between him and Lin Xiaodong.
"Alright. Let's go to the trade fair."
"Right! Haha, I almost forgot if you hadn't mentioned it! The trade fair! Now we've got the capital! Between us, we have a thousand taels! One thousand taels! Holy hell! I've never seen so much money in my entire life! We're gonna go big!"