Return to the City: The Strongest King
Chapter 633 - 634: Actual Combat Refinement

Chapter 633: Chapter 634: Actual Combat Refinement

Song Xiaodong let out a roar and his right fist fiercely struck out, directly meeting Su Zhentian’s palm.

With his strength greatly increased, Song Xiaodong had yet to spar with a true expert, and at that moment, he was eager to test just how strong he was.

"Thump!"

Song Xiaodong’s fist collided solidly with Su Zhentian’s palm, emitting a sound like the clash of metal and drums.

Su Zhentian stood in his place, unmoving, while Song Xiaodong was jolted backward three steps. He couldn’t help but feel shocked—Su Zhentian’s strength was truly too powerful, and he was no match for him.

What was most important was that the force from Su Zhentian’s palm was somewhat strange, carrying with it a vibrating power. When his fist struck Su Zhentian’s palm, it was like smashing into a barrel of explosives, completely dispersing his Vigor.

At that moment, Sun One chuckled lightly and said, "Hehe, the Su Family has always specialized in External Skills. This young man actually tries to compete in strength with the other party, truly overestimating himself."

"Good lad, no wonder you dare to challenge our Su Family; you do have some skills." Su Zhentian praised him and then shouted, "Now try taking two more of my palms."

Knowing that he couldn’t surpass Su Zhentian in strength, Song Xiaodong would not engage in a contest of power with him. He shifted his footing, dodging Su Zhentian’s palm, and aimed a punch directly at Su Zhentian’s waist.

With his momentum unabated, Su Zhentian merely turned his palm slightly, redirecting it in another direction, still aiming for Song Xiaodong’s chest.

Song Xiaodong switched up several clever moves, but Su Zhentian’s response was usually just a palm or a punch, forcing Song Xiaodong to interrupt his move midway, and he was unable to execute a coherent sequence of techniques.

Sun One watched with keen interest and said, "Old Su, I never realized it, but your martial power has improved. This Zhentian Palm of yours has quite the flavor of great ingenuity without effort."

Su Zhentian laughed heartily and replied, "You really have some insight to see the essence of my Kung Fu."

Listening to their conversation, Song Xiaodong’s heart was struck by a realization. The heavy sword has no edge, great ingenuity without effort—this must be a very profound martial arts principle. Although his Kung Fu had grown strong over the years, he had not delved deeply into martial arts theory or, to put it another way, he hadn’t truly discussed such matters with such high-level martial arts experts.

The few conversations he had with Elder Fang had been enlightening, but in comparison to the insights of these two, Elder Fang’s knowledge was clearly lacking.

But now, what troubled Song Xiaodong the most was how to deal with Su Zhentian. He felt somewhat hampered, having thought that with his greatly increased strength, he would be able to match Sun Yiyi.

Yet, after just one exchange with Su Zhentian, he suddenly realized that he was still out of their league.

"Old Su, do you think I have a way to break through your Zhentian Palm?" Sun One asked at that moment.

"Let’s hear your thoughts," Su Zhentian replied casually to Sun One. His attack, however, was entirely unaffected, and he pressed Song Xiaodong back step by step.

Sun One said, "Although there’s a flavor of great ingenuity without effort in your technique, it has not truly reached that state of mind. It’s merely superficially similar but lacking in spirit. In the world of martial arts, speed is unparalleled. If your Zhentian Palm is fierce but can’t hit me, it’s naturally useless."

Su Zhentian laughed heartily and said, "The girl has quite the eye, your movement technique may be fast, but my Palm Force is strong, and you still can’t get close to me."

Sun One said, "So, we can only end up in a stalemate, neither winning nor losing."

To Su Zhentian’s surprise, he actually called Sun One a "little girl," but Song Xiaodong was fully focused on thinking up ways to deal with Su Zhentian, completely missing this detail.

Song Xiaodong was well aware that if he couldn’t even beat Su Zhentian, the consequences today would surely be very serious, but he couldn’t afford to think about that now, as it would only make him more anxious.

With his spirit concentrated and demeanor calm, Song Xiaodong faced the situation steadily. Although he was continuously at a disadvantage, it wasn’t easy for Su Zhentian to defeat him quickly.

Now, he had a reliance, which was his silver needles. A surprise attack might succeed, just as it had with Sun Two last time.

Suddenly, Sun One said with a grin, "I’m telling you, Old Su, don’t blame me for not warning you, this kid’s flying needle is quite tricky. Don’t fall for it, or you’ll capsize in the gutter."

Song Xiaodong’s face darkened instantly; his last reliance had been exposed by Sun One, and it seemed his trump card was now useless.

Su Zhentian laughed loudly again and said, "How could I not be aware of this? But if he thinks he can pierce through my Protective True Qi with his tiny silver needles, I’m afraid it won’t be so easy."

"Damn it, he even has Protective True Qi. That stuff is the stuff of legends, right? Is this old guy for real?" Song Xiaodong cursed inwardly, thinking the old man was truly a freak.

Sun One immediately scoffed and said, "Pah, what Protective True Qi? You’re just scaring those who don’t know any better. You’re just relying on your thick skin and flesh."

Su Zhentian once again laughed heartily, "No matter what, it’s more than enough to deal with this brat."

Sun One was simply enjoying the spectacle, helping Song Xiaodong one moment and exposing Su Zhentian the next. It seemed like he wasn’t siding with anyone, but since Song Xiaodong was already at a disadvantage with his trump card gone, he naturally suffered more.

Every palm and punch from Su Zhentian exerted great pressure on Song Xiaodong. If he made even a slight mistake, he could be severely injured, so he exerted his utmost spirit, squeezing every cell and every bit of True Qi in his body to meet the assault as fierce as a tempest and to resist that bomb-like formidable power.

In the beginning, Song Xiaodong felt he might collapse at any moment under the pressure, but after a dozen moves, he started to feel the pressure from the opponent lessening, as if Su Zhentian’s strength was fading.

"Eh!" Su Zhentian also sensed something odd. He had expected Song Xiaodong to last at most five or six moves, but after more than ten, Song Xiaodong was still standing, and it seemed even easier for him. Surprised, he said, "Kid, you’ve got some skills."

Sun One also expressed his surprise, "Seems like this kid improves whenever he fights with you, how strange."

At that moment, Song Xiaodong realized that the True Qi he had gained from the medicine, although it had merged with his own True Qi, hadn’t truly integrated due to his own True Qi being weak. It was more a mixture than a true fusion.

But now, as he fought with Su Zhentian, Su’s Zhentian Palm, like a heavy hammer, was tempering his True Qi. In just a short while, it had become much more refined.

This greatly boosted Song Xiaodong’s confidence. If he could hold on a bit longer, perhaps he would have the strength to fight Su Zhentian today.