My martial arts have no bottlenecks.

Chapter 23 Fierce Battle

That night, Er Gou hurriedly found Liang Cheng.

"Brother Cheng! I saw Da Tou!" Er Gou panted. "He's over in the wasteland north of the town, with a few unfamiliar faces. They all look like they know their own martial arts; they're not to be trifled with!"

Liang Cheng's eyes narrowed: "The exact location?"

"Five miles north of Old Crow's Beak, there's an abandoned shipyard," Er Gou said in a low voice. "I was going there to collect clams when I saw them moving something in the distance, it looked like iron ingots!"

"Are you sure it's Big Head?"

"I'd recognize him even if he were ashes!" Er Gou said firmly. "He's still wearing the blue cloth short jacket that the Sea Serpent Gang wears, but he looks furtive, like he's not up to any good."

Liang Cheng hesitated for a moment, then said, "Go back first, and remember not to make a sound."

"Brother Cheng, are you going alone?" Er Gou hesitated. "Those people don't look like easy targets. Should we wait until tomorrow and bring some people with us...?"

"I know what I'm doing. You go home first and pretend you know nothing."

"Then be careful."

……

At midnight, on a barren beach.

The abandoned shipyard was hidden among the reefs, with only a few faint lights shining through. Liang Cheng sneaked closer and saw three men guarding outside the shed. They were all at the Ming Jin level and were drinking.

"After we finish this job, the gang leader said we'll each get at least two hundred taels. It's a risk-free business; we can do it a few more times."

"But Chen Bainian has been searching, won't there be some problems..."

"Don't worry, just do as you're told. With your superiors backing you up, what's there to be afraid of?"

Liang Cheng quietly bypassed the guards and climbed in through a broken window of the dock. Inside, there were some wooden crates, and Da Tou was tied to a pillar with a rag stuffed in his mouth and injuries on his face.

"Ugh! Ugh!" Big Head shook his head and glared at Liang Cheng in a panic.

Liang Cheng quickly cut the rope and pulled the rag out of his mouth.

"Brother Cheng, run! There's an ambush—" Big Head hadn't finished speaking.

"Bang!"

The shed door was kicked open, and Zhang Kui led his men in, sneering, "Liang Cheng, you have a path to heaven but you choose not to take it, and you insist on barging into hell when there's no way out."

"And this kid," Zhang Kui pointed at Da Tou, "is an ungrateful wretch. He talks about loyalty and sneaks around investigating until he finds his way here. He's asking for trouble."

Behind him, besides the three Ming Jin cultivators from before, there were two more people dressed entirely in black and masked, with profound auras. One was at the peak of An Jin, and the other was almost on par with Zhou Hu, seemingly having reached the threshold of Hua Jin.

"Chief Zhang," Liang Cheng said cautiously, adopting a defensive stance, "what do you mean by this?"

"What do you mean?" Zhang Kui suddenly kicked Da Tou, sending him flying. Da Tou crashed into the wall, coughing up blood and sliding down. "You insisted on investigating those three ships of goods, cutting off other people's source of income. Today I'll teach you a lesson: the waters of the underworld run deeper than you imagine."

Da Tou curled up on the ground, barely breathing, "Brother Cheng... I really didn't get involved, I never intended to harm you..."

Before he could finish speaking, he fainted.

"superior!"

At Zhang Kui's command, three Ming Jin subordinates rushed forward simultaneously, their blades flashing, fists flying, and kicks blocking all of Liang Cheng's escape routes.

Liang Cheng remained remarkably calm, neither dodging nor evading. His feet firmly planted in the Hunyuan stance, and he twisted his waist and hips sharply—

"Raging Bull Force - Mountain Collapse!"

He then moved swiftly and decisively, slamming his left shoulder against the back of the knife and his right fist into a man's chest.

"Snap!"

The sound of ribs shattering was clear and piercing. The other person was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing into the wooden frame and dying instantly.

The other two men's blades and fists had already reached Liang Cheng's ribs and the back of his neck. Liang Cheng's body twitched and sprang strangely as he activated his Stone Armor Technique at full power.

"Clang! Clang!"

The knife struck the flesh, producing a metallic clang, leaving only a faint white mark.

The two men were horrified.

At this moment, Liang Cheng had already turned around, and with both fists like hammers, he pounded the two men's temples, one on the left and one on the right.

"Pfft! Pfft!"

The skull was sunken, and brain matter splattered.

Three breaths later, all three died.

Zhang Kui's pupils shrank sharply: "As expected of the champion of the Three Towns Grand Competition, you are indeed formidable."

Liang Cheng wiped the blood splattered on his face and remained silent.

Zhang Kui wasted no time. He crossed his palms, his ten fingers turning dark blue. He leaped up like an eagle, his claws tearing through the air, aiming straight for Liang Cheng's eyes.

Instead of retreating, Liang Cheng advanced, protecting his face with his left hand and forming a fist with his right. His powerful energy, like a mountain torrent, erupted as he charged forward!

"Bang—!"

Fists and claws clashed, creating a shockwave.

Zhang Kui staggered back five steps, his finger bones throbbing with pain, his eyes wide with horror: "Your strength..."

Liang Cheng remained silent, taking steps forward to pursue his attack, his fists raining down like a storm.

Zhang Kui could only barely defend himself, but with each punch he received, his blood and qi surged. After ten moves, he coughed up blood and staggered backward.

"Let's go together!" Zhang Kui finally stopped trying to fight alone.

The two masked men finally moved. One of them punched like a heavy hammer, and the ground trembled when he stepped. He was obviously a practitioner of fierce and hard martial arts. Each punch was accompanied by a muffled thunderous sound, which made Liang Cheng's arms go numb.

The other person's movements were elusive, and his palm techniques were unpredictable and subtle. His palm force, like a venomous snake, penetrated the stone armor defenses and directly invaded the body.

Liang Cheng was instantly plunged into a fierce battle.

The powerful punch caused his blood and qi to surge, while the soft palm force continued to seep into his body. If he hadn't entered the Stone Bone Stance, he probably wouldn't have been able to hold on for long.

However, he was hit by seven palm strikes and three punches, and blood still trickled from the corner of his mouth, and his face turned pale.

"We can't delay any longer..." Liang Cheng thought to himself.

At this moment, the opponent threw another heavy punch, but Liang Cheng did not dodge or avoid it. Instead, he used his full strength to activate his Stone Armor Technique and directly took the hit!

"Thump!"

The muffled thud was like a drumbeat, and a buzzing sound filled Liang Cheng's body, almost causing him to faint. But in that instant, his left hand shot up with lightning speed.

Lime powder!

The white mist burst open, rushing straight towards the masked man's face on the right.

"Ah! My eyes!" the man screamed in agony, covering his eyes with his hands. Liang Cheng's boots flashed with a cold light, and a short, cold iron blade was already in his hand.

He charged forward like a ghost, his blade slicing diagonally upwards, precisely slicing across the throat of the blindfolded, masked man.

"Pfft!"

Blood splattered three feet, the man groaned twice, then fell backward and remained silent.

"mean!"

The masked man on the left, his eyes bloodshot with rage, threw a punch at Liang Cheng's back. This punch was a culmination of his life's work, and even before the fist arrived, the force of the blow made Liang Cheng gasp for breath.

However, Liang Cheng did not turn back. He pushed his Stone Armor Skill to its limit, and his back muscles were as taut as steel plates.

"Bang--!"

The fist landed squarely on his back.

Liang Cheng spat out a mouthful of blood, but after deflecting the force of the punch, he took three steps back and stabbed behind him with a backhand!

"puff!"

The blade pierced the masked man's ribs, straight through his heart. Liang Cheng twisted his wrist, causing the blade to swirl half a circle inside his body, before suddenly pulling it out.

The masked man's eyes widened, and he slowly knelt down on the ground.

In the blink of an eye, Liang Cheng killed two people!

Zhang Kui's face turned pale, and he turned to flee. Liang Cheng wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, stepped forward, and struck with all his might.

"call out!"

The cold iron short blade turned into a cold light and accurately pierced Zhang Kui's back. Zhang Kui rushed forward a few steps, looked down at the blade tip protruding from his chest, opened his mouth, and fell to the ground.

Ignoring his own injuries, Liang Cheng repeatedly punched Zhang Kui and the others in the temples until he was absolutely dead before collapsing to the ground, panting heavily.

After catching his breath, Liang Cheng forced himself to check his injuries. He had two broken ribs and internal injuries, but his bones, which had been tempered by the Stone Bone Style, were not seriously damaged. He tore off a piece of his clothes and bandaged himself up simply.

Tonight is the most dangerous night of my life.

Fortunately, I won again this time.

At this moment, the dock was deathly silent.

He rested for a moment, regained his strength, and turned to walk towards Big Head.