Sha Sheng Nie launched a leaping front kick, sending Luke sprawling to the ground.

Although this kick was delivered when he was at full health and peak condition, Luke's endurance was at the absolute ceiling level among Ye Cang and the other two.

However, Sha Sheng Nie didn't follow up with a finishing blow, because in his arrogant belief, the Tianzhong clan was the strongest among the three major power systems of Heaven, the Human Realm, and the Underworld, without exception.

Luke stood up nonchalantly, casually wiping the blood from his nose with his arm and saying, "Hey... that kick really hurt."

Sha Sheng Nie was filled with question marks and confusion, staring at Luke with eyes bigger than a horse, cautiously asking, "You... are you alright?"

Luke replied sincerely, "Of course, something's wrong..."

Sha Sheng Nie asked, utterly bewildered, "What's wrong?"

Luke answered, "It hurts!"

Sha Sheng Nie finally realized that Luke was perfectly fine; the kick, though delivered with all his strength, had only managed to bloody Luke's nose, and nothing more...

"Hey... Sha Sheng Nie. Sorry about the distraction earlier; let's continue," Luke said seriously, adopting a fighting stance.

In another part of the dueling arena... Ye Cang's side.

Ye Cang launched a preemptive strike, as catching the opponent off guard was always his tactic in actual combat, with the aim of gaining the upper hand.

*Pfft!*

Ye Cang landed a low sweep kick on Chao Hou's calf, then feinted with a right punch to confuse the opponent, making him think he was going for the head.

While feinting with his arm, Ye Cang immediately shifted his body, following up with a turning back kick.

Originally, the seamless, flowing attack rhythm was countered by this Tianzhong named Chao Hou, who first withstood the low sweep kick, then leaned back, deflecting the arm feint.

Ye Cang's final turning kick was also successfully parried, followed by a step-up turning elbow strike.

Since elbow strikes are generally used at close range...

Ye Cang didn't react in time and could only raise his arms as a shield, using his body as a defensive center of gravity, then pushing forward to increase the inertial force of the impact.

*Pu*... Ye Cang successfully wedged himself into Chao Hou's inner circle, successfully defusing the turning elbow strike.

"Wedging" into the inner circle usually means using one's body as a shield to take the opponent's attack head-on when there's no way to avoid it.

The difference is that although the point of impact is the same, the damage sustained is completely different.

For example...

Person A throws a right hook, wanting to deliver a fatal knockout blow.

At this time, Person B, not reacting quickly enough, can't dodge swiftly. In this situation, there are generally three choices.

First: Frontal defense, which is to say, a head-on collision. In this case, although it can block a fatal blow, the damage sustained will be significant.

Second: Taking the punch head-on, defending with the face. This move can be said to be the unique technique of a certain traditional martial arts master, Master Ma Daiguo, using his face to take the punch and employing the supreme skill of "receiving, neutralizing, and launching."

Third: Using the body as a shield to advance into the opponent's inner circle. Because the opponent is using a hook, the greatest damage is on the fist's edge, so a head-on collision is obviously unwise.

At this time, we should choose to advance forward, break into the opponent's inner line, and then use the curved surface of the corner, using the body as the force-bearing point of the curved surface, with Person A's upper arm as the receiving surface.

In this way, not only is the fatal punch avoided, but also psychological pressure is created for the opponent, and the most important point is that the inner circle's upper arm is the driving force, the so-called force-generating point, rather than the true explosive force.

Therefore, when we can't avoid an attack, choosing to "wedge" into the opponent's inner line, using the body's impact and the lateral curved surface as the force-bearing point to defuse the opponent's explosive strike, is the best solution.

Finally, Ye Cang pushed hard with both hands, and Chao Hou staggered back two steps.

After a moment of stalemate, Ye Cang launched another charge. Chao Hou seemed to see through Ye Cang's intention and quickly extended his longer arm span, controlling Ye Cang's head and preventing him from getting close.

*Pfft, pfft, pfft*... Ye Cang's flurry of punches all missed.

Chao Hou taunted Ye Cang, waving his hand and saying, "Hahahaha... you think you're worthy of fighting me? Come on... hit me!"

This completely enraged Ye Cang!

Ye Cang countered by pressing down on the hand on his head, forcefully prying back Chao Hou's little finger with his left hand and his thumb with his right hand, while suddenly squatting down.

*Crack!!!*

Chao Hou's two fingers were snapped off by Ye Cang.

But at this moment, Chao Hou surprisingly advanced instead of retreating, grabbing Ye Cang's neck and knocking him down with a backhand punch.

Chao Hou approached again, grabbing Ye Cang and landing another heavy punch.

*Bang!* Ye Cang was once again knocked to the ground by Chao Hou's punch.

Before Ye Cang could steady himself, Chao Hou kicked him, sending him flying several meters.

Chao Hou chuckled as he walked towards Ye Cang... Just then, Ye Cang had already condensed a light flame energy ball in his right hand.

*Boom!*

Just as Chao Hou approached, he was blasted in the head by Ye Cang's light flame energy ball.

Then, Ye Cang rushed forward and grabbed Chao Hou's legs.

But Chao Hou reacted exceptionally quickly, immediately lowering his body, wrapping his arms around Ye Cang's forearms, and flipping over to pin Ye Cang beneath him.

*Bang, bang, bang, bang!* Fists the size of sand bowls struck Ye Cang with full force, each blow landing squarely.

Ye Cang felt that each of Chao Hou's heavy punches was not only hitting his physical body, but even his soul seemed to be shaken slightly.

"The Tianzhong clan is indeed powerful!" Ye Cang marveled inwardly.

And Chao Hou's fists were like a volcanic eruption, each punch possessing the power of collapsing mountains and draining rivers, leaving Ye Cang unable to parry.

Just as Chao Hou retracted his fist to gather strength, Ye Cang quickly grabbed Chao Hou's head, locking his neck tightly with his arms, and bit down on Chao Hou's ear.

With a tearing sound!

One of Chao Hou's ears was instantly bitten off by Ye Cang.