Chapter 098: The World-Shocking Imperial Fist

Because Xin Lang was pondering something, he remained silent, but Fatty Gu, standing beside him, said to Huangfu Shaoqi, "We brothers may lack many things, but money is never one of them! If you think you can make us give up this private room, you can forget it!"

"You—" Huangfu Shaoqi was about to lose his temper, but when he caught sight of the waist tokens on Xin Lang and his companions, he broke into a smile instead. "So you're Martial Arts Academy students too! New students, I take it?"

"So what if we are?" Since Xin Lang and the others all wore their waist tokens, being recognized was hardly surprising.

Huangfu Shaoqi pulled out a golden waist token from his person and dangled it before Xin Lang and the other three. "Do you see what this is?"

Xin Lang curled his lip. "So what if you're a Gold Medal student? Does that give you the authority to demand we vacate our room for you?"

Huangfu Shaoqi said, "In the Martial Arts Academy, Gold Medal students hold absolute authority. You should be fully aware of that, so there's no need for me to spell it out."

"Heh heh..." Xin Lang chuckled. "Sorry, but we're not Gold Medal students, so we really have no idea what privileges Gold Medal students enjoy! And even if you did have special privileges, this isn't the Martial Arts Academy. Go find somewhere cool to cool your heels—don't bother us while we're eating!"

"You—" Huangfu Shaoqi's expression shifted between gloom and fury at Xin Lang's words. He spat out viciously, "Do you know who I am?"

Xin Lang replied indifferently, "What does knowing who you are have to do with us having our meal?"

Huangfu Shaoqi was about to explode when Murong Yueyin stepped into the room. She said calmly to Huangfu Shaoqi, "Classmate Huangfu, if there's no seat, then never mind. I need to return to the academy for training anyway, so I'll be on my way."

Murong Yueyin cast a meaningful glance at Xin Lang, then turned and left the room.

Seeing Murong Yueyin about to go, Huangfu Shaoqi immediately chased after her, but before long he returned with a darkened face—clearly, he had failed to win her back.

Not only had Huangfu Shaoqi failed to enjoy the moonlight with Murong Yueyin today, but he had also lost face before her. He said to Xin Lang and the others, "The four of you have ruined this young master's good fortune. Today, I will not let you off easily!"

"Uh... the Martial Arts Academy's rules state that senior students are forbidden from arbitrarily provoking junior students!" Xin Lang said.

"Hmph! That's the Martial Arts Academy's rule, but this isn't the academy—this is Xiadu City! The academy's rules only hold sway within its walls; they have no jurisdiction here!" Huangfu Shaoqi said hatefully.

"Heh heh... Right! Why didn't I think of that before?" Xin Lang said, as if suddenly enlightened.

Huangfu Shaoqi advanced step by step toward Xin Lang and his three companions. "Hmph, even if you've thought of it now, it's too late! None of you are getting away today!"

"Heh heh... I think you've got it backwards, haven't you? We have no intention of running at all! On the contrary, you're the one who has offended me—better make sure you don't flee!"

With that, the four of them set down their food and advanced on Huangfu Shaoqi in unison.

"What are you lot doing? This young master is a Gold Medal student!" Huangfu Shaoqi had assumed that once he flashed his Gold Medal status, these people would shrink back and kowtow to him—but they clearly couldn't care less.

"Heh heh, didn't you just say it yourself? This is Xiadu City, not the Martial Arts Academy, so there's no Gold Medal student here—only a piece of trash begging for a beating!" Fatty Gu said with a sinister grin.

"Hmph, you're looking for death! Don't blame this young master for being ruthless, then!"

With that, Huangfu Shaoqi struck without warning. "Earth-grade high-level skill: the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist!"

As a prince of the Great Xia Dynasty, Huangfu Shaoqi naturally possessed no shortage of advanced martial arts, and he opened with an Earth-grade high-level technique right from the start.

The Startling Imperial Emperor Fist was a sovereign's fist technique—one punch delivered an aura of a monarch dominating the world. However, Huangfu Shaoqi's skill was lacking, and he could hardly bring out even a fraction of this advanced technique's true power. Though he held the rank of Gold Medal student, his real strength was only that of a Silver Medal student—a fifth-rank martial artist. The only reason he carried the Gold Medal status was his special identity: he was the Third Prince of the Great Xia Dynasty. Those who knew who he was had no desire to offend him and yielded to him, which was how he had come by his Gold Medal standing.

Moreover, Huangfu Shaoqi's fifth-rank martial artist strength was not achieved through his own cultivation; most of it had been built with the aid of rare treasures and premium medicinal elixirs.

Thus, the seemingly ferocious punch Huangfu Shaoqi threw held no threat whatsoever in Xin Lang's eyes.

*Boom!*

Xin Lang caught Huangfu Shaoqi's fist directly with his hand. The "Heavenly Halberd" instantly absorbed the greater part of the punch's force, causing Huangfu Shaoqi's Startling Imperial Emperor Fist to collapse in an instant.

Xin Lang said, "For you to use the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist is nothing short of an insult to the true essence of this technique! Allow me to show you what the authentic Startling Imperial Emperor Fist actually looks like!"

Xin Lang used the martial-arts learning function of his Level-Up Device to master Huangfu Shaoqi's Startling Imperial Emperor Fist in an instant, then unleashed it, amplified by the Heavenly Halberd.

In that moment, the entire room shook from the vibrations of Xin Lang's fist force. Huangfu Shaoqi was sent flying by a single punch, crashing through the door and landing plastered against the corridor wall.

That one punch from Xin Lang gave full expression to the essence of the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist—its aura swallowing the heavens, as if the sovereign himself had set foot upon the earth!

Hong Jingang, watching from the side, had already shown surprise when Huangfu Shaoqi used the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist, but when he saw Xin Lang unleash it as well, his expression turned far more solemn.

"You—you—how can you use the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist?" Huangfu Shaoqi picked himself up off the floor and pointed at Xin Lang.

"Hmph! It's just an Earth-grade technique. What's so remarkable about it?" Xin Lang said dismissively.

"Xin—Xin—Brother Xin Lang, the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist is the imperial martial art of the Great Xia Dynasty!" Hong Jingang's tone toward Xin Lang had grown far more respectful, because the punch Xin Lang had just thrown—even if it had been Hong Jingang himself facing it, he absolutely could not have withstood it.

"Heh, I know that! It seems the gentleman before us must be a prince of the Great Xia Dynasty! But the Startling Imperial Emperor Fist wasn't originally a technique of the Huangfu family to begin with—a point Your Highness should know better than I do!" Xin Lang said.

"You—you—who are you? How do you know so many imperial secrets?" Huangfu Shaoqi cried out in shock.

Xin Lang glanced at Huangfu Shaoqi and sneered coldly. "As a prince of the Great Xia Dynasty, you should have some understanding of how your Huangfu family came to sit on the throne. There's no need for me to spell it out!"

"You—you—are you one of the Immor—" Huangfu Shaoqi pointed at Xin Lang with a startled cry, but before he could finish, Xin Lang cut him off.

Xin Lang barked, "Silence! If you don't want the Great Xia Dynasty to change hands, then shut your filthy mouth!"

At Xin Lang's words, Huangfu Shaoqi trembled in fear, immediately clamped his mouth shut, and dared not make another sound.