When fist and palm collided, his confident punch was effortlessly repelled by Thunderclap Triple Strike, and he spat blood as he was sent flying off the stage.

The entire martial arena fell into a deathly silence.

Those who had just been speculating about how many ribs William Carter would have broken were now completely petrified, their mouths agape, staring dumbfounded at William Carter, who had just knocked his opponent off the stage.

To be able to make someone at the fourth level of the Qi Wheel Realm vomit blood with a single punch, that would require at least the strength of the fifth level of the Qi Wheel Realm!

Chapter 6: The Gap—You Should Understand Now

This guy’s cultivation had been stuck at the first level of the Qi Wheel Realm for a year after his martial soul was extracted. How could he now knock someone at the fourth level of the Qi Wheel Realm off the stage?

Could it be that he has already reached the fifth level of the Qi Wheel Realm?

But in just one year, to go from the first to the fifth level of the Qi Wheel Realm—how could that be possible?

It’s said that in all of Tianwu Continent, such a person might not appear even once in a hundred years.

How could William Carter possibly go from the first to the fifth level of the Qi Wheel Realm in just one year?

Unless, after his martial soul was extracted, his strength didn’t actually fall to the first level, but rather to the fourth level of the Qi Wheel Realm.

The reason he hid his true strength was to avoid revealing it too soon and provoking retaliation from Robert Carter and the others.

Thinking about how William Carter had his supreme soul extracted just because he was too outstanding, and how Robert Carter’s older brother Edward Carter, out of envy and jealousy, told the geniuses of the ancestral land about his possession of the supreme soul, leading to its extraction—

Everyone now understood that the reason William Carter was able to defeat his opponent was because he had been hiding his true strength.

Looking at William Carter again, their gazes all changed.

For a moment, they began to speculate whether William Carter’s hidden strength would pose a threat to Robert Carter.

Unconsciously, these people turned their eyes toward Robert Carter.

They wanted to see what kind of expression Robert Carter would have upon learning that William Carter had been hiding his strength.

“Looks like you’ll have to return the money to the buyer.” William Carter looked coldly at John Carter, who was still coughing up blood below the stage, and said, “You? Qualified to take money? Idiot!”

John Carter struggled to get up, only to find that his entire arm had been broken by the thunderous strike!

Robert Carter squinted his eyes, remaining perfectly calm, his composure as still as a deep well, a mocking smile appearing at the corner of his mouth as he said, “The Vein-Burning Fruit really is something. It actually let a piece of trash gain the strength to defeat someone at the fourth level of the Qi Wheel Realm.”

“In that case, I’ll just let him go straight to the finals. I want him to know that when a genius falls from the clouds into the mud and becomes trash, he’ll forever be nothing but a toad in the mud, trampled underfoot.”

Under everyone’s gaze, Robert Carter still maintained his lofty calmness and said to the other contestants, “You all should forfeit.”

“Forfeit?”

The two were stunned at first. Both had reached the fifth level of the Qi Wheel Realm and were confident they could easily make it to the third round.

What did Robert Carter mean by telling them to forfeit?

With doubt in their hearts, they couldn’t help but look in the direction Robert Carter was gazing.

When they saw that the person Robert Carter was looking at was none other than William Carter, they immediately understood what Robert Carter meant. If they didn’t forfeit now, as the younger brother of Edward Carter, things might get a lot more serious than just a martial contest!

“We forfeit…” The two of them helplessly raised their hands above their heads.

“Forfeit?”

The onlookers looked on in confusion at the two who had raised their hands.

And at the very moment their loud voices rang out, another shout just as loud came from another direction: “We forfeit too!”

“They’re forfeiting as well?”

Including William Carter and Robert Carter, there were six people who made it to the second round.

Now, with four choosing to forfeit, only William Carter and Robert Carter remained.

Everyone immediately understood Robert Carter’s intention and couldn’t help but start shouting.

“William Carter is finished!”

“Robert Carter reached the fifth level of the Qi Wheel Realm a year ago, and after another year of training, his cultivation must have improved even more!”

“William Carter dares to provoke him—he’s just asking for death…”

“Looks like someone’s going to die today…”

Amidst the murmurs of the crowd, William Carter slowly walked onto the stage.

William Carter’s appearance surprised Robert Carter. He laughed and said, “I didn’t expect you’d still dare to come up.”

“Why wouldn’t I dare?” William Carter wore a mocking smile, spreading his arms as he looked around the entire stage, his face brimming with bold confidence. “This place was mine to begin with.”

“Yours?” Robert Carter’s smile was tinged with mockery. “Last year, this place belonged to my brother. This year, it naturally belongs to me.”

“Belonged to your brother?” William Carter looked at Robert Carter as if he’d heard a joke and said, “If Edward Carter hadn’t used those dirty tricks last year, he’d still be fighting on this stage this year.”

“You…”

Robert Carter’s face turned extremely ugly. Having such a disgraceful act as betraying a family member brought up in public was like being slapped across the face.

The onlookers could only shake their heads in regret, for they knew that William Carter’s words were enough to make Robert Carter want to kill him. Why provoke him like this?