Chapter 55

"How could this happen!"

A sharp, fan-shaped sound wave spread out in all directions. Xu Dong saw a cup, similar to glass, on a counter tremble violently in the sound wave, then crack and finally explode with a loud bang. Coincidentally, the mirror behind him also emitted a crisp sound, with two cracks directly splitting the long mirror into three sharp pieces.

Such a phenomenon, which could only appear in legends, actually happened right before Xu Dong's eyes, leaving him in awe!

The large shop fell completely silent, and countless heads stirred, all looking in the direction of the sound. However, compared to this, these people preferred to haggle loudly with the staff to buy items they liked at lower prices. After just a few seconds, the shop returned to its noisy state.

Xu Dong's curiosity was greatly aroused, and he quickly pushed through the crowd toward the source of the sound. Soon, he reached the main entrance. At this point, a large circle of people surrounded the entrance, making it almost impossible to pass through. Inside the circle, a petite girl suddenly drew a massive sword from behind her, which was even larger than her body, and shouted angrily, "I'll only say this once: I've already paid, but that guy didn't give me the door token. Believe it or not, it's up to you!"

Xu Dong's gaze immediately focused on the massive sword. The sword was as wide as a palm, and just the blade part was over 1.4 meters long. If the thick and long handle was included, it would be about 1.67 meters long. The material of the sword seemed to be ordinary steel, and such a large sword must weigh around 20 to 30 kilograms. Yet, the petite girl held it with one hand, and her expression showed no sign of effort!

Wait, this sword is very strange... Xu Dong's pupils constricted, and he blurted out, "Isn't that a Divine Power Fruit? Could it be an inner equipment?!"

At this moment, the person standing next to Xu Dong interjected, "This sword isn't really a sophisticated inner equipment. Truly powerful inner equipment can lie dormant in the body like flesh armor and be activated when needed. However, this girl's cultivation method and the flesh armor are very unique, resonating with this inner equipment, making it particularly handy..."

This explanation was quite novel.

Xu Dong couldn't help but glance sideways. This person turned out to be the young man who had been surrounded by two beautiful women and spending money like water earlier. The two women, however, were nowhere to be seen.

Xu Dong, who was extremely curious, couldn't help but ask again, "What do you mean by resonance?"

The young man shrugged casually, "You don't know? Well, I haven't explained to a newbie in a long time. Resonance means that the inner equipment causes a unique physiological change in the flesh armor. For example, this sword probably undergoes a change that reduces its weight when held by the girl... Otherwise, do you think a petite girl with just the strength of a one-star Awakened could lift this sword with one hand, let alone without activating her flesh armor?"

After saying this, he took a big gulp of strong liquor, and the strong smell of alcohol wafted over.

This explanation was quite logical! And the knowledge and insights of the other person made Xu Dong feel enlightened. He had initially thought this guy was just a playboy, but it seemed he wasn't. However, this person was quite arrogant and never looked at Xu Dong directly. After speaking, he continued to stare at the exaggerated curves of the girl's chest with great interest.

One of the guards, seeing the girl draw her weapon, immediately frowned and coldly shouted, "Paying for equipment and getting a door token is a standard procedure in every large shop. As an Awakened, you can't be unaware of this. My duty is to ensure the safety of the Broken Hand's assets. If you can't show me the door token, I'm sorry, I can't let you pass!"

Through the details of their conversation, Xu Dong finally understood the general course of events. The girl claimed she had paid for the item but didn't receive the door token, while the guard believed that without the token, she hadn't paid. The crux of the conflict was whether the girl had paid for the sword!

Exclusive Skill Upgrade Task: The Girl's Prayer, generated. Do you accept?

Xu Dong had no more time to choose. If he gave up this task, he might waste this special state. On the other hand, both the girl and the guards were one-star Awakened, which was neither too difficult nor too easy for Xu Dong, making it just right!

Xu Dong didn't hesitate and accepted the task. As soon as he accepted, a series of task details appeared.

Exclusive Skill Upgrade Task: The Girl's Prayer

Task Description: The girl prayed to obtain the heavy inner equipment, the Heavy Cleaver, and mortgaged all her valuable items to get 100 gold coins. Unexpectedly, she was cheated and was about to lose both her money and the equipment. Please use your Insight skill to successfully resolve this incident.

Task Completion Reward: Insight skill +1 level

Task Failure Punishment: Skill upgrade task reset, no related upgrade tasks for the next three months.

To complete this task, it seemed he needed to help the girl get justice. Xu Dong's heart sank. To complete the task, he either needed to find the salesperson who cheated her and catch them red-handed. In reality, this was quite difficult, as the salesperson would have prepared for such a situation. How easy would it be to catch them red-handed?

Xu Dong's mind was racing. If he couldn't get clues from the salesperson, he might need to look for other evidence...

Seeing that a fight was about to break out, one side was a one-star Awakened, and the other was a group of one-star Awakened. Xu Dong, who considered himself quite formidable, would be exhausted and disheveled if he fought two at once. If they attacked together, he could retreat safely, but defeating them... Xu Dong wasn't confident. If the girl fought, she would surely lose badly.

Xu Dong quickly pushed through the crowd and walked into the center.

The handsome young man next to him glanced at him, "What are you going to do? Are you also going to play peacemaker?"

Xu Dong said without turning his head, "You guessed right, but there's no prize."

The young man shrugged indifferently and didn't comment, but his expression suggested he thought Xu Dong was wasting his time.

Wait! Xu Dong shouted as he pushed through the crowd.

The guard's eyes narrowed, and his tone was slightly angry, "Who are you?"

Xu Dong's appearance also caught the attention of the onlookers, who all focused on him, some surprised, some curious, and some looking forward to a spectacle.

At this moment, Xu Dong heard many people whispering.

"Does he dare to meddle in the Ma family's affairs? This guy is a stranger, I wonder what his background is."

"Never seen him before, but he looks like a new one-star Awakened. His strength isn't impressive, I wonder where he gets his courage from."

"Hehe, a reckless fool, this will be entertaining."

Ignoring the comments around him, Xu Dong stared at the guard and said loudly, "The Broken Hand is the most powerful shop in Blood Helmet City. Even if something unpleasant happens, your shop's reputation should prevent you from resorting to violence without an investigation. If this gets out, people might think the Ma family only knows how to bully others with their power. Do you think I'm right?"

Xu Dong spoke calmly and confidently, not only taking the initiative but also presenting a clear and logical argument, leaving the guards speechless and red-faced, feeling humiliated as if they had been slapped in public.

The lead guard, not one to be easily intimidated, sneered, "Strength is power. You're just a nobody from some corner, talking big. Do you have the strength to back it up?"

Xu Dong smiled calmly, not losing his composure, and countered, "Why don't you try and see if my strength is enough?"

Suddenly, there was a commotion. From the outer equipment on Xu Dong's body, it was obvious that he was an agility-type Awakened. An agility-type Awakened daring to challenge a strength-type Awakened was rare, and many people started laughing, enjoying the chaos.

The guard snorted angrily and suddenly lunged forward, his left foot stomping down like a heavy iron hammer, making a loud thud. At the same time, he twisted his waist, channeling his strength into his fist and delivering a powerful punch. It was clear that the guard had a solid foundation, and his punch, in terms of power, speed, and angle, was textbook-perfect.

The punch created a whistling wind, and the onlookers marveled, wondering if they could deliver such a standard punch and if they could withstand such an attack.

In the next second, Xu Dong's lips tightened, and instead of retreating, he stepped forward with a swift slide and punched out. The two fists collided with a loud bang.

The guard's face changed dramatically as he felt the immense force from Xu Dong's punch, unable to resist, and he took four steps back, his face turning pale.

"Impossible!"

The crowd was stunned. A strength-type Awakened had been outmatched by an agility-type Awakened in terms of strength?!

However, what the crowd didn't know was that the guard, knowing Xu Dong was an agility-type Awakened, only intended to make him dodge and lose face, so he didn't use his full strength. This was the first point.

Secondly, Xu Dong's quick slide allowed him to hit the guard's fist before the guard's full strength was exerted, giving him a slight advantage.

Thirdly, Xu Dong, knowing his strength was relatively weak, instantly activated a powerful innate skill.

With a prepared mind against an unprepared one, the guard could only suffer this silent defeat.

Just as the guard was about to regain his composure and seek revenge, an elderly man with neatly combed white hair walked out, his face stern, exuding an aura of authority. He asked in a deep, commanding voice, "What exactly happened here?"

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