Upon hearing Lin Chen's words, the people around couldn't help but burst out laughing. The word "cheap" was laden with wit, and everyone caught the playful undertone.

"You dare to call me cheap," Li Shuang bellowed angrily.

"Not at all! When did I ever say you were cheap? Could it be that you're well aware of your own cheapness?" Lin Chen replied with an innocent face.

"Pfft!"

The crowd could not hold back their laughter.

This Li Shuang was normally so arrogant. In the circle of rich second-generation kids, aside from a few with good relations, everyone else avoided him. Nobody dared to provoke him, and the crowd had never seen him so embarrassed.

"You're courting death, kid," Li Shuang said coldly, squeezing Lin Chen's hand with force.

Watching the two grasping each other's hands, many in the crowd felt anxious on Lin Chen's behalf.

In Capital City, Li Shuang was known as 'Li Yuanba' for his immense physical strength. Once he got hold of someone's hand, even if it wasn't crushed, one could expect a fractured palm at the very least.

Yet, to everyone's shock, Li Shuang's face turned beet red from the effort, but Lin Chen showed no reaction at all, still smiling cheerfully at him.

"Is this even a human hand?" a dumbfounded Li Shuang thought.

Li Shuang exerted force, yet Lin Chen had no response; however, when Lin Chen put in some effort, Li Shuang couldn't take it. He felt as if his entire palm was about to break.

"Ow, ow, you bastard, let go of my hand," Li Shuang cried out, grimacing in pain.

Lin Chen looked at him with feigned concern, "Young Master Li, are you feeling unwell? Should I call a doctor for you?"

Those around them wanted to laugh at the scene; Lin Chen was being utterly devious. Clearly, he had put Li Shuang in this state, yet he was pretending to be the good guy.

Seeing that Lin Chen had no intention of letting go, Li Shuang's expression grew even colder. He rolled his eyes and lifted a leg, trying to kick Lin Chen's knee.

But just as he raised his leg, Lin Chen's grip suddenly loosened, and at the same time, Lin Chen lightly tugged at his hand.

Li Shuang, losing his balance, ended up kneeling in front of Lin Chen.

Everyone was stunned by this development. How had the ordinarily domineering Young Master Li ended up kneeling before Lin Chen in Capital City?

Lin Chen helped Li Shuang up with a chuckle, "Young Master Li, there's no need for such ceremony on our first meeting. Look, I didn't even bring any New Year's money; how embarrassing for me."

Li Shuang, nearly fainting with rage, cared no longer for his image and struggled to his feet, throwing a punch as he did so.

It turned out to be the secret Black Tiger Fist of the Li family.

As the punch that resembled a bolt of lightning hurtled towards Lin Chen, the crowd let out a collective gasp.

Lin Chen 'panicked' and stepped back twice before losing his balance and awkwardly landing on a chair behind him.

However, by leaning to the side, he narrowly dodged Li Shuang's punch.

But Li Shuang had it worse. He had thrown his punch with too much force, and couldn't pull back in time. To his dismay, Lin Chen's foot had also 'accidentally' tripped him.

Li Shuang, unable to maintain his balance, ended up having a rather intimate encounter with the dining table.

And just like that, cakes, ketchup, and soup splattered all over his face.

Li Shuang, who always took great care of his image, was impeccably dressed in a spotless white Hermès suit and his shoes shone brightly. But when he climbed out from among the piles of food, he looked just like the leader of a beggars gang.

His face was plastered with cake and strands of kelp covered in vegetable soup hung from his hair. Further, his snow-white suit was stained with vegetable soup and spilled fruit juice in a riot of colors, and his shoes were caked with tomato sauce, making his sorry state the cause of another round of roaring laughter from the onlookers.

A few bold individuals even took out their phones to snap photos with abandon, and some even shared the images straight on social media.

Struggling to stand, Li Shuang wiped the cake from his face and spat out a leaf, pointing angrily at Lin Chen, "Kid, how skilled are you if you just dodge? If you're a man, let's have a real fight."

As he cursed, Li Shuang felt despondent.

Did he not check the almanac before leaving the house today? Why is his luck so bad?

Just now, his foot slipped as he kicked at Lin Chen, resulting in him kneeling down instead.

Then after throwing a punch at Lin Chen, Lin Chen failed to dodge in time and fell onto a chair. Just when it looked like Li Shuang had him, he inadvertently tripped over Lin Chen's foot and face-planted like a dog eating shit, crashing into the table.

Many chuckled secretly at Li Shuang's misfortune, but there were some astute onlookers who saw what was really happening. Lin Chen's actions did seem coincidental, but twice in a row made it seem too coincidental, almost unbelievably so.

Li Shuang had never suffered such humiliation, the more he thought about it, the more stifled he felt, "If Lin Chen is a man, let's have a one-on-one fight; otherwise, you're just a coward."

Watching Li Shuang's bluster, Lin Chen smiled and asked, "Do you really want to fight me?"

Li Shuang, full of confidence, "Kid, dare or not, I'm a high-level Golden Core cultivator. If I don't leave you utterly helpless today, I'll write my name upside down."

"Wow, Li Shuang has improved so fast, he's already reached Golden Core level."

"True to the Li family lineage, his progress is too rapid."

Murmurs of admiration spread through the crowd, but many were also worried for Lin Chen, offending Li Yuanba, they reckoned Lin Chen was in for it now.

Yet Lin Chen was not the least bit afraid and continued to smile at Li Shuang, "A high-level Golden Core cultivator, scary isn't it?"

Li Shuang snorted coldly, "What, you're not scared? Today, whoever backs down is not a man."

Lin Chen shook his head with a helpless expression, "Sigh, I didn't want to hit anyone since I'm the host today, but since you're asking for it, I have no choice. Everyone saw it, right? He asked for it."

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Chen appeared in front of Li Shuang as fast as lightning, his palm turned into a blur and slapped right across Li Shuang's face.

"Whoosh!"

The whole hall fell silent, everyone's gaze sharpening. Lin Chen's speed had been too quick, many hadn't seen anything before noticing Li Shuang flying through the air.

This time Li Shuang's fall was even worse; he landed squarely on a pot of cacti used as table decoration.

Li Shuang let out a miserable yowl and stood up with a jolt, still with several cactus spikes sticking to his backside.

Now, Li Shuang was completely flabbergasted; he hadn't seen how Lin Chen had struck, yet he found himself flying through the air.

Just then, the sound of footsteps came from the entrance, and Long Feixue, clad in military attire, walked in. Seeing Li Shuang in such a sorry state, she couldn't help but laugh, "Lin Chen, you're really shameless, a powerhouse just a step away from the Innate Realm bullying a Golden Core rookie. You've beaten him to such a state, you're practically bullying a child!"

"Gah!"

Suddenly, everyone in the hall was dumbstruck, fixing their gazes on Lin Chen.

Just a step away from the Innate Realm meant being at the peak of Nascent Soul. Lin Chen was actually a peak Nascent Soul master! This kid wasn't just a nouveau riche, he was an absolute monster!