Chapter 95: The Iron Fist Society's Chief Instructor
It turns out that the so-called alpha male personality is similar to a psychological dominance hierarchy.
As long as they encounter someone with bigger muscles and a more imposing physique, their aggressive behavior, which normally can't be toned down, will naturally moderate itself.
Applied to someone like Joe, it means that when he faces someone more powerful than himself, he will naturally speak respectfully and become exceptionally reasonable.
Just like after Chris casually did bicep curls with Joe's near-maximum bench press weight, Joe's arrogant posture instantly vanished, and he once again became that polite, good-natured guy who got along well with people.
"Chris, is this it? Why is the Iron Fist Society's headquarters located near a school?"
After a journey of over ten minutes, Chris brought Joe to the Mighty Gym near James Woods Regional High School, which also served as the headquarters of the Iron Fist Society.
Recalling Joe's strict adherence to traffic laws this time, Chris felt somewhat bemused.
A decent person like himself, who still treats ordinary people well after gaining superhuman power, is truly one in a billion!
After that thought, Chris answered, "Because the main recruitment target for the Iron Fist Society is students here, plus I attend high school here, so it made sense to establish it nearby."
Listening to Chris's answer, Joe nodded in understanding, but his vacant expression showed he hadn't yet recovered from witnessing Chris's astonishing strength.
More than one person had praised his strength. Even when he was still in a wheelchair, Joe had been complimented on his powerful upper body physique.
But from those few glimpses of Chris's display just now, if he could be called strong, then Chris was practically superhuman.
That exaggerated strength simply didn't seem like something a human could possess.
Even more terrifying, Joe could tell that wasn't Chris's strength limit at all.
Just like the exposed tip of an iceberg represents only a tiny, insignificant portion, Chris's true strength probably had much more that remained unrevealed.
Sensing Joe's emotional turmoil, Chris didn't disturb him. After all, his little display just now could genuinely shock someone.
Although this world was full of bizarre phenomena and supernatural entities, Joe had never been in deep contact with them, so after being startled, he naturally needed time to process it.
"Alright, Uncle Joe. As long as you train consistently, you'll develop impressive strength too."
Chris offered the encouragement somewhat disingenuously, trying to comfort Joe with it.
However, Joe, who'd worked the streets for decades, wasn't so easily fooled. He chuckled, "Alright, Chris. You don't need to patronize me like that. I'm not some teenager who lost his first girlfriend—my ego isn't that fragile."
Saying that, Joe led the way into the gym. Looking at the people training inside, Joe immediately revealed his authoritarian nature.
"Alright, you worthless maggots! Now! Immediately! Get your asses over here! I don't want to repeat myself!"
This gym was the headquarters of the Iron Fist Society, so basically everyone training here was an official member.
So when Joe's aggressive shout echoed through the gym, it instantly fell silent.
Everyone looked at Marn and Hanger, wanting to know how to respond.
The hot-tempered Marn couldn't stand it anymore. "What the hell! Who the fuck are you? Which crew sent you?"
It was the calmer Hanger who quickly stopped Marn, then shouted at Joe, "Who are you? This is private property, not open to the public!"
"Wow! I didn't notice at first, but why are there so many of you people here! You holding some kind of charity drive? Can I donate? Hahahahaha!"
As soon as the racist remarks came out, the dynamic between Hanger and Marn instantly reversed.
"Calm down, man. You need to calm down!"
Marn pulled Hanger forcefully, afraid that his friend would rush up and kill this unknown jackass.
While restraining his brother, Marn also instructed the others, "What are you all standing around for? Get over there and take down that asshole before he says anything else!"
Seeing the Vice President give the order, everyone attacked Joe without hesitation.
Those who could become official members of the Iron Fist Society all possessed impressive physiques and the strength to bench press at least 220 pounds.
Therefore, even though these guys didn't know any martial arts techniques or coordinated tactics, just swarming and overwhelming through numbers was formidable.
It's just unfortunate that they were now facing Joe—an enhanced version of Joe, no less.
Not only did his strength completely overwhelm them, but his fighting skills and combat experience were also on another level entirely.
So when dozens of muscular men rushed toward him, Joe not only didn't panic, but actually showed a look of anticipation.
"Ha, perfect warm-up."
After that comment, Joe looked at the fastest approaching young man and kicked him squarely in the chest.
Over a ton of force instantly sent this person airborne, and he crashed into a whole group behind him like a bowling ball.
Seeing the gap in the charging formation, Joe pivoted to dodge a punch coming from the side, then grabbed a leg kicking toward his groin, and violently swung the attached body around, sending everyone within six feet of him flying.
The young man being used as a human flail groaned in pain a couple of times. Seeing this, Joe immediately discarded his not-so-effective weapon and began employing proper boxing techniques.
Jabs, hooks, uppercuts, weaves—after a series of smooth combinations, only Joe remained standing in the entire gym.
Even Marn and Hanger, who hadn't initiated the attack initially, joined the group assault when they realized things were going badly.
However, even though both of their bench press maxes exceeded 880 pounds, in front of the experienced and powerful Joe, they were nothing. Each took a devastating hook and fell into unconsciousness.
Scanning the gym and confirming that all several dozen members had been knocked down by him, Joe's confidence, which had been crushed by Chris earlier, recovered significantly. He raised his hands and shouted:
"I am the King of the World!"
Hearing that the chaos in the gym had concluded, Chris, chewing gum, strolled into the facility and joked, "Fortunately this is solid ground, otherwise I'd really be worried this place would sink."
"Oh, Chris, can't you be less of a buzzkill!"
Hearing Chris's teasing, Joe turned back with exasperation, glaring directly at him.
"Ha! I'm going to be paying you for your work, so let's not waste any more time."
Diverting his attention from Joe, Chris looked down at his group of subordinates and gently stomped on the floor, using precisely controlled force to create a massive vibration that jolted them awake.
If Chris hadn't achieved cellular-level control over his body, he wouldn't dare attempt such a thing.
Because with his current strength, a slight miscalculation could collapse the entire building.
When all the core members of the Iron Fist Society regained consciousness, before they could even process what had just happened, Chris stepped forward and announced, "Let me introduce the instructor I've specially brought in. From now on, he'll be responsible for teaching you proper fighting techniques, so your strength can be effectively utilized."
Looking at Joe, who stood with his arms crossed beside their boss Chris, even though everyone present harbored considerable resentment, they could only offer reluctant applause at this moment.
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