Chapter 38: Assessment [1]

Previously, his punch-power record had always been ranked second.

As for first place...

He’d heard it was a record left behind by one of the strongest fighters from a previous generation.

A terrifying 412 kg.

It had always been his goal to surpass it.

"One day, I’ll surpass that number."

Sims muttered to himself.

Then, he turned his gaze to the screen.

First place was still 412 kg. No change. Just as he expected.

Next, he looked to the second-place spot—where his own score usually was.

But when he saw the number clearly, he froze.

A flash of shock crossed his eyes!

"What is this?!"

...

Hu Qi was oblivious to what had just transpired.

He took out his phone and searched for the day’s news in Qirong City.

After a quick browse, he put his phone away.

Four days had passed since he killed Lu Shi and the other man.

So far, everything was developing just as he had predicted.

Zhao Shi, whose whereabouts were unknown, had taken the fall for him, and the bounty on his head had been raised again.

’It seems everything is under control.’

Hu Qi walked out and headed to one of the training rooms.

It was lunchtime, so most of the students had left.

Hu Qi’s gaze swept the room and locked onto a slim figure with black-rimmed glasses, sitting on the floor and resting.

It was Li Yi.

After several days of deliberation, he had finally decided to join the Red Scale Fighting Club.

Hu Lemei and Li Zhenguo had both supported his decision.

After all, when Li Yi stayed at their shop, all he did was play video games. They’d even told him to get his driver’s license, but he wouldn’t go.

He might as well learn to fight; at least he would get some exercise.

Besides, from their perspective, with Hu Qi at the club, someone would be there to look out for him.

As for Li Yi’s tuition, Hu Qi had paid for it.

Hu Lemei had tried to refuse for a long time, but Hu Qi had pretended to be angry, asking if she didn’t consider him family. Only then did she relent and agree.

After this incident, Li Zhenguo’s opinion of Hu Qi improved dramatically, and he enthusiastically insisted that Hu Qi come over for dinner whenever he was free.

While they had treated the body’s original owner well enough before, they had never been this warm.

’That’s just how relationships work,’ Hu Qi mused. ’Even with family.’

Hu Qi took the opportunity to ask his uncle to keep an eye out for any traces of Exotic Beasts and to let him know if he heard anything.

After all, his uncle had been running the shop for over a decade and was familiar with many of the vendors at the wet market. It was possible one of them might come across an Exotic Beast.

Just then, Li Yi spotted Hu Qi and jogged over.

"Brother Qi, you’re here!"

"How’s it going?" Hu Qi asked with a smile, briefly looking Li Yi over.

"Holy crap, it’s so awesome! You have no idea, our coach just blew up a punching bag with a single punch!"

As Li Yi spoke, his face flushed red with excitement.

"This stuff is just too cool. I’ve decided to quit gaming."

"How did I not discover this sooner? If I’d started training as a kid, maybe I’d be as strong as you are now, Brother Qi."

He looked utterly regretful, as if he’d missed out on a huge opportunity.

"It wouldn’t have mattered even if you had known earlier. You’ve only just become an adult. True Fighting Techniques can only be practiced by adults. Otherwise, it could cause irreversible damage to your body."

"The stuff kids practice is just for show. It looks flashy, but it has no practical application in a real fight."

Hu Qi shook his head.

"Oh, is that right? I thought it would be better to start young," Li Yi said, scratching his head.

"You’ve been reading too many novels!"

Hu Qi reached out and patted his shoulder.

"Come on, it’s getting late. Let’s go get something to eat. Your treat!"

"Why me?"

"I paid your tuition. Don’t you think you owe me a meal?"

...

「A few days later, inside the Red Scale Fighting Club.」

The usual shouts and silhouettes of trainees had vanished.

Now, the students from several classes—over a hundred people in total—were all gathered in a single training room.

The room had been cleared of all excess equipment, and the hundred-plus students stood in neat, uniform rows.

No one spoke. All eyes were fixed on the front of the room.

Several figures stood there.

Chen Wu was among them, flanked by the coaches from the other classes.

However, none of these coaches spoke; they just stood obediently behind the lead figure.

But they all had one thing in common: whenever their gazes, intentionally or not, drifted toward the figure at the very front, their faces filled with reverence.

This figure was a Young Man with a buzz cut, wearing a black tank top and black shorts.

The Young Man’s physique wasn’t particularly muscular, and his height was only average.

But as he stood there, he exuded an indescribable, oppressive aura that made it hard for anyone to even look him in the eye.

"I trust your coaches have already given you a brief introduction to the core class, so I won’t go into excessive detail."

"There are limited spots. If you make it in, I’ll explain the specifics. If you don’t, knowing more is pointless."

He paused for a moment before continuing.

"The assessment is simple. Each class will hold practical combat spars. The winners will advance until four are chosen from each class."

"Then we’ll start the second round, and so on, until the final five remaining will earn the right to join the core class."

"So, show us everything you’ve learned today. Don’t try to hide your strength—that would be an incredibly foolish move. Believe me, joining the core class will change your destiny!"

The Young Man with the buzz cut spoke calmly, his gaze sweeping over everyone.

At his words, a few people’s expressions turned unnatural, but most just looked solemn.

Five people chosen from over a hundred... the odds were low.

But with fighting, you never know until you’re actually in the ring.

Soon, with the help of the coaches, the hundred-plus students were divided into five teams according to their class, and the process to select the top four from each began.

The method was simple: slips of paper with numbers on them were placed in a cardboard box. Those who drew the same number would be paired up to fight.

An even number of participants was ideal. If there was an odd number, whoever drew the blank slip would get a bye and advance directly.

To account for random chance—like two people of vastly different skill levels being matched up right at the start—losers would get one chance in a repechage round.

Even with so many people, a fight could be over in a minute at most. The quick ones could end in mere seconds.

However, Hu Qi was a little surprised. Perhaps because he had so thoroughly dominated Song Jian and had even sparred with Chen Wu...

...every student who was matched against him simply forfeited. They had no desire to fight him at all.

One student, who refused to believe the hype, insisted on fighting him. But before he could even land a touch, Hu Qi knocked him to the ground with a single light punch, nearly knocking him unconscious.

And that was with him holding back most of his strength.

With his Mixed Martial Arts at the Perfection Level and his terrifying punching power of 400 kg...

...Hu Qi suspected that if he had truly gone all out, he could have killed the man with a single punch.