Ethan Bennett felt a stir in his heart. That’s right, having a fight didn’t really seem to matter. All this time, he had been learning from others to hide himself, but if he kept hiding like this, what was the point of learning these things? In fact, he was quite curious about how powerful this “Star Killing Technique” would be when matched against someone similar. Besides, Brian Young already knew his secret, and he seemed to have some skills himself—this was the perfect opportunity to give it a try!

Brian Young saw that he was tempted, smiled slightly, and said, “Come with me!”

Ethan Bennett hesitated for a moment, but finally followed.

Brian Young led him into the school, all the way to a row of dilapidated bungalows by the edge of the sports field. To call it a row was generous—half of them had already collapsed, clearly an area slated for reconstruction. Walking around the bungalows, a clearing the size of a basketball court appeared before them. Brian Young smiled and said, “Not bad, right?”

Ethan Bennett put down what he was carrying and said, “You seem pretty familiar with this place.”

Brian Young grinned, “Someone already brought me here earlier.”

As he spoke, he stepped into the clearing and turned back, “Come on, don’t be shy.”

Ethan Bennett said nothing, slowly walked in, and stood opposite him. This was the first time since learning the “Star Killing Technique” that he was facing off against someone else who knew it. He felt a bit excited, and a bit nervous.

Brian Young, however, looked like someone who had weathered many storms, and said easily, “Do you want to go first, or should I?”

If Ethan Bennett had to go first, he really wouldn’t know what to do, so he politely said, “You go ahead!”

Brian Young was not polite at all, “Alright.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he sprang forward. The three meters between them were crossed in the blink of an eye, and he threw a punch straight at Ethan Bennett’s chest—his speed was indeed far beyond that of ordinary people.

But in Ethan Bennett’s eyes, if an ordinary person’s movements were like a movie in 16x slow motion, then Brian Young’s speed was only about 8x slow. With a light sidestep, he was already beside him, and with the momentum, he countered with a chop at Brian Young’s flank. This was his most commonly used move, and it had never failed against ordinary people.

Unexpectedly, Brian Young’s speed suddenly increased, and he dodged in a flash—Ethan Bennett’s chop hit nothing but air. Surprised, he also felt a strange excitement. This was the first time someone had managed to dodge his attack.

Brian Young rolled his neck and said, “Impressive, but now comes the real thing.”

By now, Ethan Bennett was fully in the zone, smiling, “Bring it on!”

Volume One, Chapter Seven: The Contest

Brian Young stomped his feet, and this time leapt high into the air, launching a rapid series of kicks. To an ordinary person, it looked like he just jumped up and kicked once with each leg. But in reality, in that instant, Brian Young’s right leg kicked four times, and his left leg three times—seven energy blasts shot rapidly toward Ethan Bennett.

The energy blasts were impressive, but of the seven, five missed their mark. But this was all part of Brian Young’s plan. Ethan Bennett had easily dodged his punch earlier, so he knew this opponent was no pushover. The seven energy blasts were just to force Ethan Bennett into a corner; the real killing move was yet to come.

Sure enough, Ethan Bennett shifted his footing, easily dodging the two energy blasts in front of him, but found himself trapped by the remaining five. If he stayed still, nothing would happen, but any movement would guarantee being hit by one of the five.

This was exactly the moment Brian Young was waiting for. He shouted, “Here it comes!” and unleashed a seamless tidal kick.

The power of this kick was clearly above that of the energy blasts—the dust on the ground swirled to both sides, and a gray shadow shot straight at Ethan Bennett. Ethan Bennett could either dodge and get hit by the energy blasts, or take the tidal kick head-on—there was no other choice. Unless…

The “unless” that Brian Young imagined actually happened. Ethan Bennett suddenly flickered, seizing the tiny gap between the energy blasts and the tidal kick, and in a flash, he was already outside the range of the attack.

Brian Young cried out in dismay. He knew his own moves best—normally, the combination of energy blasts and the tidal kick left no room to escape, but because his skill wasn’t yet perfect, there was always a tiny gap between the two moves. Until now, no one had ever managed to seize that instant and break free. Today’s Ethan Bennett was clearly the most skilled opponent he had ever faced.

And because the tidal kick, when combined with the energy blasts, left the opponent with no way to dodge, it was always delivered with full force—unstoppable and unblockable. So, once the kick was launched, there was no way to protect himself. Now, Ethan Bennett had flashed behind him, but Brian Young was still stubbornly finishing his kick into thin air, unable to pull back.

Ethan Bennett countered with a solid chop to Brian Young’s neck.

Only then did Brian Young finish his kick, the dust he stirred up flying several meters away. He was now half-crouched on the ground, turning his head in surprise to look at Ethan Bennett.

Ethan Bennett was also surprised. He was sure his chop had landed solidly, yet the other party seemed completely unfazed. Ever since he started using this move, no one had ever managed to stay conscious for three seconds after being hit.

Brian Young rubbed his neck and said, “Boss, what do you take me for? You think you can knock me out that easily?”

Ethan Bennett still couldn’t believe it. “You’re okay?”