Even the reporters from various martial arts newspapers often go around challenging people to fights, just to experience the thrill of combat.

Brian Carter is probably the only person in the entire Sky Battle Network who has no combat record at all. Ever since he appeared, he has only watched others fight from the sidelines, then written some battle commentaries to send to the newspaper in exchange for a bit of manuscript fee. Because of this, he became a sort of unofficial special correspondent for the newspaper section “An Outsider’s Perspective.”

Brian Carter nodded slightly to those people, long since used to being called the “verbal master.”

As a man, who doesn’t want to be in the spotlight, who doesn’t want to constantly improve themselves through battle? It’s just that… Brian Carter shrugged—if he had the energy for those fights, he’d rather find a job in real life, earn a bit more living expenses, and filling his stomach was the most important thing.

He glanced at the matchup list: ID Archangel, height 1.83 meters, arm span 1.88 meters, using the new martial skill Magma Technique, Level 2, two-star warrior, record: seventy-two wins, thirteen losses.

ID Six Suns Palm, height 1.87 meters, arm span 1.91 meters, using the ancient martial skill Plum Blossom Hand, two-star warrior, record: forty-six wins, nine losses.

Their levels are about the same. The system had just sent over the battle data, and Brian Carter had already made a simple analysis in his mind. Magma Technique is an explosive skill, its lethality is mid-range among level-two warriors. Plum Blossom Hand is a speed-type martial skill, slightly weaker in lethality, and is the basic skill of the advanced ancient martial art Six Suns Palm.

A crisp “FIGHT!” rang out above the arena.

Archangel let out a loud shout, a red dot flashed across his chest, and a red glow like magma surged out from his body in an instant.

Six Suns Palm silently closed in, aiming directly at the red dot on Archangel’s chest. That’s a sign that the Magma Technique hasn’t been mastered to perfection—when activating the skill, the weak spot is momentarily exposed.

Six Suns Palm’s speed was astonishing; in the blink of an eye, he was already close to Archangel. The Plum Blossom Hand gathered a faint blue glow, as if it was about to touch Archangel’s weak spot.

“Nice!” The people in the audience channel immediately cheered in unison.

Brian Carter disagreed with the crowd’s cheers and shook his head secretly. People who use new martial skills usually try to hide their weak spots. Archangel was making no attempt to conceal his, clearly trying to lure Six Suns Palm’s attention. Everyone knows the Plum Blossom Hand’s attack point is always the weak spot, but that actually limits the advantages of this elusive, speed-based martial skill. Archangel could easily predict where the opponent’s attack would land.

Sure enough, the situation on the battlefield unfolded just as Brian Carter predicted. Six Suns Palm’s Plum Blossom Hand struck twice swiftly, but both times Archangel easily neutralized the attacks at the critical moment, while also drawing Six Suns Palm into a small combat circle, not giving him a chance to use his agility. In an instant, the two entered close-quarters combat, fists, feet, and palms flying in a dazzling flurry.

The spectators kept exclaiming in amazement. This duel was just too intense, the pace so fast it left people breathless.

Brian Carter looked at the fierce battle in confusion. What’s going on? Why are these two-star warriors so weak? In the past, when watching two-star warriors fight, Brian Carter calculated that even if he joined the fight himself, he could only react on the spot. But now, in this two-star battle, no matter who it was, even if they just moved a shoulder, he could instantly tell what attack they were about to make, and could immediately spot their weaknesses!

Brian Carter gently rubbed his forehead. As a two-star ancient martial arts warrior, why did these two, who should be on par with him, look like children fighting?

“So intense! I didn’t expect such an exciting match on the free channel today! I really wonder who will win in the end!”

“Yeah! It’s amazing!”

Listening to the people around him marvel, Brian Carter yawned out of boredom and casually said, without thinking, “Archangel’s new martial skill will win.”

“Oh! Isn’t this the number one verbal master who always comments after the fact? Don’t you usually wait until the fight is over before pointing out why the loser lost? What’s up today?”

For Brian Carter, who only watched and never fought, the spectators here didn’t really like him. After all, anyone could lose a fight, and hearing Brian Carter’s sharp commentary at that moment was naturally unpleasant. They always wanted to find a chance to teach this verbal master a lesson, but since Brian Carter never fought himself, all they could do was mock him verbally to save face.

“Archangel will win? I think Six Suns Palm can win.” Someone whom Brian Carter had pointed out as a loser the day before spoke provocatively: “Number one verbal master, do you have the guts to bet with me?”

The people around immediately burst out laughing. Brian Carter was most famous here not only for never fighting and only writing post-battle commentaries, but also for being timid.

Placing small bets while watching others fight was also a common pastime for the spectators. Whenever people placed bets, Brian Carter would always distance himself, never participating.

Battle isn’t just math—anything unexpected can happen. Even when he was one hundred percent sure, Brian Carter never gambled. Compared to others, he knew better how hard it was to earn money.

“Alright, how about fifty dollars?”