Fight! Brian Carter was stunned. The calm blood he had offline just now began to boil again at this moment. The recently extinguished fighting spirit surged up uncontrollably once more, and the urge to fight kept battering at his rationality, which he tried to restrain.

"I'm here to get the battle recording, I'm here to get the battle recording." Brian Carter kept whispering to himself. Since today was still a rest day, he should save his energy. He still had to work tomorrow, so there was no need to care too much about a pointless fight.

"'Thirty-Six Hours,' say something!" The challenger’s voice rang out again: "I challenge you."

"Is there a wager?" Brian Carter blurted out, even surprising himself. What was going on today? He actually accepted a challenge on instinct!

Chapter 5: The Miracle Created by Fitness Exercises and Hard Labor

"Wager..." The challenger’s voice immediately dropped. Fifty or a hundred dollars was no small sum for a kid from an ordinary family. He had just lost fifty and still wanted to save up to buy some training supplements in hopes of making another breakthrough in martial arts.

The others fell silent as well. Some were just there for the spectacle and didn’t want to get involved in a gamble with an uncertain outcome. Some wanted to join, but had already lost their money.

"No wager?" Brian Carter's thick brows slowly drew together, looking at his opponent with some disappointment. Better to save his strength—he could earn a bit more at work tomorrow.

After a brief silence, I Am Present said darkly, "I'll put up a hundred dollars, betting you’ll lose!"

Another hundred dollars! Brian Carter looked at I Am Present with a hint of envy. Kids from wealthy families really had it good. In just one evening, he had already thrown out two hundred and fifty dollars! That was nearly half a month’s living expenses for Brian Carter.

"One hundred dollars..." Brian Carter smiled lightly.

'Fighting is something that's easy to get addicted to.'

Brian Carter couldn’t remember who said this, but he was starting to agree. The last fight had been too quick to really enjoy the thrill of battle. Since he could earn money and fight, there was no reason to refuse.

Brian Carter sized up the challenger and found that the other’s profile wasn’t set to private, so he pulled it up: ID David Cooper, skilled in ancient martial arts—Heng Lian Thirteen Guardians, adept at the Stone-Splitting Jade-Smashing Fist, with a record of 361 wins, 92 losses, and 7 draws, and a two-star login strength.

Bought ancient martial arts training methods? Brian Carter raised an eyebrow. Not all ancient martial arts were free. Most of the powerful ones decrypted from Atlantis required money to learn.

Brian Carter closed the profile, having a general understanding of his opponent—someone with a wealth of real combat experience.

ID Thirty-Six Hours, practices the ancient martial art "Dragon Elephant Prajna Power," adept at the "Shaolin Arhat Fist," with a record of one win, zero losses, and two-star strength.

Looking at Brian Carter's profile, David Cooper was a bit speechless. Laborer’s internal strength plus fitness exercise boxing had actually defeated the new martial arts of I Am Present, and in an instant KO at that. It just didn’t make sense.

Composing himself, David Cooper stared seriously at Brian Carter. Since he had already issued the challenge, he didn’t want to lose in front of over a hundred familiar faces, or he’d be even more embarrassed than I Am Present.

The ten-second countdown to the start of the fight began to sound. David Cooper looked into Brian Carter's calm eyes and suddenly felt a strange sense of surprise in his chest. He had seen this look before—in real life, when his martial arts teacher sparred with him!

Confidence! Calm!

"Ha!"

Before the countdown ended, David Cooper hesitated for a moment, then roared and made a decision. He quickly swallowed both a "Berserk Pill," which increased attack power by 10%, and an "Iron Armor Pill," which increased defense by 10% for a certain period!

With both pills ingested, David Cooper's body began to change. The muscles, already well-defined from the Thirteen Guardians training, rippled slightly and then looked as if they were carved from stone. Even without fighting, one could sense the terrifying explosive power hidden within.

Several spectators were stunned. Wasn’t this a bit too cautious? Taking both the "Berserk Pill" and the "Iron Armor Pill" at once? This wasn’t the Sky Martial Arts Network’s tournament qualifiers—no need to go all out like this!

Brian Carter's pupils shrank to pinpoints in an instant. The heart that was usually calm in the face of almost anything was completely shaken.

Too extravagant! Even if virtual items were a bit cheaper, this was still too extravagant! Even more so than I Am Present!

Brian Carter felt a pang of heartache for the money, and David Cooper keenly noticed that his opponent’s focus wasn’t complete. With a powerful push from his strong legs, the virtual stone tiles underfoot cracked instantly, and he shot forward like lightning.

David Cooper closed in, unleashing the most explosive move of the Stone-Splitting Jade-Smashing Fist—"Earth-Shattering Stone"—with a swing. The air crackled loudly, like a car tire bursting.