Four gigantic projection screens hung above the circular arena. Only fighters with more than 10,000 points were qualified to appear on the screens.

At the edge of the hall was the lounge area, a place William Clark couldn’t afford. As usual, after entering, he walked straight toward the center of the hall, where thousands of “virtual combat machines” were placed.

The “virtual combat machines” were like miniature rooms. After swiping his card, William Clark entered one. The setup inside was simple: a metal chair and a helmet.

He put on the helmet, and his vision suddenly went dark. William Clark was now in a completely different environment.

The cold voice of the AI sounded in his ear, “Connecting, please wait…”

“Connection complete. User number 2437521, codename: One Punch Blood Surge, points: 7.”

“Please wait, your opponent will be automatically matched shortly.”

William Clark was the 2,437,521st registered user of this Starry Sky Combat City—a fairly early number, since the current numbers had already reached eight digits.

A figure flickered in the virtual space—a silhouette similar in build to William Clark appeared, muscles sharply defined and full of explosive power. The avatars created on the “virtual combat machines” all had the physique of a level-one martial artist. William Clark’s avatar was named One Punch Blood Surge. Although the name sounded imposing, unfortunately, it was always others who beat him until he bled.

Still, this didn’t dampen William Clark’s enthusiasm, because for him, experiencing the battle of a level-one martial artist was something that might only happen far in the future.

Taking a deep breath, William Clark shouted excitedly, “Come on! Tonight, I’m going to dominate the arena—if gods block me, I’ll kill gods; if Buddhas block me, I’ll kill Buddhas!”

“Auto-matching complete. Opponent codename: Butcher, points: 34,527. Countdown begins: 30, 29…”

William Clark was instantly dumbfounded. “34,527 points, Butcher? What the hell, are they messing with me?”

Another 0.001 credit point down the drain…

……

In a corner of the lounge area, two people sat in the shadows. One was a giant of a man, 240 cm tall, with short, bristly hair and a scar running from the corner of his left eye down to his jaw—fierce and menacing. The other was a thin, middle-aged man in a crisp suit, wearing thin glasses, looking completely out of place in the surroundings.

The two were staring intently at the floating projection screens. The scar-faced giant grunted, took a hard drag on his cigar, and said, “The standard at Starry Sky Combat City is getting worse and worse. Even if these people are recruited into Galaxy Group, they’ll just end up as cannon fodder.”

“Don’t be so hasty, Quentin King, you’re too impatient.” The thin middle-aged man took a sip from his glass. “If promising martial artists were that easy to find, we’d be out of a job. Be patient—there are always rewards for those who search.”

“Hmph!” The scar-faced giant Quentin King glared at the man in the suit. “Edward Brooks, don’t get cocky. Last time, while I wasn’t paying attention, you secretly signed those two into Stellar. I haven’t settled that score with you yet! Tonight’s bill is on you.”

Edward Brooks swirled his wine glass unhurriedly and smiled. “Our Stellar Group and your Galaxy Group are competitors by nature. Why should I pay for you? If we’re talking about our personal relationship, then you should be the one paying.”

Quentin King rolled his eyes and said gruffly, “Anyway, I’m signing those three this time, no matter what. If you, Edward Brooks, try any tricks, don’t blame me for being rude.”

Edward Brooks laughed. “Quentin King, we may be familiar with each other, but scouting talent for the company is my job. Personal relationships and business shouldn’t be mixed. Whether we sign them or not depends on our abilities.”

Anyone who had lived in Luoshi City for a while knew that Galaxy Group and Stellar Group were the city’s two famous interstellar mercenary organizations, and places like Starry Sky Combat City were prime locations for these groups to scout new talent.

At that moment, the codename “Butcher” appeared on one of the floating screens in the hall, immediately drawing the attention of both men. At the same time, a wave of cheers erupted throughout the combat city hall.

“Butcher, huh?” Quentin King bit his cigar and laughed. “This kid’s not bad—fierce in battle, good talent. At 18, he’s already mastered the first-grade combat technique [Bear Ape Crash]. After this match, I’ll sign him up right away. Edward Brooks, don’t you dare compete with me.”

A shrewd glint flashed in Edward Brooks’s eyes. “You can have him, but the other two go to us at Stellar, deal?”

“Cunning Chinese.” Quentin King muttered resentfully, “Let’s see who’s got the skills. You guys at Stellar aren’t up to the task.”

On the virtual screen, the two opponents appeared. The fighter with the codename Butcher was a two-meter-tall man, bare-chested, his perfect muscles radiating power. His appearance triggered a wave of cheers and screams in the combat city hall, showing his immense popularity.

Codename: Butcher, points: 34,527.

In the entire Starry Sky Combat City, there were fewer than 100 fighters with more than 10,000 points, and Butcher was one of the best, his 34,527 points placing him in the top ten.

As for his opponent: codename One Punch Blood Surge, points: 7.