Chapter Three: Novice Trainee

Watching Luo Yuan remain silent, the instructor beside him curled his lip in disdain. This kid was likely self-taught and not worth paying much attention to. Judging by Luo Yuan’s performance, his abilities barely matched the peak of a junior trainee—and in the Extreme Martial Arts Hall, such students were a dime a dozen.

“Instructor, may I use the testing equipment here to see where I currently stand?” Luo Yuan pointed to the strength and speed testing machines in the training hall.

“No. You’re not a member of the Extreme Martial Arts Hall and have no right to use our facilities,” the instructor replied impatiently.

Luo Yuan frowned, clenching his fists. It seemed this instructor was indeed the arrogant type. He wasn’t the protagonist of this world, after all, and this kind of dismissal was probably more realistic. Still, there wasn’t much he could do.

At noon, Luo Yuan exited the Extreme Martial Arts Hall with the crowd of visitors. He glanced back at the building, his eyes brimming with longing. This place was a treasury of experience, vital for his growth. What he needed now was money—enough to afford the tuition. But where was he supposed to get that kind of money?

On the bus ride home, Luo Yuan kept pondering ways to make money. Bored, he played with his phone and browsed a martial arts enthusiast forum, posting a question: “How can an ordinary person quickly make a lot of money?” Unfortunately, no one replied—perhaps because his account level was too low for anyone to notice.

When he returned to his rented apartment, Luo Yuan saw the aloof woman, Xu Qian, sitting on the living room sofa, eating an apple and watching a gunfight film. He found it odd; weren’t women supposed to prefer sappy romance dramas?

He grabbed an apple for himself, biting into it without bothering to peel it. He stole a glance at Xu Qian’s long legs—they were astonishingly fair—while she paid him no mind, absorbed in her movie.

“Um, excuse me,” Luo Yuan asked awkwardly, “do you know how an ordinary person can quickly make a lot of money?” As someone who had only recently arrived in this world, he figured it was worth asking the local.

“What do you need money for?” The aloof woman didn’t even look his way, her tone neither warm nor cold.

“Uh, I want to train at the Extreme Martial Arts Hall. I need tuition,” Luo Yuan answered honestly.

“You want to practice martial arts? That’s not an easy path—it’s dangerous. Why not live as an ordinary person?” Xu Qian finally turned to him, raising her striking brows.

“In a world where strength is the highest law, if I don’t train, how am I any different from a salted fish?” Luo Yuan insisted. After all, he had a cheat—he had some confidence now.

“My, I didn’t expect you to be so ambitious,” Xu Qian teased lightly.

“Come on, big sis, could you please tell me? This really matters to me,” Luo Yuan pleaded sincerely.

“Alright, since you called me ‘sis,’ I’ll tell you. But if something happens to you, don’t blame me,” she said.

“I won’t, I won’t. It’s my choice,” Luo Yuan responded eagerly.

“Well, the methods I know of are mostly for those with some martial foundation. Still, if you’re lucky, you might get picked. One way is to work as a feeder at places where rich students raise low-grade monster pets—but there’s a high chance you could lose your life. The other is to fight as an underground boxer, where life and death are unpredictable. Think carefully,” Xu Qian explained.

“Uh, I’ll go with being a feeder. Underground fighting isn’t for me,” Luo Yuan decided quickly.

“Fine. Here’s a black card—a VIP card for a monster pet park. The address is on it. Take this and apply for a job; you might stand a better chance.” After Luo Yuan made up his mind, Xu Qian rummaged through her bag, pulled out a black card, and tossed it to him.

“You’re just giving this to me, Sister Xu?” Luo Yuan asked in surprise, feeling that the woman before him was anything but simple.

“It’s nothing. The card isn’t even mine,” Xu Qian waved her hand dismissively.

“Um, Sister Xu, I’ve always been curious—what do you do for a living?” Luo Yuan asked awkwardly. He felt uneasy using a VIP card of unknown origin.

“My affairs aren’t your concern. It’s meaningless for you to know. You can use that card without worry—no one will trouble you. And if anyone does... heh.” The aloof woman chuckled to herself, sending a chill down Luo Yuan’s spine.

Card in hand, Luo Yuan returned to his room, his mind reeling. At first, he’d thought his enigmatic housemate was some kind of special agent, but now she seemed altogether more mysterious and dangerous. Just who had he gotten involved with?

Bored, Luo Yuan checked the martial arts forum again, only to find his post had been flooded with bizarre advertisements—male modeling gigs, sugar momma tennis, electronics factory jobs promising tens of thousands a month, even offers from people desperate for a child. Furious, he deleted the post at once. Some things, it seemed, never changed, no matter what world you found yourself in—the same sickening capitalist cons and scams.

Examining the black card, Luo Yuan saw it was for a place called Happy Monster Pet Park, with an address and contact information. A quick map search showed it wasn’t far.

With nothing better to do, Luo Yuan decided it was time to study his cheat in earnest. It seemed his power allowed him to pick up the attribute bubbles others dropped, thereby enhancing his own strength. But not everyone dropped them—it depended on the person’s strength. The stronger they were, the more and better attributes they’d drop.

But these attribute bubbles had a time limit. According to his testing earlier, they lasted about five minutes. If he missed them, they were gone. That was a limitation—he’d need to improve his speed. As long as he was fast enough, no attribute bubble would escape him.

“Wait, do I have an attribute panel? That seems like a standard feature,” Luo Yuan thought suddenly.

“Open personal attribute panel,” he intoned inwardly.

To his delight, a transparent panel appeared before his eyes. He picked up a mirror to check, but saw no reflection of the panel—clearly, only he could see it.

Name: Luo Yuan
Strength: Apprentice Level (Junior Trainee)
Power: 300 kilograms
Speed: 18 meters per second
Defense: 300 kilograms
Techniques: None
Skills: None

Luo Yuan was thrilled by the information displayed. He’d originally wanted to use the Martial Arts Hall’s testing equipment, but now it wasn’t necessary—he had his own panel. Who would have thought a brief run in the junior trainee’s hall would change him from an ordinary person to a junior trainee?

This cheat was incredible. Clenching his fists, Luo Yuan vowed that one day his name would be among the ranks of cosmic geniuses.

PS: To all the real gods out there—please tip, vote, and add to your collections. Luo Yuan bows in gratitude!