As soon as these words were spoken, Hugh Xu and the other two showed obvious anger, while the expressions of the remaining six ranged from curious to amused to downright gloating.
"What, are you afraid?"
Tyson Tian pressed on, suddenly adding a mocking tone: "Oh, I almost forgot, you're a noble Psychic Adept, not much for Body Arts. My apologies, really!"
Watching Tyson act so arrogant, Zack Huang couldn't help but say, "Tyson, what are you trying to do? Landon is our Vice-Captain—are you really going to challenge your superior?"
"Tsk tsk, Vice-Captain, so impressive!"
Tyson said sarcastically, biting down hard on the words "Vice-Captain": "I'm just a straightforward guy—I only respect people who can beat me."
"Tyson."
Ian Song suddenly spoke up.
"So, Vice-Captain Lu is planning to accept my challenge? You'd better think it over before deciding, or you might get hurt—and I won't be responsible!"
"You're pretty confident, aren't you?" Ian looked at him.
Tyson Tian declared proudly, "In the special police base, not a single seventh-level Warrior can beat me."
"Very well."
Ian nodded, then said, "Tyson, I'm giving you two choices. First, apologize to me now and stay in the Mech Squad. Second, we duel—if you win, I'll leave the Mech Squad; if I win, you leave. How does that sound?"
Hearing this, Tyson's face flashed with a hint of delight, but then he remembered that the kid seemed pretty confident—could he be planning to use hypnosis? Rumor had it his hypnosis was pretty powerful.
So he said, "I've got one condition: you're not allowed to use hypnosis."
"Don't worry, I don't need hypnosis to deal with you," Ian replied coolly.
"Fine, I accept!"
"Hold on, Vice-Captain Lu, can I have a word with you?" Hugh Xu said, a bit anxiously.
Soon, the two of them stepped aside.
"Landon, don't be impulsive. You just started here, and Tyson may have a bad reputation, but his skills are solid. Among seventh-level Warriors, no one can touch him; he can even hold his own against eighth-level Warriors. If you don't use hypnosis, you might not be his match. If you insist on fighting, at least use your strongest skill—just hypnotize him and teach him a lesson!"
Having seen Ian's hypnosis in action, Hugh Xu was very confident in his ability.
"Thanks for the advice, Old Xu, but I've already agreed to his terms. Don't worry, though—I've got this handled."
"Alright, just be careful!"
Seeing he couldn't persuade Ian, Hugh Xu had nothing more to say.
A short while later, on a patch of open ground, Ian and Tyson stood several meters apart, surrounded by the other nine squad members watching.
"Vice-Captain Lu, you go ahead—otherwise, once I make my move, you won't get the chance." Tyson grinned, clearly not taking Ian seriously, since he'd heard this guy had only just become a seventh-level Warrior.
"You're a squad member, I'm the captain. Even without using my strongest hypnosis, I can't strike first. So you go ahead."
"Hmph!"
A cold light flashed in Tyson's eyes as he gritted his teeth. "Don't regret it!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Tyson shot forward like a leopard, covering the distance in a blink and aiming a punch straight at Ian's chest.
The punch was powerful and heavy, slicing through the air with a faint whoosh.
Ian stepped to the left.
Tyson's punch missed.
"Not bad, you've got some skill." As he spoke, Tyson swept his fist sideways. Ian retreated, and the punch grazed the tip of his nose.
Next, Tyson chased Ian with a flurry of attacks, forcing him to dodge repeatedly. For a moment, Zack Huang, Hugh Xu, and Leo Li all looked worried.
Of course, that's just what the others thought. In reality, Tyson hadn't touched Ian at all, even after dozens of rapid attacks. Tyson started to get frustrated—he'd planned on finishing this within ten moves.
"Is that all you've got?"
Ian's voice rang out.
"You asked for this!"
With a fierce shout, Tyson's aura surged, and his fist glowed with a faint layer of golden light.
"Take my Golden Flame Fist!"
"Whoosh!"
Tyson's speed suddenly increased, and his fist, wrapped in golden light, shot toward Ian's chest.
"Bang!"
The air exploded, but his punch missed again.
It was as if someone was pulling Ian backward, and he retreated in a flash.
"How is this possible?"
Even after unleashing the Golden Flame Fist, Tyson was rattled to see Ian dodge so easily.
No, I have to beat him!
"Kill!"
Stunned for a moment, Tyson charged at Ian again, moving even faster than before.
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Tyson unleashed a storm of attacks, the air exploding with every strike. But to his despair, he still couldn't even graze Ian's clothes.
The Golden Flame Fist burned through stamina quickly—if Tyson couldn't finish this in ten more moves, he'd lose more than eighty percent of his strength.
Thinking of this, Tyson roared angrily, "Landon, if you've got guts, face me head-on! Dodging all the time—what kind of man are you?"
Ian chuckled, "That's funny—you can't even touch my clothes, and you blame me? Fine, I'll show you my strength, so you won't say I won unfairly."
As he spoke, Ian stopped dodging and stood his ground.
Seeing this, Tyson was overjoyed.
"Take this—Golden Flame Fist!"
With a low shout, Tyson gathered all his strength and punched at Ian, his fist glowing even brighter with golden light.
"Boom!"
Ian raised his hand to meet the punch. There was a heavy explosion, and Tyson's body shot backward like a broken kite, crashing to the ground several meters away.
"What...?"
"This can't be real!"
"Wow, Vice-Captain Lu's martial arts are incredible!"
Seeing this, the other nine squad members gasped in awe. Tyson's last punch was so powerful that even an eighth-level Warrior wouldn't dare take it head-on, but Ian not only blocked it—he sent Tyson flying.
Tyson got up from the ground, his face ashen.
"You lost."
Ian looked at him calmly and said.
"Hmph! Landon, I'll remember this!"
With a cold snort, Tyson turned and walked toward the training ground's main gate.
Even Tyson, the troublemaker, had been subdued by Ian. The other six didn't dare act up; their eyes now held a new respect for Ian, while Hugh Xu and the others were equally surprised.
Before the shift was even over, news of Ian defeating Tyson with pure martial arts had spread throughout the Special Police base.
Everyone was in disbelief. Wasn't Landon a Psychic? How could his martial arts be this strong?
Could he really become a true Warrior in the future?