Ian Song's physical fitness was a full 500 points, and his body's reflexes were extremely sharp. The moment the woman lunged, he reacted instantly: raising his hand like a blade, stepping forward to strike at her neck, while his right knee shot up toward her abdomen.
The woman was startled—she hadn't expected Ian's reaction to be so quick. Instinctively, she stopped her forward rush and retreated.
But her retreat only gave Ian an opening.
After fusing Intermediate Combat Arts, all sorts of fighting techniques had become instinctive. Ian let out a low shout, stepped forward twice, and his hands flew in a blur—a relentless flurry of attacks crashed down on the woman like a raging storm.
He knew this woman was ruthless, so he didn't dare hold back in the slightest.
Under Ian's assault, the woman was forced to fall back step by step, quickly driven into a corner. Shock flashed in her eyes—she never imagined this young man's strength would be so overwhelming. If she weren't injured, she might have a fifty-fifty shot at beating him, but now, with her serious wounds, she could only muster half her strength. She stood no chance against him.
With nowhere left to dodge, the woman had no choice but to clash head-on with Ian. After several clashes, blood began to seep from the corner of her mouth, and the wound on her abdomen split open again—she could already feel blood soaking through the bandage.
"Whoosh!"
Ian withdrew, staring at her with cold pride. "Don't think you can slaughter people at will just because you have some strength. Consider this a small lesson—if you dare lay a hand on me again, I won't let you off so easily!"
Hearing Ian's words, anger flashed in the woman's eyes, but she said nothing. She simply took off her leather jacket, revealing her blood-stained undershirt, and tore off part of the bedsheet to start bandaging herself.
Seeing this, Ian felt a bit guilty, thinking he might have taken advantage of her. He said, "Bandaging like that won't work, it's easy to get infected. How about I go buy you some antibiotics?"
"The pharmacies are all closed at this hour. Where are you going to buy them?" the woman said coldly.
"True!" Ian scratched his head awkwardly. "I'll ask the landlady if she has a first-aid kit."
This time, the woman said nothing.
...
"Landlady, do you have a first-aid kit? My friend is injured. Can I borrow it?"
The middle-aged landlady yawned at Ian, then her expression turned odd. "I've got a first-aid kit, but you can't use it for free. Fifty yuan."
"Okay." Ian took out fifty yuan and slapped it on the counter.
"Wait a moment." The landlady took the money, then pulled a first-aid kit from under the counter and handed it to Ian. "Young man, take it easy—don't get anyone killed!"
Ian was thoroughly embarrassed. He grabbed the first-aid kit and hurried back to the room, faintly hearing the landlady's voice behind him: "Young people these days, really wild! Even get hurt playing around!"
"Need any help?"
Ian handed the first-aid kit to the woman and asked politely.
He thought she'd refuse, but after a few seconds of silence, she said, "You bandage it for me."
Ian was stunned for a moment, then quickly nodded.
He practiced martial arts, and injuries were common, so he was quite skilled at treating bruises and wounds.
When he unwrapped the blood-soaked cloth from her wound, Ian couldn't help but be shocked—a five- or six-inch gash on her lower abdomen, and it looked deep.
"This is a serious wound. You should really go to a hospital," Ian said, frowning.
"The people hunting me are powerful," the woman replied coldly, but Ian could sense her tone was no longer as icy as before.
Hearing this, Ian understood—if her pursuers knew she was hurt, they'd be watching hospitals and clinics. Going to the hospital would be walking right into their trap.
Ian first cleaned the blood around her wound with distilled water, then applied medicine, and finally wrapped it with a bandage.
"All done. For the next while, you'd better not fight again, or the wound could split open at any moment!" Ian reminded her.
The woman didn't reply. She simply put her leather jacket back on.
While tidying up the first-aid kit, Ian said, "My name's Ian Song. What's yours?"
"I told you, don't ask what you shouldn't ask!" The woman stared at him coldly.
"Fine, if you don't want to say." Ian shrugged and picked up the first-aid kit, planning to return it to the landlady.
At six in the morning, Ian woke up in his chair and saw the woman still sleeping. He quietly left the room, bought breakfast nearby, and set it in the room. After thinking for a moment, he also put two hundred yuan next to the food.
As soon as he left, the woman opened her eyes. Seeing the breakfast and money on the chair, her expression grew complicated.
Back at the dorm, Ian slept until noon. The woman's image flashed through his mind—he wanted to check on her at the motel, but after thinking it over, he didn't go.
He'd only met her by chance, and he'd already done more than enough. If he got further involved, it could bring trouble to himself or his uncle's family.
At two in the afternoon, Ian headed to the boxing gym.
The Zhao Family Boxing Gym was also a fitness center, so there were fewer people in the afternoon than at night.
"Ian Song, you haven't been here for a while, huh?" Henry He greeted him warmly.
As Zhao Fengyang's top disciple, Henry had learned real skills. Before Ian fused Intermediate Combat Arts, he couldn't beat Henry, but could still hold his own for twenty or thirty moves. Now, Ian was confident he could win within five.
"Yeah, I've been busy with schoolwork lately. By the way, is Master Zhao still filming?"
"I just talked to Master last night. The shoot should wrap up in about a week."
A week wasn't long. Ian decided that once Zhao Fengyang returned, he would definitely challenge him to a spar.
"Ian, come with me. I have something to tell you."
Just as Ian was working out, Zoe Zhao suddenly appeared.
He followed Zoe to the office. After she signaled for him to close the door, she said, "I called my brother about last time. He agreed to teach you the three ultimate techniques of Zhao Family Boxing, but you have to formally become his disciple."
Ian didn't want to become Zhao Fengyang's disciple. He felt his strength was already close to Zhao's—even if Zhao was stronger, it wasn't by much. With a lucky draw, he might get High-Level Combat Arts and surpass him in a flash.
Why become a disciple of someone weaker than himself? Besides, he'd heard the martial arts saying: "Once a teacher, always like a father." With the system's help, he'd soar sooner or later—a master would only hold him back.
So he said to Zoe, "You misunderstood, Zoe. I was just joking last time."
"Ian Song, what do you mean? You don't want to become my brother's disciple?" Zoe's face darkened, her tone full of dissatisfaction.
After a moment's hesitation, Ian nodded.
"Get out!" Seeing him nod, Zoe exploded with rage and pointed at the door.
Ian couldn't understand why Zoe was so upset, so he could only give an awkward smile and leave.
After Ian left, Zoe cursed at the empty air: "Damn you, Ian Song! I went to so much trouble to get my brother to accept you, and you don't even appreciate it. You're driving me crazy!"