"Okay!"
As soon as Zoe Zhao shouted "Okay," her right foot pressed into the floor, springing forward like she had a set of springs under her. In a flash, she was right in front of Ian Song, moving at incredible speed.
She swung a knife-hand straight at Ian Song's neck, while her left fist was held at her abdomen, drawn back but not released.
"Is that Tiger Leaping Step?"
Ian Song was startled. He hadn’t expected Zoe Zhao’s speed to be this insane after using Tiger Leaping Step. Luckily, he’d fully internalized Intermediate Combat Arts over the past few days, making it second nature; otherwise, he’d have been caught off guard.
He narrowed his eyes, slicing a knife-hand toward Zoe Zhao’s right wrist, while his right fist shot rapidly toward her right shoulder.
Zoe Zhao had planned to catch Ian Song off guard with Tiger Leaping Step, but was surprised and a bit disappointed by how fast he reacted.
With a quick shift in her mind, her knife-hand slid down, turning into a claw that grabbed for Ian Song’s wrist, while the fist drawn at her abdomen shot out diagonally at Ian Song’s right hand joint.
As a woman, the martial arts she practiced focused on attacking the body’s weak points.
She switched her moves, and Ian Song switched his as well—his left hand formed a fist to meet Zoe Zhao’s claw, while his right hand flicked up, aiming at her cheek.
Last time she sparred with Ian Song, Zoe Zhao realized he was incredibly strong, so she didn’t dare go head-to-head with him. Feeling a bit helpless, she changed tactics again, her body flickering as she used Tiger Leaping Step’s agility to circle to Ian’s side.
Ian Song, on the other hand, stuck to his plan, planting his legs like he was riding a horse stance, rooted to the ring, his arms constantly forcing Zoe Zhao to engage him head-on.
The two traded more than ten moves back and forth on the ring, but somehow, their bodies never actually made contact.
"That kid Ian Song is crazy strong—he can actually go over ten rounds with Zoe Zhao without falling behind!"
Seeing this, the trainees below the ring started whispering to each other.
"It’s probably more than that!" Felix Wang’s eyes flashed with surprise. He wasn’t as strong as Ian Song or Zoe Zhao, but he had a good eye. Right now, Zoe was attacking and Ian was defending.
On the surface, they looked evenly matched, but in reality, Zoe Zhao was already at a disadvantage—one stood unmoving like a mountain, the other darted and dodged.
In terms of stamina, Zoe Zhao was definitely burning more. Plus, as a woman, her physical endurance was naturally lower than a man’s. If this kept up, she’d lose for sure.
After dozens of exchanges, Zoe Zhao’s forehead was beaded with sweat, while Ian Song looked more and more calm and collected.
"No way, I can’t keep doing this! If I do, I’m definitely going to lose!" Feeling her own condition, Zoe Zhao grew anxious inside.
Suddenly, an idea popped into her mind.
She suddenly retreated, landing on the other side of the ring, and beckoned to Ian Song: "Now you attack, I’ll defend!"
Ian Song was momentarily stunned, then understood—Zoe Zhao couldn’t break through his defense and wanted to save her stamina.
With a thought, Ian Song pulled up his system interface and checked his Fame Points—they’d already reached 58, enough for the lottery.
Since that was the case, there was no need to keep fighting.
So he said to Zoe Zhao, "How about we call it a draw?"
"What?" Zoe Zhao exclaimed in surprise, then her face darkened. "No way! Today, we have to settle this!"
"Then I admit defeat!"
Ian Song jumped off the ring without hesitation. He’d already achieved his goal—why bother fighting more? The lottery was way more important.
"Stop right there!"
Zoe Zhao shouted angrily.
Too bad Ian Song didn’t listen at all—he just sped up his pace.
"Jerk! Cheat! Coward!" Zoe Zhao stomped her foot and cursed when she saw him leaving.
Ian Song headed to the locker room. Seeing no one around, he pulled up his system interface and started the lottery. The pointer spun and finally landed on a red square.
Next, four golden characters—'Piano Master'—appeared, then turned into a point of golden light that flew into Ian Song’s forehead.
After merging with the Piano Master skill, Ian Song felt a bit depressed. He’d never planned to be a musician, so what use was piano? And this ridiculous skill even came with ten piano pieces.
"Meow-Meow, how many Fame Points for the next lottery?"
"Two hundred."
"Why did it jump so much?" Ian Song gritted his teeth.
"The lottery cost is set according to the host’s demonstrated ability. With your skills, getting 200 Fame Points won’t be hard."
"Fine, you win!"
Ian Song knew bargaining with the system was pointless, so he didn’t bother complaining anymore. He closed the system interface and started changing clothes.
Just as he walked to the gym entrance, he found Zoe Zhao standing there, watching him coldly.
"Why didn’t you keep fighting me?"
"Zoe, could you please let me through?" Ian Song said, a bit helpless.
"Is it because you look down on me, or do you think you can beat me every time?" Zoe Zhao refused to move, her eyes flashing with a hint of menace.
"That’s not what I meant."
Ian Song felt even more helpless. Honestly, after mastering Intermediate Combat Arts, his strength had far surpassed Zoe Zhao’s. On the ring earlier, if he hadn’t held back, he could have beaten her at least three times.
"Then fight me again!"
Ian Song hadn’t expected Zoe Zhao, a girl, to be so obsessed with winning and losing. He realized that if he didn’t fight her again today, he probably wouldn’t get out of the gym.
"Fine, I’ll fight you!"
"Take this!"
Zoe Zhao lunged forward, whipping her leg straight at Ian Song’s waist.
"Hmph!"
Ian Song let out a cold snort, kicking out at the same time. His arm swept sideways with a sharp rush of wind toward Zoe Zhao’s neck.
Bang!
Their legs collided in midair with a dull thud. Instantly, Zoe Zhao felt her whole leg go numb, and in that moment, Ian Song’s arm was already sweeping past her ear, the fierce wind making her eardrums buzz.
Her expression changed dramatically. In a hurry, she leaned her head back and raised her hand to block Ian Song’s arm.
But right then, Ian Song’s figure flickered—he suddenly vanished and appeared behind her, his huge fist zooming toward her face and stopping right at her nose.
"Zoe, you lost!" Ian Song withdrew his fist and smiled at her, flashing a row of white teeth.
"How is that possible?"
Zoe Zhao couldn’t accept the result.
"You’re not as strong as me, so you shouldn’t have tried to go head-to-head. If you’d used your speed to tangle with me, I might not have been able to beat you!"
Ian Song said sincerely.
"Enough, don’t make excuses for me. A loss is a loss, and I can take it. Tell me, what do you want me to do?"
"No need for that. I was just joking earlier!" Ian Song laughed lightly.
"No way, you have to name a condition!" Zoe Zhao said through gritted teeth.
Seeing she was serious, Ian Song’s expression turned solemn: "Then teach me the three ultimate techniques of Zhao Family Boxing!"
"The three ultimate techniques of Zhao Family Boxing can’t be taught to outsiders. Pick another condition," Zoe Zhao said, a bit embarrassed.
"That’s all I can think of. If it’s not allowed, then forget it!" Ian Song shrugged nonchalantly and turned to leave.
"Wait!" Zoe Zhao called out to Ian Song again.
Ian Song turned back to look at her.
"I need to discuss this with my brother. Next time you come to the gym, I’ll give you an answer."
"Alright, I’ll wait for your reply!"
After leaving the gym, Ian Song pulled up his system interface again. His Fame Points had only increased by one—because his second fight with Zoe Zhao ended quickly and took place at the gym entrance, only the front desk girl saw it.
"Man, if I’d just beaten Zoe Zhao directly on the ring, I could’ve earned way more Fame!" Ian Song sighed to himself.
Suddenly, his gaze swept over a job ad outside a café: they were hiring a pianist, fifty yuan per hour, working from 8 to 10 p.m.
For a moment, Ian Song felt a bit interested—maybe he should give it a try?