"Ding! Congratulations on defeating your opponent in the off-ring match. The Greedy Wolf talent has automatically extracted the following superior attributes from your opponent: Footwork +1, Leg Explosiveness +1, Leg Techniques +2. Please check your stats promptly."
Jason Luo, who had been laughing and chatting, grinned even wider when he heard the system prompt. Footwork and leg strength were both valuable in boxing. Leg Techniques couldn't be used in the ring, but they were still handy. If he could pull off Philgen's signature leg moves and show them off, that would look pretty damn cool...
All in all, today's fight had been more than worth it! From the system rewards, it was clear Philgen's strength far outclassed Sanchez and Kuhn.
Together, they gave Jason Luo five points in Leg Techniques, one point in Leg Strength, one point in Leg Explosiveness, and one point in Footwork. A massive haul!
The generous gains left Jason Luo itching for another fight, but he knew that wasn't realistic. In a law-abiding society, picking fights every day just wasn't possible.
As Jason Luo helped Philgen along, while Kuhn and Sanchez leaned on each other heading out of the alley, Susan Miao suddenly appeared at the entrance. Behind her came a few middle-aged men armed with mops and spatulas, while Susan herself clutched a giant electronic calculator as she ran up!
But when she turned the corner and saw Jason Luo supporting Philgen, she froze. "Jason Luo, what did they do to you? I'm warning you—let him go right now, or we won't hold back!"
Philgen looked embarrassed, but Jason Luo quickly said, "It's fine, Miss Suyan. We were just messing around a bit. You're worrying too much. And these gentlemen are…?"
"Oh, they're friends who run shops nearby. I couldn't reach my dad—he's probably in surgery—so I asked them to come help..."
Susan stepped forward and checked Jason Luo. He didn't seem injured, but behind him, Sanchez was clutching his stomach and Kuhn's face was swollen. Philgen was limping badly too. Could it be...?
"My god! You didn't actually beat all three of them, did you?" She could hardly believe it. Before she left, she'd seen Kuhn land a flying kick on Jason Luo. So how...?
Jason Luo didn't answer directly. Instead, he nodded politely to the men behind her. "Thanks for coming. Just a misunderstanding—sorry for dragging you out here..."
Seeing Jason Luo unharmed, Susan also hurried to thank the shop owners. After they left, Philgen nodded apologetically to her. "We keep our word. We offended you earlier, beautiful lady. Sorry about that!"
Then he turned to Jason Luo. "You win this time. I'll come for you again in the future. Let's go!"
As they limped a few steps away, Jason Luo suddenly called out, "Don't you need some medicine for your injuries? Why bother going elsewhere—this is a pharmacy!"
Susan's eyes lit up. "Exactly! I'll even give you a 10% discount!"
Philgen nearly tripped when he heard that. Without a word, he quickened his pace...
Jason Luo and Susan burst into laughter as they watched the group hurry away. Today had been just too funny.
After laughing for a while, Susan pressed Jason Luo to tell her what happened after she left. He was just about to start when he suddenly slapped his thigh. "Crap!"
Susan jumped. "What's wrong?"
"Damn it! I sneaked out during lunch break to buy medicine. I got so caught up in all this I forgot to buy it. If I go back late, my coach is going to flip!"
"You scared me! I thought it was something serious." Susan let out a sigh. "What medicine do you need?"
"Synthetic steroids. Got any?"
"Yes."
"Then let's go! My coach is strict—if I'm late, I'll get chewed out again..."
After grabbing the medicine from the store, Jason Luo dropped the money and ran back. The moment he entered the gym, Raul stopped him. "Where've you been? I've been looking all over for you."
"Oh, sir, I went to buy medicine. Is something wrong?"
"Nothing serious. Just a heads-up—since you beat Prudock last time, and the coach agrees your strength has clearly improved, I've adjusted your base salary. It's now set at 4,200 dollars. Everything else stays the same."
"Also, if you train seriously and break through the preliminaries in this tournament, and place decently, I promise you'll get another raise. Work hard."
"Really?" Jason Luo's eyes lit up.
"Of course. Now go—Coach Pedro's looking for you too." Raul grinned.
"Got it. Thanks, Mr. Raul!"
Who wouldn't be happy with a raise? Jason Luo ran off, his steps extra light—whether from joy or from his boosted Leg Techniques, he couldn't tell.
When Pedro saw him arrive with a bottle of medicine in hand, he didn't blow up. He just barked, "Why are you wandering around? You still haven't nailed the lunge! Get to it!"
"Right away!"
But this time, during the lunge drills, Jason Luo—now with enhanced leg strength and explosiveness—looked completely different. His footwork kept up, his speed naturally rising.
Pedro rubbed his eyes. How had this kid changed so much after just one meal? Was it just because he hadn't eaten enough this morning?
But the old coach almost never praised directly. Seeing the improvement, he simply said, "Now that's more like it. Keep it up. Continue..."
After so long with him, Jason Luo knew that this tone was already the highest praise he'd get in training. Don't expect Old Man Pedro to ever say "You're great" or "You're amazing." Impossible. The only time he'd say nice things was in the ring, to pump himself up.
Jason Luo could clearly feel the changes in his body. If the coach weren't watching, he'd have tried a Leg Technique right then—see if he could pull off a skyward kick!
After another hour, the coach corrected a few small mistakes in his lunges and announced the drill was done for now. Tomorrow they'd move on to new training—shuffling steps and short jabs.
As the morning session wrapped up and the coach headed out, Jason Luo, brimming with curiosity, suddenly tried a Leg Technique. He lifted his leg sharply, wanting to see if he could kick upward. But...
"Hiss... thud!"
The moment his leg reached chest height, his thigh muscle pulled tight, a sharp pain dropping him flat on the floor. He clutched his leg, groaning.
The sound made Pedro turn back. Seeing Jason Luo rubbing his thigh frantically, the old coach shook his head slightly. Had he been too hasty? Maybe it was time to ease up a little—he couldn't afford to train this kid into an injury...