[Skill: Luck Manipulation (Jinx) - ACTIVE]
[Target: Viper & HeavyTank]
[Effect: Minor misfortune... amplified by environment.]
On the other side of the gym.
Viper slumped against the dumbbell rack.
His face was twisted. A mask of pure hate.
"F*ck!"
"F*ck him!"
"That slippery little rat!"
He slammed his fist into the metal.
The pain in his chest was blinding. A constant, throbbing reminder of his humiliation.
"I should have known..."
He hissed through gritted teeth.
"A Level 0 surviving this long?"
"He didn't use a tool."
"He used his body."
"He seduced the Boss!"
HeavyTank stood over him, looking nervous.
"Viper... your chest is caved in."
"Maybe we should... back off?"
"Back off?!"
Viper spat blood onto the floor.
"Are you insane?"
"He cost me a rib! He made me look like a fool in front of millions!"
He reached into his inventory with a shaking hand.
He pulled out a small glass vial.
Inside, a thick, green sludge bubbled ominously.
[Item: Troll's Blood Potion (Low Grade)]
Viper's eye twitched.
I month of earnings.
Gone. Just like that.
"This isn't over."
He uncorked the vial. The smell of rotten meat filled the air.
He downed it in one gulp.
GULP.
"ARGH!"
CRACK. SNAP. POP.
The sound of bone knitting together was wet and sickening.
Viper arched his back, gasping as his ribcage forced itself back into shape.
The pain vanished, replaced by a dull ache and a burning hole in his wallet.
He wiped the green residue from his lips.
His eyes locked onto Chen Shi across the room.
"Listen to me, Tank."
Viper lowered his voice.
"The Lady protected him outside the game because she likes his... 'service'."
"But the Squat Challenge is a System Rule."
"Even an S-Rank Ghost probably cannot break the Core Rules."
"If he fails a rep..."
"If he drops the bar..."
"The Spotter Ghosts will execute him instantly."
"The Lady can't save a player who fails the objective."
HeavyTank's eyes lit up.
"You mean..."
"We sabotage him."
Viper sneered.
"We go first. We finish our sets fast."
"Then... while he is under the heavy weight..."
"We use a little... 'influence'."
"A trip. A nudge. A debuff spell."
"Make his legs give out."
They looked over at Chen Shi.
Chen Shi was leaning against the wall, drinking water.
He felt their gaze.
He turned his head slowly.
And smiled.
He raised his hand.
Extended his middle finger.
Provocation.
Pure. Arrogant. Disdain.
"YOU—!"
Viper nearly crushed the empty vial in his hand.
"Laugh while you can, gigolo!"
"You think selling your ass makes you invincible?!"
"Wait until you have 300 pounds on your back!"
"I will watch your knees snap backwards!"
[Foreign Live Stream Chat]
[Yes! Get him Viper!]
[Don't let that prostitute win!]
[Viper only lost a rib. He can heal. But Chen Shi lost his Essence!]
[Exactly! Did you see how much he sweated? He is drained dry!]
[Legs trembling! Core weak! He can't squat!]
[He will collapse on the first rep!]
[Justice is coming!]
[Dragon Country Live Stream Chat]
[Uh... guys?]
[Am I seeing things?]
[Look at Brother Chen's breathing.]
[It's steady. Deep.]
[And his skin... it's not pale anymore. It's glowing a bit?]
[Yeah. He looks... healthier than before he went into the bedroom.]
[Did he eat something good in there?]
[Whatever the Lady fed him... it wasn't just milk.]
The loudspeakers crackled again.
"CHALLENGE: 3X BODYWEIGHT SQUAT."
"10 REPS."
"BEGIN."
Viper stepped onto the platform first.
Rack 1.
He was a Level 1 Awakened. His attribute: Speed/Agility.
But his Strength was still far above a normal human.
He loaded the plates.
200kg (440lbs).
Three times his body weight.
He chalked his hands. The white powder drifted in the stagnant air.
He glared at Chen Shi, who was still casually sipping water.
"Watch closely, rookie."
"This is what a Real Player looks like."
He ducked under the bar.
CLANG.
He unassigned the weight.
"Easy."
He descended.
One.
Two.
Three.
His form was perfect. The weight moved smooth like hydraulic pistons.
He smirked.
This is nothing. I will finish in 30 seconds, then sabotage the boy.
Rep 4.
He went down.
But he didn't come up.
Suddenly.
The weight on his back didn't feel like 200kg anymore.
It felt like 500kg.
"Urgh?!"
Viper's eyes bulged.
His knees buckled inward.
What the hell?!
Gravity fluctuation?!
He looked up, straining his neck.
Above him.
Floating in the air.
The Spotter Ghost assigned to his rack.
It looked like a Bloated Spectral Bear.
Translucent. Huge. Fur matted with ectoplasm.
It yawned.
A long, bored groan that smelled of rotting fish.
Then.
It decided to take a nap.
FLUMP.
The Ghost Bear drifted down and rested its massive, ethereal chin directly on the barbell Viper was holding.
"GET... OFF...!"
Viper hissed.
His face turned from red to purple.
Veins popped on his forehead like worms.
The Bear didn't move. It snored.
Zzzzz...
The added spectral weight was crushing Viper's spine.
His quads screamed. The muscle fibers tearing microscopically.
"UP!"
"MOVE!"
Viper roared.
He channeled every ounce of his Level 1 Mana.
GRIND.
Slowly. Inch by inch.
He forced the bar—and the sleeping ghost—upward.
Rep 5...
Rep 6...
Rep 7...
By Rep 9, Viper was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane.
Sweat poured down his face, stinging his eyes.
He looked like he was giving birth to a watermelon.
"ONE... MORE!"
GROAN.
He locked out the final rep.
CLANG!
He racked the bar violently.
The jolt woke the Ghost Bear.
It floated up, looked at Viper with annoyance, and burped in his face.
Then drifted away.
"YOU STUPID BEAST!"
Viper screamed, lunging at the ghost.
[System Warning]
[Do not harass the Staff.]
[Penalty: Death.]
Viper froze.
His fist stopped one inch from the ghost's nose.
He trembled with impotent rage.
He couldn't hit the ghost.
He couldn't complain to the manager.
He slammed his fist into the floor instead.
BANG.
"DAMMIT!"
Next to him, HeavyTank stepped up.
Rack 2.
"My turn."
"I am a Strength Type. This is light work."
He loaded 300kg.
He started his set.
Rep 1... Easy.
Rep 2...
Suddenly.
A cold, wet sensation wrapped around his ankles.
He looked down.
Two pale, ghostly children were playing under his rack.
They were giggling.
"Swing! Swing!"
They grabbed his ankles.
And started swinging on his legs like he was a playground set.
WHOOSH. WHOOSH.
HeavyTank's balance was destroyed instantly.
"WHOA!"
He staggered.
The 300kg bar tilted dangerously to the left.
If he dropped it... he died.
"Stop it! Get off!"
HeavyTank roared, trying to stabilize his core.
But the ghost kids just laughed louder.
They started tickling his calves with their icy fingers.
"Hah! Hhee! NO!"
"Not there!"
HeavyTank, the massive brute, was forced to squat 300kg while being tickled by the undead.
His face was a mask of torture.
Tears of frustration leaked from his eyes.
He powered through purely on fear.
Rep 8...
Rep 9...
Rep 10!
SLAM.
He re-racked the weight.
He collapsed to his knees, panting like a dying dog.
The ghost children giggled and vanished into the floor.
Viper and HeavyTank stood there.
Panting.
Soaked in sweat.
Muscles twitching.
They had survived.
But it wasn't the easy warm-up they expected.
It was a humiliation.
They were Red-Faced. Angry. Burning up.
They looked at the ghosts.
Untouchable.
They looked at the System.
Unfair.
So they turned their heads.
Slowly.
toward the only target they could punish.
Chen Shi.
That weak coward must be trembling now!