Chapter 37 - It's Natural to Lose

Chapter 37 It’s Natural to Lose

After confirming Chen’an’s ability, Han Ya began to find people for him to practice with. The coaches were out. Han Ya, too, was a combat coach, so she had to find someone relatively on par with Chen’an. To pair him with one of the coaches would be asking for trouble; she narrowed her selection to the other combat trainees.

“Liu Zihao, come here for a moment.” Han Ya waved at a nearby student who was about the same age as Chen’an.

When the latter saw that Han Ya was looking for him, he ran over eagerly.

“Coach Han, why are you looking for me?” Liu Zihao smiled, happy to be called over by Han Ya.

Chen’an studied the monster mark on Liu Zihao’s head.

(Level 1 Kickboxing Weakling]

Ah, someone around his level!

Han Ya nodded at Liu Zihao and pointed at Chen’an. “This kid here wants to find a partner for sparring. You can spar with him for now.”

Liu Zihao looked at Chen’an and grinned, revealing a flash of white teeth. “Hello. I’m Liu Zihao. Nice to meet you.” As he spoke, he extended his boxing gloves to Chen’an.

“I’m Chen’an.” Chen’an raised his own glove in a fist-bump.

The two of them went to the small arena at the side. Most of the other trainees knew each other, so Chen’an, as a newcomer, had attracted their attention. After realizing he was about to get into a sparring match on his first day, they couldn’t help but watch. Liu Zihao had been learning kickboxing for about a month. Even if he was the least skilled of everyone present, Chen’an was even more of an amateur. Sure, his punches earlier had been impressive, but how hard was it to hit the same target again and again? Some of the trainees could hit hard enough to knock down stationary sandbags, but that didn’t automatically make them the strongest fighters.

“Do you think the kid will cry after being punched?”

“Look at his fair, pretty face. I think he will cry-and for a long time, too.”

“Shut up, both of you. All you can talk about is violence, when what this young man needs is a little tenderness,” Chen Guifen interjected, exasperated.

The two men who had spoken pursed their lips and said no more.

In the arena, Chen’an and Liu Zihao assumed their stances.

[You have entered the arena with Kickboxing Weakling Liu Zihao.]

(You are not allowed to leave the arena without permission before the outcome of the battle is determined. Whoever leaves without permission will automatically lose, and their current Lifeblood will decrease by 100 drops.]

Chen’an raised his eyebrows. Not a bad deal, especially if it prevented his opponent from backing out halfway.

Liu Zihao leapt up and down barefooted and stretched his limbs. His confidence rose; he felt equipped for the fight. “Be careful, Chen’an. I’ve only been practicing kickboxing for a month, but I can pack a punch.”

He mimicked one of said punches with a flourish, causing the female tank by the side to squeal. Chen’an glanced her way nervously, then smiled politely at Liu Zihao.

“Don’t hold back, Zihao. I know I’m weak, so I’ll be more careful.” “If you say so,” the other boy replied candidly.

At this moment, Han Ya, who was acting as the referee, walked onto the arena. She looked at the two ready combatants and gave the order to start. Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the arena, other than the two coaches who had better things to do than watch two rookies bat their fists at each other.

The scrutiny sent a fire rolling through Liu Zihao’s veins.

“Watch out!”

He gritted his teeth and swung at Chen’an’s head with his right fist.

They were both wearing protective gear on their heads, they wouldn’t suffer much damage even if they took a blow. At most, they would lose their balance. Liu Zihao had been practicing this punch for a month. It was his trump card-a swift attack, a preemptive strike before he crushed his opponent.

Unfortunately, Liu Zihao’s technique was full of flaws in Chen’an’s eyes.

The moment he stepped out, Chen’an had already deduced the trajectory of his punch and reacted before his opponent’s fist came his way.

There was a whoosh of air as Liu Zihao’s fist barely grazed the top of Chen’an’s head.

Liu Zihao’s expression crumpled. Before he could react, Chen’an’s fist darted out at him and made direct contact with his head, causing him to stagger and reel back.

Thrown off-balance, he swayed and fell.

The audience went silent as the grave. Chen’an had dodged and attacked in one seamless motion; before they could blink, Liu Zihao was on the ground.

[Kickboxing Weakling Liu Zihao attacked you, but you dodged his attack.]

[You attacked Kickboxing Weakling Liu Zihao and hit his head, inflicting critical damage. His current Lifeblood: -10]

[Kickboxing Weakling Liu Zihao is injured on the ground. His current Lifeblood: -15]

[You made Kickboxing Weakling Liu Zihao fear for his life. His current Lifeblood: -25]

[Congratulations on defeating Kickboxing Weakling Liu Zihao. You have gained 10 experience points and 10 gold coins.]

Damn. He had inflicted a series of damage with just one punch-and killed the monster, whose healthbar hadn’t been full to begin with.

Han Ya rushed over to help Liu Zihao up. “How are you? Are you hurt?”

Liu Zihao turned to look at Han Ya blankly.

“Coach, what happened? Did I just lose?”

Han Ya nodded. “It’s okay. You’ve only been learning for a month. It’s only natural.”

The spectators were speechless. It was true that Liu Zihao had only been practicing kickboxing for a month, but that newcomer Chen’an had only been training for a day-no, less than that!

[Your rapid improvement has dealt a blow to Kickboxing Weakling Lu Mincai. His current Lifeblood: -10]

[Your rapid improvement has dealt a blow to Kickboxing Amateur Chen Ju. His current Lifeblood: -10]

(Your rapid improvement has riled up Kickboxing Fighter Chen Guifen. She will pay more attention to you from now on.]

The sudden excitement in the group made Chen’an a little uncomfortable. He eyed the middle-aged woman in the audience-the only one smiling at him-and fell into deep thought.

Seeing that Liu Zihao was fine, Han Ya comforted him and asked him to rest downstairs.

Then she approached Chen’an and whispered, “Couldn’t you have gone easier on a beginner? If you keep this up, no one’s going to dare to spar with you.”

Chen’an coughed dryly and quickly explained in a low voice that he hadn’t done it on purpose; he had just been lucky.

Han Ya rolled her eyes, but said nothing more.

“Niu Yanghui, come up and practice with Chen’an. The kid got lucky earlier.” Chen’an looked in the newcomer’s direction and saw that he was labeled as a ‘Level 4 Kickboxing Fighter’.

For the first time, he felt a hint of worry.