Elena stared down at the man resting in her lap.
The adrenaline of the challenge faded, leaving a strange, warm hum in her chest.
She watched his chest rise and fall.
He is chaos.
He is a mess.
But he is the kinda hot.
Her hand moved on its own.
Her fingers brushed against his sweat-dampened black hair.
Tracing the sharp line of his jaw.
Pushing a wet strand away from his closed eyes.
"You..."
Her voice was soft. A whisper meant only for him.
"You really are a miracle."
Touch.
JOLT.
Chen Shi's eyes snapped open.
He didn't just wake up. He detonated.
SCRAMBLE.
He rolled off her lap and crab-walked backward three feet until his back hit the squat rack.
He crossed his arms over his chest in a desperate "X".
"Whoa! Stop right there!"
"Don't give me those hungry eyes, woman!"
He pointed a shaking finger at his own dark, sunken eye sockets.
"Look at me!"
"I have a Red Berserker Queen demanding my nights."
"I have a Blue Healer demanding my days."
"And potentially a third customer!(Annie)"
"My essence tank is empty! Negative!"
"I have absolutely zero excess moisture left to water you!"
Elena's hand froze in mid-air.
Her face went from tender to embarrassed.
"You...!"
"Narcissist!"
She rolled her eyes hard.
"Who wants your 'moisture'?!"
"I was checking for lice!"
"I've watched thousands of movies! Romance! Thriller! Porn! I know all the tropes!"
"You think I would like a young kid?"
"Dream on!"
Amy, sitting cross-legged nearby, poked Elena's cheek.
"Elena..."
"Your face is steaming."
BONK.
Elena chopped Amy's head.
"Quiet, shorty. Adult are talking logic."
[Dragon Country Live Stream Chat]
[HAHAHAHA! Look at that reaction speed!]
[He fears women more than ghosts!]
[Harem Saint Body confirmed. S-Rank Ghost, Horny Ice Queen, Little Loli... he attracts them all.]
[It's the "Scumbag Charisma". The more he rejects them, the more they want him.]
[Foreign Live Stream Chat]
[Disgusting.]
[This is a Survival Game, not a Dating Sim!]
[Why do the women always flock to the trash?]
[Enjoy your little comedy, Chen. Not much time left.]
"TIME IS UP."
The System Voice boomed.
It cut through the banter like a cold, rusty blade.
The lights in the gym flickered.
Red. Black. Red.
"ROUND 1: SQUAT CHALLENGE ENDED."
"TALLYING RESULTS."
Most players had finished. They sat on the floor, panting, alive.
Viper and HeavyTank were broken, but breathing.
But in the back rows...
Seven players were still under the bar.
Their legs were shaking violently.
Their faces were purple. Veins bulging against their skin.
They had stalled.
Rep 7. Rep 8.
Their strength had given out minutes ago.
"No... wait!"
"Just one more minute!"
"I can do it! My leg just cramped!"
The Spotter Ghosts floating behind them smile.
They drifted down.
Their hands solidified.
Gripping the massive, blood-stained sledgehammers.
"Time's up, little ones."
"The Gym has no space for the weak."
"NO!"
A man in an expensive, torn suit screamed. He dropped the bar, trying to crawl away.
"Do you know who I am?!"
"I am a Senior VP at GoldMan Sachs! I manage billions!"
"I can pay you! I have stocks! I have assets!"
"I can buy this gym!"
The ghost didn't blink.
It raised the hammer.
"Currency declined."
SPLAT.
The hammer came down.
It hit his head with the wet, heavy sound of a watermelon dropped from a roof.
Brain matter and bone fragments sprayed across the floorboards.
Next to him, an old man with glasses fell to his knees, clasping his hands.
"Wait! I am a Professor of Mathematics! I am a Philosopher!"
"My mind is a treasure to humanity! You can't kill intellect!"
"I can solve the equations of—"
CRUNCH.
The hammer flattened him into a red paste.
His glasses skittered across the floor, cracked and bloodied.
"I'm an Influencer! I have 5 million followers! They will cancel you!"
THUD.
"I'm a CEO of a big company! I can.."
SPLAT.
One by one.
Status. Wealth. Fame. IQ.
None of it mattered.
The hammer didn't care about their resume. It only cared about the rep count.
Then came the clean-up.
The floorboards under the corpses groaned.
They split open.
Gurgle. Slurp.
Black, tar-like liquid oozed up from the cracks.
It grabbed the crushed remains. The shattered bones. The spilled guts.
And pulled them down.
SCHLUCK.
Within ten seconds, the gym was clean.
Seven players were gone.
Erased.
Only the faint, metallic smell of copper remained.
Lady Cecilia stood on the podium.
Watching the slaughter with bored eyes.
She smoothed her dress.
"In here..."
Her voice was cold silk.
"Your only currency is Strength."
She glanced at Chen Shi.
Her red eyes lingered on him, a smirk playing on her lips.
"...And Performance."
...
Viper huddled in the corner near the dumbbell rack.
He was pacing. A nervous, erratic rhythm.
His eyes darted from Elena to Chen Shi.
"Think, Tank. Think."
He hissed, tapping his temple with a shaking finger.
"How did he do it?"
"A Level 0. No awakened mana. No reinforced bones."
"He survived the Seismic Stomp."
HeavyTank was still chugging a mana potion, his face pale.
"Maybe... he's just strong?"
"Maybe he's a Strength Type hidden as a rookie?"
"Impossible!"
Viper spat.
"I scanned him. His stats are garbage. His muscle density is average."
"There is only one explanation."
His gaze shifted to Elena.
She was wiping Chen Shi's face, looking relieved.
"Her."
Viper narrowed his eyes.
"The Scout."
"She must have a Vibration Dampening skill."
"She neutralized your stomp at the last second. That's why he wobbled but didn't fall."
"He didn't lift that weight with strength."
"He was carried."
Viper's confidence returned. A twisted, ugly grin spread across his face.
"He was shaking like a leaf, Tank."
"He barely locked out that last rep."
"That means 300kg is his absolute limit."
"If we put 305kg on his back... he snaps."
"We haven't lost."
"We just need to increase the load."
"ATTENTION."
Lady Cecilia's voice cut through their scheming.
"Your legs are warm."
"Now... let's test your chest."
"And your ability to support a... partner."
"ROUND 3: THE PRESS OF BURDEN."
"Exercise: Push-ups."
"Reps: 20."
A holographic screen flickered to life above her head.
[Demonstration Video]
On screen, a muscular man in gym gear got into a push-up position.
Next to him, a small, cute Spectral Rabbit appeared.
It had fluffy white ears and big red eyes.
Awww.
The man smiled. He thought he got lucky.
The Rabbit hopped onto his back.
BOOM.
The moment the rabbit's paws touched his shoulder blades, the floor cracked.
The man's eyes bulged out of his sockets.
CRACK.
His humerus bones snapped instantly. They tore through his skin, white shards sticking out like jagged teeth.
The "Cute Rabbit" wasn't light.
It had the density of a Neutron Star.
SPLAT.
The man was crushed flat. The rabbit sat on his bloody pancake remains, twitching its nose.
[Video Ends.]
The gym was silent.
Cold sweat broke out on every player's neck.
Lady Cecilia smiled.
"In this round, the weight is not fixed."
"It depends on your... luck."
She waved her hand.
RUMBLE.
A massive, ornate wooden box rose from the floor.
It was stained with old blood.
Inside, hundreds of black balls rattled against each other.
Click. Clack. Click.
The sound was like dry bones rolling in a grave.
"Inside this box are the names of my pets."
"You will draw a ball."
"The name inside is your Partner."
"They will sit on your back."