The two thugs jumped at the sudden roar.
"Who the hell is this lunatic?" the thug with the knife cursed. He turned and thrust his blade at Don Quixote. "Get lost, you old bastard!"
But Li Wei was faster than anyone.
First, he activated [Eloquent Speaker] and shouted, "Stop!" at the Black thug closest to him. Then he immediately activated [Berserk], doubling all three of his attributes!
With his strength at 3.0, agility at 2.8, and constitution at 2.8, Li Wei's physical abilities had drawn close to the limits of human potential. The thug with a gun at his waist only saw a blur before Li Wei vanished from sight.
Before he could even turn around, an irresistible force slammed into his waist. It felt like being hit head-on by a car. He flew sideways and crashed into a red-brick wall, landing in a puddle of urine in the corner.
He couldn't even get a word out before spitting up a large mouthful of blood and passing out.
On the other side, the knife-wielding thug stabbed at Don Quixote, only to be deflected by his trash can.
Don Quixote roared and charged like a bull, just like a true knight. He grabbed the thug around the waist, then put all his strength into the charge, pinning him firmly against the wall.
"Let go of me, you lunatic!" the thug struggled frantically, trying to slash wildly with his knife.
The woman nearby screamed and tried to get away. Then she saw a figure rush in and punch the thug in the jaw.
In the middle of the night, in the alley, she heard a clear crack.
The thug lost consciousness at once and slumped down along the wall. The alley fell silent again.
Li Wei pulled back his fist, only then realizing what he'd done.
Had he really knocked out two ordinary people with just one punch and one kick?
He suddenly remembered the voice in his mind and hurried to check:
[You have received a mission: Side by Side] [This is your first time fighting alongside the knight Don Quixote since becoming the Hero Knight. Defeat your enemies together] [Mission reward: Free attribute point +0.1] [Mission reward issued]
In addition to the usual missions, Li Wei realized he'd triggered the second-stage mission of the Path of the Knight!
[Path of the Knight: Stepping into the Extraordinary series of missions has begun] [One of your attributes has reached the human limit of 3.0 for the first time. This means you have experienced the limits of the mortal body. The flesh is so weak.]
Weak? Li Wei looked at the two thugs he'd knocked out with a punch and a kick. And that was after he'd held back a little.
After activating [Berserk], Li Wei felt that his overall physical abilities had reached an almost unbelievable level. Strength at 3.0 didn't mean that one part of his musculature had reached the human limit. It meant that the strength of all his muscles had reached the human limit.
He'd just had the sense that, if he wanted to, he could crush the thug's wrist in his hand like a hydraulic press.
[The path of the Hero Knight has only just begun. Your life must continue to evolve.] [Milestone reward 1: Reach 3.0 in one attribute. Reward: Free attribute point +0.2] [Milestone reward 2: Reach 3.0 in two attributes. Reward: Free attribute point +0.3, draw one new skill] [Milestone reward 3: Reach 3.0 in three attributes. Reward: Free attribute point +0.3, Knight: Bronze Body (Extraordinary) evolution] [When four attributes reach 3.0, the next stage of the Path of the Knight missions will begin]
Li Wei needed less than five seconds to think it over and make his decision: raise one attribute to 3.0, then claim the milestone rewards and keep snowballing his progress. Once he raised one attribute, the rest would get easier and easier.
Meanwhile, Don Quixote had also gotten up from the ground. He looked at the woman he'd just saved, then suddenly roared again:
"She's a witch!"
Then he slapped the woman on the forehead.
It took Li Wei a great deal of effort to convince Susan that Don Quixote wasn't mentally ill.
On the way back, Li Wei was surprised to discover that Susan was a bona fide rich woman.
According to her, she'd been married several times and had taken more than a dozen properties in Brooklyn from her ex-husbands. She'd long since settled into a life of collecting rent.
Today, as usual, she'd gone to Sunset Park to play mahjong with her Chinese-American friends. When they finished, she'd run into the two men who tried to rob her.
"Thank goodness for you two," she said, watching Don Quixote escort her from up ahead before turning to Li Wei. "Otherwise, I might have been in real trouble tonight."
"Out here on Eighth Avenue in the middle of the night," Li Wei asked curiously, "didn't you drive today?"
"That's right," Susan said, shaking her head. "My car's parked nearby. I rode with my friend to the mahjong parlor. We drank while we played, and they were all wasted. I thought my car was only a few hundred meters away. I didn't expect..."
"You'll just have to be more careful," Li Wei said, shaking his head. "Though that does sound like too much of a coincidence."
"You're right!" Susan agreed with a nod. "I thought something was off too, especially since I'd just told my friends I'd collected the rent today, and then this happened tonight..."
Li Wei noticed that she seemed to keep looking at Don Quixote, so he tentatively said, "Sorry, my uncle isn't quite right in the head. He made a scene."
"Not at all," Susan said. "Don't you think he has the manners of a knight? He's just like a real knight."
"Besides," she continued, watching Don Quixote's back, "if he hadn't been sleepwalking tonight, I might have been in real trouble."
Li Wei nodded in agreement. "That's true."
Li Wei and Don Quixote escorted her to the parking lot, one in front and one behind. They stopped in front of a white BMW X6.
"Thank you so much for tonight," Susan said, handing Li Wei a business card and a stack of cash. "If you hadn't been there, I really wouldn't have known what to do. Are you and your uncle free tomorrow? Let me treat you to a meal."
Li Wei shook his head. "I'm busy tomorrow. I have to go look at a place. My uncle and I are still living in a basement."
"You two grown men are living in a basement? Poor things." Susan's eyes lit up. Her voice held no pity, only delight. "What kind of place are you looking for?"
"I saw a two-bedroom, two-bathroom apartment," Li Wei said, shaking his head. "My uncle and I both need some space of our own. The only problem is we'd have to live with the landlord, and, well..."
"Now that you mention it, I just remembered," Susan said. "I have an unoccupied place, over 120 square meters, that's been converted from three bedrooms to two. Since you're looking to rent, why don't you come take a look tomorrow?"
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