Battle!

"Kid, what do you mean by this?"

"Literally. I'm not trying to trick you."

Seeing Li Yi's calm and collected expression, Zhang Xuqiang grew even more unsettled.

Did this kid have some kind of foolproof confidence?

Or did he have other tricks up his sleeve?

Or was he just bluffing?

No, no matter what schemes he had, he could just crush him with overwhelming force.

After pondering for a long time, Zhang Xuqiang concluded that Li Yi was trying to bluff him, so he sneered:

"Fine. Since you're so eager, I'll accept this bet on behalf of my brothers!"

Li Yi nodded:

"Then, according to federal law, let's draft a betting contract. The time will be set to start 30 minutes after today's training session ends. You're the guarantor for the others, no problem, right?"

"No problem, but I need to add some additional clauses."

"Such as?"

"There are eight of us betting against you, one person. Your cost is too low, making it unfair for us."

"Then what do you want?"

"I need you to increase the stakes."

"Tell me about it."

"First, you must challenge everyone you mentioned earlier. Even if you lose and your ranking doesn't improve, you must still challenge the next person."

"Second, the exchange rate for Divinity Radiation time will be D-grade for E-grade at a 1:2 ratio, and same-grade for same-grade at a 1:1 ratio! Each person's starting bet is 1 minute of D-grade or 2 minutes of E-grade. This is the base. However, if your total wins are less than 4, the stakes will be doubled, and if your total wins are less than 6, the stakes will be tripled!"

"Third, the performance period must continue until the contracted person's Divine Gene reaches its full capacity!"

Zhang Xuqiang was making a huge demand.

He also intended to scare Li Yi a bit, to confirm whether Li Yi's previous certainty was genuine or fake.

Li Yi thought for a moment and nodded slightly:

"I accept the rules you proposed. Similarly, you must also respect the same rules. That is, if my total wins are more than 4 but less than 6, your stakes will be doubled, and if they are more than 6, they will be tripled. Do you agree?"

Zhang Xuqiang readily agreed:

"Since I proposed it, of course there's no problem!"

"Very good, then it's settled!"

As they spoke, the two immediately used the auxiliary AI built into their personal communicators to finalize the betting contract, signed it, and uploaded it to the website on the starship's internal network that specialized in handling betting matters for notarization.

After completing all this, they each hurried into the nutrient pods to rest, awaiting the next round of gravity training.

Noon.

Canteen.

Zhang Xuqiang gathered the other seven people from the bet and explained the situation.

The seven people were immediately in an uproar.

"Brother Qiang, it's not right for you to gamble away our Divinity Radiation time without even telling us!"

"I object. Can this bet involving me be considered invalid?"

Amidst the clamor, Zhang Xuqiang impatiently slammed the table and said coldly:

"What, do I not have any authority anymore? Besides, you're afraid of someone ranked more than ten places below you? If you win, you can gain an extra minute, or even two or three minutes of Divinity Radiation time from them every day!"

"Hahaha, Brother Xuqiang, whatever you say, I, Chen Liji, will obey!"

"Someone ranked ten places lower than us? That's easy to handle."

"You're right, you're right. How could Brother Qiang's arrangements possibly lead us to lose money."

Zhang Xuqiang's expression improved slightly.

"So, Brother Qiang, who is our opponent?"

"Li Yi, ranked 42!"

"Ah?"

"Brother Qiang, this Li Yi clearly has a bright future. Why should we bet against him?"

Someone asked in confusion.

"Brother Xuqiang, can I withdraw? My rank is only 37, not much different from Li Yi. The probability of losing is very high."

Someone said timidly. This person was Gu Tianyi, who ranked fifth in the martial arts competition the year before last.

"No! The bet has already been made. If you withdraw now, you're challenging my authority! Understand?"

"Alright, I was just joking."

"Don't do it again."

At this moment, Zhang Wuqiang, Zhang Xuqiang's cousin, sneered:

"Those who opposed me just now were brainless. So what if he's the strongest rookie fighter in history? His mech compatibility is so low, and his activation speed is so slow. Even if his combat power is outstanding, once his endurance is insufficient on the battlefield, he'll inevitably be cannon fodder!"

"Since he's blocking Brother Xuqiang's path and is just a nobody with a bleak future, let's make a decisive move and earn some Pluto Divinity from him. This way, he'll have some value for the fleet to cultivate him, won't he?"

"Yes, yes, Wuqiang is right."

"The Special Selection Class encourages fair internal competition. Now that he's actively come to gamble with us, no one will say anything even if he loses."

"Exactly, a genius who gets eliminated is not a true genius."

"Indeed, the opponent actively challenging us is also an insult to our Zhang family. Naturally, we can't let him off easy."

Although some people disagreed with Zhang Wuqiang's viewpoint, under the circumstances, they all echoed his sentiments.

A day of training quickly passed.

Chen Qiong Zhi, invited by Li Yi to be a witness, was currently standing on the side of the fighting arena.

"Are both sides ready?"

"Ready."

Gu Tianyi and Li Yi answered respectively.

After the joint training, Li Yi remained in the activated state of the Pluto Mech, standing by the side of the fighting arena, quietly waiting.

Opposite him was the Divine Mech of the evolved Gu Tianyi.

Fire God Series, D-class Changrong Mech.

Standing 39 meters tall, its overall appearance was that of a snake's head and a tiger's body. Its outer armor coating was a withered yellow, with colorful cloud patterns on its arms, thighs, and chest. Its overall bio-texture far surpassed its metallic texture.

From a distance, it looked like a giant, upright monster.

Only the snake's head had a heavy, cold-glowing, giant metal hard armor, making one realize with a start that this was a giant mech.

"Then you may begin."

The Pluto Mech stomped on the ground and charged forward first.

Inside the Changrong Mech, Gu Tianyi sighed inwardly, thinking:

"It's come to this, there's no use trying to get off this sinking ship. I'll just use a thunderous method to deal with Li Yi and let him experience my Divinity Technique that I've been pondering for a long time!"

"Heh heh, I've been holding back this move for two years and have never displayed its brilliance in front of everyone. Li Yi, you're quite lucky."

He controlled the Changrong Mech to meet the Pluto Mech head-on with fist against fist, intending to repel it and create distance to unleash his ultimate Divinity Technique, Fire Tiger Roar!

BOOM!!!

The two fists collided, the air waves surged violently, and the sound waves swept across the fighting arena.

The next moment, extreme negative feedback surged through the sensory channel of his arm. Gu Tianyi felt an intense pain in his arm.

"Holy crap, holy crap, holy crap!"

Isn't this just an enhanced version of the Pierce-Word Technique?

It can have such an effect by hitting the arm instead of the cockpit?

Gu Tianyi's forehead was covered in question marks.

The next moment, before he could react, he saw an incomparably massive fist smashing towards the panoramic view in front of the Changrong Mech, growing larger and larger.

BANG!!!

A violent shockwave passed through the hard protection of the Changrong Mech's head, with the remaining small portion of its force transmitting to Gu Tianyi inside the cockpit.

Immediately after.

The Changrong Mech swayed and lost its balance, falling to the ground.

In the fighting arena, a deafening roar echoed.

The crowd below was silent.

With just two blows, he defeated Gu Tianyi, who was ranked 37th, using a mech technique?

Why did it take so much planning to fight Zhang Qingjian the day before yesterday, and now he finished it with just one move?

Chen Qiong Zhi coughed lightly:

"Li Yi wins this match!"

From within the Pluto Mech, Li Yi's voice also came out:

"Who's next? Let's finish this quickly and not delay everyone's mealtime."

Zhang Xuqiang's expression turned grim.