America: Starting from collecting corpses, leveling up to godhood

After dinner, Chen Ming drove Sophia back to her apartment building.

Aren't you going up?

Sofia glanced back at Chen Ming, who was still gripping the steering wheel, as she opened the car door.

"Planning to splurge at a strip club under the cover of night? I can recommend a few... Don't get me wrong, I've handled their accounts before."

"Just running errands and taking a break to digest."

Chen Ming didn't explain much.

"What an energetic monster."

Sofia muttered something and staggered into the dark doorway of the apartment building.

Chen Ming then took out his phone, opened the map, and entered "MMA" and "24h" in the search box.

It was just past 9 p.m., and Los Angeles' nightlife was just beginning.

Soon, a red thumbtack popped up on the screen.

"Beast Mixed Martial Arts".

Two miles away, 3.2 points.

The comments section was full of negative reviews about "too much body odor", "no air conditioning", "outdated equipment" and "just a bunch of violent lunatics fighting".

There are no yoga classes, no Pilates, and certainly no social media influencers taking selfies in trendy brands...

"Perfect."

Chen Ming smiled slightly and stepped on the gas.

……

"Beast Mixed Martial Arts" is located in a converted warehouse at the end of the block.

Pushing open the door, a strong smell of stale sweat, leather, and rubber floor mats hits you.

There are no electronic gates, no facial recognition, and no air conditioning.

There was only a broken wooden counter at the entrance, behind which sat a burly black man with a neck thicker than Chen Ming's thigh, watching a football game on an old-fashioned television.

"New here?"

The black man glanced at Chen Ming out of the corner of his eye.

"Single entry or monthly payment?"

"Single time".

Chen Ming took out a banknote and placed it on the counter.

The burly man put away the money, pulled out a crumpled disclaimer and a ballpoint pen from under the counter, and tossed them to Chen Ming.

Chen Ming carefully read through the paper, which was filled with legal jargon, and only signed his name after confirming that the meaning was "the individual is responsible for any improper training" and that there was nothing strange about it.

Inside the arena, the space was roughly divided into a power zone, a punching bag zone, and a standard octagonal cage and boxing ring in the core area on the right, where two strong men were engaged in intense grappling and sparring.

Chen Ming found an unused bench press rack, did a simple warm-up, and started adding plates.

He needs to establish a reference coordinate system first in order to determine the specific value of the "attribute points".

80 kilograms, light.

It weighs 90 kilograms, which is a bit heavy.

100 kilograms, gradually exhausted.

When the barbell plates were increased to 110 kilograms, Chen Ming clearly felt his arm muscles begin to tremble.

"call--"

"This weight is okay for an amateur, bro, but your triceps are too weak, you're compensating entirely with your pectoral muscles."

A voice with a heavy nasal tone came from above.

Chen Ming sat up and saw a burly white man with a short blond haircut and wearing a tight vest standing next to him with his arms crossed, looking superior with an air of "I am an expert".

It's a bit like a younger version of Hercules.

"I'm Jack, the coach here."

Jack glanced at the number of bars on the barbell.

"110 kilograms is your limit. Your movements in the previous set were already distorted. Adding more weight will only injure your arms... If you want to break through your plateau, I'll help you correct your power generation structure with a 50-kilogram course."

Chen Ming didn't reply, but silently took out his phone and recorded the data.

Strength: 24, Bench Press Limit: 110kg.

That was definitely his limit; he could feel his muscle fibers screaming from that push.

"Not interested?"

Seeing that Chen Ming was ignoring him, Jack felt a little embarrassed, but he still tried to continue his sales pitch.

"Don't be so arrogant, Asians' bone structure is naturally..."

Before he could finish speaking, he saw Chen Ming suddenly close his eyes, lean back in his chair, and take a deep breath.

Strength: 24 → 25

[You have gained Strength Mastery Lv1, increasing your Strength by an additional 20%. Each subsequent increase in Strength requires two attribute points.]

There are even extra rewards?

Chen Ming felt a warm current instantly wash over his entire body. His muscles, which had been sore from exhaustion, felt as if they had been injected with some kind of high-purity fuel. The fatigue evaporated instantly, replaced by a pleasant sense of fullness...

He opened his eyes and walked to the barbell. To Jack's astonishment, he added another 15 kilograms of large pieces to each side.

The total weight is 140 kilograms.

"Hey, are you crazy?!"

Jack was startled and quickly stepped forward to stop him.

"You almost crushed yourself to death pushing the 110 ambulance just now, adding another 30 kilograms? Stop right now! I don't want anyone being taken away by an ambulance during my shift!"

The next second, his hand froze in mid-air, and his mouth opened into an "O" shape.

The Asian youth who had just been red-faced while pushing 110 kilograms now felt like he was pushing an empty bar.

Lower it, touch its chest, push it up.

Lower it, touch its chest, push it up.

Lower it, touch its chest, push it up.

I completed three consecutive standard slow full-length exercises without even disrupting my breathing rhythm.

"Clang!"

The barbell returns to the rack with ease.

Chen Ming sat up and stretched his neck—he felt he hadn't reached his true limit yet, but the improvement was already astonishing.

He didn't expect such a change when his attribute increased to 25 points, but judging from the text prompts for Strength Specialization... this system seems to support his all-round development rather than raising one attribute to an exceptionally high level.

"you……"

Jack, standing next to him, was looking at Chen Ming as if he were a monster, his face flushed red, feeling like a clown being made a fool of.

"Damn, were you acting in that last group? Are you the kind of internet celebrity who likes to go to the gym, pretend to be weak while secretly being strong, and make prank videos?"

"Sorry, I was just warming up."

Chen Ming grabbed a towel and wiped his hands.

"I haven't trained in a long time, and my body is a bit rusty, so I need to get a feel for it first."

"Haven't practiced in too long?"

Jack's eye twitched slightly as his gaze swept over Chen Ming's muscle definition.

Although the figure is smooth, judging from the body fat and circumference, the weight is estimated to be at most around 70 kilograms.

Can someone in this weight class lift 140 kg for a set, even if they haven't trained in a long time?

I won't watch the next FitExpo without you.

"Fine, fine, you're the chosen one."

Jack waved his hand somewhat angrily, taking Chen Ming's words as some kind of humiliating boast.

"Looks like nobody here can teach you how to build muscle. Have fun, Popeye."

"etc."

Chen Ming's voice came from behind.

"What's wrong now?"

Jack stopped in his tracks, growing impatient.

"If you want me to watch you do squats, you'll have to charge $100 an hour. I'm not interested in being a free audience member."

"No, I just want to learn something else, like martial arts or something... If you teach well enough, I can pay you $100 an hour."