“Very good, kid. I didn’t expect you to have the courage to challenge me. For your courage, I apologize for my previous provocation. But I still have to tell you that not just anyone can be an adventurer. Those without power can only become a burden to others. I am a third-tier berserker, and I now accept your challenge.” Layton was first surprised when he heard Wu Yu’s words, and then laughed loudly.

"Hahaha, since when bullying the weak can be called bravery? Don't flatter me, I'm just issuing a challenge that I'm sure to win," Wu Yu said sarcastically.

Now that they've already clashed, Wu Yu no longer needs to worry about the other party's feelings. If Wu Yu was still somewhat wary of the other party's strength before, after hearing that the other party only had the strength of the third rank, Wu Yu no longer takes Layton seriously at all.

It's no exaggeration to say that Wu Yu could kill any opponent below the Saint level with a single blow if he wanted to; the only difference was the cost he would have to pay.

After several attempts with the skill, Wu Yu had a general understanding of the cost of using it.

The cost is divided into physical and mental. Physically, after each use of a skill, the physical damage will be fed back to him after the skill is completed. This is how Wu Yu lost his left hand. Moreover, Wu Yu had no doubt that the skill feedback could directly destroy him.

As for mental health, each use of a skill will cause fatigue, and in severe cases, dizziness and nosebleeds may occur. This is because one's soul cannot withstand the large amount of information poured in at once, but the system seems to set a threshold for this information, and once it exceeds the threshold, it will forcibly block the reception of information.

The effect only applies once. Wu Yu can continue to receive it if he wants, but he suspects his head might explode as a result.

For example, Wu Yu dares not touch the two tangible manifestations of rules that are currently dormant in the deepest part of his memory.

Wu Yu had previously witnessed battles between advanced professionals in the desolate city. If he were to fight against an advanced professional, Wu Yu concluded that he would have to give up his right hand as well.

But now Wu Yu can manipulate puppets with extremely high physical strength, and he only needs to endure the mental erosion. Last time he watched a battle between high-level professionals, he only had a nosebleed. And this time, his opponent was only a third-level professional, which was far too weak for him to control the puppet.

"Let's end this farce quickly," Wu Yu said to the signboard girl next to him.

After receiving a signal from Jack, the signboard girl returned to the control panel to input the information. Once finished, she called out to Wu Yu, "That's enough. You can go back into the magic circle now."

Following the instructions, Wu Yu returned to the magic circle. When he reconnected with the puppet, he felt a severe sense of incongruity.

Wu Yu tried to take a step forward, but because he used too much force, he jumped up and fell to the ground without controlling his momentum. This was no longer a child learning to walk; it was like letting a child fly a Gundam.

Wu Yu was a little surprised that Layton didn't mock him this time, but he didn't have the time to think about such a problem right now; manipulating the puppet was still too troublesome for him.

Moreover, the puppet's flaws are too great. Not only does it require standing in a specially made magic circle, but the operating distance is also unknown. Without using skills, Wu Yu can't even walk normally. Damn it, if it were more convenient, he could just make a puppet as a substitute and become a top-tier powerhouse in no time.

"Sir, you'd better not try to be a hero anymore." The shopkeeper couldn't stand Wu Yu's ridiculous behavior any longer and tried to dissuade him.

"Don't worry, this little difficulty is no problem for me," Wu Yu said confidently, waving his hand.

Walking was no longer an option, but humans have other ways of moving besides walking. Wu Yu could also move forward by jumping.

He channeled his power into his legs and leaped forward, covering ten meters in one go. Unfortunately, he fell when he landed, but he didn't feel any pain. So Wu Yu stood up nonchalantly and repeated the jumping motion.

Finally, Wu Yu successfully reached the arena and stood up with difficulty.

Having temporarily weakened his control over the puppet, Wu Yu shouted loudly within the magic circle, "You make the first move, don't say I didn't give you a chance."

Layton was not angry because of Wu Yu's contempt. His goal had always been clear: to prevent those who were not capable from becoming adventurers.

Layton took the greatsword from his back, smashed it in front of him, and shouted to Wu Yu, "Here I come!"

Layton gripped the hilt of his sword with both hands and charged at Wu Yu with the force of a sweeping attack.

【dodge】

Wu Yu retreated rapidly, the sword tip grazing past his body, but a huge wave of energy extended outwards. For every inch the energy wave advanced, Wu Yu took a step back. Until the attack ended, not a single hair on his head was harmed.

This was followed by a tremendous air explosion, a result of breaking the sound barrier.

Wu Yu chose to let Layton complete this attack for two reasons. First, it was to test the physical strength of a third-tier professional. To be able to break the speed of sound with just his physical body was simply monstrous. This world really is unreasonable.

The second test was to assess my mental exhaustion; aside from feeling a little tired, I felt fine.

Now Wu Yu has completed his self-assessment of his strength. Relying on the system, he can completely crush ordinary people, defeat a first-tier superhuman with some effort, and kill a third-tier or higher superhuman with the cost of one hand. Apart from facing second-tier superhumans, Wu Yu already knows how he should live in the world.

So now, the guy in front of me is no longer of any use.

Wu Yu glanced at Layton indifferently, then activated the skill [Insight].

Layton's swordsmanship was chaotic and lacked any highlights. He was fighting almost entirely based on his own strength and fighting instincts. This might be acceptable against magical beasts without advanced intelligence, but against an opponent like Wu Yu, he could be defeated the moment he made a move.

Wu Yu retreated to the side of the three demonic puppets he had defeated earlier, grabbed one of the swords, and swung it back at Layton who was approaching him.

Without the embellishment of battle aura, Wu Yu's sword strike appeared incredibly simple.

But as the blade drew closer, Layton felt a chill run down his spine; the premonition of death he had gained from countless life-or-death battles enveloped him once more.

No matter how Layton's greatsword changed its trajectory, Wu Yu could always anticipate and deflect the blade to a place he couldn't reach.

The two were evenly matched in speed, which allowed Layton to sense the terror of his opponent's technique—an absolute power that could manipulate him at will. Before they had even clashed, he was almost ready to give up.

With a clang, the sword in Wu Yu's hand was knocked away.