On the sink sat Don Quixote's grimy razor. The blade was even covered in yellowish-brown limescale and rust.
Clearly, a guy like Don Quixote, who'd turn long-sleeved shirts into short-sleeved ones and short-sleeved ones into underwear, wasn't about to spend money on replacement blades.
But even a partially rusted blade could easily slice open a rough face and draw blood.
Li Wei picked up the razor, detached the blade, and gently slid it across his arm.
He felt a tough resistance from the blade, as if it weren't sliding over human flesh but something stronger than the blade itself, like a steel cable.
At first, Li Wei only slid it lightly. Then, he increased the pressure slightly, but it still only left faint white marks on his forearm.
'This seems to be my limit for now, though,' Li Wei thought. 'If the blade were a little sharper, or if I used a bit more force, it seems like it could still cause a minor injury.'
"But this seems to be just a bronze-tier body," Li Wei suddenly recalled the mythological settings from a book he'd read. "Are there higher tiers after this, like silver and gold bodies?"
As he turned, he accidentally knocked over the razor and toothbrush that were sitting on the sink.
But the instant he knocked them over, he reacted with incredible speed, catching the falling razor and toothbrush with one in each hand.
"Is this what 1.4 Agility and 1.5 Spirit feels like?" Li Wei stared in amazement at the two items in his hands. "My Agility went up by 0.2, and it even boosted my reaction speed."
After reassembling the razor, Li Wei was already looking forward to seeing his results at the gym the next morning.
...
The next day, Don Quixote woke up early as usual and left, his mind heavy with worries.
Li Wei, however, had altered his schedule for the day. He moved his morning part-time job to the afternoon and made plans with Michael to hit the gym together.
Around 10:15 a.m., by the time Li Wei had finished his schoolwork and arrived at the gym, he was surprised to find it was much more crowded than usual. The front desk was empty, and Michael was on the outskirts of a crowd, craning his neck to see what was happening in the middle.
He walked over and tapped Michael on the shoulder.
"What's going on?" he asked, gesturing toward the center. "Why is it so packed today?"
"Oh... Li Wei, you're here. There's an event today," Michael said, turning to greet him. "It's a bench press competition. You can win cash and protein powder."
Li Wei looked toward the area Michael indicated. Sure enough, the center of the weight room was surrounded by a group of huge guys. A muscular Black man, who weighed over 110 kg and had arms thicker than Li Wei's thighs, was attempting to bench press a 160 kg barbell.
"How much for first place?" Li Wei asked Michael.
"500 USD, plus a tub of hydrolyzed whey protein," Michael said, his eyes full of envy as he gazed at the weight room. "They're so strong. I wonder if it's possible to reach their level without using steroids."
"Probably pretty tough," Li Wei said casually. "Last time I was here, I overheard them swapping tips on their cycles."
"Never mind then. I want to be a doctor, not go into professional sports… Oh, right," he paused, then pointed to a young Black man near the front of the weight area. "Don't you want to join the Franklin High School football team? Look at his build. He's the team's defensive tackle, and he's up next."
Li Wei's gaze followed. He saw a huge guy about his height, but who probably weighed at least 130 kg, rubbing his hands together in eager anticipation.
"Contestant number 14, Manu!"
Manu, from the Franklin High School football team, let out a cheer and stepped up to the platform.
He had a vicious, mature-looking face that didn't match his age, making him look like a not-quite-fully-evolved silverback gorilla.
At the judge's signal, he started roaring while his friend slapped him on the back. He walked up to the bench press rack and attempted 165 kg.
"165 kilograms! A successful lift! Manu is now in first place!"
With Manu pushing the bench press record to 165 kg, the atmosphere in the gym instantly ignited. Everyone cheered for the promising, heavyset high schooler.
"Manu, with lifts like that, you could get into the NCAA, right?" one of his teammates said, smiling and hugging Manu as he stepped off the platform. "Which university are you aiming for?"
"If I can, I'm definitely going to Ohio State. It's the top football school in the United States of America right now, after all," Manu laughed smugly. "Play there for a few years, and if I'm lucky, I might even make it into the NFL."
On the edge of the crowd, Li Wei watched Manu basking in the cheers, then suddenly turned to the front desk attendant. "Is it too late to sign up? I'd like to win that 500 USD too."
It wasn't just about showing off; he really wanted that 500 USD and the protein powder.
Most importantly, he felt like he could probably lift more than 165 kg.
"Well, you can…" The attendant at the front desk looked at Li Wei like he was a scrawny little chick. "But… what's the point of signing up now? You think you can lift 165 kilograms?"
Hearing the exchange between Li Wei and the attendant, a bearded Latin American man standing nearby shouted with exaggerated disbelief:
"Look who wants to challenge Manu! This is a bench press competition, not a math competition, and this ain't the break room for Panda Express! Hey, Bruce Lee, you in the wrong place?"
The surrounding crowd erupted in laughter.
"Hey! Fuck you!" The white attendant glared at the man, then turned to apologize to Li Wei. "Listen, man, if you want to sign up, I can sign you up, but… there's no point. There's no way you can out-lift Manu."
After hearing that, any thought Li Wei had of being low-key was completely thrown out the window.
"Sign me up," Li Wei said with a shrug. "So, lifting 165 kilograms makes you number one in this gym? I thought I'd walked into a women's gym by mistake."
Li Wei's words undoubtedly infuriated the crowd. A torrent of angry curses filled the air, especially from the Latin American man who had started the taunting. If his friends hadn't held him back, it looked like he was about to pounce.
As if to add to the excitement, the system chose that moment to pop up and issue a quest:
[New Quest: A Duel!]
[The dignity of a Knight cannot be desecrated or insulted. A true Knight must defeat his opponent fair and square in their area of greatest strength. For the honor of the Knight!]
[Quest Reward: Strength +0.1]
"Everyone shut the fuck up!"
The attendant roared, silencing the crowd.
He looked at Li Wei with a resigned expression. "Alright, man, since you insisted on signing up… Contestant 15! Li Wei!"
"Li Wei… maybe you shouldn't…" Michael tried to dissuade him. "Didn't you only lift 110 kilograms last time?"
But Li Wei just handed his large water bottle to Michael. "Fill this up for me, thanks. I'll drink it at home."
He nonchalantly walked forward and sized up the 165 kg barbell Manu had just lifted.
"How much weight do you want?" the judge asked, walking over. "If you also lift 165 kilograms, you'll win because you have a lower body weight."
Li Wei's gaze swept across the crowd, pausing for a moment on the bearded man he'd argued with. A sudden smile spread across his face.
"Hey, Big Beard," he said. "If I can lift 220 kilograms, will you run a lap outside naked?"
"You little monkey! If you can lift 220 kilograms," the bearded Latin American man shouted back defiantly, "not only will I run a lap outside naked, I'll jerk off while I'm doing it!"
"But if you can't lift it, then you're the one who has to run outside naked, and while you run, you have to shout 'I'm gay'! How about it?"
"You all heard that?" Li Wei shouted to the crowd, then turned to the judge. "Let's make this impressive. Load it up to 240 kilograms! And get your phones ready, someone's about to go viral on TikTok!"