Oliver had already called and made an appointment with the dojo for tomorrow. Afterward, he went to bed, not knowing that his entire worldview would be threatened. Bright and early in the morning, Oliver found himself standing in front of a temple-like building. He walked inside to find someone waiting for him. The man had a silky black belt on his waist, and his face was stern and rough. His voice seemed to match his appearance as both powerful and ragged.

"You must be that Oliver brat."

"That I am, sir."

"I see, so you wanted to learn taekwondo with that pathetic-looking body. Hah, what a joke."

Oliver's eyes averted subconsciously, but a burning sensation rose from his chest. Although he knew that the man was right, he felt weird. Oliver knew his appearance wouldn't work well with any martial arts, yet he felt insulted.

With a carefree gaze, an anomaly for Oliver during social interactions, he playfully challenged,

"Who knows, a joke can turn dangerous."

"Oh, a boy wants to play man, huh? Alright, let's go!" The man seemed more annoyed by Oliver's behavior than mad. However, that didn't mean he wasn't going to put the little brat in his place.

Oliver followed behind with a confident, easygoing smile, but his mind was quite the opposite.

"Haha! Ahaha! It seems I'm about to die. Ahh, what the hell did I get myself into!?"

Oliver knew he had no chance, yet he also knew he could only get out of this situation if he apologized and lowered his head. However, such an action repulsed him down to his bones and soul.

Oliver found himself in one of the dojo's many rooms. Across from him was the instructor and hall master. The instructor took a fighting stance, and his eyes sharpened slightly. Oliver tried to copy his stance and failed miserably as his footwork was messy and his hands were too high up near his eyes.

"Pfft! You call that a stance? No, you think you can even compare to me with that stance."

"Compare? No, no, I came here to learn from you. Yet, you seem to think my body is unfit for such a thing. So, I'm simply proving you wrong," Oliver retorted, and the man's mouth curved slightly upward. The man had already figured that Oliver's martial arts foundation was nonexistent; however, he also believed that his body was simply not suited for martial arts. Of course, he was also curious about something.

The man's eyes squinted and slowly gained a light blue hue. In front of him stood a massive tangible aura that covered Oliver's body. It seemed to flicker and burn like a boundless flame. Just then, that flame vanished along with the blue hue in his eyes. It was also at that moment when Oliver suddenly vanished from his eyes for a mere moment. The next, he was seen right next to him, swinging his arms toward his stomach.

Unfortunately for Oliver, the man wasn't an amateur. Quickly, he twisted his body and narrowly avoided Oliver's blow. Moreover, at the same time, his hands reached toward Oliver's wrist. Unfortunately, Oliver had insane reaction speed and pulled his arm back, avoiding his grab. The man didn't seem to like being passive and rushed toward Oliver. His leg swiftly raised off the ground and went toward Oliver's chest.

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Oliver simply sidestepped the kick with a taunting smile when a sudden kick landed on his chest. His eyes saw how the instructor had used the momentum from the other kick to lead to a barrel roll and a swift kick to the chest. Oliver staggered backward slightly, and just when he was about to charge forward, a hand gripped his wrist and pushed it outward. Leaving his chest open and vulnerable, a fist struck dead center.

Oliver staggered a few steps again; however, this time, he heightened his senses and pulled his guards up quickly. Left with no other choice, the instructor stopped his assault; however, the battle had already concluded.

"A pathetic display as I expected. However, I will admit I was wrong; your body does seem alright to begin training."

"Tsk! I can still fight."

"Yes, you can; however, you'll never win. You have no technique, you have no experience, and lastly, you lack any understanding of fighting. You simply throw punches in an unorganized manner with no real strength or speed behind them."

Oliver quickly shut up at the barrage of his flaws being broadcasted to him; however, he had no retorts. The man was right; he had no training or experience. Still, he refused to admit defeat to someone lower than him. Just as those thoughts started to fill his mind, he suddenly froze and wondered,

'What the hell? When did I get such an ego?'

The man simply ignored his expressions and stated, "If you would still like to receive my teachings, then leave the fee at the front desk and come by tomorrow in the morning."

"A-alright," Oliver responded and left the dojo. He paid the fee before he left, and he was now dirt poor! He sighed slightly, unaware of the life-changing moment about to happen to him. Abruptly, Oliver vanished from the quiet streets of the city. He, nor the shadows, were able to react in time. Yet, they seemed more annoyed than anxious about his abrupt departure.

"Damn! Quickly inform the Master; it seems a fissure has appeared and swallowed the man up."

"Tch! The master said he should be plenty strong, but still, we all know he isn't going to be happy about this."

"Whatever, nothing we can do now. Let's just let him handle it."

They all stared at a massive crack in reality and space that appeared at the location of Oliver's previous location. Yet, they seemed neither worried nor concerned about it. Instead, they focused their attention on reporting back to their master. The civilians on the streets simply ignored and passed through the crack like it was a simple phantom. Oliver, on the other hand, found himself in front of something that made him question his mentality. A large tiger that was bigger than even a boulder stood in front of him. Its eyes stared at him with desire and curiosity, yet the cruelty in its body's movements couldn't be hidden.

IV