54. Max Stats

"Old man, I said get the hell out, or we'll kick you out ourselves..." It seemed like the guards' patience was running thin, as their voices gradually increased in intensity.

"Hohoho, why don't you whippersnappers give it a try then?" The old man sat there unmoving, as he spoke in a sarcastic tone, never taking the guards seriously.

The mocking voice of the old man was obviously not well taken by the people that surrounded them. The mob erupted in wild curses targeting the old man.

"Dammit, just because the guards were asking nicely, he's acting all high and mighty!"

"If not for the rules not allowing fights in training grounds, I'd have crippled the old man already!"

"Throw him out, what are you guys doing! He's clearly disrupting the peace of the training grounds."

"Yeah, throw him out!"

The resentment in the air was as clear as the day itself. It looked like there was already some grudge between the old man and these people. 'I wonder what exactly that old man did to gather all this much hatred?' Sid looked around at the angry mob as his thoughts started to wander.

Looking at the increasingly tense situation, one of the guards picked up a walkie-talkie and spoke into it. "There's a lawbreaker in the 1st floor prison gym, requesting permission to use physical means." With that said, he put the walkie-talkie back in his pocket, as if not caring about the response.

It was a normal process; everyone knew that asking was just a formality, and there was never a case when they got a negative reply. With that, the guards jumped into action, circling around the old man, grinning from ear to ear.

"Come on!" The old man said, hooking his two fingers at them, a mocking expression appeared on his already wretched face.

One of the guards jumped into action, pouncing at the old man. From their actions, it was rather clear that this throwing out was definitely not a peaceful task.

With a punch, he aimed for the old man's face, wanting to send him flying. "Be careful not to kill him!" One of them commented, getting wild laughter from the crowd in response.

But to their surprise, as the punch neared the old man, he moved his hand slightly. No one knew what happened in that split second, but the guard's figure flew out unexpectedly.

Everyone looked at the old man in horror. As if not wanting to believe what had happened, another guard walked up to the old man, muttering, "Dammit! I guess we shouldn't hold back anymore!.. Come on, guys, let's go."

The five remaining guards all jumped forward together, yet the old man didn't change his expression in the slightest. He grabbed one of the incoming hands at lightning speed, and just his touch distorted the arm, sending the guard flying back in a straight line.

The old man then dodged the remaining attacks by jumping up in the air with unprecedented flexibility. His legs gathered force, kicking the two incoming figures fiercely, sending them staggering back. Completing this series of actions, his body landed back on the bench press machine, his eyes once again shut close.

The remaining two guys, who had lunged at him but had nowhere to hit, staggered due to loss of momentum, losing their balance. The old man took advantage of their unresponsiveness, circling around and tapping each and every one of them.

With just a slight tap, their figures distorted, spilling their blood all over. Before anyone knew it, the fight was over, leaving only the chaos of the confrontation behind.

"Hahaha, I've had enough fun for today, guess I'll head back for now." The old man said, jumping up from the machine as he walked past the crowd. As the old man walked past Sid, he stopped midway, his eyes scanning Sid up and down.

Approaching him, the old man said, "Hey kid, your talent isn't bad. But it's just a pity your intelligence system is a bit low, or else I'd have liked to take you in as my disciple."

Sid heard the words, his heart almost swelling with anger and frustration. 'Dammit, what does he mean my talent isn't bad? I'd say it's one of the best, if not the best. And what does he mean my intelligence stat is low?' Sid looked confusedly at his most luxurious stat, which would have to be his intelligence as of now. 'Then what did the old man mean my intelligence was too low? Dammit!'

"See, didn't I tell ya?" Unknowingly, the person he had asked about the old man earlier appeared beside him, looking at him playfully.

"What do you mean?" Sid was rather annoyed by the guy, but still tried to endure it and ask him. After all, he was one of the few willing to give him information without anything in return. Gossiping guys like him were rather rare in this prison.

"That crazy hobo hangs out at this gym every day, trying to recruit the so-called disciples. The only problem is that this is clearly the gym for physical types, yet he wants to recruit those who have maxed out their intelligence stats."

"Huh? Intelligence stats? From here?" Sid looked around, clearly not finding anyone who could have maxed out their intelligence stats. 'Maybe that guy's really crazy!'

"Didn't he just say your intelligence stat is a bit low? Hahaha, you tell me, brother, why would a physical-type awakened max out his intelligence anyway?" The man laughed as he patted Sid's shoulder, then turned and left the crowd.

"Wait..." As if suddenly thinking of something, Sid called out to the man leaving. The man turned around and asked curiously, "Something else?"

"Yeah, just wanted to know... does that hobo also go around the mages' training grounds to ask those guys? Wouldn't there be a better chance of getting someone like that among the mages?"

"Hahaha, you'd think that, wouldn't you? Well, it's like this. He actually went to the mages' training grounds to look for disciples. But from what I heard, there he asks for guys with maxed-out physical stats." With that, the man no longer stayed and left the gym.

"Dammit! What a weird old man." Sid thought to himself, no longer caring about his original intention after entering the gym. Leaving the gym, he walked back towards the prison cell.

"System, what do you think about that old man? His fighting style was so weird too. From just his fighting style, one would think he's actually some expert. But from the looks of it, he's been asking around for disciples like a really crazy guy." In the end, a deep sigh left his mouth. "...I wonder what's wrong with him?"

[The fighting style of that old man is genuine. Not to mention, in the few years he's been here, he hasn't lost even once and advanced to Challenger successfully.]

[As for the recruitment of disciples, I think it's pretty genuine too. It must be mostly related to the moves he just displayed.]

"Huh? What do you mean? Explain in simple language."

[Well, the moves he displayed are called extreme moves. From the looks of it, he's been mastering extreme moves by investing all his points in a single stat. Or maybe he's got some specific skill related to that; I can't be too sure either.]

"What's this extreme move?"

[It's a move one can develop when they raise one of their attribute points to its limit. If developed well, it could become an extremely strong move, which can be conjured up at the cost of simple moves. That's its advantage.]

"But then, that old man asking for max strength stats too, does that mean he's also developed a strength extreme move? How can a person develop two extreme moves? Aren't attribute points limited?"

[Well, you've got Rulebreaker and can add points however you want. There are other similar or different skills that can also achieve the effect of maxing out stats. It might depend on the individual. You're not the only one special!]

"Ugh... so there's a benefit to maxing out a stat. But then, what about me? I clearly have the ability to exceed the limit, right? What would happen if I maxed out to my current fullest?"

[There's already a precedent for that. It's called Limit Break stats, and once achieved, one can develop their Limit Break skills in different stats.]

"Is it different somehow?"

[Yeah, Limit Break skills consume a large amount of energy to cast but give effects that break normal skill limitations. The cost of energy might be high, but it's definitely not wasted.]

"Woah, so awesome. System! I've decided... before completing that blonde's quest, let's max out our stats. Besides, I can easily max them out by training, right?"

[Yeah, I recommend doing it as well. It might make future progressions a lot easier for you.]

"Alright then, it's decided! Let the training begin! Hahaha..."