Chapter 142: Zhou Leng

Chapter 142: Zhou Leng

The Vampire Count stared at Zhou Leng, his gaze filled with coldness and authority.

Zhou Leng knelt on the ground, not daring to act insolently before the Vampire Count. This was no ordinary vampire; among all the Counts, he was an exceptionally powerful figure. Zhou Leng knew full well the consequences of offending him.

"Count," Zhou Leng pleaded, "I was wrong. I should not have doubted your judgment. I am convinced now; this new Count is truly powerful."

"Hmph. Zhou Leng, you shall be confined to the prison for six months. Do you have any objections to this punishment?" the Vampire Count asked.

The prison was home to savage beasts. For Zhou Leng, being thrown in there was a matter of life and death. He was no Shen An, who could repel such creatures; those beasts were brutal, a nightmare for any Awakened.

Shen An waved his hand. "Let it be."

"Since Count Shen An has interceded for you, I will spare you this once," the Vampire Count declared. "Remember, do not let this happen again. If there is a next time, even if Count Shen An speaks on your behalf, I will absolutely not show mercy."

Fear flickered in Zhou Leng's eyes as he looked at the Vampire Count. "I was wrong. I, Zhou Leng, was wrong. I will never again show the slightest disrespect to the new Count."

"Leave now. Go on a mission for a while, and don't come back and incite Count Shen An's anger again," the Vampire Count commanded.

The Third Elder approached with a smile. "Vampire Count, Count Shen An has not even joined your ranks yet, and you are already being so protective? Haha, you Counts are truly..."

"The Third Elder does not understand," the Vampire Count replied. "Count Shen An is the youngest among us; how could I allow him to be oppressed? Any dissatisfaction felt by Count Shen An is dissatisfaction for our entire Council of Counts. Count Shen An, rest assured, if you encounter any trouble within the Grandmaster Council, just come to us. As long as we can help, we surely will." The Vampire Count was going all out.

It was no joke; someone with a talent value of one hundred thousand joining the Council of Counts? Who could guess what heights he might reach in the future? Perhaps, one day, he would become the greatest existence in the entire Grandmaster Council.

Shen An bade farewell to the elders and the Counts. He had achieved his purpose in coming to the Grandmaster Council.

***

Outside the Grandmaster Council, Shen An hailed a regular taxi. He climbed in and gave the driver a casual instruction.

"Take me to the largest martial arts gym in Silver City," Shen An said.

"Young man, did you just walk out of the Grandmaster Council? Not just anyone can get in there. You must be quite something to have entered; I'm envious. Are you an Awakened from the Council?" the driver asked. He was envious of those with powers; if he were an Awakened, he wouldn't be driving a cab.

Shen An smiled. "I suppose you could call me an Awakened."

"I'm really envious of you," the driver said. "By the way, you want the largest gym in Silver City? As far as I know, that would be the Limitless Martial Arts Gym. Is that where you're headed?" asked the driver, whose name was Zhao.

Shen An figured Zhao knew the local scene well, so he agreed. "Then let's go to the Limitless Martial Arts Gym."

He didn't know which gym was the largest, but since Zhao suggested it, he went along. On the way, Zhao was very enthusiastic, hoping to learn more about the Awakened. Finding it somewhat dull, Shen An answered his questions.

"Wow, is that how it works? That’s amazing! You're no ordinary Awakened; not just anyone can enter the Grandmaster Council. Everyone who does is a person of influence," Zhao exclaimed.

"Haha, I suppose so," Shen An said, glancing at the golden badge pinned to his chest—the badge of a Count of the Grandmaster Council, which was quite conspicuous.

Looking through the rearview mirror, Zhao caught sight of the badge. The golden emblem looked so dazzling and exquisite that it was clearly a rare treasure.

"Young man, is that thing on your chest a badge?" Zhao asked in surprise.

"I received it at the Grandmaster Council. Why?" Shen An replied.

"Nothing, I just think that golden thing looks very precious. Haha, it must be worth a fortune, right?" Zhao said.

"I'm not really sure how much it's worth," Shen An replied.

***

Suddenly, a flashy sports car slammed into the taxi. As an Awakened, the impact didn't cause Shen An any harm, but he couldn't fathom why someone would crash into them in broad daylight.

"Who hit us?" Shen An frowned. He was worried this would delay his trip to the gym.

A flamboyant young man stepped out of the sports car. He looked arrogant and kicked the side of Zhao’s taxi.

"Damn it! Are you blind? How dare you block my path? Do you know who I am?" the young man barked. His name was Huang Bing, a Second-Grade Awakened. He often raced in this area, acting with extreme arrogance and treating everyone else like dirt. He was in a bad mood today and decided to take it out on the taxi driver.

"Get out of the car, old man! I want to see who dares to block my way!" Huang Bing shouted.

"It's an Awakened... this is terrible. It looks like he won't let us off easily," Zhao muttered, his brows furrowed. He knew he was in deep trouble; for an ordinary person to offend an Awakened usually meant death. "It's over, it's really over," he said, his eyes filled with terror.

"Haha, why is it over?" Shen An asked.

"He's an Awakened! I just crashed into an Awakened!" Zhao said, panicked.

Shen An knew the truth—it wasn't Zhao who had crashed into the car, but the other way around. "It was his car that hit yours. Why are you afraid of him? Just because he's a bit more powerful, you're going to cower?"

"He's a powerful Awakened! I can't afford to offend him," Zhao replied.