Chapter Seven: Encountering an Attack

Chapter Seven: Under Attack

"Yes—"

Before the words were finished, Shen An took over the conversation.

He said, "I want to know, where did you go last night? What happened?"

Just as he expected.

Hearing Shen An's question, Su Yuan's wariness eased considerably.

He glanced at Shen An and said, "Yesterday..."

No sooner had he opened his mouth than both their expressions changed.

Shen An swiftly turned his head and saw two men in black trench coats appear, one on each side.

Their outfits were strikingly stylish.

Seeing them, Shen An couldn’t help but mutter inwardly—these two sure love to show off.

Suddenly, both men simultaneously flicked open the hems of their trench coats. Inside, rows upon rows of pockets were revealed, each brimming with an assortment of weapons.

"Damn!"

Shen An immediately ducked behind a load-bearing pillar.

Gunfire erupted from the assailants.

Shen An began darting from cover to cover within the building, feeling bitter. This was just the beginning, yet he’d either run into armed police or maniacs like these, out for blood.

Clearly, these two weren’t police at all—they were more like deranged terrorists, opening fire without a word.

"Hey, brother—"

Shen An gazed dumbly at the spot where his fire-wielding companion had been. It was now completely empty; the man had long since fled.

Shen An cursed under his breath.

"Guys, guys, don’t shoot! I’m on your side!"

Dodging bullets and shifting positions, Shen An pleaded with a pained expression.

"I swear, I’m a good guy—don’t kill me! I just came here to use the restroom!"

"Seriously, I was just in the corner, answering nature’s call!"

The gunfire gradually subsided. Shen An poked his head out and saw the two men reloading their weapons.

"Bro, stop, I surrender!"

He quickly raised both hands, his legs shaking, looking at them with utter sincerity.

The two men paused in their reloading, exchanged glances, and continued to reload anyway.

One of them spoke up, "Kid, hands on your head. Walk over here."

Confronted with their weapons, Shen An had no choice but to comply.

Curiosity killed the cat—he truly understood that now.

Shen An walked forward slowly. One of the men seemed about to shoot, but the other stopped him.

"Don’t kill him. He looks like just a regular guy. Killing him will only bring more trouble. Cuff him for now and interrogate him later. The most important thing right now is to catch that other guy."

"A regular guy? So what if we kill him?" The other didn’t seem to care about Shen An’s life or death.

He’d barely said that before the first man shot him a glare, silencing him instantly. It was obvious who was in charge.

They cuffed Shen An to a window.

The two men then dashed upstairs in pursuit, leaving Shen An behind.

Seeing this, Shen An sighed in relief.

Because his future self had warned him earlier that morning, Shen An had already removed the high-tech devices White Weiwei and her team had planted on him. So now, no one on the outside knew he was in danger.

Thinking back, Shen An regretted it—maybe he shouldn’t have taken off that stealth device. Now, no one would know he was in trouble.

Ding dong.

His phone rang in his pocket.

Gripping the window, feet dangling in midair, he twisted his body so that the phone slid out and landed perfectly into his waiting hand.

He unlocked it. The message was from his future self.

"Forgot to tell you: besides the Bureau of Special Affairs, don’t trust any other organization. Don’t make contact with them, either."

Reading this, Shen An thought, Your message came a little too late.

He quickly replied.

"Bro, you should’ve said so sooner—I’ve been caught."

He detailed his predicament to his future self.

Soon, a reply came.

"Do exactly as I say now. I’ll send you some things—study them carefully and memorize them. Practice as instructed. I was going to tell you after you’d absorbed the energy from the second Source of Primordial Oxygen, but looks like I have to do it early."

"This is a set of techniques—train diligently. There’s also a breathing method, though it’s rather basic. Make do with it for now."

As soon as the message arrived, Shen An eagerly began reading.

His memory had changed—he could remember things at an incredible speed.

In no time, Shen An had memorized everything his future self had sent.

He held his breath, quieted his mind, and began to breathe as instructed.

With each inhale and exhale, there seemed to be a special rhythm.

At the same time, various techniques and moves began appearing in his mind.

Shen An felt the primordial energy he’d absorbed previously start to transform his body.

Although he’d already absorbed a fair amount, it had only altered his appearance; the rest of the energy had sunk into his body, not yet fully assimilated, leaving him only a bit stronger.

Now, with every breath, he felt waves of powerful energy coursing through him.

This force was steadily reshaping his body.

Crack, crack!

Sounds echoed from within.

His strength was increasing, and the techniques in his mind were becoming ever more refined.

No one would ever guess that a young man handcuffed to a window could be so composed, calmly beginning his cultivation.

When he opened his eyes, Shen An was acutely aware of the changes within himself.

In that moment, he brimmed with confidence.

He’d once been driven only by curiosity, but that curiosity had no power behind it.

Now, Shen An had found his confidence.

"Well? How does it feel?" As if knowing Shen An had finished, a message arrived.

"A bit hungry," Shen An replied.

"..."

The two trench-coated men returned, their expressions sour—clearly, they hadn’t caught the fire-wielding man.

He must have hidden somewhere.

"This kid’s got some nerve, playing with his phone when he’s about to die."

One of them sounded irritable.

Failing to capture their assigned target had put him in a foul mood.

He’d wanted to kill Shen An earlier but had been stopped.

Now, with the target gone, he was ready to take out his anger on Shen An.

The more dominant man seemed to tacitly allow this.

"You like meddling in other people’s business? Then you can meddle down below. You ruined my plans—so, tell me, how do you want to die?"

Hearing this, Shen An looked up.

His clear black-and-white eyes met their gaze.

With a slight force, he snapped the handcuffs as if they were made of plastic.

Casually, Shen An put his phone back in his pocket.

The trench-coated men's faces changed completely.

"He’s an Awakened! This kid tricked us—kill him!"

They’d never expected that the man who’d been pleading for his life moments ago would be so utterly different after just a short time.

Completely transformed.

"Well, it seems you’ve discovered my secret. In that case—"

A cold glint flashed across Shen An’s face as he looked at them.

The two men, unnerved by his gaze, instinctively took a step back.