“The scene’s playing.”
“Hands in pockets, he killed 2nd-grade Grey Fog Creatures and Abyssal Creatures with just a glare. This cool stance, this precise control of his special ability—tsk tsk. So impressive!”
Su Aoxue looked Shen Yan up and down, clicking her tongue repeatedly.
“If the Genesis organization had someone watching this assessment from the shadows, you’d be at the top of their kidnapping list.”
“You’re not afraid of that organization at all, huh?”
But as she said that, Su Aoxue froze.
A possible thought occurred to her, and she turned to Shen Yan in disbelief.
She stepped closer and lowered her voice.
“Hey, Old Shen, you’re not doing this on purpose, are you?”
Shen Yan looked at her with some surprise.
“What do you think?”
“Tsk. So it is true?”
His calm demeanor only confirmed her suspicion.
“You’re trying to bait them into action? But isn’t that too risky?”
Su Aoxue glanced around, instinctively searching for suspicious people.
But soon she came to her senses and said in confusion,
“They wouldn’t dare kidnap someone in broad daylight, would they? This is a Sub-Core Base City!”
But Shen Yan’s next words sent a chill down her spine.
“They absolutely would.”
“What… what?”
“Kidnap someone in a Sub-Core Base City? Don’t we have an S-rank Martial Artist guarding this place?”
Su Aoxue was genuinely shocked now.
She never imagined the so-called Genesis organization had such power and boldness.
“This involves a lot of things. This isn’t the place to talk. We’ll discuss it later when we get back.”
Hearing that, Su Aoxue looked around.
The crowd was noisy and chaotic; for all she knew, Genesis operatives could be mixed in.
“You’re right. This isn’t the place to talk.”
……
Meanwhile, inside the high-level meeting room of the Martial Arts Association.
“This young man named Shen Yan has impressive strength. He’s probably already at the level of a B-rank Martial Artist, and he just awakened. Such talent and potential…”
Laughter and discussion filled the room as the high-ranking members noted Shen Yan’s brilliant performance, instantly drawing their attention.
“But a strong tree is easily broken. How many geniuses have been persecuted by that organization before they could even rise?”
“This child has outstanding talent, but he’ll also be easily targeted by others. That’s the real concern.”
The room gradually fell silent at the old man’s words, as if he had touched upon a taboo.
“Indeed, youth is reckless, but I understand. We need to arrange more protection for him.”
“I propose we find out which hotel he’s staying at and keep him under constant protection!”
As the group began discussing a safety plan for Shen Yan, one person’s brow furrowed deeper and deeper.
“By the way, where is this kid staying now?” another elder asked.
Just as they were about to act on the plan, the mayor, seated at the head of the table, heard the question and revealed an intriguing smile.
“Staying where? The Anli Hotel.”
The moment he said that, the room fell silent again.
The mayor then added,
“Someone else checked him in.”
The atmosphere froze for a long time until a voice broke the silence.
“My phone seems to be ringing. I’ll step out to take the call.”
The man wore a pleased expression as he left the conference room.
The mayor’s eyes followed the departing figure with a meaningful look, then he withdrew his gaze.
“With Star Moon Academy having set its sights on him, none of you stand much chance of snatching him from their hands. Since a genius has emerged, let’s all celebrate briefly and then let it go.”
“Don’t get any funny ideas.”
……
Shen Yan sat on a bench in the outer lounge, one finger stroking the ring on his right hand as a faint, eerie smile curled on his lips.
‘I was planning to hide some of my talent in this life, but I never expected that Abyssal creature attack incident to happen.’
He watched Su Aoxue disappear into the changing room.
‘With their intelligence network, they’ve probably already recorded the part of my talent I revealed.’
‘But that won’t do. My talent is being exposed too early.’
‘I don’t know if you’ll come looking for me on your own, but I’ll definitely come looking for you.’
Though Shen Yan kept a smile on his face, a trace of ruthlessness flickered in his eyes.
As for Su Aoxue in the changing room, she had no idea that her brother was currently plotting something big.
At that moment, a strange feeling passed through her heart as she pushed open the changing room door.
Despite the cubicles inside, most people just changed their combat suits out in the open, assuming everyone was a man.
Su Aoxue pretended to be nonchalant, carrying her bag with the combat suit, and walked past the others into a cubicle.
But the moment she entered, she let out a deep sigh.
‘Why do I feel like they’re all staring at me?’
Just as Su Aoxue stepped inside the cubicle, a few men outside exchanged glances.
“Was that a guy or a girl?”
“Tsk. Since they went into the men’s changing room, they must be a guy, right?”
Inside the cubicle, Su Aoxue heard their murmurs and felt helpless.
‘It’s not like I want to keep it this long. It just won’t cut off!’
She grabbed her hair, recalling the time she tried to cut it.
No matter how much she snipped, it would grow back to the same length by the next day and then stop.
‘Even after taking those pills, I still look androgynous. With long hair, it’s even worse. Does this Natural Disaster power have such a good sense of aesthetics…’
As she complained, Su Aoxue quickly changed into her combat suit.
Fortunately, everyone had their own tasks to focus on.
Even if Su Aoxue caught their attention at first glance, they soon forgot about her.
They were all busy adjusting their emergency rescue systems to prevent malfunctions.
After all, the Grey Fog Creatures and Abyssal Creatures in the practical simulation assessment were genuine 2nd-grade creatures—captured and raised by the Hunt Team, extremely lethal.
This emergency rescue system was crucial to surviving any life-threatening danger during the assessment.
But Su Aoxue had no such concerns.
After changing, she stepped directly into the practical assessment passage.
The first phase’s hunting target was Abyssal Creatures.
After passing through a long, dark corridor, Su Aoxue pushed open the steel door in front of her.
A narrow tunnel appeared before her eyes.
The environment was dim, with a height of no more than 2 meters and a width seemingly less than 1 meter.
Such a confined space would restrict combat movement, pushing the examinees to their limits.
Of course, the real Underground World was far larger than this simulated one.