Zhou Zhe opened the door like a walking corpse and saw a girl with skin as white as snow, dressed in a gray gown.
Zhang Miaoran.
She came from a wealthy family, excelled academically, possessed stunning looks and an exceptional temperament, was athletically gifted, developed in every aspect of physical education, aesthetics, and labor, and kept herself spotless, never once having a scandal with any boy. She was practically a perfect goddess.
Honestly, Zhou Zhe had no idea why she had come here.
Their usual lives were like two parallel lines, seemingly destined never to intersect.
"..."
Zhou Zhe silently looked at her, opened his mouth as though he wanted to say something, yet had no idea what to say.
Zhang Miaoran took the initiative to break the silence, handing him a golden card. "This is the only thing I can help you with right now."
With just one glance, Zhou Zhe recognized what the card was—a Swift Wind Pavilion monthly membership card, with a listed value of 180,000 yuan.
To Zhou Zhe, that was practically an astronomical sum!
And even at that price, people should not complain it was expensive!
If your luck was not good enough, your reflexes not quick enough, or your social clout not great enough, then no amount of money could get you one of these!
The so-called Swift Wind Pavilion was an extraordinary industry that had suddenly risen to prominence only after the Cosmic Arena was held.
Its controller was none other than Lin Ye, a survivor of the first Earth cohort!
It was said that those with outstanding talent could even learn the "Wind Control Power" from the Swift Wind Pavilion, step into the extraordinary, and reach the point of flying with their physical bodies!
Even those with mediocre talent could, through diligent training, master all manner of profound combat techniques from alien civilizations and bring great power into their own hands!
After all, the gods chose gladiators completely at random. They did not care about the chosen ones' social status, accumulated wealth, reputation, or fame.
To Them, the more exceptional the duelists, the more spectacular a performance they could offer upon Their stage.
Therefore...
Even influential big shots frequently came and went from Swift Wind Pavilions across the country, striving to improve their overall personal strength—or rather, their ability to stay alive.
"Thank you!"
Zhou Zhe had no intention of refusing her and accepted the card directly.
When life and death were on the line, male pride was worthless.
He carefully put away the card and asked, "Why are you being so good to me?"
Where there was a result, there had to be a cause. How could there be love in this world without reason or cause?
An investment in potential? Confidence in his future?
No.
Zhou Zhe did not think there was anything about his current self worth investing in. If he were an investor, he would never make an investment that was so likely to become sunk capital.
Yet Zhang Miaoran's reaction to those words was somewhat strange.
Her face reddened slightly. She looked a little shy, as if she might turn and leave at any moment.
"Don't you know the answer to that yourself?"
Zhang Miaoran forced down her shyness. The tips of her ears had turned red, but she ultimately remained.
If some words were not spoken now, there might never be another chance to say them.
After a long silence, she finally gathered her courage and said in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "To me, there are only two kinds of people in this world. One kind is my family, like my parents, like... you."
At that point, Zhang Miaoran's speech abruptly sped up severalfold. "The other kind is everyone else."
"Originally, I was worried that after so many years without seeing each other, you might have changed."
"But now, it seems..."
"No matter how much time has passed, Zhou Zhe, you are still the same as you were seven years ago—the same gentle, kind, clever, and brave person!"
Even in Zhang Miaoran's parents' eyes, a monthly card for the Swift Wind Pavilion was an extremely precious thing. They could not bear to use it themselves and had saved it for their daughter.
The sudden praise left Zhou Zhe somewhat stunned.
If he were not about to fight aliens for his life seven days from now, Zhou Zhe would have thought he was the protagonist of some romance manga.
Gentle, kind, clever, and brave?
Were those words really suitable for describing him?
Seven years ago...
Back then, he had still been a hotheaded kid, right?
But after Zhang Miaoran reminded him, Zhou Zhe tried hard to recall it for a while and did remember a few fragmented scenes—
A timid little girl had been bullied by three brats her own age. Unable to stand the sight of many bullying one, he stepped forward and beat the three brats so badly that even their mothers would not recognize them.
Zhou Zhe, who had long endured domestic violence, possessed pain tolerance and combat ability far beyond those of his peers. Coupled with the hostility that had accumulated in his heart over time, his complete victory in that "duel" had been inevitable.
Of course, the epilogue to that little story had not been a good one.
Though he had won the fight, his father, Zhou Yulin, had broken both of Zhou Zhe's legs right in front of the "victims'" parents like a furious rat, all to avoid paying medical expenses.
For Zhou Yulin, the outcome had been good—he had not only perfectly achieved his goal, but had also scammed the brats' parents out of treatment fees and compensation for emotional distress.
Afterward, Zhou Zhe spent three whole months with both legs in casts, using homemade crutches to get around. Escaping without permanent disability had been a blessing amid misfortune.
Perhaps that was why his brain's automatic defense mechanism had made him actively block out that memory!
If Zhang Miaoran had not brought it up herself, Zhou Zhe might never have remembered it for the rest of his life.
Who could have imagined back then that in just seven short years, the ugly duckling of the past would complete her transformation and become the beautiful white swan before his eyes?
"Give it everything you have, and do your best to stay alive!"
The girl turned her back to him and waved a hand, her voice trembling slightly.
"I sincerely hope... that you can survive!"
Zhang Miaoran's figure vanished at the end of his sight.
Zhou Zhe silently clenched the Swift Wind Pavilion monthly card in his hand.
"So there are still people in this world who care about me..."
"So..."
"I absolutely have to survive!"
Zhou Zhe did not notice that the notebook he had casually tossed aside earlier had begun to change. The words upon it gradually twisted and merged into inky blue lines, slowly forming a single line of text—
Host codename "Respect." Character model locked. Handwriting authentication successful. Soul binding complete.
Forty minutes later.
The city center's golden district.
The place that had once borne the sign for Lesong Fitness Center had, at some point, become the location of a Swift Wind Pavilion branch.
Holding the monthly membership card, Zhou Zhe smoothly entered the club.
"There is a free buffet and lounge here for members to use."
Zhou Zhe walked around the Swift Wind Pavilion, familiarizing himself with the grounds as he silently considered, And the Swift Wind Pavilion is open twenty-four hours a day. I don't need to return to that so-called 'home' at all!
Food! Drink! Lodging!
For at least the next seven days, he would not need to worry about any of those three things.
He silently thanked Zhang Miaoran in his heart.
If not for her, he would probably still be distracted by all sorts of trivial matters right now, let alone be able to enter the Swift Wind Pavilion to study!
As Zhou Zhe pondered, a young female staff member in a uniform and flesh-colored stockings briskly approached him. Smiling, she spoke in a gentle tone. "Hello."
Her service attitude was excellent. Only when she saw the Black Sword Shield Brand on the back of Zhou Zhe's hand did she briefly lose focus, a trace of sympathy and pity appearing on her face before she quickly regained her composure.
"My surname is Zhuang. Until your monthly membership card expires, I will be your personal assistant. You may call me Little Zhuang."
"Now, please come with me for a physical examination."
"Only by thoroughly understanding your physical data can we tailor a training plan specifically for you."
After passing the rock-climbing hall and the highly futuristic gravity chamber, Zhou Zhe was sent into a comprehensive human body scanner similar to an MRI capsule.
Five minutes later, the test results came out.
Assistant Zhuang held the documents and said seriously, "Although you have not reached the minimum entry standard for a 'Wind Rider,' if you work hard enough, you can still use the Wind Element Body Tempering Technique to enter the ranks of 'superhumans.'"
"Unfortunately..."
"You have old injuries and blockages throughout your body, making it difficult for Wind Element to circulate. The issue is especially apparent in the shinbones of both legs."
With a body like this, let alone the power of Wind Element, he would be trash among trash at cultivating any other extraordinary ability.
Zhou Zhe nodded slightly, his tone calm. "Understood."
Clearly, these were the marks his biological father, Zhou Yulin, had left on him seven years ago.
The Zhou Zhe of the past had also hated that man, with the pent-up resentment in his heart impossible to dissolve.
Now, Zhou Zhe no longer felt much of anything.
He had already made up his mind.
After this cosmic duel, even if he somehow survived, he did not plan to return to that so-called "home."
Assistant Zhuang possessed excellent professional qualities and immediately continued, "You needn't worry too much. As long as you pass the trial for probationary Cosmic Gladiators, your body will immediately recover to a state even healthier and purer than a baby's."
Zhou Zhe did not hear a word of that.
Because...
A familiar notebook had, at some unknown point, suddenly begun floating before his eyes!
The developments ahead will be quite interesting.
According to the outline, the protagonist will rapidly finish his low-profile growth phase, then begin his troublemaking... no, his crushing journey.
This is way too cool.
Please vote, pretty please! (><)
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