Outside Lu Yuan's room, in the living room, three figures stood under the light from the window, surveying their surroundings.
Two of the three were the thugs Lu Yuan had dealt with before.
The arms Lu Yuan had crushed had already been replaced with mechanical ones, though their faces were still somewhat pale.
The two nervously looked around as though something might suddenly appear.
The Red-Haired Thug spoke in a low voice.
"Brother Pete, we asked around earlier. That kid is a senior at Rose Middle School, an orphan. He was poor, so he could only rent a place here. But he awakened as a Gene Warrior a few days ago. He'll probably make it big soon."
As he spoke, envy appeared in the Red-Haired Thug's eyes.
Ahead of them, a tall brown-haired man surveyed the area and nodded expressionlessly.
"Mm. That kid was so interested in Old Dao's cause of death. He might know something. Catch him and question him. Besides, he dared lay hands on people from our Black Rat Gang. Student or not, he'd better be prepared for retaliation!"
The two thugs were deeply moved by his words and nodded fiercely.
"This is a shared rental. Which room is that kid's?"
"Uh... we don't know. Should we search them one by one?"
"Then search them one by one."
Pete nodded, and a handgun appeared in his hand.
The other two thugs also took out handguns.
With guns in hand and murder in their eyes, the three prepared to begin searching for Lu Yuan's room.
Inside Li Qinghe's room.
Li Qinghe, who had been sitting cross-legged on her bed with her eyes closed in cultivation, opened her eyes. Her delicate brows furrowed slightly, and a trace of icy killing intent appeared on her face.
"Even gutter rats dare set their sights on my place? Courting death!"
She stood up, intending to head outside.
Then she suddenly paused, raised a brow, and revealed a hint of interest.
Inside Lu Yuan's room, Lu Yuan heard the sound of a door opening and frowned.
This was the slums. Someone opening doors in the middle of the night probably meant a home invasion.
Home invasions happened here every day.
If the robbers were displeased, plenty of them would casually kill someone after robbing them.
Lu Yuan had lived here for quite some time. Though he had never encountered it himself, he had heard plenty of such stories.
If this had been before, he would have been somewhat afraid.
But now...
A cold glint flashed in Lu Yuan's eyes. He opened the door and walked out.
In the living room, Pete and the two thugs, who had been about to begin their search, heard the movement and looked toward Lu Yuan.
The instant the two thugs saw Lu Yuan, their eyes widened instinctively, filled with nervous fear.
Even their newly installed mechanical arms seemed to ache faintly.
The Red-Haired Thug hurriedly pointed at Lu Yuan and said.
"Brother Pete! It's him! He's that kid!"
When Lu Yuan saw the two thugs, he could not help frowning, a cold smile appearing on his face.
"You two? Looks like you didn't cherish the mercy I showed you last time."
"Hmph! Kid, don't think things will be the same as they were this morning!"
"You're finished! Prepare to die! Our Black Rat Gang will never let off anyone who dares hurt our members!"
Pete ignored the two thugs' clamor. He raised his handgun at Lu Yuan, his face cold.
"Kid, come with us."
Lu Yuan glanced at the handgun in Pete's hand and smiled.
"What if I say no?"
Pete narrowed his eyes.
"This is an order, not a request. I know you're a Gene Warrior, but you only just awakened, right? Firearms aren't something you can withstand."
Lu Yuan smiled.
His body erupted with power in an instant, his speed surging as he charged toward Pete and the other two.
Pete's pupils contracted. He decisively pulled the trigger at Lu Yuan.
Bang!
The gunshot rang through the night.
The next moment, Pete's eyes widened in disbelief.
Lu Yuan's palm had turned pitch-black as he gripped the muzzle of the gun. After the shot, the bullet had been stopped by Lu Yuan.
While Pete was still stunned, Lu Yuan exerted force, crushing the barrel of Pete's handgun flat and rendering it useless.
Lu Yuan withdrew his hand. A flattened bullet fell from his palm to the ground with a crisp clink.
"That's impossible! How could someone who just awakened catch a bullet with his bare hand?!"
Pete stared wide-eyed, his face full of disbelief.
Lu Yuan looked at his palm. The skin at the center had been scraped open slightly, and a little blood was flowing.
Still, it was only a flesh wound.
The defense of Black Iron Body had never disappointed him.
The destructive power of this kind of handgun was limited to begin with, so it naturally could not inflict much damage on Black Iron Body.
He looked up at Pete's stunned face and smiled.
"What's impossible about it? Didn't you see it with your own eyes?"
He glanced at Pete, then looked toward the two thugs.
"Do you remember what I said? Don't let me see you again."
The two thugs snapped out of their horror upon hearing Lu Yuan's words.
They hurriedly raised their guns at Lu Yuan.
"What are you trying to do?! Don't come any closer!"
Lu Yuan swiftly reached out and grabbed the two thugs' handguns.
At the sight, vicious expressions appeared on their faces as they desperately tried to fire.
However, Lu Yuan was faster than the two, who were merely ordinary people.
He seized their guns and raised them upward.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Gunshots rang out in rapid succession, all the bullets striking the ceiling.
Soon, the gunfire stopped. The two thugs pulled the triggers with all their strength, only to find that they had run out of bullets.
Lu Yuan exerted force with both hands.
A piercing screech of metal grinding rang out as the gun barrels were crushed flat in Lu Yuan's grip.
He released the guns and smiled at the two thugs.
When the two thugs saw Lu Yuan's smile, their bodies trembled violently, their faces full of fear.
The green-haired thug screamed and hurled his ruined handgun at Lu Yuan with all his strength before turning to flee.
Lu Yuan casually caught the gun and threw it back at the thug.
The handgun struck the green-haired thug in the back, followed by the sound of bones breaking.
The green-haired thug was thrown forward, falling to the ground and convulsing continuously.
The red-haired thug was horrified by the sight.
Even Pete, who had been cold and indifferent before, broke out in a cold sweat.
Pete made a snap decision. He grabbed the red-haired thug and shoved him toward Lu Yuan.
Then he ran toward the window, threw himself through it, smashed the glass, and leaped out of the room.
The red-haired thug had never expected Pete to shove him toward Lu Yuan. Confusion still filled his wide eyes.
Lu Yuan kicked the red-haired thug in the chest.
The sound of bones breaking rang out as the red-haired thug flew backward and slammed heavily into the wall. He then slid down to the ground and convulsed continuously.
Lu Yuan did not even spare him a glance. He walked to the window and saw Pete had already landed and was running away.
Lu Yuan raised a brow slightly.
The house Lu Yuan lived in was on the third floor. Though it was not terribly high above the ground, it was not low either. An ordinary person would likely have been injured jumping from there.
Yet this man was still running around just fine.
Bracing one hand against the windowsill, Lu Yuan jumped down as well.
After landing lightly, Lu Yuan burst forward and chased after Pete.
Seeing Lu Yuan catch up, Pete turned and threw a small knife at him.
Lu Yuan caught the knife casually and threw it backhandedly.
Whoosh!
The knife shot toward Pete's chest at incredible speed.
Pete's eyes suddenly turned into vertical pupils. He twisted to the side and dodged the knife.
Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes.
So he was a Gene Warrior too.
However, his strength did not seem particularly impressive, and the gene he had recorded did not appear geared toward combat.
Lu Yuan accelerated, ran several dozen meters, and caught up to Pete.
He threw a punch at Pete's back.
Pete turned around and raised both hands in front of himself.
Lu Yuan's fist struck Pete's hands.
Bang!
With a muffled impact, Pete groaned, his face turning pale as he spat out a mouthful of blood.
His body swayed as he staggered back two steps, but Lu Yuan had already stepped forward again and thrown another punch.
"Wait! I surrender! I have something to tell you!"
Pete suddenly shouted.
Lu Yuan narrowed his eyes, his fist stopping before Pete's face.
Gulp!
Pete looked at the fist inches from his face, swallowed hard, and broke out in a cold sweat.
Lu Yuan withdrew his fist, looked at Pete, and smiled.
"What is it? Let's see whether it can save your life."
Pete tugged at the corner of his mouth, took a deep breath, and spoke.
"Friend, do you want to know about Black Shadow?"
Lu Yuan's pupils contracted. He looked at Pete and smiled.
"You know something?"
"Though our Black Rat Gang isn't the biggest gang in the entire slums, our information network is still quite good. We know a little, and some of our members have also fallen victim to it. We've been gathering information on that thing recently too."
"Hmm? Tell me what you know."
"Friend, if I tell you, can you let me go?"
"Do you believe I could kill you right now?"
"I'll talk! I'll tell you right away!"
Pete hurriedly raised both hands, an ingratiating smile appearing on his face.
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