I Was Never a Genius, Just an Ordinary Person

Chen Kong stared at Molten Mountain, who had suddenly stepped out of the iron coffin outside the supermarket.

Chen Kong's expression was tense, as if facing a formidable enemy.

"Who are you?"

Facing Chen Kong's question, Molten Mountain smiled. "Who I am isn't important, because you're about to die. And a dead man doesn't need to know too much."

"Though I'd love to chat with you a little longer, time is limited."

"Alright, Genius Star Envoy Chen Kong, are you ready to accept death?"

Molten Mountain raised a hand. The next second, a torrent of molten lava erupted from his palm.

The scorching lava instantly melted the supermarket's glass doors and shot fiercely toward Chen Kong, standing before the checkout counter.

Seeing the terrifying lava torrent, Chen Kong instinctively wanted to dodge.

But then, from the corner of his eye, he noticed the cashier beside the counter, frozen stiff with terror.

Chen Kong immediately changed his mind.

He threw himself in front of the cashier and resolutely raised his right hand.

Mark of the Void: Return to Dust!

Under the Mark of the Void's effect, the lava that touched Chen Kong's right hand vanished completely in the blink of an eye, like melting ice and snow dissipating into thin air.

"Hmm?!"

Seeing Chen Kong effortlessly block his attack, Molten Mountain's pupils contracted, shock surging through his heart.

He could clearly sense that Chen Kong had only managed to neutralize his lava torrent after using some kind of Star Source ability.

Yet first, he could not tell how Chen Kong had neutralized it.

Second, he could not judge what Chen Kong's Star Source ability—or even his Star Source type—actually was.

And for a Star Envoy, that was undoubtedly extremely dangerous.

Because the unknown was the greatest danger in this world.

So although Molten Mountain's words were filled with contempt for Chen Kong,

his actions remained exceptionally cautious.

Bang—

Molten Mountain did not rush toward Chen Kong. Instead, he chose to launch another long-range lava attack.

But this time, his attack was not aimed at Chen Kong. It was aimed at the ordinary people hiding around the shelves inside the supermarket, their faces full of terror.

The moment Chen Kong saw this, his expression twisted with uncontrollable fury.

Yet the anger in his heart did not make him lose his rationality in action.

Chen Kong hurried to the shelves and, just as before, used his Mark of the Void to neutralize Molten Mountain's lava torrent once again.

Although he had blocked Molten Mountain's attack yet again,

the caution in Molten Mountain's gaze was gone.

Because Chen Kong's two decisions had allowed him to see this fellow's character clearly.

He understood what this fellow's greatest weakness was.

"Unexpected. Truly unexpected, Chen Kong. I never thought that a genius like you would care so much about the lives of a bunch of ordinary people that you'd even risk your own life for them."

"Chen Kong, you really are ridiculously stubborn and hypocritical."

"But as an enemy, someone like you is truly reassuring."

"Since you like saving people, then I'll let you save your fill all at once!"

Molten Mountain suddenly spread his arms. The skin all over his body first reddened, then dense lumps of flesh bulged out one after another, enough to make anyone feel sick.

But on closer inspection, those protrusions were not disgusting flesh tumors at all. They were clearly miniature volcanoes!

Boom—

As Molten Mountain drove the star energy within his body at full force, torrents of blistering lava erupted one after another from the lumps across his body.

They turned into a dense meteor shower, smashing down throughout the supermarket.

Faced with such a massive number of lava torrents, Chen Kong alone could not possibly stop them all.

Fortunately, after their initial shock, everyone in the supermarket had come to their senses. They all ran toward the fire exit deeper inside the supermarket, fleeing from the dangerous front entrance.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Although Chen Kong blocked seventy percent of the lava, the remaining thirty percent still crashed throughout the supermarket, igniting many of the already flammable goods.

In only a few breaths,

raging flames had erupted in many places throughout the supermarket.

Burning plastic released thick black smoke that stung the nose and eyes, spreading everywhere and thinning the air.

At the same time, the terrifying flames were like wild horses that had broken free of their reins, rampaging through the supermarket while continuously igniting all kinds of merchandise.

With the supermarket swallowed by a sea of fire, crowds of people rushed toward the only fire exit, desperately trying to escape alive as quickly as possible.

But with so many people pouring in at once, the narrow fire exit instantly became incredibly crowded.

Amid the chaos, some women and children were shoved aside without anyone meaning to, falling to the ground.

From within the thick smoke came the sight of a little girl in a bear T-shirt kneeling beside a collapsed shelf, completely unaware that the ceiling above her was continuously making ominous cracking sounds.

"Watch out!"

At the critical moment, Chen Kong lunged forward and hugged the little girl tightly, shielding her beneath his body as he took the full blow of the falling slab himself.

Bang!

The heavy slab slammed brutally into Chen Kong's back, drawing a muffled groan of pain from him.

At the same time, a warm liquid flowed down from his forehead, quickly blurring his vision.

Yet even as agonizing pain shot through every part of his body, Chen Kong's first concern was not himself.

"Are you alright?"

Suppressing the pain, Chen Kong forced a smile at the girl in his arms.

His bloodstained face looked especially pale under the surrounding firelight.

Only at this moment did one realize something.

Chen Kong, who had been protecting everyone else all this time, was also only a twelve-year-old child who needed protection.

Though the little girl in his arms did not understand what had happened, she still nodded instinctively, indicating that she was alright.

Seeing this, Chen Kong immediately let out a sigh of relief.

He then released the little girl and pointed toward the now less crowded fire exit. "Get out through there. Don't stay here."

The little girl nodded hard again, then ran clumsily toward the nearby fire exit on her short little legs.

"I really don't understand what you hypocrites are thinking. You're already at death's door, yet you still have the mood to worry about others."

"Kid, are you really not afraid of death?"

Chen Kong raised his head and saw that Molten Mountain, who had been standing outside all this time, had somehow entered the supermarket and was now only ten steps away.

After struggling to stand, Chen Kong gave his answer to the question.

"I am."

"Oh? If you're afraid, why don't you run?"

Hearing that, Chen Kong fell silent for a moment before giving his answer.

".Because if I run, they'll have nowhere left to run."

"And besides, I was never a genius. I'm just a lucky ordinary person."

As he spoke, Chen Kong wiped away the blood obscuring his eyes. His trembling hand reached toward his waist, drew the Special Black Gun he always carried with him, and aimed it at Molten Mountain.

Although his hand was constantly trembling from his fear of death and his injuries,

his tone and expression were firmer than ever before.

Bang!

As Chen Kong pulled the trigger,

the Special Black Gun immediately fired a pitch-black bullet.

The bullet tore through the supermarket's blazing flames and thick smoke, flying with unerring precision toward Molten Mountain's forehead.

But strangely, facing Chen Kong's desperate final strike, Molten Mountain showed no sign of dodging. Instead, he revealed a bizarre, mocking smile.

"Xing, I'm heading to the supermarket to buy some things. Keep an eye on the house by yourself! As for cutting the meat, I think I'll leave that to you. After all, how could my knife skills compare to yours?"

"Tiandao!!!"

Ignoring the roar from inside the door, Tiandao dashed out of the villa gates in a puff of smoke and raced toward the nearest supermarket on the pedestrian street at astonishing speed...

PS: As always, please keep reading and send those monthly votes!

Lastly, I wish all readers taking the college entrance exam the best of luck!