Special Training

"Hand over all the money you've got!"

Several punks had already risen to their feet, the leader raising an eyebrow slightly.

After thinking for a moment, he said in surprise, "Hey! That voice sounds kind of familiar. Is that Andrew? Hey! Freak, are you Andrew?!"

The four punks closed in, intending to teach the freak before them a lesson.

Andrew steeled himself. Just as the lead punk approached and reached out to shove him—

He threw a savage punch!

"I gave you a chance!"

—Boom!

It was as if a block of C4 had been planted in the punk's chest. He exploded on the spot!

Broken bones, flesh, blood, and half a mangled heart sprayed from the hole blasted through his back.

"Oh my God!!"

The others were scared out of their wits by the sight.

They turned to flee!

But how could Andrew let them have their way?!

With a sharp wave of his hand, they flew backward and had their necks snapped by Telekinesis.

Looking at the corpses sprawled before him,

Andrew panted heavily.

The terror and unease on his face gradually faded into calm, until a twisted smile appeared.

"Ha... hahaha... So this is power? That's right! This is it! You're nothing but lowly vermin. You should feel supreme honor at dying by the hand of me—the 'Top Predator'!"

Andrew quickly searched their bodies, taking every bit of money he could find.

Then he left the place.

Reaching a secluded corner, Andrew looked around and made sure no one was there.

Only then did he remove his helmet and take out the money he had gotten from robbing the punks.

After carefully counting it, Andrew immediately frowned.

"Fuck! Is this all there is?!"

The four of them combined did not even have a hundred US dollars.

It was nowhere near enough to pay for the medicine!

"The strong shouldn't have to worry about money! Those vermin, that trash, those damned weaklings—why do they get to enjoy a good life while I have to worry because I can't afford medicine? This isn't fair at all!"

Andrew stood up, his eyes gleaming with resolve.

"Maybe I should pull off something big!"

Winter always seemed to be shrouded in gloom.

The cold wind swept through the streets, making every passerby pull their clothes tighter around themselves.

Even the homeless people who usually liked to lie in the corners of walls had vanished without a trace.

No matter why they had become homeless,

they had lost their value to this country.

Most people did not care whether they lived or died. In truth, homeless people died every day for all sorts of reasons.

Marion had no interest in worrying about them. He stood beside an Armored Cash Truck, holding a gun as he kept watch.

Meanwhile, his coworkers were loading cash-filled boxes into the truck one by one.

What Marion wanted most right now was to get this damned job over with, then head to a bar for a good drink. Maybe he would even run into a few hot girls.

"Hey, Marion, stay alert. Don't space out."

"Give me a break, Berkeley. Nobody's dumb enough to rob an Armored Cash Truck, right? The stuff we're carrying isn't for show!"

The moment he finished speaking, Marion saw someone in firefighter gear walking toward them from a short distance away.

It was rather strange.

There was no fire nearby, and the person's behavior was odd as well.

All of it put Marion on guard.

Holding up his shotgun, Marion shouted at the person, "Hey, buddy! Could you stop right there? Don't come any closer!"

But the person seemed not to hear him and kept walking forward.

That immediately raised the suspicions of Marion and the other cash couriers.

Their shotguns were already loaded and aimed at Andrew.

"Listen! You'd better stand right there and don't move! Put your hands up! Otherwise, we're authorized to shoot!"

Andrew paid no attention to their shouting.

His goal was clear—the cash boxes in the truck!

And the money inside them!

—Boom!

Seeing that the warning had failed, Marion decisively pulled the trigger.

Large .25-inch round pellets spread out in a fan before him.

Engulfing Andrew.

Yet in an instant, every one of them stopped in midair.

"What?!"

Before the cash couriers could react, the pellets shot back at them even faster.

Pfft! Pfft! Pfft!

After piercing through flesh, the pellets embedded themselves deeply in the Armored Cash Truck behind them.

The bulletproof vests they wore were completely useless.

The men fell directly into pools of blood.

Suppressing the excitement in his heart, Andrew walked to the rear of the truck to check. Sure enough, he found the cash boxes.

Using Telekinesis to control them, he made them float around him.

Under the gazes of the passersby drawn over by the gunfire, he shot straight into the sky and vanished in the blink of an eye!

Outskirts.

In a deserted open area.

—Boom!

Steve threw a punch, sending gusts of wind roaring outward.

Matt hurriedly crossed his arms before himself to block.

But he was still sent flying by the tremendous force.

His body shot far into the air before stopping midair.

Steve was already before him again. Electricity surged across Matt's body.

He released it forward from his fingertips, but Steve ignored it completely, and the two clashed once more.

The battle was intense and fierce. After a long while, the panting pair descended. Though their clothes had not been damaged under the protection of Telekinesis, they were badly wrinkled.

"—Whew!"

Matt looked exhausted. To Gu Qing, who stood atop a huge rock some distance away, he said, "Erik, are you sure this is really helping?"

Steve also landed and said to Matt, "Sorry, did I hurt you just now?"

Matt shook his head. "I'm fine. It just hurts a little. I'm sure it'll be better soon."

Gu Qing frowned as he watched them, then suddenly berated them, "Useless! At this rate, when will you ever gain the power to defeat Andrew?!

And you still talk about stopping him? I'm afraid crushing you before him would be no harder than crushing an ant!"

Gu Qing's merciless rebuke made Steve's expression turn ugly, though since he was Black, it did not show no matter how ugly it became.

"Hey, Erik, don't say that. We've already done what you told us."

"Bullshit! You still dare talk back! You were the ones who asked me to give you special training—not the other way around!

I told you to fight with everything you had, to let loose, bleed and sweat, even experience that ultimate terror at the edge of life and death, so you could awaken your will!

But what are you doing? Playing house?!"

Steve said, "What are you talking about, Erik? We're friends. We shouldn't throw punches at each other. In fact, we can't use them to hurt anyone. We only want to stop Andrew, not kill him!"