A Sudden Life-or-Death Battle

"Here."

Under the night sky, the boy and girl sat at the top of the National Martial Arts Hall's steps. Ding Yi took a small booklet from her pocket and handed it to Shen Qian.

"What's this?"

"Some information I collected on North Capital's Martial Arts Colleges. Um, they're relatively obscure, but not that bad... There are also some Liberal Arts Colleges with martial arts programs..."

Meeting Shen Qian's gaze, Ding Yi awkwardly brushed back the hair at her temple, but continued anyway.

"Thanks."

Shen Qian nodded in understanding. Though he felt it was no longer much use to him, he accepted it anyway.

"Also, even though it's difficult to become a martial artist after turning twenty, there are still many paths..." Ding Yi thought for a moment, then said slowly.

"You seem a little different today."

Shen Qian gave the girl a curious look.

"How am I different?"

"Your persona is kind of falling apart. Remember, you're supposed to be taking the aloof and icy route."

Ding Yi ignored Shen Qian's joke. She lowered her head, then raised it again. "For some reason, my dad has been keeping a very tight rein on me lately. He hardly gives me any money anymore."

"It's fine. I don't really need money lately either."

Yet inwardly, Shen Qian sighed in regret. Old Ding had inexplicably ganked him. It seemed he would have to find another way to get the money for the second batch of medicine ingredients.

"I might be leaving..."

"Oh? Going where?"

Shen Qian responded casually, then immediately realized what she meant. Turning to her in surprise, he asked, "The kind where you won't be taking the college entrance exam?"

"Mm. I'm going straight to North Capital. Northern Martial University requires it. I heard the Martial Arts Department is holding a huge competition, and those of us specially admitted freshmen have to undergo training in advance."

"That makes sense. You've already been admitted early, so the college entrance exam doesn't mean much to you anymore. Even if you took top honors, your family doesn't lack those few hundred thousand in prize money." Shen Qian smiled.

"I'll wait for you in North Capital..." Ding Yi said in her usual cold tone, then added in a very soft voice, "Is that okay?"

If Shen Qian's strength had not improved recently, sharpening both his hearing and sight, he might not even have caught those three words.

"Alright. I'll apply to a university in North Capital."

Shen Qian thought about it. Barring any surprises, that was something he could accomplish, so he agreed at once.

In this age of information explosion, neither of them was foolish. They both knew that promise had probably poked through something between them, so Shen Qian joked, "Northern Martial University is packed with talent. If I go all the way to North Capital only for you to change your heart, wouldn't that be awkward?"

"I won't."

"Who can say what the future holds?" Shen Qian shrugged.

Then he saw Ding Yi turn toward him, gaze at him for two seconds, and slightly raise her chin before closing her eyes.

Under the cool moonlight, the girl's face—with its smooth forehead and delicate features—seemed to glow. Especially that touch of red, as though she had applied lipstick; against her pale purity, it somehow gave rise to an alluring charm.

Things had happened very suddenly.

Shen Qian... was a little excited.

Recalling scenes from dramas and movies he had once watched, he decided to teach her a lesson.

Somewhere in the distance, a police siren seemed to sound. Then a string of notifications popped up in Shen Qian's mind with a series of "ding-dongs."

"Valuable combat target detected. System has automatically activated AFK mode."

"Generating map information. Range: 10 km²..."

"Locking onto target. Generating optimal route..."

"Target locked. System is automatically navigating..."

"Ding!"

"???"

As darkness fell over his vision, Shen Qian lost consciousness completely before he even had time to curse aloud.

Thud!

The sound of something heavy hitting the ground jolted Shen Qian awake.

The moment he opened his eyes, before he could even recall what had happened, the pungent stench nearly knocked him unconscious again.

He was in a sewer, with half his body submerged in filthy, foul-smelling water. Three meters ahead of him, a man was facing him, panting heavily.

The other man stood in the shadows, making his features impossible to see clearly for the moment, but Shen Qian could feel the man staring at him with deadly intensity.

A corpse floated beside Shen Qian.

It belonged to another man.

Using the light from above, Shen Qian saw the man's face clearly and his pupils contracted.

Ferocious purple markings covered the man's face, and black blood vessels filled the eyeballs that still glared wide at him.

The same inexplicable purple markings covered his exposed neck and arms.

A Scavenger!

Those purple markings were the most distinctive trait of Scavengers who lived in the wilderness year-round—a sign of physical mutation.

Shen Qian realized this, and his heart lurched.

Before Shen Qian had time to think further, the man facing him suddenly let out a roar and pounced at him.

As the man charged into the light, Shen Qian saw the purple markings on his face, half of his collapsed skull, and... the gleaming longsword in his hand.

With almost no real combat experience and absolutely no experience in life-or-death fighting, Shen Qian panicked for an instant, but instinctively dodged aside.

Clang!

The longsword struck the sewer's iron wall, scattering sparks in every direction.

So strong!

Shen Qian's heart sank. The other man seemed both faster and stronger than him.

With virtually no ability to fight back, Shen Qian struggled to dodge through the sewer. The flashing blade was like a death warrant, and cold sweat beaded across his forehead with every slash he evaded.

He knew that if this continued, he would simply be waiting to die.

When the man's longsword plunged into the water again, Shen Qian gathered all his courage, roared, and drove his clenched fist at the man's face.

But at that moment, the man sneered. Without hesitation, he abandoned the longsword, somehow drew another dagger, and thrust it straight toward Shen Qian's fist.

I fell for it!

Shen Qian's heart sank. Just as he was at a loss, darkness swallowed his vision and he lost consciousness once more.

Wooo—!

A piercing police siren seemed to blare directly overhead. Shen Qian jolted awake and struggled out of the foul water.

The bloody smell in his nose and mouth covered the stench, or perhaps the lingering aftermath of that life-or-death struggle kept him from caring about his current bedraggled state.

Two corpses floated at his feet, one before and one behind.

The man who had nearly killed him now floated face-up in the filthy water, a rusted dagger embedded in his throat.

Shen Qian shook his muddled head and forced himself to straighten up.

Had the system taken control of his body again at the critical moment?

But what exactly had happened?

Shen Qian had no time to sink into his consciousness and check his AFK Record, because hurried footsteps were sounding from the passages ahead of and behind him.

When the bright beam of a flashlight shone over, it was accompanied by a sharp shout. "Hands on your head! Don't move!"

The sound of rushing wind rose abruptly. Two uniformed figures skimmed over the water and charged toward him.

Shen Qian knew this was not the time to explain his identity. At the command, he immediately raised both hands to his head, turned to face the wall, and pressed himself against it with utmost obedience.

"Police Warriors! You're under arrest!"

Along with a cold shout from behind him, a powerful hand pinned him against the wall, and a metal cord swiftly bound his hands tight.