Those Who Changed Fate (Part 2)

Fang Xiu investigated every scrap of information concerning No. 2 High School over the past three days, big and small. Transforming into a master detective, he uncovered and solved several cases of campus violence, dozens of cases of teenage romance, and even one case of a teacher accepting red envelopes.

Yet he still found no abnormal incidents whatsoever. Keeping tabs on the high-schooler Wang Hao had yielded nothing either; the future Wang Hao had never made contact with his counterpart in this era.

"What exactly is this guy trying to do?" Fang Xiu could not fathom the future Wang Hao's actions or thoughts in the slightest.

Over these four days, Fang Xiu had been running himself ragged and barely resting, yet the investigation had made no progress at all. It left him exceptionally irritated.

Having just lain down that night, Fang Xiu decided to rest early. Tomorrow, even if he had to waste one use of the Saint's Ring, he would catch the other party.

But just then, a message arrived on his phone.

These days, few people sent Fang Xiu text messages. Usually, they used QQ or WeChat, or simply called him directly.

Thinking it was spam, Fang Xiu opened it, only to find a text sent from a bizarre garbled phone number.

"Right now, Red Fortune Road Ming Mansion Hotel. I'm waiting for you here—Wang Hao!"

Fang Xiu sprang out of bed, rushed downstairs, straddled his electric bike, and sped toward the streets.

Though he had no idea what the future version of Wang Hao was up to, Fang Xiu was not afraid in the slightest. Whether it was his rebirth and time reversal or the Saint Ring hanging around his neck, both gave him the courage to face any hardship or crisis.

And as long as the future Wang Hao was discovered by Fang Xiu, he would be finished.

So no matter what kind of stunt the future Wang Hao was pulling, as long as he exposed even the slightest clue or trace, it was worth Fang Xiu making the trip.

"Just let me catch you, you bastard. I'll whip you to death!"

Under the starry night, Fang Xiu raced down the road, muttering drowsily.

But when Fang Xiu reached Red Fortune Road Ming Mansion Hotel, he found the outside packed with people. Everyone was shouting, panicking, and running about in confusion.

Fang Xiu looked up and saw that the dozen-story building bearing the hotel's sign had already become a sea of flames. Fire surged within, flickering through the windows. Crowds of people fled from the hotel entrance, supporting one another as they cried and screamed.

"There are still people inside! There are still people inside!" a man with a soot-blackened face and a hotel uniform shouted frantically.

Most of those on the lower floors had escaped from the hotel, but quite a few were still trapped inside, unable to get out because the blaze was too fierce.

"Call the police, quick!" The surrounding onlookers hurried over. Everyone was stunned, helplessly watching the flames soar into the sky.

"We already called!"

"We called ages ago! Why aren't they here yet? The fire is getting bigger and bigger!"

"How many people are going to die? Why did it catch fire?"

The people who had originally gathered around all spoke at once. More and more came, blocking the street. Vehicles nearby had stopped as well, and many people held up their phones to take pictures and videos of the towering inferno.

"Haven't the firefighters arrived yet? Still not here?" People leaned out from their cars, staring at the burning building. Such an enormous fire was something one might never encounter in a lifetime.

"It's over. It's all over. So many people are still trapped inside." Some of those who had escaped alive from the hotel had relatives and friends still trapped within. They sat right down in the street and wailed.

"Go in and save them!" An elderly street sweeper with a head full of white hair, wearing a vest, stomped his feet as he spoke. Rolling up his sleeves, he wanted to charge inside.

"Don't be stupid! With a fire this big, who would dare go in? Whoever goes in dies! We can only wait for the firefighters!" A middle-aged woman behind him immediately grabbed hold of him.

"Look! There's someone upstairs! Oh no, she's going to jump!"

Fang Xiu looked up as well and immediately saw a figure completely engulfed in flames climbing wildly onto an open ventilation window on the twelfth floor.

"Someone's jumping!" A balding driver pointed upward and shouted, his voice exploding like bristling thorns.

"The fire's too big! How can we save her? Everyone, think of something!" Quite a few people immediately saw what was happening above and became flustered and helpless.

"It's a girl, it's a girl! What a sin! What are we supposed to do?" An elderly woman who had been dancing in the square nearby was now sweating profusely with anxiety.

Fang Xiu parked his electric bike to the side, looked at the blazing fire, swept his gaze around, and immediately rushed into a nearby alley.

Without hesitation, he pulled the Saint's Ring from around his neck and slipped it onto the middle finger of his right hand. Intense light bloomed from the ring, bursting outward like scattering fireworks, wrapping around Fang Xiu before spreading in all directions.

That mighty power, that godlike overhead perspective of Gods and Devils, appeared upon Fang Xiu once more.

At that moment, the figure on the twelfth floor had already leaped from the building, crying and screaming. Many people covered their eyes directly, unable to bear watching such a horrifying scene.

Then, a streak of light shot through the earth and soared dozens of meters into the air, directly catching the falling figure.

The luminous figure held the living person who had fallen from the building. The raging flames burning across her body were swept over by the light and extinguished in an instant. Holding her, the figure shot straight up to the fourteenth floor, kicked off the eaves there, and descended directly.

A white afterimage of light trailed behind him, ribbons of radiance like immortal robes dancing around Fang Xiu's body. The sight was like a deity descending from the clouds.

"An immortal? This is an immortal!" The onlookers surged forward one after another, their roars shaking the heavens.

"It's that Light Man from before! He appeared again!" Many young people had watched the video of Fang Xiu killing the Red Devil and the Clown Demon before, and immediately recognized him.

"What Light Man? He's God! Damn, that's so cool."

"Damn, this is real? Didn't they say the video had special effects and was fake?"

"Take pictures, quick! Take pictures!"

Holding the person who had jumped, Fang Xiu descended directly to the ground and placed her on the road.

Then he looked around, considering how to resolve the fire. Next, he spotted the fire hydrants and the dense network of pipes underground.

The light around Fang Xiu surged up as enormous power gathered around him. He raised a foot and stomped the ground. The earth shook and mountains trembled as the road continuously split apart. The spectators who had been watching instantly fell to the ground in fright, clutching their heads.

With that single stomp from Fang Xiu, several fire hydrants on the road exploded, and underground water pipes shattered as water seeped forth.

Columns of water sprayed from the earth, and in an instant, torrential rain poured down over the road. Fang Xiu extended his hand, and all the water was drawn out, forming a massive waterstorm.

Fang Xiu leaped up, jumping dozens of meters into the air. With his back against the building, he flew upward and stood directly atop its roof.

He raised both hands, and water tornadoes were continuously drawn up from the ground, rising higher and higher.

The enormous water tornado coiled around the building like a giant dragon embracing it. Finally, under Fang Xiu's control, the Water Dragon let out a roar and charged into the building.

After rushing into the building, the enormous water tornado split into dozens, even hundreds, of streams. Under Fang Xiu's control, they continuously washed over the flames while wrapping around those who had fainted in the fire as they tried to escape, protecting them.

In less than a minute, the flames were extinguished. The sight made everyone present cry out in amazement. Standing atop the building, Fang Xiu saw thousands upon thousands of people below cheering and shouting at him.

"The fire's out! The fire's out!"

"The immortal put out the fire! He really is an immortal."

"What immortal? He's a superpowered person! Is he from the Dragon Group? He must be from the Dragon Group!"

But Fang Xiu looked toward the fourth floor and saw more than a dozen students supporting one another as they crossed the ruins, searching for a way down. Among them was the high-school version of Wang Hao. They had actually been holding a birthday party in this hotel.

"The future Wang Hao wanted me to come save them? Why didn't he come himself? He knew in advance that the fire would happen. He could have come earlier and prevented it, or stopped Wang Hao and the others from coming here, couldn't he?"

Fang Xiu activated the Eye of True Sight and used that godlike perspective to examine everything across the entire city district, yet he found no trace of the future Wang Hao. That meant the other party was not here at all. He was hiding very carefully, and very far away.

Fang Xiu frowned, put away his phone, leaped down, passed through several streets, and removed the ring.

At that moment, a massive crack had appeared in the Saint's Ring. It probably could not be used more than two or three times before becoming unusable, which pained Fang Xiu greatly.

By the time Fang Xiu returned, found his electric bike, and got back to the scene, the sirens of the Firetrucks had only just arrived. Several fire brigades and seven or eight Firetrucks stopped in front of the hotel. Many firefighters stared blankly at the hotel building.

"What are you looking at? Save people! There are still many trapped inside waiting to be rescued!" An older man forcefully smacked two young firefighters on the head and rushed inside carrying a stretcher.

Police Cars, Firetrucks, and ambulances lined up at the entrance. Batch after batch of people were rescued and sent into ambulances bound for the hospital. Among the crowd of onlookers, many people also stepped in to help.

Fang Xiu saw the first person he had saved—the girl who had jumped from the building while burning. Many places on her body had been burned. Groaning in pain, she was pushed into an ambulance and taken away. Fortunately, she had survived after all.

Just then, Fang Xiu received another text message on his phone.

"The day after tomorrow, at 2:46 p.m., I will appear on time across from City Central Hospital."