Undercurrents (Part Two)

Li Tian looked at Li Hao expressionlessly. He was clearly angry.

"For a woman, you made such a scene at the Public Security Bureau. You've made me lose face!"

Li Hao instinctively looked away, not daring to meet his gaze.

Li Tian was a Third-tier Awakened, and even the slightest trace of his aura, unintentionally revealed, carried immense pressure.

"Your cousin was already able to kill First Order Calamities on his own when he was your age. What about you? Besides causing trouble for me, what else can you do?"

There he went again...

Whenever Li Hao got into trouble, Li Tian would bring up his cousin, who had also awakened [Charge].

Li Hao ground his teeth in frustration, a nameless irritation welling up inside him.

Even though he'd successfully awakened last month—and his [Steel Bones] wasn't far behind [Charge]—Li Tian still wasn't satisfied with him.

In Li Tian's eyes, that cousin of his was always the best. He was forever using him as a yardstick to put Li Hao down.

"What's wrong with me?"

Li Hao retorted indignantly.

"I awakened too, didn't I? [Steel Bones] may not measure up to your [Charge], but it's not weak, is it?"

"Not weak?"

Li Tian scoffed. "That depends on who you're talking about."

"After awakening, your cousin held himself to strict standards. He increased his training on his own initiative and even joined the City Defense team as a trainee, all to improve himself. And you..."

"You loaf around all day, and then you cause a scene over some woman. With your temperament, even the best ability would be wasted on you!"

"I... I..."

Li Hao opened his mouth to argue, but after being put down and denied so many times, he realized he'd long since given up on himself.

"Hmph."

Seeing that Li Hao had nothing to say, Li Tian snorted and continued.

"Just look at yourself. What have you become? Think about it and watch yourself from now on."

"...Dad, I understand. I won't do it again."

Li Hao lowered his head and stopped arguing.

But for all he said, an even deeper malice was taking root in his heart.

That old bastard was always putting him down and messing with his head, making sure he could never hold his head up at home. So he might as well let the old man's words go in one ear and out the other.

Out in the world, he was an Awakened, high above everyone else. He could do whatever he wanted.

As for working hard? Give me a break. This was as good as he was going to get. No amount of effort would change that, so he might as well give up.

He thought of Jiang Mian's exquisite face and her quiet, gentle demeanor.

She was exactly the sort of person who could fill the emptiness inside him. He had all these pent-up emotions that someone had to bear; Jiang Mian had simply happened to be the one he chose.

Seeing how "obedient" Li Hao looked, Li Tian's anger began to subside.

He glanced at a message on the phone beside him and furrowed his brows.

"There's an escort mission from the Bureau. I have to go myself. You can get home on your own."

"Also, the higher-ups may be making a big move soon. Keep your head down and don't cause any more trouble. Understand?"

With that, Li Tian made Li Hao get out of the car, then drove straight toward the Construction Bureau.

Li Hao watched the car disappear into the distance and curled his lip disdainfully.

A big move?

What did that have to do with him?

The more his old man tried to keep him down, the more he wanted to do the opposite.

Jiang Mian was all he could think about now. He just wanted to "repay" her properly.

"Just you wait..."

He refused to believe she could get away this time.

As long as he made Jiang Mian submit, she'd never tell anyone, not with her personality.

But before that, he needed to unwind and release some of the tension he'd been holding in.

He'd spent so many days in the Detention Center, and he was boiling with pent-up anger.

At the thought, Li Hao pulled out his phone and dialed a number.

"A Jie, round up the guys. Same place as usual."

Half an hour later, in a private room at an upscale club in the West District.

Li Hao sprawled across a leather sofa, blowing smoke rings while several scantily dressed hostesses attended to him carefully.

"Brother Hao, what happened today...?"

A Green Hair sycophantically lit a fresh cigarette for him.

"Don't ask. I just got out, and that old bastard at home immediately gave me an earful. Every other word was about how amazing my cousin is."

Li Hao glanced at the woman beside him, who was trying to edge closer. Her heavy makeup and overpowering perfume stirred a wave of irritation in him.

He frowned in disgust and waved her away.

These common, vulgar women didn't interest him in the slightest.

Noticing Li Hao's expression, A Jie's eyes darted about. He lowered his voice and asked, "Brother Hao, are you still thinking about that girl you mentioned last time... Jiang Mian?"

Another Red Hair underling perked up and chimed in.

"Brother Hao, that photo we saw last time... Damn, she's gorgeous! Even in that crappy ID photo, she looked that good. I've never seen anyone like her in my life."

"I'm telling you, even Shen Qiuyu, that so-called campus belle at our Fifth Middle School, might not be able to beat her in looks alone."

"Shen Qiuyu?"

Of course he'd heard the name. She was one of the school's most talked-about figures.

She was not only beautiful, but more importantly, she'd successfully awakened.

No one had said what her ability was, but her Sequence ranking seemed pretty high. They said it was a High-tier Sequence.

That put it among the top fifty Sequences. Even though she'd been an ordinary person before, awakening an ability like that meant she was going places!

And more than that... her family already had some influence.

She was a true daughter of heaven, looking down on everyone around her. She and an idle rich kid like him were from entirely different worlds.

"Exactly!"

Red Hair continued flattering him. "Brother Hao, you've got a sharp eye. Sure, she's not an Awakened, but girls who are both beautiful and innocent are few and far between..."

With the alcohol going to his head and his underlings flattering him, Li Hao temporarily forgot his father's scolding, and his obsession with Jiang Mian grew even stronger.

I can't measure up to my cousin, and I can't beat the old man, but I can still handle you, can't I?

"Whew... I didn't even break a sweat, but I'm still exhausted."

Inside an old apartment building at the border between North City and West City, Jiang Mian set down her luggage, straightened up, and stretched.

The place was remote, but it was more spacious than her previous home, and the basic facilities were newer. Best of all, it was quiet, with fewer unsavory people around.

She looked around the room. It seemed no one had lived there for quite some time. Dust had gathered everywhere, especially in the corners and crevices.

An idea struck Jiang Mian. She walked to the center of the room and held out her right hand.

A faint vortex formed in her palm. Then a wisp of breeze slowly spread, sweeping through the entire room.

It gently lifted the dust from the room and the furniture, drawing it into the vortex.

The power of [Gale] seemed almost innate to her. From the moment she awakened, Jiang Mian had been able to control it as easily as her own arm, even down to this level of precision.

If anyone saw this, they would never believe it was a derivative ability of [Doom].

Jiang Mian gently released the vortex in her hand. A small pile of dust formed on the floor, while everywhere else in the room was spotless.

"Total victory."

She clapped her hands, though there was no dust on them, and planted them on her hips. She seemed pleased with the cleaning.