Wind Walker

The darkest hour before dawn, in the woods of Minsheng Park, a slender figure moved elegantly between the trees.

After more than an hour of experimentation, Lan Mu had a good grasp of the wondrous uses of the Natural Power within him.

First, there was the feedback to nature. Ordinary plants possessed a similar power, but it was fundamentally different from his. He tentatively called it Life Force, the vital energy all living beings possessed.

After being converted by the Natural Power in his body, it had a noticeable effect on plants. He even experimented on a small, nearly dead blade of grass. By simply absorbing the negligible Life Force within the grass and then feeding it back, the grass immediately became vibrant and lively.

Lan Mu even experimented on animals. However, unlike with plants, the insects he caught exhibited strong resistance when absorbing Life Force. The effect was the same, though; after being fed back, they became lively again.

In the jungle, the only beings that instinctively revered his Elf body were plants. He could naturally communicate with them. The Natural Power within his Elf body enveloped him at will, allowing him to avoid all dust and dirt. Being naturally fastidious, he would never get dirty as long as he used his energy-enveloped hands to do things.

Furthermore, Natural Power also had a lightening function, allowing him to tread on the ground in the jungle like the White-haired Lion. At extreme speeds, he could cover a hundred meters in about eight seconds.

When using Natural Power to move quickly, it was as if he had transformed into a Wind Walker, with nature itself helping him to speed along.

As for the adhesive force that defied gravity, it was currently only effective on plants. On ordinary soil, stones, and man-made bricks, the magical adhesive function of Natural Power failed.

Then there was moonlight. His palm, wrapped in Natural Power, could touch the moonlight. Or rather, he was touching the magical energy within the moonlight. This energy, combined with Natural Power, might have produced a chemical reaction, resulting in a purifying function.

The simplest application was purifying the air, though Natural Power itself could achieve this. However, the purifying power of moonlight energy was somewhat magical. When sufficient, it could purify the dirty into clean and the foul into pure. It had a strong effect on killing bacteria and viruses.

In addition, by highly compressing moonlight with Natural Power, a crystalline substance could be formed, a polyhedron resembling crystal.

Lan Mu had no idea what the use of this crystal was.

Finally, Lan Mu tested his throwing ability.

Under normal circumstances, his throwing talent was exceptional, not just because of his greatly enhanced senses, but as if he possessed an innate precision.

The best way to test it would have been with archery, but he didn't have any. So, he used pebbles to throw. His throwing accuracy was one hundred percent. As long as his strength was sufficient, within range, there would be no deviation.

Unless the target dodged. He had tried to hit a flying beetle with a pebble. After the beetle dodged the pebble, Lan Mu used Natural Power to summon a gust of wind, changing the pebble's trajectory!

This was done by remotely invoking Natural Power after the pebble had left his hand. But if Natural Power was added to the pebble from the start, then the pebble would be almost entirely controlled by Lan Mu, flying much faster and hitting precisely where he intended.

In the end, he could even detonate the Natural Power, causing the pebble to explode and scatter.

However, in this initial test, Lan Mu felt it lacked power, and it would be better to use Natural Power to enhance his shooting speed for rapid-fire shots.

"I'll have to try it with a real bow and arrow for specifics."

"But even if a few of these abilities are useless, they feel much more useful than the White-haired Lion. What can the White-haired Lion do besides hunt? Its invisibility is its only strong point."

"But Elves are different. First of all, my appearance is my own. Although it's a bit effeminate... but with sunglasses and a hat, I can completely walk among society without being seen as a monster."

"From this point of view, transforming into an Elf is simply fantastic!"

Lan Mu was overjoyed, then noticed the sky and realized it was almost dawn.

Thinking that there would soon be many pedestrians on the road, his current appearance with pointed, long ears was still conspicuous without disguise.

So, while there were still few people, he quickly accelerated with all his might and headed home.

His swift figure weaved through streets and alleys. As he turned a corner, he zipped past a sanitation worker, startling the man and nearly causing him to fall.

"What was that?"

The man looked back at Lan Mu's retreating figure and exclaimed, "Is that a national athlete? That speed, could it break the world record?"

The passerby didn't think much of it. Lan Mu reached the base of his building at a speed of under eight seconds per hundred meters. He didn't dare to jump directly to his window, fearing being seen.

After all, this was his home, and it would be troublesome if someone saw him.

He obediently took the stairs, reached his door, and entered with his key.

The sound of the door opening woke Su Yue. She listened carefully and realized Lan Mu was still in the living room.

She wondered, When did Brother Mu go out?

Being Su Yue, she wouldn't ask Lan Mu. Feeling well-rested, she walked out of the bedroom, intending to prepare breakfast for Lan Mu.

Seeing Su Yue, Lan Mu was startled, then relieved, because he remembered Su Yue couldn't see his current appearance.

"Su Yue, you're up so early? Did I disturb you?"

Su Yue smiled and said, "I slept very well. Brother Mu, what do you want to eat?"

Lan Mu habitually said, "Soup dumplings."

As soon as he finished speaking, Su Yue froze. Seeing this, Lan Mu quickly added, "I'm not asking you to make them, let's go eat downstairs. In about half an hour, the soup dumpling shop downstairs will open."

"Oh..." Su Yue softly replied. She really couldn't make dumplings, let alone soup dumplings.

Lan Mu smiled, "Don't overthink it, I'm just used to eating the dumplings from downstairs. You can try them later too."

"Okay, you go wash up first. I bought new things yesterday, they're in the bathroom."

Su Yue nodded and slowly walked into the bathroom.

Meanwhile, Lan Mu found an old-fashioned winter beanie from a box, made of knitted wool that covered his entire head, effectively concealing his pointed ears.

However, he was unaccustomed to his ears being covered, feeling itchy and uncomfortable.

But this discomfort was nothing compared to being confined to his home, unable to go out.

He also prepared sunglasses, a cool accessory for showing off. He had a phase where he liked wearing sunglasses every day, so he bought a trendy pair.

About ten minutes later, Su Yue had finished getting ready.

A girl her age would usually take ten minutes to tidy her appearance; this speed was astonishing, something only tomboys could achieve.

Yet, Su Yue didn't seem like a tomboy at all. On the contrary, she was delicate and fresh. She simply went through her normal routine of washing up and combing her hair, and she already looked cleaner and more refreshed than any girl Lan Mu had ever seen.

She never wore makeup, and her hair was just simply tied back. Combined with her closed eyes, it presented a naturally serene and tranquil aura.

At this moment, Lan Mu, being a discerning Elf, approved of Su Yue and expressed his fondness for this feeling.

As Su Yue came out, it was Lan Mu's turn. Completely the opposite of Su Yue, he spent a full half hour in the bathroom.

There wasn't much change; Elves were already incredibly clean to begin with.

He mainly spent too long fussing with his hair. He couldn't stand how messy his own haphazard haircut looked, so he trimmed it again. It took a lot of effort to finally get rid of that awkward feeling in his heart.

Walking out of the bathroom and seeing Su Yue sitting quietly in a chair waiting, Lan Mu felt a wave of comfort.

"Su Yue, let's go. I'll take you to eat soup dumplings."

Lan Mu put on his hat to cover his ears and then put on sunglasses to hide his light green pupils.

The two walked out, and Lan Mu carefully held Su Yue's cane, intending to guide her, as they had to go downstairs.

Su Yue paused for a moment, then smiled, "Brother Mu, I remember the way out. I can go down myself."

"Alright, alright..."

Lan Mu let go of the cane, letting her walk on her own. As expected, it was just as she said.

Although Su Yue walked slowly, she placed each step firmly. If there was anything wrong ahead, she could quickly determine it through the tactile feedback from her cane. She didn't even need to hold onto the wall as she descended the stairs.

Having spent a day together, Lan Mu had seen Su Yue's amazing spatial awareness many times and felt relieved. Su Yue was far more independent than he had imagined.

They went downstairs, and not too far away, Lan Mu led her to Lao Xinglong Soup Dumplings. It was not yet six o'clock, and there weren't many people in the shop. Lan Mu led Su Yue to an empty table.

Su Yue sat down generously, but Lan Mu hesitated for a moment. Finally, unable to resist, he wiped the stool with a paper before sitting down.

His small action was noticed by customers at the next table. Lan Mu opened his mouth and said, "Five soup dumplings, two cups of fresh milk."

As soon as he finished speaking, he heard the customers at the next table whispering.

"Wow, she's definitely a beauty!"

"Nonsense, I saw her too. Her skin is so soft."

"Her aura is incredible!"

"Yeah, I love this kind of aura."

Unfortunately, Lan Mu's hearing was too good. These whispers automatically entered his ears; it was hard not to hear them.

To be honest, Su Yue wasn't breathtakingly beautiful, but her skin was fair, and she could certainly be called pretty. Especially her pure and serene aura, which Lan Mu himself found very appealing.

He had considered that Su Yue might attract attention, but he hadn't expected that just going out for breakfast would lead to people gossiping behind their backs. It really put him in a bad mood.

But he couldn't control what others said. Su Yue was beautiful, and people weren't allowed to look?

Moreover, Su Yue's hearing was far superior to ordinary people's. She must have heard the people next to them talking, but she remained calm and showed no reaction, likely not caring about their words.

But whether Su Yue cared or not, with Lan Mu there, hearing those people talk endlessly, and even some inappropriate words later on, Lan Mu felt very disgusted and annoyed.

"Hey, are you treating me like I don't exist? Can you stop talking? Do you really think no one can hear you?"

When Lan Mu heard even more outrageous and lewd remarks, he finally couldn't hold back and said angrily.

One person, instead of showing any embarrassment, stretched his neck forward and said, "Beautiful lady, you're so pretty, can't we look?"

"Yeah, why cover yourself up so tightly? Aren't you hot?"

"Such a great aura. I like this androgynous feel. Your voice is nice too, like Zhou Xun."

Hearing these words was like a bolt from the blue for Lan Mu!

"Me? A beauty?"

He stiffly turned his head, staring at these people with wide eyes.

Unfortunately, he was wearing glasses, so they couldn't see his murderous glare.

They continued to laugh and say, "Of course, you're a beauty! Don't think you can hide it by wearing men's clothes. Even though you're flat-chested, it's obvious at a glance!"

"Yeah, your skin is so good. Even though the sunglasses cover your face, just looking at your smooth chin tells it all."

"Right, why pretend? You just wiped the stool with paper earlier, and you're saying you're not a woman?"

Lan Mu was being hit on. Hearing these words, he felt his anger surge.

He felt like killing them!

"Screw you! You're the beauty! Your whole family are beauties!"

"Are you blind? Didn't you see my Adam's apple?"

The group of people froze. They looked closely, and although it wasn't very prominent, there was indeed an Adam's apple on Lan Mu's neck.

"Uh..."

"This..."

The group was dumbfounded, utterly embarrassed.

"Sorry! Buddy, you're also... hehe..."

A few of them apologized, quickly shut their mouths, and continued eating their breakfast.

But undoubtedly, their eyes were still filled with amusement and mockery.

Lan Mu trembled with anger, but he couldn't say anything, only blaming his bad luck.

His elven form was too beautiful.