The dormitory was quiet in the early morning, with only the faint chirping of birds drifting in through the window.
Wang Hao was still buried under the covers, fast asleep. The flush had completely faded from his face, and his breathing was long and steady. It seemed his high fever had finally broken.
Zhang Wei and Li Feng's beds were still empty. There was no need to guess; those two had probably been battling it out at the internet café all night again.
Lin Mo swung his legs out of bed. When his feet touched the floor, that feeling of being "too light" was even more pronounced than yesterday.
Level 5 Attributes already meant physical stats three times those of a normal adult male.
He did dozens of squats, his movements smooth and effortless.
He could feel surging strength coursing through every part of his body. Every inch of muscle contained explosive power, ready to erupt at the slightest touch.
"Gurgle—"
Hunger arrived right on schedule.
It was even more intense than yesterday. It felt as though a hand were clawing at his stomach, desperately demanding food.
While washing up, he deliberately adjusted his posture in front of the mirror.
The changes brought by Level 5 Attributes were simply too obvious. His muscle definition, the sharpness of his gaze, and even his bearing were all different from usual.
He deliberately relaxed his shoulders and let his eyes return to their usual languor. Only then did he look like an ordinary college student.
"Keep it restrained. I have to keep it restrained." He muttered to himself.
After changing clothes, he slung the black backpack containing his emergency supplies over his shoulders and headed to the cafeteria.
The campus was just as lively as ever in the morning.
Students walked along the paths in groups of two or three, chatting and hurrying to class. Couples occasionally strolled by hand in hand.
The sunlight was bright, and the leaves of the Chinese parasol trees rustled in the breeze.
On the surface, everything appeared normal.
But Lin Mo keenly noticed a few details:
There were more security guards patrolling campus than usual, and several unfamiliar black business vans were parked in front of the administration building.
A new "Safety Notice" had been posted on the bulletin board in the distance, reminding students to "maintain a normal routine and avoid going out at night."
Under the calm surface, undercurrents were surging. Most people simply had yet to notice.
The cafeteria was bustling with noise.
Lin Mo ordered four meat buns, two fried dough sticks, a bowl of porridge, and a cup of soy milk.
The moment he found a seat and sat down, someone patted him on the shoulder.
"Lin Mo! Morning!"
Zhou Ming set his tray down with a clang and sat across from him.
His face was alight with barely concealed excitement. That guy always looked full of boundless energy.
"Morning." Lin Mo took a large bite of his meat bun, his cheeks bulging as he mumbled a reply.
"Did you hear about what happened in the western part of the city last night?"
Zhou Ming leaned closer and deliberately lowered his voice. Unconcealed excitement shone in his eyes.
"That 'Night Flame' bar had a major incident at nine last night!"
Lin Mo paused with his chopsticks over the pickled vegetables. "What happened?"
"One against seventeen!" Zhou Ming's voice trembled.
"There was a video online, but it got deleted completely pretty quickly. Luckily, I was quick enough to save it!"
As he spoke, he eagerly reached for his phone. Lin Mo hurriedly waved him off. "Eat first. We can watch it later."
"True. The footage was pretty bloody." Zhou Ming reluctantly put his phone away, took a huge bite of his fried dough stick, and smacked his lips as he chewed.
"But don't you think it's strange? One person took down seventeen people and won that easily... How the hell could he be a normal person?"
"Maybe he trained." Lin Mo gave a perfunctory reply.
"Trained?" Zhou Ming scoffed. "My cousin is on the provincial sanda team. He said that even if a world champion came, facing armed opponents, taking on three at once would be difficult.
"One against seventeen? And without a scratch? That can't be explained by merely 'having trained.'"
He lowered his voice and said mysteriously:
"I'm telling you, everyone's saying online that he was an 'Awakened.'
"Just like in the novels, some people suddenly gained superpowers.
"Those people in the news who woke up from comas with improved bodies might all be Awakened!"
"Read fewer webnovels." Lin Mo took a sip of soy milk.
"They aren't novels!" Zhou Ming grew anxious.
"You really should watch those videos! And check the discussions on Tieba and Weibo...
"A lot of them were deleted, but the clips that got out are things no human could possibly do!"
As he spoke, he pulled out his phone, quickly opened a video, and shoved the screen in front of Lin Mo.
The footage was very blurry, clearly recorded secretly on a phone.
In the dim light of the bar, a man in a black jacket was surrounded by more than a dozen people. Wine bottles and steel pipes gleamed in their hands.
The next second, the man moved.
Fast!
So fast that the camera could barely capture his movements!
All Lin Mo could see was a Black Shadow flashing and weaving through the crowd. The people surrounding him fell one after another with screams, like wheat being cut down.
Someone tried to slash at him with a knife, but before the blade could fall, the man's wrist was forcibly twisted into a pretzel;
Someone tried to ambush him from behind, only to be kicked flying. He crashed hard into the glass liquor cabinet two meters away, sending alcohol and shards of glass splashing across the floor.
The entire process took no more than twenty seconds.
All seventeen people were down.
The video abruptly ended there.
"You saw that, right?" Zhou Ming put his phone away, his voice trembling. "Could a normal person possibly move that fast? I'll bet you anything—that was definitely an Awakened!"
Lin Mo said nothing. He silently shoveled porridge into his mouth.
He was all too familiar with the man's movements in the video. They were nothing less than an overwhelming difference in Attributes.
Before you continue