Lightning

Dr. Wells gave them a brief translation, leaving the two of them greatly shocked.

"Could the Particle Accelerator explosion have created some unknown substance that opened a passage connecting to your world and pulled you in?"

They were all stunned, unable to believe it. It was too science-fictional—unscientific.

But there was still much about science they did not understand. Perhaps such a situation was possible. They could not be sure.

"You've just woken up. Get some proper rest first. We need to discuss this. Cisco, Caitlin, come with me..."

Dr. Wells placated Lin Li and called Cisco and Caitlin out.

Watching them leave, Lin Li let out a breath of relief. He did not know how to face or deal with them. Having some time to collect his thoughts was a good thing.

Only after calming down and focusing on his body did Lin Li realize that his mind had never been clearer. His thoughts were incredibly active and light, as though a block of iron had been lifted from him and he could float away at any moment.

Memories flooded into his mind like a bursting dam.

The warm feeling of nursing just after he was born...

The sensations of toddling and crawling...

The terror of being sold away at the age of two or three...

The loneliness of the orphanage...

The warmth of meeting her...

Everything he had done since childhood, every object he had touched, every passerby he had encountered.

They all appeared in his mind with incomparable clarity. Like his life flashing before his eyes, he experienced his entire life anew.

The flood of memories brought a brief, swollen ache, like a soda can shaken full of gas. Yet in an instant, his active mind sorted it all out.

His active, clear thoughts allowed him to rapidly understand himself.

It looks like being struck by lightning gave me superpowers.

He pondered for a while, then looked at his hands bound in handcuffs.

With a slight tug, the handcuffs snapped in two.

Lin Li twisted the remaining halves with his hands until they cracked and warped, then tossed them onto the floor.

Bracing himself with both hands, Lin Li sprang to his feet.

The powerful strength of his body swept away his gloom and filled him with delight.

What exactly is my superpower? Barry and I were struck by lightning together, so I should have gained the Speed Force.

He thought excitedly.

The Speed Force.

A force independent of the four fundamental forces.

Unparalleled speed.

Speed beyond the speed of light.

Speed capable of traveling through time.

Suppressing his excitement, he closed his eyes and quietly sensed himself.

Gradually, he sensed some inexplicable energy in his head, as though it were connected to something at the other end.

His consciousness seemed to become a bolt of lightning, his neural signals turning into electric currents that coursed through his body.

His strong heart pumped blood through his body, and along with the flow of blood, he saw his internal organs—his heart, liver, spleen, lungs, kidneys, and more.

His cells seemed to cheer at his inspection, transmitting feelings of joy and hunger.

His entire body was strong and... hungry!

That was right. He was terribly hungry.

Every cell in his body was transmitting feelings of dryness, hunger, and a craving to "eat."

Lin Li opened his eyes, silver lightning flickering within them.

He raised both hands above his head. Silver arcs burst from his fingertips, and Lin Li felt that he could control the electrical currents throughout the entire room.

Crackle, crackle.

The electronics short-circuited and failed.

The smell of burning spread through the air.

More than a dozen power cables were scorched.

Countless electric currents surged above him.

Wild currents coiled around his fingertips, crackling as they entered his body and were greedily devoured by his cells.

Above the room, they gathered into a terrifying silver web of electricity that hissed as it flowed toward Lin Li.

Cisco and Caitlin followed Dr. Wells outside. Once they were certain Lin Li could not hear them—

"This is impossible, Dr. Wells. It's very likely the lightning struck him stupid, or gave him delusions. He isn't of sound mind."

Caitlin spoke. As a bioengineering expert, she was more inclined to believe that Lin Li had developed hallucinations after being struck by lightning.

"Not necessarily. We cannot understand the dark matter produced by the Particle Accelerator explosion. Perhaps it really did cause someone to cross between worlds. How amazing would that be? Besides us, there could be another Earth."

Cisco fell into a fantasy. What an insane, magnificent discovery it would be—simply unimaginable. As a scientist, being able to witness something like this would be an incredible blessing.

"Caitlin, give Lin Li a full examination. Cisco, perhaps we need to prepare something special for this visitor from another world."

Dr. Wells smiled. He believed Lin Li, because he himself was no different from Lin Li.

Bang... bang... bang...

A series of sounds from the surgery interrupted their conversation.

"NO~~NO~NO~~NONONONO!"

Hearing the noise, Cisco was the first to rush into the surgery. The sight before him made him cry out in alarm.

The smell of burning.

Sparking electrical equipment.

Currents gathering above the room.

Lin Li, his entire body surrounded by electricity.

Every part of it shocked him to the core.

"Lin Li, Lin Li..."

Dr. Wells arrived, pushed over by Caitlin, and shouted loudly.

Hearing his own name, Lin Li suddenly came to his senses. He had merely instinctively wanted to replenish his energy. He had not expected to disable the electronic equipment, let the currents run rampant, and create a web of electricity across the ceiling.

Seeing that Lin Li was conscious, Dr. Wells immediately instructed them.

"Cisco, go cut off the power to the surgery immediately. Lin Li, absorb it slowly. If you can't absorb it all, guide it into the ground. Can you do that?"

Hearing this, Cisco immediately ran off to cut the power.

Once the power was cut, within five seconds, Lin Li immediately absorbed the silver arcs flickering through the room into his body.

Calm returned, leaving the room in a complete mess.

"Are you all right?"

Caitlin asked.

Lin Li controlled the currents in his body and gradually drew them back. His eyes slowly changed from silver arcs to normal black pupils.

"OK."

He understood English that simple.

Dr. Wells said, "What happened to you? Why did you suddenly draw electric currents into your body?"

Before Lin Li could answer, Caitlin cried out.

"Barry Allen!"

The area around Barry's bed was also in chaos. The instruments, respirator, and everything else had been ripped loose moments ago. His body convulsed violently, shaking on the bed as though he were having an epileptic seizure.

"Come help! We need to move him. The equipment here is broken. Damn it, we can't even use sedatives."

Caitlin rushed over and held Barry down.

Just as Barry began convulsing, Lin Li felt a strange energy in his mind stir restlessly. It seemed to be connected to Barry, constantly urging Lin Li to approach him.

What is going on? What is this thing in my head? Why does it keep making me approach Barry?

Lin Li walked toward Barry in confusion and placed a hand on Barry's chest.

The moment his hand touched Barry's chest, yellow lightning arcs flashed across it.

Barry stopped convulsing and became still.

When Lin Li placed his hand against Barry's chest, the strange energy in his mind merely flickered like electricity once, then also settled down.

"...Where am I? Who are you? Why is your hand on my chest?"

Barry Allen drew in a sharp breath and suddenly sprang up from the bed.

The Flash had awakened.