Speed Awakening

Lu Chen carried Su Wan's father in his arms. The old man was as skinny as a beanpole and light as a feather.

With his free hand, he held Xiao Lu's. The little girl's hand was ice-cold, and she gripped his tightly, afraid that if she let go, the apocalypse would swallow her whole.

"Let's go! The VIP lane is open. Passengers, please fasten your seat belts-we're taking off!" Lu Chen whistled, trying to lighten the heavy mood.

Behind them, flames soared into the sky and waves of heat rolled over them, making their eyes sting.

The air was thick with the acrid smell of burning, just like barbecue without cumin. One star!

Su Wan followed close behind him, glancing back at the ruins from time to time, her expression as complicated as a spilled paint palette.

She was probably wondering whether Lu Chen was a savior or a demon king out to destroy the world.

"Stop looking. Keep it up and even the gates will burn away," Lu Chen said without looking back or breaking stride.

He could feel the SSS-rank [War Dominator] stirring inside him, countless tactics churning through his mind as though he'd activated a full-map cheat.

"Next, it's our turn to take the stage." The corners of Lu Chen's mouth rose in a faint, slightly wicked smile. He quickened his pace, his figure vanishing into the darkness, leaving only the raging flames behind him, as if heralding the arrival of a new era.

Now, the real show was about to begin!

The blazing base was like a fire beast baring its fangs and claws, greedily devouring everything.

Lu Chen and the others hadn't gone far before they disappeared completely into the night, leaving only the smell of burning in the air to remind people what had happened there.

"Where are we going?" Su Wan sounded tired. Clearly, everything that had just happened had left her exhausted.

Without looking back, Lu Chen said, "Into the mountains! As the saying goes, the most dangerous place is the safest place. They'll never expect us to head into the mountains."

"But what if there are..." Su Wan trailed off. She wanted to say zombies, but she was afraid of frightening Xiao Lu.

As if seeing through her thoughts, Lu Chen grinned. "Don't worry. Even if there are, they're just free experience delivered to our door!"

Xiao Lu held Lu Chen's hand tightly, her big eyes blinking with curiosity.

She was still too young to understand much about the cruelty of the apocalypse. All she knew was that she felt safe as long as she stayed with Brother Lu Chen.

The group trudged over the uneven ground and soon reached the edge of the forest on the outskirts of the city.

As far as the eye could see, the dark mass of trees resembled a giant beast lying in wait, radiating an eerie, terrifying aura.

Just then, Lu Chen's ears twitched. He heard faint breathing.

"Shh!" He motioned for Su Wan and Xiao Lu to stop, then silently crept toward the sound.

Parting a dense thicket of bushes, Lu Chen saw a man covered in blood, leaning against a tree and groaning in pain.

The man wore ragged clothes and was covered in bloody wounds. He had clearly been through a brutal fight.

His eyes were unfocused and his breathing was faint. He was clearly on the verge of death.

Lu Chen immediately spotted a faint cyan glow lingering on the man's leg, the mark of a talent.

E-rank [Gale Steps]... The rank isn't high, but even a mosquito has meat on it! Lu Chen thought.

He silently approached the man, like a patient hunter waiting for the perfect moment.

The man seemed to notice Lu Chen approaching. He struggled to get up, but fell back down helplessly.

"Y-you... who are you?" he asked weakly, his voice as raspy as a broken bellows.

Lu Chen didn't answer. He simply watched the man in silence, his gaze as cold as ice.

"P-please... save me..." the man begged.

Lu Chen still said nothing.

Just as the man was about to close his eyes, Lu Chen moved.

He seized the man's arm and silently called out, Infinite Replication!

An invisible energy instantly surged into Lu Chen's body. He felt a jolt like an electric current spread from his arm throughout his body.

"Replication successful! [Gale Steps] has been elevated to SSS-rank [Extreme Speed Storm]!"

The system notification rang in Lu Chen's mind, and the corners of his mouth rose in a satisfied smile.

"Th-thank you..." the man murmured. Then his head tilted to one side, and he breathed his last.

Lu Chen let go, allowing the man's corpse to fall to the ground.

"Sorry, but I'll take your talent," he said calmly, as though he had done something utterly insignificant.

With SSS-rank [Extreme Speed Storm], Lu Chen felt much lighter, as though a gust of wind could lift him off his feet.

He tried activating the talent, and in an instant, he felt himself darting through the forest like a bolt of lightning.

So fast! Lu Chen marveled. This speed was simply beyond his imagination.

Now he finally understood why those SSS-rank powerhouses could possess the power to destroy heaven and earth.

With [Extreme Speed Storm], I'll be unstoppable whenever I need to escape or launch a sneak attack! Lu Chen thought excitedly.

Even so, he didn't let it go to his head.

He returned to Su Wan and Xiao Lu, briefly explained a few things, and told them to hide in a concealed hollow tree while he prepared to lure away any pursuers who might be out there.

"Be careful!" Su Wan said worriedly.

Lu Chen smiled. "Don't worry. The likes of them can't catch me."

With that, he flashed away and disappeared into the forest.

Before long, Lu Chen spotted three soldiers in military uniforms searching for something among the trees.

"Damn it, that kid's fast. We've been chasing him this long and still haven't caught him!" one soldier complained.

"Stop complaining. Young Master Zhao said we have to catch them, or we'll all pay for it!" another soldier said.

"Hmph, Young Master Zhao doesn't mean shit. He's only got his old man to rely on!"

Hearing their conversation, Lu Chen sneered inwardly. Looks like they're remnants of the Zhao Family. Good. I can test the power of [Extreme Speed Storm] on you!

He silently approached the three soldiers and used the tremendous speed granted by [Extreme Speed Storm] to circle behind them in an instant.

The three soldiers had no time to react. They felt a chill at their necks, and then everything went black as they lost consciousness completely.

Lu Chen showed no mercy, snapping their necks on the spot.

"Pathetic!" he said disdainfully, then dragged the three bodies away and hid them somewhere out of sight.

Having dealt with the pursuers, Lu Chen returned to the hollow tree and ate some dry rations with Su Wan and Xiao Lu.

As night fell, the forest grew even eerier and more frightening.

Waves of wolf howls came from the distance, sending chills down their spines.

"W-wolves are coming!" Xiao Lu shrank into Su Wan's arms in fear.

Lu Chen stood up and walked to the entrance of the hollow, narrowing his eyes as he looked toward the howls.

Under the moonlight, a pack of glowing green eyes was slowly approaching them.

"They're here already!" Lu Chen sneered. He could sense that these wolves were different from ordinary mutated beasts. They gave off a wild aura, as though they were born hunters.

The giant wolf leading them was a size larger than the others. Its eyes were scarlet, gleaming with bloodlust.

"It's a mutated wolf king!" Lu Chen recognized the giant wolf at once.

"Awooo!"

The wolf king let out a low howl, and the pack surged toward Lu Chen and the others like a tide.

"Stay here. I'll deal with them!" Lu Chen told Su Wan and Xiao Lu, then sprang out of the hollow.

Facing the pack surging toward him like a tide, Lu Chen showed no fear. He activated [Extreme Speed Storm], and his figure instantly blurred.

He darted through the pack like lightning, taking a wolf's life every time he appeared.

Though the wolves were numerous, with [Extreme Speed Storm] enhancing him, they couldn't even touch the hem of Lu Chen's clothes.

Lu Chen was simply too fast. All they could see was an afterimage; they couldn't track him at all.

The wolves' attacks missed completely, and they could only take a beating for nothing.

As Lu Chen moved at high speed, he continually generated air currents that disrupted the pack's formation.

He threw the wolves into such confusion that they couldn't organize an effective attack.

Suddenly, Lu Chen seized an opportunity. He appeared behind a giant wolf that had strayed from the pack and smashed its head with a punch.

Replication! Lu Chen called out silently, and another surge of invisible energy entered his body.

"Replication successful! [Jungle Assault] has been elevated to SSS-rank!"

Lu Chen felt his ability to perceive the forest instantly rise to a new level.

He could now clearly sense the location of every tree, every blade of grass, and every stone in the forest.

With [Jungle Assault], he could move through the forest more freely and more stealthily.

Lu Chen sped through the pack, using [Extreme Speed Storm] and [Jungle Assault] to kill giant wolf after giant wolf.

The pack's numbers were dwindling at an astonishing rate.

But the wolf king had yet to make a move. It merely stood in the distance, watching Lu Chen coldly.

Its eyes were full of intelligence and cunning.

Lu Chen knew the wolf king would be difficult to deal with. It was surely waiting for the perfect opportunity.

Just then, Lu Chen suddenly slowed down.

He deliberately left an opening, giving the pack a chance to attack.

The wolf king seemed to notice something. Its

But it was soon overcome by greed.

The wolf king howled and led the remaining wolves in a charge at Lu Chen.

The corners of Lu Chen's mouth rose in an evil smile.

You took the bait! he thought.

This was exactly the effect he wanted. He meant to lure the wolf king into a trap he had carefully devised.

He sped up again, running deeper into the forest.

The wolf king pursued relentlessly, leading the pack close behind him.

The air was thick with the stench of blood and a more terrifying aura that was about to arrive.

"Now, let me give you a real taste of despair!" Lu Chen spoke softly, but his voice carried a chilling coldness that made hearts tremble.

He deliberately slowed down... Lu Chen deliberately slowed his pace, and the green eyes of the mutated wolf king named Gray Shadow, following behind him, were practically spitting fire. It had clearly been enraged by Lu Chen toying with it like a cat with a mouse.

It let out a deafening howl, and with the resolve to burn their bridges, the entire pack desperately accelerated after him.

"Oh, is the little wolf cub getting worked up?" Lu Chen grinned, thinking the fish had taken the bait.

He deliberately left an opening, making Gray Shadow think victory was assured.

Sure enough, the wolf king fell for it. It pushed off the ground hard with all four legs and leaped high, bringing a pungent, bloody wind with it as its massive jaws lunged straight for the back of Lu Chen's neck!

At that critical moment, Lu Chen

"Fellow countryman, let me borrow your talent!" Lu Chen shouted in a low voice. His right fist clenched, and the power of [Extreme Speed Storm] surged wildly inside him, gathering around his fist.

The punch, carrying all his strength and speed, slammed into Gray Shadow's thick neck!

"Crack!"

The sound of bones shattering rang out clearly. Gray Shadow didn't even have time to yelp before its entire head twisted grotesquely out of shape.

Lu Chen didn't pause for an instant. Taking advantage of the moment Gray Shadow's body went rigid, he seized it by the scruff of the neck and silently called out, Infinite Replication!

"Replication successful! SS-rank [Beast Speed Instinct] has been upgraded to SSS-rank [Wild Charge]!"

A savage power instantly surged through Lu Chen's body. He felt as though a beast had transformed him, every cell brimming with explosive strength.

At the same time, a keen instinct for danger arose within him, as though he had become one with the forest.

"Man and beast as one, dual mode activated!" Lu Chen growled excitedly under his breath, feeling the unprecedented power granted by the two SSS-rank speed talents within him.

Not only did he have the ultimate speed granted by [Extreme Speed Storm], he had also gained the wild senses and explosive power bestowed by [Wild Charge].

Gray Shadow's body crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

The pack instantly fell into chaos, howling helplessly.

Lu Chen stood beside the wolf king's corpse, feeling the power surging inside him, his gaze cold as a blade.

"Now that the alpha's dealt with, you should also..."