Chapter 14: Extreme Danger
Chapter 14: Extreme Danger
"Cheers!"
"Cheers!"
In a barbecue restaurant not far from the Qishan Wutong Shooting Gallery, Ji Xinghuo and Lu Yunhai clinked their beer glasses together and downed their drinks.
"I'm truly delighted," Lu Yunhai exclaimed, his face already flushed from the alcohol. Yet, his mind remained clear, though his voice had risen involuntarily.
"Ever since we returned from Mount Zhongnan, the other coaches at the archery range have been looking at me differently," Lu Yunhai continued, his voice filled with excitement.
"Even Coach Fang asked about you," he added, referring to Fang Yinping. "The fact that I was able to coach a student like you is a testament to my abilities as a coach. I only taught you for a short while, and the rest was all your talent and practice, but they don't know that! Hahaha..."
"I won't tell anyone," Ji Xinghuo teased.
"Go ahead, I don't mind," Lu Yunhai replied, shaking his head in a self-satisfied manner. "After all, everyone at the gallery saw me coaching you over the past few weeks."
Ji Xinghuo smiled and glanced at the trophy on the table.
The trophy itself was not particularly valuable.
However, the championship it represented carried significant weight. As soon as the competition had concluded, the 200,000-yuan champion bonus had already been deposited into his account.
After deducting taxes, he was left with over 180,000 yuan!
This was the first time he had earned so much money, and it instantly multiplied his savings severalfold. The sense of accomplishment filled him with immense joy.
"Let's have another drink," Ji Xinghuo said as he refilled his glass.
"Good!" Lu Yunhai agreed, downing his drink in one go. "So, what's your plan now?" he asked.
"None for the time being," Ji Xinghuo replied, shaking his head. As a mere elementary-level superhuman, his abilities were still quite weak, and his top priority at the moment was to strengthen them.
After three weeks of cultivation, his star power value had reached 56, and the progress of his Thousand Dexterity Hands technique had increased to 10/47.
The feeling of witnessing progress with each step filled him with enthusiasm for his daily cultivation.
As long as he followed the proper steps, his strength would undoubtedly increase.
Ji Xinghuo felt like he was similar to his fifth brother, Wang Zizheng, who was addicted to a virtual reality game called "Reality." All he wanted to do was grind for experience, wishing for 48 hours in a day, with only one goal in mind: leveling up!
However, Lu Yunhai seemed disappointed by his lack of ambition, "Don't you want to participate in more archery competitions and win more championship bonuses?"
"There's another amateur competition next week. The champion bonus isn't as high as the 'Shoot the Leaf Cup,' but it's still around 100,000 yuan. You'd definitely be able to win it," Lu Yunhai said.
He casually mentioned several competitions of different levels, with bonuses ranging from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of yuan.
Ji Xinghuo fell into deep thought, considering these options.
He had initially planned to rely on archery competitions to make money.
However, the events of the day had made him hesitant. Although the "Shoot the Leaf Cup" was only a semi-professional competition on a small scale, the organizers were quite influential. Several of the archery range masters were superhumans, especially Yang Tianqing.
Ji Xinghuo sensed that Yang Tianqing's attention towards him was not merely that of an observer interested in the champion. Instead, it carried a hint of other emotions or intentions! He had been a little too high-profile.
If he continued to participate in other competitions and repeatedly claimed victory, he would attract even more attention, and not just from Yang Tianqing.
"I won't be participating in any competitions for the time being," Ji Xinghuo decided.
"Why not?" Lu Yunhai asked, his face filled with bewilderment.
In his opinion, these championship bonuses were as good as Ji Xinghuo's. They were legitimate and wouldn't take up much of his time. Why turn down free money?
"I don't need the money right now," Ji Xinghuo replied after some thought, revealing a bit of the truth. "My biological father sent me a gift of 10 million yuan."
"Ten million!" Lu Yunhai exclaimed, his jaw dropping in astonishment. "You're not joking, are you?"
Once he confirmed that Ji Xinghuo was telling the truth, envy filled his face, and he couldn't help but tease, "I'm not a publicly raised child, and I used to think I was pretty happy. But now, I feel like you've got it way better than me. My dad can't even come up with a million yuan, and he spends all his time playing games instead of working."
Ji Xinghuo was already aware of Lu Yunhai's family situation.
A thought occurred to him, and he asked, "How much money have you saved up so far?"
"850,000 yuan," Lu Yunhai replied proudly.
"That much?" Ji Xinghuo was surprised.
The monthly salary of a coach at the archery range was just over 10,000 yuan, and Lu Yunhai had been working part-time since university, so he had expected him to have saved up only around 200,000 to 300,000 yuan.
"Hehe..." Lu Yunhai's face beamed with pride. "I'm a senior coach, and I've consistently ranked among the top performers at the archery range. I also have some side gigs, so I can save up two to three hundred thousand yuan each month."
Ji Xinghuo couldn't help but view him with newfound respect.
"Why are you asking about my savings? Do you want to borrow money from me?" Lu Yunhai asked, his eyes lighting up at the prospect.
"That's right," Ji Xinghuo smiled. "You can start preparing for your second fusion with a different species. In a few days, I'll transfer 700,000 yuan to you."
Lu Yunhai had always wanted to become a "Hunter." The core ability of this profession template was "Hawk Eye," which cost around 1.5 million yuan on the market.
He had attempted a fusion once during his university days but had failed.
The second fusion with a different species required more preparation, and the process was more challenging, with only half the success rate of the first attempt.
However, Lu Yunhai hesitated.
The more times one fails, the longer it takes to bounce back.
If Lu Yunhai failed a second time, he would be unable to work for at least a year and might even lose his coaching position at the archery range.
"You will succeed for sure!" Ji Xinghuo encouraged him. "You don't have to worry about repaying me. At most, I'll earn it back by participating in a few archery competitions."
"Alright!" Lu Yunhai took a deep breath. "I won't say much more in gratitude. This cup is for you!"
He picked up his filled glass and downed it in one go.
Ji Xinghuo also finished his drink, and the two chatted some more about interspecies fusion before parting ways, both feeling satisfied and full.
Wearing his power shoes, Ji Xinghuo swiftly weaved through the pedestrian walkway, the rushing wind helping to clear his mind of the effects of alcohol.
Beep, beep...
His phone suddenly vibrated.
He didn't check it, but after a few seconds, it vibrated again.
Ji Xinghuo took out his phone while still gliding and glanced at it. It was a safety alert.
"Attention to all citizens receiving this message: There is a Class A wanted criminal in your area. Please take shelter nearby or, if you are at home, do not leave. If you see any suspicious activity or are in danger, flee and report it immediately!" The message included a photo of the suspect.
The same message flashed on the screen several times, causing Ji Xinghuo's heart to sink.
A Class A wanted criminal! In the Asia-Pacific Community, those designated as Class A by the Ministry of Public Security were usually in one of two situations.
One was that they had committed heinous crimes, their hands stained with blood, and were extremely vicious.
The other was that the wanted criminal was incredibly powerful, at least a high-level superhuman, or even stronger.
Or, they could be a combination of both.
The range of these alert messages was about five kilometers.
Ji Xinghuo received such a message for the first time, startling him, and he instinctively looked around.
As it was late, there weren't many people around. Everyone who received the alert hurried home or took shelter in nearby shops.
Ji Xinghuo also increased the speed of his power shoes to the maximum.
He sprinted with caution, soon reaching the other side of the street across from his apartment building's entrance, and looked up to see the floor where his apartment was located.
Ji Xinghuo breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Crossing the street and circling around to the main entrance of the building, he stepped inside.
As he entered, he scanned the surroundings.
His gaze suddenly paused.
About a hundred meters away, on the side of the main entrance, under the pillar of a superconducting highway, where the streetlights didn't reach, there seemed to be a man standing in the shadows, motionless like a statue.
Ji Xinghuo's right eye pupil flickered with a glowing circle, and he could see clearly.
Indeed, it was a man!
A man with black eyes and blond hair, in his thirties, with distinct facial features, likely a mix of Asian and European descent. He was the Class A wanted criminal from the alert! He wore a suit, but it was torn in several places, stained with blood.
The man blended seamlessly into the shadows, unnoticed by passersby.
"Shadow Blade!"
"A very high-level 'Shadow Escape,' but I saw through it!"
Ji Xinghuo recognized the man's profession and ability, and at the same time, the man looked over at him.
Their eyes met for a moment.
"Damn."
Ji Xinghuo's heart sank as the alcohol's effects vanished, but he didn't stop walking. He entered the building, disappearing from the man's view. He had seen bewilderment in the wanted man's eyes, which quickly turned into unconcealed murderous intent.
"He wants to kill me!"
A sense of extreme danger exploded in his mind, like a needle pricking painfully, his spirit suffocating as if drowning, his life hanging by a thread!
Ji Xinghuo's right eye pupil lit up, and the glowing circle became very clear.
The Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil seemed to be fully activated.
His field of vision was filled with illusory streams of light, complex yet distinct, evolving in a way that was difficult to comprehend.
"This is..."
Ji Xinghuo's brain instantly received a large amount of information.
In an instant, he understood everything.
This was the future!
Ji Xinghuo saw what would happen in the next few seconds. The Shadow Blade stepped out of the shadows, rushing towards him with a sharp, glowing blade in his hand, slicing through the air.
"I can't escape."
"I only have one chance to survive, and that's to kill him!"
In this critical moment, Ji Xinghuo remained calm to the extreme, his thoughts as tranquil and resolute as ice, without a trace of any other emotion.
He didn't consider the consequences of failing to kill his attacker; he immediately took action.
He took off the bow bag from his back and opened it.
With his left hand, he grabbed the compound hunting bow and, at the same time, grasped three arrows with his right hand, nocking one and holding the other two in his palm.
With the Myriad Phenomenon Star Pupil's strange state, his Thousand Dexterity Hands technique became even faster. Ji Xinghuo completed all these preparations in less than a second.
He drew the bowstring, pulled it taut, and without hesitation, stepped towards the outside of the building's entrance.
Immediately, the Shadow Blade appeared in his line of sight.
The man also spotted Ji Xinghuo.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
