Chapter 34: You're the Challenger
The exit gate of the port.
Yun Meng watched Tian Dao and Kalolin finally arrive after what felt like an eternity, suppressing a sigh. “Little Tian Dao, Kalolin… Why did you take so long?”
Tian Dao, utterly unflustered, grinned. “Sister Yun, it’s all because Caroline’s never seen the world before—she insisted I stop and admire the giant jellyfish in the distance. Otherwise, I’d have been out here ages ago.”
“Oh? Really?” Yun Meng arched a brow, her smile faint but sharp—clearly not buying it.
After all, she knew Tian Dao well enough to know that out of every ten things he said, only one might be remotely truthful.
Kalolin, meanwhile, didn’t even bother responding. She simply rolled her eyes at Tian Dao—ridiculous, childish nonsense.
Why argue with someone so obviously childish? It’d only lower her dignity.
Meanwhile, the viewers on Dimensional Screen—those with Premier Preview access—were merciless in exposing Tian Dao’s transparent lie.
> “Oh wow, straight out of the gate? Haruki, you’re such a bad boy.”
> “Tian Dao Siming: a man nearly perfect in every way—except for his mouth.”
> “Men’s mouths are built for lies.”
Tian Dao, unfazed, casually adjusted his sunglasses.
Come on—white lies aren’t lies at all.
And if he could convince people a lie was truth, then wasn’t it, by definition, truth?
This wasn’t mere improvisation. This was the Brahmin Mahayana Win Doctrine—a wisdom he’d borrowed from a long-forgotten Eastern civilization of his past life.
The ultimate rule: deny it long enough, and it becomes fact. Victory is guaranteed.
But of course, the viewers had no idea of his inner monologue.
Otherwise, they’d have flooded the screen with a single, glowing phrase:
"Utterly shameless."
“Alright, now that everyone’s here, let’s go—don’t keep them waiting.”
Yun Meng dismissed the delay with a wave, announcing their next move.
At her words, Tian Dao and the others grabbed their luggage and followed her toward the open-air parking lot outside.
Thanks to Premier Preview access, these viewers had already seen the previous episode.
And in it, Doctor had laid out the mission in full:
Tian Dao and his team were to protect a wealthy young lady named Isabelle for one full month.
On the surface, they were the main bodyguards.
But in truth, they were just early-warning systems.
The real protection came from two Second-Rank Stellar Envoys:
Yun Meng herself, and Coral Knight—the personal bodyguard of Isabelle’s father.
That such elite forces were assigned to guard one person for a month spoke volumes about her status.
Isabelle’s father? None other than Dorian, the richest man in Deep Blue Metropolis.
And why would Dorian spend so much to hire Yujin Organization to protect his daughter?
Because the Tianhai Group, the empire he ruled, was now in the midst of a crisis—one that threatened to overthrow him.
A faction of greedy, power-hungry insiders had been secretly conspiring, lured by false promises from a manipulative third party.
They planned to strike at the most vulnerable moment, seizing control of the company and removing Dorian from power.
But Dorian wasn’t a fool.
He’d been running this empire for decades for a reason.
When he discovered the conspiracy, he didn’t act immediately.
Instead, he played along, letting them build their network—so he could dismantle them all at once.
The only risk? They might resort to desperate measures.
Like kidnapping Isabelle—his only child—to force him to hand over his shares.
That was why Tian Dao and the others had been sent: to prevent that very scenario.
But while the cause of the crisis lay with Dorian, the true center of the storm was Isabelle herself.
And Tian Dao, having read the original story, knew the truth.
No matter how dangerous the situation appeared, no matter how intense the threats—none of it was real.
It was all a carefully staged performance.
A trap. A purge.
Dorian’s way of eliminating the traitors within his own company.
So for Tian Dao, this “bodyguard mission” was nothing more than a paid vacation.
A chance to relax, recharge, and… perform.
But if he remembered correctly…
The moment they stepped into the open-air parking lot—
That’s where the first real test of the Deep Blue Metropolis Arc would begin.
A spark flickered in the shadows of his sunglasses.
After all this time… finally, it’s my turn to shine again.
Soon, my Popularity Points will surge once more!
Outside the port, the open-air parking lot.
As Kalolin and the others stepped onto the asphalt, an unnatural fog erupted from nowhere.
It wasn’t just sudden—it was fast.
In the blink of an eye, visibility dropped below three meters.
“Tian Dao?” Kalolin frowned, sensing something deeply wrong.
She’d checked the weather herself when she disembarked—no clouds, no mist.
Just a clear, sunny day.
Yet here, a thick, unnatural fog now blanketed the entire lot.
If Kalolin hadn’t earned her reputation as an Intelligent Mechanism Class genius, she’d have missed it.
But even she was startled when, after speaking, she realized—Tian Dao hadn’t answered.
She whirled around.
The parking lot was empty.
No Tian Dao.
No Chen Xing.
No Chen Kong.
No one.
Everyone had vanished—without a trace.
The same fate struck Chen Xing and Chen Kong, the twin siblings, who were now separated from the group.
The viewers instantly understood: something was wrong.
> “Already hit with a crisis after leaving the port? Are the creators trying too hard?”
> “This fog is unnatural—no Second-Rank Stellar Envoy like Yun Meng should miss it. The enemy isn’t ordinary.”
> “Wait… why is the camera only showing Chen Kong, Chen Xing, and Kalolin? Where’s Tian Dao?”
Just as the comments buzzed with confusion, Tian Dao’s voice cut through the mist.
> “Yun姐, you really going all-in on the drama, huh? You don’t think Chen Kong and the others might actually get hurt?”
The camera panned forward—revealing Tian Dao emerging from the fog.
He stood with his hands in his pockets, sunglasses on, utterly relaxed—like he was on a leisurely stroll.
The contrast was stark: while Chen Kong and Chen Xing trembled, eyes scanning the fog with fear, Tian Dao looked like he’d just stepped into a scenic photo shoot.
“Ms. Yun,” a voice spoke—calm, confident.
“Is this the Stellar Prodigy, Tian Dao Siming, you’ve been raving about?”
Yun Meng nodded, pride glowing in her eyes. “See? I told you this test was pointless.
Out of the 36 children in the Stellar Plan, any one of them would be a monster in the outside world.
And Tian Dao? He’s a monster among monsters.”
“Hence, this so-called test? It’s meaningless. It couldn’t possibly challenge them.”
“Oh?” Coral Knight turned toward the fog, his helmeted gaze narrowing.
“Ms. Yun, may I test him myself? Not out of disrespect—just to confirm whether he truly is as capable as you claim. One man, protecting the girl in the academy. I’d like to see if he can actually do it.”
Yun Meng waved a hand. “Be my guest.”
“Then I’ll take my leave.”
Coral Knight stepped forward.
Tian Dao slowly removed his sunglasses, then brushed his messy hair back with a flick of his hand—revealing a clean, sharp back-combed hairstyle.
He turned to face the approaching Coral Knight—and smiled.
“Huh… so I’m being underestimated, huh?
But you know…”
His voice dropped.
His posture shifted.
The lazy, carefree aura vanished.
In its place—something far more terrifying.
A chilling, tangible presence, like a storm gathering in silence.
The screen abruptly turned black and white—except for Tian Dao.
He remained in vivid, striking color.
As if, in that moment, he was the only thing that mattered in the universe.
“Don’t talk about tests,” he said, voice low, calm, and utterly certain.
“Because… you’re the challenger.”
The words landed like a thunderclap.
On Dimensional Screen, the chat exploded.
> "OH MY GOD—WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!"
> "TIAN DAO SIMING JUST BECAME A GOD IN 0.2 SECONDS!"
> "He’s not a prodigy. He’s a force of nature."
PS: Puff Tiger has finally found the perfect balance between watching and reading the main series.
Now fully installed and ready for more.
Daily support, monthly votes—please keep the momentum going!
(End of Chapter)
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