Free Web NovelChapter 379: Chapter 110: The Morning Light is Bright Again
When he stepped out of the Profound Palace Building, five passenger vehicles were waiting in the parking lot. Two were already full and had started to drive off when he heard Tan Zhi’s voice.
"Chen, over here."
Chen Chuan saw Tan Zhi waving at him from one of the vehicles. Seeing that there were only a few people inside, he walked over and boarded. He went up to Tan Zhi but didn’t sit down. Instead, he patted his shoulder and said in a low voice, "Tan, the weather’s nice today. I’m going to sit up front where I can get some sun."
With that, he left the back of the bus and took a seat near the driver, placing his Snow Monarch Blade within easy reach.
At first, Tan Zhi was confused. But then he saw the uniform Chen Chuan was wearing, and something seemed to click. His expression grew wary, and he hunched down slightly in his seat.
More students filed out of the building. Once the vehicles were full, they departed in order, heading for the arena.
They had traveled this road back and forth so many times over the past month that the students had grown tired of the scenery. After the bus started moving, everyone simply stared at their Realm Tokens, no one bothering to look outside.
Then, one of the students said,
"Who do you guys think will win today?"
"Hard to say. The two guys facing off are both incredible."
There was a crucial one-on-one match this morning: the strongest non-matriculated student so far was facing a highly-touted independent fighter.
It was a huge draw. The non-matriculated student was incredibly strong. Despite his status, he had earned the respect of most of the official students; many of the younger ones admitted they probably couldn’t beat him themselves.
But his opponent was no slouch, either. He had entered the tournament voluntarily and fought his way into the core brackets. Anyone who made it this far was bound to be a tough opponent.
Chen Chuan glanced to either side. Motorcycles from the city patrol flanked their bus, and further out, he could see Processing Bureau personnel watching from the city’s checkpoints.
The security was ironclad—provided no one caused a disruption.
"I’m rooting for Huo Yucheng. He might just be a non-matriculated student, but he’s seriously skilled. I heard that if his family’s company hadn’t gone bankrupt, he would have qualified for the academy.
But talented people shine no matter where they are. He came to Central City by himself, signed on as a non-matriculated student, and fought his way here step by step. I really admire guys like him."
"That’s a judgment based on emotion, not facts. I see it differently. Don’t forget, his opponent is Yu Shen. He didn’t join this tournament out of desperation or for some prize. He said he joined because he couldn’t find anyone on his level who could give him a real fight."
That statement immediately rubbed some people the wrong way. "That’s a bold claim, isn’t it? No one can match him? Has he ever been to Wuyi? What right does he have to say something like that if he hasn’t?"
"He hasn’t been to our Jibei Dao Wuyi, but he’s visited other Wuyi Academy branches, and more than one. To date, he hasn’t met his match."
The student who had spoken before sneered. "Then it’s a miracle someone hasn’t killed him for his arrogance."
Someone else chimed in, "Hey, what can you do? He’s got a powerful grandfather. Supposedly a director at the Original Man Company. You all know how much influence a director at a megacorp like that wields."
Chen Chuan’s interest was piqued. ’A director at Original Man?’
He used his Realm Token to look him up and quickly found a profile on Yu Shen. The man even had his own personal page, where he showed off his extensive collection of valuables.
The man appeared to be a fan of racing, with all sorts of vehicles on display. The clothes he wore were high-end and luxurious, a clear sign of his wealthy background. Of course, the most prominent features were the highlight reels of him defeating past opponents.
It was impossible to gauge his true skill level from the edited clips, but he looked completely at ease while defeating every opponent, suggesting he wasn’t using his full strength. However, most of his defeated opponents ended up dead, which meant that even if he could’ve shown mercy, he chose not to.
That didn’t necessarily mean he was exceptionally cruel. In a life-or-death match, if you don’t kill your opponent, they will likely kill you. There was no room for holding back.
Inside the bus, the students were now arguing over who would win. But as qualified Fighters, all of their analyses were well-reasoned and backed by evidence.
Chen Chuan took a moment to watch some of Huo Yucheng’s fight footage. ’Comparing the two,’ he thought, ’Yu Shen might be more skilled, but Huo Yucheng probably has the better odds.’
Huo Yucheng radiated a kill-or-be-killed intensity, yet his eyes were preternaturally calm. It showed he was prepared for anything and would be more willing to risk it all than his opponent when the time came.
Just then, a notification pinged on a fringe channel. A moment later, it was followed by a rapid succession of alerts. Realizing what this might mean, he immediately switched to it.
As soon as he accessed the platform, he was met with a photograph. The background was an open plain, with only weeds visible in the foreground and the hazy silhouette of mountains in the distance.
A body lay on the ground. Next to it, a broken, ridged bayonet was stabbed into the earth, a section of its black wrapping fluttering in the wind.
"Wei Wusheng!"
"Zuo Shidao!"
People on the platform immediately recognized the two men. The one lying on the ground was Zuo Shidao, the Bounty Hunter who had claimed just yesterday that he’d found Wei Wusheng!
People on the platform had been anxiously awaiting news yesterday. Some who had placed bets on the outcome had waited with bloodshot eyes. Now, they finally had their answer.
Seeing Wei Wusheng standing there, virtually unharmed, was suffocating.
After his fight with the Pei Brothers, some had speculated that Wei Wusheng had his back to the camera not to strike a pose, but to hide injuries to his front, since the Pei Brothers’ specialty was attacking from both sides at once.
This time, however, Wei Wusheng appeared to have taken down Zuo Shidao without a scratch.
The discussion threads and voice messages on the platform exploded with activity.
"Is this outside the city?"
"Yes, outside the city. That mountain silhouette should be Luo Mountain. That’s to the west of Central City, no more than twenty kilometers out."
"Look at the shadows. This wasn’t taken yesterday... Does that mean this just happened?"
At the same time, the Processing Bureau also saw the photo. Technicians immediately analyzed the angle of the sunlight and the cloud formations, deducing that it was likely taken within the last half hour. However, they couldn’t rule out the possibility that the photo had been altered and were still analyzing it.
But if it was altered, then what was Wei Wusheng trying to do?
The Processing Bureau immediately sent out an alert to all personnel, both on and off duty—including Chen Chuan—telling them to be on high alert.
Regardless, they couldn’t afford to ignore this. The Processing Bureau immediately dispatched a team to search for the target at likely locations outside the city, simultaneously locking down and tightening inspections at all intersections leading in that direction.
The Processing Bureau’s personnel were already spread thin. A large contingent was deployed to the arena because of the tournament, but an overwhelming number of people had flooded into Central City recently. To make matters worse, copycat Fighters were murdering people in imitation of Wei Wusheng, stretching their forces even thinner.
Furthermore, most of their technicians were focused on the Resonator backing Wei Wusheng. Anyone capable of masking Wei Wusheng’s whereabouts was capable of causing much bigger problems, a threat they had to guard against.
As Chen Chuan was looking at the photo, he suddenly got a call request from Ni Qianqian. He accepted it, and her voice came through. "Chen, you went to watch the matches yesterday?"
Chen Chuan said, "Yes, Sister Ni."
Ni Qianqian said, "There’s nothing wrong with watching the matches. If you ask me, you should relax a little. Don’t just bury yourself in training all day. It’s just... some people at the Bureau are a little unhappy with you about it.
They’re saying they’re all swamped, wishing one person could do the work of two, and with the Bureau so short-staffed, you’re off leisurely watching matches. They’re just resentful, is all. You don’t have to pay them any mind, but a lot of higher-ups are watching us right now. You need to keep a low profile, Chen.
Seeing your current location, you’re planning to go today, too, aren’t you?"
Chen Chuan replied, "Yes."
Ni Qianqian urged him, "Then maybe just skip it today. Go back to the Academy and take a day to relax. It’s not a big deal if you miss these matches..."
At that moment, the convoy was less than halfway to the arena. They were approaching an intersection where the green light was about to begin its ten-second countdown, and the vehicles were accelerating to get through.
At that exact moment, however, the driver of the lead car noticed a shadow fall over him. He looked up to see a vehicle tumbling through the air, crashing down right toward him. His face paled in terror.
He never imagined that a car would come flying out of the sky while he was driving along normally. He slammed on the brakes and wrenched the steering wheel, sending his car into a sideways skid.
But the car behind him couldn’t dodge it. With a deafening CRASH, the flying vehicle smashed onto its hood, and the cars following behind couldn’t stop in time, triggering a chain-reaction collision.
Chen Chuan stared ahead. "Sorry, Sister Ni," he said. "I’m afraid I can’t promise you that." Just as the words left his mouth, he realized his Realm Token had suddenly disconnected. It wasn’t just his; every student on the bus experienced the same thing.
It hadn’t been just one car. Several vehicles had been thrown, landing in the middle of the road. Combined with the pile-up, they had brought the entire intersection to a standstill.
Then, a figure could be seen standing atop an overturned truck. He wore a blue, open-front training tunic with a white lining, cinched at the waist. Its wide, half-length sleeves billowed in the wind, and a hammer hung from his belt.
The towering figure, at least 2.1 meters tall, was immensely intimidating at a glance. His gaze swept over the wrecked vehicles before finally locking onto one of the buses.
As if sensing something, Chen Chuan stood up. He picked up his Snow Monarch Blade and said politely to the driver, "Sir, could you please open the door?"
The driver glanced at his uniform and immediately opened the door.
Chen Chuan stepped off the bus. He first looked toward the chaos up ahead, then, under the watchful eyes of the other students, began walking toward the distant intersection, blade in hand. fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm
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