Chapter 183
Chapter 183
Li Shu frowned, gathered his spiritual power to the place where he was grabbed, and shook it off with force, pushing the man away.
In his battle with Professor Fang, Li Shu realized his own shortcomings. This body was too weak, limiting his abilities. Many times, his mind would react, but his body wouldn’t follow, which allowed this man to dominate the fight.
He had underestimated Professor Fang.
In terms of the world’s combat rankings, Professor Fang definitely stood at the top. Dealing with him was much harder than dealing with that brainless tree.
After calming his mind and seeing that everyone had left, Li Shu no longer suppressed his spiritual power. Since Professor Fang had already noticed, if he wanted to understand this power, he might as well let him have a taste.
When the spiritual power erupted, Professor Fang, who had been gaining the upper hand, immediately lost his advantage. But instead of being angry, the man was filled with excitement.
His gaze toward Li Shu grew even more passionate. This person had indeed surprised him. He could feel it—the power emanating from him was something new. He was certain now: this man was not an evolver but a completely different kind of strong individual.
How interesting. This kind of power fascinated him. He had to keep this person. To properly study him, he wouldn’t ruin him all at once. Such excellent experimental material needed to be carefully preserved to ensure the longest usage.
During the fight, Professor Fang’s eyes never left Li Shu, and the crazed look made Li Shu very uncomfortable. He didn’t need to ask to know what was going through this man’s mind.
Thinking of what Gu Lin had suffered under this man’s hands, Li Shu’s expression grew darker.
He gathered his spiritual power into his hands, releasing a bang. This time, it was no joke. Professor Fang had no choice but to dodge. They had been fighting at close range, and Professor Fang had taken advantage of the situation with his subtle moves.
This body’s weaknesses had been fully exploited by the man, limiting Li Shu’s abilities. Now that they had separated, Li Shu had more room for development.
The situation had reversed.
While dodging, Professor Fang suddenly said, “Your abilities are limited by this body. If your body were stronger, you could exert even more power, right?”
It was true. Li Shu could change some things, like the original owner’s constitution. He could just buy a prop card in the system mall, but he wasn’t in the habit of relying on props, and 1314 had overlooked this too.
During a brief pause, Professor Fang continued, “It’s truly fascinating. Your power exists completely independent of your physical body. Are you really not staying? I could modify you to have the most suitable physique, it will be much better than being restricted by your current body and unable to fully unleash your strength.”
“I don’t want to end up like a lab specimen on an operating table and let others cut me open,” Li Shu replied flatly. The cloak’s effect altered his voice, turning it into something unnatural and not like the sound a human would make.
Professor Fang quickly compared the voice with those in his memory, trying to figure out this person’s true identity.
No one appears out of nowhere. As long as this person had lived on this land, there would be traces of him. These traces might be subtle, but Professor Fang could quickly find useful information through these faint clues.
“You shouldn’t say that,” Professor Fang retorted. “You have such great power but can’t fully use it—don’t you find that a pity? If you could wield it all, you would be the undisputed strongest man in the world. You could join any faction, or even create your own. Right now, you’ve come to save people, right? Who commissioned you? If you had more power, who could command you? What do you think?”
He was trying to bait Li Shu into saying more. He didn’t know enough and couldn’t be sure if he could find anything useful from the information he had.
“My affairs are none of your concern.”
After saying this, Li Shu fell silent. He needed to be faster; otherwise, Gu Lin would start to get suspicious.
Meanwhile, A13 and the others followed Li Shu’s instructions and successfully found the exit. Without hesitation, the group eliminated the guards and broke out.
Just as Li Shu had expected, they didn’t encounter many enemies along the way. Despite some injuries, everyone made it out, and the fact that no one died was already a stroke of luck.
After bringing everyone to a safe location, A13 didn’t hesitate to head back. He knew Professor Fang appeared weak, not like a high-level evolver. But having been by his side for so long, A13 knew how skilled he was. He always disguised himself well, and few realized how terrifying his combat abilities were or how abnormal his strength was.
Those who had witnessed it were no longer around to speak of it. Professor Fang rarely acted personally, and A13 believed that even the leaders of the major factions collaborating with him didn’t know this. They all thought they were controlling Professor Fang, unaware that, from the beginning, it was Professor Fang who controlled everything. They were just pawns in his game, blissfully ignorant, thinking they held all the cards, when in truth, they were merely insignificant pieces.
“Where are you going?” someone asked.
“You all go back first. I’m going to wait for that man,” A13 said without revealing his true plan. He was determined to go back in and bring that person out no matter what.
Someone walked up to him and whispered, “You’re going back to the lab, right? We’ll go with you.”
Even in the dark, A13’s vision wasn’t affected. This man was the one who had spoken first earlier. His gaze lingered on the determined face for a moment. A13 didn’t answer his question directly but said, “You take them back.”
“I know what you’re planning. Let me come with you. Don’t worry, we’ll make sure these people return safely. More help means more strength, Brother. Let’s go.”
Li Shu didn’t know that two people were on their way back. Even if he did, he wouldn’t have time to worry about it. Professor Fang was determined to keep him. Aside from the evolvers, all sorts of weapons were aimed at him, while Professor Fang retreated to the side.
Dragging this out wasn’t an option. He had to end it quickly.
While Li Shu was asking 1314 the limit of the power that this world could bear, he was mobilizing his strength. He had to hit with one decisive blow and leave immediately.
Even though there was no wind, his dark cloak fluttered. His spiritual power was compressed to the extreme, and his body was pushed to its limits.
“Boom—”
A huge explosion rang out through the night, and the sudden burst of firelight stood out like a beacon, easily pinpointing the location for those looking.
Li Shu emerged from the smoke and dust while clutching his chest. He no longer cared whether Professor Fang was alive. This body had endured more power than it could handle and suffered severe damage.
Li Shu gave a bitter smile. He had been too reckless this time.
He hadn’t walked far before he encountered the returning A13 and his companion. They quickly walked over. Li Shu suppressed the pain and pretended he wasn’t injured.
These people had disappeared or died for various reasons, so they couldn’t just be brought back carelessly. The disturbance they had caused here was big, and someone would soon come to investigate. They had to leave as quickly as possible.
Li Shu left the arrangements for the group to the two men and didn’t go back with them. In less than an hour, it would be dawn. He had to hurry back.
The meeting was halfway through when Gu Lin suddenly felt his heart skip a beat, as if something had happened. He couldn’t focus on the rest of the meeting. While his mind wandered, someone suddenly came in to report that there had been a large explosion of unknown origin in the eastern district. Many people stood up immediately.
They all knew what was in the eastern district, and no one was more aware than them of the gravity of the situation. Everyone exchanged glances and made a decision in their hearts.
The meeting ended early. For some reason, Gu Lin’s unease grew stronger. He left his subordinates to gather information and hurried back to the Gu family.
On the way, his face remained tense. The night was quiet, and the Gu household was calm, showing no signs of anything amiss. Yet, his unease remained.
He went straight to his room, pausing at the door to take a deep breath before pushing it open.
The slight sound of the door rang out, and Gu Lin stepped inside with his lips pursed together. In order to create a comfortable sleeping environment for the people in the room, the curtains were tightly drawn, all the lights were turned off, and the room was dark.
Gu Lin could hear his own heartbeat that was pounding loudly. His mind raced with countless thoughts, only to have them fade away one by one. He didn’t know why he suddenly felt so panicked, but the first person he thought of was Li Shu.
Before leaving, they had shared a lingering goodnight kiss, and Li Shu had promised to wait for him at home. Li Shu was an ordinary person, and if he had left the house, someone would have noticed. He had arranged for people specifically to ensure Li Shu’s safety, and on the way home, he had already contacted them.
Everything at home was normal. After entering the room, Li Shu hadn’t left again. Logically, he should have felt at ease with this information.
But he didn’t.
The room was very quiet, too quiet, without a single sound, and Gu Lin’s heart sank.
He didn’t dare imagine what would happen if Li Shu had been taken
The hand hanging by his side clenched and then relaxed, then clenched again. After several times, Gu Lin took a step forward. No matter the outcome, he had to check for himself.
During the short walk to the bed, various thoughts flashed through his mind.
There was no one on the bed.
As expected, it was the answer he had anticipated. The bed was messy, clearly showing that its occupant had left halfway through their sleep. Gu Lin reached out to touch it. It was cold and without any warmth, indicating the person had been gone for a while.
He sat by the bedside with his eyelids lowered, concealing all the emotions in his eyes. His face didn’t show any expression, but the tightly clenched fists betrayed his unrest.
It was unknown how long he sat there in the dark, but the lights in the room were suddenly turned on.
Gu Lin stiffened and looked up, only to see a young man dressed in pajamas standing at the door, holding a steaming bowl of noodles.
“Shu Shu?” Gu Lin asked in a hoarse voice.
“It’s me. Why didn’t you turn on the lights when you came back?” As he spoke, Li Shu brought the bowl over.
“Where did you go?” Gu Lin stared at the young man who was walking towards him.
“I was hungry, so I went to the kitchen to make some noodles. Want some?”
Just as the young man put the bowl on the table, the man walked over from behind and embraced him tightly.
I thought you were gone.