Chapter 409 - 409: The Mysterious Boy - Tian Shu

Translator: CinderTL

Feng Qi understood the situation perfectly.

According to the Tiger Soul Research Institute's records, Tian Shu's power was described as "extremely terrifying," beyond the detection capabilities of current instruments, and his origins remained a complete mystery.

He was one of the first humans imprisoned in the institute's dungeons shortly after its establishment.

He had been alive for over 400 years.

Even the current dean of the Tiger Soul Research Institute didn't know the full extent of Tian Shu's power. All they knew was that Tian Shu had initially come to the institute voluntarily and chosen self-imprisonment.

Information about him was only known to the Tiger Soul High Command during the institute's early days, and no detailed records existed in the database.

After hearing the current dean's explanation, Feng Qi became even more intrigued by Tian Shu.

However, before meeting Tian Shu, he decided to return to the academy first.

With the Blood Source Ability at his disposal, he wasn't afraid of Tian Shu's power.

But fearing unforeseen complications, he thought it best to be cautious and bring Mu Qing along for added security.

After all, no matter how strong Tian Shu was, he couldn't possibly be stronger than Mu Qing.

All his sense of danger stemmed from insufficient firepower.

Having Mu Qing meant... boom, bigger, crush!

8:00 PM.

A Tiger Soul Research Institute shuttle pulled up to the main gate of Star City Academy.

Feng Qi and Mu Qing, who had been waiting there, immediately boarded the vehicle. The shuttle then sped toward the Tiger Soul Branch Base.

Before leaving, Feng Qi had requested leave from Bai Fusheng.

Bai Fusheng fully supported his request, having received a call earlier from the current dean of the Tiger Soul Research Institute, informing him of their ongoing collaboration.

After an hour's drive, the Tiger Soul military vehicle entered the branch base.

Upon disembarking, they were led by staff members into the facility and to the entrance of an underground elevator.

The staff member stopped there, explaining that their limited clearance prevented them from accompanying them further.

Feng Qi nodded in understanding, and he and Mu Qing entered the elevator.

As the metal doors slid shut, an electronic voice announced:

"Verifying identity... Identity confirmed. Your clearance level is maximum. You may select any floor."

Feng Qi pressed the button for Level 40.

The Tiger Soul Branch Base had forty underground levels, with the bottom ten levels restricted to authorized personnel only. Access required specific clearance levels.

These floors typically housed vital resources or early, important paper records. The final floor held Tian Shu in confinement.

"Senior sister, if he loses control, I'm counting on you," Feng Qi said.

"No problem," Mu Qing replied confidently, pumping her fist and nodding in assurance.

The elevator descended rapidly. After a brief sensation of weightlessness, a ding announced their arrival, and the metal doors slowly slid open.

Before them stretched a dimly lit corridor.

It was clear no one had been here in ages. The corridor's old-fashioned light bulbs looked like they might outlive him.

As they walked deeper into the corridor, the lights flickered intermittently, as if the bulbs were on the verge of burning out.

The air was dark and damp, and moss had already begun to creep up the walls.

After walking another few dozen meters and rounding a corner, they came to a specially constructed cage.

Over four hundred years had passed, yet the cage still reflected a dark metallic sheen under the corridor lights, showing no signs of corrosion. It was clearly forged from a special metal produced by the Domain Field.

Feng Qi peered through the bars into the pitch-black interior, unable to make out any details.

This surprised him.

His enhanced physique granted him night vision, allowing him to see clearly even in complete darkness.

Yet the specially constructed cage seemed to devour light, preventing even his enhanced vision from penetrating the darkness within.

As if sensing their arrival, movement stirred within the cage.

The clatter of iron chains dragging across the floor echoed through the chamber.

Scanning the surroundings, Feng Qi approached the rusted switch and pressed it.

Click!

With the sound of a circuit connecting, the bulb above the cage flickered to life.

Inside the cage stood a gaunt, emaciated man. His face was deathly pale, marked by a black sigil on his forehead. His long, tangled black hair framed a skeletal frame that appeared to have gone without food for an extended period.

The sudden light made him squint briefly before turning to face them.

Their eyes met. The man's expression remained cold and impassive, and he didn't speak.

As Feng Qi gazed at the man in the cage, he felt an inexplicable sense of familiarity, as if he had seen him somewhere before.

But he was certain they had never met before; this was their first encounter.

As he pondered, the face of a young boy suddenly flashed through his mind.

He remembered where he had seen him before.

Not in another timeline, but in a Dream Realm vision of the future.

More precisely, he had seen the boy in fragmented memories of Mu Yao.

At that time, the boy was still young, but the mark on his forehead was identical in shape and position to the one on the man before him.

He was one of the miracles Mu Yao had sought out.

(Note: This scene appears in Chapters 115 (partial) and 116 (partial), where a mysterious young boy is mentioned.)

In the memory fragment, Mu Yao found the mysterious boy and tried to persuade him.

Throughout the entire exchange, the boy remained focused on eating, completely ignoring Mu Yao.

Faced with the boy's indifference, Mu Yao promptly declared that the boy had tacitly agreed to dedicate the rest of his life to humanity's rise.

The memory fragment abruptly cut off at that point.

Feng Qi had no idea what happened to the mysterious boy afterward.

He never imagined that the mysterious boy from the memory fragment would have imprisoned himself in the underground laboratory of the Tiger Soul Branch Base.

He was deeply puzzled by what had transpired in the interim.

But one thing was certain: since Mu Yao had chosen him as a "miracle," it proved he stood on humanity's side.

Mu Yao, Emperor Ye, the First Scarlet Dean, Mu Qing... these luminaries who had shaped human history all testified to Mu Yao's exceptional judgment.

It was almost as if she were a second time traveler, capable of pinpointing the individuals destined to influence history.

Yet one could also argue that Mu Yao's emergence had transformed them into the tide-riding heroes of history.

"Tian Shu?" he asked, gazing at the emaciated man in the cell.

The clatter of dragging chains echoed as the man called Tian Shu slowly rose to his feet. His gaunt frame was little more than skin and bones, as if his bones might pierce through his skin at any moment.

Standing, Tian Shu remained silent, his gaze fixed on Mu Qing beside him.

As their eyes met, the scarlet light in Mu Qing's eyes flickered, as if she had encountered her destined rival.

As Mu Qing's qi momentum surged higher and higher, a faint purple mist swirled in Tian Shu's eyes, and his own aura shifted.

Roar!

A blurry phantom suddenly materialized above Mu Qing's head, unleashing a ferocious roar at Tian Shu within the prison before dissipating.

The terrifying pressure that erupted in that instant forced Tian Shu to stumble back several steps, a rare look of astonishment crossing his usually impassive face.

"Scarlet Origin?"

Hearing this, Feng Qi was taken aback.

It seemed Tian Shu recognized the Scarlet Rune Crystal embedded in Mu Qing's body.

Seizing the opportunity, Feng Qi immediately called out, "Tian Shu, can we talk?"

Tian Shu's gaze flickered toward him, but after a brief silence, he ignored Feng Qi completely, his attention returning to Mu Qing, his eyes now gleaming with undisguised delight.

Feng Qi: ...

He realized he was being completely ignored. Tian Shu had no intention of acknowledging him whatsoever.

(End of the Chapter)

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