Chapter 111: Those Who Refuse to Be Left Behind by Anyone, One Person Alone

Chen Yuan mechanically filled out his personal information, the angry shouts of that Mark still ringing in his ears:

“I’m not a Daya citizen—you have no right to judge me!”

His pen paused on the paper, ink spreading into a small smudge.

“Mr. Chen?”

The Shuxu Bureau staff whispered a reminder.

“Would you like to double-check the bank account number?”

“Ah, yes.”

Chen Yuan hastily replied, his fingertips trembling slightly on the paper.

As he left, the receptionist smiled warmly at him:

“Thank you for safeguarding Daya’s security—the bonus will be deposited within three working days if confirmed.”

That gaze was too perceptive—it made his heart skip.

(He saw through me!)

(They all saw through me!)

These thoughts surfaced unconsciously in his mind, but he suppressed them one by one.

So what if they saw? He hadn’t done anything wrong, had he?

Stepping out of the Shuxu Bureau’s main gate, the late-spring wind carried poplar fluff against his face; Chen Yuan pulled out his phone and stared at the call log from last night with his mother.

Why had he felt regret after that transaction ended?

It was because of this.

On the phone, his mother chattered about sending him homemade sausages, urging him to eat less takeout and not work so hard every day.

“What the hell am I doing?”

In that moment, what surfaced in his mind was remorse for what he had done.

All his earlier thoughts seemed fragile beneath his mother’s voice.

So, after ending the call, he didn’t hesitate—he dialed the Shuxu Bureau.

Chen Yuan stood at the crosswalk waiting for the green light; a mother and son passed by, the boy excitedly holding a windmill toy while his mother carefully shielded him from the crowd.

He watched this scene, a faint smile touching his lips.

Money could indeed improve his and his parents’ lives—but not by earning it this way.

The world was unfair; he truly envied those who had awakened abilities or obtained Celestial Treasures.

But they earned it through luck—his luck was bad, what could he do?

And compared to those who lost family and friends in the Beast Tide, wasn’t he already lucky enough?

The light turned green.

Chen Yuan joined the flow of pedestrians crossing the street.

The Qi tide isn’t just a one-time event—if I can’t awaken now, maybe I will in the future?

Maybe then I’ll awaken a powerful ability.

In the training room of the Imperial Capital Shuxu Bureau:

“Gulping—”

Gu Che tilted his head back and swallowed a vial of Spirit Energy tonic; the moment the liquid entered his belly, violent spiritual energy exploded within him, surging like a flood through every meridian.

Blue-green dragon-scale patterns surfaced on his skin; his muscles swelled and contracted under the spiritual pressure, bones cracking under strain with sharp “crackling” sounds.

“Not enough.”

He clenched his teeth and swallowed three more vials in quick succession; instantly, a spiritual energy storm erupted in the training room, air swirling into vortices as Qi converged toward him.

His body could no longer maintain human form—in a blinding flash of blue light, he fully transformed into a dragon, his long, serpentine body coiled midair, scales gleaming with metallic coldness, each breath causing surrounding Qi to tremble.

“Yin—!”

With a thunderous dragon roar, Gu Che’s spiritual energy finally shattered its limit; a wave of blue energy radiated outward from him, shaking the entire training room into a deep hum.

When the light faded, he had returned to human form, kneeling on one knee, his fist buried deep into the specially reinforced floor.

“Third Stage!”

“I must be Third Stage now!”

Gu Che slowly lifted his head, blue dragon flames flickering in his eyes—he felt his power had multiplied several times over, his spiritual energy surging like an endless river.

According to Daya’s ranking system, he had undoubtedly entered the Third Stage.

He couldn’t help but smile—but the next second, his expression hardened again.

“Still too slow!”

His fist clenched violently, cracks spiderwebbing across the floor with a sharp “crack.”

Third Stage power was top-tier now, with fewer than three above him in Daya—but that’s only within Daya!

Since Sakura Nation revealed two Celestial Treasure bearers, multiple nations have announced their own Celestial Treasure holders.

The Bear Nation possesses Mjolnir from the Marvel world, the British Empire is suspected to hold Excalibur from the Type-Moon universe, Gaul has obtained the Saint Joan template.

The Lighthouse hasn’t announced anything yet, but he was certain the Lighthouse had its own Celestial Treasure bearer.

Though Mjolnir and Excalibur haven’t chosen their masters yet, it’s only a matter of time.

With their power, once chosen, they’ll each wield at least Fourth Stage strength.

All are Celestial Treasure bearers—he refused to fall behind anyone.

Moreover, his target is Ye Xuan, the man universally recognized as possessing the strongest innate talent and one of Daya’s strongest.

If he can’t even catch up to others, how can he ever catch up to Ye Xuan?

“Fourth Stage. Fifth Stage.”

Gu Che stood, blue-green dragon scales rippling across his body once more.

“I must grow stronger faster!”

He craved even greater power.

Not just to catch up to Ye Xuan—but to protect more people when the next Beast Tide comes!

Last Beast Tide, though he slew hundreds of mutated beasts, it was still far too few—far too few compared to their total numbers.

One day, he would suppress all mutated beasts with his own strength alone!

Beneath the training room’s light, his shadow stretched long, like a coiled, ready-to-strike blue dragon.

Jinling Shuxu Bureau, Training Ground:

Amid screeching electrical static, a coin vibrated violently in an electromagnetic field; Lin Ruoxi’s purple hair stood slightly on end from static, one eye narrowed, blue-purple lightning dancing at her fingertip locking the coin in place.

“Bilii—”

With her signature electrical crackle, the coin shot out as a purple beam; the trajectory of her hyper-electromagnetic cannon tore through the air with a thunderous boom, vaporizing the specially designed target three hundred meters away, the shockwave kicking up dust and debris across the entire range.

The monitoring room’s energy detector spiked wildly before freezing at 【32,771 Spirit Pressure Units】—though it surpassed Third Stage standards, Lin Ruoxi remained unsatisfied.

“This is still far behind that guy.”

Lin Ruoxi shook her numb right hand and pulled another coin from her pocket.

“Again!”

Pengcheng Shuxu Bureau, Meditation Room:

Shen Mo sat cross-legged, his Zhanpo Dao resting across his knees; though the room was still, his sleeves stirred slightly, as if pulled by invisible force.

He closed his eyes, sinking his consciousness into the Blade Zen state.

Before him stretched a chaotic void—only the Zhanpo Dao in his hand glowed faintly.

“Not enough.”

“I must become stronger!”

Metropolis, Training Ground:

Lu Jing raised both hands, palms upward—fiery flames erupted instantly!

“Emperor Flame…”

He growled, and the flames surged into a massive fireball over ten meters in diameter, heat warping the air, melting the rocks beneath his feet.

But Lu Jing’s expression remained unsatisfied.

“Power is sufficient—but the casting speed is too slow.”

He recalled Ace’s use of Emperor Flame—that near-instantaneous, terrifying burst was the true essence; his own flames, though powerful, lacked speed—enemies wouldn’t give him time to charge in combat.

I must fully develop the power of the Mera Mera no Mi.

He didn’t want to fall behind anyone.

(End of Chapter)