The scream ripped through the air.
Shen Wan'er's mind went blank as she watched the scar-faced man charge at her, the cold glint of the spring dagger flashing straight toward her chest.
She couldn't dodge.
Her legs felt nailed to the ground.
Death rushed at her in a single step.
"Mr. Shen—!"
Zhang Qing screamed in terror, instinctively trying to pull Shen Wan'er back, but it was too late.
The blade was already less than a meter away.
And then—
Bang!
A dull, explosive sound echoed.
The scar-faced man flew backward as if hit by an invisible hammer, his body crashing into the ground several meters away. The dagger spun through the air and clattered uselessly across the floor.
The entire lobby froze.
Everyone stared in disbelief.
Xiao Lin stood in front of Shen Wan'er.
His right fist was still clenched, veins faintly bulging, his breathing steady.
For a moment, no one could process what they had just seen.
He… punched him away?
With one hit?
"That… that's impossible…"
Someone muttered in shock.
The scar-faced man lay on the ground, coughing violently, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. His eyes were filled with fear as he looked at Xiao Lin, as if he had just seen a monster.
Xiao Lin slowly lowered his fist.
His heart was pounding, not from fear—but from excitement.
He had moved on instinct.
He didn't think.
He didn't hide.
He just… acted.
And in that instant, something inside him snapped free.
Shen Wan'er stared at Xiao Lin's back, stunned.
He had saved her.
This unreliable, stubborn security guard… saved her.
Her lips trembled slightly. "You…"
Xiao Lin turned around, his expression serious, his tone firm.
"Mr. Shen, please go back inside. Leave this to me."
His voice carried a confidence that made people subconsciously want to obey.
Shen Wan'er hesitated for half a second, then nodded.
"…Be careful."
Zhang Qing hurriedly pulled her away, her legs still shaking.
The crowd erupted into chaos.
"What's going on?!"
"He just sent someone flying!"
"Is he human?!"
Fear spread faster than anger now.
But before things could calm down—
Another figure suddenly rushed out.
Then another.
And another.
Three people lunged forward at the same time, their eyes dull, movements stiff yet vicious, attacking Xiao Lin from different angles.
Xiao Lin's pupils shrank.
So there were more.
As expected.
A cold smile flickered across his face.
"Finally stopped pretending?"
He stepped forward instead of retreating.
His body twisted unnaturally fast, dodging one punch, his elbow slamming into another attacker's throat. A sharp crack sounded as the man collapsed, foaming at the mouth.
The third attacker pulled out a metal baton and swung it down with full force.
Xiao Lin raised his arm.
Clang!
The baton bent.
The attacker screamed as his wrist shattered.
Silence fell.
Complete, suffocating silence.
The remaining troublemakers backed away in terror.
This wasn't a security guard.
This was a monster.
Under the distant tree.
Mei Xue's pupils shrank sharply.
"So this is… a master…"
Even without releasing his aura, Xiao Lin's control of strength, speed, and timing was terrifyingly precise. He wasn't reckless. Every move was efficient, lethal, restrained only by circumstance.
He was deliberately holding back.
"…No wonder."
Her fingers clenched.
At the same time, a calm voice sounded beside her.
"See?"
Gu Yan watched the scene with interest, hands in his pockets, eyes faintly amused.
"This is just the surface."
Mei Xue swallowed unconsciously.
"…He hasn't gone all out."
Gu Yan smiled.
"Of course not. Killing these people would be meaningless."
He tilted his head slightly, eyes narrowing.
"But tonight—he won't have a choice."
Back in the lobby, Xiao Lin stood alone amid fallen bodies.
Security guards stared at him in shock.
The crowd no longer dared to approach.
Xiao Lin exhaled slowly, suppressing the violent energy surging within him.
His gaze drifted upward… toward the direction where Shen Wan'er had disappeared.
A faint warmth flickered in his chest.
But deep in the shadows—
Something darker was already moving.
And the real test…
had only just begun.