Morning sunlight slowly spread across the city, illuminating streets filled with busy commuters and students rushing to school. Cars honked in traffic, shop owners opened their stores, and the normal rhythm of daily life continued.
Yet, beneath the surface of ordinary routine, a strange rumor had begun spreading.
A rumor about a "superhuman."
The Story Begins
The story started late the previous night.
One of the men who had fled the alley encounter had run several blocks before finally collapsing onto a sidewalk bench, breathing heavily.
His hands trembled.
His mind replayed the scene over and over again.
The calm boy.
The effortless movements.
His two companions collapsing without even landing a proper hit.
It felt unreal.
Eventually, he met up with a few friends at a late-night food stall.
They noticed his pale face immediately.
"What happened to you?" one asked.
"You look like you saw a ghost."
The man gulped down a glass of water before speaking.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you."
Another friend laughed.
"Try us."
The man hesitated.
Then he said quietly,
"We were in an alley... and some kid beat all three of us."
The table burst into laughter.
"A kid?"
"Don't tell me a middle schooler scared you."
But the man's expression didn't change.
"I'm serious."
His voice trembled slightly.
"He didn't even fight us properly."
"What do you mean?"
The man leaned forward.
"He just touched them."
The laughter slowly faded.
"And?"
"And they dropped."
Silence filled the table.
"Like they fainted?"
"No."
The man shook his head slowly.
"Like their bodies just… shut down."
One of the listeners frowned.
"You're exaggerating."
"I wish I was."
The man looked around nervously.
"He wasn't normal."
Another friend smirked.
"What, some kind of kung fu master?"
The man whispered.
"No."
His eyes were still filled with fear.
"A superhuman."
The Rumor Spreads
By morning, the story had already traveled through several circles of people.
From the food stall to a group chat.
From the group chat to social media.
From social media to curious students.
Of course, each person who retold the story added their own exaggerations.
Some claimed the mysterious boy could knock people out without touching them.
Others said he moved so fast he disappeared.
One version even claimed he could control energy like lightning.
Naturally, most people treated the rumor as a joke.
But it still caught attention.
Especially among students.
At School
Inside Lin Tian's classroom, the usual morning chatter was unusually loud.
Several students gathered around one desk.
"Did you see this?"
One boy held up his phone.
"Look at this post!"
Another leaned closer.
"Oh yeah, I saw that."
"They're saying there's some superhuman in the city."
A girl laughed.
"Superhuman? Like in movies?"
"Apparently he knocked out three guys by just touching them."
Someone scoffed.
"That's fake."
Another shrugged.
"Still kinda cool though."
"What if it's real?"
The group laughed again.
Just then, a quiet voice came from behind them.
"What's real?"
Everyone turned.
Lin Tian had arrived.
His schoolbag rested casually on one shoulder.
His expression looked calm as usual.
One of the boys grinned.
"Lin Tian, perfect timing!"
He showed his phone.
"Look at this crazy rumor."
Lin Tian glanced at the screen.
A social media post read:
"Mysterious Superhuman Appears in East District – Three Men Knocked Out Instantly."
Below it were dozens of comments arguing about whether the story was real or fake.
Lin Tian read the post silently.
Then he shrugged.
"Probably fake."
The boy nodded.
"That's what I said."
Another student laughed.
"If superhumans were real, the world would be chaos."
Lin Tian smiled faintly.
But he didn't say anything.
A Different Reaction
Not everyone dismissed the rumor so easily.
In another classroom across the building, Mei Lin sat quietly near the window.
She was scrolling through the same post.
Her expression was thoughtful.
A friend beside her leaned over.
"You saw the rumor?"
Mei Lin nodded slightly.
"What do you think?"
Her friend laughed.
"I think people are bored."
But Mei Lin didn't laugh.
Instead, she remembered something.
The alley.
The calm boy.
The effortless movements.
The faint trace of energy she sensed afterward.
She looked at the photo attached to the post.
It showed the alley where the incident had happened.
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"It's him," she thought.
She couldn't be certain.
But her intuition told her the rumor was connected to Lin Tian.
And if that was true…
Things were far more interesting than anyone realized.
The Online Debate
By afternoon, the rumor had grown even larger online.
People began analyzing the story seriously.
Some users tried to debunk it.
Others insisted it must be real.
A popular comment read:
"Maybe it's a hidden martial arts master."
Another said:
"If someone can knock people out with a touch, that's some kind of nerve technique."
Someone else posted:
"Or maybe it's fake and the guy just ran away."
But then a new comment appeared.
"I live near that alley. Ambulances picked up two unconscious guys last night."
That comment quickly gained attention.
More people joined the discussion.
The rumor refused to disappear.
Lin Tian's Perspective
Meanwhile, Lin Tian sat quietly on the rooftop of the school during lunch break.
He looked down at the busy courtyard below.
Students walked around laughing and talking.
No one paid attention to him.
Just the way he preferred.
He had already seen the rumor.
But it didn't concern him much.
"Humans love stories," he thought.
"They'll forget soon."
Still, he made a mental note.
Next time, he would need to be more careful.
Even small actions could create waves.
He looked toward the distant sky.
His cultivation path required secrecy.
At least for now.
Until his strength fully returned.
Hidden Observers
Unbeknownst to Lin Tian, the rumor had attracted attention from more than curious students.
Inside a quiet office building in another part of the city, several people sat around a table.
A large screen displayed the same social media post.
One man adjusted his glasses.
"This is the third report this month."
Another frowned.
"Probably just exaggeration."
But a woman shook her head.
"No."
She tapped the screen.
"Two victims were hospitalized with temporary nervous system shutdown."
The room fell silent.
One of the older men leaned forward.
"You're suggesting…"
The woman spoke calmly.
"Someone used a pressure-point technique far beyond normal martial arts."
The older man folded his hands.
"Track the source."
Another person asked,
"What if it's just coincidence?"
The older man replied quietly,
"If someone with abilities like that exists…"
His voice became serious.
"We need to know."
Rumors Become Legends
By evening, the rumor had transformed into something larger.
Some called the mysterious figure:
The Alley Phantom.
Others preferred:
The Silent Superhuman.
Most people laughed at the idea.
But the story continued spreading.
Growing.
Changing.
Becoming something almost mythical.
And all the while—
The person at the center of the rumor walked home calmly from school.
Lin Tian carried his bag and looked completely ordinary.
No one passing him on the street would ever guess.
That the "superhuman" everyone talked about…
Was simply a quiet student walking under the setting sun.
A Storm Approaches
That night, Lin Tian returned to the hill outside the city for training.
The sky above glittered with countless stars.
He sat cross-legged on the grass.
Cosmic energy slowly gathered around him.
Flowing into his body.
His cultivation continued growing steadily.
But far away in the city…
More people were beginning to search for answers.
Rumors were spreading.
Eyes were watching.
And forces Lin Tian hadn't yet noticed…
Were slowly turning their attention toward him.
The calm before the storm had begun.