Chapter Nineteen: The Echo of Fortunate Fate

“Click!”

With a soft sound, Fang Can pushed open the door and stepped inside.

Calmly surveying the scenes within, everything was arranged exactly as it had been when he left—no changes whatsoever.

Yet, his steadily heightening intuition was frantically warning him that a fierce beast lurked inside the house, one capable of killing him in an instant.

At this moment, Fang Can’s physical fitness had surpassed that of an ordinary person by more than threefold. The only beings who could pose such a threat were those with supernatural abilities.

“Since I’ve been following the routine since returning, there’s no reason for a superpowered individual to have tracked me down. And this kind of stealth isn’t typical of any official agency, which means...”

Thinking back to the pillar of flame that ascended in the city earlier today, Fang Can’s understanding deepened, yet another thought quickly surfaced.

“Why would the defeated superpowered individual just happen to end up at my house? Logically, under my current reversal-of-fortune state, my luck shouldn’t be this bad...”

In this reversal-of-fortune state, all of Fang Can’s hidden attributes were improving, including his luck.

Having spent much of today in this state, and given his luck, such a superpowered individual should have gone to anyone else’s home but his—unless... that superpowered person was carrying something of value.

Recalling the familiar oppressive aura and harboring a suspicion, Fang Can expressionlessly pulled three one-hundred-yuan bills from his pocket.

Gazing at the cash, he silently thought:

“Let’s test my luck. If the bills land face up, it means my guess is right; if not, then it’s wrong.”

With that silent prayer, under the watchful gaze of the hidden presence, Fang Can tossed the bills into the air.

After fluttering briefly, all three bills landed face up.

Satisfied with the orientation of the notes, Fang Can nodded naturally, then, too lazy to bend down and pick them up, he tossed his bag aside and began his martial practice.

A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step; every moment must be cherished.

Since this hidden observer had awakened his genius state, he might as well practice his techniques several more times in this condition.

Thus, fully aware that someone watched nearby, Fang Can appeared oblivious to all else, assuming the opening stance of the Sixty-Six Tiger Claw Fist and began practicing without regard for his surroundings.

---

“Is this guy out of his mind?”

From a slightly ajar wardrobe in the shadows, a pair of bright eyes watched the young martial artist.

By sight alone, she could tell he was a newcomer who had just entered the initial stage of corporeal transformation, yet each of his moves defied her expectations.

First, upon entering the door, he suddenly paused as if sensing something amiss, yet still walked inside.

Then, inexplicably, he threw three bills onto the floor, and right after, he began practicing martial arts. These three actions seemed completely unrelated.

“However, his movements are quite standard.”

Peering through the wooden wardrobe, Jiang Ning’an silently admired Fang Can’s technique.

Though he was relatively old—eighteen years—yet still hadn’t shed his mortal body, his every move revealed careful attention to form.

Aside from a couple of flaws during transition moves, the rest resembled textbook perfection.

Meanwhile, Fang Can thought to himself:

“Let me deliberately expose a few flaws. If the person hiding there is who I suspect, they should pretend to be an elder and offer some guidance.”

“Then I can gracefully back down, giving them face, which will make what follows much easier.”

With this scheme in mind, Fang Can forced his nearly flawless movements to show slight imperfections, purposely giving the hidden figure a chance to play the mentor.

Sure enough, as he finished his first round of fist techniques, a cold female voice came from behind:

“Your fists harbor seven flaws, all stemming from imperfect transitions. You need more patient refinement.”

At the sound behind him, Fang Can paused his finishing move and calmly turned to face the unexpected visitor.

The first glance revealed a pale young woman dressed in plain white robes, her hair flowing down her back. She sat poised on the sofa, staring distantly at him.

Her lips pressed lightly as she scrutinized the youth, faintly frowning, she said, “Aren’t you surprised by my arrival?”

Fang Can nodded slightly, feeling somewhat relieved. At least the fact she initiated conversation meant she wasn’t about to kill him outright. He could afford to test the waters with some cautious probing.

“I sensed someone had entered when I came back.”

“You’re the one who fought those superpowered individuals today, aren’t you?”

“If I’m right, you probably arrived here about seven hours ago, right? Also from Dayan? Or perhaps from the neighboring boundary of Great Zhou?”

---

Fang Can studied her expression carefully and replied, “It seems to be Dayan.”

His few words exposed her completely, causing the woman’s face to tighten with vigilance.

Her pale fingers gripped a long sword, ready to strike at any moment.

“Don’t worry. I’m not affiliated with the authorities—otherwise, you wouldn’t have escaped.”

Seeing her tense stance, Fang Can didn’t appear the weaker party. He waved his hand gently to calm her.

“If you don’t want the officials to find out, I advise you not to make a big scene. Because, barring accidents, we’re going to be sharing a space for quite some time.”

“We’re all ants on the same string. You saw the techniques I just practiced—pure Dayan style. If I’m discovered, I won’t escape either. So for now, you can trust that I won’t betray you.”

Jiang Ning’an’s gaze fixed tightly on Fang Can’s expression. After a long silence, she finally spoke:

“What are those people outside? Where exactly is this place? Why am I here? What are superpowered individuals? Those people clearly don’t even have corporeal transformation, yet how can they wield the Heavenly Phase?”

“So many questions. Let’s take them one at a time,” Fang Can said, frowning slightly. Explaining these matters to someone who had never experienced modern society was complicated.

Moreover, he suspected she was illiterate like the other martial artists he’d met, which only added to the difficulty.

“In simple terms, you can think of this as a world apart from Dayan. In this world, there’s no concept of martial arts, only naturally gifted superpowered individuals born with elemental control.”

Jiang Ning’an murmured softly, recalling the people she had encountered at noon, nodding in agreement with Fang Can’s explanation.

“As for why you came here, I don’t know either. I suddenly arrived in Dayan seven days ago and only after seven days of martial training did I…”

“You’re lying!”

Before Fang Can could finish, Jiang Ning’an pressed her sharp sword against his neck.

“With your martial skills, there’s no way you arrived in Dayan just seven days ago. That proves you’re lying.”