Chapter 1 The Arena

In the arena, Hao Ren and Nolan stood facing each other, surrounded by a circle of jeering mercenaries.

Hao Ren had no idea how things had developed to this point. Frankly, he didn't like being watched—he'd had enough of being in the spotlight and now just wanted to quietly investigate. But the data terminal was right; there was something strange about this girl named Nolan. Although she didn't seem to be influenced by a Guardian, she possessed abilities beyond her age and status.

Direct contact was the best way to test her. If Nolan was indeed influenced by supernatural forces, Hao Ren was confident he could identify it instantly. After all, this wasn't his first time dealing with "Guardians."

Yes, he planned to provoke her a little during the fight, to see if Nolan would use any superhuman powers in a dangerous situation.

Nolan held out a hand to Hao Ren in invitation: "You're the guest. You go first."

Hao Ren frowned. He was thinking about how to make sure Nolan didn't notice his own abnormal abilities, while also forcing out the girl's hidden power. The conclusion was that he had to turn off his rigid shield first. He couldn't exactly explain it as ascension if he started glowing gold while fighting.

After turning off the shield, Hao Ren cautiously and quickly stepped forward, throwing a plain, unremarkable straight punch. He hadn't received any professional combat training, but the enhancements to his body allowed him to control his strength as precisely as the best martial arts masters, and he also had reaction speeds and agility beyond ordinary people. Coupled with more than a year of experience in various dangerous situations, Hao Ren's mentality was no longer what it used to be. He was confident that his superhuman physical strength alone would be enough to deal with this little girl.

But the next moment, he found that Nolan had twisted her body at an awkward angle to dodge his punch. Almost at the same time, he felt a sting in his ribs. Nolan had taken advantage of Hao Ren's arm blocking his vision to calculate a sneak attack, using a swift and forceful chop to his ribs.

After two muffled thuds of flesh colliding, Hao Ren immediately retreated, the ache in his ribs quickly dissipating. Although he had turned off all his protective skills, his enhanced body was still beyond Nolan's ability to injure with her fists. Even if she used all her strength, she could only make him feel a little pain. But he was very surprised in his heart. In the brief exchange just now, Hao Ren had discovered something terrifying: Nolan's fighting skills were shockingly high, even reaching the level of precognition and instant calculation. Every move he made seemed to have been sketched in Nolan's mind countless times. As soon as he raised his hand, Nolan had already prepared her counter!

Was it pure skill? Some kind of precognitive ability? Or experience?

Nolan's gaze towards Hao Ren was also very strange. She didn't notice anything abnormal about his physique, but she judged from experience that this was actually a combat amateur: although he had extremely fast reactions and speed, and his posture might be able to fool anyone, it couldn't fool Nolan. She saw at a glance the weakness in Hao Ren's technique hidden beneath his superior power.

Was this really a pure natural human?

The jeering mercenaries around couldn't see what was going on. They were just shouting slogans to cheer on their boss. Seeing that the two on the field weren't putting on much of a show, they even started yelling in an attempt to stir things up. But Nolan and Hao Ren were each focused. Hao Ren realized that Nolan was probably not as easy to deal with as he had imagined, while Nolan was starting to suspect Hao Ren's identity as a "natural human."

A natural human without physical modification could not possibly have such reaction speed and physical strength.

The two reorganized their stances and exchanged blows again. This time, they both brought out their true strength, and the arena was immediately filled with a continuous series of "bang bang" sounds. But most of these sounds were not the sound of hitting flesh, but only the sound of fists cutting through the air. Both sides realized that the other was not easy to deal with, so they tried to avoid head-on confrontations as much as possible. The fight looked lively, but there was very little physical contact. The mercenaries around started out yelling chaotically, but soon their movements diminished. This kind of fighting was a little beyond their understanding.

A superhuman in terms of physique, a monster in terms of experience—the scene of the two of them seriously fighting was completely different from the usual brawls of these mercenaries.

Hao Ren and Nolan moved back and forth across the field, neither with fixed routines or moves, but every attack and defense was exceptionally precise and concise. Stripped of flashy movements, there was only the simplest and most practical offense and defense. This was a combat technique that absolutely adhered to pragmatism, without any artistry, but more effective than anything else on the battlefield. Some of the mercenaries couldn't understand what was happening at all, while others smacked their lips after realizing the strength of both sides: "So, the boss wasn't serious when he usually beat us up?"

"I feel like the boss is pretty serious when he beats me up..."

"Get lost. You're only serious when you're getting beaten."

Ulanov quietly watched the scene before him, his expression hidden by his mask: "Is that guy really a natural human?"

Hao Ren's forehead was sweating, but it was more from tension. He had realized that he was worlds apart from the little girl in front of him in terms of skill and experience. Although he didn't know how she had trained, he needed to use all his skills to maintain his suppression of Nolan without using supernatural abilities. He was now relying entirely on his superhuman physical qualities to maneuver with her, using pure strength and speed to make up for his technical deficiencies.

If he couldn't see through the other party's actions, he would simply rely on his nerve reflexes to keep up with Nolan's movements. That was Hao Ren's current state.

Nolan was also sweating, but her expression remained as wooden as ever, her surprise completely hidden in her eyes. Her gray ponytail had come undone in the fight, and wet hair stuck to her face, but she didn't have time to tidy it up. She had hit her opponent more than once, attacking joints and nerves that could instantly incapacitate someone, but these attacks had not been effective. She didn't know why, and the situation meant she could only continue fighting like this.

After passing each other, Nolan found another gap to attack. This time, she seemed determined to knock Hao Ren down. Taking advantage of the opponent's inattention, she swung a sharp whip kick. But Hao Ren, at this moment, wasn't paying attention and subconsciously raised the thought of "defense."

As soon as this thought arose, a faint light appeared on his body.

"Crap!" The moment Hao Ren's brain registered those words, Nolan kicked out. He quickly retracted his shield, but the opponent's attack had already arrived.

With a solid thud, Hao Ren was pushed back half a step by the impact, while Nolan stumbled and almost fell. At the last moment, she barely managed to stand, but one of her legs hung down unnaturally.

The surrounding mercenaries were confused, because everything had happened in a flash, and the onlookers couldn't see what had happened at all.

Hao Ren immediately stepped forward to support Nolan, because he saw the girl's body swaying, and she might fall down in the next second. But Nolan took the initiative to put her hand on his shoulder before Hao Ren could reach out. It looked like they were just greeting each other after a normal sparring match, and she stabilized her body in this way without revealing anything.

"Draw," Nolan said expressionlessly to the people around her, then waved her hand forcefully. "I'm tired today. Dismissed."

The mercenaries stirred, but the "boss's" prestige still had an effect. These big-headed soldiers who had been taught to be very obedient only complained a few times before dispersing. In the end, only one person was left at the scene—not Ulanov, but a dark-skinned middle-aged woman: the doctor.

"Help me over there," Nolan whispered in Hao Ren's ear, pointing to a pile of discarded steel not far away.

The two came to a place where they could rest, and the "doctor" followed them silently. Nolan maintained a calm expression throughout, and tried her best to maintain her usual posture when walking, but she still hissed in pain after finding a place to sit. The "doctor" didn't say anything, but silently took out a portable syringe, loaded it with a tube of medical nanites, and held it against Nolan's ankle: it was already visibly swollen.

"Mild fracture, requires fifteen minutes to repair," the "doctor" muttered after injecting Nolan with the "medicine." After saying that, she walked away without asking anything.

"What was that just now?"

Nolan's voice came from the side.