Am I a Kamen Rider or the real young master who was switched at birth?

The road ahead was no longer a smooth municipal road, but a cement road riddled with potholes.

Clumps of short wild grass grew in the cracks in the road surface, and you could feel the bumps when the wheels rolled over them.

The surrounding buildings have also changed imperceptibly. High-rise buildings have been left behind, replaced by rows of uneven self-built houses.

Some are covered with yellowed white ceramic tiles, while others are simply bare exposed concrete.

The power lines stretched haphazardly from each utility pole, forming a dense black spiderweb overhead.

Lin Yumin sat in the passenger seat, one hand gently resting on the edge of the window, her gaze sweeping over the low buildings outside.

Her expression was calm, but her perception was sharper than usual.

She could sense that the environment outside the car was becoming increasingly complex, an aura that only awakened beings could perceive.

She tapped her fingers lightly on her knee twice without saying anything.

After a while, Ye Yang parked the car on a vacant lot on the side of the road that could barely be considered a parking space, and then opened the car door and jumped out.

He stepped onto the concrete ground, stretched, then put his hands on his hips and looked up at the bustling downtown area in front of him.

The steamer baskets selling breakfast at the alley entrance were still steaming, and the old mechanic in front of the auto repair shop was banging something with a wrench while smoking a cigarette. Several layers of people had already gathered around the chess stall.

The air was filled with the aroma of fried dough sticks, the bitter scent of mugwort, and the cumin fragrance wafting from the barbecue stalls.

He sniffed, and the corners of his mouth unconsciously turned up. "It's been a long time since I've been here."

After saying that, he turned to look at Lin Yumin, who had just gotten out of the passenger seat, and then at Lin Xingran and Lin Ying, who were closing the car door in the back. He gestured with his chin toward the downtown area, signaling everyone to follow.

Lin Xingran climbed out of her red supercar, pushed her sunglasses up over her head, then put her hands on her hips and looked up at the chaotic downtown area in front of her.

"What the heck—did you come to the right place? Aren't all the masters hidden deep in the mountains and forests? That's how it's written in novels! They either build a thatched hut on a mountaintop or a bamboo house at the bottom of a canyon. Is this the right place? This is clearly an urban village!"

Ye Yang turned to look at her, his smile deepening.

"Don't worry, you won't go wrong following me. The people here are very welcoming, and I learned many skills here. I learned how to modify cars from the bald old man at the alley entrance, how to juggle from the old man selling sugar figurines next to the chess stall, and how to imitate other people's speech from the homeless man at the very end of the alley."

"Let's go buy a braised chicken first—it's my master's favorite. With that, everything will be easier."

Ye Yang held up a finger and shook it, his expression mysterious as if he were imparting some secret technique.

"That old man has a really strange temper. You can scold him, tell him he's ugly, or say he's unreliable, and he won't get angry. But if you starve him, he can get mad at you all day."

After saying that, he took the lead and walked into the bustling downtown area. The three Lin sisters exchanged glances.

Lin Yumin's keen senses made her unconsciously tense her shoulders the moment she stepped into this bustling area.

Her deep brown eyes swept over the ordinary-looking old men at the alley entrance, her pupils slightly contracting.

She sensed something, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.

Lin Xingran walked to her side. She took off her sunglasses from her head, twirled them in her hand, and scanned her surroundings warily.

Lin Ying followed her eldest and second eldest sisters with light steps, her light gray eyes constantly observing the surrounding environment.

What she noticed was an older woman selling vegetables by the roadside, who was easily lifting a 30-pound winter melon onto the scale with just one finger.

The three followed Ye Yang into the bustling downtown area.

Ye Yang walked calmly at the front, occasionally waving to the roadside vendors.

As he passed the breakfast stall, the hunchbacked old man frying dough sticks looked up at him, then gestured with his chin toward the depths of the alley and said something.

Ye Yang smiled and nodded, replying, "I brought a friend today." The hunchbacked old man simply said "Oh" and continued flipping his fried dough sticks.

Lin Xingran followed behind, her gaze lingering on the hunchbacked old man for two seconds.

She felt the old man looked familiar, but she couldn't remember where she had seen him before.

The alleys in the bustling city center are very narrow; when there are many people, you have to rub shoulders to walk.

This is the busiest time of the morning, with aunties buying vegetables, young men repairing cars, old men playing chess, and children chasing a tabby cat, filling the entire alley to the brim.

Ye Yang walked at the front, nimbly bypassing every obstacle.

Lin Yumin followed behind him, but she noticed something: many people around her were looking at her and her two younger sisters.

Because the three of them were dressed out of place in this bustling downtown area.

Lin Yumin's dark blue shirt and trench coat were impeccably tailored, while Lin Xingran's burgundy short hair and fashionable outfit clearly indicated that she wasn't from this area. Although Lin Ying dressed more modestly, her long silver-white hair still stood out in the crowd.

Lin Xingran subconsciously put on her sunglasses, but her curiosity still made her look around.

Her gaze stopped in front of a car repair shop, where a bald owner wearing a vest stood.

He looked to be in his forties, with muscles in his arms more defined than a bodybuilder's, and bulging veins on both arms.

He was holding the chassis of a car with one hand, and then easily lifted the whole car up.

He was washing the car chassis with a high-pressure water jet in his other hand, humming an old song whose name he didn't know.

Lin Xingran's chin dropped half a centimeter.

Before she could recover from the shock of the repair shop owner, her gaze was drawn to the chess stall.

Several old men were gathered around a stone table with a chessboard carved on it that was now blurred and indistinct.

An old man with a white beard, fanning himself with a palm leaf fan, fanned himself, and a black piece floated up from the chessboard, drifted steadily in the air for half a circle, and then landed precisely in the center of the chessboard.

A bald old man on the other side snorted, flicked his finger lightly in the air, and a white piece flew up and landed next to a black piece with a thud.

A passing child ran over, leaned over to the chess stall, and looked at it for a few seconds. Then he pointed at the chessboard and said, "Grandpa, you made a mistake. You should have moved it here." Then he gently flicked his finger, and the chess piece flew to the spot he pointed to.

Lin Xingran silently turned her head back and rubbed her eyes hard. "Big sister—don't you feel like something's not right here?"

She leaned closer to Lin Yumin and whispered, "That mechanic just lifted a car with one hand. And those old men playing chess used telekinesis to move the pieces. That's an ability only awakened spiritual beings have, right? They used it to play chess???"

Lin Yumin did not answer her.

Her gaze fell on the old man frying dough sticks at the alley entrance. The old man was using an extremely thin chopstick to flip the dough sticks in the oil, and his movements were so fast that the tip of the chopstick was almost invisible.

Then she saw an older woman selling tofu, who was cutting tofu with a heavy-looking knife.

When the knife fell, the tofu didn't move at all, but the cutting board underneath had already been cut with a thin crack by the knife's energy.

She withdrew her gaze, took a deep breath, and said in a solemn tone, "This place—"

Before she could finish speaking, Lin Ying's voice came softly from the side: "Look at that child—"

She pointed to the roadside. A boy as strong as a calf was squatting against the wall.

He looked to be about eight or nine years old, but his arms were thicker than the thighs of an average adult.

He saw Lin Ying looking at him, so he looked up and gave her a kind smile, with oil stains from the steamed buns still on his lips.

Another little boy next to him was spinning a basketball-sized stone ball around on one finger.

The stone ball floated a few centimeters above his fingertips, spinning rapidly in mid-air and making a buzzing sound.

He saw Lin Ying and the others also raise their heads, revealing the same kind smile.

The two children's smiles were sincere and simple, but their actions created an indescribable contrast in the whole scene.

Lin Xingran felt that his understanding of the phrase "hidden masters among ordinary people" had been refreshed to a whole new level today.

Just as she was about to say something, several greetings came from the chess stall.

The white-bearded old man who had just played chess using telekinesis saw Ye Yang walking through the crowd, raised his fan and waved at him, calling out in a loud and friendly voice:

"Ye Yang, you're here? It's been a long time since I've seen you, you little rascal—I've been pondering that new move you taught me for days, and I've finally found a way to counter it! Let's play a game!"

Ye Yang turned his head, waved towards the chess stall, and replied in a loud voice, "No, no, no—I have something to do today! I'll play with you another day!"

The white-bearded old man nodded, then pointed at him with his fan and said, "Alright, but don't renege on your promise next time." Then he turned back to continue fighting the bald old man with his telekinesis.

While he was talking, the bald old man secretly made an extra move. When the white-bearded old man turned around, he found that the situation on the chessboard was not right, and the two started arguing again.

Ye Yang smiled and shook his head, then continued walking forward.

Lin Yumin followed behind him, her gaze lingering on the white-bearded old man for several seconds.

She noticed a thick callus on the old man's hand holding the fan, around the base of his thumb. That was something that would develop from years of holding a knife.

She didn't know who the old man was, but she was certain that if he were twenty years younger, he could probably beat her in just three moves with one hand.

Just then, Lin Xingran suddenly let out a short scream.

She instinctively grabbed Lin Yumin's sleeve with one hand, while her other finger trembled slightly as she pointed to a bread truck not far away.

"What's wrong?" Lin Yumin stopped and looked in the direction Lin Xingran was pointing.

Lin Ying also stopped, looked at her second sister, and blinked.

Lin Xingran took a deep breath and then lowered her voice to say, "I saw the previous principal."

Lin Yumin and Lin Ying turned their heads to look at Lin Xingran at the same time, and then turned their heads to look in the direction she was pointing.

Lin Yumin frowned slightly, Lin Ying's mouth opened slightly, and Lin Xingran's eyes were so wide they almost popped out.

A white van that looked quite old was parked on the side of the road.

The sliding door on the side of the vehicle was open, and several rows of bread were placed inside the carriage, with a handwritten price tag attached to each type of bread.

An elderly woman in her sixties was standing next to the bread cart.

She was wearing a clean blue apron with a small piece of flour stuck to it.

Her gray hair was pulled back with a headband, revealing her smooth forehead.

Her features were regular and kind, with deep crow's feet at the corners of her eyes, making her look like a kind old lady next door when she smiled.

She was bowing slightly to the passersby, calling out in a gentle voice, "Bread for sale! Bread for sale! Freshly baked bread, piping hot!"

As she bent down to pack bread for a customer, her sleeve slipped up a little, revealing a thin, old scar on her wrist.

Lin Yumin's pupils contracted slightly at the scar.

She recognized the scar.

Every student at the First Federal Military Academy hears a story during their entrance ceremony.

During the "Kowloon City Silent Beast Tide" incident thirty years ago, a female instructor single-handedly covered the rear, sealing off the entire entrance to Kowloon City and covering the evacuation of thousands of civilians.

That female instructor was Tang Yanqiu, who later became the principal of the Federal First Military Academy.

The scar on her wrist was inflicted by the claws of the Silent Beast King during that battle.

She is more senior than Lin Yuanshan, and her students are spread throughout the entire Awakener system, including instructors of Lin Yuanshan and Lin Xingran's generation.

She stepped down as principal ten years ago, and the official announcement stated that she "voluntarily resigned from the position of principal for personal reasons."

The entire faculty and student body assumed that the former principal would go to a quiet resort to enjoy his retirement.

But here she is now, selling bread while wearing an apron.

Lin Xingran's trembling voice squeezed out from between her teeth: "Quickly lower your head—quickly lower your head—don't let her see us—otherwise, how are we supposed to explain—'Hello Principal, we've come here to find the miracle doctor to remove the curse and also to take a stroll around the urban village'—that would be too embarrassing!"

Lin Ying quickly lowered her head, her silver-white hair hanging down to cover her entire face.

She looked at the tips of her shoes, her hands twisted together, her fingers unconsciously pinching the hem of her skirt.

Lin Yumin moved half a step behind Ye Yang, using his shoulder to cover her face, and then lowered her head.

Ye Yang looked back at her in confusion, but Lin Yumin gently nudged the back of his head with her hand, signaling him to keep walking and not stop.

The three of them lowered their heads at the same time and quickly crossed the area where the bread cart was located with the same guilty conscience.

Tang Yanqiu was helping an old lady pack bread when she didn't notice the three furtive figures walking quickly past her stall.

Ye Yang walked in front, glanced back at them, and opened his mouth to ask, "What's wrong with you?" but Lin Xingran shut him up with a "shh".

He scratched the back of his head, deciding not to ask for now, and continued walking towards the braised chicken shop.

When he walked to the bread cart, he made a point of stopping to greet Tang Yanqiu: "Principal Tang, business is good!"

Tang Yanqiu looked up at him, smiled and nodded, then took a freshly baked pineapple bun from the pile of bread and handed it to him, saying, "Here, eat it on the way."

Ye Yang took the pineapple bun, said thank you, and continued walking forward.