Starting from Ainz Ooal Gown, simultaneously traveling through time

Consciousness rises slowly, like a diver sinking into the deep sea.

When familiar senses reconnected with reality, Leylin opened his eyes in his room.

A completely new sense of power surged through my body.

It wasn't just simple muscle expansion, but a deeper kind of resilience and vitality, as if every cell had been tempered and refined.

In his mind, a wealth of ancient techniques and combat experience belonging to "The Lord of the Rings: Rylai's Way" and Valyrian steel forging methods and forbidden blood magic knowledge belonging to "Game of Thrones: Rayleigh's Way" were added.

They are rapidly merging with his existing knowledge of incantations and alchemical conjectures, forming a unique, complex yet infinitely powerful system of power that belongs to him personally.

"I've gotten a lot stronger again..." he muttered to himself, habitually clenching his fist, his knuckles making a slight cracking sound.

In the past, he would probably have rushed to that secret testing ground in the suburbs immediately, eager to test his newly acquired abilities, especially the powerful physique and combat intuition from the Dúnedan Ranger.

But this time, he didn't move.

His greatly enhanced mental strength, having just returned from the shared space, was like the most sophisticated radar, sending him a silent warning.

A feeling of being watched and spied on lingers around me like a persistent, insidious ailment.

This feeling is not unfamiliar; it has appeared and disappeared over the years, but it has never been as clear, as...close as it is now.

"Finally unable to hold back any longer, he's going to show himself?" A knowing glint flashed in Leylin's eyes.

He could almost guess who it was.

That night, in the stillness of the night, the moonlight was obscured by thin clouds, only letting through a hazy, clear glow.

Leylin arrived alone at the abandoned factory area on the outskirts of the city.

This was once his secret testing ground for [Monarch Flame]. Now, only the sound of the wind passing through the cracks in the dilapidated factory buildings makes a low, mournful sound.

He stood in a relatively open space, where the charred marks from the last test still remained.

He didn't look around, but spoke calmly, his voice not loud, yet clear enough to carry in the silence:

"Since you're here, why not come out and have a chat?"

The night wind blew as usual, with only the distant hissing of wild cats as a response.

Leylin remained unmoved and continued, this time with a hint of certainty and a slight sarcasm in his voice.

"Mr. Chu Tianjiao, with your status and abilities, surely you wouldn't just prefer to be a shadowy observer like this, would you?"

The moment the words were spoken, the surrounding wind seemed to freeze for a second.

Immediately afterwards, a figure appeared like a ghost, ten meters in front of him without warning.

The man had his back to him; he was tall and imposing, wearing a black trench coat that looked to be of high quality.

The night breeze rustled through her clothes, giving her a composed and even... deliberately affected air.

A deep, magnetic male voice rang out, speaking at a measured pace, as if reciting a pre-prepared document:

"Lei Lin, male, 15 years old, a first-year student at Shilan Middle School. His father, Lei Xiang, is a mid-level manager at a foreign-invested enterprise; his mother, Yang Qingmei, is a primary school teacher. His family address is Unit 3, Building 7, California Sunshine Community."

The voice paused, as if giving him time to process, before continuing.

"At the age of two, he demonstrated cognitive and learning abilities far exceeding those of his peers, earning him the title of 'child prodigy'."

"At the age of three... during an accidental kidnapping incident, he first displayed extraordinary power. His Word of Power [Jun Yan] erupted unconsciously, causing the five kidnappers and their vehicle to be completely burned, while he miraculously emerged unharmed."

Lei Lin listened quietly, his face expressionless, but in his heart he was thinking: This file has been examined in great detail.

The figure slowly turned around.

Under the moonlight, a face that bore some resemblance to Chu Zihang was revealed, but appeared more mature and weathered.

The difference is that Chu Zihang's coldness carries the sharpness of youth, while the man in front of him has a deeper indifference that has been polished by the years and complex experiences.

He was wearing sunglasses that covered half of his face (wearing sunglasses in the middle of the night... Lei Lin thought to himself).

He had an unlit cigar dangling from the corner of his mouth, and the outline of a sheathed longsword was faintly visible under the hem of his trench coat.

"Show-off." Lei Lin silently labeled him in his mind.

Chu Tianjiao (undoubtedly him) seemed quite satisfied with the effect he had created in his entrance.

He took two steps forward, twirling the cigar between his fingers.

"Awakened at the age of three, and with a high-risk Word of Power like [Jun Yan]..."

"Kid, do you know what the most likely outcome would be for someone like you, an 'unstable element,' especially since you were just an uncontrollable young child at the time, according to the standard procedures of certain departments?"

Without waiting for Leylin's reply, he continued, "It's containment, observation, and even... 'detoxification'."

"If I hadn't been in charge of the assessment at the time, and hadn't thought that although you awakened your power early in an alarming way, your emotional reactions and thought patterns were unusually stable, almost like a three-year-old, and hadn't strongly advocated for observation... you probably wouldn't be standing here now."

"Oh?" Leylin raised an eyebrow, his tone flat. "Then should I thank Uncle Chu for his 'mercy' back then, and for his 'care' over the years?"

"Cough...cough cough!" Chu Tianjiao seemed to choke on those words, and coughed twice as if he was being choked by non-existent smoke while pretending to smoke a cigar.

"No need for that. After all, you were just an ignorant kid back then, and now you're classmates with my silly boy... As long as you don't do anything reckless, I won't bother."

"Uncle Chu really knows everything about my family," Lei Lin said, his tone ambiguous, whether it was a sigh or a probe.

"It's my duty." Chu Tianjiao took off his cigar and toyed with it between his fingers.

"Your parents, Lei Xiang and Yang Qingmei, are actually of mixed race."

"It's just that his bloodline is pitifully thin, belonging to the kind of 'blank slate' that can't even ignite his golden eyes naturally and will never realize his own abnormality in his entire life."

"In the file, it's just a note like 'potential genetic source'."

His gaze, peering through his sunglasses, seemed to be re-examining Leylin, his tone filled with obvious disbelief.

"Logically speaking, the offspring of such a couple would be lucky to maintain a C-grade bloodline. But you, kid..."

He shook his head: "I've seen a lot of strange things over the years, but something like you... two 'blank slates' producing a monster that is at least A-level, or even higher, is truly a first."

"What is this? A genetic mutation? Or the legendary 'atavism'? It's like... a born saint."

"I wouldn't presume to call myself a saint," Leylin chuckled. "I'm just an ordinary student, at most... a little more mature than my peers, and a little luckier."

Leylin extended his thumb and forefinger, making a "just a little bit" gesture.