Chapter 65: True Water Formula (Part III)

Scattered ripples of water seemed to fall into Shuisheng’s veins, infusing him with an endless, surging force.

A powerful wave of supernatural energy burst forth from his entire body. This turbulent surge blew away the foam on his head and face, and even forced the water from the showerhead to reverse its flow, shooting backward.

The cyan, python-shaped supernatural energy that had been coiled around his body snapped apart inch by inch.

A bizarre force followed the reversed water flow all the way up to the second-floor bathroom, surging violently into Chang Bao's chest along with the hand he had pressed into the water.

The rogue cultivator Chang Bao instantly stiffened all over, and blood began to seep from his facial orifices.

At this moment, Shuisheng had not only recovered his strength and his supernatural abilities, but he could also perceive everything around him—every current of water, every wispy vapor—with acute sensitivity. All the surrounding water currents and water vapors seemed to be obeying a command, channeling their power directly into him.

He sensed that a microscopic stream of water, controlled by the "Returning Abyss Departing Water" within his body, was rushing up the water pipes to the second floor, striking against something. That stream of water then continuously exerted force upon that object, sending back wave after wave of energy in a steady feedback loop that nourished his nearly exhausted supernatural powers.

He felt as though he were a patient who had lost too much blood, currently hooked up to a blood bag for a transfusion.

No, it wasn't just a transfusion; he was instinctively plundering the blood of the other end, regardless of whether the other party consented or not.

The other party naturally did not consent and struggled desperately.

Shuisheng felt that he could move again. Just as he wanted to interrupt this phenomenon, a flash of imagery suddenly and inexplicably crossed his mind, appearing and vanishing in an instant along with the energy being drained from the other person. Then, he felt as though something new had embedded itself deep within his consciousness.

On the second floor, Chang Bao was struck by the formidable force carried within the water and momentarily lost consciousness. Blood poured from his facial orifices as his limp body slumped against the wall, sliding down to sit flat on the floor. The water from the showerhead continuously rained down upon him.

Amidst his faint consciousness, he hazily felt his own supernatural abilities being relentlessly dismantled and disintegrated by the influx of external energy. This horrifying sensation spread from his chest all the way through his entire body.

Gripped by a sudden and intense panic, he lunged forward, jolting himself completely awake. But this awakening brought no relief; with a jolt of terror that nearly scared his soul out of his body, he discovered that he could no longer muster even a shred of supernatural energy! He desperately tried again and again, but it was all in vain—there was no supernatural energy whatsoever left in his meridians. None!

In other words, amidst this instantaneous reversal of fortune, he had plummeted from a Level 2 Esper down to an ordinary human being.

It was over! What on earth was going on? What had happened?!

Had he been framed by someone? Wasn't that person downstairs just a kid?

No! That was impossible!

Suspecting he might be dreaming, he slammed his head hard against the bathroom wall. A sharp pain bloomed in his skull, but the reality remained unchanged.

Run! Run immediately!

This was the thought that instantly flashed through his mind!

Regardless of how he had lost his supernatural abilities, his life was still intact. If he waited for the other party's reinforcements to arrive, he would surely be dead meat!

With great difficulty, he climbed up to the bathroom window, intending to jump out the way he had come in. However, the moment he used his arms to support his body and vault onto the windowsill, his chest felt as scalding hot as a boiling cauldron.

Then, fresh blood gushed violently from his mouth and nose like a rising spring.

This was a sign that his internal organs had already been shattered; holding on until now had been nothing more than the last gasp of a spent force.

"What the hell... out of nowhere... ugh..."

Chang Bao only managed to squeeze out these few muffled, slurred words from his throat before pitching forward headfirst, crashing down onto the lawn beside the small building.

"Report, Captain! We have a situation!"

Someone had fallen from a building, and the surveillance personnel in Building 20 immediately spotted the anomaly, hastily reporting to Yan Ning via their walkie-talkie, "Someone just fell from the second floor of Building 19! There's blood everywhere!"

Yan Ning immediately led his men rushing out of Building 20, hurrying toward the scene of the incident.

He dispatched one team to secure the area where Chang Bao had fallen, setting up a cordon around the corpse and strictly forbidding anyone else from approaching. Then, he led the remaining team to charge toward Building 19.

The front door of the small building was bolted from the inside and could not be opened immediately. Left with no choice, he pounded on the door with his fists, thump after thump, creating a thunderous din.

Inside the bathroom, Shuisheng had regained his consciousness, though countless forces seemed to be rampaging through his body, making it difficult for him to control his limbs. Even the simplest movements felt thoroughly uncoordinated.

He had no idea that the attacker on the second floor had already fallen to his death. He only knew that the force attacking him had vanished, and the showerhead in the bathroom had returned to its normal flow.

He only knew that he had seemingly just walked through the gates of hell.

The searing pain in his sternum, the chaotic circulation of blood, and his dizzy head were all lingering aftermaths of the recent peril.

He heard the hurried pounding on the door from outside. Dragging himself along, he managed to dry his body, hastily threw on an old pair of swim trunks, and with a bare chest, staggered out of the bathroom to open the door.

"Are you alright!" The moment the door was pulled open and he saw Shuisheng standing there, the stone in Yan Ning's heart finally dropped. He looked the young man up and down, urgently grabbing his shoulders as if afraid he might run away. "What happened?! Who is the person dead outside? How did he get in?"

"Ouch!" Being grabbed like this immediately aggravated the bruise on his left shoulder and the fracture in his sternum, causing Shuisheng to bare his teeth in pain.

"Sorry! Sorry!" Yan Ning hurriedly let go.

"You're saying there's a dead body outside?" Shuisheng steadied himself and laboriously followed Yan Ning out of the door. At the side-rear of the small building, beneath the window, he saw Chang Bao's corpse.

It was a man in his early thirties with a thin mustache, ordinary features, and wearing a delivery worker's uniform.

In just a few words, Shuisheng told Yan Ning everything he knew. As for who the deceased was, why he had attacked him, and how he had died, he had been in a daze at the time and genuinely had no idea.

"Ah! I get it!" Yan Ning said with a sudden look of realization. "It must have been Mei Yulang who made a move! He actually never left; he's been protecting you from nearby all this time!"

"Right, it must be him," Shuisheng went along with the narrative smoothly. If he didn't explain it this way, there was indeed no other way to account for the scene. Was he supposed to say he suddenly had some profound epiphany? Might as well just stick with this explanation.

Yan Ning felt deeply vexed. The Eldest Miss had issued a strict order to capture this thief, and despite his team keeping close surveillance for days, the thief had struck right under their noses without them noticing a thing.

What a slap in the face. A real slap in the face. Moreover, he would undoubtedly receive another thorough scolding from the Eldest Miss.

Having heard Yan Ning's report about the commotion at Building 19, the Eldest Miss, Yan Ruobing, quickly rushed to the scene with her entourage. Behind her, aside from Wen Fengxian, was the family's honored retainer, You Fengtian.

After inspecting the indoor and outdoor crime scenes and examining the corpse of the deceased, You Fengtian stated, "The victim was killed by a powerful water-elemental supernatural energy that breached his chest and abdomen, shattering his internal organs and heart meridian, causing him to vomit blood and die."

"That settles it then. That scoundrel Mei Yulang is a powerhouse of at least Level 8. Killing a man like this is merely a flick of the wrist for him," Wen Fengxian remarked.

"Just as I expected, he really has been following this kid all along," Yan Ruobing said.

"He has already left. Within a five-kilometer radius, there are no longer any Level 8 powerhouses," You Fengtian said after sensing the surroundings.

Yan Ruobing glanced at Shuisheng, who was pale and moving with great difficulty, then swept her gaze over Yan Ning, demanding in a sharp and stern voice, "Didn't I tell you to maintain strict surveillance? How did the deceased get in? And how did Mei Yulang get in and out?"

Sweat poured down Yan Ning's face. As the primary person in charge of the scene, he would have to bear the ultimate responsibility for this mess.