Evolving infinitely from ground zero

Outside the school gates, at the KenDeJi fast-food restaurant.

The four of them sat together, drinking cola, eating fried chicken, burgers, and egg tarts.

He Yu and Li Chuxin were both enjoying their meal, chatting and laughing throughout.

Although both of their families were very wealthy and they could have anything they wanted, a mere KenDeJi combo meal costing a few dozen yuan didn't usually catch their eye.

But this meal was different.

It was Lin Zichen who had treated them, and the joy of a free meal was priceless.

In contrast to the other two, Shen Qinghan was distracted the whole time, quietly eating with her head down.

If no one talked to her, she remained silent.

If someone did talk to her, she would respond with a casual word to brush them off.

Lin Zichen noticed her mood was off, guessing it was probably because she hadn't performed well in the physical tests and sparring, leading to her feeling down.

But he didn't try to console her and acted as if nothing had happened.

Some things are better left unmentioned, as bringing them up could be like rubbing salt into the wound.

...

Before long, all four of them had eaten their fill.

He Yu said thanks to his 'foster father,' and Li Chuxin thanked 'Boss Lin.'

Then, the two of them each took a taxi home.

Seeing that Shen Qinghan was still feeling blue, Lin Zichen looked at her with a smile and said,

"I remember your watercolors are almost used up, aren't they? Come on, let's go upstairs to the mall and have a look; I'll buy you a new set."

"Ah, no need, I hardly ever paint anymore, don't waste money."

Shen Qinghan waved her hands and said.

Since starting high school and the increased academic pressure, she hadn't painted at all.

She spent any free time she had studying at home or exercising.

"No problem, let's buy them first and keep them at home. When you feel like painting again one day, you can just take them out and use them since they have a long shelf life."

Having said that, Lin Zichen didn't give Shen Qinghan the chance to refuse again and took her hand to head upstairs.

Soon, the two entered an art supplies store on the upper floor.

"Do you have any preferences?"

"They all look pretty good."

"Then I'll choose for you."

Lin Zichen looked around the store and finally settled on the most expensive set of watercolors.

The price was a whopping 588 yuan.

Seeing the steep price, Shen Qinghan wanted to pick a cheaper set.

However, Lin Zichen didn't give her the chance to switch and promptly paid with a scan of his phone.

"Xiao Chen, it's too expensive..."

"It is expensive, but it's worth it," Lin Zichen said with a smile. "This set of paints has a rich palette, and combined with your excellent painting skills, it's sure to produce many beautiful pieces. If you make any good ones in the future, remember to give me a few. I want to hang them in my room for decoration."

Listening to Lin Zichen's words and looking at the beautiful set of watercolors in her hand, Shen Qinghan's mood finally improved, temporarily forgetting the annoyance of being caught using backdoor deals.

...

On the way back,

Shen Qinghan was clearly in a much better mood, constantly talking and laughing with Lin Zichen.

She asked about his favorite paintings and mentioned that she would paint one for him during the winter holidays when she had time.

She also said she was free on the weekend and offered to take him out for a bike ride.

As they chatted, they passed by a vegetable market where many sanitation workers were carrying out a major cleanup.

At the same time, there were many security personnel inside, all wielding rat-catching tools, shooting at rats scurrying out from corners.

The dead rats were being scooped up and thrown into a garbage truck parked in the middle of the market.

Lin Zichen glanced at the garbage truck and saw it was filled with fresh dead rats, estimating that it contained at least several hundred based on the truck's capacity.

"Xiao Chen, there are so many rats!"

"Look at the one on top of the garbage truck, it's as big as a cat, so scary!"

"This street looks so clean, how could there be so many rats?"

Shen Qinghan kept talking non-stop, her delicate and pretty face full of confusion and bewilderment.

When Lin Zichen saw the rats, the first thing he thought of was the Rat God Cult.

Immediately, he frowned and said to Shen Qinghan,

"Let's go, don't look anymore. Rats are dirty and carry a lot of bacteria and viruses. We should keep our distance."

"Okay."

Shen Qinghan obediently responded and quickly followed Lin Zichen away.

...

At night, at home.

Lin Zichen and his parents were eating dinner in the living room while watching the evening news reported on the TV.

As he was about to finish his meal, a piece of news caught his attention.

"Today, rats have been appearing frequently in the district. After learning about the situation, the public security department immediately organized a ten-day rat eradication campaign..."

Frequent appearances of rats?

Lin Zichen's brow furrowed slightly, and he had a bad feeling that the increasing numbers of rats might be related to the Rat God Cult.

He felt very uneasy about this.

But on second thought, if even a student like himself could come to such conclusions, then the public security department must have thought of it a long time ago.

And since the public security department hadn't taken any major actions up to now, only organizing some personnel to exterminate the rats,

it seemed that there probably wasn't a big problem with the Rat God Cult; perhaps he was just worrying needlessly.

With this thought, Lin Zichen felt much more at ease.

After resting for a while and digesting his meal, he went upstairs to his room for high-intensity training, using strenuous sweat to feel more at ease.

All the unease in life comes from not being strong enough.

Only by constantly training and getting stronger, to the point where he could contend with Advanced-level Creatures, would he naturally not have to worry about the Rat God Cult anymore.

After all, the so-called Rat God that the Rat God Cult's followers believed in was just a Giant Mutant Rat on the verge of Evolution to a High-level Creature.

...

Several days later, on Saturday afternoon.

Having exercised intensely for several hours at home and feeling exhausted from the workout, Lin Zichen changed into clean clothes and went out to find Shen Qinghan to accompany her in exercising.

As he changed his shoes and stepped out, Shen Qinghan was already waiting outside.

She was wearing a loose track suit with her soft hair tied back in a single ponytail, exuding the vibrance and beauty of youth.

"Let's go, start with a two-kilometer warm-up jog, then a three-kilometer variable speed run, and finally some strength training to work on the core muscles," Lin Zichen briefly explained the training plan to Shen Qinghan, and quickly led her to the road ahead to start running.

...

In the time that followed.

Under Lin Zichen's supervision, Shen Qinghan started high-intensity training.

The volume of training today was more than usual. She was very tired but bit through it and persevered.

Even after finishing, she even took the initiative to ask for extra training.

She did not want to continue being at the bottom of her class, and was determined to improve her physical fitness.

...

Almost two hours of training passed.

Finally, they had finished training.

Lin Zichen found a bench by the roadside and had Shen Qinghan lie down on it, then he skillfully began to relax her muscles.

"Vroom, vroom, vroom—"

Suddenly, the roaring sound of a motorcycle exhaust pipe came from behind.

Lin Zichen's eyebrows creased slightly, finding the noise loud and irritating. He turned and looked in the direction of the sound.

Then he saw, not far away, a ghost rider speeding down the road on a motorcycle.

The motorcycle was very fast, and in less than two seconds, it zipped right past them,

leaving only a head of multicolored hair flapping wildly in the wind, receding with the motorcycle into the distance.

Lin Zichen couldn't shake the feeling that the rider looked familiar, but he couldn't recall who it was at the moment.

...

PS: Spreading out the begging bowl, asking for Monthly Passes and recommendation tickets!