The heavy rain came quickly and went away quickly.
One minute it was pouring rain, and the next minute the scorching sun was shining into the valley.
Lucian walked out of the land temple and looked out over the mountains. Suddenly, he saw a figure walking on the hillside.
He stared for a moment, and Lukas followed his gaze and saw the figure.
"Brother Lucian, that should be a fugitive."
Ant Ridge is a dangerous area where
Only fugitives and criminals would risk going into hiding here.
"It makes little difference."
Without hesitation, Lucian stepped up the mountain again.
He didn't mind staying on the mountain, but he also wanted to climb higher, and he wouldn't give up any opportunity to make a contribution.
Lukas followed behind, his steps light, as if he were on a picnic.
"Brother Lucian, with your bullets that can curve, taking him down should be a piece of cake, right?"
People at the border station avoided him inside the bureau, but when they went out, they all vied to follow Lucian.
The reason was simple: even if they encountered a band of ruthless bandits crossing the border, they could remain safe and sound by following Lucian.
"That is a
Lucian walked up a hillside, picked up his binoculars, and saw a figure resting under the trees halfway up the mountain.
The man was short and stout, with petrified skin, a broad forehead, and small eyes. A quick comparison with the wanted poster confirmed that he was the fugitive.
At that moment, the fugitive seemed to spot them and hurriedly got up to flee.
As Lucian quickened his pace, he instructed, "Contact the center and tell them we have found the fugitive's trail. Ask if we should shoot him."
Lukas took out his phone to make a call and received permission after about two minutes. When he looked up, Lucian had already run far ahead.
He could only chase after them. The three of them, one fleeing and two chasing, ran wildly through the mountains and forests.
Lucian moved very fast, his legs making the mountain ravines seem like flat ground, approaching the fugitive as quickly as a tiger descending the mountain.
Judging from the speed of the escapee, his
Faintly, shouts came from behind.
"Brother Lucian, permission to shoot!"
Lucian suddenly stopped, kicked up the grass, raised his gun, and aimed at the target eight hundred meters away. The fugitive was hiding in the bushes and woods, using the rocks for cover.
Boom!
The bullet flew out and hit the fugitive's head precisely, before sliding off the rocky shell on his skull.
Immediately afterwards, a second bullet struck the exact same spot with pinpoint accuracy, causing blood to spurt out and stain the bushes.
About fifteen minutes later, the bushes swayed, and Lucian and Lukas pushed through the foliage to confirm that the fugitive was dead.
The petrified skin made it impossible to discern age or appearance, and the person was dressed in rags with nothing else on their body.
He had hidden something.
Lucian made this judgment instantly.
Lukas asked, "What is wrong, Brother Lucian?"
"Nothing."
Lucian shook his head and didn't say anything else.
Reporting his suspicion now would definitely mean he would be ordered to search for the hidden items. Since his leadership was actively blocking his promotions, he didn't feel the need to go to such lengths.
He and Lukas had just switched shifts and were both exhausted, physically and mentally.
If it was something particularly important, then it would become the task of the entire border post later.
Lucian and Lukas carried the body down the mountain. Border police, who had received the news, happened to arrive by car, and four police vehicles stopped at the foot of the mountain.
Border patrol captain Zachary leaned against his car door smoking, showing no intention of going into the mountains to search. When two gunshots echoed through the mountains, he stubbed out his cigarette and laughed to the person next to him, "Old Lucian's target is going to have an exploding head when he fires a shot."
Before long, everyone saw Lucian carrying the corpse down the mountain, leaving a trail of blood.
Thump.
The body was thrown to the ground. Lucian took Zachary's cigarette, lit it, took a puff, and said, "Luckily, I just happened to run into this."
Zachary was the captain of the border defense squadron, holding the rank of company commander, and was Lucian's superior. Two years ago, Lucian saved Zachary during a shootout with drug dealers, and the two quickly became close.
Lucian was able to become a platoon leader because Zachary, despite external pressure, transferred him to a front-line position with the opportunity to make meritorious contributions.
"This guy couldn't be hurt by ordinary firearms. He killed five policemen along the way." Zachary shook his head and said, "He just had the bad luck to run into a big tiger like you. It is a waste of your talent to have you guarding the mountain here."
"I will ask the leader for you this time, as a way of returning the favor."
Lucian pondered for a moment and said, "If I can get promoted, please help me transfer to the army."
Those he had offended should not be allowed to extend their reach into military territory.
Zachary also pondered for a moment.
He had a lot of power over personnel promotions, which was not something he could decide alone, but he could manipulate relationships and try to push it through.
"I can't guarantee it will work out."
"Whether it succeeds or not, I will owe you a favor."
Zachary waved his hand and said, "Fall back."
The border post was located at the foot of the mountains. A huge cement wall blocked the road from the mountains to the city, and there was a town next to it.
It looked like an ancient city from the outside, but it was equipped with a heavily armed border police force inside.
From armored vehicles to individual rocket launchers, from anti-aircraft guns to large-caliber machine guns, everything was available.
In wartime, this place would be transformed into a fortress to withstand the
As soon as Lucian entered the border station, the soldiers on duty all turned their gazes toward him and whispered among themselves, "Tiger Lucian is back from hunting again."
Hunting was Lucian's privilege.
Of the eight hundred people at the entire border post, only Lucian could guarantee, "If I see it, I will eliminate it."
The others mostly found traces, quickly reported them, and targets were shot down from the air by helicopter.
In most cases, the
Despite Lucian's outstanding achievements, no one dared to come forward to flatter him.
Because everyone knew he had offended a powerful figure and they didn't want to be implicated.
Zachary dared to contact Lucian only because Lucian had saved his life, and he couldn't possibly remain indifferent to the matter.
"Old Lucian, you go back and rest first, leave the rest to me."
Lucian nodded and turned to leave. The sentry at the door didn't even bother to check him and let him through directly.
Upon entering the dormitory building, the elderly security guard called out, "Lucian, the light bulb in your room is broken. Someone won't be here to fix it until tomorrow."
"Ah."
Lucian responded and walked to room 1011 without stopping. He took out his key, pushed open the door, and entered. The room was empty. There was a hard bed, a pair of tables and chairs, and a small refrigerator about half a person's height.
The only small items were a toothbrush, a ceramic cup, a towel, and an ashtray made from a beverage can.
This was the entire room.
Besides insomnia, another quirk of Lucian's was that his room had to be meticulously tidy.
Half an hour later, Lucian came out of the bathroom and saw a missed call on his phone from the contact "Thomas".
Thomas's real name was Thomas Fenwick. He was Lucian's supervisor when he was studying in Caldwell City, and was considered his guardian.
Lucian dialed the number back, and a rough voice came through.
"Kid, the orphanage has money again."
"Did the government allocate funds? Or did someone make it big and come back to help the poor?"
"Elena Vance. She was promoted to senior colonel this year for her meritorious service in suppressing the rebellion outside the Great Wall. She is only twenty-five years old. If she's around for a few more years, she'll probably be promoted to general."
Thomas had become quite talkative as he got older, and he took every opportunity to help Lucian recall things.
That was more than a decade ago.
Lucian's
Throughout history, countless legendary figures, including kings, generals, and ministers, had been said to possess extraordinary abilities. In times of chaos, these abilities were scattered across the land as heroes vied for supremacy; in times of prosperity, new dynasties gathered them together for eternity.
The Alliance took
In theory,
His specific power was called
<[Mind's Eye]> {Attribute: Spirit | Level: Moderate} [A powerful spiritual ability passed down through inheritance. It grants the user exceptional mental strength, heightened perception, and precise telekinetic control over physical objects.]
"You two didn't succeed. Did you reveal your inherited
Thomas still held a grudge to this day.
Although he didn't approve of early relationships, arguing that minors were not yet mature enough to take responsibility for them, Lucian and Elena Vance were simply too outstanding. The former had been exceptionally intelligent and mature since childhood, while the latter was almost an all-rounder.
Moreover, he had seen Elena hand a love letter to Lucian back then.
As a father figure, Thomas wanted to bring them together, believing that "good things shouldn't go to outsiders."
In the end, one went to The Capital, and the other went to the Redwater Military Academy in Szech, and they never contacted each other again.
"No, that is against the rules. High-risk
Lucian stubbed out his cigarette and changed the subject, asking, "How much money did she give to the orphanage?"
"Three hundred thousand should be enough for a while. How are things going on your end lately?"
When Thomas asked about his recent situation, Lucian replied without hesitation, "The same as before, patrolling the mountains and fighting
"I've gotten in touch with an old friend. Why don't you go teach? You are a
"I just caught a fugitive and I'm thinking of trying my luck in the army."
"It's no use. If you want to pursue a career within the system, you can't avoid the Thorne family no matter what."
Those extraordinary individuals known as Marquis were all national protectors. Some of them were high-ranking officials in The Hall of Valor, some were regional governors, and some were army commanders.
Lucian had offended the Marquis of Northriver, a powerful figure in both the eastern and western regions of Southgate.
Lucian was sent to the border post because sponsored students needed to return to their hometowns, which happened to fall right into the Thorne family's sphere of influence.
Otherwise, given his resume, he should have been like Elena Vance, either enlisted in the army as a junior officer or become the top official in a county.
Unfortunately, Lucian was never one to yield; the more they tried to suppress him, the more defiant he became.
Thomas had connections, but he was also from an academic background, so he couldn't really get his hands into the border defenses. The same went for the instructors from The Capital at Lucian's school.
Thomas knew that his student was proud to the core, so he could only sigh and say, "I'll try to contact someone again to see if I can help you get things sorted out."
"Unnecessary."
"Why are you so stubborn? If you don't think about yourself, you should at least think about your mother. Is the little money you make as a border guard enough to cover your mother's heart disease medical expenses?"
If they couldn't agree on anything, he would hang up the phone.
Lucian took out a bottle from the refrigerator.
<[Wolfcrest Reserve Life Supplement]> {Volume: 500ml | Type: Consumable} [A specialized dietary supplement created by major wineries. It drastically increases the conversion rate of calories, allowing high-vitality individuals to meet their metabolic needs without requiring excessive eating or excretion.]
The higher the
Lucian's
His daily metabolism was five times that of an average person, and his calorie requirement was ten times higher. Relying solely on regular food, it would take him an hour, or even longer, just to eat, drink, and excrete.
Lucian drank the bottle of supplement, then went out onto the playground to do gymnastics to aid digestion. There were only a few other people exercising around him.
In small places like border outposts, there were very few people willing to persist in developing their
An hour later, he stopped what he was doing, his skin steaming slightly.
"Lucian."
Zachary waved from afar, and Lucian approached, asking, "How is it?"
Zachary shook his head.
To be honest, Lucian was not surprised; in fact, it was expected, as this was not the first time he had performed meritorious service.
Four years ago, he fought a gunfight with drug traffickers crossing the border; three years ago, he assisted the police in shooting and killing a hostage-taker with a knife; two years ago, he intercepted a smuggling case; and a year ago, he volunteered to participate in a drug bust operation.
So, he continued to guard the mountain at the border post.
"That's fucking awful!"
Lucian didn't curse, but Zachary couldn't help but swear.
"Even if you've offended the King of Heaven, they shouldn't bully people like this. Is there no law anymore?"
"It might really be the King of Heaven himself."
Lucian offered Zachary another cigarette, and the two of them smoked in the corridor of the border station dormitory, as a light rain began to fall again.
Raindrops shattered the clouds and mist.
Zachary looked at Lucian, who was squatting on the ground, puffing out smoke. His black hair, which reached past his ears, covered his eyelids, and his jawline was as sharp as if it had been cut by a knife.
It would be a waste of talent not to become a star.
He said, "Four years ago, a big shot in Caldwell City said he wanted to keep you stuck at the border post. Tell me who you offended."
"Cedric Thorne."
(End of this chapter)
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Translator and Editor - Husband
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