Chapter 274: The Invisible Rat! The Terror of the Void Eye!
The atmosphere inside the underground treasury was heavy enough to crush bone.
Originally, the few elite treasury guards were merely puzzled as to why their Young Master had suddenly rushed in with a cold expression, abandoning his guests. But the moment Shen Anyu stepped into the vault and his gaze swept over the shelves, the temperature seemed to drop to absolute zero.
Upon realizing the situation, the guards became flustered, their backs instantly drenched in cold sweat.
Thump, thump, thump…
The sound of knees hitting the hard alloy floor echoed in the silent chamber.
The few treasury guards knelt down directly, their foreheads pressed against the cold metal. Without any attempt to explain or make excuses, they said in trembling voices:
"Young Master, we were negligent in our duty; please punish us!"
They were elite martial artists, respected in the outside world, but here, they were trembling like leaves. They truly hadn't expected someone to sneak into the most secure vault in Jiangnan unnoticed and steal dozens of gold bricks right under their noses.
These were not small bars; they were standard central bank gold bricks. The total loss amounted to no less than a hundred million Yuan. Money was secondary to the Shen Family, but the breach of security was a capital offense.
"Get up, it's not your fault."
Shen Anyu stood with his hands behind his back, his expression unreadable. He swept his gaze over a seemingly empty corner of the treasury with a faint, mocking smile.
"Besides... the thief hasn't left yet."
What?
The few treasury guards who had just started to lift their heads froze. Their expressions changed drastically. They looked in unison in the direction of Shen Anyu's gaze, their eyes wide, scanning every inch of the corner.
But they only saw empty air. There was nothing there but the cold steel walls and the ventilation grates. No breath, no heartbeat, no shadow.
Shen Anyu didn't care about the confused and terrified expressions of his subordinates. He took a slow step forward.
His eyes gradually narrowed. Deep within his pupils, a mysterious, chaotic light began to swirl. It was the activation of the [Void Breaking Divine Eye] combined with the [Tianji Observation Technique].
"Invisibility Technique? Or something else?"
Shen Anyu's voice was calm, but it carried a terrifying pressure that reverberated off the walls.
"If you don't come out now, don't blame me for being impolite!"
In the eyes of mortals, that corner was empty. But in Shen Anyu's vision, the world had been stripped of its surface layers. The flow of air, the vibration of particles, and the aura of destiny were all laid bare.
With his [Divine-grade Perception], no rat could hide under his nose.
At this moment, Shen Anyu could clearly see a figure crouching in the corner, trying desperately to merge with the wall.
It was a short, monkey-faced young man. His appearance was wretched—he was wearing a pair of street vendor shorts that probably cost twenty yuan, a faded short-sleeved shirt, and worn-out sneakers. He looked like the typical unemployed loser one might find loitering in internet cafes.
However, on his right wrist, he wore a black wristwatch of an unknown brand and material. It emitted a faint, strange energy ripple that twisted the light around him, rendering him invisible to the naked eye.
But what intrigued Shen Anyu more was the aura floating above this rat's head.
There was a black pillar of light symbolizing ill omen and impending doom. But intertwined with the blackness was a thick, blood-red light, accompanied by faint traces of gold and purple.
Strangely, the red—representing prosperity, sudden wealth, and a counterattack against fate—was very conspicuous, struggling against the black doom.
"Interesting..." Shen Anyu mused.
This was the first time Shen Anyu had seen such a strange physiognomy. It wasn't the pure golden dragon of a [Child of Destiny], nor was it the grey aura of a cannon fodder. It was a chaotic mix.
"Not coming out?"
Seeing the figure hold his breath, thinking he was bluffing, Shen Anyu smiled coldly.
He raised his right hand and made a casual grabbing motion towards the void.
Boom!
An invisible, terrifying psionic power surged out from his palm. It was like a giant, unseen hand made of gravity itself, sweeping over that corner with irresistible force.
"Ah—!!"
The next moment, a shrill, miserable scream tore through the silence of the vault.
The air in the corner rippled violently like water disturbed by a stone. The invisibility faltered and shattered.
A figure materialized out of thin air, suspended in the grip of Shen Anyu's telekinesis. It was precisely the short, monkey-faced young man Shen Anyu had seen.
"Pfft!"
Although Shen Anyu hadn't used much of his strength, the sheer pressure of a [Grandmaster]-level psionic grip was not something a fragile mortal body could withstand. The short young man's face turned paper-pale, and a mouthful of fresh blood sprayed from his lips, staining his cheap shirt. He was clearly suffering from severe internal injuries.
The pupils of the few treasury guards constricted violently.
"Someone was really there?!"
They hadn't expected someone to actually be hiding right in front of them. The shock turned into shame, and then into rage. They quickly reacted, rushing forward to apprehend the thief as Shen Anyu dropped him.
Thud!
The guards pinned the short young man to the ground, twisting his arms behind his back and forcing him to kneel before Shen Anyu.
"You... how could you possibly discover me?!"
The short young man gasped for air, blood dripping from his chin. He looked up at the noble, god-like man standing above him with eyes full of horror.
"How could you see through my [Invisibility Technique]? It's impossible! Could it be that you are also..."
He stopped abruptly, realizing he might be revealing too much.
"I am also what?"
Shen Anyu looked at the short young man with interest, tilting his head slightly. He asked leisurely, "Also a Cultivator? Or perhaps... a player?"
However, the short young man tightly shut his mouth, biting his lip until it bled, not saying another word. His eyes were darting around, filled with panic and a strange kind of superstitious fear.
Shen Anyu narrowed his eyes.
In this comprehensive novel world, the power system was complex. Besides the mainstream [Martial Dao Grandmasters], there were indeed [Artificer True Persons], ninjas, Gu masters, and other heterodox paths.
However, he had never heard of such a miraculous, perfect [Invisibility Technique] appearing in the secular world.
The Yanxia Shen Family employed an [Artificer True Person]—a master of metaphysics comparable to a [Martial Dao Grandmaster]. Shen Anyu had specifically inquired about this before. Illusion arrays and Feng Shui blinds existed, but a technique that allowed a living person to vanish completely while moving? That was the stuff of legends.
But now, a piece of trash who clearly had no martial arts foundation had used it to infiltrate his home.
"Could it be a surprise gift package from a wild [Child of Destiny]?" Shen Anyu thought, anticipation rising in his heart.
He waited for the familiar chime of the System.
...
One second passed. Two seconds passed.
Silence.
Shen Anyu frowned slightly. He had captured the thief, broken the technique, and inflicted damage. Yet, there was no notification.
[System Notification: None.]
"No destiny value?"
Shen Anyu's eyes turned colder. He decided to test the limits.
With a thought, his telekinetic power surged again. He lifted the short young man into the air without touching him.
"Woooah! No! Let me down!"
Like a ragdoll, the thief was thrown around in mid-air. Shen Anyu slammed him into the ceiling, then the floor, then the wall—controlling the force perfectly to break bones but not kill him. It was like a cruel child playing with a swing.
"Ah! My leg! My arm! Stop! Please!"
The thief screamed until his voice was hoarse, tears and snot mixing with the blood on his face. He was tormented until he was half-dead, his body limp and twitching.
Still, no system notification. No [Destiny Value] credited.
"It seems he is not a [Child of Destiny]," Shen Anyu concluded, somewhat regretfully letting go of the psychic grip.
Thud.
The short young man fell to the ground like a sack of rotten meat. He curled up, shivering violently. His gaze towards Shen Anyu was no longer just fearful; it was like looking at a demon from the deepest level of hell.
"Still not talking?"
Shen Anyu smiled—a gentle, terrifying smile that didn't reach his eyes—as he looked down at the broken thief.
The short young man cried, his face twisted in bitterness and pain:
"I... I can't say... I'll die if I say it! Big shot, master, please let me go. I'll return all the gold bricks I stole. I didn't spend a cent!"
"Be honest! Our Young Master told you to speak, so be honest! Do you think we won't skin you alive right here?!" one of the treasury guards angrily reprimanded, drawing a tactical dagger. He was eager to redeem himself for his earlier failure.
However, Shen Anyu waved his hand elegantly to stop the treasury guard.
"Investigate this person," he ordered the head guard. "I want to know what color underwear he wore when he was six."
"Yes!"
The Shen Family's intelligence network was terrifyingly efficient. Within three minutes, a tablet containing the short young man's identity information and detailed life history was placed in Shen Anyu's hands.
"Dai Song, twenty-two years old..." Shen Anyu read aloud, his voice calm and melodic. "Unemployed vagrant. High school dropout. Gambling addict. You ruined your family's savings, forced your parents to sell their house, and you have been in prison multiple times for repeated theft..."
Listening to Shen Anyu reciting his pathetic life story, Dai Song's expression changed repeatedly—from shame to shock to despair. He hadn't expected that in just a few minutes, the important figure before him would have uncovered every dark corner of his past.
At this moment, Dai Song was extremely regretful. He had been blinded by greed when he saw how magnificent the Jiangjing Manor was. He thought with his "Cheat," he could steal a little fortune and turn his life around. He never expected to hit a titanium wall like Shen Anyu.
"Something's not right..."
Looking at this information, the interest on Shen Anyu's face grew even stronger.
From Dai Song's identity information, he was entirely a small-time hoodlum and a gambling addict. A complete piece of trash.
But how could such a piece of trash possess such a miraculous [Invisibility Technique]? How could he use a "Wall-Penetrating Technique" to bypass the alloy vault door that could withstand a missile?
However, after tormenting him for so long, there was no notification of [Destiny Value] being credited. This ruled out the possibility of him being a [Child of Destiny]. The System never made mistakes.
Shen Anyu's mind whirred, analyzing the tropes.
"If the trash isn't the protagonist... then the trash is the minion of the protagonist."
Shen Anyu guessed that Dai Song was very likely connected to a hidden [Child of Destiny]. This hypothetical protagonist had likely bestowed this ability or item upon him. This also explained Dai Song's terror—why he said he would "die" if he revealed detailed information.
[Children of Destiny] always had ways to restrict their subordinates, whether through loyalty systems, poison pills, or soul contracts.
Just then, seeing Shen Anyu fall silent, Dai Song's imagination ran wild. He thought Shen Anyu was deciding how to dispose of his body. His expression changed drastically, his face turning ashen.
"Big shot! Young Master Shen! Please let me go! You already know my identity information, I can't run away! I will compensate for the gold bricks!"
"I'll compensate even if I have to work like an ox or a horse for the rest of my life!"
"Please let me go, I beg you... I don't want to die!"
At this point, Dai Song disregarded his injuries, forced himself up, and knelt down, kowtowing repeatedly to Shen Anyu until his forehead bled.
Shen Anyu remained unmoved. He looked at the kowtowing figure like a human watching a bug perform a trick.
"Dozens of gold bricks are nothing to me. I lose more than that dropping change in the sofa," Shen Anyu said with a lazy smile. "If you tell me something interesting, I'll even give you dozens more to take home."
He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a whisper.
"For example... where did you learn your [Invisibility Technique] and [Wall-Penetrating Technique]? Or rather, who gave you that watch?"
Dai Song's body stiffened. His expression was full of struggle and hesitation. But looking at Shen Anyu's smiling face, he felt an inexplicable chill in his heart that was colder than the fear of the restriction.
After hesitating for a second or two, he gritted his teeth and lied, his eyes dodging:
"I... I learned it from a Taoist priest! Yes, a wandering Taoist priest from Mount Laoshan!"
"Mount Laoshan?"
Shen Anyu nodded approvingly, as if he believed him. "Very good. The 'Laoshan Taoist' who can pass through walls. A classic story."
Then, his gaze sharpened like a blade.
"Where is that Taoist priest from Mount Laoshan now? What is the specific address? Don't tell me he wandered off into the clouds."
"I... I don't know! He left after teaching me!" Dai Song stammered, sweat pouring down his face.
"Then where did you meet that Taoist priest?" Shen Anyu pressed, his aura flaring up, pressing down on Dai Song's soul.
"I... I..."
Dai Song felt like his head was about to explode. The restriction in his mind warned him of death, while the demon in front of him promised immediate pain.
"I... I can't say..."
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