Chapter 494: Pursuers

At this moment, the fatigue in Chen Ling's eyes vanished; his physical and mental state had both returned to peak level!

Although in the Era Archive he had seemingly only closed his eyes for less than two seconds, Chen Ling had actually spent a month in the Ancient Treasury of Theatrical Arts.

During this month, Chen Ling's life was very fulfilling. His main task each day was to spar with his senior disciple, Ning Ruyu. Ever since he "borrowed" the boning knife, he found its weight and length to be very suitable, so he temporarily used it as a close-combat weapon, much to Ning Ruyu's peculiar amusement.

Under daily high-intensity combat training, Chen Ling's close-combat skills rapidly improved. If previously he couldn't last three moves against Ning Ruyu's spear, now, with the boning knife in hand, he could exchange more than twenty blows with Ning Ruyu. Of course, this was without either party using their spiritual power.

This was undoubtedly a qualitative leap. It's worth noting that Ning Ruyu's martial prowess was top-tier among the Nine Great Realms. The fact that Chen Ling could exchange blows with him in close combat indicated his fighting techniques had reached a terrifying level, far surpassing those of his own rank, and even fourth-tier practitioners of the Soldier God Dao.

The rest of the time, Chen Ling spent learning opera with his senior brothers and sisters and gathering information related to the Emperor God Dao.

"You're already rested?" Yang Xiao exclaimed in shock. "Didn't you just close your eyes for a moment?"

"That's enough. I'm in excellent condition now... truly excellent."

Chen Ling rotated his neck, producing a cracking sound. His eyes were as bright as torches, full of vigor, and his spirit, energy, and vitality were all renewed.

"...What a monster," Yang Xiao, utterly exhausted, muttered to himself.

Meanwhile, Su Zhiwei turned to look at Chen Ling.

"Director Chen, can you explain now?"

Chen Ling had taken Su Zhiwei away without explaining anything. Their bond was based on pure trust and shared adversity, and to be honest, Su Zhiwei was still very confused about everything.

Chen Ling did not answer. Instead, he looked at Yao Qing in the driver's seat.

"Yao Qing is one of us," Su Zhiwei said.

"I'm Sister's person!" Yao Qing immediately added, gazing at Chen Ling through the rearview mirror. "My anti-scam awareness is very strong! I'd like to see what tricks you're going to pull... I warn you, as long as I'm here, you won't trick my sister."

Chen Ling ignored Yao Qing's warning. After a moment of thought, he slowly began:

"Dr. Su, have you... felt any changes in your body recently?"

Su Zhiwei was taken aback.

"Changes?" Yao Qing's heart skipped a beat. "Sister! You're not sick, are you...?"

"Not illness, but something else... for example, can you sense anything? Can you control certain things? Or is there some kind of energy flowing within you?" Chen Ling's eyes narrowed slightly.

After leaving Shennongjia, Yang Xiao could already faintly perceive the existence of magnetic fields, and Su Zhiwei would likely also notice changes in her body. Starting from this point should make Su Zhiwei trust them more.

"Aha, so you really are a charlatan!" Yao Qing said through gritted teeth.

"In this day and age, are you still trying to swindle people with talk of superpowers and special abilities? My sister is a research doctor! How could she believe your nonsense??"

Su Zhiwei frowned and thought for a long time, then nodded.

"Yes."

This single word instantly brought the "full-throttle" Yao Qing to a screeching halt.

"No, Sister, you..."

"Ever since I left Shennongjia, I've been able to faintly perceive certain things... They're everywhere, vibrating at a certain frequency, and I can clearly hear their 'voices'." Su Zhiwei closed her eyes. "I thought it was a hallucination after I fainted in Shennongjia, so I specifically took leave to rest at home... But no matter how much I tried to practice meditation, there was no sign of it disappearing; the 'voices' only grew louder."

Su Zhiwei's answer was similar to Chen Ling's conjecture. He spoke in a deep voice, "You must have an idea of what you're hearing... don't you?"

Su Zhiwei opened her mouth. After what seemed like a long struggle, she hesitantly offered her presumed answer:

"Are they... 'strings'?"

"The theories you've researched are becoming your power... Dr. Yang Xiao should have a deep understanding of this." Chen Ling glanced at Yang Xiao, who nodded in agreement. Chen Ling continued, "The changes happening to you will trigger a series of events in the future, possibly even changing the world... And right now, someone wants to eliminate you."

"Director Chen, didn't you also enter Shennongjia? Did you also experience changes?"

"No, I'm different from you... What I possess is the 'Divine Dao,' a manifestation of spiritual civilization. Your 'theories' are also a form of spiritual civilization, but only the nine of you in the world should possess this authority."

"No, this is getting more and more outrageous!!" Yao Qing couldn't help but interrupt their conversation. He asked Su Zhiwei while driving, "Sister Zhiwei, you're not actually believing his nonsense, are you?! Doesn't this sound just like some evil cult practice?"

As a member of the exploration team, Su Zhiwei had witnessed a series of supernatural phenomena firsthand and walked the line between life and death. She knew very well that Chen Ling's words were not baseless.

But from Yao Qing's perspective, as a materialistic university student, he couldn't accept it at all. He only thought Chen Ling was deceiving Su Zhiwei, trying to get her to join some pyramid-scheme-like cult. At best, she'd be swindled out of money and property; at worst, she'd be brainwashed into committing suicide—he had seen too many news reports like that.

Yao Qing grew anxious. He unconsciously pressed hard on the accelerator, and the car cut through the fast-flowing traffic on the main road, speeding onto another path.

"Sister, please think about it again. I really don't think this is right..."

Yao Qing was still trying to bring Su Zhiwei back to her senses. Meanwhile, Chen Ling frowned. His gaze, through the rearview mirror, locked onto several vehicles following closely behind.

Audience Anticipation: 3

Seeing this prompt, Chen Ling's eyes narrowed slightly...

"Keep driving. Head somewhere less crowded," Chen Ling suddenly said.

"What's wrong?"

"Those cars have been following us since we left the Su residence," Chen Ling said in a deep voice. "On the main road, the traffic was heavy, so I didn't pay much attention... But now it seems they're most likely after us."

"Are they Nie Yu's people?" Yang Xiao's face instantly darkened.

"Most likely. Knowing he couldn't come himself quickly, he sent others... It seems he's determined to kill Dr. Su."

At these words, Yao Qing, who was driving, felt his heart sink. He also looked back. There were indeed several cars following, but he had no recollection of them. After all, there were too many cars on the main road earlier, and they all obstructed each other. Who could remember the make or license plate of every single car?

"No way? This road usually has a lot of traffic too. Are you overthinking it?" he asked skeptically.

"They are indeed quite stealthy, but they can't escape my sight." A faint glimmer flickered in Chen Ling's eyes. "Yao Qing, right? If you don't want your Sister Zhiwei to get into danger, then floor the accelerator and keep driving. Don't worry about surveillance cameras; they won't capture you."

Although Yao Qing couldn't discern if Chen Ling was telling the truth, with Su Zhiwei's safety at stake, he still gritted his teeth and pressed the accelerator. The car immediately accelerated, roaring forward, running five or six red lights in a row!

Simultaneously, the cars behind also suddenly accelerated, following closely.

"They're really chasing us?!" Yao Qing exclaimed.

"What do we do now? Shaking them off on this urban road network is almost impossible," Yang Xiao asked in a deep voice, looking at the cars close behind.

Chen Ling's eyes narrowed slightly. He glanced at the remaining Audience Anticipation value. After a moment of hesitation, a boning knife slid from his sleeve...

The mirror-like, sharp blade reflected his face and his eyes, which glinted with a cold light. He spoke slowly:

"Just keep driving forward... I'll handle the rest."