Finally.
Directly.
Lu Chen smiled.
Not friendly.
Interested.
"You saw the sniper."
"Yes."
"From the street."
"Yes."
"You intercepted the round."
"Apparently."
Lu Chen stepped closer.
"Who are you?"
Gu Qingya stared at him.
"You don’t know Shen Tian?"
Lu Chen didn’t look away.
"I’ve been busy."
Shen Tian smiled.
"Clearly."
The air between them changed.
Zhao Ming felt it.
Gu Qingya did too.
Neither man had openly threatened the other.
But...
Something had begun.
Lu Chen extended one hand.
"Lu Chen."
Shen Tian looked at it.
Then accepted.
"Shen Tian."
Their palms touched.
Qi exploded silently.
Lu Chen tested him.
Not enough to injure.
Enough to measure.
Spirit Perception pressure entered the handshake.
Any ordinary person would have collapsed.
Shen Tian’s green eyes remained calm.
Domain Initiation Qi resisted.
Not equal.
Lu Chen was stronger.
But...
Shen Tian did not flinch.
A faint golden barrier appeared around his meridians.
System protection.
Lu Chen’s eyes sharpened.
Shen Tian smiled.
Then released his hand.
"Strong grip."
Lu Chen laughed.
"You too."
Gu Qingya looked between them.
"What was that?"
Both answered.
"Nothing."
She narrowed her eyes.
Men.
Zhao Ming approached.
"Young Master Shen, how did you know there would be an attack?"
Shen Tian had already prepared an answer.
"My family’s security network detected unusual activity near this building."
Gu Qingya frowned.
"Your security network monitors my company?"
"Not specifically."
"That isn’t reassuring."
Shen Tian smiled.
"It wasn’t intended to be."
Her expression almost changed.
Almost.
A small trace of amusement.
Lu Chen noticed.
He did not like it.
Not because Gu Qingya belonged to him.
At least...
That was how he justified the irritation.
He simply disliked another man appearing during his mission.
Taking credit.
Interrupting.
Acting familiar.
Lu Chen looked toward Shen Tian.
"You should leave."
The room became silent.
Gu Qingya slowly turned.
Shen Tian raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
"The threat isn’t finished."
"Exactly."
"This is my responsibility."
Gu Qingya’s expression hardened.
"Your responsibility?"
Lu Chen looked toward her.
"Protecting you."
"I did not agree to that."
"Your grandfather did."
Shen Tian watched.
There it was.
The possessiveness.
Immediate.
Casual.
He spoke over her decisions as if they were obstacles rather than boundaries.
Gu Qingya’s jaw tightened.
Shen Tian looked toward Lu Chen.
"She said no."
Lu Chen slowly turned back.
"Excuse me?"
"She said she didn’t agree."
"This is a family matter."
"She is standing here."
Shen Tian’s voice remained calm.
"You don’t need to explain her opinion while she’s capable of expressing it."
Gu Qingya stared at him.
Lu Chen’s smile faded.
Only slightly.
"You know nothing about the situation."
"I know enough."
"You arrived after I neutralized the team."
"And before the sniper killed her."
Silence.
That landed.
Lu Chen’s eyes became colder.
The golden Fate around him moved violently.
Xu Ning immediately displayed a warning.
Protagonist hostility increasing.
Current relationship toward Host: Distrust
Shen Tian almost laughed.
Good.
Lu Chen stepped closer.
"You interfered with my target."
Shen Tian tilted his head.
"Your target?"
"The sniper."
"Sounded like he was targeting her."
Lu Chen’s jaw tightened.
Gu Qingya looked toward Shen Tian.
Then...
She covered a small smile by looking away.
Zhao Ming saw.
He immediately decided he liked Shen Tian more.
Lu Chen took another step.
Shen Tian didn’t move.
Then...
A body fell through the shattered window.
Everyone reacted.
Gu Qingya stepped back.
Zhao Ming reached for his weapon.
The body struck the floor.
BOOM!
The sniper.
Alive.
Barely conscious.
His arms had been bound behind his back using his own rifle sling.
Shen Yan landed on the window ledge a second later.
Her dark hair moved in the wind.
She stepped inside.
Then looked directly toward Shen Tian.
"Alive."
Shen Tian nodded.
"Good."
Shen Yan’s eyes moved toward Lu Chen.
She immediately sensed his cultivation.
Her expression sharpened.
Lu Chen sensed hers.
He raised an eyebrow.
Another expert.
Shen Yan stepped between him and Shen Tian without being asked.
Lu Chen smiled faintly.
"Sister?"
"His."
"Protective."
"Yes."
Her response contained no humor.
Lu Chen looked toward the sniper.
"You caught him."
Shen Yan ignored him.
She looked toward Gu Qingya.
"Any injuries?"
"No."
"Good."
Shen Tian crouched beside the sniper.
A black crescent tattoo showed beneath his sleeve.
Xu Ning scanned.
[Desert Moon operative.]
Connected to Lu Chen?
[Indirectly.]
A Fate panel opened.
Hidden Enemy Route
Original Outcome:
Lu Chen recognizes Desert Moon.
Interrogates assassin.
Learns attack was commissioned by a domestic intermediary.
Tracks intermediary to the Red Scorpion underground organization.
Destroys Red Scorpion.
Rescues secondary heroine during raid.
Total Associated Fate: 31,000
Shen Tian’s eyes narrowed.
A chain.
One opportunity leading into another.
Classic protagonist escalation.
He looked toward Zhao Ming.
"Call police."
Lu Chen spoke immediately.
"No."
Everyone turned.
He looked toward the assassin.
"I need him."
Gu Qingya’s eyes hardened.
"You do not control the investigation."
"The police won’t get the truth."
"That is not your decision."
Lu Chen stepped toward the sniper.
Shen Yan moved.
Their auras collided.
The glass fragments on the floor trembled.
Zhao Ming instinctively stepped between Gu Qingya and the confrontation.
Shen Tian remained crouched.
Then spoke.
"Enough."
Shen Yan’s pressure disappeared immediately.
Lu Chen noticed.
She obeyed Shen Tian without hesitation.
Interesting.
Shen Tian stood.
"The attacker stays."
Lu Chen stared.
"You’re ordering me?"
"No."
Shen Tian smiled.
"I’m informing you."
The air became heavier.
Lu Chen’s Spirit Perception aura began rising.
Shen Yan’s hand moved toward her blade.
Gu Qingya had finally had enough.
"Stop."
Both men looked toward her.
She stepped forward.
Her expression was freezing.
"This is my company."
"I was the target."
"The police will take custody."
She looked toward Lu Chen.
"You will not torture anyone."
Then toward Shen Tian.
"And you will explain why your family knew an attack was coming."
Shen Tian smiled faintly.
"Fair."
Lu Chen’s expression remained dark.
But...
He stepped back.
For now.
Police sirens became audible below.
An hour later...
The building had been sealed.
(Author’s Note: IMPORTANT!)
SEND POWESTONES!!!
ALL SUPER GIFTS (Magic Castle, Space Ship, Golden Gachapon) = MORE ChapterS!

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