Although it takes one to two days to see if the attempt to awaken genes is successful, after a few hours of attempting to awaken, the body will show some abnormalities and can even manifest a part of the gene form. Those who are familiar with these can judge success in advance. Di Yi Ye checked his condition as soon as he recovered. He was very sure that his gene awakening attempt had failed again.
Although he was a little disappointed, he was still quite satisfied feeling his physique become stronger and his control over Qi Flow more adept. Thinking that, as Dr. Murong said, he would have the opportunity to awaken special abilities in the future, this further strengthened his resolve to continue attempting gene awakening.
After chatting casually with Dr. Murong for a few sentences, Di Yi Ye washed off the sweat and bloodstains at the Research Institute, then bid farewell to everyone and left.
Just as he was about to leave the Research Institute, Di Yi Ye noticed something unusual outside. He saw several figures peeking into the institute from time to time. After clearly identifying who they were, a cold smile curved his lips. He then turned back instead of leaving immediately.
A few minutes later, Di Yi Ye reappeared, but he was clearly different from before. He had a black Longbow strapped to his back, his Tang dao and the Combat Daggers on his legs were fully equipped, and all that was left was to take out the great bow and Quiver from his Storage Bracelet—carrying the Longbow and Tang dao already made it somewhat inconvenient to move.
“I hope those guys know when to quit. I don’t want to waste time with them.”
Di Yi Ye muttered, greeted the guards again, and headed home.
His thoughts were good, but soon Di Yi Ye saw out of the corner of his eye that those figures had not left but were following him from a distance. As time passed, their numbers even increased, quickly reaching ten.
That wasn't all; someone blocked his path ahead. It was clear these people were prepared and did not intend to resolve this peacefully.
“Twelve people, ten of whom are in the Initial Awakening stage, all Late Stage. The other two should have reached Soul Condensation, but thankfully, they just reached it, so their strength shouldn't be too great.”
Di Yi Ye quickly assessed the opponents' realms. He couldn't help but feel envious. "I didn't expect Su Ming and Su Meng to have reached Soul Condensation too. It's only been a month since I last saw them, their cultivation speed is too fast."
The ones surrounding and intercepting Di Yi Ye were his 'old friends.' They had a big fight before over some Territory. Although Su Ming had the numerical advantage then, Di Yi Ye's Combat Power was extraordinary, and with Di Si Qing Wu by his side, the dispute was easily resolved.
Of course, facing a master like Di Si Qing Wu, who was in the Soul Condensation Realm, people like Su Ming, who were only in Initial Awakening, were no match even with their numbers. They suffered quite a bit.
It was clear that Su Ming and the others were here for revenge for what happened last time, and they specifically chose a time when Di Yi Ye was alone.
Facing such a large encirclement, especially with Su Ming and Su Meng having broken through to the Soul Condensation stage, Di Yi Ye showed no signs of worry. This wasn't just because he was confident in his own strength; more importantly, although private fights were not forbidden in Luo City, killing was not allowed. This was a strict rule set by some important figures in Luo City to protect humanity's continuation.
Private fights were not forbidden because it actually promoted cultivators to improve their strength. To improve their strength, humans would do almost anything.
Of course, although killing was explicitly forbidden, this was only on the surface. Murders and robberies still occurred frequently in secret, even with the extremely severe punishment if discovered.
Fortunately, Di Yi Ye and the others were on a street in Luo City now, with many people watching from the surroundings. Su Ming and the others were highly unlikely to kill him; they just wanted to teach him a lesson and vent their anger. Therefore, even though he knew he was outmatched, he wasn't overly worried.
That's right. Facing twelve people at once, most of whom were experts like himself in the Late Initial Awakening stage, plus Su Ming and Su Meng already in the Soul Condensation stage, it was difficult for Di Yi Ye to be a match. Especially since he knew clearly that Su Ming and Su Meng had awakened genes and special abilities respectively.
Thinking about it, Di Yi Ye barely survived fighting a few Fire Mane Rats. Now, Su Ming and the others were clearly much stronger than those Fire Mane Rats. He was naturally no match, even if his strength had improved somewhat from his previous attempt at gene awakening.
“Hmph, Di Yi Ye, you have no woman to protect you now. Let’s see how you escape.”
Su Ming snorted coldly. Grayish fur subtly permeated his body, and his already tall frame quickly exceeded two meters, making him as imposing as a mountain, exuding a heavy sense of pressure.
Su Ming, like Tong Wei, was a cultivator who had awakened genes. The former awakened the brown bear gene. After shapeshifting into a bear, his body became even larger, not only thick-skinned and tough but also immensely strong. His physique was likely even more powerful than Di Yi Ye's, who had undergone Body Tempering for a long time.
That's right. Most cultivators who awaken genes have astonishing physiques. This is one of the benefits of gene awakening. Moreover, Su Ming's realm is higher than Di Yi Ye's, so it's normal for his physique to be even stronger.
“Exactly, exactly! This kid can only hide behind women. Otherwise, we would have beaten him down last time.”
The crowd chimed in, only Su Meng slightly parted her cherry lips, wanting to speak but hesitating.
“You guys are just relying on numbers. If it were one-on-one, I’d beat all of you.”
Di Yi Ye retorted sharply, not backing down.
“Brother Ye, apologize to my brother, and we’ll let you go…”
Su Meng tried hard to find the right words, her pretty face full of anticipation. She clearly wanted to protect Di Yi Ye.
Su Meng was about sixteen or seventeen, tall, dressed in a red outfit like blood, with fair and tender skin like jade. Her starry eyes flickered with light, and her pretty face was slightly flushed with worry, making her even more beautiful.
The reason Su Meng was protecting Di Yi Ye was that he had let her go during the previous conflict and had even stopped Di Si Qing Wu when she was about to teach her a lesson. Otherwise, she would have suffered physical pain—Di Si Qing Wu was no easy opponent; her combat style was extremely fierce. Those defeated by her would not only break bones but also be covered in wounds. In the previous conflict, only Su Meng was unharmed because Di Yi Ye intervened.
It was precisely because of these things that Su Meng owed Di Yi Ye a favor, and she was now trying her best to protect him and didn't want him to get beaten up.
“An apology is necessary, but we can’t let him off. We have to teach him a lesson. Hmph, let him suffer the pain of broken bones too.”
A person behind Di Yi Ye said fiercely. He rubbed his hands together, looking eager to try. If not for Su Ming, who was leading them, not having given the order yet, he would have already charged forward with his staff.
That person's words were immediately echoed by the crowd. They were also eager, just waiting for Su Ming to give the command.
“But, but you promised me you wouldn’t make things difficult for Brother Ye, and that’s why I agreed to help you. How can you go back on your word?!”
Su Meng became anxious, tears almost welling up.
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