"Due to the fire, the place where you used to live has been burned down. But since it's burned, let it be... You didn't have any valuable belongings anyway. Out with the old, in with the new."

In front of the apartment in Da Teng City.

"What do you mean 'let it be'?" Gu Shen stood at the door, his attention drawn to the fingerprint and iris dual recognition lock. He leaned forward, squinting as he tried to calibrate the function. He frowned when he heard the words, "Am I the kind of person who gets tired of the old?"

After fiddling with it for a while, he couldn't figure out how to use it.

This lock... is quite advanced.

"Oh?"

Nanjin glanced at the young man and swiped the card before striding into the apartment.

A spacious apartment of nearly two hundred square meters, with excellent lighting. As the door opened, layers of lights turned on, revealing a fully equipped smart home. The curtains swayed in the wind, revealing the sunset on the twenty-ninth floor.

A woman in a windbreaker and sunglasses stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window, slightly bowing and making a welcoming gesture. "Here, Mr. Gu Shen, the esteemed homeless... come and take a look. This is the new home I arranged for you."

"Oh my..."

Gu Shen was stunned by the scene before him. Although he had thought about it in the car... Zhou JiRen, that old guy, must have something sweet in store for him next. But no matter what, he couldn't easily give in.

After all, his house had been burned down, and he was afraid the landlord would cause trouble for him.

At the very least, he needed to arrange a decent place for himself!

Seeing Gu Shen's expression, Nanjin smiled silently.

Those who knew her well knew that she was a woman who rarely smiled. For her, the most important thing in life should be practicing her sword skills... Mr. Shu had kept her file well, and almost no one in the arbitration office knew her background. They only knew that she was a hard worker and gave her all in every mission.

So everyone speculated that someone who worked so hard probably had a difficult life.

While taking care of Gu Shen, Nanjin looked at his file.

This young man was the one who truly had a difficult life. He had been fostered in a welfare home since he was a child, living off the government's meager subsidies. After he turned sixteen, he left the welfare home and earned a living on his own.

The file documenting Gu Shen's past seventeen years was thin.

The more one knew about his background, the more heartbroken they would be.

"How does it feel?"

"It feels..."

Gu Shen tried hard not to let his gaze wander and said with a stiff face, "This place... can only be considered decent. It's barely livable and suits my status."

But three seconds later, unable to resist the urge to take in the whole house, he slipped up.

"Alright... I admit I'm a country bumpkin." Gu Shen shamelessly grinned, "Big brother, you're absolutely right. Out with the old, in with the new. The fire yesterday was amazing. But... what about the landlord?"

"I've taken care of it for you, but it cost me some money."

As Nanjin said these words, her image in Gu Shen's eyes became as tall as a Buddha.

He suddenly had the urge to cling to her leg...

To read the uncut version, go to pawread dot com.

"Oh, by the way."

Gu Shen suddenly remembered something. His ruler of truth and the orange cat... they were still in the old building!

Just as he was about to speak, he heard a soft knocking sound from the bedroom.

"Meow..."

A light orange cat, tiptoeing, slowly approached Nanjin. It rubbed against her leg, turned over to show its belly, and purred affectionately.

"Purr..."

The cold windbreaker woman actually squatted down in cooperation, gently scratching the cat's chin with her five snow-white fingers. "Almost everything in that old house was burned. When we arrived, this cat was still alive. It was lucky, but it lost some fur in the fire."

When Chu Ling appeared, Gu Shen's first reaction was nervousness... but he quickly relaxed.

Judging from this ungraceful posture, the one rolling around seeking affection should be the original form of the silly cat he brought back. For some reason, Chu Ling's consciousness had already separated from this orange cat.

"After the fire... besides this cat, nothing was left in my house?" Gu Shen asked tentatively.

"What else do you hope to have left?" Nanjin raised an eyebrow. "Besides a broken table and a broken bed, what else is there in your house?"

"...You're right." Gu Shen scratched his head.

It seems they haven't found the "ruler of truth"... Did Chu Ling hide it?

"You can rest well these days." Nanjin rubbed the orange cat a few more times, then stood up and hugged the little guy. "Regarding your transcendent abilities, the arbitration office is still in the process of determining... There will be an assessment in a few days, once your body has recovered enough."

"Assessment? What kind of assessment?"

"Everyone's awakened transcendent abilities are different, and the level of danger varies... Although according to Mr. Turing's theory, the level of danger of transcendent powers is related to the level of development, there are always some people who take a big leap ahead as soon as they open their eyes. Some people's awakened transcendent abilities can only bend spoons, while others... can easily burn down an entire building." Nanjin used a simple analogy, with a meaningful reminder. "The scene of the fire last night was truly astonishing. The arbitration office is likely to give you an S-level intensity rating."

"..."

Gu Shen covered his forehead and suddenly felt extremely guilty. "To be honest... I may not be as powerful as you imagine."

"Don't underestimate yourself."Nanjin shook her head, her gaze burning, "I've seen the photos from the rooftop. The damage was terrifying, far surpassing most newcomers. It's been a long time since a monster like you appeared in Qinghe District... What kind of ability is this? Can you use it again?"

Gu Shen looked at his own hands.

Without that ruler ring, he was just an ordinary person... What did he have to do with Transcendent powers?

Through a series of unexpected events, he had ended up here, and Gu Shen felt the troubles entangling him growing larger.

When the day of the physical examination came... The truth that he didn't have Transcendent powers seemed to be on the verge of exposure.

What should he do?

He fell into deep thought.

"It seems you haven't fully mastered this power yet... That's okay, take your time." Nanjin said softly, as expected, "But there's something else I need to tell you. This time, to fight for your allegiance, the teacher and the judge from the prison almost came to blows... Because they used the 'Pardon Order', many people in the court expressed dissatisfaction."

"For those dazzling, brilliant things... There are always people who are jealous, resentful, and hostile; always people who want to tarnish them, make them fall, make them crash." Nanjin put down the cat, looked straight at Gu Shen, and said slowly with an incredibly slow pace, "The more people try to crush you, the more it shows that you have infinite potential and a promising future. Instead of retreating, giving up, and willingly becoming mediocre, why not rise up, fight, and carve out a Transcendent path."

The orange cat meowed and jumped away.

Nanjin paused after each word, "He who wants to wear the crown, must bear its weight."

He who wants to wear the crown, must bear its weight.

Gu Shen looked up thoughtfully, "Are these words... from Mr. Shu?"

"Because of the Pardon Order, the teacher is still busy dealing with those old stubborn people in the court, he's at his wits' end."

"I just improvised." Nanjin's sunglasses slid down, revealing a mischievous look in her eyes, "After all, you've acknowledged me as your big brother. I have to comfort you, the newcomer. How was my speech?"

"Big brother spoke well..." Gu Shen praised sincerely, then turned the tables, "Don't say it next time."

"Tsk."

The woman in the trench coat didn't care, she readjusted her sunglasses, checked the suspended knife under her coat, and said, "I have important things to do tonight, so I won't accompany you. Rest well."

Before leaving, she tossed him a card.

"Here, the password is your birthday. There's some money in this card, consider it compensation for your selling fee. It should cover your daily expenses. The teacher asked me to tell you to relax... The audit result isn't that important, after all, he had his eye on you even before that fire."