Year: 2006Shanghai, China
The glass that shattered was quickly cleaned.
The nurse who screamed was escorted out.
And the incident was officially recorded as a manufacturing defect.
That was the explanation given to everyone.
But inside the private office overlooking the maternity wing, Li Jian knew better.
He stood with his arms crossed, watching through the one-way glass as doctors ran tests on his newborn son. Blood samples. Reflex tests. Neural scans. Each result only deepened the silence in the room.
The head doctor finally turned around.
"Mr. Li," he said carefully, "your son's physical condition is… stable. Perfect, even."
Li Jian's eyes flicked to the man. "You don't sound convinced."
The doctor swallowed. "His grip strength is equivalent to a trained adult's. His reflex latency is less than half a millisecond. His brain activity—"
"Speak plainly," Li Jian interrupted.
The doctor exhaled."This child should not be possible."
Li Jian nodded slowly, as if he had already accepted that answer.
"Then make sure," he said calmly, "that no one else ever says that out loud."
The doctor stiffened. "Understood."
Li Wei slept peacefully.
Too peacefully.
Most infants twitched. Flinched. Reacted to noise and light.
Li Wei did not.
His breathing was steady. Controlled. Almost… deliberate.
And deep within his mind—
[SYSTEM ONLINE]
[HOST CONDITION: OPTIMAL]
[AUTOMATIC LEARNING MODE: ACTIVE]
[OBSERVATION = ACQUISITION]
Li Wei's consciousness drifted.
He did not understand language.He did not understand the world.
But the System did.
Doctors moved.Hands reached.Muscles flexed.
And with every motion—
data was recorded.
[BASIC MOTOR PATTERN COPIED][HAND STABILITY: ENHANCED]
[BREATH CONTROL: PERFECTED]
A nurse gently tapped his foot.
Li Wei's leg moved instantly—precise, controlled, far beyond an infant's reflex.
The nurse froze.
"…Doctor?"
The head doctor stepped closer and tapped the other foot.
Same result.
Perfect response.
No hesitation.
No randomness.
The room went quiet.
Three days later, Li Wei was discharged.
Not because there was nothing wrong—
But because there was nothing left to test.
The Li family estate sat beyond Shanghai's city limits, hidden behind gates, guards, and silence. The kind of place where secrets were not just kept—they were buried.
That night, Mei Lin held her son beneath soft lantern light.
"He doesn't cry," she whispered.
Li Jian watched from across the room. "He doesn't need to."
Mei Lin frowned. "That's not normal."
Li Jian approached, placing a hand gently on Li Wei's chest.
The heartbeat was steady. Strong.
Too strong.
"He's not fragile," Li Jian said. "Whatever he is… he was born complete."
As if sensing his father's touch, Li Wei opened his eyes.
They locked gazes.
And for the first time—
Li Jian felt it.
Not fear.
Not concern.
But pressure.
As if something ancient and immense was looking back at him through a child's body.
[NEW OBSERVATION DETECTED]
[TARGET: LI JIAN]
[PHYSICAL DISCIPLINE: ACQUIRED][MENTAL COMPOSURE: ACQUIRED]
Li Jian stepped back slightly.
"…Interesting," he murmured again.
That night, while the city slept, Li Wei lifted his tiny arm.
Slowly.Deliberately.
He clenched his fist.
The air trembled.
A hairline crack spread across the marble floor beneath the crib.
No one saw it.
No one heard it.
But the world had already begun to change.