The courtyard had fallen into an uneasy silence. Wang Chen's awakening had left the crowd stunned into disbelief. The laughter that had mocked him before had evaporated, replaced by whispers tinged with fear. Yet among those whispers, the cold, calculated voice of betrayal waited to strike.
Ren Yinian stepped closer, his brow furrowed with unease. "Wang… there's something you need to know."
Wang Chen's gaze sharpened. Every muscle in his body thrummed with the metallic heartbeat of the Mechanical God's Heart. "Speak."
Ren hesitated. "Three years ago… the accident that destroyed your family? It wasn't an accident. Someone—someone orchestrated it. They knew you could awaken an S-rank profession… they wanted to steal it, control it."
The revelation hit Wang Chen like a thunderclap. His chest tightened. Memories he had buried—hushed warnings, strange omens, the cruel whispers of classmates—suddenly aligned into a pattern of betrayal.
"You mean… it was deliberate?" he asked, voice low, almost a growl.
Ren nodded grimly. "Yes. And worse… that person is among us. He's been waiting for you to fail so he could claim your destiny as his own."
The words burned. Wang Chen felt a surge of anger, bitter and sharp, piercing every nerve. For years he had been dismissed, mocked, written off as useless, all while someone manipulated the strings behind the scenes.
A shadow shifted near the crowd, and his eyes locked onto the source. It was the one who had orchestrated everything: cold, calculating, arrogant—the man who had taken his family's future. Ren Yinian's expression mirrored his. "Be careful… he's more dangerous than you can imagine."
Wang Chen's hands clenched, the metallic heartbeat of the Mechanical God's Heart echoing his fury. The energy pulsed, coiling like a living serpent within him, ready to strike. Pain, humiliation, and revenge mingled into a singular focus: justice.
"I will not be a pawn again," he whispered to himself, voice steady. "I will reclaim everything that is mine."
The crowd parted as the antagonist stepped forward, eyes glinting with cold amusement. "So, Wang Chen… you actually survived. Impressive for a cripple. But don't think you can stop me. Everything you've lost… everything you've suffered… it belongs to me now."
The sneer cut deep, but Wang Chen's resolve crystallized. "No," he said, voice echoing with authority. "Everything you stole… I will take back. And I will make you pay."
A sudden burst of light and energy erupted from Wang Chen, his aura flaring like molten metal, burning into the eyes of everyone present. The Mechanical God's Heart responded to his fury, translating desperation into raw power. Sparks of mechanical energy raced along his limbs, illuminating the courtyard with brilliant arcs of electricity and steel.
The first strike came without hesitation. Wang Chen's fist, infused with mechanical resonance, struck with terrifying precision. The force sent the antagonist skidding backward, stumbling on the cobblestones, utterly unprepared for the boy they had mocked for so long. Gasps erupted from the crowd.
"You… impossible!" the antagonist roared, staggering to recover.
Wang Chen didn't hesitate. Every movement was precise, fueled by years of pain and the unyielding pulse of the Mechanical God's Heart. With a surge of energy, he projected his aura outward, a wave of power that threw back the students who had mocked him, leaving them cowering in awe and fear.
Ren Yinian stepped closer, eyes wide. "You've… you've awakened more than just an S-rank. This… this is something else entirely."
Wang Chen's voice was calm, cold, yet resonant with steel and fire. "I am no longer your joke. I am the one who decides what lives… and what dies. If you touch my family again… you will regret it."
The antagonist stumbled to his knees, shock and fear written across his face. The tables had turned. The boy who had been called a cripple, a failure, a nobody, now stood as a force that even the powerful feared.
And as Wang Chen's eyes glowed with mechanical intensity, he realized a profound truth: he didn't just have power—he had control. Control of his destiny, control of his enemies, control of vengeance itself.
The first strike had been swift, but it was only the beginning. The path of revenge, of reclaiming everything lost, was just opening. And this time, Wang Chen would never falter.