C4 I Hope to Burn

"It's me. Surprised?" Qin Anyi said with a slight smile. The changes from the Qilin's body repair process had clearly exceeded his expectations. Still, he decided it was best to wait until he was home later that evening, where he could take his time to delve into it with a calm mind.

"How... How can this be! It's impossible! We knocked you out cold this afternoon! Even if you didn't die, you shouldn't be walking around without a scratch!" Black Skin's face spasmed uncontrollably, his voice growing hoarse with the surge of his emotions, as if he had seen a ghost.

"In this world, some things are bound to exceed your expectations. What goes around comes around." Qin Anyi said, placing his hand teasingly in front of Black Skin's eyes.

The gloom that had clouded his mood vanished with the Qilin's intervention and the stark transformation. While Qin Anyi hadn't quite figured out his next steps, a spark of hope was already kindling deep within him. This wasn't the same sense of helplessness he'd felt when the only way to change his family's fortunes was through hard work and study. It was an exhilarating clarity!

"What do you think you're doing?!" Black Skin yelped, stepping back nervously as Qin Anyi extended his hand, his face etched with terror.

Qin Anyi hadn't seen exactly how he had flung his three goons earlier, but that didn't lessen Black Skin's fear. To take on three at once and knock them out instantaneously was something Black Skin, despite his fighting experience, could never achieve.

Black Skin couldn't fathom how a regular student, who had been powerless against their ambush just hours before, could have become so formidable in such a short time, especially after sustaining serious injuries...

"Shouldn't I get back what was taken from me? Or would you prefer I retrieve it myself?" Qin Anyi extended his hand with a cold huff.

Black Skin, jolted into action, frantically rummaged through his pockets. Trembling, he extracted a wad of cash from his wallet and cautiously placed it in Qin Anyi's hand. "I... I spent over three hundred for dinner tonight... the rest is all here."

Qin Anyi pocketed the money and, without warning, delivered a controlled kick to Black Skin's stomach. Having learned from his earlier encounter, Qin Anyi moderated his strength. Black Skin let out a pained yell as he was sent sprawling to the ground, but this time, he didn't pass out.

To truly teach someone a lesson, you have to make them feel the pain; otherwise, what's the point if you just knock them out cold?

"You've got two options," I said. "First, pay back the money you owe me. Or second, I break one of your legs as payment for the cash you've blown through."

"I'll pay it back, I swear I'll pay it back!" Black Skin pleaded, kneeling on the ground, clutching his stomach. "But... I don't have the money on me right now. Can you... can you give me a couple of days?"

"Fine," I replied. "I go to Changqing No.1 Middle School. School starts tomorrow. Meet me at the school gates after classes." With that, I landed another kick on Black Skin.

I held back enough to ensure the kick was painful but not crippling, enough to make Black Skin twitch in agony.

I continued, delivering several more calculated kicks until Black Skin was too weak to even let out a cry of pain, lying on the ground, barely clinging to consciousness.

With the 'Qilin' constantly calculating the data, I knew precisely how hard to hit to inflict excruciating pain without being lethal.

"Qin... Anyi?" Yang Cheng, who had been watching from the sidelines, finally spoke up, her voice tinged with uncertainty.

"That's me. What brings you out to this desolate spot so late at night?" I asked, turning to face her after I'd stopped my assault on Black Skin.

Standing close to me, Yang Cheng seemed dwarfed by my height. My 1.78 meters towered over her 1.6 meters, and the sight of my bare, muscular upper body, now visible and imposing, made her breathing quicken.

Qin Anyi's physique used to be unremarkable, almost on the skinny side for his height and weight. But after the 'Qilin' had worked its magic, my body had transformed, appearing almost perfect to the naked eye. Clothes might hide the changes, but without them, there was nothing left to the imagination.

It really was Qin Anyi... Yang Cheng blinked, her emotions swirling. She could hardly believe that the boy who had always been the most unnoticeable in class, who buried himself in his studies and hardly interacted with others, could be this formidable.

One against four, and he won with ease! Was his quiet demeanor in class just an act? A sudden cognitive dissonance sparked a deep curiosity in Yang Cheng about Qin Anyi.

"It's summer break. I've been working a summer job at the nearby KFC. Today was my last mid-shift, and I never expected to run into this situation after work," Yang Cheng explained succinctly, then turned her head aside, her cheeks flushed as she asked, "Why... aren't you wearing any clothes?"

Despite averting her gaze out of shyness, Yang Cheng couldn't help but inwardly remark on Qin Anyi's physique... it was quite impressive.

"Uh... this was unexpected," Qin Anyi admitted, realizing his state of undress and scratching his head in embarrassment. He recalled that Black Skin's build was similar to his own, so he crouched down, swiftly stripped Black Skin of everything but his underwear, and made do with the clothes on his own body.

"Why did you tell those thugs you attend Changqing No.1 Middle School? They'll surely seek revenge after you beat them today," Yang Cheng inquired, watching Qin Anyi's actions with curiosity.

"Some troubles are best dealt with once and for all. I can't just kill them, so I had to scare them enough to ensure they won't dare bother me again. We can discuss this later; it's getting late. I should take you home now."

Yang Cheng nodded, signaling her consent. Qin Anyi, struggling to find a conversation topic, simply gestured towards the mouth of the alley and said, "Follow me. It's quite dark, so watch your step."

The walk home was silent; Qin Anyi didn't know what to say, and Yang Cheng seemed too shy to initiate conversation. The air between them was oddly charged.

It wasn't until Yang Cheng reached her neighborhood that she turned to Qin Anyi with a radiant smile: "Qin Anyi, thank you. I'll definitely treat you to a meal once school starts. Please, do me the honor."

Qin Anyi paused, then responded with a smile, "Of course."

Watching Qin Anyi's retreating figure, Yang Cheng breathed a sigh of relief. Her heart had raced the entire way home, her mind involuntarily replaying the sight of Qin Anyi's blush-inducing physique and the display of his overwhelming power against the four assailants.

Women have always had a subconscious reverence for strength, regardless of the era.

Qin Anyi was oblivious to the psychological shift in Yang Cheng, his own mind reeling from the recent acquisition of the 'Qilin.' He desperately needed some time to steady his nerves.

"Bro, you're finally home. Why so late today? It's nearly ten o'clock." Qin Anyi had barely stepped through the door when his brother Qin Anle's voice greeted him.

The Qin family of four resided in a modest rented apartment, having lost their small, ancestral home in the city center to urban redevelopment. Under the terms of a deal with the developer, the Qin family, as part of the displaced residents, would be eligible for a 60-square-meter commercial apartment once they paid a fee of 150,000 yuan. The fee was necessary because their original house was simply too cramped, a relic passed down from their grandfather's time.

In Changqing City, where housing prices soared beyond ten thousand yuan per square meter, 150,000 yuan was a bargain. Yet for the Qin family, with savings barely scraping into five figures, the sum was still a daunting mountain to climb. They had exhausted every possible means to accumulate the needed funds.

With no steady employment, Qin Anyi's parents toiled from dawn till dusk in odd jobs to scrape together money, and Qin Anyi himself took on any work he could find. Only his brother, Qin Anle, remained homebound due to his disability.

"Yeah, it was the final day of the summer job, so things got hectic. Anle, I've managed to save up enough for your school fees and textbooks for the term. Focus on your studies, and aim for Changqing No.1 Middle School in the middle school exams. We can't let Mom and Dad down."

Stepping inside, Qin Anyi's heart sank at the sight of his brother in the wheelchair. Qin Anle's disability made everyday life a challenge and weighed heavily on his self-esteem. Qin Anyi could offer no solutions, only his unwavering support and care.

At this hour, it was just the two of them; their parents were likely still out, laboring away. The end to such days seemed nowhere in sight...

"Master, there's no need for concern. Physical limb damage is completely treatable," Qilin's voice unexpectedly echoed in Qin Anyi's mind.

Qin Anyi paused, a surge of excitement washing over him. Of course! He had just acquired this enigmatic AI brain! If modern medicine could manage limb reattachment to some extent, what more could this AI, of unknown origin, achieve?

"Qilin, can you heal my brother's legs? Will he be able to stand again?" Qin Anyi conversed with Qilin mentally, his body quivering with the thrill of hope.

"Master, according to my database, as long as the brain and heart are unharmed, any injury, no matter how severe, is curable. This is merely a case of physical limb damage—a minor issue."

"Can you treat my brother's legs right now? What do I need to do?"

"Not at the moment. My database has been compromised, leaving only five percent intact, and I can only utilize about five percent of my capabilities. I need to regain at least thirty percent functionality before I can heal your brother's legs."

"Regain thirty percent? How do we do that? What's required?"

"There's no need for external items. I am a combat weapon, the pinnacle of advanced technology, and unlike any other AI, I am akin to a living being. Now that I've merged with you, my existence is interwoven with yours. As you grow stronger, both physically and mentally, you'll nourish me, allowing me to gradually recover. In turn, you'll gain access to more of my abilities."

"Grow stronger?" Qin Anyi blinked, then his resolve solidified. "Grow stronger."

"Brother, what's up with you?" Qin Anle, seeing Qin Anyi standing motionless at the door, couldn't contain his curiosity.

"It's nothing, Anle. Just some good news I have to keep under wraps for now. Once you're accepted into a top university, I'll share it with you as a reward." Qin Anyi's enigmatic smile broadened, his spirits lifting even higher.

Armed with the AI 'Qilin,' Qin Anyi was confident he'd find a way to transform his family's fortunes—and heal his brother's legs.

In life, the fear isn't in lacking a goal to strive toward, but in lacking the hope to strive at all.

Within Qin Anyi's consciousness, the sphere that had fully integrated with his brain flickered to life. The ethereal image of the Qilin materialized in his sea of thoughts, yet it failed to capture Qin Anyi's attention.

"Become stronger, Master... Fate has brought us together in this land teeming with pure-blooded humans. I will aid you in achieving all your dreams, and in turn, you must help me fulfill my purpose. To accomplish these feats, we require... power."