novelraw Chapter 6 : The Shadow in the Wind
Chapter 6 : The Shadow in the Wind
Chapter 6: The Shadow in the Wind
On the outskirts of Jiang City lay a remote village called “Xiaxi Village.”
Here, far from the noise of the city, the air was filled with the fresh scent of soil and grass.
This was Zheng Wei’s hometown, and he had rushed back overnight with his daughter.
Inside an old house, Zheng Wei carefully blew on a bowl of freshly cooked rice porridge to cool it down, then fed it spoonful by spoonful to his daughter, Zheng Xiaoxiao, who lay on the bed.
“Dad, why… did we come back home?”
Zheng Xiaoxiao’s face was still pale, but she looked much more spirited.
Gazing at the familiar room, confusion flickered in her eyes. “The nurse at the hospital said I can’t stop taking my medicine.”
Her illness required her to take an extremely expensive imported targeted drug over the long term to maintain her bodily functions. Without it, she would rapidly weaken.
Zheng Wei’s hand paused for a moment, then he forced a smile. “It’s fine, Xiaoxiao. Daddy won’t let you stop the medicine. It’s quieter here than the hospital—better for you to recover.”
“We’ll stay here for a while, and you’ll get better.”
“Really?” Xiaoxiao’s eyes lit up.
“Of course. When has Daddy ever lied to you?” Zheng Wei gently patted her head, his heart heavy with mixed emotions.
After tucking his daughter into bed, Zheng Wei sat on the stone steps in the courtyard and lit a cigarette.
Through the curling smoke, he looked at his rough, calloused hands.
These were the hands that had easily bent steel bars and torn through flesh and bone.
That seemingly endless power still slumbered within him, ready to be awakened at any moment.
He had killed someone.
Though he had been forced into it, it was still true—the blood was on his hands.
Panic and dread surged like a tide, but he quickly forced those emotions down.
He did not regret it.
For Xiaoxiao, he was willing to do anything.
Now, he was a wanted man, with a gravely ill daughter in tow and a dark, uncertain road ahead.
But the words “Game of Gods” glimmered like a faint light, showing him another path.
If he could win this game, he would permanently possess that power—and perhaps gain even more.
By then, money, identity, and the law… none of those mortal chains would matter anymore.
“Game of Gods…” Zheng Wei murmured, a fierce glint flashing in his eyes.
“Xiaoxiao, don’t be afraid.”
“Daddy will protect you. Daddy will make sure you live well.”
Since this world no longer gave him a way to live, he would carve one out himself—with his newfound power!
……
A sweltering afternoon in Jiang City.
Heat waves shimmered between steel towers.
Amid the dense traffic, a courier named Zhang Jie rode his modified electric bike like a swift fish darting through the cracks between cars.
Shrill horns and drivers’ curses trailed behind him. Speed was his pride—and his livelihood.
Once, he had been a provincial sprinter, a boy who raced the wind and basked in cheers and glory.
But one damned Achilles tear had shattered all his dreams on that red synthetic track.
Now, he was just an ordinary man, racing against time through the city maze for a few yuan per delivery.
Last night, to meet a half-hour express deadline, Zhang Jie had taken a shortcut down a narrow, old alley.
Just as he turned a blind corner, a black sedan came hurtling out from nowhere!
The blinding headlights consumed his vision in an instant.
Everything happened too fast—so fast that his brain couldn’t even react. He could only watch helplessly as that metal beast came crashing toward him.
In that instant, the shadow of death enveloped him completely.
But at that very brink of doom, a cold, commanding voice—like a divine decree—exploded in his mind!
【Welcome to ‘Game of Gods’】
【Matching player identity and faction】
【Identity match complete】
【Faction match complete】
【Player: Zhang Jie】
【Identity: Windrunner】
【Faction: Radiance】
【The wind shall obey your command. Break free from the earth’s grasp—the sky is your hunting ground.】
……
The moment that voice echoed, Zhang Jie felt his body suddenly lighten, as though lifted by an invisible force.
Time itself seemed to stretch; the onrushing car slowed to a crawl before his eyes.
He could even see the driver’s face twisted in terror.
Survival instinct overwhelmed everything.
Zhang Jie’s body twisted at an impossible angle, hurling himself toward the nearby wall.
His feet—actually landed on that wall, perpendicular to the ground!
“Thud! Thud! Thud!”
He “ran” three or four steps up the wall, each step thudding heavily, like an anti-gravity gecko.
Finally, his body arced gracefully through the air and landed safely on the sidewalk—completely unscathed.
The black sedan, out of control, smashed into his abandoned electric bike with a loud “boom,” shattering it into pieces.
“I… I’m alive?”
Zhang Jie stood frozen, his heart pounding wildly, his back drenched in cold sweat.
He looked down at his legs, then at the wall bearing faint footprints, his mind blank.
The terrified driver stumbled out of the car, trembling.
He had just seen a blur—like a ghost—flash across the wall, and then the courier vanished?!
The driver rubbed his eyes, thinking he was hallucinating, but when he saw the unharmed courier at the far end of the alley, his jaw dropped.
“G-ghost!”
The driver let out a shrill scream, scrambled back into his car, and sped away in panic.
Zhang Jie ignored him. All his attention was fixed on his own body.
He jumped experimentally.
His whole body shot up more than two meters, almost brushing the tangled power lines above the alley!
When he landed, his legs only tingled slightly—without the slightest pain.
“This… this is…”
His breathing quickened, his eyes filling with disbelief and wild excitement.
After confirming he was alone, Zhang Jie began testing his newfound power like a madman.
He ran along the walls, darting and leaping through the narrow alley, moving so fast he left only afterimages.
He jumped from a second-floor window, adjusted midair, and landed feather-light on his feet.
“Haha… hahahahaha!”
His uncontrollable laughter echoed through the alley.
“Superman! I’m freaking Superman!”
Everything he had lost to injury seemed to have returned—stronger, more unreal, more thrilling than ever!
Windrunner…
This was the true Windrunner!
……
Zhang Jie reveled in his newfound strength.
Delivering packages was no longer a job—it was a thrill.
He ran along skyscraper edges, dashed between streams of cars, treating the entire city as his playground.
Those once unreachable rooftops now took only a few leaps to reach.
He loved standing at the city’s highest points, gazing down at the ant-like crowds and cars below, feeling the wind roar past his ears.
That intoxicating sense of control consumed him completely.
That night, back in his tiny ten-square-meter rental room, Zhang Jie slurped instant noodles while habitually opening a live-streaming app.
He always watched a streamer named “Fire Phoenix Nana”—not for any special reason, but because she was wild and unrestrained. Watching her made him feel alive.
But when he opened Sun Na’s page, a pinned video title caught his eye.
“Miracle Descends! Witness the Queen of Flames!”
Curious, Zhang Jie clicked in.
In the same abandoned Jinmao Tower he knew, the streamer Sun Na stood before the camera—her palm igniting with a flickering, eerie flame.
The fire was so vivid, so real. The fervor and confidence in her eyes—so unmistakable.
The instant noodle cup clattered to the floor, spilling soup everywhere.
His pupils shrank sharply; even his breath stopped.
He replayed the video over and over, staring fixedly at her every expression, every motion.
That look—the one born of power, a mix of ecstasy, curiosity, and arrogance—he knew it all too well.
Because just last night, he had seen that exact same look… in his own reflection!
“She… she’s also…”
The thought struck Zhang Jie like lightning.
This woman was also a player of “Game of Gods”!
Was she an ally of the Radiance faction—or an enemy from the Shadow faction?
His heart pounded uncontrollably.
The game rules were clear: players of the Radiance faction couldn’t recognize each other, while Shadow faction players could sense one another.
If Sun Na was an enemy, revealing herself like this made her an easy target.
But if… she was an ally?
He had to find her.
Zhang Jie sprang up from the bed, pacing rapidly in the cramped room, his mind racing.
The last place she streamed from was Jinmao Tower—could she still be there? Or at home?
He dug through her old live broadcasts, searching for clues in the background scenes.
As a loyal fan, he knew she lived in the old eastern district of the city.
That narrowed it down.
Zhang Jie’s eyes gleamed with excitement—like a hunter before the chase.
He changed into black sportswear, pulled on a cap and mask, wrapping himself tightly.
Then, he opened his window, glanced at the silent street below, took a deep breath, and leapt out.
His body cut through the night in a silent arc, landing lightly on the rooftop across the street.
The wind gathered beneath his feet.
A second later, his figure shot off like an arrow from the string—racing soundlessly across the rooftops toward the city’s east.