Genius Club

BANG!

Dressed entirely in black, a young girl wearing rubber gloves showcased her incredible strength. She ripped off the door of an Alphard vehicle as if it were a mere sheet of paper.

The hefty door, with its dark green tinted glass still intact, soared through the air and collided with a nearby pillar, erupting in a loud crash.

“Drive!” Lin Xian commanded without hesitation.

He took advantage of the girl’s momentary imbalance. With swift precision, he delivered a sharp kick to her chest just as she attempted to mount the car’s running board.

Thud.

The sound echoed like a boot striking a metal sheet. The impact pushed Lin Xian back into the vehicle but also forced the girl to stagger backward three steps.

Roar————

Xiao Li, the driver, was no ordinary chauffeur. Trained in the army’s driver squad, he excelled in high-pressure scenarios. “Never let your guard down,” his instructors would emphasize, a mantra deeply ingrained in him.

Even before Lin Xian had settled in, Xiao Li was ready. His foot hovered over the accelerator, his eyes scanning their surroundings through the mirrors. Yet, the girl’s sudden appearance and her swift, powerful removal of the door still caught him off guard.

Roar————

With a 3.5-liter engine boasting nearly 400 horsepower, the Alphard wasn’t a sports car, but it was impressively robust. It lurched forward, tires screeching against the concrete, as Xiao Li steered it toward the parking lot exit.

“Drive faster!” Lin Xian’s voice was tense from the back seat. “Don’t stop for anything! Keep going where there’s less traffic!”

“Understood, Mr. Lin Xian!” Xiao Li responded, his pulse racing as he accelerated toward the exit ramp.

Lin Xian braced himself, looking through the rear window. Was she still there? Yes, and she was fast approaching with superhuman speed.

Bang!

A dull thud announced her presence at the back of the car. She had grabbed onto the rear bumper and was now pulling herself up onto the rear window.

Lin Xian stared incredulously. What kind of person was this? Her strength seemed more than human—perhaps she was a cyborg or something even more formidable. He had seen her agility, but ripping a car door apart? That was something else.

Her face appeared through the rear window, emotionless, her blue eyes cold and calculating as she raised her fist and struck the glass.

Crash——

The double-layered tempered glass spider-webbed under her relentless assault. Luckily, the laminate held the shards in place—for the moment.

“This won’t hold her long,” Lin Xian realized, understanding the grave danger they were in. “She’s a time-space assassin, with capabilities unknown and terrifying.”

“Xiao Li! Drift!” Lin commanded, holding onto his seat. “Scrape the rear against the exit ramp wall! Knock her off!”

“Got it!” Xiao Li responded, ready for action. If the assassin got inside, there would be no escape for either of them.

As they approached the ramp, Xiao Li executed a perfect drift. The rear of the Alphard screeched against the wall, sparks flying. Inside, Lin Xian clung to his seat, feeling the intense force.

Xiao Li’s maneuver was precise; the vehicle’s tail scraped tightly against the wall, forcing the assassin to make a choice—fall off or be crushed.

Bang——

They burst through the parking barrier, speeding into the desolate night, racing into the darkness.

….

Lin Xian had left Zhao Ying Jun’s residence close to midnight, and now, as they sped out of the city, the streets were bathed in the soft glow of streetlights.

“Mr. Lin Xian! Did we manage to shake her off?” Xiao Li asked, pressing his foot firmly on the gas.

Lin Xian let out a tentative sigh, his eyes switching between the now quiet rearview and the car’s battered rear. “We should have… wait!”

A chill ran down his spine, prompting him to look up. There, on the panoramic sunroof, a pair of eyes glowed blue like flames, staring down emotionlessly into the vehicle.

“She’s on top!” Lin Xian gasped.

The assassin had predicted their actions, leaping from the back to the roof to avoid collision during their earlier maneuver.

“Hold on tight, Mr. Lin Xian. I’ll try to shake her off!” Xiao Li declared, his determination clear. The Alphard’s sleek roof offered nothing for her to grip; a few sharp swerves should be enough to dislodge her.

Lin Xian fastened his seatbelt, bracing for a rough ride.

Snap!

A chilling sound cut through the air as a steel blade pierced the roof. The assassin’s relentless attack turned the roof into a makeshift sieve, her objective clear: to breach the vehicle and eliminate Lin Xian.

As Lin Xian pondered the escalating situation, he questioned everything he thought he knew about time-space laws and his own invulnerability.

What did Yellow Finch’s cryptic second question mean? What was its true significance?

“Xiao Li, stop swerving. Just accelerate! Push the speed to the max!” Lin Xian ordered, his voice firm despite the grim circumstances.

Xiao Li complied, pushing the battered Alphard to its limits as it picked up speed.

Bang!

Another thud—her black-gloved hand punched through, looming ominously above them.

“Brake! Slam it down now!” Xiao Li understood Lin Xian’s intent—to use a sudden stop to fling their assailant from the vehicle.

Screech!!!

The brakes squealed, the car’s sudden deceleration launching the dark figure from the roof, trailing sparks as she skidded along the asphalt before coming to a halt.

“Run her over!” Lin Xian shouted, knowing her resilience was beyond any normal human capacity.

Xiao Li floored the gas pedal, the Alphard lunging forward as the girl rose again, her face streaked with blood but expressionless, the eerie blue glow in her eyes intensifying.

Roar————

The vehicle charged forward, the distance closing rapidly. Just as they were about to hit her—

Whoosh!

At the last moment, the girl dodged, narrowly evading the vehicle but grabbing the side mirror, stumbling, then leaping onto the hood, crouching before the windshield, obscuring their view.

“Mr. Lin Xian,” Xiao Li murmured, his voice strained. Despite his training, he hadn’t been prepared for an opponent so relentless and seemingly superhuman.

Lin Xian, fists clenched, stared through the shattered windshield at the haunting blue eyes. They were overwhelmingly strong, and his despair was compounded by his confusion about the time-space laws he had believed were absolute.

Her expression remained impassive as she gripped the hood and delivered another punch to the windshield. Bang after bang, the glass spiderwebbed and then shattered, the laminate finally giving way.

“Brake!” Lin Xian snapped, and Xiao Li slammed on the brake, trying to replicate their previous successful maneuver.

Screech————

As the brake discs sparked, Lin Xian caught the flashes from the corner of his eye. The laws of physics remained unyielding. The gloved hand, along with its owner, was propelled forward, rolling for meters before crashing into the guardrail.

Just as Xiao Li was about to breathe a sigh of relief, Lin Xian interjected sharply. “Don’t stop,” he ordered, pointing decisively to the right. “Turn right, quickly! While she’s down, let’s head to Jiaxing!”

Roar————

The sleek Alphard sped into the darkness, its path illuminated only by the flickering streetlights. Behind, an assassin struggled to her feet, using the guardrail for support. Her blue eyes, initially wavering, steadied with resolve as she watched the vehicle disappear into the night.

She wiped the blood from her face with grim determination.

On the suburban expressway toward Jiaxing, Xiao Li pushed the Alphard to its limits. The windshield, riddled with cracks and holes, compromised his visibility, but slowing down wasn’t an option—not with Lin Xian’s safety at stake.

Lin Xian sat in the back, silently managing his phone, booking flights to various destinations worldwide. The cost didn’t matter; his objective was to create a labyrinth of travel plans to throw potential trackers off his trail.

After setting this smokescreen in motion, Lin Xian leaned back and sighed, reflecting on the recent chaotic events. The assassin, a figure from a complex realm of time-space, had targeted him after eliminating Yellow Finch in Copenhagen.

“But shouldn’t the time-space law of forced evasion be absolute?” Lin Xian muttered, perplexed. These laws had always seemed ironclad, yet now, everything was thrown into question.

He pondered deeply. This assassin hailed from a future far more advanced than Yellow Finch’s era. The motive seemed intensely personal—she was bent on eliminating him. Time-space laws were meant to be inviolable; no one should be able to override them, not Yellow Finch, not even the assassin.

A flash of memory struck him. In a desperate moment, he had taunted a powerful adversary in his dream: “Come kill me, Kevin Walker, you know where I am. If you don’t kill me… I’ll come for you!”

Had this challenge incited this lethal pursuit? Why then, was Yellow Finch involved? And how could this affect the so-called absolute nature of the time-space laws?

“Wait,” he paused, struck by a new thought. What exactly triggered the forced evasion? When did it actually engage?

Recalling Yellow Finch’s explanation, he understood that forced evasion seemed to kick in during crucial revelations or actions. It appeared that the law intervened only at the moment of potential execution, not beforehand.

“Perhaps the assassin’s intent isn’t merely to kill but to capture or manipulate me,” Lin Xian speculated. “In Copenhagen, the risks of rescue or escape were too high. But here, in Donghai, the conditions are more favorable for her.”

If true, capturing him wouldn’t breach the time elasticity laws as directly as killing would. Yellow Finch herself had manipulated events within these laws—guiding his actions, misleading his theories, yet never directly breaking the time-space rules.

This realization shifted his perspective and underscored the gravity of his predicament. He wasn’t just evading a skilled assassin; he was grappling with a deep manipulation of time itself.

“Ughhh…” Overwhelmed, Lin Xian leaned back, massaging his temples. The rules of time elasticity were cryptic—sometimes blocking simple actions, other times permitting complex maneuvers without triggering evasion. Was there a loophole in these seemingly concrete laws?

In the grand tapestry of time, perhaps an individual’s influence was minimal. His experiences and the shifts in his dreams that had transcended time elasticity underscored this. Individual survival seemed inconsequential in the vast flow of history.

“In the vast flow of history, the least impactful, the least capable of altering the course… is a single person,” Lin Xian mused, recalling a saying that resonated with his current dilemma.

The historical debate lingered: do individuals shape history, or does history shape individuals? Over extended periods, the significance of individual actions seems diluted. History, reaching a tipping point, will find a way to progress, with or without specific individuals.

“Is that why?” Lin Xian pondered, not entirely convinced of his conclusion.

But his immediate concern wasn’t about unraveling these philosophical mysteries; those could wait. His pressing task was to determine: “Who sent the time-space assassin after Yellow Finch and me?”

As he mulled over potential suspects, one name emerged—Elon Musk.

Lin Xian’s dealings with Elon Musk had been ambiguous. Initially viewing him as a rival, though Musk had once thwarted an attack by Kevin Walker, Lin Xian remained wary.

The methods used, the circumstances around VV’s death, Musk’s acquisition of the time particle, and his subsequent silence after making a significant appearance—these elements fueled Lin Xian’s suspicions.

Reflecting on these clues in Liu Feng’s lab, Lin Xian decided to confront Musk, maintaining a facade of ignorance about Musk’s potential role in VV’s demise. To Musk, he would appear as a cooperative ally, potentially exposing any hidden agendas.

However, with the arrival of the time-space assassin, Lin Xian’s perception of Musk as a threat intensified, placing him alongside formidable adversaries like Kevin Walker.

“They’ve come to my doorstep…” Lin Xian cursed quietly. “I must strike first.”

Remaining in Donghai City was increasingly dangerous. Despite not understanding why, the city seemed a hotspot for the assassin, whereas locations like Copenhagen offered relative safety.

To unravel this mystery, he needed to confront either Musk or Walker directly. Given Walker’s elusive nature, Musk was a more accessible target for investigation.

“World’s richest man, Mars colonization visionary, Starlink creator, Twitter owner…” Lin Xian listed Musk’s titles under his breath: “Tesla CEO, SpaceX launcher, space travel ticket seller, and notorious playboy…”

He paused, pondering Musk’s well-known escapades involving high-profile relationships.

“Playboy.”

Among these connections was Angelica, a Hollywood actress who had previously intercepted him with a key to Einstein’s residence and a suggestive farewell: “If you ever come to Princeton…”

Seized by a sudden insight, Lin Xian straightened up, his gaze piercing through the damaged roof into the night sky.

Angelica.

She embodied the last of the seven deadly sins: lust. Despite her connections to the deceased Ji Xin Shui and Ji Lin, she harbored no resentment toward Lin Xian, understanding the concealed complexities surrounding the Genius Club.

Angelica had persistently sought the truth about Ji Lin’s demise and the nature of the Genius Club, even proposing vengeance, though Lin Xian had never committed to any action.

Repeatedly, she had prodded him for answers, once jotting her number on a card with an eyebrow pencil, hoping he’d call and join her quest for justice.

Lin Xian retrieved his phone, reviewing a photo of the card with Angelica’s number—a precautionary habit that occupied minimal digital space.

The time had come to align with Angelica, a proactive figure whose Hollywood influence could be crucial.

In this pivotal moment, alliances were vital. The enemy of his enemy was, after all, his ally.

He held vital information—truths about Ji Lin and Ji Xin Shui’s deaths, the elusive mastermind Copernicus, the Genius Club, Kevin Walker, and Elon Musk.

“I can’t stay in Donghai City anymore. If I move to America, maybe I can get ahead of the assassin,” Lin Xian pondered aloud.

He glanced at his recently purchased plane tickets, confirming his selection of a flight from Hongqiao Airport to Princeton.

“Xiao Li, let’s head to Hongqiao Airport,” he directed.

“Yes, Mr. Lin Xian,” Xiao Li responded promptly, steering the Alphard onto the elevated highway.

Lin Xian studied the number in the photo, added the US country code, and finally made the call he had been postponing.

The phone connected immediately.

A familiar voice, fluent in English, chuckled lightly. “It’s been a while, Mr. Lin Xian. I almost gave up waiting for your call.”

“Good things take time,” Lin Xian replied with a smile.

“Or perhaps, not-so-good things, Mr. Lin Xian?” Angelica teased. “If I’m right, you’re in trouble, aren’t you? Otherwise, you wouldn’t be calling.”

“But that’s fine, really… I prefer you in trouble. That’s when you’re willing to trade information.”

“So, will you tell me about the Genius Club, and who killed the old man, Ji Lin, and Ji Lin’s parents?”

Lin Xian switched the phone to his other hand. “Tell me, what will you do with the truth and the killers?”

Her light laughter turned icy. “What else? Make a documentary, hire a director and screenwriter?”

“I can tell you bluntly, Ji Xin Shui and Ji Lin weren’t my blood relatives… but I treated Ji Lin like a brother. So, if you reveal who killed them…”

Her tone became as chilling as frost. “I will kill them.”

“Can you get a gun?” Lin Xian asked, posing the crucial question.

“Easily, Mr. Lin Xian. Remember, this is the free America.”

“Good, Angelica.” Lin Xian smiled, his gaze drifting to the moon. “See you in Princeton.”