Chapter 1: To Pull Up Grass, One Must Remove the Roots (1)

They say that water is the place that gives people warmth most easily, because it is much like a mother's womb, providing the most primal sense of security.

But Feng Qingcheng's feeling was exactly the opposite.

Ever since she had a near-death experience with drowning as a child, she had always been very repulsed by any training involving water.

To her, water always brought a sense of death.

As an assassin, whenever she went on a mission that involved contact with rivers, lakes, or seas, she had to prepare the most comprehensive and sophisticated equipment.

Of course, she also had to prepare for the worst-case scenario.

However, as an assassin, she knew very well in her heart that if she truly wanted to survive, she could only achieve it by undergoing necessary hardships.

She had to try her best to discard all of these external aids.

Therefore, this was the reason she stood at the edge of this swimming pool today.

As a top-tier gold-medal assassin, what she required was the forging of the strongest physical fitness, and this forging required the modification of the body.

To put it plainly, they were biochemical warriors.

However, this modification had both pros and cons.

The advantage was that their physical constitutions were truly unparalleled; when combined with their hellish training, they themselves became invincible killing tools.

The disadvantage was that all such biochemical modifications carried a certain level of risk, and such risks were especially dangerous for the first batch of test subjects.

And she was the first person, and the only person, to be the subject of this "Storm."

The so-called drug named "Storm" was actually a type of drug that changed the subject's genetic makeup, thereby allowing the person's mental willpower to condense into a physical substance, subsequently achieving the ability to manipulate certain physical objects.

This ability was what was known as an "ability" or a superpower.

She lowered her eyes to look at her arm; the Storm drug had already been injected into her body, and according to her mentor, this drug should be able to calm her fear of water.

And now, all she needed to do was throw herself into this water, quietly discard all distracting thoughts, overcome her inner demons, and thereby completely escape the shadow of that childhood drowning.

Taking a deep breath, she slowly closed her eyes and, with a "splash" like a free fall, tumbled into the water.

The slightly cool pool water instantly embraced her, the warm, smooth sensation caressing her skin and soothing her soul.

An unprecedented sense of comfort slowly grew and spread from the depths of her heart, much like soaking in a wonderful hot bath after an exhausting mission.

She relaxed her entire body and mind; this comfortable sensation made her feel somewhat drowsy.

However, it was unknown how long this soothing feeling lasted, but while she was in a half-asleep state, she was suddenly grabbed by the hair and hoisted straight up by a hand.

The moment she broke the surface of the water, she instinctively gasped for air, but before she could even exhale the turbid air from her chest, she was slapped directly across the face.

"Is Feng the Fifth dead or alive... why haven't I seen her breathing?"

As the voice reached her ears, she was slapped twice more across the face.

The pain on her cheeks caused her to snap awake instantly. Through her dripping eyelashes, she saw a slender, jade-like finger stained with bright red rouge slicing through the air, swinging directly toward her cheek once again.