The rain hadn't started yet, but the clouds had already turned an ominous gray. A sense of dread hung over the city like a silk thread stretched too tight.
Inside the back seat of a sleek black Maybach, Li Zeyan's phone buzzed once—only once.
The emergency signal.
He recognized the code immediately. Zhichen.
The air around him dropped several degrees.
"Lu Nian," he barked, eyes icy. "Mobilize Phoenix Unit. I want them at Elite Elementary School within two minutes. No sirens. No mistakes."
"Yes, sir!"
Zeyan slammed the car door shut behind him as the vehicle roared onto the highway. He gritted his teeth. Someone had dared to go after his son.
Fake marriage be damned. No one touches what's his.
Scene Shift: School Perimeter – Abandoned Alleyway
Zhichen ducked beneath a construction scaffold, narrowly dodging the net one of the men tried to throw over him. His breathing was calm—too calm for a child.
He'd trained for this. Mama had made sure of it.
"When you don't know who to trust, trust yourself. And run smart."
He activated the second beacon on his watch. A red pulse blinked once—then twice.
Two minutes left until help arrived.
But the men were getting closer.
The alleyway twisted behind the gymnasium and ended in a locked gate. Zhichen scaled the fence halfway before a cold hand yanked him down. He twisted, bit the man's wrist, and slammed his foot into his shin.
The man cursed, but recovered quickly, lifting Zhichen into the air.
A black SUV screeched to a stop at the alley's mouth.
Zeyan stepped out.
Without a word, his gun was already out.
"Put him down."
The kidnapper froze, caught off guard by the CEO's cold fury. Behind Zeyan, four men in tactical gear surrounded the alley like a noose tightening.
"Last warning," Zeyan said.
Zhichen took advantage of the hesitation, elbowing the man's jaw, then dropping to the ground as Zeyan fired once—clean through the man's thigh.
The man crumpled with a scream.
Zhichen ran straight into Zeyan's arms. For the first time, the little genius didn't hold back.
Zeyan gripped his small body tight.
"You're safe," he murmured. "I'm here now."
Scene Shift: Li Estate – Underground Safe Room
Yuxi stood frozen in the center of the room as Zhichen ran to her, eyes wide with adrenaline and fear.
She dropped to her knees and held him tightly, burying her face in his hair. "My baby…"
"I remembered the code," he mumbled into her coat. "I ran. Just like you taught me."
She kissed the top of his head, but her voice trembled. "You were so brave."
Zeyan stood a few steps back, arms crossed.
"He wasn't just brave. He was being hunted."
He tossed the photograph onto the table—the one with the three men in uniform and the code FB-073 scribbled at the corner.
"This isn't a coincidence anymore."
Yuxi slowly stood, eyes never leaving the photograph.
"Project Firebird wasn't just some elite training. It was a cover. And Zhichen… is the 'key' they're all trying to take back."
Zeyan's gaze darkened. "And Cheng Shao is behind it."
Yuxi nodded. "But I don't think he's working alone."
She took out the envelope she'd recovered from the ruins and turned it over. Hidden along the fold was a second note written in fine ink.
"If anything happens to the Phoenix Key, awaken the V.C. Protocol. Seek the Silent Court."
Zeyan frowned. "What's the Silent Court?"
Yuxi's expression changed slightly.
"I think it's not a place. It's a person."
Scene Shift: Private Hospital – High-Security Ward
Meanwhile, in a room guarded by two men with military precision, an old man lay on a hospital bed, unconscious. Machines beeped steadily around him.
But on the table beside him was a worn leather journal—its cover branded with the initials V.C.
Inside, hundreds of entries in neat handwriting documented decades of silent experiments, bloodlines, and genetic manipulation.
The final entry read:
"If they come for the Phoenix Key… the seal must be broken. Yuxi must remember who she was trained to become."
The nurse entered quietly, unaware that a shadow moved in the camera blind spot. A gloved hand reached into the journal, removing a photograph tucked into the back page.
It was a photo of young Yuxi—barely five years old—surrounded by monitors and strange metallic devices.
At the bottom, a name written in red ink:
Subject: Phoenix Protocol Alpha.
Scene Shift: Cheng Holdings – Executive Lounge
Zhao Rulan paced the room, phone pressed against her ear.
"What do you mean they intercepted the retrieval?"
Cheng Shao's voice crackled over the line. "Zeyan moved faster than expected. We underestimated him."
"He's getting too close," she snapped. "And so is she."
There was a long pause.
"Then it's time to awaken the other key," Cheng said coldly. "We have no use for Phoenix Alpha anymore."
"You mean…"
"Yes. Bring in Subject Omega."
Scene Shift: Li Estate – Library
That night, Yuxi stood in the dimly lit library, staring at an old video file that Lu Nian had decrypted from the flash drive.
It showed her—age twelve—inside a facility, reciting code strings, solving logic puzzles, moving like a trained soldier. Another child watched her through one-way glass. His face obscured, but eyes… cold and identical to hers.
A sibling. No… a twin?
She trembled.
Zeyan entered the room, sensing the storm in her.
"Yuxi," he said softly.
She turned.
"I'm not who you think I am."
He came closer.
"No," he said. "You're not."
She held her breath.
"You're stronger. Smarter. And more dangerous than I ever imagined."
She stared at him. "Aren't you afraid?"
He cupped her face, his thumb brushing a tear she didn't know had fallen.
"Terrified," he whispered. "But I'm not leaving."