3: Chapter 3 A "Live Broadcast" Falls from the Sky? Watch Simultaneously Worldwide!

Chen Wu curled up in the bathtub, the bone-chilling ice water submerged up to his chin, making his teeth chatter uncontrollably. But what was even more unbearable was the intense pain beneath his skin, like the biting of ten thousand ants. The "Iron Cloth Shirt Experience Card" he had exchanged for last night was backfiring; it felt as if a raging fire was spreading throughout his body, scorching every inch of his skin and every single bone.

"Mr. Chen, Xu Mang has set up 128 high-speed cameras at Nanshan," Zhao Qiming's voice came through the door, tinged with a hint of anxiety. "He claims he's going to use six tons of liquid nitrogen to create an absolutely fair..."

Before Zhao Qiming could finish his sentence, a thunderous System notification suddenly exploded in Chen Wu's mind:

[Calamity-Class Live Stream Event Triggered: Sanjiangyan Dam Breach Rescue]

[Earnings Bonus for this Stream: 300%]

Chen Wu was jolted awake, choking on a few mouthfuls of water and coughing violently. Simultaneously, a projection of the disaster scene from a thousand miles away appeared on his retina—a twelve-meter-high flood peak, like a ferocious giant beast, roared as it pounced toward the ancient town along the bank. The broken steel beams of the Rainbow Bridge were like fangs in the beast's mouth, stabbing ruthlessly toward the helpless excursion boats in the river.

"1 hour and 42 minutes until the dam breach. Teleport now?" The System's prompt rang out again.

At that moment, Zhao Qiming burst through the door, his eyes widening at the sight before him—Chen Wu's body was being enveloped by a golden light, gradually becoming transparent. The safe house's surveillance records showed that the acceleration at the moment the target disappeared reached 12.9g, and the ice water in the bathtub evaporated instantly under the high temperature, forming a perfect ring of steam.

Chen Wu opened his eyes in freefall and found nine drone lenses already surrounding him. Torrential rain poured down, but it miraculously vaporized three centimeters from his skin, forming an elliptical dry Domain.

[Temporary Exchange: Wave-Treading Boots (3 hours). 20 points deducted.]

[Remaining Points: 7]

Chen Wu looked down at the silver boots that had suddenly appeared on his feet, feeling a surge of power rising from his soles. He looked up, and a blood-red countdown barrage was projected onto the clouds, with various voices rising and falling:

[Hydraulic Expert]: The kinetic energy of the flood peak is equivalent to 450,000 tons of TNT!

[Ancient Town Resident]: Save the children! The school is on Azure Dragon Street!

Chen Wu took a deep breath and dove down, treading on the raindrops. With every step he took, golden coordinates would appear at his foothold—the System was calculating the optimal rescue path for him. He twisted his waist and spun in mid-air; suddenly, the torrential rain seemed to have its pause button pressed, freezing into countless crystal-clear water droplets.

"Break!"

Chen Wu gave a thunderous shout as the second form of the Surging Wave Hands, Vortex Flow, erupted with full force. A water dragon vortex twenty meters in diameter was generated out of thin air, looking exceptionally spectacular amidst the storm. He grabbed two elderly people trapped at the top of a tree and gave them a gentle toss, throwing them toward a nearby assault boat. However, the counterforce slammed him hard toward the ruins of a nearby crumbling building.

Boom!

The load-bearing wall shattered against Chen Wu's back, sending stone fragments flying. He coughed up blood, feeling as though several ribs were broken, and his internal blood and Qi were churning. In the moment of crisis, he unhesitatingly exchanged for a Rejuvenation Pill. The instant the Medicinal Pill entered his throat, the global audience witnessed a miraculous scene through the live stream—Chen Wu's protruding rib fragments actually reset themselves automatically, and meridian-like blue lights flashed across his skin's surface as the wounds healed at a speed visible to the naked eye.

[Medical Observation Group]: Cell division speed has broken through the Hayflick limit!

[Hostile Forces]: Self-healing factor sample captured!

The barrage was instantly flooded with various exclamations and questions.

"The third flood peak has arrived early!" the fire commander's roar, mixed with the sound of rain, reached everyone's ears through the live stream. Chen Wu looked up at the dam breach point marked by the System; there were seventeen children clinging to driftwood, in a precarious situation amidst the surging flood.

Chen Wu checked the remaining points displayed by the System; only 5 points were left. Just then, a red item suddenly unlocked in the mall interface:

[Forbidden Option: Blood-Burning Art (1 minute)]

[Exchange Cost: 72 hours of lifespan]

Chen Wu hesitated for a moment, a flicker of struggle crossing his heart. Burning his lifespan to gain power was a choice he had never considered. But looking at those seventeen small figures in the distance, he gritted his teeth and made his decision.

Almost simultaneously, the presidential Chief of Staff pointed at the satellite image, his voice filled with disbelief: "Gentlemen, his body temperature is melting the Beidou Satellite's monitoring probes!"

Physicists at The Pentagon frantically tapped on their keyboards, shouting loudly: "According to the fluid dynamics formula Q=Av, the reverse vortex he's creating is canceling out the flood peak's kinetic energy!"

At that moment, all live stream screens suddenly jumped to a burning special effect:

[Donation Channel Open: 100 million RMB to unlock 'Wave-Treading Boots' extension]

The barrage from Chinese netizens instantly flooded the screen:

"230 million has already been crowdfunded!"

"A Chongqing hotpot restaurant owner donated half a year's worth of revenue!"

Chen Wu's pupils were submerged by data streams, and the Wave-Treading Boots suddenly extended a plasma tail flame. He carved an elegant Z-shaped trajectory across the surface of the flood peak; everywhere he passed, seven flood diversion barriers actually rose, guiding the surging floodwaters in different directions.

"Children, hold on tight!" Chen Wu shouted loudly, tearing open his spatial bag and tossing out Life-saving Spheres one by one. Nano-Materials activated instantly, automatically enveloping each child and protecting them safely inside. However, when he turned to kick a flying steel beam, he heard the crisp snap of his Achilles tendon rupturing.

[Blood-Burning Art forcibly activated! Countdown 00:59]

A scorching power suddenly erupted from his Dantian, sweeping through his entire body. Chen Wu felt his heart beating faster and faster, as if it were about to jump out of his chest. Just then, Xu Mang's drone swarm suddenly broke into the live stream frame, and a silver powder was sprinkled from the undercarriages: "Great Master Chen, this is the Bismuth-209 isotope that can block Internal Energy!"

Chen Wu only felt his surrounding protective Qi Energy dissipate instantly. A massive pull came as his right leg was snagged by a steel cable, dragging him ruthlessly toward the center of the vortex. The barrage flashed frantically with danger warnings, and the audience's hearts were in their throats.

However, in this desperate situation, Chen Wu's gaze suddenly became calm. He assumed a never-before-seen starting stance in the water and whispered:

"Third Family Stance—"

Zhao Qiming stared at the monitor, his face turning pale instantly: "His heart has stopped! No... this is the Turtle Breathing Technique!"

Chen Wu's pupils turned Grey-White, and his body sank to the riverbed with the torrent. Before the global live stream signal was interrupted, the audience vaguely saw the riverbed crack open, revealing a mysterious stone tablet covered in Oracle Bone Script, emitting an ancient and mysterious aura.

[Data for this Stream]

• People Saved: 347

• Points Obtained: 209

• Body Damage Rate: 89%

An unknown amount of time passed before Chen Wu slowly surfaced, surrounded by schools of fish. He pulled out his phone and found it filled with missed calls. The latest push notification showed: # Xu Mang Announces Arena Battle Upgrade to Unrestricted Fighting #, accompanied by a picture of a blood-stained Gene-Strengthening Agent, exuding a dangerous aura.

Just then, the System suddenly popped up a blood-red prompt:

[Achievement Unlocked: Apocalypse Bringer]

[New Function Activated: Power Of Faith Conversion (Every million admirers increases all attributes by 1%)]

Chen Wu gripped his left arm, feeling the bronze patterns emerging on it as a mysterious power surged within his body. From afar came a long whistle of a siren, seemingly a tribute to this hero.

However, what he didn't know was that above the clouds, three stealth fighters bearing the Black Lotus emblem were quietly turning, flying in his direction. A new crisis was quietly brewing in the shadows...