During the seaside vacation, Lin Zichen did only two things every day.

First, during the day, he had Shen Qinghan perform various underwater movements while he observed, trying to uncover her secret.

Second, at night, he would dive to the seabed to train intensively and improve his abilities in the water.

Several days passed this way.

Soon it was the last night of their seaside vacation.

That evening, after dinner, Lin Zichen lay on his bed watching videos on his phone, learning everything he could about the ocean.

Not long after, Shen Qinghan sent him a message on WeChat.

[Hanhan: Xiao Chen, come to my room, I have a surprise for you!]

[Zichen: Okay, I’m coming.]

After replying, Lin Zichen got up and went to her room to see what surprise she had prepared.

“Hanhan, open the door.”

At her door, Lin Zichen knocked.

After the incident when he entered without knocking and accidentally saw her in diapers, he was much more cautious now.

“It’s not locked, just come in.”

Her voice came from inside, tinged with nervousness and shyness.

Lin Zichen immediately grew curious. What kind of surprise could make her sound like that?

He opened the door.

Before him stood Shen Qinghan, blushing, in a swimsuit, shyly waiting by the bed.

This swimsuit was different from the one she wore at the beach earlier.

It looked more normal, revealing much more—basically no different from underwear.

“Xiao Chen, do I look good?” Shen Qinghan asked, overcoming her embarrassment, turning around once to show herself off.

This swimsuit had been prepared for her by Xu Meng at home, intended for her to wear at the seaside.

But she had been too shy to wear it and after so many days of vacation still hadn’t put it on.

So now, she thought it would be a waste not to wear it and decided to show it to Lin Zichen in her room to see what he thought.

“Very good, it suits you perfectly.”

Lin Zichen gave an honest answer after glancing at her.

“Really?”

“Really.”

He wasn’t lying. Shen Qinghan in a swimsuit was flawless in both face and figure, undeniably beautiful.

On the beach, she would’ve had an 80% chance of turning heads.

“By the way, walking on the beach at night in the sea breeze is really nice. Want to go try it with me?”

At his age, facing Shen Qinghan in a swimsuit, he knew staring longer might lead to thoughts he shouldn’t have, so he quickly suggested something else.

“Of course! Wait here, I’ll change.”

She picked up some casual clothes from the bed and went into the ensuite bathroom to change, not even asking him to step outside.

* * *

That night, on the beach.

A gentle breeze blew.

Lin Zichen and Shen Qinghan walked barefoot on the sand, savoring the feeling beneath their feet.

“Xiao Chen, this feels so nice. I can’t believe I didn’t do this the past few nights. What a waste.”

She sighed.

Lin Zichen smiled, “It’s fine, we’ll have plenty of chances in the future. Every summer break we can come again.”

“Yeah, every vacation our families should come to the seaside. We can swim, play volleyball, have barbecues and eat skewers together!”

Talking about skewers made her lick her lips.

Seeing her like that reminded Lin Zichen of when she was little.

Back then, Zhang Wanxin loved shopping and often invited Xu Meng along.

Shen Qinghan always came too. Every time they passed snacks, she’d drool and beg for some in her childish voice.

It was always the same, without fail.

Thinking about it, Lin Zichen found himself comparing her now with that little foodie from before.

Truly, girls change a lot as they grow.

From a chubby-cheeked, short-legged little girl to a slim, long-legged teenage girl—her cuteness had blossomed into beauty.

“Is my face really that pretty? You’ve been staring at it for over a hundred meters now.”

Blushing, Shen Qinghan finally spoke up.

“Really pretty, prettier than many celebrities.”

“Ugh, stop it! You’re just trying to make me blush!”

She felt so embarrassed she could hardly walk straight.

By then, they had wandered into the water.

Their feet soaked in the cool sea.

Looking down at the water, Lin Zichen thought of the colorful seabed and suddenly asked, “Want to dive with me, see the beauty down there?”

“How?”

“I’ll teach you.”

He led her to the shallow depths, only a few meters down.

But within seconds of diving, Shen Qinghan frantically tugged at him, signaling to the surface.

He quickly brought her up.

The moment she surfaced, her face went pale, “Quick, Xiao Chen, let’s get back to shore! Away from the water!”

Puzzled, he didn’t question her yet and swam to shore with her.

Once safe, he asked, “What happened? Why so scared?”

“The voice. I heard a voice. When I went under, I suddenly heard strange sounds in my ears. Creepy sounds.”

“What kind?”

“I don’t know, maybe a language I don’t understand. But it was definitely a woman’s voice, echoing in my ears until I surfaced. Then it disappeared.”

She looked terrified.

Lin Zichen was baffled. A woman’s voice? A language he couldn’t understand? Why hadn’t he heard it too?

“Let’s go, Xiao Chen. I don’t want to stay here. It feels cold and creepy.”

Seeing her so afraid, Lin Zichen didn’t argue and took her back to the seaside house.

* * *

Late at night.

In bed, Lin Zichen couldn’t sleep, thinking of what Shen Qinghan said—the voice underwater.

The more he thought, the creepier it felt, making him imagine water ghosts.

But soon he realized it was pointless speculation. The more he dwelled on it, the more time he wasted.

To distract himself, he opened his phone to check the news.

Unexpectedly, he saw a headline.

Sightings of giant aberrant rats in Shanhai City!

A fisherman had been dragged away by one while night fishing by the river. His fate was still unknown.

Reading this filled Lin Zichen with urgency. Restless and unable to sleep anyway, he decided to train.

* * *

[You did 1000 weighted push-ups, Vitality +2000, Arm Strength +2000, Chest Strength +2000, Push-up Proficiency +1000]

[You did 1000 weighted sit-ups, Vitality +2000, Abdominal Strength +2000, Sit-up Proficiency +1000]

[You did 1000 weighted squats, Vitality +2000, Leg Strength +2000, Squat Proficiency +1000]

[Your Biological Level has risen to Ordinary Fifth Tier]

To his surprise, Lin Zichen had evolved!

From Ordinary Fourth Tier to Ordinary Fifth Tier!

Ordinary Fifth Tier—enough to stand against a giant aberrant rat.

‘I wonder what my three core stats are now. I need to test them…’

He eagerly grabbed his measuring tools and went out.

* * *

After half an hour of testing, he had results.

100m sprint: 3.64 seconds.

Vertical jump: 6.98 meters.

Single-handed lift: around 1600kg.

Compared to when he had just broken into the Fourth Tier, the improvement was massive.

Sprint shortened by 0.85s, jump height increased by 1.33m and lift improved by 510kg.