At this moment, Fang Wen rushed over, drenched in sweat.
From his demeanor and complexion, it was clear he had just been through a battle and was quite exhausted.
As soon as he walked up, he saw a figure with one finger pointing to the sky…
At the tip of that finger, a brilliant sun was cradled.
For a moment, Fang Wen was mesmerized.
"Chen… Chen Ran?"
His voice faltered for a beat.
Then, he called out tentatively. The person standing there was Kamen Rider Kabuto.
Fang Wen, a knowledgeable individual in many aspects, recognized him. He was, in every sense of the word, an encyclopedia.
However, Fang Wen's observation was also meticulous. The drive on Kabuto's waist was not the well-known Kabuto Zecter, but a crimson Decade Driver. This was a new driver that Chen Ran had awakened during the Rider Awakening Ceremony this year, a truly novel development for the entire Rider era. Fang Wen's memory of this was exceptionally vivid.
Kabuto turned his head to look at him.
Simultaneously, his armor, from top to bottom, dissolved like fragments, scattering in the wind and revealing Chen Ran's dashing and elegant figure.
"Whoa, Chen Ran, it really is you!"
Fang Wen walked straight to Chen Ran's side.
He said with some astonishment. He had thought he had mistaken the person.
But the answer was… no.
Chen Ran nodded.
"It's me."
After the battle, it hadn't taken much effort, and he hadn't even broken a sweat.
True to form, as soon as Fang Wen appeared, he revealed his talkative nature.
He complained helplessly, "Chen Ran, you're still amazing. Unlike me, I was tricked by a mimicked Insectoid and had to put in a lot of effort to defeat it."
That Insectoid fought dirty! It had followed him into the restroom. While he was relieving himself, it attacked him from behind. It had terrified him! Fortunately, his reaction was swift. He immediately completed his Henshin. Kamen Rider Black Shadow · True. Punching Power: 10.1t. Kicking Power: 14.2t. Jumping Power: 25m. Running Speed: 100m/6s. Even though it was just a next-generation type of the mass-produced Rider Black Shadow from the Gaim world, its base stats were truly not weak. Fang Wen's skills were also decent. Back at Jiudu High School, his grades weren't outstanding, but they weren't particularly bad either. He was consistently mediocre. In Chen Ran's words, he was a typical "fifty-fifty" fighter, able to exchange blows with anyone. He could hold his own against an LV1, and against an LV20, while he couldn't win, he could ensure he wouldn't be instantly killed. As for higher levels, there was no need to mention them. Even Chen Ran, the "cheating player," hadn't reached his peak yet and wouldn't dare claim to be invincible. Experienced and high-level Rider seniors often met unfortunate ends. It was precisely because of this "fifty-fifty" buff that he experienced such "troublesome" moments in his fight with that Insectoid.
Chen Ran shrugged.
"Actually, you're already very strong."
What he said was true. The monsters appearing from the small spatial rifts must have had some purpose. Since their strength was limited, the ones that came through would certainly be quite formidable. Low-level ones, like level one or two, would just be cannon fodder. Even the Insectoid he had just annihilated was around level 15.
"That's true, I suppose."
Fang Wen scratched his head. He had guessed the general situation from how difficult his fight had been. He had a good grasp of his own strength. Fang Wen was inherently an optimistic person, and his childhood dream wasn't to become the world's number one Kamen Rider. He was more interested in collecting anecdotes and interesting stories about the various Riders. Becoming a Rider was merely an extra layer of personal security. Of course… if he could truly become stronger, he wouldn't mind.
"Let's go, we'll head up the mountain to take a look."
Fang Wen smiled and started walking up the mountain. Chen Ran nodded and followed. However, he was contemplating whether, if he were to travel to the Gaim world in the future, he could bring back a better Energy Lock Seed for his good friend. The Rider era hadn't discovered the Helheim Forest yet. Therefore, for Riders who had awakened the Sengoku Driver and Genesis Driver, what they awakened at the beginning was already the future… However, just based on Fang Wen's name, Chen Ran even considered bringing back a Cross-Z Lock Seed, perhaps belonging to a "failed" Dragon Rider. Gaim had used Lock Seeds imbued with Rider powers, but that was with the Sengoku Driver. For the "juicer" Genesis Driver, Chen Ran wasn't so sure and could only proceed through experimentation.
Chen Ran and Fang Wen ascended Sanjiang Mountain. However, this time, they were destined to return empty-handed…
...