Encounter

After parting ways with Hank, Gu Yan returned to the vicinity of his home. He had a habit, however, of patrolling this large area to prevent any Honkai outbreaks that might endanger his family.

The events in the British Kingdom couldn't be concealed. The official explanation given to the public by various countries was a magnitude-nine earthquake, causing crustal subsidence and seawater inundation of the British Isles, leading to the nation's demise.

While current technology is sufficient to avert most natural disasters, humanity's exploration and understanding of the world remain too shallow. There are always exceptions each year, but this time, the casualties were simply too great.

It seemed rather foolish to try and summarize unfamiliar patterns using one's own knowledge and insights.

But precisely because of this, people believed the official narrative, and the situation remained under control.

While the high echelons of various countries were devising ways to appease the public, some attention-seeking clowns emerged, loudly peddling conspiracy theories. They claimed some country was experimenting with new weapons, or that someone or other had endangered humanity's safety.

Others believed the apocalypse was imminent and preached hedonism, a group of abnormal humans who, in a twisted way, were almost right.

The panic caused by these clowns was naturally incomparable to the Honkai. The speaker might be ambushed by Fuboler the very next second.

However, what Gu Yan was concerned about now was whether five hours spent grocery shopping was reasonable.

After experiencing a disaster, Haishi, apart from the sealed-off zones, remained as bustling as ever. The sky darkened, and the lights flickered on, illuminating the city.

Gu Yan walked down a snack street, holding a few skewers of grilled meat. He wasn't indulging his appetite; he was on patrol.

This place had a lot of people, so the safety risks were relatively higher.

If even one Deathsworn, mixed in with those corrupted by the Honkai, appeared, it could cause casualties and panic.

Alright, there were indeed other reasons. He had been out for a bit too long. While he wouldn't go hungry by eating as he walked, there were still two people waiting at home. But as long as he bought two cups of milk tea before returning and spun a little tale:

"There were too many people queuing, so I got back a bit late."

Perfect!

Still, Gu Yan wasn't particularly fond of such crowded and lively scenes, which this place certainly was.

If you were to ask why... it might be because it's easy to experience social death, as he used to call it. When Zhao Qi was with him, that guy would always say or do bizarre things.

So now, Gu Yan simply concealed his presence. Although he was only using a very crude, low-level ability, not even evading thermal sensors, it was enough to fool ordinary people.

Amidst the throng of people, there were also the occasional perverts and petty thieves. For such vermin, Gu Yan administered a small punishment, tightly gripping the hand they used to commit their crime, and with a snap.

It wasn't overly severe, just enough to require a month or two of recovery. And with the victim's screams, they would be discovered by the person they were targeting.

But there was an exception...

"Ah!!"

"I was holding my wife's hand, who the hell interfered!"

A man crouched down, clutching his wrist and crying out. His wife also showed great concern, looking around for the attacker to demand compensation.

"..."

Gu Yan activated Resurrection, healing the man's wrist, and also treated some latent ailments within his body, repairing his kidney function. It was Gu Yan's apology.

Silently retreating, Gu Yan shook his head helplessly.

"Sir, please let me pass."

Her Huaguo was somewhat fluent, but because the speaker's voice was sweet and her tone gentle and polite, it was quite pleasant to hear.

Nodding, Gu Yan subconsciously made way and glanced back.

Where did she go?

He looked confused, but as his gaze lowered, he saw the golden-haired loli pushing a wheelchair, who was the one who had just spoken.

Nelly was watching the road, but her peripheral vision caught Gu Yan's expression. She turned back and gave him a wronged look, trying to make Gu Yan feel guilty.

But...

Gu Yan had no conscience... no, Gu Yan suddenly realized that he had concealed his presence.

"You can see me?" Gu Yan deactivated his ability and appeared in the street. Because he had used a combination of concealment and cognitive manipulation, bystanders who saw this didn't react with much surprise, automatically ignoring it.

Nelly paused her steps, turned around, her gaze filled with confusion.

"Aren't you just standing right here?" She was asked, feeling bewildered and finding the person inexplicable.

"Fornia, can you see him?" The other person nodded slightly.

"I mean, just now." Gu Yan's eyes narrowed, his expression serious.

He looked towards the wheelchair, realizing something as he hadn't paid attention to others earlier.

"Just now?" Nelly wasn't the type to be assertive. If it were Fornia, she would probably have turned and left, dismissing Gu Yan as mentally ill.

To make it easier for her to understand, Gu Yan once again concealed himself, disappearing from Fornia's sight, but Nelly could still see him.

No, it wasn't the work of her retinas, but rather space telling her brain, just as her feet could feel the ground, telling her Gu Yan existed here, never having vanished.

"I... can see." Nelly noticed Fornia reminding her and realized something was amiss.

This person seemed to be an Ability User, the kind who could turn invisible. However, she seemed able to ignore his ability.

But would he investigate her and Fornia's situation? Although their personal information and passports had been handled by a team of British naval technicians, making it virtually impossible to expose them, Ability Users could always do the unimaginable.

Taking a deep breath, Nelly reassured herself not to be afraid; she wasn't an ordinary person either and didn't need to panic too much.

"You're not from Huaguo, are you."

"No."

"Can I go now?" she asked with a slight smile, a hint of anticipation in her eyes.

Gu Yan also believed that the little loli before him was no ordinary person, and as a concerned citizen of Haishi, he couldn't just ignore the situation.

"Little girl, are you an adult?"

"..."

Nelly nodded. In her country, she was already an adult.

Fornia sensed that Nelly wanted to leave and didn't seem keen on being questioned, so she spoke up:

"What do you want to do?"

But Gu Yan didn't pay her any mind.

Seeing Nelly nod, Gu Yan was a bit surprised. However, her desire to slip away didn't escape his perception.

There was no helping it. Ability Users weren't ordinary people, so he had to get things clear. Throwing a hand grenade onto the street, only a fool would bet it was a dud.

"Then, do you have this?"

He opened his palm, and his Ability Certificate appeared, showing it to Nelly.

Upon clearly seeing the contents of the certificate, Fornia and Nelly were both shocked.

S-Class Ability User!

"Do you have an Ability Certificate?" Gu Yan asked again. If an foreign Ability User hadn't registered and had entered illegally, things would become complicated.

"You're an Ability User, right?"

"Don't deny it, you can't fool me with lies."

Gu Yan's aura was terrifying. Under his oppressive presence, Nelly was flustered.

Actually... Gu Yan might not be able to tell if she was lying, but seeing the surprise on Nelly's face when she revealed her identity and her obvious intention to leave showed she wasn't some seasoned veteran. It would be quite simple to trick her.

Tricking little lolis was just too much fun!