Codename

"Breaking news: This evening, the Security Bureau uncovered a criminal gang hiding in XXX Residential Complex in the old district of Border City and immediately launched an arrest operation. The criminals resisted fiercely, and an intense gunfight broke out between both sides. In the end, the Security Bureau successfully killed all the criminals and began further investigations. Any citizens with information may call... Next is an on-site report."

In a dark basement, a radio intermittently crackled with sound.

On a bed in the underground city, a man in his thirties suddenly opened his eyes.

His gaze was filled with shock.

At the final moment, through the corpse under his control, he had witnessed the scene that left him stunned.

This had completely exceeded his plans.

He had indeed guided the Handlers to the residential complex, but they had arrived far faster than he had imagined.

So quickly that the Void Realm Creature had been surrounded and attacked before it even had time to grow after being born.

There should not have been any problem. Void Realm Creatures summoned through that kind of ritual were extremely powerful. Ordinary psychics would likely be crushed by fear and unable to display any effective combat strength.

Yet among that team of Handlers, there had actually been someone strong enough to hunt down a Void Realm Creature?

Damn it, what flaw had appeared in the plan?

Weren't they supposed to be newcomers? What kind of newcomer could chase a Void Realm Creature into such a state?

"What variable was this? I have to make someone in the Church find out that person's identity!" He suppressed the shock in his heart and quickly walked out of the basement.

No matter what had changed, he could not remain in Mega City any longer.

The Church did not yet possess the means to confront Mega City head-on.

"But next time, I will definitely bring you into a new world!" he murmured as he slipped into the darkness.

Meanwhile, downstairs at the residential complex.

As Handler reinforcements and Security Bureau support units arrived, the chaotic scene was quickly brought under control.

Li Yèlái found himself being watched by several Handlers, each wearing a different expression.

His seven steps through the air to hunt down the Void Realm Creature had greatly shocked them.

The veteran Handlers merely gave Li Yèlái slight nods without speaking to him, then quickly scattered to rescue the wounded or recover monster corpses.

Li Yèlái could only wait beside the wrecked car for Cheese and the others.

The operation just now had actually been very risky. Li Yèlái had not fully mastered Sky Stepping. The principle of Sky Stepping was to use a Psychic Barrier to solidify the air, allowing a psychic to find footing for an extremely brief moment.

This allowed them to execute multiple jumps.

With the situation so urgent, Li Yèlái had merely followed the sensation of Xiang Yu using Sky Stepping in the battlefield illusion.

To his surprise, it had worked in one go—and he had smashed Cheese's car. Hiss, it was her newly bought car. I wonder if it can be reimbursed.

Soon, he saw the unconscious Starfire, who had lost an arm, being swiftly wheeled into an ambulance. The anxious Shadowflow hurried in after him.

Several assault team members who had fought in the battle were also pushed into ambulances.

"A psychic's power comes from the Void Realm, so when facing Void Realm Creatures, we can remain rational and even fight to the death. But when ordinary people look directly at a Void Realm Creature, there is a high chance of mental collapse." Cheese came to Li Yèlái's side. After regretfully patting her 'new car,' she said, "We won. The Void Realm Creature did not cause even greater casualties. But we also lost completely."

Li Yèlái, who had been about to ask whether the new car that had been smashed by the monster and then stabbed by him could be reimbursed, froze at her words.

Then he looked at Cheese, only to find her staring silently at the middle-aged couple crying and shouting in the distance.

A few seconds later.

"Those are the parents and relatives of the missing children," Cheese said quietly. "They have already learned part of the truth. Some will choose to forget, while some will choose revenge. That will drive the rest of their lives, just as it did mine."

Li Yèlái's expression stiffened as he remembered the dead children.

Yes, even though they had killed that bizarre Void Realm Creature, the children had still been murdered.

They really had lost completely.

And this was everything a Handler had to face.

The two sighed and remained silent for a long time.

"But I still have to thank you. Without you, I might have been swallowed in one bite. You're my lifesaver, so I won't make you pay for the car. Of course, I won't offer myself to you either." Cheese reached out, patted Li Yèlái's shoulder, and chuckled.

"Offer yourself to me? Then I'd be getting the short end of the stick." Li Yèlái complained. If you really offered yourself to me, I wouldn't need to pay for the car, would I?

Cheese pinched his shoulder irritably and continued, "And thank you for taking the risk to drive away the Void Realm Creature. You stopped the casualties from spreading."

"Drive away?" Li Yèlái was startled. He instantly looked toward the monster's corpse and asked in astonishment, "It isn't dead?"

"It's dead, but not really dead. Uh... that isn't quite accurate."

Cheese organized her thoughts. "That Void Realm Creature came to the physical world through some Forbidden ritual. Although you killed its physical body, you merely banished it back into the Void Realm.

"Unless a psychic has awakened many times or uses certain special Forbidden Items, it is impossible to completely kill a Void Realm Creature. Once they find an opportunity, they can still return to the physical world."

Li Yèlái could hardly believe it. "Even if we pay a huge price and suffer countless casualties, killing Void Realm Creatures over and over, they are still alive?"

It was like a video game. No matter how the characters within died, the players in the real world would remain unharmed.

Instead, through their characters' repeated deaths, they would wear down the forces within the level.

At the same time, they would gain experience and become more skilled and powerful!

This was a completely unequal confrontation!

"Fortunately, aside from the Calamity Forbidden Zones entrenched in the wilderness, most Void Realm Creatures have a hard time entering the physical world," Cheese said. "Of course, that is assuming no humans help them."

Li Yèlái suddenly had a flash of insight.

He had discovered a possibility.

After making a deal with that Black Shadow, he had gained the power of Myriad Faces. And the Skinner he had killed had been sacrificed to the Black Shadow as an offering.

Now that he had killed a Void Realm Creature, did that mean this Void Realm Creature would also be sacrificed to the Black Shadow?

If so, could a Void Realm Creature still survive?

If it could not, then that meant Li Yèlái himself possessed the ability to completely eliminate Void Realm Creatures!

Still, he would have to wait until his next dream to confirm it. Maybe the Black Shadow had picky tastes and did not eat Void Realm Creatures.

Then Cheese said, "I had planned to train your psychic techniques. I didn't expect you to learn so quickly. I imagine your codename will be assigned tomorrow."

Li Yèlái's bizarre learning ability had allowed him to master both the Psychic Barrier and Sky Stepping in a single day.

That was already enough to make him a qualified Handler.

But that powerful, almost bizarre talent had made the entire upper echelon feel alarmed.

For that reason, the higher-ups had told Cheese not to reveal Li Yèlái's talent.

Mastering two techniques after seeing each of them once was simply too terrifying.

And mastering two techniques in one day, while shocking enough, also served as a form of protection for Li Yèlái.

Cheese wholeheartedly agreed with that.

She added, "And since you killed the Void Realm Creature, your reward and Merit Points will arrive soon."

Li Yèlái nodded, then lifted the Crimson Longsword in his hand.

Cheese glanced at it and said, "That is your spoils of war. After registering it, decide how you want to deal with it. You can sell it to the Equipment Department for Merit Points, or use it yourself. Just try not to let the outside world discover it."

Discover it?

Li Yèlái silently looked at the massive saber as tall as a person. Its blade was half a person tall, its hilt equally long, and several eyeballs grew from its surface.

How was he supposed to hide something like that?

Li Yèlái really wanted to keep the Crimson Longsword. It was a Psychic Weapon, it felt good in his hand, and it could greatly strengthen him. If he encountered danger, he would not have to be so passive.

But... he could not exactly patrol everywhere carrying this saber, could he?

"You can also have the branch store it. Before a mission, the branch will deliver the weapon to you. Of course, if an emergency occurs, you may not have time to wait for your weapon. So it would be best to go to the Equipment Department and acquire a weapon or firearm that is easier to conceal," Cheese suggested.

Li Yèlái nodded, but he looked at the sealed-off street and sighed.

Cheese found it somewhat strange, then quickly realized why. "Right, your curse has triggered again. You definitely can't be walking around on the streets right now."

Through their earlier battle, Cheese had gained an even deeper understanding of Li Yèlái's curse.

It was a fated curse of causality. Everything around Li Yèlái seemed to radiate malice toward him.

Accidents that should have had only a small chance of occurring became inevitable once the curse activated.

For example, this manhole cover ahead. Cheese had stepped on it, and there had been no problem at all. But if Li Yèlái stepped on it after his curse triggered, the cover would probably go wrong.

It would either shatter directly or suddenly flip over. In short, any kind of 'accident' was possible.

If Li Yèlái had fought the Void Realm Creature out in the street earlier, they might have been hit repeatedly by the dozens of cars parked along the roadside.

Cheese thought to herself.

Perhaps Li Yèlái encountering the Skinner had also been related to this misfortune.

"You still need to strengthen yourself. Your bad luck is too terrifying," Cheese said with feeling.

Li Yèlái nodded in agreement. This was also why he had agreed to join Yáng Chén's team.

"By the way, which teams will Starfire and the others be assigned to afterward? Will they become our comrades-in-arms?" Li Yèlái asked. After today, they could be considered comrades-in-arms.

Cheese replied, "Detective plans to join the logistics team, the Sixth Team. After experiencing this battle, he realized he really was not suited for combat.

"And Shadowflow still intends to stay with her brother, Starfire.

"As for Starfire, they'll decide after his arm has been reattached. He actually performed well. Whether against the bizarre woman or the Void Realm Creature, he was useful. But unfortunately, he encountered unusual enemies. I just hope it doesn't crush his confidence.

"And Heavy Cavalry is a very talented and capable girl. She is actually similar to you. Half a month ago, she encountered a Suffering One. Under the stimulation, she awakened as a True Martial Path psychic and tore that Suffering One apart alive. Her strength is also the greatest among the newcomers. In a one-on-one fight, she would not be weaker than you. She joined the Third Team."

"Then which team are we in?" Li Yèlái asked in surprise. Yes, it was already his second day as a Handler, and he still did not know his own team.

"You'll find out tomorrow. We are the First Team of Border City's Disaster Management Department!" Cheese revealed a calm smile. "Once... we were the ace team, the team known as the Champions."

Once? Li Yèlái was somewhat puzzled. "So we aren't anymore?"

Cheese nodded faintly but did not continue.

After some time, once Li Yèlái had confirmed that his curse was no longer active, he left the scene on foot and returned to his apartment.

Only after confirming there were no bloodstains or wounds on him did he enter his home.

After some banter and horseplay with Li Yúnyān, he went to sleep.

Sure enough, he once again saw the bizarre light and shadows along with the thick fog. The environment was unchanged from before, and the tentacle holding a mask was already before Li Yèlái.

The ugly Void Realm Creature was indeed within the dream as well.

At that moment, the monster no longer possessed any of its former arrogance or terror. Instead, it trembled as it knelt on both knees, repeatedly kowtowing to Li Yèlái, its face full of fear and pleading.

It... was afraid of him? Or was it afraid of the Black Shadow?

Just what was the Black Shadow's identity?

Seeing the monster's expression did surprise Li Yèlái somewhat, but only somewhat. This kind of monster was humanity's enemy. There was nothing to pity!

In the next instant, a long-absent tentacle stretched out from the fog and dragged the screaming Void Realm Creature deep into the mist.

Then came a scalp-numbing sound of chewing.

But this time, the Black Shadow did not give him another white mask.

Was the offering insufficient?

Or had the demand for offerings grown greater?

Li Yèlái considered it, but still did not reach for the white mask.

Instead, he looked deep into the fog and shouted, "Mr. Shadow, is it dead for good? Make sure you eat it clean!"

Within the fog, the Black Shadow did not even acknowledge him.

Li Yèlái continued shouting, "What secret code should I use next time I want to make a deal with you?"

The Black Shadow still ignored him.

"Would Makabaka work?"

The Black Shadow waved a hand and directly threw Li Yèlái out of the dream.

Li Yèlái could not help complaining. Treating customers like this? What a temper!

The next day, Li Yèlái returned to the Antique Shop and began work. On the way, he secretly practiced Sky Stepping a little.

When there were no missions, the authorities did not require Handlers to patrol, nor did they care about their private activities.

It seemed they wanted Handlers to remain hidden among ordinary people.

That was perfectly normal. Border City had a population of over ten million. Even if every Handler went on patrol, they would not cover much.

Thus, Handlers had all kinds of identities. Some were teachers, some were university students, and some were office workers.

With the confidentiality agreement in place, if they had never met each other before—

Even if they crossed paths, they would not know the other person was a colleague.

Just as Li Yèlái was wondering whether any of his former customers might be colleagues—

The official communicator on his arm made a sound.

Making sure no one was watching, he quietly opened it.

He found two messages from the authorities.

[Mr. Li Yèlái, thank you for your contribution during the mission. You have received a reward of 20,000 Mega City Coins and 20 Merit Points. You currently have 30 Merit Points.]

Li Yèlái's brows rose with delight. Twenty thousand Mega City Coins! Another one-fortieth!

And 30 Merit Points were actually quite a lot. They were enough for the current Li Yèlái to put together a set of equipment or obtain a Psychic Weapon.

If necessary, he could even sell them to colleagues in exchange for cash.

Of course, Li Yèlái did not consider that. His goal was to save up and buy an item to suppress his curse. He did not even know the price yet, so how could he spend his Merit Points?

Then Li Yèlái opened the second message.

[You have completed all basic training and received an excellent evaluation from your instructor. You have officially become a Handler.]

[Codename acquired: Night General]

[Access to the Disaster Handler Forum acquired]

[Handler Cheese has invited you to join a group chat]