Entering the Ark

By the time Cheese dropped Li Yèlái off at the Family Apartments, night had already fallen.

As soon as he got out of the car, Li Yèlái opened the trunk and took out the Anti-spiritual power helmet he had been looking forward to for ages.

This special piece of equipment had come from Border City No. 1.

That was because official psychics had to be assigned to the transportation mission.

So the transportation fee alone had cost ten Merit Points.

The Anti-spiritual power helmet looked more like a finely crafted, multifunctional tactical helmet.

Just picking it up made Li Yèlái feel the Psychic Barrier around him weaken, and his psychic power was suppressed.

If he activated his mask now, it would probably consume even more psychic power.

"So this is what anti-spiritual power does?" Li Yèlái asked, surprised—and even more excited.

"Yeah. They're extremely rare, but every so often, someone is born with anti-spiritual power. Since they have that effect naturally, they can't use their own psychic power normally, but they're enough to give all kinds of psychics a headache. They're called anti-psychics," Cheese explained. "By studying them, the mega cities developed equipment with the same effect. Some psychics even choose to carry it to strengthen their defenses."

"If you wear this Anti-spiritual power helmet, my suggestion and hypnosis will be much less effective. You might even ignore them completely. Psychic attacks used against you will also be weakened," Cheese explained. "Of course, your own psychic power will be suppressed too. Your Psychic Barrier will weaken, and using your abilities will cost much more."

Li Yèlái nodded, then carried the helmet as he and Cheese got into the elevator.

As she watched Li Yèlái press the button for his floor, Cheese said, "Come to think of it, you're bringing a girl home this late at night."

Li Yèlái nodded.

Cheese started pointing fingers and asked, "Tell me, am I the first girl you've brought home?"

"Uh, no. When I moved, Doll came to help. She should count as the first guest. You were preparing to break through then, so I didn't disturb you." Li Yèlái answered honestly.

"Tsk!" Cheese raised an eyebrow. "Should I be saying, 'But I was here first!'?"

Li Yèlái had become more or less immune to Cheese's cheeky remarks.

Ignoring her, he brought Cheese to his door and asked her to wait outside for a moment.

"I hope your sister won't be scared of me once she puts on the helmet," Cheese said softly.

Li Yèlái nodded, then went inside.

He found Li Yúnyān still painting and handed her the helmet.

Li Yúnyān, who had been at a loss, quickly snapped out of it and took the helmet.

When she put on the Anti-spiritual power helmet, she felt the oppressive sensation around her ease considerably.

She couldn't help feeling excited and hopeful.

"How does it feel?" Li Yèlái asked.

"Much better. I want to go outside and take a look." Li Yúnyān glanced around, her voice filled with excitement.

She had been waiting for this for so, so long. At last, she wouldn't have to fear other people anymore.

She wanted to leave her room, leave this nightmare behind, and return to the normal world.

"Don't rush. Let me introduce you to my senior first." Li Yèlái stopped her, then slowly opened the door to reveal Cheese, who had been waiting outside.

From Li Yúnyān's perspective, she saw a short-haired girl with a gentle, serene look.

Her already exquisite features were made all the more captivating by her bright, almond-shaped eyes.

Cheese was a little nervous. She had wanted to make some cheeky remark about being her "sister-in-law," but her nerves kept her from speaking. She only smiled at Li Yúnyān.

She was afraid of triggering that curse.

Li Yúnyān stared at Cheese silently for several seconds before speaking, her voice full of excitement.

"She's your pretty senior? And she's busty too! Perfect, perfect! I want to see a love triangle! I want to see blood flowing like a river!"

She babbled with delight. At last, she had escaped that terrible curse.

Li Yèlái and Cheese were both overjoyed. But just as Cheese started to step closer and join in with Li Yúnyān's rambling—

Li Yúnyān's body suddenly stiffened. In her eyes, the beautiful short-haired girl sprouted countless tentacles and limbs the instant she moved. Her exquisite face twisted into something sinister and chilling.

The excitement froze on Li Yúnyān's face. She went deathly pale, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Cheese noticed something was wrong immediately. She pulled back her outstretched foot and quickly retreated, leaving Li Yúnyān's field of vision.

Li Yèlái also immediately stepped in front of his sister, blocking her view, afraid she might be frightened by any other creatures outside the door.

Li Yèlái led the rigid Li Yúnyān back to her bedroom.

After a long while, Li Yúnyān finally spoke in a hollow voice. "How could this happen? I clearly saw her! I really did, I really—"

Her words were filled with despair and helplessness.

She had seen hope, only for it to turn the very next second into a solid wall of despair, smashing every last bit of optimism she had.

Li Yèlái felt disappointed too, but forced himself to keep his spirits up. "At least you could see her at first. We can work out the pattern little by little. Don't be afraid."

"Okay." Li Yúnyān shook her head. "Please invite your senior in."

After experiment after experiment with Li Yúnyān and Cheese, the three of them finally reached a conclusion.

The Anti-spiritual power helmet did work, but not very well.

It could indeed free the people in Li Yúnyān's field of vision from some of the curse's effects. At least, it worked for a short time.

But as soon as the other person moved or made any broad gestures, the curse returned. It would only be blocked again once they stopped moving altogether.

The helmet also couldn't block sounds affected by the curse. To Li Yúnyān, Cheese's voice sounded like indescribable, uncanny Whispers.

The conclusion left all three of them quiet and disappointed.

Still, it wasn't all bad news. At least Li Yúnyān could now see someone other than Li Yèlái.

"Your sister's curse is powerful. An Anti-spiritual power helmet can only do this much. She may need equipment from other anti-psychics later on," Cheese told Li Yèlái quietly.

"But other anti-spiritual power equipment comes with a high risk of distortion," Li Yèlái sighed.

"Maybe she can try using it once she becomes a psychic and has awakened a few times," Cheese reassured him. "Don't worry. At least she can see me for now, right? She can't move, but it's still good news."

Li Yèlái nodded. "Then we'll have to keep the helmet."

"Let's keep testing it for now. The captain applied for a three-month trial period," Cheese reminded him. "We can see how things stand after that. Your top priority right now is getting the potion ready."

It was disappointing, but there was nothing else they could do.

Then Cheese came up with a solution. She sat at the dining table, with Li Yúnyān opposite her, and the two of them communicated through their communicators. Every so often, Li Yúnyān would look up at Cheese, who would stay perfectly still and let her study her. When Li Yúnyān looked down to type, Cheese would move again.

It was strange, but at least it let Li Yúnyān interact with someone else.

Li Yèlái had no idea what they talked about, but the atmosphere between them improved considerably.

A little color returned to Li Yúnyān's pale face, and she even smiled.

Cheese, meanwhile, wore an odd expression as she remarked, "I've finally met my match!"

Seeing that neither of them wanted to tell him what they had discussed, Li Yèlái didn't press them.

After the two had finished talking, he walked Cheese back to her car.

"Thanks for keeping my sister company and talking with her for so long," Li Yèlái said sincerely. He felt as if he was always accepting other people's kindness without having anything to offer in return. It made him feel guilty.

"No need to thank me. Just think of it as playing a game of statue. Anyway... my uncle wants to invite you over for dinner. Would you do me a favor?" Cheese hesitated before asking.

"Your uncle?" Li Yèlái remembered the middle-aged man he had seen at the Wang family's banquet when he was taking a side job. "Why does he suddenly want to invite me to dinner?"

"His daughter—my cousin—used to be a member of the First Squad," Cheese said quietly. "So he's always been very friendly toward the First Squad's colleagues."

Cheese's cousin? A former teammate in the First Squad? Former?

Remembering what had happened to the First Squad, Li Yèlái's expression shifted slightly.

Did that mean Cheese's cousin had died in the line of duty?

He nodded. "All right, but it'll have to be after the fifteenth. I have another mission to take care of."

"Sure. See you." Cheese didn't ask what the mission was after Li Yèlái agreed. She smiled faintly, then drove away.

The next day, Li Yèlái received a reward for the previous day's operation.

The West City Branch sent him fifty thousand Mega City Coins and forty Merit Points.

The West City Branch had certainly been generous.

In the previous day's operation, the West City Branch had actually done most of the work. Li Yèlái had only taken down a little over twenty people and knocked out four psychics. The West City Branch's people had handled the rest.

That brought Li Yèlái's Merit Points to one hundred and sixty-five.

That was no small amount, but he was still a long way from the three hundred needed for the Three Awakening Myriad Phenomena Potion.

No wonder Handlers spent a year or two saving up. The potion was expensive. It really took more than a year to save up three hundred points.

Still, this gave Handlers time to settle down and break through slowly, reducing the risk of distortion.

Afterward, Li Yèlái called the Antique Shop owner.

After what had happened the day before, the owner had more or less figured out Li Yèlái's identity.

Perhaps because he knew Li Yèlái worked for the authorities, the owner was thrilled, loudly proclaiming that he wouldn't have to worry about Scavengers showing up to cause trouble anymore.

It made sense. His employee worked for the authorities, so as long as he didn't break the law, he wouldn't have to worry about anything else.

Besides, the people rescued from the Red Dart Merchant Association the day before had signed confidentiality agreements, but they knew Li Yèlái's identity. That had earned the Antique Shop owner plenty of goodwill and opened up quite a few new connections.

He also told Li Yèlái to come to work when he had time, but not to worry if he couldn't. His pay would be the same either way.

That was good news.

Over the following days, the First Squad's members continued recovering from their injuries and actively taking on missions.

White Poplar made a point of visiting Li Yèlái. His arm had been successfully reattached.

He was about to leave the mega city and return to the Night Watch for a mission, so he had come to say goodbye.

Li Yèlái wished him success.

White Poplar waved a hand. "Get stronger soon. We need you on the team."

"You mean you need me to lure the monsters?" Li Yèlái joked as he saw him off from the mega city.

After that, Li Yèlái noticed that quite a few newcomers had joined the branch.

He ran into unfamiliar faces several times, and they all called him senior. It was a rather novel feeling.

The days passed one by one. When Yīnhuǒ appeared again, Li Yèlái knew his "undercover" mission was about to begin.

On October fifteenth, Yīnhuǒ brought Li Yèlái to headquarters.

The Processing Department headquarters was in the Upper City District, the heart of Border City No. 3.

Skyscrapers rose everywhere, their lights dazzling and colorful.

Expensive cars were everywhere on the roads, and the people walking along the sidewalks were all white-collar workers in suits.

Unlike the various branches, which were hidden underground, headquarters was a conspicuous skyscraper.

It was so conspicuous that it stood right beside the City Lord's Mansion, the administrative center of the entire Border City. The headquarters building was right next to the mansion—or perhaps the City Lord's Mansion was next to headquarters?

Li Yèlái stared at the building before him, looking a little taken aback. "Isn't this too obvious?"

"It's fine. Even if it is obvious, nobody would dare cause trouble," Yīnhuǒ said with a smile. "It's meant to send a message to certain people!"

Li Yèlái and Yīnhuǒ headed toward headquarters. They showed their credentials under the watchful eyes of several psychics before being allowed inside.

Someone came forward to guide them immediately. They led the two of them along and took them to an elevator going down to the lower levels.

After passing through layer upon layer of security, they reached a room deep underground.

As soon as Li Yèlái entered, he saw a massive containment pod.

Through the transparent glass, he could see a figure inside, restrained by several chains.

The man was a middle-aged fellow with an utterly ordinary face. He was completely naked, with chains piercing his body and locking away all his ability to resist.

At the same time, several black spikes threaded with fine wires had pierced into his brain, leaving his gaze blank.

Several people were watching from outside the pod.

"What is this...?" Li Yèlái stared at the scene, deeply unsettled.

"He's one of the participants in the Illusion Band incident," Yīnhuǒ said with a cold laugh.

"You're being too gentle with him!" Li Yèlái's expression turned cold. "Couldn't you have broken his limbs? Or cut him in half at the waist?"

No Handler felt any sympathy for the people involved in the Illusion Band incident. How many people had they killed?

Any means of dealing with them would be justified!

"If the Ark notices him, we'll alert them to our presence," Yīnhuǒ replied. "So after capturing him, we took control of his brain. That way, we can safely send you into the Ark through him."

"What do I need to do? Is there anything I should watch out for?" Li Yèlái asked.

"I already told you on the way. Change into the clothes, and once you're inside the Ark, you'll be 'Bronze Mask,' the representative of 'Golden Armor'! Don't worry about the rest. According to our intel, they don't know much about Bronze Mask. Just play the part," Yīnhuǒ replied. "Now change your clothes, put on the Bronze Mask, and get ready to enter the Ark."

Soon, Li Yèlái put on the suit provided by the authorities and a brass mask.

He was also handed a sturdy-looking ticket.

A psychic from the Whisper Path stepped forward and murmured, "Calm down."

Li Yèlái's nervousness immediately faded.

Seeing this, Yīnhuǒ gave a slight nod to someone outside the observation window.

The person nodded and flicked a finger.

The black spikes in the middle-aged man's head trembled slightly.

The man's body moved in response. He lifted his left hand and pointed at the ticket in Li Yèlái's hand.

Li Yèlái's vision suddenly brightened, and a wave of weightlessness swept over him.

A few seconds later, the light faded. As his feet touched the ground again,

Li Yèlái found himself in a completely new environment.

He had arrived... inside the Ark!

In the brightly lit hall, rows of ornate tables and chairs stood in place, with vague figures seated among them.

They were the Ark's chosen ones—the culprits behind the deaths of so many of his colleagues, hiding among them.

Li Yèlái suppressed the nervousness and malice welling up inside him again and muttered to himself, You bastards. I'm here!

But in a room deep within the Ark, a certain great being felt a faint sense of unease.