Who Still Knows Anything About Farming?

"A dull boom!"

The ornate wooden doors suddenly blew apart, sending splinters flying into the room as a fully armed team of Anomaly Bureau investigators rushed inside.

At the front were three exceptionally fast Awakened. Two crawled along the walls like spiders, while the third hung upside down from the ceiling, holding a fishing rod.

Behind them surged the fully armed investigators, carrying riot shields and specially made riot guns. They charged in like a wall.

Two sniper rifles behind them were also trained on whatever lay beyond the doors.

The glass windows on both sides shattered as well. More than a dozen armed investigators rolled across the floor and surrounded the occupants of the room.

What astonished the Anomaly Bureau agents was that the scene before them looked like a field of crops.

Corn plants now covered the wooden floor.

They stood tall and straight, every stalk bearing an ear.

More than a dozen had already been cut down. Blood seeped faintly from their broken stalks.

The data support team gaped at the scene before them.

The Psychic Radiation Detectors in their hands showed that every ear of corn gave off slightly more psychic radiation than an ordinary person. A few registered far higher, reaching the level of an Awakened.

What the hell was this place?

Detachment Captain Hong Tao strode into the room, his expression grim as he surveyed the scene.

Nothing here was like what they had expected...

"Someone's up ahead," said the Awakened hanging from the ceiling with a fishing rod.

Several investigators who had moved forward to search had also spotted people crouching in the cornfield. They shouted:

"Who's there?!"

"Hands up!"

Two masked figures immediately raised their hands and stood.

One wore a boar mask, while the other wore a Sunflower Mask. They looked decidedly strange.

"You made it, brother?" The man wearing the Sunflower Mask greeted Hong Tao. "How's my cornfield? Does it have that down-to-earth, rustic feel?"

Hong Tao furrowed his brow.

"Who are you? Answer me now!"

The person in the boar mask said scornfully, "I told you corn wouldn't work. I said to grow flowers, but you wouldn't listen. What age are we living in? Who still knows anything about farming?"

The man in the Sunflower Mask sighed, sounding somewhat dejected.

"People these days are too restless. Food is what matters most. Without food, how could we have a prosperous life? We can't forget our roots..."

Hong Tao snorted.

"Enough with the theatrics! You're under arrest! You can say whatever you want at the bureau. Take them down!"

The Awakened hanging from the ceiling whipped his fishing rod forward. Its hook split into dozens in the blink of an eye, shooting toward the two masked men.

The two Awakened on the walls abruptly raised a pair of anti-materiel sniper rifles and pulled the triggers in a flash.

Though the rifles were designed to fire only one round at a time, the two men made them sound like submachine guns.

High-powered kinetic rounds capable of piercing an armored vehicle roared toward the masked men!

"Yikes!" The man in the Sunflower Mask ducked behind the man in the boar mask. The latter suddenly opened his mouth. His jaw expanded all the way to the floor in an instant, revealing a gaping maw and a throat that seemed like a black hole.

A violent suction poured from his mouth, nearly knocking the investigators beside him off their feet.

The dozens of hooks and the entire stream of bullets were sucked into his mouth, then vanished.

The Awakened hanging from the ceiling felt a sudden tug on his hands. Even his fishing rod was pulled away.

"Burst, burst, burst!" the man in the Sunflower Mask shouted from behind.

The ears of corn hanging from the stalks promptly exploded one after another, turning into clouds of thick dust that enveloped the entire room.

"Protect your breathing!" Hong Tao shouted, warning his team against poison. "Turn on the blowers!"

The support team immediately switched on the blowers, rapidly dispersing the dust cloud.

But once the dust cleared, the two masked men were gone. Only a floor strewn with dry, fallen corn stalks remained.

The psychic radiation from the stalks had now dropped to zero.

Hong Tao's face darkened. He strode forward, each heavy step leaving a deep imprint in the floor.

His anger was unmistakable.

The dust still hadn't fully settled in the hall. The place looked like it had been hit by a sandstorm.

Hong Tao looked at the dried-up corn on the floor. Though he was furious, he grew even more cautious.

"Third Detachment, report. What's the situation at the scene? Any casualties? Over." The Command Center's urgent voice came through his earpiece.

Everything that had just happened had been transmitted to the Anomaly Bureau Command Center through the mobile live-feed system at the scene. But the dust had made the footage impossible to see, so they could only rely on the team's report.

Hong Tao narrowed his eyes and looked ahead. Speaking into the communicator at his collar, he said:

"Command Center, the scene appears to have been a decoy trap. There were only two enemies, and they've escaped. No casualties on our side. Over."

There was a brief silence in the communications system after Hong Tao's reply.

Then the same gentle female voice spoke again:

"Well done. The intelligence team will continue correcting its assessment. No casualties is already a very good outcome. Clear the scene as soon as possible and preserve any traces. The Support Center will conduct an in-depth analysis. Over."

The Anomaly Bureau's higher-ups were disappointed that the operation hadn't gone as expected, but at least nothing had gone wrong.

A decoy trap was better than an ambush.

Hong Tao didn't feel the least bit relieved. Keeping a wary eye on the drifting dust, he spoke slowly:

"One of the enemies just now... was highly likely to be 'Gluttony.'"

As soon as he finished speaking, a burst of panicked shouts came through the channel, followed by the sound of someone snatching away a headset. Then a clear, steady voice came through:

"Are you sure it was Gluttony? Gluttony is in Gu City?"

It was Zhao Yifeng, director of the Anomaly Bureau.

Hong Tao's gaze sharpened. He took a deep breath and looked up at Angler on the ceiling and Gunman on the walls. When all three nodded slightly, he replied gravely:

"I'm almost certain it was Gluttony. That unique ability to devour things, and the ability to swallow bullets imbued with psychic power—there's no one else who could do that."

Silence fell on the other end of the channel again. A few seconds later, Zhao Yifeng said:

"Immediately withdraw the ordinary investigators. The Awakened are enough. You're coming back too. Whether or not it was Gluttony, tonight's events show that the source of the information had another motive. That matter is still our highest priority!"

"Yes!" Hong Tao replied.

Then he ordered the investigators at the scene:

"Awakened specialists, stay behind. Everyone else, return to the bureau!"

"Captain Hong, what about this place? Are we staying to clean up?" Angler, still hanging upside down from the ceiling, asked with a pained expression. "If that really was Gluttony, the three of us wouldn't stand a chance."

With an impassive expression, Hong Tao said:

"You're responsible for keeping watch. If you run into Gluttony, launch a feint and stall for time. Give the civilians a chance to get away."

"I've never heard that Gluttony goes after ordinary people," Angler said, pursing his lips. "I was planning to go fishing by the river at four. I've already baited my spot."

Hong Tao raised an eyebrow. "Yang Gan! Are you up for this or not?"

Yang Gan immediately gave a salute while still hanging upside down. "I guarantee I'll complete the mission!"

Gunshots split the night, echoing from a distance.

Li Fan, who was being worshipped by the crowd, raised his head slightly and looked toward the sound.

Mother with the Clown Mask immediately said:

"The traps Old Li and Old Sun set up have been found, sir. Should we leave?"

The Anomaly Bureau had come knocking, only to be fooled by a trap laid by the Cleaning Association?

Li Fan was shocked, but kept his composure as he replied:

"Don't kill anyone. Staying undercover comes first. We can leave."

Mother with the Clown Mask nodded at once. "Yes."

At the same time, she quickly passed Collector's orders along.

The gunshots outside also alerted the Cleaners and members of the Association present. They all looked toward the sound and realized it was coming from the direction of the Red Star International Hotel.

Auntie Zhang gave Song Zhonghai, Lv Feng, and the other Cleaners a signal. They immediately led everyone away.

But unlike on the way in, this time they took the main entrance.

They walked right out of the building, strolling openly through the front doors.

Only then did the members of the Cleaning Association realize that the building where they had held their welcoming ceremony was actually the City Hall auditorium!