Oathmark and Absolute Defense

The next morning, after breakfast, Xiao He prepared to head to the Special Response Department to participate in the escort mission.

The target of this escort mission is named "Chen Ting," a left-behind child in a mountainous area. He lives with his grandparents while his parents work away from home, and he is only eight years old. As for his Superpower... Cui Man plans to explain it in more detail on the way.

"I'm leaving now, Little Pufferfish? Be good at home, and let me know if anything happens," Xiao He told Ye Wanqing before leaving. "I'll be back as soon as possible."

"I know, I'm not a child anymore..." Ye Wanqing, a little impatient, but with a sweet feeling in her heart.

"That's fine then..." Xiao He glanced at her sideways and said, "I'm coming back for lunch, don't forget my share."

"Okay, okay!" Ye Wanqing stamped her foot and said coquettishly, more like she was being spoiled than impatient. She pushed Xiao He out the door, then slammed it shut before cupping her face and laughing, "You're so annoying..."

After arriving at the Special Response Department, Xiao He, Xia Yu, and Cui Man boarded Helicopter together. It was then that Cui Man told him about the Superpower of their target.

"This child's Superpower is called 'Oathmark'," Cui Man replied. "It's an ability that's very important to us."

"Oathmark?" Xiao He raised an eyebrow. "How exactly does it work?"

"Without detailed research, we cannot be completely certain, but what we do know for now is..." Cui Man explained, "If he makes a pinky promise with you, then that promise must be kept; otherwise, the promise will truly come true."

"Xiao He asked in astonishment. Cui Man pinched his nose: "Don't say things like that in front of him later! It's too scary. He's just an eight-year-old child!"

As she spoke, Cui Man crossed her arms. "But... it's really just like you said. Anyone who makes a pinky promise with him will inevitably be cursed by the promise's contents if they break it; no one can escape it. His parents were the first to discover this..."

"Could it be that this child's parents..." Xiao He nervously swallowed and rubbed his neck.

"No, don't worry." Cui Man frowned and said, "Those kids aren't that cruel; they were just turned into dogs. But with our help, we used his Superpower to turn them back..."

"This ability... should I call it useless or terrifying?" Xiao He said anxiously, biting his thumb. "Oaths made must be kept, otherwise punishment will follow... isn't that a kind of law?"

"Hmm..." Cui Man nodded, "Although it's not suitable for combat, it's quite convenient for restraining people in prison, isn't it? This way, we don't need the majesty of 'Yinglong,' and we have something that can truly restrain those prisoners, and..."

Cui Man glanced at him, resting her chin on her hand. "Maybe, on the other hand, we can use his abilities to enhance other Mutant? For example, we could change the agreed-upon terms to something like 'full recovery of stamina' or 'full recovery of injuries.'"

"Ah!" Xiao He was speechless for a moment. "Then, then thinking about it this way, isn't it incredibly powerful?! It can even be used to cure diseases and such, isn't it omnipotent?!"

"It's just an idea. We'll have to wait for research to know the specifics, and it's not even certain that it will actually work," Cui Man said, arms crossed. "There might be limitations and side effects. Let's wait for testing before we talk about it."

At this point, Cui Man looked at Xiao He with a smile and said, "However, his abilities are somewhat similar to yours, so I was wondering, what kind of abilities would you gain if he changed his name to 'Lin Tiannan'?"

"Hmm..." Xiao He frowned and pondered, but then shook his head. "I can't imagine it at all."

"We'll see when we try it." Cui Man smiled wickedly with excitement.

"Sister Man, it seems we're almost there." Xia Yu said, glancing at the scenery below, before drinking a bottle of enhancement fluid.

Xiao He glanced out the window and could vaguely see a small village below. It was not very developed, mainly because there was no smooth road leading to the outside world, so it was trapped in this remote mountain village. Moreover, the resources in the mountains were probably not plentiful, which is why it was stuck in this vicious cycle.

"Perhaps you will be able to help them solve this predicament soon." Cui Man looked at the village below, her eyes softening. "The Antimatter Generator is just the beginning. With the Antimatter Generator, the development of our country's industry and life can be greatly increased. I believe it will make this place rich very soon."

"Hmm." Xiao He nodded with a smile, feeling that everything he had done had meaning.

The villagers gathered around to watch the spectacle, but it was clear this wasn't the first time they'd seen Helicopter.

After landing in the small open space in the village, Cui Man waved to Xiao He and Xia Yu.

They came prepared this time, with the Helicopter loaded with boxed supplies, including snacks, candy, clothes, textbooks, rice, and other grains. Although the amount wasn't much, everyone in the village could get some.

"Village Chief Hu, is Chen Ting home?" Cui Man stepped forward, shook hands with a thin old man, and asked in fluent local dialect.

Xiao He and Xia Yu unloaded the supplies from the Helicopter; these were things they had prepared before Helicopter.

The village chief pointed behind him, Cui Man smiled with satisfaction, "You can divide the things yourselves. We're going to pick him up."

"So Chief Cui is quite the worldly guy after all..." Xiao He chuckled dryly, "He even knows how to deliver gifts..."

"These were requested by the child," Cui Man explained. "His condition for cooperating with us was to help improve the village's living conditions so that everyone in the village could live a better life. These things were also requested by him."

"That child has a very kind heart," Xia Yu said with some surprise. Xiao He nodded in agreement, "Indeed... so sensible at only eight years old. If it were me, I'd probably only care about myself at eight..."

"Children from poor families mature early," Cui Man said with a smile, hurrying towards a corner of the village.

Soon, they saw a small red brick house, where a boy and two elderly people were waiting to greet them at the door.

The boy was wearing a dirty brown sweater and faded sweatpants. He had dark skin and a dirty face; he must be Chen Ting. Although he was small, he moved with a confident air, his expression serious, his hands in his pockets, as if waiting for their arrival.

"Xiao Ting, hello there, we meet again." Cui Man greeted him with a smile, then turned to Xiao He, "Look who I brought? It's 'Yinglong,' you've seen him on the village chief's TV, haven't you?"

The brat stared at Xiao He for a while, and Xiao He stared back. A strange power surged from within him, a feeling unlike anything he had experienced before; it must have triggered a new ability. Xiao He couldn't yet verify what that ability was.

"I'm entrusting Tiannan to you, Chief Cui." Chen Ting's grandmother held Cui Man's hand, tears streaming down her face.

Chen Ting turned to look at his grandmother, somewhat puzzled, seemingly not understanding why she called him "Tiannan".

"Don't worry, once the child is settled, we'll send people to repair the village and build you two a three-story villa. Then the child can come back to visit you often," Cui Man comforted her with a smile.

Then, Cui Man turned to Chen Ting and smiled, "Alright, shall we go too?"

But Chen Ting ignored him and stared at Xiao He in a daze. After a while, Chen Ting suddenly reached out his hand to Xiao He: "Shall we pinky swear?"

Xiao He was somewhat surprised and asked curiously, "Me? What kind of pinky promise do you want to make with me?"

"Aunt Man told me back then that if I went with her, she would promise me one thing, and now she has done it," Chen Ting replied. "Can you promise me one thing?"

"Tell me first," Xiao He said cautiously. "We can't underestimate this child's abilities."

"Aunt Man said that no matter what, you will come to save me whenever I am in danger." Chen Ting looked at him earnestly and said, his eyes sparkling with innocent light.

This is difficult. There's always a chance of something going wrong. What if we can't make it in time? Then we'll be turned into dogs... Xiao He hesitated.

"That's not quite accurate, is it?" Xia Yu bent down in front of Chen Ting and smiled, "After all, no one is omnipotent, and even heroes have things they can't do. But we can promise you that no matter when you're in danger, we'll do everything we can to save you. Is that alright?"

Chen Ting thought for a moment, then nodded and said, "That works too. Shall we pinky swear?"

Xiao He then extended his little finger, Chen Ting hooked it with his, saying, "Pinky promise, a hundred years from now. Anyone who breaks this vow will never find a wife."

"This is eight years old?! That's incredibly vicious! Who goes straight for someone's weak spot right away?! "Xiao He cursed inwardly.

After the two made a pinky promise, red lightning appeared on the back of Xiao He's hand that had made the promise, and slowly a mark emerged on his hand.

But then a force emanated from Xiao He, shoving Chen Ting away. The boy stumbled back two steps and fell to the ground, staring at Xiao He in surprise.

Xiao He looked around and saw that a multifaceted crystal barrier enveloped him, creating a visual effect somewhat reminiscent of the mental world in Doctor Strange. As the crystal barrier opened, a wisp of green smoke rose from the mark on the back of Xiao He's hand and then disappeared.

"Your ability is..." Cui Man looked at Xiao He with some curiosity, then tentatively stepped forward and gently touched the crystal wall surrounding Xiao He. She immediately frowned. "This feel... is very peculiar."

After thinking for a moment, Cui Man waved her hand. "Anyway, let's take this child back first and then study it slowly."

Xiao He nodded, raised his hand and gently pushed against the crystal wall in front of him, as if to open a door. The cube in front of him disappeared just like that.

"Shall we go?" Cui Man looked down at Chen Ting and smiled. "Don't worry, we'll be back to see Grandpa and Grandma soon."

"Hmm..." Chen Ting nodded, then followed them onto the Helicopter, still stealing glances at Xiao He, seemingly wondering why his abilities weren't working against the Yinglong.

On the Helicopter, Xia Yu chatted with Chen Ting, asking him various questions about his life.

Meanwhile, Cui Man was discussing Xiao He's abilities with Xiao He.

"I think," Cui Man said, raising her index finger, "That ability you just used must have isolated you from the laws of this world. In that space, you wouldn't be bound by other laws, so the Contract Seal Xiao Ting imprinted on you became invalid."

"That seems reasonable," Xiao He said after thinking for a moment, "But in the end, it can only be used for defense, right?"

"But you have to think of it this way," Cui Man winked at him, "If you were in another world, a world where you weren't bound by the laws of the external world, that would be Absolute Defense. Unless you could cross dimensions, no attack could hurt you."

"To put it bluntly, it's something that can suppress this brat's abilities, right?" Xiao He glanced at Chen Ting.

"Oh dear, you're clearly a little devil yourself, yet you call others little devils, how adorable." Cui Man teased, patting his head. Xiao He dodged slightly, then said with displeasure, "Oh dear, Sister Man, you're damaging my 'Yinglong' image!"

"Alright then." Cui Man rarely compromised, and quietly stood aside with her arms crossed.

Although it was called an escort mission, there were actually no enemies along the way who would attack them. Xiao He's visit was purely to give an eight-year-old child courage in his capacity as "Yinglong".

"By the way, where are the child's parents?" Xiao He suddenly remembered something. "Why didn't we see them come to see him off?"

"..." Cui Man was silent for a moment, then said softly, "After being affected by this child's abilities, they... became very afraid of him. When I said I wanted to take him away, his parents didn't even want any reward; they couldn't wait for me to take him away. Of course, he didn't realize how cruel this was for a child..."

At this point, Cui Man sighed, then turned to Xiao He and cautioned, "Don't let it slip, okay? You can't even tell a lie."

"Because once you tell a lie, you have to be constantly vigilant, otherwise you might accidentally let it slip, and then you'll have to keep covering it up with new lies, and eventually you'll be exposed..." Xiao He muttered, pursing his lips. "In that case, it's better to just tell the truth from the beginning; it'll be easier that way."

As he spoke, Xiao He secretly glanced at Chen Ting and suddenly felt a little sorry for the child: an eight-year-old child, forced to leave his family and come to such an unfamiliar environment, must be very scared, right? Yet his parents refused to see him one last time, and even wished he would leave sooner.

Ultimately, it was the child's parents who broke their promise. They thought they could keep making empty promises to their child without paying a price, but this is the price they have to pay.

"Want some?" Xia Yu asked with a smile, handing the chocolate in her hand to Chen Ting.

"Hmm." Chen Ting nodded. Xia Yu unwrapped the chocolate and fed it to Chen Ting, giving him a bite before smiling and asking, "How is it? Is it good?"

"Mmm!" Chen Ting nodded vigorously, and Xia Yu smiled happily, "Right? Chocolate makes you happy just by eating it, right? From now on, whenever you're unhappy, eat a piece of chocolate, and you'll feel better!"

Chen Ting stared thoughtfully at the chocolate in Xia Yu's hand. Then he took the chocolate from Xia Yu, took a big bite, and smiled at Xia Yu, "Delicious!"

"You can't just eat this, you need to eat more rice to grow taller," Xia Yu said with a smile, patting his head.

"This girl is quite good at coaxing children..." Xiao He muttered to himself.

"After all, we all come from poor families," Cui Man said with a smile. "Xia Yu, don't let her small and thin appearance fool you, she's stronger than all of us. One day she will definitely shine."

Xiao He nodded: He understood this deeply; those anaerobic training sessions were very painful in his eyes, but Xia Yu never complained.

"Send a message to Wanqing later. We need to test your new ability when we get back. You won't be able to come home for lunch," Cui Man said abruptly.

Xiao He frowned immediately. "At least let me eat before you test me!"

"Are you going to show 'Yinglong' that he's henpecked in front of other kids?" Cui Man asked, displeased.

This blow struck Xiao He squarely at his weak point. He remained silent for a moment before saying irritably, "Then tell Wanqing! I can't bring myself to say it; I've already told her I'm going back for dinner."

"Okay, I know, I'll say it, I'll say it," Cui Man said, frowning, and picked up her phone to start typing.

After several hours of flight, the Helicopter landed safely at the military base where the Special Response Department was located.

Looking at the military base in front of him and the soldiers running inside, Chen Ting stood at the cabin door, too afraid to get off.

Seeing his appearance and recalling his parents' actions, Xiao He suddenly felt a pang of sympathy.

"Hey, kid." Xiao He beckoned him over with his finger.

Chen Ting looked at Xiao He curiously, then hesitantly walked over. Xiao He squatted down in front of him and said, "If you can muster the courage to be a man and try your best to complete the task Aunt Man gave you..."

As he spoke, Xiao He poked the mask on his face bearing the "Yinglong" emblem. "This is for you."

Chen Ting was stunned for a moment, then excitedly extended his little finger. "Pinky promise?!"

"Forget about pinky promises, they won't work on me," Xiao He replied, standing up. "But don't worry, I'm 'Yinglong,' and I keep my word."

"Okay!" Chen Ting nodded, turned to look at the imposing military base behind him, and mustered his courage to run towards Cui Man.

"Children are so easy to coax..." Xiao He chuckled to himself.

"Darling, look who's here!" At this moment, a voice called out from behind. Xiao He turned around and saw Cui Man waving at him from not far away, while standing next to her was Ye Wanqing, who was carrying a lunchbox.

Xiao He's heart skipped a beat, and he excitedly went to greet the Little Pufferfish: It actually brought food! That's amazing!?

"Kids are so easy to coax," Cui Man said with a smile, patting Xiao He's head.

So, Xiao He and the others went to the military base's canteen to eat together.

"Did you eat by yourself?" Xiao He asked Ye Wanqing during the meal.

"I ate before coming here," Ye Wanqing said casually.

"Oh dear, thank you so much for coming all this way to deliver the food," Xiao He said with a sigh.

Cui Man teased from the side, "What else can we do? You get upset if you don't get to eat Wanqing's cooking for a day. But who told you to be 'Yinglong'? Giving you some special privileges is only right."

"I... I wouldn't be happy if I didn't get to eat Wanqing's food for even a day..." Xiao He muttered.

"It doesn't matter, it's not a big deal. Anyway, the materials were already prepared." Ye Wanqing said expressionlessly, but inwardly she was overjoyed: Hmph, it's good that you know how important I am.

Then, she rested her chin on her hand and watched Xiao He wolf down his food across from her, and couldn't help but laugh.

"You're eating so well," Xie Haining said, sitting down next to him.

Xiao He asked curiously, "Hey, Old Xie, have you finished your mission?"

"Yes, a false police report," Xie Haining said with a laugh. "It's just a conman pretending to be Mutant. It's just a little trick, like magic. These things happen all the time these days. I've encountered it several times recently."

"Sigh, what a waste of the country's money," Cui Man sighed. "They're causing trouble at this crucial moment."

"Old Xiao, what experiment are you going to do later?" Ye Wanqing asked, gently stepping on Xiao He's foot under the table.

"Regarding the new ability I just triggered," Xiao He said, his words slurred, "It can only be used for defense. I don't know what's so interesting about it. In my opinion, that brat's ability is the one we should really study."

"Hmm..." Ye Wanqing suddenly pursed her lips and reached out to pick a grain of rice from the corner of his mouth.

"Tsk tsk tsk..." Cui Man laughed teasingly from the side. Seeing this, Xie Haining quickly changed the subject. "Speaking of which, don't you guys think that the combat types of Mutant discovered in our country are too limited?"

"Indeed..." Xia Yu replied after eating a dumpling, "Xiao Ting isn't the fighting type this time either."

"It's alright. With Chen Ting's abilities now, we should be able to get those people in the prison to cooperate with us." Cui Man said absentmindedly, picking at the noodles in her bowl. "The thing about Mutant... they say there's one in ten million, but it's not actually that ideal."

As she spoke, Cui Man began to list the problems on her fingers. "First of all, not everyone can discover that they have Superpower. Then, not all Superpower are useful. Even useful Superpower are not all suitable for combat, and those suitable for combat may not reach the LV5 level. Therefore, it is more accurate to say that only one in a hundred million people is a powerful combat-type Mutant."

Only one in a hundred million people is a powerful combat-type Mutant. Xiao He thought to himself, "Does that mean there are only fourteen or fifteen in the entire China? Does that mean I can forget about retiring?"

"Alright, alright, hurry up, we need to start the test after we finish eating," Cui Man clapped her hands and urged.

After the meal, Xiao He, accompanied by everyone, began testing his new abilities. Chen Ting stood beside Cui Man, watching him train, also acting as a "Trigger" for him.

Xiao He stood in the center of the practice room and raised his hand to open the protective barrier. The crowd present immediately let out a gasp of amazement.

"It looks like a big diamond," Ye Wanqing said curiously, "But it's more transparent."

"But there's no optical refraction, right?" Xie Haining pondered, resting his chin on his hand.

"Indeed... it's really strange." Xia Yu also noticed this. "Brother Xiao's body is clearly visible; it's not distorted by the light."

"In any case, let's test its defensive capabilities first," Cui Man said at this moment.

So, the group then launched attacks on the crystal wall with different weapons. But unsurprisingly, no weapon could penetrate the defense; even the laser scalpel used for surgery couldn't leave a mark on it.

Moreover, even if the air pressure and temperature in the room are changed, Xiao He will not be affected.

"Hmm..." Cui Man gazed at Xiao He inside the crystal cube and pondered, "Based on the tests just now, we can basically conclude that he's in another dimension. No matter what changes occur in the external air pressure, gravity, or temperature, Xiao He won't be affected. Inside that cube, he's absolutely invincible, unless there's an attack capable of traversing space..."

"But he can't attack in this state either," Ye Wanqing muttered.

"Let's go in now," Cui Man patted Xia Yu, Xie Haining, and Ye Wanqing on the shoulder.

After the four of them entered the training room, Cui Man waved to Xiao He and instructed, "Darling, try to control this cube and see if you can control its size. If you can, try to make it cover us."

Xiao He nodded, raised his hand and expanded outwards. Under his control, the cube rapidly expanded, approaching Ye Wanqing and the other three, and finally made contact with them.

"Ah!" Ye Wanqing entered the cube almost without any hindrance, which startled her.

However, Cui Man, Xia Yu, and Xie Haining were pushed back a step by the resistance of the cube, but they still managed to enter the cube.

"So, the size can be controlled." Cui Man put her hands on her hips and thought for a moment, then waved at the surveillance camera. "Bring two more people over and see if they can get into this cube. Just two people will do."

A soldier and a researcher entered the training room, but both were turned away outside.

"Darling, can you let them in?" Cui Man turned to Xiao He and asked tentatively.

"I'll give it a try..." Xiao He turned to the two men and raised his hand, and then the two men passed through the barrier and came in.

"I see, I think I understand the principle now." Cui Man said, poking Xiao He's chest. "You can think of it as a barrier of the heart. People you accept can come in, but anything else, including people, things, and even the laws of physics, will be excluded. The inner world you inhabit is a separate dimension."

At this point, Cui Man patted Xiao He on the shoulder and laughed, "Hmph, you can't lie about that, can you? You've clearly already completely accepted Wanqing and trust her completely, haven't you?"

"Trust is a given. We can't do anything without each other, can we?" Ye Wanqing replied casually, but inwardly she was overjoyed: I'm actually the person he trusts most, hehe...

Xiao He was a little annoyed, but before he could even argue, another researcher rushed in. "Chief Cui, we've discovered something incredible! Can we proceed with our research on this cube as we've suggested?!"

Xiao He didn't quite understand why they were asking him to do these things, but he still cooperated with the researchers. The researchers splashed paint on the crystal wall next to him and then covered it with a white cloth, as if they were trying to study the shape of his Heart’s Barrier. Then they repeatedly compared and tested it with photos, rubbings, and 3D images on the computer.

Only after all this was completed did Xiao He and the others arrive at the observation room, where the other party began to explain.

"Do you know what 'Sacred Geometry' is?" an excited researcher asked, his name tag bearing the name "Yang Qihang." "For example, the so-called 'Golden Ratio' and the 'Flower of Life' are Sacred Geometry. It's said that just drawing their shapes possesses a special power, just like the Golden Ratio is a representative of 'beauty,' isn't it?"

"You mean this Heart’s Barrier is a kind of Sacred Geometry?" Cui Man asked curiously.

Yang Qihang, a man in his thirties or forties, jumped up and down excitedly. "More than that! I believe this is the true Sacred Geometry, a kind of geometric knowledge that... is hundreds or thousands of years ahead of our current geometry!"

As he spoke, Yang Qihang uploaded the pattern he had traced on the white cloth to the computer screen and showed it to them. "Look, this cube. I can't say exactly what shape it is, but haven't you noticed? No matter which angle you look at it from, it looks exactly the same. Visually it's flat, but it's actually a cube."

"It really is..." Only after the other party mentioned it did Xiao He realize this feature. Although this cube looks like a particularly complex prism, it is actually flat at first glance. Moreover, no matter how you adjust the angle, it always looks the same shape, somewhat like the "Mona Lisa's smile." No matter what angle you look at it from, she is smiling at you.

"I have a friend in another department who's in charge of researching the 'Cosmic Core Algorithm' that Yinglong wrote before. When I saw this cube, I was actually thinking..." Yang Qihang said excitedly, looking at Xiao He, "Could it be a geometric shape derived from this 'Cosmic Core Algorithm'?"

"Huh..." Xiao He looked enlightened, while Ye Wanqing poked his cheek. "Why are you acting like you understand? You don't really understand anything, do you?"

"Oh? So you understand?" Xiao He poked Ye Wanqing's cheek and said irritably.

"I don't understand and I won't pretend to understand..." Ye Wanqing said, slapping his hand away in dissatisfaction.

Cui Man interrupted them both and asked Yang Qihang, "So, once this model is built, it will have corresponding power? How long do you think it would take to recreate this cube with our current technology?"

"There are already existing models, so it should take... a decade or two? Several decades?" Yang Qihang asked tentatively.

Cui Man sighed, both amused and exasperated, and said, "I don't know whether our country's researchers are fortunate or unfortunate... They're probably going to be very busy for the next few decades."