Unidentified Target

"How were you supposed to identify him when he was a giant spider? Facial recognition for spiders?" Xiao He asked irritably.

"He couldn't have started out like that. He must have transformed somewhere," Cui Man explained. "All the police forces in East Zhou City are currently searching the surveillance cameras nearby. They'll follow his trail step by step, and it's only a matter of time before they identify who he was before transforming. Your task is to buy us that time."

"Then... I'll give it a try," Xiao He muttered. "But if I'm about to die, I'm running away, okay?"

"Mhm, that's good." Cui Man nodded approvingly. "I want you to prioritize your own safety as well. But if your ability activates, I want you to find a way to capture him alive. Don't kill him. Can you do that?"

"Probably..." Xiao He muttered, biting his nails. Once his ability activated, he would be an LV5 Mutant. Dealing with an LV2 or LV3 Mutant should have been easy enough. "But that's assuming my ability can activate..."

"Then that's our job," Cui Man said seriously. "Come on. Get on the helicopter, full speed ahead."

On the helicopter, Xiao He was far more uneasy than he had been during the previous two missions. He had thought they had finally gotten a normal assignment, but this one was actually the least normal of all.

The enemies from the previous two missions hadn't been human, but at least once they knew their names, they could rename them directly. This enemy not only took ages to identify, it was also... this kind of thing...

Xiao He hated bugs with lots of legs more than anything. Just looking at that thing made his scalp tingle, let alone having to fight it without activating his ability. His urge to run was stronger than it had ever been before.

Ye Wanqing rested her chin on her hand nearby. Maybe it was just his imagination, but Xiao He felt like there was a hint of amusement on her face.

"Anyway, put on your uniforms," Cui Man said, handing them two sets of clothes. "They're brand-new, you know?"

Xiao He took his and looked it over. It was actually exactly the same as the previous uniform: a black suit. The only difference was the golden dragon pattern on the tie and jacket, which was probably the legendary divine beast, Yinglong.

"I have to change too?" Ye Wanqing frowned. Cui Man propped up her chin and replied lazily, "Of course. You'll be dealing with the SWAT team later. Do you want them to see your real face?"

"Turn around..." Ye Wanqing muttered, eyeing Xiao He warily.

"Yes, yes." Xiao He sighed and went to the other side of the cabin to change into his uniform.

In truth, it was the same outfit as last time, and the mask was the same too. It just had a dragon pattern added to it.

Ye Wanqing's uniform was also a black suit, though she wore a skirt instead of trousers, paired with flesh-colored stockings. It gave her the air of a professional woman. Her legs looked beautiful with the stockings accentuating them. He had to admit, she suited stockings very well. Her ankles were beautifully shaped, and with just a little refinement to the line of her legs, the stockings made them especially alluring. But...

Compared to her legs, the presence of her chest was a little too overwhelming.

"It's a little tight around the chest..." Ye Wanqing said nervously. Her shirt buttons looked like they were about to burst.

"You little girl." Cui Man gently pinched her ear. "I thought you were a D cup, but you're actually an E?"

"Mm..." Ye Wanqing blushed. "I usually don't like wearing bras that make my chest look so obvious..."

"Silly girl, you should show off such impressive assets properly. Otherwise, how are you going to make your boyfriend fall for you?" Cui Man teased, patting her head. Ye Wanqing covered her chest and shot Xiao He a vicious glare.

"What the hell does that have to do with me..." Xiao He muttered sourly from the side.

Like his, Ye Wanqing's suit bore the pattern of a strange beast. It was probably the legendary White Marsh.

Because of the urgency of the situation, the helicopter flew quickly. After two hours in the air, they arrived at the city where the incident had occurred. By then, the area had been completely sealed off, with several blocks under quarantine.

However, the SWAT team was only stationed around the perimeter. The target had found somewhere to hide, and they did not dare act rashly. After all, the enemy was a Mutant. A direct confrontation would definitely lead to casualties.

Whether the casualties were among the SWAT officers or the Mutant, neither was something anyone wanted to see. So all they could do was disperse the civilians and establish a quarantine zone.

The helicopter landed near the sealed-off area. Cui Man got out first, while Xiao He jumped down from the helicopter with Ye Wanqing in his arms, then set her on the ground. "Can you walk on your own?"

"I can. You didn't need to carry me down. Just helping me down would've been enough..." Ye Wanqing muttered softly. Her expression was hidden by her mask. Xiao He folded his arms and frowned. "Wouldn't that have been more troublesome instead?"

"What's the current situation? Give me a report," Cui Man asked the person in charge on site.

"Ma'am, I'm Captain Zhang Liang, in charge of this operation." The SWAT officer explained, "The target is currently trapped inside the department store on 403rd Street. The target is in a berserk state right now. He can't speak or understand us, so there's no way to communicate. He attacks whenever we approach, but as long as we keep our distance, he does nothing."

"I understand." Cui Man nodded. "A state where communication is impossible? That's troublesome."

"Why don't we wait here until we confirm his real identity?" Xiao He suggested.

"Mhm, at least for now, he seems to be behaving himself," Cui Man said with a nod.

After that, Cui Man quickly confirmed the spider Mutant's identity with the personnel on site. They were still using the street surveillance cameras to trace where he had first appeared, but the lead was currently stuck at the place where the spider Mutant had first shown up: outside a café several blocks away.

The last clue they had traced was that the Mutant had fallen from a building. So they could not determine the exact floor where he had appeared. They could only investigate the site one location at a time. The SWAT team was still speaking with civilians on the floor where the café was located, hoping to identify the exact spot where the Mutant had appeared and see whether they could find footage of him before his transformation to confirm his identity.

But at that moment, a loud explosion suddenly came from inside the department store. Cui Man immediately turned toward the person in charge.

After contacting the scene, Zhang Liang explained, "Machinery damaged in the previous battle exploded, causing a fire."

"What about the target?" Cui Man immediately demanded. Zhang Liang pressed his earpiece, his expression grave. "He was probably startled and has begun moving. At his speed, he'll break through the quarantine zone very soon."

"Which direction is he moving in? Can we expand the quarantine zone?" Cui Man asked decisively.

"It'll be difficult. That area is the economic development zone, with a large number of sales departments. Evacuating it will take a lot of time..." Zhang Liang frowned.

"I understand." Cui Man nodded. "From this moment on, I'll assume command of the entire operation. Have your snipers stand by at elevated positions and make sure the target stays in their line of sight. Then deploy the SWAT officers along its route. You must stop it from escaping the quarantine zone."

As she spoke, she turned to Xiao He. "Get ready. It's your turn to move."