Silencing 2

Bang-

Officer Huang instantly fired three shots, but because the frequency was too fast, Gaoyang only heard a single gunshot.

The moment the shots rang out, three splattering sparks appeared in the air two meters away from Officer Huang as he knocked down the three daggers that had ambushed him.

However, the daggers were merely a feint.

Officer Huang was startled as a dark figure already swooped down into his field of vision from the left side at some unknown moment.

Swish- A sharp, white blade-light flashed past.

Officer Huang raised his pistol to block within the limit of time, but the pistol was like plasticine, instantly being cut in half. At the same time, his two fingers were also sliced off like green onions.

Half a second later, Officer Huang's head was about to be moved to a new home.

Yet this scene did not happen.

The narrow and sharp Tang Dao pressed against Officer Huang's Adam's apple, not slashing down. Soon, the skin at the man's Adam's apple split open, oozing tiny drops of fresh blood, which were wounded by the powerful sword qi.

Qingling withdrew her saber and took two steps back. "You aren't a Wrath Beast."

Officer Huang covered his fingers that were bleeding endlessly, the pain making his face pale, but he didn't panic or show fear. "How did you know?"

"If you were a Wrath Beast, in the last second you would choose to use both arms to block my attack." Qingling gently stroked the blood-free blade with her finger, and the Tang Dao folded and disappeared in her hand.

"They are very confident in their own bodies; this is an instinctual reaction. Humans are different; humans will choose to block my slash with things they think are sturdy."

"That's right, I'm an Awakened too." Officer Huang smiled. "Thank you for not killing me."

2:00 AM. Shanqing District, Third Hospital Emergency Building.

Officer Huang's fingers had already been reattached and bandaged up, with Gaoyang and Qingling waiting in the lobby.

Officer Huang walked out of the hospital with a smile on his face. "Tomorrow I'll write a report saying that the two of you were robbed by street thugs, and I stepped in to help, accidentally getting injured."

Gaoyang and Qingling looked at each other in dismay, saying nothing.

Officer Huang spoke again. "Hungry? Let's go get something to eat."

The three of them went to a malaatang midnight snack stall near the hospital. An inconspicuous alley entrance had a small blue tent set up, underneath which was a pushcart equipped with a spicy broth pot and a small liquefied gas tank. Under the dim yellow lights and with the aroma-filled food, it could be considered a warm corner of a cold city.

The boss was an old man in his sixties, full of vigor and with a booming voice when he spoke.

"Officer Huang is here! Oh, what did you do to your hand?!"

"Work-related injury."

"Your line of work really isn't easy. You can't drink alcohol today, then."

"Yeah. Everything else is the same as before."

"Alright." The old man busied himself, then looked over at Gaoyang and Qingling. "What would the two of you like to eat?"

Qingling looked at the menu expressionlessly, finishing her rapid mental calculation. "1 skewer of shiitake mushrooms, 1 skewer of winter melon, 1 skewer of potatoes, 1 skewer of napa cabbage, 1 skewer of fish balls, 1 skewer of crab sticks, 1 skewer of fried gluten, 1 portion of tomatoes, 1 portion of sweet potato noodles. Extra spicy."

Gaoyang was shocked; she really wasn't going to stand on ceremony.

Then I might as well respect her wishes and accept.

"I'll have the same as her."

The three of them sat shoulder to shoulder next to the pushcart, heads buried as they ate the fragrant malaatang. Officer Huang wore a look of enjoyment. "Mmm, the feeling of escaping death is great. I thought I'd never get to eat this again."

Qingling didn't speak, concentrating on biting into her potato.

Gaoyang was extremely cautious. "Officer Huang, we shouldn't still talk about these things in a public place."

Officer Huang looked up and glanced at the elderly man who was blanching meat. "It's fine, Old Man Liu is a Lost One. He automatically ignores any content he doesn't want to hear. Isn't that right, Old Man Liu?"

Old Man Liu raised his head. "What's up?"

"I said today's pork lungs are very crisp, bring another portion."

"Coming right up." Old Man Liu smiled cheerfully.

Gaoyang finally set his mind at ease. "Were you intentionally testing me and Qingling today?"

Officer Huang's smile carried a bit of helplessness. "I already knew you were an Awakened, I just didn't expect your girlfriend to be one too."

"Not my girlfriend." Qingling finished eating her potato slices and started eating her fish balls.

"Remember the psychiatric patient I killed that day?" Officer Huang asked.

"I remember." How could he possibly forget? If it weren't for him, these distressing troubles right now wouldn't exist either.

"He was also an Awakened." Officer Huang's gaze carried pity. "But he was completely exposed and had no hope. Rather than letting him be tortured to death or eaten by a Wrath Beast, it's better to send him off."

Gaoyang didn't speak.

"That brother's Talent is [Olfaction], serial number 175. He could distinguish the scent of beasts, and because of that lived in fear all day, eventually suffering a mental breakdown."

Officer Huang stared at the steaming malaatang pot, devoutly waiting for the pork lungs that were about to come out. "He smelled that you were human right away, which is why he told you to run. If I hadn't shot and killed him back then, I'm afraid it would have implicated you."

"...Thank you." Gaoyang's voice was tight.

"Only right, we're all in the same boat."

"You mentioned talents earlier," Gaoyang licked his lips, "are every Awakened's talents different?"

"Of course." Officer Huang said, "My talent is [Gun God], serial number 41, proficient in firearms, 100% accuracy, extremely fast shooting speed."

"Then what is my talent?" Gaoyang asked on purpose.

"You've always kept your cards close to your chest, and I don't have an investigative talent, how would I know?" Officer Huang smiled in amusement.

"Oh."

"Your girlfriend's talent should be [Metal], serial number 20, capable of controlling any metallic element."

"Not my girlfriend." Qingling finished the fish balls and started eating the shiitake mushrooms.

Officer Huang looked at Qingling with unconcealed envy, "Besides that, she should also possess the talent [Blade God], serial number 32. Just that blade technique and destructive power of hers are definitely not something an ordinary person could achieve."

"Can people have multiple talents?" Gaoyang asked.

"Once humans awaken, they instantly possess one talent. They can comprehend more later on, though I still haven't figured out the methods and rules for comprehension."

"How do you know about these talents in such detail?" Gaoyang was very puzzled: Could Officer Huang also have a system? That shouldn't be.

"I've lived longer than you guys, and I'm a cop, so I have access to more channels of information." Officer Huang smiled, "In fact, I once saw a complete talent serial list. Combining it with my current experiences, I believe the information on that serial list is true and reliable."

"How many talents are there in total?" Gaoyang finished the fish balls and started eating the Chinese cabbage.

"There are 199 serial numbers in total. Theoretically, the smaller the number, the stronger the talent." Officer Huang looked at Qingling with unconcealed envy: "You're really strong."

Gaoyang's heart shattered: I'm serial number 199, rock bottom. No wonder I have zero presence. And 'Fortune', my ass.

Qingling put down her chopsticks for the cabbage, "Give me the serial list."

"No physical copy." Officer Huang pointed at his head: "It's all memorized here."

"Then tell me too."

"Tell you guys," Officer Huang gave a faint smile, "it's not out of the question."

"You have conditions?" Gaoyang guessed it.

"Of course, there's no such thing as a free lunch in this world." Officer Huang smiled meaningfully, "Spicy hot pot excluded."