Chapter Summaries

Xia Xu reviewed the Rat-faced Man case and reached an understanding with Zhang Qun about cooperating on the mission. He asked to inspect the captured beastified human, who claimed he had been bitten by a bat and transformed without knowing it.

• Xia Xu calmly read the case files, and Zhang Qun asked whether the murders and beastified human had surprised him.
• Xia Xu acknowledged the team’s doubts and asked them to follow Luo’s orders while he proved himself through his work.
• Zhang Qun promised that the Special Operations Team would cooperate fully, and he and Xia Xu shook hands on a successful partnership.
• Xia Xu asked to see the captured Rat-faced Man, and Zhang Qun led him to the hidden structure beneath the branch office.
• The Rat-faced Man protested that he was innocent and claimed a bat had bitten him over a month earlier, possibly causing his transformation.

Xia Xu examined Yu Zhengqing, a bat Beastman, and concluded that he was likely a defective product of technology related to the Werewolves and possibly connected to Andra. Yu Zhengqing’s brief fate synopsis suggested his escape would set a Batman storyline in motion, giving Xia Xu a way to trace the protagonist and investigate the faction behind the experiments.

• Xia Xu entered the interrogation room and dismissed Yu Zhengqing’s claim that a bat bite had transformed him.
• Xia Xu read Yu Zhengqing’s attribute panel and compared his bat transformation with the Werewolves’ abilities and defects.
• Xia Xu inferred that Yu Zhengqing’s transformation came from advanced Beastmen engineering and that Andra or another faction might be developing the technology.
• Xia Xu read the Batman synopsis, which described an explosion in De City followed by a shadow’s escape and a series of murders.
• Xia Xu reasoned that Yu Zhengqing’s actions had triggered the storyline and that tracing him could lead to its protagonist and the faction behind the bat Beastmen.

Xia Xu took over Yu Zhengqing’s interrogation and used his reactions to infer that Yu Zhengqing had been turned into a Beastman before his recent killing spree. He left Yu Zhengqing rattled after correctly linking the change in his behavior to a recent explosion in De City.

• Xia Xu asked Chen Xiao to let him take over questioning Yu Zhengqing.
• Xia Xu claimed he could distinguish Yu Zhengqing’s lies from the truth, then asked whether he knew about his bodily changes.
• Yu Zhengqing denied knowing anything, but Xia Xu concluded he had been turned into a Beastman earlier and only recently began killing openly.
• Xia Xu guessed that a recent explosion in De City had triggered the change in Yu Zhengqing’s behavior, and Yu Zhengqing’s expression shifted.

Xia Xu bluffed Yu Zhengqing into believing he had deduced the details of the explosion and Yu’s theft, causing Yu to lose control. Xia Xu impressed Zhang Qun and Chen Xiao, then turned their attention to a more important task.

• Xia Xu questioned Yu Zhengqing about the explosion and guessed that Yu had stolen something connected to his Beastman condition.
• Yu Zhengqing’s mental defenses collapsed, and he thrashed against the restraint bed while shifting between human and ratlike forms.
• Zhang Qun and Chen Xiao believed Xia Xu had deduced the answers through observation and were stunned by his apparent abilities.
• Xia Xu revealed to himself that he had bluffed using clues from the plot and wanted to earn the Special Operations Team’s trust.
• Xia Xu told Zhang Qun and Chen Xiao to review the recording and prepare for a more important task, while A Tuo eyed Zhang Qun warily.

Xia Xu used Yu Zhengqing’s movements and the warehouse explosion to work out where the stolen item may have been lost, hoping it would lead him to the protagonist of “Batman.” He left the Special Department to search a broad area around Yu Zhengqing’s route home.

• Xia Xu ordered the Special Department to investigate the explosion site, the factory’s owners, and Yu Zhengqing’s movements.
• Zhang Qun told Xia Xu that Yu Zhengqing still refused to speak, leaving Xia Xu without the item’s location.
• Xia Xu realized that Yu Zhengqing’s route on the night of the explosion mattered more than his later movements.
• Xia Xu mapped possible routes from the explosion site to Yu Zhengqing’s home and marked the surrounding area as a likely search zone.
• Xia Xu reasoned that the lost item had probably transformed an ordinary person into the protagonist of “Batman.”

Xia Xu investigated unusual local reports and traced a recent rescue to Yao Fu, a high school student with superpowers who had decided to become a masked superhero. The chapter ended with Yao Fu preparing his costume, unaware that Xia Xu had identified him as a suspect.

• Xia Xu ordered Zhang Qun to gather police reports and local rumors about unusual incidents.
• Xia Xu found a report about a masked martial arts master rescuing a high school girl from a criminal.
• Xia Xu obtained the records for Class Two of De City No. 5 Middle School’s senior year and narrowed down possible suspects.
• Yao Fu returned home after summer vacation and argued with his mother about how he spent his time.
• Yao Fu admired his homemade superhero costume and recalled gaining superpowers a month earlier.
• Yao Fu remembered rescuing his deskmate, Zhou Qian, and decided to use his powers to fight for justice.

Yao Fu tried on his makeshift superhero suit, then panicked when Xia Xu and two armed companions appeared at his door. After Xia Xu passed them off as neighbors with replica weapons, he left Yao Fu reassured, but the group went on to confront the landlord under a false claim of being state security investigators.

• Yao Fu put on his battle suit, then hurried to answer the door when his mother told him someone was there.
• Xia Xu arrived with Zhang Qun and Xu Shao, whose gun replicas frightened Yao Fu into thinking the government had discovered his powers.
• Xia Xu explained that they were new neighbors and that the weapons were harmless cosplay replicas, and Yao Fu accepted the explanation.
• Xia Xu said they would move in after the landlord cleared out and led Zhang Qun and Xu Shao to the apartment across the hall.
• Xia Xu claimed to the landlord that they belonged to a state security investigation group and needed to requisition his apartment.

Xia Xu concluded that Yao Fu had likely obtained the drug Yu Zhengqing lost and arranged for the Special Operations Team to watch over Yao Fu’s family. He read Yao Fu’s fate, which revealed how the drug gave him bat-like powers and ended with his parents’ deaths, leaving Xia Xu convinced the drug had reached its intended target.

• Xia Xu arranged to requisition an apartment across from Yao Fu’s family and told Zhang Qun to move the Special Operations Team there.
• Xia Xu explained that Yao Fu was likely connected to the missing drug and that the people behind the incident would come looking for him.
• Back at the De City branch, Xia Xu reviewed Yao Fu’s attributes and discovered his protagonist fate was titled “Batman.”
• Xia Xu read how Yao Fu gained enhanced abilities and ultrasonic powers after sitting on the syringe, then began secretly acting as a masked hero.
• Yao Fu’s fate ended with him finding his parents dead, their bodies shriveled and marked by paired holes in their necks.

Xia Xu considered the value of Yao Fu’s successful bat-gene fusion and suspected the organization behind the technology would eventually target him. To draw that organization out, Xia Xu arranged for Yao Fu to rescue his classmate again, while warning Zhang Qun not to underestimate the mutant threats.

• Xia Xu reasoned that Yao Fu’s perfect genetic fusion likely resulted from the developers’ research combined with his protagonist aura, and considered studying his blood and recruiting the researchers.
• Xia Xu expected the organization behind the Beastmen research to target Yao Fu after his parents’ deaths, and planned to help Uncle Luo confront its agents.
• Zhang Qun reported that Yao Fu had stayed home playing games for several days after their visit, disrupting the plan to watch for the organization.
• Xia Xu told Zhang Qun to arrange for Yao Fu’s classmate to pass his home and stage a threat so Yao Fu would rescue her in public again.
• Zhang Qun praised Xia Xu’s scheme and promised his Special Action Group could handle the fight.
• Xia Xu cautioned Zhang Qun that mutant monsters were not ordinary armed opponents and that the group should not rely too much on its combat experience.

Yao Fu rescued Zhou Qian from another group of attackers, and Xia Xu revealed that the incident had been staged to draw attention. Sensational reports about the masked stranger spread online, creating bait for interested parties while keeping the incident obscure to the public.

• Zhou Qian screamed for help as three thugs pursued her into a residential complex.
• Yao Fu appeared in a black combat suit, drove the attackers away, and told Zhou Qian to call him Batman before fleeing on foot.
• Xia Xu and Zhang Qun watched the rescue footage, and Xia Xu explained that Special Department personnel had arranged the incident.
• Xia Xu ordered the footage and publicity copy edited into sensational news reports.
• Articles about the masked stranger spread online, attracting the attention of people interested in unusual events.

Yao Fu became famous as Batman and began patrolling De City, drawing the attention of five bat beastmen who came to his home while he was out. Xia Xu and the Special Operations Team ambushed them, but their leader escaped by growing wings and gliding away.

• Yao Fu gained local fame as Batman and spent two weeks fighting crime around De City.
• Five suited men arrived at Yao Fu's home and threatened his parents while Yao Fu was away.
• Xia Xu confronted the men, and one of them transformed and lunged at him.
• The Special Operations Team used a flashbang and gunfire to kill four bat beastmen and protect Yao Fu's parents.
• The Hook-Nosed Man escaped through a window, grew wings, and glided away as Zhang Qun ordered the team to pursue him.

After the hook-nosed Bat-Man escaped by gliding away, Xia Xu reassured the Special Operations Team and sent A Tuo to track him. Meanwhile, Xu Shao and another teammate stayed behind to silence Yao Fu’s parents.

• Zhang Qun blamed himself for letting the hook-nosed Bat-Man escape, and Xia Xu explained how the team’s constraints and the unexpected wings had thwarted the plan.
• Xia Xu told Zhang Qun that no one could escape him, then ordered A Tuo to get to work.
• A Tuo headed toward the elevator, and Xia Xu led the Special Operations Team after the dog.
• Xu Shao and another teammate returned to Yao Fu’s home and killed Yao Fu’s parents.
• Special Department logistics personnel in protective suits dragged Yao Fu’s parents’ bodies from the room.

Xia Xu agreed to locate the Bat-Man inside Ruifeng Supermarket so the Special Department could prepare a sniper ambush. With the supermarket sealed off, Xia Xu and A Tuo entered to find the escaped Beastman.

• Zhang Qun followed the Bat-Man to Ruifeng Supermarket and worried that searching the crowded building could put civilians and logistics personnel at risk.
• Xia Xu volunteered to find and lure out the Bat-Man while keeping A Tuo's abilities hidden.
• Xia Xu told Zhang Qun to seal off the supermarket and position snipers, and the Special Department quickly blocked its exits.
• Zhang Qun urged Xia Xu to stay safe, explaining that he feared Team Leader Luo would blame him if Xia Xu was hurt.
• Xia Xu joked that he would feed himself to the enemy, then headed into Ruifeng Supermarket with A Tuo.

Xia Xu tracked the hook-nosed man to Ruifeng Supermarket and decided to draw him toward a sniper position rather than risk an armed assault among the shoppers. The man recognized Xia Xu, concluded he was trapped, and saw taking him hostage as his best chance to escape.

• Xia Xu entered Ruifeng Supermarket with A Tuo's tracking help and used an SB-13 pill to locate the hook-nosed man in the Clothing Section.
• Xia Xu told Zhang Qun where the target was and asked him to find a firing position while Xia Xu lured the man away.
• Zhang Qun used the supermarket's surveillance footage to track the target, but the layout and crowds made sniping difficult.
• Xia Xu refused Zhang Qun's suggestion to bring in riot-control units and carefully approached the hook-nosed man before turning back as if he had spotted him.
• The hook-nosed man recognized Xia Xu, suspected the supermarket was surrounded, and decided to seize him as a hostage.

Xia Xu tried to lure the Hook-Nosed Man toward the supermarket windows, but the man transformed into a Bat-Man and attacked him in front of the crowd. When a stroller blocked Xia Xu’s escape, he stood his ground and struck back, sending the Bat-Man crashing through a merchandise display.

• Xia Xu moved toward the windows while the Hook-Nosed Man followed, waiting for a chance to capture him.
• A Supermarket Security Guard approached, and the Hook-Nosed Man transformed into a Bat-Man and lunged at Xia Xu, sending shoppers fleeing in panic.
• Xia Xu dodged the Bat-Man’s repeated pounces and ran toward the windows, relying on his training, Brain Overclocking, and the Mechanical Centipede Spine.
• A stroller rolled into Xia Xu’s path, and a mother cried out for her child, forcing him to abandon his escape and prepare to fight.
• Xia Xu met the Bat-Man’s punch with his own, and the collision sent the Bat-Man flying through a merchandise display while Xia Xu stayed on his feet.

Xia Xu fought the Hook-Nosed Bat-Man while leading him toward the supermarket windows and the sniper’s line of fire. After receiving a signal from his Tactical Earpiece, Xia Xu knocked the Bat-Man down, and supersonic bullets struck his vital points.

• Xia Xu shoved the stroller toward its mother, then turned back to face the Hook-Nosed Bat-Man when the man threatened the bystanders.
• Xia Xu charged the unsteady Bat-Man and struck his temples, injuring his eyes before evading his counterattack.
• Xia Xu used footwork and combat techniques to keep fighting while drawing the Bat-Man toward the windows.
• Onlookers stopped to watch and speculated about the fight as Xia Xu continued to lure the Bat-Man.
• After receiving a message through his Tactical Earpiece, Xia Xu swept the Bat-Man to the ground, and supersonic bullets struck his vital points.

After defeating the Bat-Man, Xia Xu explained his surprising combat ability by claiming that Luo Hongyun was his uncle. He left Zhang Qun to handle the aftermath and escaped the crowd of curious shoppers, with A Tuo trotting up to him outside the supermarket.

• Xia Xu reassured Zhang Qun that he was all right after the fight and told him, "My uncle is Luo Hongyun," as an explanation for his fighting skills.
• Xia Xu asked Zhang Qun to finish the cleanup and check whether his injuries qualified for covered medical expenses, then tried to leave.
• Shoppers crowded around Xia Xu, asking for interviews and offering to become his disciples, but he retreated behind the plainclothes staff's cordon.
• The plainclothes staff cleared a path through the crowd, allowing Xia Xu to escape the supermarket.
• A Tuo trotted out to meet Xia Xu outside the supermarket.

After the Bat-Man battle, Xia Xu learned that the Special Department could not fully prevent footage from leaking and told Zhang Qun to limit his exposure. He then advised the department to make the enemy believe Yao Fu had killed the Bat-Men, leaving Zhang Qun confident the organization would keep pursuing Yao Fu.

• Zhou Hong recorded the Bat-Man battle and tried to publish a report, but Special Department workers took him and other witnesses in for questioning.
• Zhang Qun showed Xia Xu confiscated reports and warned that footage from the supermarket might still leak despite the department’s efforts to manage public opinion.
• Xia Xu told Zhang Qun to handle the leaks while keeping him out of the public eye as much as possible.
• Zhang Qun worried that killing the Bat-Men had alerted their organization, but Xia Xu suggested blaming Yao Fu so the organization would remain interested in him.
• Zhang Qun praised Xia Xu’s cunning, and Xia Xu jokingly asked him to call him a brilliant mind with nothing on top.

Yao Fu returned home after a night of patrolling and learned that his parents had been murdered. He suspected the killers were vampires seeking the substance that gave him his powers, and he decided to keep his suspicions from the police and seek revenge.

• Yao Fu arrived home to find the apartment wrecked and learned from an officer that his parents had been killed.
• Yao Fu blamed himself for leaving his parents unprotected and struggled with grief, regret, and hatred.
• Yao Fu connected his powers to the mysterious syringe that had pierced him and suspected its owners had targeted his family after learning about his public heroics.
• An officer told Yao Fu that his parents had died from blood loss and puncture wounds resembling a vampire attack.
• Yao Fu concealed his suspicions from the police and focused on revenge rather than trusting them to catch the killer.

Xia Xu checked online reactions to his fight with the bat-men, then read reports about a high school student surnamed Yao who had killed five attackers. Yao Fu mistook the news for a coincidence and set out to find his parents’ killers, while Xia Xu realized the reports might draw the organization behind the bat-men toward him.

• Xia Xu reviewed posts about the supermarket battle and confirmed that no clear images of his face had circulated.
• Xia Xu read reports claiming a high school student surnamed Yao had killed five thugs who murdered a couple.
• Yao Fu bought a newspaper and suspected the story might concern his parents’ killers, but concluded it described another boy and resolved to find the vampires himself.
• Xia Xu reasoned that the reports would lead the organization behind the bat-men to suspect Yao Fu had killed their creations.
• Xia Xu considered that the organization might target Yao Fu again and noted that it could believe he was the one who fought the bat-men.