A heart-to-heart between brothers

Old Place Barbecue was a long-established restaurant in Jiangcheng that had been open for over a decade.

The place was small, with seven or eight tables. The owner was a man in his fifties whose skill at grilling skewers was second to none.

Lin Jin and Zhou Yan had been regulars since high school, and even after they started working, they still came here occasionally to catch up.

"Boss, twenty lamb skewers, thirty beef skewers, twenty chicken wings, ten skewers of chives, one grilled fish, and a dozen beers!" Zhou Yan ordered with practiced ease as soon as he sat down.

The owner answered with a smile, "Come into some money today, Zhou?"

"Not me-my brother!" Zhou Yan pointed at Lin Jin. "He's treating today, so bring out the expensive stuff! Money's no object!"

Lin Jin said nothing, quietly watching him show off.

Before long, the skewers arrived and the beers were opened.

Zhou Yan raised his glass. "Here, Little Lin, a toast to you. You saved those two people today and did us proud. Now I've got some standing at the bureau too."

"Show off at the bureau if you like, but don't get cocky. At the end of the day, you need the ability to back it up."

Lin Jin raised his glass, clinked it against Zhou Yan's, and added that reminder.

"Hey! I'm not that kind of guy. I know exactly what I'm capable of."

After two glasses of beer, Zhou Yan started talking freely.

"Little Lin, don't you think our lives have been pretty incredible?" His gaze wandered as he ate a skewer. "We grew up in an orphanage, without parents, got bullied at school, then struggled to make a living after graduation. I thought that was how the rest of my life would go-work some low-level job at a supermarket, save up enough to get married, and live an ordinary life."

He paused and took another swig.

"But what happened instead? A few days ago, an anomaly nearly scared me to death, then I awakened a superpower. Now I'm making twenty thousand a month, and I've even learned that Fire Release thing you taught me."

"It's only been a few days, and my entire worldview has been turned upside down. Superpowered people, anomalies-all that stuff from novels actually exists."

"Wasn't anything alive supposed to be forbidden from becoming a spirit after the Founding of the Nation?"

Lin Jin listened in silence. Compared with his own experiences, this was nothing.

Zhou Yan turned to him. "But Little Lin, you've changed even more than I have."

Lin Jin looked up at him.

"How do I put it..." Zhou Yan scratched his head. "You never talked much before, but it wasn't like this."

"Now, everything you say and do is so... composed? Yeah, steady. Like nothing can stump you, like you've seen through everything."

"And those abilities of yours-lightning, flames, red eyes, and that Instantaneous Movement today..."

He looked at Lin Jin earnestly. "Little Lin, what exactly have you been through?"

Lin Jin fell silent for a few seconds.

He remembered his years in the world of Naruto.

He remembered the grueling training at the Ninja Academy, the bloody fighting in the Shinobi World War, the sight of his teammates dying before his eyes, and the final moment when he and the God of Ōtsutsuki destroyed each other.

Those memories were so real that sometimes even he could not tell which world was the dream.

But he could not tell Zhou Yan.

At least, not yet.

"Nothing much." Lin Jin raised his glass. "I just had a very long dream."

Zhou Yan looked at him, then suddenly smiled.

"All right. If you don't want to talk about it, you don't have to. Everyone has their secrets." He raised his glass too. "Anyway, no matter how much you change, you're still my brother. We grew up together. That bond is real."

He lifted his glass. "Come on, bottoms up!"

Lin Jin looked at him, a faint smile touching his lips.

"Bottoms up."

Their glasses clinked.

Lin Jin remembered his comrades in the world of Naruto. They, too, had once sat together like this, eating grilled meat and dreaming of the future.

But he would never see them again.

At least he had destroyed the enemy with his own hands in the end.

Looking at his goofy best friend in front of him, he suddenly felt a little warmth in his heart.

In this world, at least, he still had him.

Early the next morning.

Zhou Yan was woken by his ringing phone.

Still groggy, he fumbled for it. The name on the screen brought him fully awake.

"Captain Chen?"

A steady male voice came from the other end. "Zhou Yan, get ready and come in. Meet at the bureau at nine. We have a mission."

Zhou Yan shot upright. "A mission? What kind?"

"Several students have gone missing from a school. We suspect a C-rank anomaly. Our Team C is handling the investigation." Captain Chen paused. "This is a live combat mission. Be careful."

"Yes, sir!"

Zhou Yan hung up and hurriedly got dressed.

Before leaving, he remembered what Lin Jin had told him: "If you're in danger, channel your superpower into the Flying Thunder God Mark. I'll be able to sense it."

He touched his shoulder and somehow felt much more reassured. Having someone powerful to lean on was great.

Team C's conference room at the Jiangcheng Paranormal Bureau.

Including Zhou Yan, there were five people in total.

Their captain, Chen Feng, was the leader of the team Lin Jin had rescued in the alley: peak Awakening Stage, with a B-rank enhancement-type superpower.

Team member Liu Yang was at the middle Awakening Stage, with a C-rank perception-type superpower. He was the young team member who had been holding the Detector back then.

Team member Sun Hao was at the early Awakening Stage, with a D-rank strength-type superpower, a newcomer who had only recently joined.

Team member Li Tong was at the middle Awakening Stage, with a C-rank agility-type superpower, and the only woman among the five.

Then there was Zhou Yan, early Awakening Stage, with a B-rank flame-type superpower.

"The mission objective is clear." Chen Feng pointed at the photograph on the projection screen. "Four students have gone missing from Jiangcheng No. 3 Middle School in three days. After the school reported it to the police, we detected anomalous energy fluctuations. Our preliminary assessment puts it at C-rank."

He brought up another photograph, a blurry surveillance screenshot. In it was a distorted, shadowy mass, vaguely humanoid but with indistinct edges.

"Based on our preliminary assessment, the anomaly has provisionally been classified as a 'Mirror Demon.' It specializes in creating mirror spaces and trapping people inside. The missing students are most likely still alive, but we don't know how long they can hold out."

Chen Feng looked at everyone. "Our mission is to enter the school, find and eliminate the anomaly, and rescue the students safely. Any questions?"

"No!"

Five minutes later, a black van drove out of the Paranormal Bureau toward Jiangcheng No. 3 Middle School.

Jiangcheng No. 3 Middle School was a public secondary school with a thirty-year history.

Classes had been suspended because of the disappearances. The campus was deserted, with only a few security guards on patrol.

After Chen Feng showed his credentials, the five entered the campus.

"Liu Yang, can you sense anything?" Chen Feng asked.

Liu Yang stood with his eyes closed, holding a palm-sized Detector whose needle trembled slightly.

"There are energy fluctuations. They seem to be... in the direction of the Laboratory Building."

The five quickly headed toward the Laboratory Building.

The Laboratory Building was an old five-story structure with weathered walls and windowpanes reflecting the sunlight.

Liu Yang stopped at the end of the first-floor corridor and pointed at the Storage Room ahead. "It's in there."

Chen Feng gave a hand signal. The five spread out into position, ready for combat.

He reached out and pushed open the Storage Room door.

There was no one inside, only several rows of storage cabinets lining the walls.

But the instant the door opened, they all saw an eerie sight...