An ally of justice (you can skip to chapter 47)

(The next few chapters have major flaws and were products of the author's fits of madness, but they can't be deleted, so just skip straight to chapter 47. Chapter 47 has been revised, and it won't affect your reading.)

(Thank you all for gracing this story with your attention. Xiaosuan sincerely thanks you.)

"Chen Xia."

"An E-rank Night Hawk who only passed the assessment two days ago, with the skill Strength Enhancement."

"And you just punched the C-rank Fire Man to death like that?!"

The intelligence officer who had come to take a statement stared at the sixteen-year-old Chen Xia in disbelief.

Chen Xia nodded calmly, glanced at Fire Man's scorched yellow corpse, and fell silent for a moment before explaining.

"You can't generalize about people's constitutions. I beat him to death in a state of extreme anger."

The intelligence officer eyed Chen Xia doubtfully. He really couldn't see how this sixteen-year-old boy's frail body could contain such formidable strength, and couldn't help shaking his head.

"As a Night Hawk, the most important thing is to control your emotions. Anger might make you stronger, but it also carries the risk of going berserk. Go to headquarters for a physical later and check how your various readings have changed."

"Sure, sure, sure." Chen Xia nodded, then asked, "Can I go back now?"

He intended to properly sort through his understanding of this world so he would know where he stood.

The intelligence officer agreed. "You can. Killing Fire Man counts as a considerable achievement. You can collect two bottles of enhancement medicine from headquarters later."

"Mm." Chen Xia nodded and stayed no longer. Following the memories the world's will had given him, he wound his way around until he found his lodgings.

An overpass.

Underneath it lay a small quilt and a tattered sleeping mat.

Only then did Chen Xia remember his backstory.

He was an orphan. Having suffered unfair treatment since childhood, he had resolved to become an ally of justice.

Just two days ago, he had joined Night Hawk with a barely passing score, becoming one of its lowest E-ranks.

And Night Hawk did not provide room or board.

Chen Xia rubbed the tip of his nose and sighed.

"I'd be better off screwing bolts in a factory."

That was the truth.

Chen Xia walked beneath the overpass and looked around. The furnishings were actually quite complete; the place had been made into a little home.

There were tables, chairs, and stools, and even a battered rice cooker.

There just wasn't any electricity.

Chen Xia sat on the old sleeping mat and began examining his condition.

His strength was 3.9, and his cultivation was at the fifth level of Qi Refining. All his stats were pretty good.

True Dragon Qi: 40/1000 (Can only be used after fully integrating into the world.)

The content in parentheses was interesting. Chen Xia had to integrate fully into the world before he could use it. As for the requirement for fully integrating, Chen Xia guessed he probably had to play the role the world's will had assigned him properly.

He just didn't know how long full integration would take.

Chen Xia continued examining himself internally. His expression suddenly froze as he discovered something that delighted him.

Fortune: 141.

His fortune hadn't been weakened at all. It was exactly the same as before.

Good, good, good.

Chen Xia was extremely pleased. This meant he had another trump card, and there was something else that delighted him even more.

Spiritual Qi from the previous martial-arts minor grotto-heaven was still pouring into his body. Though it was only one percent, this was the Spiritual Qi of an entire small world.

And Chen Xia's body was still very weak now, so he could feel himself slowly growing stronger at every moment.

Chen Xia sat quietly, rubbed the tip of his nose, and began thinking about this world's setting.

Ability users probably belonged to the technological side of the Great All-Heavens, beings in the same lineage as the Mecha Great Saint and the Quantum Ancestor.

Was it reasonable for an immortal cultivator like him to come beat up people on the technological side?

Chen Xia thought about it briefly.

He decided it was simply right as rein.

An immortal cultivator like him had been able to go outcompete martial artists before, so why couldn't he beat up people who spat fire and shot electricity now?

Chen Xia stretched, rose from the sleeping mat, and leaned against the wall, poking his head out to look around with a devil-may-care air.

This was a world of ability users. Ever since the meteor fell, one in every thousand people born in the new century would possess an ability.

Abilities came in all kinds, great and small, but there was one taboo: the more powerful an ability user was, the more easily they went berserk.

But Night Hawk, created by the new government, was different. They used drugs to strengthen and control ability users.

These were the enhancement medicines.

Ability users who took enhancement medicine could become calmer and stronger.

But Chen Xia didn't think this method seemed like anything good. How could anyone get stronger just by popping drugs?

Even with his ability to add stat points, he still had to cultivate himself.

And did enhancement medicine really have no side effects?

Chen Xia remained skeptical. In any case, he certainly wouldn't drink it.

By the time the sunset swept past, the darkness faded, and the first light of dawn appeared,

Chen Xia had spent a day in this world.

He could feel his connection to this world deepen just a little.

Today was Night Hawk's assembly day, and Chen Xia had to go to the new government's headquarters for his district.

To act in keeping with his identity, Chen Xia went to the new government's headquarters early. Seeing that the doors hadn't opened yet, he struck up an idle conversation with the night-shift security guard.

"Do you know the three cardinal rules of security guards?" Chen Xia asked.

The young security guard frowned, finding this a very interesting question. After pondering for a long while, he finally looked straight at Chen Xia and answered solemnly and earnestly.

"Help delivery riders who are on their own."

"Let the residents speak their minds freely."

"Fight to the death when you encounter criminals!"

Good grief, he'd gotten everything backward.

For a moment, Chen Xia didn't know whether to praise or criticize him. He froze briefly before shaking his head and replying.

"You'll never be a qualified security guard."

"Why?" the guard asked in bewilderment.

There was no answer.

Because the doors had opened.

Chen Xia walked inside, ready to attend Night Hawk's assembly.

His clothes were rather old. Since he hadn't received his Night Hawk uniform yet, he looked out of place among the others.

The people passing around him also cast strange looks his way.

Chen Xia remained unmoved, standing lazily against a wall. In his words, if you were next to a wall and didn't lean against it, you had bubbles in your brain.

"Chen Xia, right? Go change into this uniform first." An inspector approached and handed Chen Xia a set of clothes.

Chen Xia acknowledged him, took the clothes, and went to the restroom to change.

Night Hawk's uniform was a black suit, with his identification tag on the left breast.

Chen Xia straightened his tie and strolled out, his size-42 feet clad in size-43 black leather shoes.

The inspector glanced at him and nodded. "Not bad. The clothes fit, and you're handsome too. You just need to look a little more spirited. Don't be so lazy."

"Sure, sure, sure." Chen Xia nodded perfunctorily. Looking at the wall beside him, he leaned against it without a second thought.

He even made the inspector laugh. The man waved helplessly. "All right, go join the assembly. You should be the only one missing. Introduce yourself in a moment."

Following the directions, Chen Xia arrived before a heavy door.

The door stood half open.

Chen Xia strolled inside. In an instant, he could feel several sharp gazes sizing him up.

"Introduce yourself, rookie," a teasing voice called out.

Chen Xia paced onto the stage, looked at everyone, and said evenly,

"My name is Chen Xia. I'm sixteen, and I live directly beneath the overpass on Nantong Road. I'm not married yet, I don't smoke, and I only drink a little."

"I always get home before ten at night, and I get a full ten hours of sleep every day. I never stay up late, only all night."

"My greatest wish is..."

At this point, the corners of Chen Xia's mouth lifted into a smile. A little more seriousness entered his lazy voice as he said,

"To never have to work or study, to hold out my arms to be dressed and open my mouth to be fed..."

A displeased voice rose from below. "What kind of crooked thinking is that? Night Hawk isn't that sort of organization. Fix your attitude!"

Chen Xia's mind trembled. He distinctly felt the world's rejection. His words just now probably hadn't fit his character.

So he pulled a long face, looking as though all his spirit had drained away, and said perfunctorily,

"My greatest wish is to become an ally of justice..."

Then, half dead, he tacked on the final exclamation.

"Ah!"