Chapter 3
The pollutant was born from a world rift. Originally a low-level pollutant, it devoured countless others, gradually evolving until it reached SSS-class.
Before achieving SSS-class, it had seen Shi Xu once. A single glance was all it took to captivate it. Though it lacked a heart, after studying human knowledge, it labeled this complex emotion as “captivation.”
Back then, it was too weak. Leaving the abyss meant instant death at the hands of espers. It couldn’t follow Shi Xu.
It waited for years until the rifts reopened.
Three months ago, it encountered Shi Xu again in the abyssal rift. Perhaps its greeting was inappropriate, as Shi Xu immediately attacked, sealing two-thirds of its body.
Before the rift was fully repaired, it silently escaped, determined to seek “revenge” on the one who sealed it.
While searching for Shi Xu, it racked its non-existent brain, pondering how to exact its “revenge.” Upon seeing him, the answer suddenly materialized.
In their two previous encounters, Shi Xu had attacked it both times. It didn’t understand why. After learning that Shi Xu was the captain of the Anomaly Management Bureau, known for his ruthlessness and strict training methods, it understood. Shi Xu was belligerent, enjoying combat.
There was a human saying: Lovers quarrel at the head of the bed but make up at the foot.
It thought its greeting must have angered Shi Xu. After playing along with his fighting game, Shi Xu would surely reconcile and play with it in return.
As the blade descended, the pollutant swiftly turned its head, narrowly avoiding injury.
The short, stubby transparent tentacles beneath its belly rapidly extended, wrapping around the resentful, white-haired young man like ropes.
Just like their previous encounters, it coiled tightly, leaving no gaps.
A thin voice, filled with an unconscious greed, whispered—
[Mine… Mine…]
It wanted to say more, but having only recently arrived in the human world, it hadn’t fully mastered human language. In its haste, it could only think of these two overused words, followed by two more it had planned to say upon meeting Shi Xu—
[Mine… Old…]
Shi Xu’s brow furrowed deeply. Buried memories were forcibly unearthed. He pressed his unbound foot against the buried dagger’s hilt, launching it into the air. Catching it, he swiftly severed the tentacles binding him, splattering himself with viscous fluid.
The pollutant let out a broken sound, its two-word utterance cut short.
Its tentacles were mercilessly severed, yet the attack caused no harm, not even pain.
[Mine…]
After the war, while everyone celebrated peace, Shi Xu contemplated the future.
He had only sealed the SSS-class pollutant. It could return at any time, and the world rifts could reopen.
Whenever he had a free moment, Shi Xu pondered the meaning of the pollutant’s “Mine.”
The white fragment on his left shoulder was left by the pollutant. It had placed a protective shield on him, seemingly to protect him, but he didn’t believe it.
Mine…
Pollutants only knew how to consume. It considered him its possession.
He was marked by the pollutant. Sooner or later, he would be consumed.
After waking from his nightmares, Shi Xu would replay combat scenarios in his mind, strategizing how to quickly kill the pollutant in their next encounter.
He had to kill it before it devoured him!
But imagination was just that. Shi Xu never expected to be so discomposed upon actually encountering the pollutant.
His assault didn’t stop. The viscous fluid on him completely burned away his reason. Silver flashed, severing the transparent gelatinous layer covering the black cat.
Just as the blade was about to pierce the flesh beneath, the pollutant finally sensed danger. Shi Xu truly intended to kill it. It whimpered, tears welling in its golden eyes. From the cleanly severed tentacles, thicker ones sprouted, wrapping around Shi Xu’s arms.
It finally seemed to understand that Shi Xu disliked being completely bound, so it only restrained his hands, along with the dagger he held.
Tears streamed down its golden eyes, the remaining tentacles writhing in the air. Though silent, each tentacle seemed soaked in tears, glistening with translucent fluid.
Wuwuwu, what had it done to make its wife so angry?
It had finally found its wife, why was its wife attacking it?
Domestic violence was illegal in human society!
Wuwuwu, did its wife not like it?
[Wife!]
The unfinished word finally escaped its lips, laden with grievance.
Shi Xu: “…”
Had he hallucinated?
What did this pollutant call him?!
After the choked cry, Shi Xu’s resentful aura intensified. Though his hands were bound, it didn’t hinder him. He threw himself and the pollutant to the ground.
Dust rose, the warm yellow ground lights stinging Shi Xu’s eyes. The pollutant didn’t evade, reverting to its original form before Shi Xu hit the ground.
The black cat vanished, replaced by a transparent jellyfish. It extended its thick, translucent tentacles, cradling Shi Xu protectively, shielding him from the dust.
The familiar embrace and touch, more terrifyingly real than any nightmare, filled Shi Xu with disgust. He struggled to break free, but the tentacles thickened, tightening their grip.
After a full day of fighting without rest, even with his superhuman stamina, Shi Xu was exhausted. Had he been at full strength, he could have easily escaped and delivered a fatal blow.
Unfortunately, he was facing an SSS-class pollutant.
There was no escape.
It seemed today was his death day. He would be consumed by this pollutant.
“Waaah…”
Just as Shi Xu tasted despair, the pollutant suddenly began to cry like a child, seemingly heartbroken by him, unable to stop.
Even while sobbing uncontrollably, it refused to release him, whimpering between choked words—”Wife… Mine… Wife… Wuwuwu…”
Shi Xu: “…”
His reason returned. Shi Xu’s eyes widened in disbelief.
Even when he was completely defenseless, the pollutant hadn’t devoured him.
And it called him… Wife?!
The pollutant’s true form resembled both a jellyfish and an octopus. In its smaller form, it was only the size of a basketball, its round, transparent head trailing countless finger-thick, translucent tentacles.
Realizing the pollutant had no intention of attacking, Shi Xu quickly regained his composure, temporarily suppressing his disgust. He employed the patience he used with his team members, calming the pollutant enough to bring it back to his home.
Before the next battle erupted, he needed answers.
Shi Xu and the pollutant sat in silence on the sofa for five minutes. Since sitting down, his gaze hadn’t left the pollutant’s head.
In the center of its head were two coin-sized, gold-rimmed eyes, staring unblinkingly at him. Its even smaller mouth remained open, which was how Shi Xu noticed it.
The mouth twitched several times before uttering, “Wife…”
Shi Xu’s brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. His left hand, behind his back, tightened around the dagger hilt. He said coldly, “Don’t call me that.”
The golden eyes instantly welled with tears. The pollutant began to chant, “Wife, wife, wife…”
Shi Xu: “…”
More annoying than a broken record. The more he forbade it, the more it persisted, as if deliberately defying him.
Shi Xu grabbed a tissue and covered the pollutant’s mouth. Its eyes twitched, shedding more tears, then suddenly brightened. Despite its muffled mouth, it still managed a pleased, “Wife~”
Wife covered my mouth, Wife likes my mouth~
The pollutant didn’t realize the tissue was there, and Shi Xu couldn’t guess its thoughts.
Seeing the pollutant finally stop its repetitive cries, he withdrew his hand and asked, “Why do you call me wife?” Don’t humans call the ones they love that?
Unable to explain verbally, the pollutant extended two tentacles from its head, forming a heart shape above itself.
Shi Xu: “…”
He confirmed one thing: the pollutant understood human language but hadn’t fully mastered it.
Another less certain conclusion: this pollutant seemed to like him?
Shi Xu had more important questions, such as—
What did you mean by entangling me in the abyss without killing me?
How did you break the seal?
When did you escape the rift?
What is your purpose here?
Will you harm humanity?
The last question was rhetorical. Pollutants only caused harm. If not eliminated quickly, it would overrun the world, mutating all life, turning even them into pollutants.
But this pollutant possessed human consciousness. Shi Xu sensed its target was him, not humanity.
He continued to observe the pollutant, torn between sending it to the research lab and keeping it until it learned to speak and answer his questions before killing it.
Shi Xu wasn’t a curious person, but he was unusually intrigued by this nightmare’s source.
SSS-class pollutants were difficult to kill. He had exhausted himself to seal it in the rift. He dreamed of ways to destroy it, yet, before doing so, he inexplicably wanted to understand its motives. Its behavior was too strange.
So strange that if he killed it without understanding, he would be plagued by unanswered questions, creating new nightmares.
The pollutant’s tentacles remained raised, holding the heart shape steady above its head.
Under Shi Xu’s gaze, its transparent body gradually turned red. Its golden eyes blinked shyly as it uttered, “Wife.”
Surprise flickered in Shi Xu’s eyes. This pollutant could even blush?
Then, the cloying endearment made his scalp crawl. He had never been addressed like this before.
It was disgusting.
Being entangled by the pollutant’s tentacles was physically repulsive, but its voice, penetrating his ears and reaching his core, evoked a deeper, visceral aversion.
“Disgusting.”
The pollutant blinked in confusion, whispering, “Wife?” Its bewilderment was clear, its question implied: What does disgusting mean?
A slow smile curved Shi Xu’s lips, revealing a hidden, rarely seen mischievousness.
“Disgusting means I find you quite interesting.”
The pollutant’s eyes widened, sparkling with excitement. “Wife!”
Before it could utter “Wife disgusting,” Shi Xu quickly interrupted, “But you can’t call me that. I’ll get angry.”
The pollutant immediately closed its mouth. A tentacle cautiously reached out, curling around Shi Xu’s index finger, rubbing gently.
It seemed like appeasement, as if saying: Okay, I won’t say it. I’ll listen to Wife.
Shi Xu lowered his gaze, observing the transparent tentacle on his finger. The slimy sensation was still repulsive, yet, surprisingly, he didn’t shake it off.
His internal debate was settled. He would keep this pollutant around for a while.
Once he got his answers…
