Chapter 28 Part 1
Shi Yan had many children, both biological and adopted. Among them, Shi Xu was his favorite.
The most obedient, the most outstanding.
Now, this child, at the most unexpected age, was rebelling for the first time. Shi Yan was furious, his anger clouding his judgment, not fully registering Shi Xu’s words.
Shi Xu patiently repeated himself. “I have a boyfriend. He’s… a bit special.”
Shi Yan finally processed the information, although not entirely, asking instinctively, “How special?”
Shi Xu’s smile turned strange. “He’s a pollutant.”
The desk finally gave way under Shi Yan’s repeated pounding, cracking loudly, scattering its contents across the floor. No one cared.
Shi Yan pointed at Shi Xu, his finger trembling. “Are you insane?! Are you under some kind of illusion planted by Lin Zhi? Or did that S-class pollutant do something to your brain? How can you be in a relationship with a pollutant?! You…”
Shi Xu had never seen his father this angry. His previous displays of anger had been for show, to assert his authority. This time, it was genuine rage.
“Are you doing this to spite me?!”
“Why would I want to spite you?” Shi Xu countered.
Shi Yan choked, speechless.
“You knew my brother became a Variant, trapped in the rift. Why did you lie to me?”
Shi Xu ripped away the carefully constructed facade, severing the already fragile bond between them.
Shi Yan’s anger subsided slightly. He sighed. “Your brother became like that… how could I tell you? You were so young. Could I be so cruel as to tell you your brother had become a monster?”
Shi Yan effortlessly switched between stern father and loving father, his rage instantly replaced by a pathetic performance.
This time, Shi Xu wasn’t playing along.
Cruel?
When had Shi Yan ever been kind to them?
A fire burned in Shi Xu’s eyes, but his voice remained calm. “After I discovered the truth about my brother’s death, why did you tamper with my memories?”
He already knew the answer: to control him, to bind him with fabricated affection.
Shi Yan was strict, but he didn’t restrict his children’s interactions.
Because he knew attachments led to vulnerabilities.
He couldn’t form a strong bond with Shi Xu, but his brother could. His brother’s death created an opportunity for Shi Yan to control Shi Xu.
And Shi Xu fell for it, becoming his puppet.
Shi Yan knew Shi Xu knew everything. Further explanations were pointless, a mere joke.
He opened his mouth, then closed it, unable to utter another lie.
The facade crumbled. He dropped the pretense of a loving father, revealing his true, twisted nature. “You’re my son. You should obey me.”
Golden sunlight streamed through the window, illuminating the room.
Shi Xu stood bathed in sunlight, but his clear eyes were clouded with darkness.
“My brother obeyed you, and he became a monster.”
“He lost to an SSS-class pollutant, consumed by it.” Shi Yan chuckled. “I wasn’t that harsh on him. I promised him freedom after that mission. But he failed. Whose fault is that? He wasn’t strong enough.”
Shi Yan valued his image, always impeccably dressed, even when angry, never letting his children see his ugliness.
Now that the truth was out, he no longer bothered with pretense. “I also promised him that if he returned alive, I would let him take you away. But he failed. As the price of his failure, you, his precious little brother, became mine. You’re his replacement, the perfect replacement, living in his stead, atoning for his failure!”
“That was our wager. He lost, so you’re mine! I have the right to alter your memories, to command you, because he lost! If you want to hate someone, hate your brother, who used you as a bargaining chip!”
Shi Xu: “I won’t hate my brother.”
He knew Shi Yan was twisting the truth. His brother would never use him as a tool.
Shi Yan shouted, “So you hate me instead?! I’m your father! A son obeying his father is natural! I’m being reasonable with you, you should be grateful!”
Shi Xu should be grateful for his upbringing, for the composure he now possessed, for the ability to remain calm even under his father’s manipulative provocations.
“What about my sister? How did she die?”
Shi Yan’s expression revealed the answer.
Her death wasn’t an accident either. Too many coincidences surrounding his siblings’ deaths.
“You sent her to eliminate a pollutant too.” It wasn’t a question. Shi Xu was certain.
Shi Yan’s silence confirmed it.
They stared at each other, the atmosphere freezing.
Shi Yan craved power and control, wanting to avoid being controlled, to escape the condescending gazes of those above him.
Having achieved power and status, he hadn’t felt intimidated by anyone’s gaze in a long time, especially not his son’s.
Shi Xu’s gaze was like his sharp sword, threatening to dissect him.
Shi Yan felt a chill run down his spine. “You know the truth now. What are you going to do? Seek revenge? Kill me?”
He forced himself to sound imposing. “I’m your father! You can’t do anything to me! As the captain of the Anomaly Management Bureau, you can’t do this!”
He was both reminding Shi Xu and reassuring himself.
The law protected him. Shi Xu couldn’t kill his own father, nor could he use his interrogation methods on him.
Because he was his son. A son couldn’t do that to his father.
Even if Shi Yan hadn’t said it, Shi Xu knew.
In Lin Zhi’s illusion, he could easily stab Shi Yan, but not in reality.
Despite the urge, his rationality prevailed.
Shi Xu: “I don’t want to be the captain anymore.”
Shi Yan scoffed. “You think this is revenge? You think I care? You’re only ruining your own future.”
“Really? I’d like to see how that plays out.” Shi Xu chuckled. “Let whoever wants that position have it.”
He was tired of cleaning up other people’s messes.
His nonchalant attitude enraged Shi Yan further. “Shi Xu!”
Shi Xu responded lazily, scoffing. “You do care about this, don’t you? Having a son as captain makes you proud, doesn’t it? Not evolving into a new human, not gaining an ability, that must frustrate you, doesn’t it? So you’re trying to fulfill your unfulfilled dreams through your son?”
Shi Yan’s face turned pale, his breathing ragged.
Shi Xu had hit a nerve, mocking his unachievable dreams.
“You think I can’t deal with you?!”
Even if Shi Xu was the strongest human, he had plenty of people under his command. Surely, they could handle one Shi Xu.
Shi Xu nodded. “I’m looking forward to seeing what you’ll do. But don’t forget what you said. I can’t kill you, but you can’t kill me either. Because I’m your son. Right, Father?”
Shi Yan: “…”
His earlier threat had been empty. He knew his subordinates were no match for Shi Xu. Unless Shen Qiao and that old geezer from the Esper Monitoring Department intervened, no one could subdue him.
Shi Xu’s eyes darkened, his playful tone turning sharp. “The world rifts first opened seven years ago, but my brother encountered an SSS-class pollutant when I was five. How is that possible?”
The abrupt change of topic caught Shi Yan off guard. His heart pounded under Shi Xu’s scrutinizing gaze.
He knew that once Shi Xu learned the truth, more questions would follow.
Most people believed the rifts first opened seven years ago, but only a select few knew the truth: the rifts first opened 30 years ago.
This secret was buried after the rifts closed, the memories of most people, except for a select few, including him, sealed.
He didn’t intend to explain, but he saw an opportunity to regain control over Shi Xu.
“You want to know why? Obey me, and I’ll tell you.”
“Don’t you have plenty of other people under your command? Can’t you function without me?” Shi Xu scoffed. “You chose Shi Mu, trained him meticulously, to replace me, didn’t you?”
Shi Yan choked.
Shi Mu was promising, but still young. Shi Xu, at only 24, had already achieved so much. He wasn’t ready to give up on him yet.
Because Shi Xu was his most perfect weapon.
How could he let go of such a masterpiece?
Shi Xu: “Are you still trying to play the loving father?”
“The SSS-class pollutant that consumed my brother is dead, but the one that killed my sister is still alive. I can tell you where it is.”
But there would be a price.
“I don’t need your help,” Shi Xu said indifferently.
If Shi Yan wouldn’t answer, he would find the answers himself.
