Chapter 89
The night was quiet and still.
The temperature difference between day and night in autumn was significant, and the evening wind was sharp and biting.
The head of the Special Incidents Agency, snuggled under his blanket with a hot water bottle, sighed contentedly.
“What a perfect night for sleep.”
The next moment, his bedroom door was kicked open.
“Chief!”
Qi Yao, the Rongcheng team leader, strode in, ripped the blanket off the chief, and grabbed his collar.
“I have something important to tell you!”
The chief, a regular human, fumbled for his glasses, put them on, and swatted Qi Yao’s hand away.
“Can’t you be a little more civilized?” he grumbled, his sleep disturbed.
He put on his jacket, grabbed his hot water bottle, and led Qi Yao to his study.
After a cup of hot tea, the chief finally felt awake enough to ask:
“What’s so important that you had to wake me up in the middle of the night?”
Qi Yao rubbed his scruffy beard, took a sip of the scalding tea, and quickly put the cup down.
“Chief, I sensed an unusual energy fluctuation in my complex today. I tracked it, and it felt like an ability user’s energy signature!”
The chief nodded, taking another sip of tea.
“So, you found a new ability user? Just recruit them. If they want to live a normal life, they can sign a non-disclosure agreement and continue with their work or studies. We’ve handled cases like this before. Why are you making such a fuss?”
He looked up, seeing Qi Yao’s serious expression.
“Chief, when I got there, there was no one there. Only a small child, with no signs of having awakened any abilities.”
The chief put down his teacup, clutching his hot water bottle, his brow furrowed.
“Was this ability user hiding, afraid of being discovered?”
Qi Yao shook his head and explained the situation, then offered a theory.
“Chief, what if this ability user is one of the missing people?”
People disappeared from the real world from time to time. The earliest case he could remember was from over ten years ago.
Back then, they had assumed those people were just lost or kidnapped.
Then, six years ago, Qi Yao, fresh out of university, had seen a monster emerge from a crack in the ground. He had narrowly escaped and awakened his ability.
The higher-ups had finally taken notice and established the SIA to investigate these anomalies.
Qi Yao, one of the first ability users, had been actively involved in handling these cases.
And they had also been searching for the missing people.
They hadn’t been certain before, but after experiencing more and more anomalies in recent years, they had finally confirmed the existence of another world.
Monsters emerged from this other world, devouring humans to gain power.
And the missing people had most likely been taken to that other world.
But they hadn’t been able to contact them and didn’t know if they were dead or alive.
The chief’s expression turned serious, and he thought for a moment.
“What’s the basis of your theory? Couldn’t it be a newly awakened ability user hiding out of fear? Or perhaps the child is the ability user, just too young to understand what happened?”
Qi Yao had already considered these possibilities.
“Newly awakened ability users are weak. They couldn’t hide without leaving any trace. I searched the apartment thoroughly. There was no sign of anyone else.”
“As for my little neighbor, his constitution is weaker than most children. He even had a fever recently. I would have noticed any changes.”
Qi Yao loved teasing the little one, his cute little neighbor.
If Xing Nuo had awakened his abilities, Qi Yao, with his constant attention on the child, would have noticed!
“Having ruled out the most likely possibilities, only the least likely one remains.”
He remembered the powerful energy fluctuation that afternoon, strong enough to make even him, the highest-level ability user, tremble.
“Such a powerful energy signature…if it were someone from our world, I would know them.”
So, after a night of pondering, Qi Yao had reached a conclusion—
This person was probably from the other world!
“That’s why he disappeared so quickly. He was gone by the time I went upstairs.”
The chief, now taking the matter seriously, nodded thoughtfully.
“Your little neighbor only has a dad. Could it be his mother? Or another relative? Someone who disappeared and returned to see him?”
Qi Yao wasn’t sure. After discussing it with the chief all night, he returned to his complex, exhausted.
Daylight.
Xing Nuo, holding his brother’s hand, skipped along, his little round hat on his head, humming cheerfully.
Seeing Qi Yao entering the complex, he waved.
“Uncle, I go play with Big Brother today~”
Xing Nuo, no school on Saturdays, his face beaming with pride, showed off to his neighbor.
Qi Yao, still tired, seeing the little one’s excitement, walked over and, catching him off guard, ruffled his cheeks.
As Xing Nuo stomped his foot angrily and Shen Baizhou glared at him, Qi Yao laughed heartily and ran away.
Xing Nuo, his cheeks still red, huffed and pulled his brother’s hand.
“Big Brother, let’s go!”
Shen Baizhou glanced back at Qi Yao, his eyelids lifting lazily, as if still half-asleep, and, humming in agreement, led Xing Nuo out of the complex.
Shen Baizhou’s high school wasn’t prestigious and didn’t have weekend classes. He walked slowly with Xing Nuo, heading towards the motorbike shop.
Reaching the shop, Xing Nuo jumped up the steps, pulling his brother’s hand.
“Wow! I up here!”
Shen Baizhou, watching him, told him to be careful, then started browsing the motorbikes.
Xing Nuo also ran over, pretending to be knowledgeable, and patted a motorbike.
The shop owner, seeing a high school student in uniform with a small child, chuckled and asked:
“What size are you looking for? I just got a few new models in.”
Shen Baizhou pointed at a small seat in front of an electric scooter.
“Can this carry a child? Will my little brother fit?”
The shop owner gave him a thumbs-up.
“Sure, any child under ten will fit. And you can fold the seat away when you don’t need it.”
Shen Baizhou circled the scooter, a satisfied look on his face.
“Xing Nuo, come try it out.”
Xing Nuo ran over, and Shen Baizhou lifted him onto the small seat in front of the footrest, his head barely peeking over the handlebars.
Shen Baizhou took Xing Nuo for a test drive.
Xing Nuo, his curls flying in the wind, gasped, enjoying the ride.
“We so fast!”
Used to walking, this was his first time on an electric scooter.
He was excited but also a bit scared, so he just huddled against his brother.
Shen Baizhou, seeing how much Xing Nuo liked it, bought the scooter without even haggling.
The shop owner, beaming, gave them two matching duck helmets, one large, one small.
Xing Nuo put on his helmet, the little springy leaves on top bobbing adorably.
Shen Baizhou secured the helmet strap, swung his long leg over the scooter, and, looking every bit the cool older brother, yelled:
“Let’s go!”
Xing Nuo raised his fist. “Let’s go!”
The brothers, enjoying their new ride, rode along the riverbank.
Xing Nuo felt like he was flying, his head tilted back, looking at the dry, yellow leaves on the trees along the river.
They encountered a group of teenagers on modified scooters, their engines roaring.
The teenagers circled them, laughing and yelling.
“Hey, dude! You look cool, but what’s with that scooter?”
They revved their engines, circling the little yellow scooter.
Shen Baizhou, his expression indifferent, his posture relaxed as he rode the scooter, replied:
“It’s convenient for taking my little brother out for a ride.”
The teenagers laughed.
“So, you’re a brother complex type! Where’s your little brother? Still breastfeeding?”
Xing Nuo, peeking out from behind Shen Baizhou’s arm, his face serious, corrected them:
“I in big boy class now. No dwink milk anymore.”
The teenagers, looking at the little one in his duck helmet, laughed and tapped their own helmets.
“Hey, kid, look how cool our helmets are!”
They sped off, showing off their skills with a dramatic drift at the next intersection.
The screech of tires against asphalt made Xing Nuo cover his ears.
Seeing sparks flying from the tires, he pointed excitedly.
“Big Brother, look! Little fiwe spawks!”
Shen Baizhou, wearing his duck helmet, which clashed hilariously with his cool demeanor, slowly rode towards the teenagers.
