Chapter 41: Azure Dragon Halberd

At this moment, Li Yelaid was unaware of the conversation between Yin Huo and the higher-ups.

He had only just left the Black Prison. Before he could even walk a few steps, someone grabbed his arm and pulled him into a small room.

It was Doll.

Wearing a frog mascot suit, she looked at Li Yelaid with a hint of dejection.

She was originally a handler stationed at the branch, but following the incident with the Fantasy Band, she had immediately led a team to support the scene.

Unexpectedly, half an hour after her departure, the Black Prison erupted in a riot.

By the time she returned with her team to suppress the out-of-control crowd, the riot had already been quelled.

This filled her with intense self-reproach; had she not left the branch, perhaps she could have supported Team One immediately, and Team One wouldn't have suffered such heavy losses.

However, the members of Team One didn't care about this. Suppressing the Black Prison was their duty.

And how could they demand that Doll, who had already gone to support the scene, abandon so many civilians?

Everyone was simply performing their duties. One could only blame the enemy for being too cunning, not Doll or any other handler.

Yet, Doll remained dejected. With one hand, she held Li Yelaid's arm, and with the other, she held up a sign.

[I came too late. Are you okay? (_)]

She was clearly startled by Li Yelaid's bandages.

"I'm fine, just minor injuries. Actually, I should thank you," Li Yelaid whispered. "If you hadn't given me your hair, the members of Sand Team wouldn't have been able to successfully suppress the Möbius Loop."

Without Doll's hair, Sand Team would definitely have failed to take down Möbius within the safe time limit. The disaster would have been even more horrific!

Just as Sand and the others had said, Doll was indeed a major contributor.

After confirming that Li Yelaid's wounds were merely superficial, Doll quietly released his arm and continued holding her sign.

[I went to check the family apartments. Xiao Yan is fine, but she was also frightened (_)]

Li Yelaid nodded slightly; he had already received the answer from the detective.

If Li Yunyan, as a Liminal, had heard the broadcasted singing, she would have either successfully become a Psionic and joined the official handlers, or lost control and become a Sufferer.

The fact that she was merely frightened was a blessing in disguise.

[Go accompany her quickly. Even though she doesn't understand what happened, she is sensitive enough to sense that you were in danger. ()(._.`)]

"Mm." Li Yelaid nodded. Looking at the still somewhat lonely Doll, he hesitated before reaching out to pat her shoulder. "Thank you. The teammates are all very grateful to you. Otherwise, the subsequent sacrifices would have been even greater."

[Mm. (；′⌒`)]

Afterward, Li Yelaid bid farewell to Doll, checked on Yang Chen, who was still sleeping in the infirmary, and then left the branch.

The sky was beginning to lighten. Even though a night had passed, the streets were a mess.

Vehicles were burned on the roads, shops were looted, and violence had broken out in many places.

The once prosperous streets had become gloomy and eerie.

He wondered how long it would take to heal the people's wounds.

Sighing inwardly, Li Yelaid took advantage of the empty streets to perform "Air Steps" with several colleagues, making their way back to the family apartments together.

The family apartments were also in a state of misery. Many colleagues who lived here would never return.

When Li Yelaid opened the door to the apartment, he saw Li Yunyan watching the news on the television.

The news was broadcasting last night's events.

【The Fantasy Band carried out a terrorist attack, releasing hallucinogenic gas. This led to widespread violence and stampedes. Casualty counts are currently being tallied.】

"Sigh..." Li Yunyan sighed as she looked at Li Yelaid. "Every time I see this kind of news, my heart skips a beat. Because I know you all must be fighting desperately in places the public cannot see."

Seeing the bandages beneath Li Yelaid's clothes, Li Yunyan's eyes reddened.

"These are just superficial wounds," Li Yelaid comforted her quickly as he closed the door.

Li Yunyan fell into silence, quietly staring at the photo on the coffee table.

In the photo, a beautiful woman was wearing a gentle smile.

That was their mother. Since her passing, Li Yelaid and Li Yunyan were each other's only family.

After a long silence, Li Yunyan spoke softly, "Big brother, let me become a Psionic too."

Li Yelaid froze.

Li Yunyan continued, "You know, your original intention for joining the officials was to find a way to suppress my curse. But you are constantly facing danger. And then there's me, a burden who distracts you. It would be better if I became a Psionic; I could protect myself and help you at the same time."

Li Yelaid sighed inwardly. It was indeed a viable method.

As a Liminal, Li Yunyan was only one step away from becoming a Psionic.

If she experienced intense emotional fluctuations, she would likely become a Psionic directly.

Of course, if one wasn't careful, she could also become a Sufferer.

However, the officials had certain safeguards for Liminals, so handling her through official channels shouldn't pose too much risk.

It wasn't that Li Yelaid hadn't thought about this. He had originally thought that after joining the officials, he would just coast through life—taking missions when there were any, working normally when there weren't, finding a way to suppress the curse, and protecting his sister.

But the current situation seemed different.

Especially after this incident, the entire Megacity had been affected. Giving his sister some strength... even if it wasn't combat power, having a Psionic barrier would be a good start.

After hesitating, Li Yelaid could only sigh. "Alright. I'll ask the teammates for help. Don't do anything reckless on your own."

Li Yunyan nodded, then stepped forward to examine Li Yelaid's injuries. She asked, "We are blood relatives. If I become a Psionic, will I also follow the Myriad Path like you? Will I gain the same abilities?"

Li Yelaid thought for a moment and shook his head. "It's hard to say about the Path. My colleagues Spark and Shadowstream are twins, but one follows the Zero Path and the other follows the Nether Path."

"I see. Then are their parents Psionics?" Li Yunyan asked.

Li Yelaid recalled. "Spark said his father was a Liminal, but he never managed to awaken."

"In other words, if the parents are Psionics or Liminals, there is a high probability the children will become Psionics too?" Li Yunyan looked at the woman in the photo thoughtfully. "Then for us... does it mean our parents might have been Psionics or Liminals?"

"What's the use of saying that now?" Li Yelaid shook his head. "They are gone."

After their mother died of illness, Li Yelaid considered himself to have no parents left.

As for that father who ran away from home, claiming he was going to make big money...

Li Yelaid treated him as if he were dead!

If he dared to run back now and show up in front of Li Yelaid talking about compensation, Li Yelaid would beat the crap out of him!

A man who left his terminally ill wife behind with nothing but a letter to vanish is no longer fit to be called a father.

Especially since, a year before her death, even though she was incredibly weak, she had used sign language to tell Li Yelaid that her father was on his way back. She could feel it...

In the end, she died without ever seeing that man, passing away with regret and longing.

Every time he thought of this, Li Yelaid felt a surge of anger.

His mother was very smart and very beautiful.

It was said she had graduated from a top university.

She must have had many suitors in her youth.

Unfortunately, she was perfect in every way except for her eyes; she chose that man.

After taking several deep breaths, Li Yelaid stabilized his emotions.

He needed to recover well during this period; he couldn't afford to lose his temper again.

There was much to do next. Although no Forbidden Objects had escaped from the Black Prison in the East District, the North Branch's Black Prison hadn't been so lucky; some Forbidden Objects had escaped into the Megacity.

Combined with this incident, many "wild" Psionics had appeared within the Megacity. The frequency of official operations would increase significantly in the coming period.

Since Li Yelaid had already requested a month's leave from the antique shop owner, and Team One had withdrawn early from the Black Prison to recuperate, he had a lot of free time. Aside from attending his colleagues' funerals, he spent his time honing his abilities at the branch or checking the investigation progress of this incident on the [Forum].

Because all the major Megacities had suffered this blow, the handling departments of every city were hunting for clues with bloodshot eyes.

It was said that many people who had previously come into contact with Qin Zhi had been unearthed.

And the name "Ark" had been discovered.

It was rumored to be a deeply hidden, mysterious organization, and Qin Zhi was a member.

As for the rest, the Forum didn't say; it was likely only accessible with higher clearance.

On the third day, Li Yelaid received his contribution rewards for this incident.

The members of Team One generally considered Li Yelaid to be the primary contributor.

Specifically, his actions in securing Sand Team's ability to suppress the Möbius Loop had significantly reduced the losses.

Later, his pursuit of the Zorlan army had drawn other Forbidden Objects into the encirclement.

Therefore, Li Yelaid earned a total of 150 merit points in one go.

Added to his original 25 points, he now had 175 points.

This was a massive sum!

Previously, Li Yelaid would have immediately bought an anti-psionic helmet.

However, after waking up, Yang Chen had successfully applied for a trial for him. In at most half a month, an anti-psionic helmet would be delivered.

So, there was no rush.

Thus, Li Yelaid went to the branch's equipment department again with his massive sum, intending to forge new weapons.

First was the Crimson Longblade. Due to severe damage—having been used for multiple strikes against both men and horses—the blade was chipped, and the hilt was damaged.

The equipment department's advice was that rather than repairing it, it would be better to recast it into something more suitable.

Psionic armaments were ranked from high to low as A, B, C, and D. It was said there were even S-rank items, but the branch did not have any.

The captains used A-rank gear.

The Crimson Longblade was D-rank; while its ability was decent, its other materials were subpar.

The equipment department suggested extracting the mysterious substance from the old blade during recasting and using higher-grade materials to forge a new weapon.

This would upgrade the weapon to C-rank, making it more durable and preventing it from breaking so quickly.

However, the price would be 30 merit points just for the material costs. If he provided suitable materials himself, the price could be lowered.

It was quite expensive. When Li Yelaid bought a house, it only cost 20 merit points.

Was this single weapon more expensive than a house?

Li Yelaid asked Cheese, who replied, "The price is normal. Generally, only Third-Awakened Psionics can afford C-rank gear. I only managed to get one C-rank weapon myself. If you have a C-rank, it will last you a long time."

After much hesitation, Li Yelaid agreed to the recasting and paid the 30 merit points.

As for the shape, after some thought, Li Yelaid chose the Azure Dragon Halberd—specifically, a single-edged halberd.

Li Yelaid actually quite liked polearms.

As Yang Chen had said before, Li Yelaid had long limbs and a slender waist, making him suited for blade work.

Combined with his "Weakness Insight," he could cleave through both man and horse.

But since he had mastered the "Eighteen Picks of a Single Hand" and had achieved proficiency in spear techniques—and since both Xiang Yu and Huo Qubing were masters of the spear—continuing with a polearm would prevent him from fully utilizing certain techniques.

Thus, for the sake of cost-effectiveness, Li Yelaid had to painfully give up the polearm.

Of course, the equipment department offered some advice: if he really liked polearms, he could just buy another piece of psionic armament! A C-rank one would only cost 60 merit points!

Li Yelaid ignored them.

Instead, he continued selecting weapons. Since the psionic armament was settled, the jet-powered axe needed replacing too.

He directly customized a thermal axe that could be wielded with one hand and was easy to conceal.

20 merit points!

What a rip-off!

However, after witnessing the thermal axe easily slice through steel rebar, Li Yelaid fell silent and dutifully paid the points.

Just as Li Yelaid was planning to head to the training grounds to practice, Yang Chen sent a message asking him to come to the office.

Li Yelaid was somewhat puzzled, as it seemed he was the only one invited.

Driven by curiosity, Li Yelaid walked into Yang Chen's office.

He found several others inside: one was Yin Huo, the captain of Team Two, and another was an elderly man he had never seen before.

The old man was very frail, huddled small on the sofa as if he might pass away at any moment.

Yet, looking at this old man gave Li Yelaid the sensation of staring into an abyss.

Sitting in the main seat was Yang Chen.

Since the incident broke out, Yang Chen's state had been poor, his eyes filled with gloom.

Especially after learning that Qin Zhi had escaped the Megacity, Yang Chen's expression had not improved.

However, today, his expression was much better.

Upon seeing Li Yelaid enter, he even showed a hint of a smile.

"Sit."

After Li Yelaid sat down, it was Yin Huo who spoke.

"Night General, you should know about the Ark, right?"

"Of course," Li Yelaid nodded. "It was mentioned on the Forum as the culprit behind this incident."

"Correct. They are very mysterious. Although we caught a big fish, we don't dare to provoke them rashly because we cannot confirm their identity," Yin Huo responded. "The Ark is actually a massive warship wandering through the Void Realm. It is currently certain that Qin Zhi is a passenger on it."

"A massive ship in the Void Realm..." Li Yelaid frowned. How could one attack such a thing? It wasn't even in the physical world.

"What we know so far is that the Ark's abilities are very strange. Psionics who possess a 'ticket' can dock at the Ark from anywhere. Furthermore, transactions can be conducted through the Ark—whether it be potions or psionic armaments. Passengers from all over the world communicate and trade on the Ark. That is why the major Megacities have no clues regarding them."

"Can we obtain a ticket?" Li Yelaid asked. "If we get a ticket, can we sneak in?"

"Theoretically, it is very difficult to sneak in because only the Captain can issue tickets, and he has his own selection criteria," Yin Huo replied. "However, fortunately, some passengers do not want their identities discovered. Therefore, they often have their subordinates act as representatives, using tickets to enter the Ark for trading."

"And we... happen to have obtained a ticket. The representative of that ticket holder happens to be a Second-Awakened Psionic, and they have been arrested by us..."

Li Yelaid's heart skipped a beat. "An undercover?"