Chapter 11: Codename

"Breaking news: This evening, the Security Bureau discovered a criminal gang hiding in the XXX residential complex in the old district of Frontier City and immediately launched a raid. The criminals put up a desperate resistance, leading to an intense shootout between both sides. In the end, the Security Bureau successfully neutralized all suspects. Further investigations are underway; any citizens with information are encouraged to call. Next, we go to the scene for a live report."

In a dim basement, a radio crackled with intermittent sound.

On a cot in the dungeon, a man in his thirties suddenly opened his eyes.

His gaze was filled with astonishment.

At the very last moment, through the corpse he controlled, he had witnessed that shocking scene.

It had completely exceeded his plans.

He had indeed guided the Handlers to the residential complex, but the speed at which they arrived was far faster than he had imagined.

So much so that the Void creature, after being born, was besieged before it even had a chance to grow.

Normally, this wouldn't have been an issue; the Void creature summoned through that ritual possessed immense power. Most Psions would likely be crushed by fear, rendering them unable to exert any effective combat strength.

Yet, among that team of Handlers, there was actually someone strong enough to hunt down a Void creature?

Damn it, where exactly did the plan go wrong?

Weren't they supposed to be rookies? What kind of rookie could chase a Void creature like that?

"What exactly is the variable... I must have someone within the Church identify that person!" He suppressed the shock in his heart and quickly walked out of the basement.

Regardless of the mishap, he could no longer stay in the Great City.

For now, the Church did not have the capital to confront the Great City head-on.

"But next time, I will surely lead you all to a new world!" he whispered, slipping into the night.

Meanwhile, downstairs at the residential complex.

With the arrival of the Handler support team and the Security Bureau's reinforcements, the chaotic scene was quickly brought under control.

Li Yelan found himself surrounded by several Handlers, their expressions varied.

His seven-step pursuit of the Void creature in mid-air earlier had left them deeply shocked.

The veteran Handlers nodded slightly at Li Yelan, but did not speak. Instead, they quickly scattered to rescue the wounded or recover the monster's remains.

Li Yelan had no choice but to wait by that wrecked car for Cheese and the others.

The maneuver just now had been quite risky. Li Yelan hadn't fully mastered "Air-Walking"; the principle behind it was to solidify the air with a Psionic barrier, allowing a Psion to gain a foothold for a split second, thereby executing multiple jumps.

Due to the emergency, Li Yelan had simply acted on the feeling of Xiang Yu performing Air-Walking in the battlefield illusion.

To his surprise, he succeeded in one go, though he also smashed Cheese's car. *Hiss, that was her brand-new car... I wonder if it can be reimbursed.*

Soon, he saw Spark, who had lost consciousness and an arm, being quickly wheeled into an ambulance. The anxious Shadowflow followed closely behind.

Also being wheeled into ambulances were several other assault team members who had participated in the battle.

"A Psion's power comes from the Void, so when facing Void creatures, we can maintain our rationality and even fight to the death. But for ordinary people, there is a high probability of a mental breakdown after looking directly at a Void creature." Cheese came to Li Yelan's side, patted her 'new car' with a look of regret, and replied, "We won; the Void creature didn't cause further casualties. But we also lost completely."

Li Yelan, who had been about to ask if his reimbursement would be approved since the new car was smashed by a monster and then stabbed by him, was stunned by her words.

He looked at Cheese and found her staring in silence at the middle-aged man and woman crying not far away.

A few seconds later.

"Those are the parents and relatives of the missing children," Cheese said softly. "They have already learned part of the truth. Some will choose to forget, while others will choose revenge, which will drive the rest of their lives. Just like me, back then..."

Li Yelan's expression stiffened; he remembered those dead children.

That's right, even if they killed that eerie Void creature, those children had still been killed.

It really was a total loss.

And this was everything a Handler had to face.

The two sighed, remaining silent for a long time.

"However, I still have to thank you. If it weren't for you, I might have been eaten in one bite. You're my savior, so I won't make you pay for the car. Of course, I won't offer myself in marriage either," Cheese said with a low chuckle, reaching out to pat Li Yelan on the shoulder.

"Offer yourself? I'd be the one losing out," Li Yelan retorted, thinking to himself that if she really did offer herself, he wouldn't need to pay for the car, right?

Cheese pinched his shoulder playfully and continued, "Also, thank you for risking your life to banish the Void creature. You prevented the casualties from escalating."

"Banish?" Li Yelan was stunned. He immediately looked toward the monster's corpse and asked in surprise, "It's not dead yet?"

"It's dead, but also not dead. Uh... that's not quite accurate."

Cheese gathered her thoughts: "This Void creature came to the physical world relying on a certain forbidden ritual. Although you destroyed its physical body, you only banished it back to the Void.

Unless you are a Psion with a high number of awakenings or use certain special Forbidden Objects, it is impossible to completely kill a Void creature. Once they find an opportunity, they will come to the physical world again."

Li Yelan couldn't believe it: "Even after we paid a heavy price and suffered casualties to kill the Void creature time and time again, it's still alive?"

It was like a video game; no matter how many times the characters died, the players in the real world would be fine.

Instead, they would eliminate the power within the level through the character's repeated deaths.

At the same time, they would gain experience, becoming more skilled and powerful!

This was completely an unequal confrontation!

"Fortunately, apart from those Disaster Forbidden Zones entrenched in the wilderness, other Void creatures find it very difficult to enter the physical world," Cheese said. "Of course, that's assuming no humans are helping them..."

Li Yelan suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

He discovered a possibility.

After trading with that Shadow figure, he had gained the power of the Myriad-Faced. And the Skinner he killed had been offered as a sacrifice to the Shadow.

Now, he had killed a Void creature. Did that mean this Void creature would also be sacrificed to the Shadow?

In that case, could the Void creature still survive?

If not, it meant that Li Yelan actually possessed the ability to completely eradicate Void creatures!

However, he would have to confirm this the next time he dreamed. Perhaps the Shadow had picky tastes and didn't eat Void creatures...

Afterward, Cheese said, "I intended to train your Psionic techniques. I didn't expect you to learn so quickly. I suppose your codename will be issued tomorrow."

Li Yelan's eerie learning ability allowed him to master both Psionic barrier and Air-Walking techniques in a single day.

He was already qualified to be a competent Handler.

But that terrifyingly powerful talent made the entire upper echelon feel alarmed.

For this reason, the higher-ups notified Cheese not to leak Li Yelan's talent.

Mastering two techniques at once was simply too frightening.

And mastering two techniques in a day, while shocking, could also be considered a form of protection for Li Yelan.

Cheese agreed deeply with this.

She added, "And since you killed the Void creature, the bonus and merit points will be issued soon."

Li Yelan nodded, then lifted the scarlet long blade in his hand.

Cheese glanced at it and said, "This is your trophy. After registering it, you can choose how to handle it. You can sell it to the Equipment Department in exchange for merit points, or you can use it yourself. Just... it's best not to let the outside world discover it."

Discover it?

Li Yelan looked silently at the blade, which was as tall as a person, with a blade length and handle length of half a person each, and several eyeballs growing on the surface.

How was he supposed to hide this thing?

Li Yelan actually wanted to keep this scarlet blade; after all, it was a Psionic weapon, and it felt good in his hand, which could greatly enhance his strength. He wouldn't have to be so passive when encountering danger.

But... he couldn't just walk around on patrol with this blade, could he?

"You can also have the branch keep it; they will deliver the weapon to you before you execute a mission. Of course, if an emergency occurs, you might not have time to wait for the weapon. So, it's best to go to the Equipment Department and configure a weapon or firearm that is easy to conceal," Cheese suggested.

Li Yelan nodded, but sighed as he looked at the cordoned-off street.

Cheese was a bit puzzled, but quickly realized: "Oh right, your curse has triggered again. You can't walk on the street right now."

Through the previous battle, Cheese had gained a deeper understanding of Li Yelan's curse.

It was a predestined causal curse; everything around seemed to be radiating malice toward Li Yelan.

Accidents that were originally low-probability events became inevitable once the curse was triggered.

For example, the manhole cover ahead—Cheese could step on it without any issues, but if Li Yelan, with his curse triggered, stepped on it, the cover would likely malfunction.

Either it would shatter directly, or it would suddenly flip. In short, any 'accident' was possible.

If Li Yelan had dealt with the Void creature on the street earlier, they probably would have been hit by dozens of cars parked on the side of the road, right?

Cheese thought to herself.

Perhaps Li Yelan's encounter with the Skinner was also related to this bad luck.

"You still need to strengthen yourself; your bad luck is too terrifying," Cheese said with some emotion.

Li Yelan nodded in agreement. This was also the reason he agreed to join Yang Chen's team.

"By the way, which teams will Spark and the others be assigned to? Will they be our teammates?" Li Yelan asked. After today, they could be considered comrades-in-arms.

Cheese replied, "Detective intends to join the Logistics Team, which is the Sixth Team. After experiencing this battle, he realized he really isn't suited for combat.

"And Shadowflow still intends to follow her brother, Spark.

"As for Spark, we'll see after his arm is reattached. Actually, he performed well; he played a role against both the eerie woman and the Void creature. But he just happened to encounter a special enemy. I hope it doesn't crush his confidence.

"And Heavy Cavalry, she's a girl with great talent and strength. She's actually similar to you; half a month ago, she encountered a Sufferer. Under the stimulation, she awakened as a True Martial path Psion and tore that Sufferer apart with her bare hands. Her strength is also the strongest among the newcomers. If it were a one-on-one fight, she wouldn't be weaker than you. She joined the Third Team."

"Then which team are we in?" Li Yelan asked in surprise. Yes, it was his second day as a Handler, and he still didn't know his team.

"Actually, you'll know tomorrow. We are the First Team of the Frontier City Disaster Handling Department!" Cheese revealed a faint smile. "Once upon a time... we were the ace, the team known as the champions."

Once upon a time? Li Yelan was a bit puzzled: "So, not anymore?"

Cheese nodded softly but didn't continue.

Some time later, after confirming that his curse was no longer active, Li Yelan walked away from the scene and returned to his apartment.

Only after confirming there were no bloodstains or wounds on his body did he enter his home.

After some banter and bickering with Li Yunyan, he drifted off to sleep.

Sure enough, he saw those eerie lights and shadows and the thick fog again. The environment hadn't changed from before, and that tentacle holding the mask was already in front of Li Yelan.

And that ugly-looking Void creature was indeed in the dream.

At this moment, the monster had lost all its previous arrogance and terror; instead, it knelt on the ground with trembling knees, kowtowing to Li Yelan repeatedly. Its face was full of terror and pleading.

Was it... afraid of him? Or was it afraid of the Shadow?

What exactly was the identity of this Shadow?

Seeing the monster's expression, Li Yelan was indeed a bit surprised, but that was all. This kind of monster was an enemy of humanity; there was nothing to pity!

The next moment, the long-lost tentacles reached out from the fog, dragging the Void creature into the depths of the mist amidst its screams.

Following that was a sound of chewing that made his scalp tingle.

But this time, the Shadow did not offer a white mask.

Was the sacrifice not enough?

Or had the demand for sacrifices increased?

Li Yelan pondered, still not reaching for the white mask.

Instead, he looked into the depths of the fog and shouted, "Mr. Shadow, is it dead yet? Make sure you eat it clean!"

In the fog, the Shadow ignored him completely.

Li Yelan continued to shout, "Next time I want to trade with you, what code should I use?"

The Shadow still ignored him.

"How about 'Maka Paka'?"

The Shadow waved its hand, throwing Li Yelan directly out of the dream.

Li Yelan couldn't help but complain; treating a customer like this, it certainly had quite the temper!

The next day, Li Yelan returned to the antique shop to start work. On the way, he secretly practiced Air-Walking.

The authorities didn't require patrols when there were no missions, nor did they care about the private activities of the Handlers.

It seemed they wanted the Handlers to remain hidden among the common folk.

This was normal; Frontier City had a population of tens of millions. Even if all the Handlers went on patrol, they wouldn't find anything.

Therefore, the Handlers had various identities. Some were teachers, some were college students, and some were white-collar workers, and so on.

Coupled with the secrecy agreement, even if they met, they wouldn't know the other person was a colleague.

Just as Li Yelan was wondering if any of his past customers might be his colleagues, his official communicator on his arm made a sound.

He took advantage of the lack of people to quietly tap it open.

He found two messages sent to him by the authorities.

[Mr. Li Yelan, thank you for your contribution to the mission. You have received a bonus of 20,000 Great City Credits and 20 merit points. You currently have 30 merit points.]

Li Yelan was beaming; 20,000 Great City Credits! Another 1/40th of the way there!

And 30 merit points were actually quite a lot, enough for the current Li Yelan to put together a set of equipment or a Psionic weapon.

He could even sell them to colleagues for cash if necessary.

Of course, Li Yelan wouldn't consider that. His goal was to save up to buy items to suppress his curse; he didn't even know the price yet, so why would he spend his contribution points?

Afterward, Li Yelan opened the second message.

[You have completed all basic training and received an excellent evaluation from your instructor. You are now an official Handler.]

[Codename obtained: Night General]

[Obtained eligibility to enter the Disaster Handler Forum]

[Handler Cheese has invited you to join a group chat]

(End of chapter)