Chapter 156

Day Three of the Return Voyage.

Lu Yan kept Yu Zhizhi by his side.

He introduced her to the others. "This is my adopted daughter."

It was a decision he’d reached after careful thought. Yu Zhizhi was too young, her intellect still impaired. She clearly needed a legal guardian.

As it happened, the school-district apartment he’d bought in S City had been sitting unused.

The only problem was that Lu Yan was only twenty-eight this year. He didn’t meet the qualifications for adoption.

But that was a minor issue. After all, Tang Xun’an was one hundred and three. Registering her under his name worked just as well.

Patrol ships worked the seas year-round and rarely encountered children this young. The little girl quickly became the darling of the crew.

Lu Yan had been slightly worried she’d be frightened in a strange environment, but Yu Zhizhi ate well, slept soundly, and was recovering nicely. She seemed to be adapting just fine.

From the second night onward, Lu Yan’s phone began receiving a stream of condolences.

The general sentiment was "death comes for all," urging him not to grieve too much.

Director Li: Take a good, long rest when you get back.

Zhou Qiming: Contact me anytime if you need anything.

Ning Huai: When do you arrive? I’ll be waiting for you in A City.

…

Lu Yan didn’t reply to any of them.

He asked the system, "Is the Judgment necessary? Can't I just use Revelation to purify him directly?"

[Without Judgment, for a pollutant, Revelation would purify it back to its pre-pollution state—an ordinary human.]

The system’s tone was faintly mocking. [You wouldn’t want your beloved to turn into an old man the moment you use your power, would you? Not that I’d mind, personally. Tang Xun’an’s estate is truly massive. Hard for any normal person not to be tempted.]

"What kind of ability is Judgment?"

[If I must explain… think of it like the Ledger of Merit and Demerit in the underworld. You can pass judgment on all living beings. But when you judge others, this power also acts upon yourself.]

[Within the scope of your authority, those who meet the standard continue to exist. Those who don’t… receive appropriate punishment.]

"What defines the ‘scope of my authority’?"

The system replied, [Spiritual power threshold. Or pollution value.]

Lu Yan only half-understood, but he and the system reached a preliminary consensus: he needed to find a way to acquire this talent as soon as possible.

*

One week later, Lu Yan arrived in A City with Yu Zhizhi.

Waiting at the airport to meet them wasn’t just Director Li, but also Minister Wang, whom Lu Yan had met once before.

Six months ago, Minister Wang had sported a full head of thick, black hair. Now, it had turned completely white.

Lu Yan exchanged a few brief words with his liaison officer. This step was mainly to let the others know his current mental state was stable.

He planned to visit the Prevention Center.

As he was about to get in the car, he heard Minister Wang’s voice from behind.

"Mr. Clairaudient," Minister Wang said, his voice low. "My apologies for disturbing you. Might you have… recovered any part of Tang Xun’an’s remains? Or, could you tell us the approximate area of sea where he was lost? We intend to send a team for recovery."

The news of Tang Xun’an’s death had not been made public.

But among the upper echelons, it was an open secret.

Decades ago, Minister Wang had been Tang Xun’an’s liaison officer.

Lu Yan pressed his lips together.

After a moment’s thought, he handed over the broken Yellow Dust. "Repair this blade. It should still be of use later."

When he arrived at the A City Prevention Center, Ning Huai was smoking by the entrance.

Logically, Awakened weren’t bothered by the cold, but perhaps because he’d given birth, Ning Huai was bundled up thickly.

He’d been out of Changjia for two months now but still wasn’t fully accustomed to modern life.

Seeing Lu Yan, a smile touched Ning Huai’s lips. "Not bad. I thought you might come back missing an arm or a leg. Headquarters wants me to remind you to write your mission report."

Everyone was intensely curious about what he and Tang Xun’an had experienced during those two months at the heart of the storm.

Lu Yan just couldn’t be bothered to put pen to paper.

Ning Huai leaned down, speaking softly into Lu Yan’s ear. "With the tiger gone from the mountain, the monkey proclaims himself king. That guy from the Fifth District—Indra, I think he’s called—already submitted a request to the Prevention Center, wanting you to perform a pollution source excision surgery on him… Headquarters refused on your behalf at the time."

"Maybe it’s because of the second red moon. A lot of high-level Awakened saw another spike in their spiritual power thresholds. Indra’s is thirteen thousand now. With Tang Xun’an gone, he’s number one."

"He knows you’re back recently. He’s been waiting at the A City Center for two days. Don’t engage him later. I’ll stick with you."

The system couldn’t resist a jab. [Oho. Coming to bully the widow right at her door.]

While Ning Huai’s spiritual power threshold had also grown, it had just barely broken eleven thousand.

Lu Yan said, "System, update my profile."

Since leaving R'lyeh, he could feel the vibrant, renewed vitality within him, but he hadn’t taken a close look.

[Host: Lu Yan. Spiritual Power Threshold: 17,100. Aberration Rate: 31.2%. The Revelation talent has significantly reduced your aberration rate, though without it, your spiritual power threshold would have been even higher.]

[Active Talents: 1-Revelation, 6-Omniscience, 14-Mental Remolding, 17-Life Drain, 25-Devour, 111-Delirium.]

[Aberration Path: Old God.]

[After devouring the Black Octopus and fusing with the King Fish, you can freely transform parts of your body into tentacles. You have inherited the Black Octopus’s talents and its eyes. These eyes can appear anywhere on your body under your control and possess the properties of Talent 14. Your tentacles are covered in deep red scales and can unconsciously employ Talent 17. You possess underwater survivability and the ability to heal other Awakened through medical means.]

[You possess extremely high aggression, a stable and pollution-resistant mental state, a lethally powerful physique, formidable regenerative abilities, and high defense. You can tank, heal, and deal damage. Congratulations. Within terrestrial limits, you are essentially invincible.]

Lu Yan was fairly satisfied with his status.

Yan Bei had been living at the A City Prevention Center the whole time, never moving out. Rumor had it it was because he was directionally challenged and couldn’t be bothered to remember a new location.

Besides, the Center staff took excellent care of him.

Lu Yan found Yan Bei with Yu Zhizhi in tow, speaking with slight embarrassment. "Could you look after her for a few days?"

Yan Bei had a good temper, a decently high spiritual power threshold, and painted beautifully.

For the few days Lu Yan would be at the Floating Island, he was the perfect choice to watch Yu Zhizhi.

Most importantly, both of them had been at the Research Institute. They knew each other.

Yu Zhizhi stood behind Lu Yan, her eyes vacant and unfocused.

Yan Bei’s expression was one of surprise. "Is this… Subject Zero?"

"Yes." Lu Yan didn’t deny it. "The nineteen-year-old Tang Xun’an sent her."

Yan Bei hesitated for a long moment before finally asking, "I heard… Tang Xun’an passed away. Are you… alright?"

Lu Yan replied calmly, "He’s alive. Not dead."

The outside world said Tang Xun’an was dead, yet Lu Yan said he was alive.

A sudden possibility occurred to Yan Bei, and he pressed his lips together, saying nothing more.

—Tang Xun’an had most likely become a pollutant.

No wonder Lu Yan wasn’t keen on writing that report.

What humanity needed and was grateful for was the Awakened, Tang Xun’an. When the guardian became a pollutant, he was no different from the other traitorous experimental subjects of the past—a target for vigilance and, depending on the situation, elimination.

Yan Bei tried to detect any trace of grief or sorrow on Lu Yan’s face, but he failed.

Perhaps this was the real Lu Yan.

Forever calm. Forever detached.

Yan Bei took Yu Zhizhi’s small hand. "I’ll take good care of her. Where are you planning to go? Back to K City?"

Lu Yan: "To the Floating Island. There’s something I need to do."

[Records indicate the Floating Island resides within a massive thundercloud.]

[There, only things that can fly pass freely. After all, if a person steps on a cloud, they’ll likely just step right through.]

[Fortunately, while you lack wings, Indra—who possesses Talent 175, Levitation—is only a few hundred meters away.]

Talent 175, Levitation. Literal meaning: can suspend any object in the air.

The system said with genuine sincerity, [Going to the Floating Island alone is too troublesome. Bring a support along.]

—

Lu Yan didn’t stay long in Yan Bei’s room.

When he stepped out, Ning Huai had already lit a fresh cigarette, holding it between his slender fingers without taking a drag.

Ning Huai said, "I’ll walk you out. I have a mission coming up in a few days. Want to go abroad and stay with Michael for a bit?"

Despite having fought alongside Lu Yan before, he, like the others, made the same mistake of underestimating Lu Yan’s strength.

It was natural. After all, Lu Yan had only become an Awakened this time last year. Barely a year had passed. His last profile update was three months ago, with a spiritual power threshold just over eight thousand.

On Headquarters’ turf, Indra might hold back for the sake of appearances and not attack Lu Yan. But away from this ground, it was hard to say.

When a man knows he’s dying, no act of madness is too surprising.

Headquarters had considered having Lu Yan treat Indra. But first, Indra hadn’t joined the Special Operations Department. Second, when Tang Xun’an had sought the Pope’s help last time, he’d mentioned Lu Yan’s currently high aberration rate. A one-for-one trade at the limit like that seemed like a terrible deal no matter how you looked at it.

Lu Yan removed his gloves, flexing his knuckles slightly. "I want to go test my spiritual power threshold."

Ning Huai was taken aback. "Alright."

As he and Ning Huai walked toward the testing area, a tall, burly man in the main hall began floating toward them.

Literally floating.

Indra sat cross-legged, suspended in mid-air. His body was pierced with numerous holes adorned with gold ornaments and long chains.

He had long hair and three heads atop six arms, though the two extra heads seemed vacant and lifeless. The lines of muscle on his body were fluid and powerful.

Dishiti’s bare upper torso was covered in scars—medals earned in battle against pollutants.

His skin was dark, his expression stern, carrying an aura of lethal intensity. His neck, too, was laden with ornaments.

Lu Yan’s gaze lingered on a particular area below Dishiti’s neck, above his ribs.

The system chimed in. [What are you thinking? Staring so long.]

“Thinking about piercing one for Tang Xian’an too.”

[...]

Bulging nodules rose along Dishiti’s back, each one a seed—they looked like lotus pods.

His condition was indeed critical.

“Diting.” Dishiti’s voice echoed as if spoken in a cavern. “I—”

Lu Yan cut him off. “I know what you want to say. Wait a moment.”

He took the detector from the flustered staff member and pressed it against his own wrist.

The numbers on the display leapt wildly. When they hit 15,000, an alarm blared.

Fifteen thousand was the device’s current upper limit.

The technician panicked. “My apologies, Mr. Diting. The instrument must be faulty. Let me get you another one.”

He wheeled over a different model on a cart. “This is the latest from the Third Research Institute—a breakthrough design with a spiritual power threshold detection cap of seventeen thousand…”

The display was complex, clearly a high-end piece of equipment.

Almost as soon as he finished speaking, the screen flickered and settled on a number: 17,000.

“How can that be… We calibrated this unit at the Institute for over half a month! It can’t just malfunction.”

The accompanying researcher, baffled, took another sensor patch and attached it to his own hand.

The screen read: 321.

Ning Huai tried it himself: 11,072.

His jaw went slack. The cigarette fell from his fingers. “What the hell?”

This wasn’t the script he’d imagined.

Even Dishiti’s eyelid twitched. His ramrod-straight spine bent, just a fraction.

Lu Yan removed the sensor from his wrist and looked at Dishiti. “I can save you. But you’ll need to come with me to the Floating Island.”

He couldn’t fly.