As Fu Zhi greedily inhaled the scent from the young man, the ice-blue color in his eyes flickered faintly.

He felt an impulse to fuse the other into his own flesh and blood, but only his fingers twitched. In the end, he restrained himself.

He looked around, and everyone nearby instinctively backed off under his gaze, shrinking away.

After getting his fill, Ruan Xing let go of Fu Zhi. He looked at him, sensing something peculiar in Fu Zhi's expression, as if something had shifted. However, he couldn't quite pinpoint what it was.

The moment he teleported back, Ruan Xing messaged Fu Zhi, but he didn't expect him to arrive this quickly.

After briefly explaining what happened, Ruan Xing gestured to the people behind him and smiled. "Sorry to trouble the Major to make arrangements."

Technically, settling these people was not difficult, but some procedures were needed to keep everything legitimate.

Fu Zhi glanced at the crowd, then gently draped an arm over Ruan Xing's shoulder. "Come on. You go back first."

"Oh? Is this your mission reward?" a familiar voice chimed in.

Bai Xu strolled in through the shutter door, hands in his pockets and head tilted. When he saw Ruan Xing, his eyes lit up.

"Xingxing! My dearest partner, you're back!" He reached out for a hug, but Ruan Xing dodged lightly.

Ruan Xing gave Fu Zhi a look, silently asking, "Why did you bring this guy?"

Fu Zhi leaned in and whispered, "Bai Xu insisted on coming. I couldn't stop him."

Hot breath slid past Ruan Xing's collar, searing against his skin.

Bai Xu snorted coldly and walked up to Scar-tail. With a wave of his hand, the metal chain on his hand transformed into shackles that quickly bound Scar-tail tightly.

He glanced at him with cold eyes. "So this bastard caused all the trouble?"

Scar-tail started trembling. He was done for. This time, he would definitely die!

Scar-tail's eyes bulged. "Let me go! I don't know anything!"

Bai Xu kicked him. "Quiet! Save your whining for the station. Stop chirping here. Annoying as hell!"

He slapped a metal muzzle over Scar-tail's mouth, silencing him completely.

Ming Rui popped out from behind.

"Brother Xing, can we go now?"

"Not yet," Fu Zhi shook his head. "You all need to give statements."

Upon hearing that, many people looked hesitant, clearly afraid of getting into trouble.

Ruan Xing glanced around and smiled. "It's fine. Just tell them what we discussed earlier."

Having personally gone through the Mist City incident, Ruan Xing considered altering their memories to minimize the impact. After all, if news got out, it could cause massive instability.

But on second thought, why should he?

The Tower stole his home. Ruan Xing would rather blow this whole thing up and make sure everyone knew the Tower's true face. One person's words might not be trusted, but a group of firsthand witnesses? That would be much more convincing.

It would also help with his future plans. At the very least, some ordinary people might hesitate before siding with the Tower.

Still, there needed to be limits on what they could say, especially when it came to personal details about him.

If he wanted to go after the Tower, he had to build momentum and find allies.

Ruan Xing turned to the people behind him, smiling kindly, as if looking at a fresh patch of crops. He pulled out the contracts he had prepared back in Mist City. "Sign them."

Everyone shuddered involuntarily.

Shortly after the contracts were signed, the sound of vehicles came from outside.

The Investigation Corps finally arrived, late as usual.

"Brother Pei!" Bai Xu yelled excitedly when he saw Pei Ye, like spotting his long-lost brother.

Pei Ye greeted Fu Zhi, then paused when he saw Ruan Xing. "And who is this?"

Ruan Xing shrank Fu Gui and stuffed him back into his pocket. Fortunately, Pei Ye didn't recognize him.

Ruan Xing smiled. "Hello, I am the mercenary who contacted the Major. I led the rescue operation."

Pei Ye's eyes lit up. "Nice! You did a great job. Interested in joining the Investigation Corps? We are short-staffed and—"

Finally, someone to dump work on! That meant less work for him!

Fu Zhi cleared his throat twice, cutting Pei Ye off successfully.

"Hey, once I'm done settling these folks, I'll find you. Where are you staying?" Pei Ye pulled out his wristband to note the address.

Ruan Xing gave him an address, then Pei Ye turned abruptly to Fu Zhi, voice rising, "Isn't that your place?"

Fu Zhi nodded. "We're living together."

Pei Ye nearly popped his eyes out.

The team members who were helping settle the refugees also froze.

Holy crap. So all those rumors were true?

The Captain really did find a replacement! And this one was crazy strong! He saved all these humans by himself! His ability might be on par with Fu Zhi!

Pei Ye pointed at Fu Zhi, stammered for a while, then sighed heavily. "Sigh, I really misjudged you!"

Then he turned and yelled at Bai Xu, "Let's go, time to check on the wounded."

Ruan Xing held back a laugh. "You take care of your work first."

At that moment, he felt a strange gaze on him. He turned to look but saw nothing.

There was only the warehouse's single glass window.

Weird.

"What's wrong?" Fu Zhi asked.

Ruan Xing shook his head.

Elsewhere, Pei Yi was staring at the mirror in his hand, which reflected the entire scene in the warehouse.

When Ruan Xing turned his head, his face appeared clearly in the mirror.

Pei Yi's gaze went blank. He picked up a pencil and sketchpad and quickly drew Ruan Xing's face.

When he finished, he stared at the unfamiliar face on the paper, then took a photo of it with his wristband and dropped it in a private group chat.

Only Zhou Zheng responded with a question mark and asked, "Is this Fu Zhi's lover?"

Yin Zhu didn't reply.

Pei Yi frowned and tried calling Yin Zhu, but no one answered.

Watching humans being loaded onto trucks through the mirror, Pei Yi finally realized something was wrong.

He didn't know what Yin Zhu was doing at the moment, but it was clear that something was amiss. Yin Zhu might be trapped or even dead.

If it was the latter, who did it? Was it that long-haired youth?

Pei Yi looked back into the mirror, coldly observing the busy scene.

Ruan Xing and Fu Zhi had already disappeared. The most obvious person now was a gray-haired man with a little ponytail, energetically shouting and directing people: "Hey, hey! You take that truck, this one's mine!"

Pei Yi stared at the figure in the mirror and quietly mouthed two words.

"Big brother…"

—

The Investigation Corps soon sealed off the magic circle at the scene to prevent unexpected incidents while the others were taken away for questioning.

Pei Ye was surprised at how well Bai Xu got along with the unknown young man.

Bai Xu might act friendly, but he was actually very discerning, fiercely protective, and sharp-tongued. If someone didn't have real ability, Bai Xu would never respect them.

Weird. What kind of magic did this person have to captivate both Fu Zhi and Bai Xu?

Pei Ye yawned. Whatever. Not his business.

By the time everyone boarded the vehicles to the testing center, that faint gaze Ruan Xing had felt earlier was finally gone.

They were brought straight to the Quarantine Center, where a large team had already been waiting for them.

Director Gu of the center teared up when he saw Fu Zhi's car arrive.

He was surprised to see not just one or two, but four members of the First Squad: Fu Zhi, Pei Ye, Bai Xu, and another one he didn't recognize. That last one had a strong presence and stood very close to Fu Zhi.

"Who is this?"

Ruan Xing said, "A regular concerned citizen."

Director Gu's mouth twitched. Was he kidding? He stood that close to Fu Zhi and called himself a 'regular concerned citizen'?

During the interviews that followed, everyone finally learned just how shocking Ruan Xing's actions had been.

Only then did the Quarantine Center realize that a polluted zone had been lurking under their noses all along, and some humans around them were traitors.

Director Gu broke into a cold sweat. Looking at Fu Zhi's expression, his lips trembled. If this had dragged on any longer, the entire base might have been wiped out.

The seriousness of the situation was clear.

Director Gu personally took their statements one by one. By the thirty-fifth, he was already breathing heavily through his nose.

What was going on? Why were all these people saying the Tower was the true culprit? Are their brains polluted?

More panicked than before, Director Gu stopped the interviews and sent them all to the Quarantine Center for treatment.

Fix their brains first, statements could wait!

After sending away any dissenting staff, Director Gu hesitated, then submitted a report to the Enforcement Division.

To his surprise, Minister An responded immediately and asked for more details. He even requested a revised full report. He didn't seem to think they were spouting nonsense at all.

Director Gu swallowed nervously. He had a bad feeling that he was getting dragged into something serious.

The details were unclear, but the story spread fast among team members.

There was someone powerful enough to infiltrate a polluted city, rescue all the residents, and, most astonishingly, do it alone. Not only did they come back unharmed, but their pollution level barely rose!

First, the Quarantine Center, then the Investigation Corps. The influence of this incident continued to spread.

Since Fu Zhi, no one else had single-handedly overpowered pollutants like this.

Who was this person?

People inside the system began asking questions, and rumors started spreading in every department.

Some said it was a new Investigation Corps recruit, a secret weapon. Others believed that he was the next knight of the Tower, someone powerful enough to challenge Fu Zhi. And some claimed he didn't exist at all, just a made-up hero to boost morale.

The rumors flew nonstop.

Then, a month later, the first batch of rescued survivors returned home and confirmed everything themselves.

That person was real.

He crushed pollutants with one hand and saved tens of thousands. He was a true hero.

The entire base erupted in excitement.

As more rescued people returned, public enthusiasm surged. However, when people tried to dig deeper, they encountered a barrier.

No one was willing to reveal the man's identity. Survivors dodged the question, and the Quarantine Center and Investigation Corps remained tight-lipped.

Why not tell everyone who saved them? Wouldn't it be good to have a role model, just like Fu Zhi?

Could he be the Tower's new knight?

Maybe. Who else but someone with purification powers could defeat pollutants?

People started flooding the Tower with messages, but they received no replies. The Tower suspended all services, shut its windows, and refused to discuss the matter.

What was going on?

Rumors circulated in the base. They claimed the Tower was involved with the polluted zone and had secretly aided the pollutants. One of their knights had even died in the battle.

That was why the Tower went into complete lockdown.

Though the statements came from survivors, most of them didn't witness the truth. Their accounts were vague and soon dismissed. Only a few firsthand witnesses kept "smearing" the Tower.

Privately, some began approaching these survivors.

Meanwhile, Ruan Xing ignored the outside world after returning home.

Fu Gui asked why he did not strike directly instead of stirring things up.

Ruan Xing replied, "If it were before the apocalypse, and I said I wanted to attack Country A, what would you think?"

Fu Gui: "You're delusional."

Ruan Xing: "What if I had nukes?"

Fu Gui: "Then spies would leak your location to Country A, and you would be exposed. They might even preemptively strike you."

Ruan Xing: "Exactly. Even if I really had the power to destroy a country, I might not get the chance to use it. And even if I did, my family and friends could get caught in the fallout. People might even say we deserved it."

Fu Gui fell into deep thought.

Ruan Xing could've attacked immediately upon returning, but the Tower's defenses were no joke. He would probably have to destroy the whole place just to get Will out. And before that happened, he might get mobbed by angry civilians.

Ordinary people are innocent, so Ruan Xing couldn't bear to harm them.

Ruan Xing said, "But what if I went public and said Country A had a doomsday plan, and I stood for justice, and then later offered solid evidence? People might not believe me right away, but the seed of doubt would be planted. Some might even start preparing."

"Later, more evidence would appear. Influential figures would start to support me. Everyone would realize the plan was real, and no one would try to interfere. That would be the best time to act. I waited this long, what's wrong with waiting a little longer?"

In Fu Gui's mind, a line echoed: "Let the bullets fly a little longer."