Across from the building stood the emergency command center.

Captain Wang stared at the radio in his hand. Just moments ago, he’d received a call from Jiang Yuan.

Zheng Chengjie has been killed.

Without a doubt, it was the best news he’d heard in days.

He immediately ordered the technicians to send drones circling the sixth floor to investigate. He didn’t completely trust Jiang Yuan, and it was better to be cautious when caution was called for.

Before long, the technicians contacted them again over the radio.

“We’ve confirmed that Zheng Chengjie has no vital signs.”

Hearing this, Captain Wang leaned back with a sigh of relief. He lit a cigarette, then looked up at the ceiling and let out a long breath.

This was also the best outcome he could have hoped for. Espers might enjoy special privileges, but when it came to life, they should be equal to ordinary people without exception. That was the baseline that allowed human civilization to call itself “civilized.”

And since Jiang Yuan was willing to uphold that baseline, at least for now, he would never become Codename Jiang!

“Contact the hospital. The rest of you, head upstairs and help the civilians who are trapped.”

After giving his next orders, Captain Wang immediately got up from his chair and headed for the building himself.

The sixth-floor atrium.

Jiang Yuan sat resting in a well-ventilated corner. Yi Nanye and the other special police officers had arrived, too. And, unbelievable as it was, Yi Nanye was using a rifle as a crutch, limping along and stubbornly refusing to let anyone help her.

When they saw Zheng Chengjie lying dead on the floor, surprise and fear flickered in their eyes.

Zheng Chengjie’s body no longer looked human at all. Fiery spots covered his back, and some of them were still glowing faintly.

Even Yi Nanye frowned. She looked deeply uncomfortable, and pressed a hand to her forehead, staying silent for quite a while.

While she remained silent, footsteps began to sound from every direction. All the special police officers who’d been waiting downstairs came up to help with the rescue, and Captain Wang himself arrived at the scene where Zheng Chengjie had died.

“This… can you even still call it human?”

Captain Wang’s brows drew together when he saw Zheng Chengjie’s body. Even he, a man used to seeing brutal scenes, felt uneasy. It wasn’t that Zheng Chengjie had died a particularly gruesome death—his appearance afterward had simply gone beyond anything an ordinary person could comprehend.

“Please don’t disturb the scene. We’ll take charge of Zheng Chengjie’s remains.”

Even now, Yi Nanye didn’t forget her duty. On behalf of the Superpower Management Bureau, she told Captain Wang not to touch Zheng Chengjie’s remains.

Captain Wang turned and stared at Yi Nanye for a few seconds. The more he looked at her, the more she rubbed him the wrong way. This girl needed someone to look after her, yet she was here to supervise others? And if Yi Nanye hadn’t botched the operation, Zheng Chengjie wouldn’t have gone on a rampage and gotten so many people killed.

“If you don’t know how to do something, don’t do it. If there are people you can’t manage, then leave them alone.”

Captain Wang gave a cold snort, his expression sour. Forcing their way in was one thing, but they could at least have acted professionally. If they’d reduced the casualties, that would’ve counted for something. But what had the Superpower Management Bureau actually done?

“He was more valuable alive. His ability could help with research into controlled nuclear fusion. The sooner we obtained a new energy source, the sooner we could plan for the future.”

Yi Nanye was probably unhappy about being chewed out by Captain Wang, so she immediately explained the reason: Zheng Chengjie’s ability really could benefit all of humanity.

“Then why didn’t you do something sooner? How did those terrorists manage to contact him first? And didn’t the people from the future already give us technology in this area? Watch who you’re talking to before you start spouting nonsense!”

Captain Wang didn’t believe a word Yi Nanye said. Only after venting his anger did he turn to Jiang Yuan. He walked over, reached out to him himself, and pulled him to his feet.

“Jiang Yuan, you did an excellent job today. You’re an ordinary citizen, but you stepped up to help others and made an outstanding contribution to the fight against terrorism. I’ll submit a recommendation and try to get you a second-class merit award!”

Captain Wang said he’d help Jiang Yuan earn a commendation. Jiang Yuan’s eyes lit up at once!

A commendation!

Nothing could clear away prejudice better than that.

“Thank you for the praise, Captain Wang!”

Jiang Yuan saluted at once. His form was decent enough. Captain Wang nodded, thinking it’d be great if he could bring Jiang Yuan straight into the military for training. Unfortunately, he didn’t have that much authority.

After that, Jiang Yuan and Yi Nanye had little left to do. Captain Wang had people escort them back.

But not long after they got home, Jiang Yuan and Yi Nanye both received a call from the Superpower Management Bureau.

“Hello, Jiang Yuan. In light of your violation of the supervision regulations today—you approached a superpowered criminal without authorization—we are issuing you a formal notice.”

“Your previous reward is revoked, and your supervision level will be reduced. You will also receive Neural Punishment nine times over the next three consecutive days as a warning. Do you have any objections?”

Jiang Yuan listened to the voice on his phone. He couldn’t say the outcome surprised him. He didn’t know what Neural Punishment was, but it definitely couldn’t be anything good.

“I object. Jiang Yuan’s actions were also the result of my failure to supervise him properly. I should bear primary responsibility for this incident.”

To Jiang Yuan’s surprise, before he could say anything, Yi Nanye suddenly offered to take part of the punishment. But she was injured herself—how could they punish her?

The voice on the other end of Jiang Yuan’s call fell silent, as if considering Yi Nanye’s suggestion.

“I have no objections.”

Jiang Yuan thought it over. He’d been annoyed with Yi Nanye and had even wanted her to get punished along with him, but now… forget it. He might be a jerk, but he wasn’t about to take revenge on someone who was injured.

“All right. This is your warning. In the future, if your supervisor isn’t with you, contact us yourself. Don’t act on your own again.”

With that, the call ended. Jiang Yuan looked at Yi Nanye. Her expression was rather complicated. How to put it…

It was the first time Jiang Yuan had seen Yi Nanye look at him with both concern and tenderness in her eyes.

For the first time, she looked like an ordinary girl, using her eyes to show concern for someone close to her.

“Jiang Yuan, I’m not gonna lie—I’m a little touched, but Neural Punishment is no joke. I volunteered because I’m not afraid of it. I really wasn’t just being polite. Think of it as my way of thanking you for caring about me earlier.”

“Huh?”

Jiang Yuan hadn’t expected his manly gesture to backfire and land him in trouble.

“You might think volunteering to take the punishment would move me to tears, but all I think is that you’re an idiot.”

As soon as Yi Nanye finished speaking, Jiang Yuan’s wristband began beeping nonstop. Even the ring on his arm was beeping.

Beep…

Beep…

Beep-beep-beep-beep…

The beeping grew faster and faster, until Jiang Yuan’s body went limp. His mind suddenly went blank, and he felt as if every part of him was being pricked by needles all at once.