Chapter 35

Chapter 35: Fang Ye

—The Boss “ate” nine ability cards!

—The Boss ate too many ability cards and drove its Corruption value past the limit!

—After its Corruption value went over the limit, it still kept eating ability cards!

And for no reason at all, it turned the ability cards into bracelets, then ended up looking half-dead—like some pathetic, barely-breathing weakness.

Even Huang Fu Miao Miao, a player herself, couldn’t figure out what the hell had happened.

If Su Yu Qing hadn’t been right there, she would’ve opened the forum on the spot and posted to ask the other players.

She was still rattled when Su Yu Qing’s phone rang.

He answered. “Captain Su, the cleaners have arrived. Should we send them in now?”

“Cleaners” referred to an internal unit of the Inspection Bureau—professionally trained for cleanup and containment, the ones who handled the ugly aftermath.

“Has the ability card recovery been completed?” Su Yu Qing asked.

“Completed. Six ability cards recovered in total.”

Su Yu Qing’s brow lifted. That was more than he’d expected. A Polluted Entity usually dropped one to three Ability Cards at most.

“Was there a Squirrel card?” he asked.

The Squirrel card’s ability was hoarding—storing Ability Cards inside the body without digesting them. Holders of that card often became merchants among aberrants, and the Inspection Bureau’s archives had records on the pattern.

“Not sure yet. We’ll need the lab report.”

Su Yu Qing gave a faint nod. “Understood. When the report comes in, submit it to the Central Bureau.”

“Captain Su, what about the person involved—Fang Ye?”

“If he isn’t injured, send him for a full physical,” Su Yu Qing said evenly. “Then book him a psychological consult. I’ll speak with him when I get back.”

“Understood.”

He ended the call, fell silent for a moment, then looked at Huang Fu Miao Miao.

Huang Fu Miao Miao tensed instantly.

With Feng Ling asleep, there was no shield between her and the Inspection Bureau—just her alone in a car, facing a man whose calm felt heavier than shouting.

But Su Yu Qing didn’t press her. He said, “This evacuation affected a wide area. Reporters showed up. There are a lot of bystanders, too. Some of your kind might be mixed in, fishing for information. You and Feng Ling should stay in the car. Don’t come out. I’ll have a reliable driver take you back to Qing Jiang City.”

Warmth flooded Huang Fu Miao Miao’s chest. Even through the hollow mask of bone, her gratitude was obvious.

A good person. An actual good person.

Su Yu Qing glanced at Feng Ling, still asleep. “If she wakes up, tell her I’ll have someone take the truck in for repairs. And I’ll get her deposit back.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao nodded so hard it was almost frantic.

“I’ve observed you. You don’t seem to have trouble communicating,” Su Yu Qing continued. “So it doesn’t look like you’re being controlled by Feng Ling.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao froze.

“Zhou Zhou said you used an aberrant potion in the cave. Trading those is strictly forbidden.” Su Yu Qing’s voice didn’t harden, but the words still carried weight. “However, you saved them. For that, I want to thank you. Thank you.”

Huang Fu Miao Miao didn’t answer.

Heat rushed into her face, shame with nowhere to go.

Su Yu Qing let out a quiet breath. “You and I stand on different sides. This time, you helped us. I can keep your aberrant identity quiet.”

His gaze stayed steady. Too steady.

“But the next time we meet…” He paused, just long enough to make the silence bite. “As the person in charge of the Qing Jiang Inspectorate Branch Bureau, I will have to report your situation to the Central Bureau.”

The heat drained from Huang Fu Miao Miao’s face, leaving her pale and cold.

Su Yu Qing said what he needed to say, stepped out of the car, and shut the door. The sound was soft. Final.

Inside, Huang Fu Miao Miao sat in a fog, drifting in and out of it, thoughts stuttering like a bad connection.

[Was that a warning?]

[It was… right?]

She turned to stare at Feng Ling, resentment and grievance twisting together.

[You sleep so well.]

…

In a small meeting room, the secretary set a cup of tea in front of Fang Ye, then sat off to the side with her laptop open, ready to take notes.

The door opened. Su Yu Qing came in at a brisk pace.

“Sorry to keep you waiting,” he said as he sat on the sofa across from Fang Ye. “I just rushed back from Jiang Kou City.”

He wore the same polite, gentle expression he’d shown when he first met Feng Ling—refined, controlled, the kind that made people lower their guard without realizing.

“You’re Fang Ye, correct? How do you feel after the physical? Nothing serious?”

Fang Ye had already finished his checkup. He’d washed up, even shampooed, and changed into clean clothes the Inspection Bureau provided. Free. Too clean, too new, like a costume on the wrong body.

He waved his hands awkwardly. “I’m fine. The Special Assault Team let me evacuate first. Everyone took care of me. I didn’t get hurt.”

“Protecting citizens’ lives and property is our duty,” Su Yu Qing said, smiling. “Don’t be nervous. This is routine questioning. We just want to clarify some details.”

Fang Ye nodded quickly. “Okay. Yes. I’ll cooperate.”

“Then let’s start.” Su Yu Qing folded his hands. “Tell me how you discovered the cave in the first place. I reviewed your file on the way here. You served a year and a half for theft, got out not long ago, and you’re currently unemployed. Why were you in a shopping mall’s underground parking garage?”

Fang Ye’s face went white so fast it looked like the blood had been yanked out of him.

“Y-you… are you sending me back to prison?”

Su Yu Qing shook his head slowly, his smile still in place. “The Inspection Bureau only handles cases related to aberrants. Other matters are outside our jurisdiction.”

Relief flickered across Fang Ye’s face—thin, fragile.

Su Yu Qing didn’t let it settle. “However, if there are things we cannot verify, we may require assistance from other departments. For example, local public security. You understand.”

That smile stayed mild. Fang Ye didn’t feel comforted. He felt cornered.

“I-I understand!” Fang Ye sat up ramrod-straight, hands clenched and restless on his knees. “I’ll cooperate! I’ll tell you everything!”

“Good.” Su Yu Qing’s tone didn’t change. “Begin.”

Fang Ye nodded so hard it was almost painful, then poured out everything he knew.

…

An hour later, Fang Ye left the room.

The secretary typed the final punctuation mark and looked up. “Is the meeting record acceptable? Do you want revisions?”

“Delete everything related to the aberrant who was with Feng Ling,” Su Yu Qing said, eyes on the pale sky beyond the window. “And the matter of Zhou Zhou and Xiao Li using the recovery potion—don’t mention it. Not a word.”

“Understood.” The secretary’s fingers moved quickly.

After a moment, she hesitated. “If Feng Ling joins the Inspection Bureau while keeping an aberrant at her side, we won’t be able to hide it forever.”

Su Yu Qing smiled faintly, as if the thought amused him. A bird circled outside, carving slow loops through the air.

“She won’t join us.”

The secretary’s expression turned regretful. “Really? I thought she might take Sister Ye’s place. That would lighten Zhou Zhou’s burden.”

“She can’t replace Ye Zheng,” Su Yu Qing said lightly. Then he turned back, looking at the secretary as if correcting a simple misconception. “They’re completely different people. No one can replace the other.”

…

Downstairs, Fang Ye stepped out of the Inspection Bureau building.

He stopped and looked back.

The building loomed over him—tall, clean, indifferent. For a moment, he felt as if he’d been tied to the fates of important people inside it, as if his life had brushed something vast and dangerous.

Then he crossed the threshold, and the thread snapped.

He was nobody again. A useless, nameless extra on the edge of the frame.

His life had just gone through something brutal and unbelievable, and yet—nothing had changed.

Fang Ye dug into his pocket and pulled out a small pack of wet wipes.

Feng Ling had tossed it to him in the cave like it was nothing. There was still one wipe left inside.

Now it was the only proof he had that any of it was real.

He stared at the packaging, a hollow ache settling in his chest.

Was there any way to connect himself back to those people?

Any way at all?

…