Da Jing.
City Center.
The Anti-Paranormal Unit had completely cordoned off the bustling streets. All main roads were sealed, allowing only special vehicles to enter and exit. Every intersection was guarded by a team of fully armed soldiers. Forget paranormal beings, it would be tough even for a fly to get past these soldiers and their anti-paranormal mechs.
This massive display wasn’t because of a paranormal incident in the city, but rather due to the dinner banquet held during the Asian Paranormal Research Conference. The attendees were all national leaders and important figures.
Although it was called the “Asian” Paranormal Research Conference, given that the Great Celestial Dynasty’s experience in dealing with the paranormal now leads the world, many agents from Europe and America had also been sent here to “learn.”
Of course, “learning” was just a cover; “stealing” was the real goal.
To prevent other countries’ paranormal organizations from planting spies in Da Jing, the Special Tactics Department deliberately put on this show. First, to showcase our nation’s strength against the paranormal, and second, to stop these “rats” from taking the opportunity to cause trouble.
A black sedan pulled up to an intersection and was stopped by the anti-paranormal soldiers stationed there. Wang Han opened the driver’s window and handed out an ID card.
The lead soldier checked the ID, immediately saluted the people in the car, and then signaled his comrades to let them through.
Wang Han drove, looking out at the scene, and couldn’t help but complain, “Isn’t this a bit much? Someone might think we’re locking down a paranormal disaster zone!”
Deng Yuqi sat in the passenger seat, flipping through the latest report from the branch office, without looking up. “Given the Great Celestial Dynasty’s current status, hosting the first Asian Paranormal Research Conference, paranormal departments from all over the world naturally want to come and ‘learn from our experience.’ In other words, all the important officials from various countries’ paranormal departments are here. Our intention is to showcase our national strength while giving the other countries a helping hand.”
“If something happened to a foreign paranormal official on our turf at a time like this, do you think we’d ever be able to explain it clearly? Of course, the higher-ups are taking this seriously. Besides… can you guarantee that everyone here came for the common development of the world’s anti-paranormal cause? Wherever there are people, there will be conflicts, and conflicts mean some people will try dirty tricks.”
“Look, they’ve even deployed the anti-paranormal mech units. Those old guys are clearly using this opportunity to solidify our position as number one in Asia, no, maybe even the world. From now on, as long as paranormal beings don’t disappear from the world, the Great Celestial Dynasty will be the undisputed top anti-paranormal power!”
Wang Han smacked his lips and muttered, “Man, you guys are dirty… ahem, people playing politics are dirty. Good thing I’m just an anti-paranormal soldier. All I have to do is kill the paranormal beings, not use my brain for this kind of scheming.”
Deng Yuqi said flatly, “Don’t worry, even if you tried to use your brain for this, you just couldn’t pull it off with that brain of yours.”
“…That’s harsh.” Come on now.
Shen Ge sat in the back, not listening to their banter. He leaned against the window, looking outside. Xiao Qi was controlling the Red Mist Armor to suppress Cheng Shengnan’s abnormal transformation. This was the first time he was operating completely without the Red Mist Armor and Xiao Qi, so he felt a bit out of sorts.
To be safe, after entering the cordoned-off conference area, Shen Ge had the system perform a full scan. He might not have a surplus of resources right now, but he definitely had more than enough system points.
He glanced at the [Map]. The system scan didn’t find anything unusual. There wasn’t a single paranormal being in the city center, which actually made Shen Ge suspicious.
He remembered that the system had previously detected a high-level paranormal being underground at a restaurant in the commercial street, but after Fang Mingyue investigated, she found nothing.
Generally speaking, the system’s detection couldn’t be wrong. But the fact that a tier-5 paranormal being appeared and then disappeared was rather intriguing. Shen Ge had to be on guard.
Arriving at the hotel entrance, this hotel was even bigger than the Ping An Hotel. But the Ping An Hotel had powerful backers, plus politicians liked to frequent it, which gave the Ping An Hotel more prestige. If the Ping An Hotel hadn’t had that incident, this event wouldn’t have landed at this hotel.
A red carpet was rolled out outside the hotel entrance, and on both sides stood several beautiful hostesses with great figures and lovely faces, welcoming and registering the guests.
Cars that could get into this area naturally wouldn’t be carrying just anyone. When the hostesses saw Deng Yuqi and the other two get out of the car, they immediately approached with beaming smiles to register and guide them.
This process reminded Wang Han of when he attended the Asian Paranormal Research Conference hosted by the Stick Nation. The Sticks had prepared dozens of identical-looking hostesses who welcomed them in unison with broken Chinese, bowing and scraping. It was a sea of white uniforms, which made him gulp involuntarily.
While these hostesses weren’t as exaggerated as the Stick Nation’s, they had a similar vibe. Plus, each of them was very attractive, which made him mutter, “What won’t you learn? You had to learn the Stick Nation’s welcome ceremony?”
After finishing the registration, Deng Yuqi walked ahead and casually said, “Look at the Sakura Nation’s paranormal agents entering on the left…”
Wang Han instinctively turned his head. He saw three black sedans stop. The front passenger door of one opened, and a stern-looking, sunglass-wearing black-suited bodyguard got out, bowing deeply to open the back door.
Then, a pot-bellied middle-aged man, a bald young man, a stern-faced man in military uniform, and a woman with a hot figure got out from the cars.
“Tch, the island is practically sinking, and they’re still putting on airs.” Wang Han scoffed disdainfully.
But what Deng Yuqi wanted him to see clearly wasn’t the Sakura Nation representatives showing off, but the fact that hostesses also greeted them with smiles, yet the treatment was completely different. You could clearly see that one kind of smile was polite but distant, while the other was genuinely warm.
“The reason others are so polite to you isn’t because the higher-ups arranged for these hostesses to be here, but because of that ID card in your hand,” Deng Yuqi said seriously.
Wang Han thought about it and agreed. His identity as a Special Tactics Department paranormal agent had taken him from a former street thug to receiving a hero’s welcome. This honor was earned by risking his life, fighting tooth and nail in paranormal incidents, time and time again. Now, like soldiers during wartime, they were seen as the last line of defense against the paranormal in the eyes of the common people.
Just as the three paused, the Sakura Nation representatives immediately noticed Shen Ge in the crowd. The stern-faced man’s expression froze, and he quickly walked over.
“Lord Shen Ge, what a coincidence to meet again.” The stern-faced man, who previously stood aloof among the crowd, immediately lowered his posture as if meeting an important official when he saw Shen Ge.
Shen Ge glanced at him casually and asked, puzzled, “Who are you?”
“…”
“…”
“…”
Those two words instantly killed the atmosphere. Even Deng Yuqi found it a bit much and rubbed her forehead. Yep, only Shen Ge could pull something like this off.
But it wasn’t that Shen Ge was deliberately being rude. He had mostly interacted with Sakura Nation women, so he couldn’t quite remember where he’d seen this stern-faced guy before.
The stern-faced man was momentarily stunned, then smiled and introduced himself, “Lord Shen Ge, you truly have a poor memory for those less important. I am Watanabe Shoko. We briefly cooperated during the Guizai incident.”
Who?
Watanabe Shoko?
Now it was Shen Ge’s turn to be stunned. He was no stranger to the surname “Watanabe.” Whether it was Watanabe Natsumi from another “ending,” who had designs on Quanlong Mountain, or Watanabe Shoko from the “future” ending, who led Sakura Nation’s soldiers and civilians fighting in a paranormal disaster quarantine zone.
Although Shen Ge didn’t particularly like people from Sakura Nation, he had to admire the fact that in the “future” ending, despite the desperate environment, Watanabe Shoko never gave up on any soldier or survivor.
But his impression of Watanabe Shoko was still from that “future” version, half his face disfigured and wearing a mask. He had forgotten that during the previous Sakura Nation paranormal support mission, he had actually met Watanabe Shoko, who was the deputy leader of the reception team.
“Oh—”
Shen Ge had an epiphany. He immediately shook the hand Watanabe Shoko extended and said in a very formulaic tone, “So it’s Captain Watanabe! Nice to meet you, nice to meet you. I’ve heard so much about you.”
“…”
“…”
“…”
The blatant perfunctory attitude left the onlookers speechless. Wang Han even couldn’t help whispering, “You totally didn’t remember him, did you?”
Watanabe Shoko was also a bit awkward for a moment. In his years in politics, he had met all sorts of strange officials, but Shen Ge was the first to leave him so speechless.
He really wanted to complain, my lord, if you truly can’t remember me, just a couple of polite words would suffice. This overly “familiar” tone is a bit much, don’t you think?
But Sakura Nation was still counting on the help of Shen Ge, the world’s number one paranormal agent. No matter how he wanted to “act,” they just had to play along.
While Shen Ge was talking to Watanabe Shoko, the other three Sakura Nation representatives also came forward to exchange pleasantries. Especially the fat official, upon learning that Shen Ge was the legendary “World’s Number One Anti-Paranormal Agent,” his face scrunched up into a smile almost like a laughing Buddha.
Knowing Shen Ge disliked such occasions, Deng Yuqi stepped in to “handle” the Sakura Nation representatives for him. The group chatted as they were guided into the banquet venue by the hostesses.
This wasn’t the formal Asian Paranormal Research Conference yet, but the pre-conference dinner banquet, so the venue had been specially arranged.
Shen Ge and his team’s arrival naturally became the center of attention. Paranormal officials and agents from various countries all wanted to use this chance to get closer to him.
Facing a succession of foreign representatives coming up to “network,” Shen Ge felt a headache coming on. In his eyes, these representatives were more troublesome than paranormal beings.
There were just too many people coming up to talk. Deng Yuqi alone couldn’t handle them all, and Wang Han was clearly useless. Just as Shen Ge was fretting over finding an excuse to leave, a “very familiar-looking man” walked over with a few anti-paranormal agents from the headquarters.
“Agent Shen,” the leader said, raising his glass towards Shen Ge.
Shen Ge paused for a moment, then quickly remembered who this familiar-looking man was: “He Chenguang?”
The leader’s expression stiffened, and he said woodenly, “My surname is Luo. Luo Chenguang. We’ve been through life-and-death situations together, at least. Forgetting even my surname is a bit rude, don’t you think?”
Actually, Luo Chenguang had changed a lot. His skin was now a healthy tan, no longer the pasty pretty-boy look. Plus, he had a scar over his eye and another gruesome claw mark on his face. His appearance now closely resembled the description from the “future” ending in the [Log], where he was a top elite anti-paranormal agent from Da Jing sent to Rong City to support the branch against the Formless.
Luo Chenguang’s transformation was also partly due to Shen Ge. First, he had always had feelings for Fang Mingyue. Although Fang Mingyue had never been nice to him, whether in the compound or military school, at least she used to “see” him as a friend.
But after the Yu Zhou paranormal disaster, Fang Mingyue always subconsciously compared things to Shen Ge. At family “blind dates,” she’d take one look and say, “Agent Shen Ge wouldn’t be like that.” At gatherings with friends, she’d constantly bring up “Agent Shen Ge does it this way.”
Old acquaintances of Fang Mingyue said she was “poisoned,” or that Shen Ge must be a cult member who brainwashed her.
But only Luo Chenguang and Fang Mingyue, who had both experienced the Yu Zhou disaster, truly understood the utter despair of being trapped in that kind of space.
At least time flowed slower in the multiple paranormal spaces Luo Chenguang was stuck in, but Fang Mingyue was trapped for a full six months. For six months with no resources, facing all kinds of terrifying paranormal beings while also ensuring the safety of survivors.
A series of horrific experiences nearly drove her mad. Shen Ge’s appearance was undoubtedly a ray of light, saving her from the brink of collapse.
Luo Chenguang was initially not very convinced. He thought Shen Ge only managed to handle the Yu Zhou incident because of “luck.” Besides, without his help, Shen Ge couldn’t have so easily caused the two high-level paranormal beings to fight each other, creating the chance to deal with the Paranormal Turtle “Bu Chu.”
So he believed Fang Mingyue must have been fooled by Shen Ge and wanted to find evidence to expose his “true face.” Thus, he secretly started paying attention to Shen Ge’s actions.
He didn’t know about the Stick Nation conference because the secret rescue mission for Lin Yin was confidential. But after that, the Da Jing disaster, Rong City disaster, Sakura Nation disaster, Han City disaster… Shen Ge walked away from each disaster unscathed, and the high-level paranormal beings killed by him were countless.
Meanwhile, Luo Chenguang himself had to struggle with the cooperation of various departments just to subdue a tier-2 paranormal being.
That’s when Luo Chenguang finally realized the gap between himself and Shen Ge. He started to take himself seriously, seizing every opportunity his family sent him on to “gild his resume,” and earnestly began to learn his craft.
Luo Chenguang’s sudden change left his family utterly confused. Especially when he declared he wanted to constantly improve himself with Shen Ge as his goal, his doting parents almost thought he had been possessed.
But Luo Chenguang wasn’t just talking. He actually got serious, working his way up step by step to the position of captain through his own efforts.
Although Luo Chenguang was reluctant to admit it, deep down he was truly grateful to Shen Ge. So when Shen Ge arrived at the venue, he immediately noticed that the world’s number one anti-paranormal agent, who wouldn’t bat an eye facing a high-level paranormal being, was looking utterly lifeless surrounded by politicians. That’s when he brought his own group of “privileged” companions over to help “rescue” him.
Luo Chenguang’s companions were all next-generation “leaders” groomed by various prominent families. They were used to this kind of situation and handled it with ease, whisking people away with just a few words.
Shen Ge immediately saw that Luo Chenguang had come to save him. He raised his glass and clinked it with the other man’s in gratitude: “Old He, thank you so much. I wouldn’t have known how to handle this without you.”
“Luo! Say it again, my surname is Luo!” Luo Chenguang was furious.
