“When I saw this news headline, I got goosebumps immediately.” Xiao Si Nuo said excitedly. “Sounds so familiar!”
His excitement was understandable; most students who saw that headline would react the same way.
Because many freshmen, after learning about the school’s entry and exit control regulations, couldn’t help but ask someone: “Senior, senior, why aren’t we allowed to go out freely?”
A malicious senior like Xu Chuyao would tell you the outside world is dangerous—that there are people who like to prey on lone Spirit Power Users, wiping them out completely, and that once you go out, you might never come back.
A kind senior, on the other hand, would tell newcomers that it’s because a certain idiot once got drunk at a nightclub and frantically killed five ordinary people, which led to all these restrictions.
This incident was also recorded in Volume One, Chapter Five. In short, that person is the root of all evil.
“Officer Li, take a look,” Xiao Si Nuo said, handing her the previous newspaper, “This was before the incident. The Freiden Academy accepted an interview from the local Free City newspaper, focusing on the academy’s twin stars.”
[Freiden Academy has never lacked talent, and in this batch of prodigies, there are two exceptionally shining figures—Svenna and Camberlin.
Known as the academy’s famous handsome twins, both are bright and charming, with extraordinary strength and impressive eloquence. Below is an exclusive interview with them~
Q: What do you want to do in the future?
A: In the future? I want to contribute to human progress.
E
Reading between the lines, you can tell they’re quite ambitious.]
“After the incident, all reports stopped mentioning Camberlin, and no one spoke of the twin stars anymore. Even Svenna himself didn’t appear in the news again until after a whole semester,” Xiao Si Nuo said. “Officer Yao, take a look at the coverage of that incident.”
Xu Chuyao took the newspaper. Under a prominent headline, the report was straightforward, not clickbait at all.
[According to reports, at the Dream Bar on South Street in Free City, a male student from Freiden Academy, after getting drunk, started a violent fight. Two people involved in the dispute were killed on the spot. His companions did not participate in the violence but were also implicated. Additionally, an unrelated passerby was accidentally injured and later died from critical wounds. All five victims were ordinary people.
Shortly after the tragedy, another male student from Freiden Academy arrived to subdue the attacker and brought him back to the academy to await punishment. Before leaving, he apologized to everyone present, saying that the academy taught them to protect ordinary people, not harm them. Their classmate had committed such a grave mistake and would be punished according to regulations.
This incident forces us to reflect…]
“There’s an interesting little detail,” Xiao Si Nuo said. “Half a year later, when Svenna’s name appeared in the paper again, they specially added a praise about his excellent character and upright values—a remark that wasn’t there before.”
Xu Chuyao put down the clipping, sat down, and picked up the tea freshly poured by Xiao Hua.
“So what’s your conclusion?”
“Because of that incident, Svenna’s close friend, who made a terrible mistake while drunk, was severely punished by the school. This left a deep shadow in Svenna’s heart,” Xiao Si Nuo calmly analyzed. “His outwardly upright values and excellent character are all just a façade. In reality, he has already plotted revenge, planning to exact cruel retribution on ordinary people!”
That seemed to be the case.
Xu Chuyao took a sip of tea. “A reasonable inference, but my guess differs slightly from yours.”
Seeing the two listening attentively, the imposing young female officer cleared her throat and slowly said, “I believe Svenna’s initial sense of righteousness was genuine. He truly thought that way because the school always taught them that, and his belief was strong enough that he personally captured his erring friend, believing he was upholding world justice. But after graduating and entering the Locke Morgan Family’s Research Institute, he saw something he never expected—his worldview collapsed.”
Xiao Si Nuo and Xiao Hua looked at her in surprise.
“Officer Yao, what exactly did he see?”
“Well, I promised a few days ago that I’d tell you when the time was right. Now’s the time.”
Xu Chuyao put down her teacup and rested her belly, then walked to the podium and drew an X on the whiteboard with a marker.
“Is that a wrong mark?” Xiao Si Nuo asked hesitantly.
“No, it’s not a cross. It’s an ‘X,’ the English letter.” Xu Chuyao tapped the whiteboard. “There’s a thing called X Crystal in this world. It was first discovered in Mining Area 13, three years ago. One day, while miners were working, they accidentally struck a strange glowing crystal. Suddenly, a bizarre radiance burst out, and everyone nearby turned into monsters infected by the crystal.”
Seeing no reaction from the two, Xu Chuyao took a deep breath and said quietly, “But among them was one miner who not only didn’t mutate but even transformed from an ordinary person into a Spirit Power User, achieving the miracle of postnatal awakening. That person is now a third-year student at Shengling Academy, named Shen Ning.”
Xiao Si Nuo immediately stood up in shock.
“Ah? Shen Ning?”
“That’s right. Otherwise, why would she have been nicknamed ‘Miner Girl’? Because she really worked as a miner.” Xu Chuyao waved her hand at him. “Sit down first, this is just the beginning. There’s scarier stuff ahead.”
After her words, Xiao Si Nuo didn’t dare sit, but Xiao Hua pulled him back down.
“You understand, since there’s a successful case of postnatal awakening, X Crystal naturally has corresponding research value. So the question is: under conditions where X Crystal is abundant, what is the most in-demand resource, do you guess?”
“Could it be ordinary people who haven’t awakened yet?”
Xiao Si Nuo half-jokingly gave this answer. But seeing Xu Chuyao’s serious face without a hint of humor, he realized the matter was unusual.
“Really?! Then all those missing people from the border regions over the years…”
“Most likely.” Xu Chuyao said, “This is the Locke Morgan Family Research Institute’s project.”
Xiao Si Nuo held Xiao Hua’s trembling hand and asked, “So many people have gone missing these past years. If they’re so brazen, aren’t they afraid of being discovered by higher-ups?”
“Good question. Here’s the situation: after the Mining Area 13 incident became known, the higher-ups allowed the Locke Morgan Family to conduct limited research on X Crystal. And the so-called ‘limited’ means that as long as the project succeeds, the ordinary people who fail in the experiments are just statistical probabilities within the numbers.”
By this point, Xiao Si Nuo fully understood.
“The higher-ups knew about and permitted the experiments, but this is very different from what the academy teaches.”
“Different from what the academy teaches, right?” Xu Chuyao shrugged. “Svenna probably thought the same back then.”
He personally arrested his erring friend, thinking he was protecting world justice. After that, he proudly held his head high—until he entered the research institute and saw the experiment’s true nature, and his world shattered.
Xu Chuyao was about to continue when she glanced at her two newly recruited aides—one still stunned by the shattered worldview, and the other pale and trembling, thinking of her father’s fate.
“Uh, let me tell you two some good news. First, this research project failed. When the number of failed experimental subjects—that is, the test victims—grew far beyond the awakening probability, they realized Shen Ning was just a pure exception and couldn’t be replicated.
The second piece of good news is that although failed test subjects turn into mutants, it doesn’t mean they’re dead. In fact… well, if everything goes well, Xiao Hua, you might see your father again, and if someone helps, you might even be able to talk to him.”
Two calming injections administered, their emotions noticeably steadied.
Xiao Si Nuo also caught the implied meaning in Xu Chuyao’s words: “Since the research failed, they can’t dodge responsibility, right?”
If the experiment succeeded, no matter how many ordinary people died, it was just a statistical fraction. But if it failed, each life lost was a real, living person.
That’s what “limited research permitted” means—every word carefully phrased.
“Well said.” Xu Chuyao gave a thumbs-up. “But here’s the bad news. The Locke Morgan Family can’t accept this result, so when they realized the project was failing, they quickly switched to another study—the original intended use of X Crystal: transforming people into mutants.”
“But I’m getting off track. Let’s get back to Svenna.”
Xu Chuyao stepped down from the podium, picked up the newspaper about the incident, and said, “Svenna ordered the Clown Gang to kill indiscriminately. That shows he didn’t truly care about ordinary people. He only enjoyed the image of upholding world justice. When he found out he’d been played for a fool in the first half of his life, his pride shattered like a clown, and he prepared to shake the world. The Clown Gang’s activities are just distractions to draw attention, but we can use them to flush out the army.”
Hearing there was still hope for her father, Xiao Hua perked up. “What do we do next?”
“We restart the investigation into the Commerce Plaza battle. On the morning of the battle, Svenna and the Clown Gang he commanded were the only ones simultaneously present. There must be traces of their communication. This is the second phase.”
The motive analysis was already done; next, solid evidence wasn’t necessary. Any hint of suspicion could be expanded infinitely by Xu Chuyao.
This is the advantage of writing toward a known answer.
Xiao Si Nuo finally understood that investigating this was not about justice, but for the future girlfriend’s father—essentially, for his father-in-law.
The simpler the motive, the firmer the goal, the harder it is to break down.
“I’m ready. Let’s get started!”
Freiden Valley Research Institute, probably at night, as it was time to rest.
Shen Ning sat on her bed. The room had two lights on: a ceiling lamp and a bedside table lamp. A small mirror was placed nearby.
Each reflection had its place to settle.
“Today it’s your turn, Broken Sister,” the repressed shadow urged, “Don’t be a downer; everyone has to speak!”