Welcome to the Ability Shop!

Chapter 52 The Corruption Returns
"That's really impressive," Chen Xuan commented quietly.

“Yes… how could one possibly hold onto most of the world’s abilities without some skill?” Lin Qing said with some emotion. “To be honest, I felt quite guilty when I said those things yesterday. It felt like I was betraying my past. There are many kind and innocent people in the Vision Agency, and some members are survivors of the intrusion incident. If I could, I really wouldn’t want to fight them.”

She said she wasn't doing this so she would regret it later.

Chen Xuan could see the unwavering will in the girl's eyes. The subtext of her words was clearly that as long as she could change that future, she would forge ahead even if it meant going against all the members of the organization.

"So, in the history you know, how did the Limitation Agency come to the public's attention?" he couldn't help but ask curiously.

"The intrusion points will eventually increase, and the control of the authorities will gradually decrease. At first, it was the out-of-control crimes of ability that caused various bizarre cases to attract social attention, and the state also intervened; then, people with ability emerged in the private sector to combat crimes of ability, and then people with unusual talents were discovered in all walks of life. Behind every major achievement, there were those few companies. Only then did the authorities gradually move from behind the scenes to the forefront."

"It feels like a natural progression." Chen Xuan stroked his chin thoughtfully, especially regarding the fight against ability users who commit crimes... Considering that the authorities have been monitoring the Awakened in the city, could these "heroes" who have stepped forward have received their tacit approval?
“I know what you’re thinking, but this exposure was definitely not part of their plan,” Lin Qing said confidently.

The two have discussed this progressive diffusion plan many times, and as things stand, the chances of the Weixian Agency winning are less than 10%.

It's not that they lack ability or strength; rather, the difference lies in decades of accumulated intelligence.

“What I’m worried about now is whether too many people will come after hearing the news, giving the authorities an excuse to pressure us to close the park,” Chen Xuan said while going over the procedures. “Although this won’t necessarily hinder our plans, it might reduce the effectiveness of the operation.”

The afternoon interviews revealed that the news had affected far more than just the people of Jiangcheng; many tourists from other places also gathered enthusiastically in front of the zoo.

Especially for professional podcasters, this massive influx of traffic is something they absolutely cannot afford to miss.

“I bet the authorities won’t do that. Closing the park and dispersing tourists would be tantamount to admitting this fact, which is equivalent to surrendering to the masked woman. That’s not like them,” Lin Qing said dismissively. “Once they decide to take action, they have to make sure that no one has anything to say.”

"So-called head-on confrontation?"

“That’s right. Only by making everyone realize that the masked woman is a complete fraud can we truly quell this wave of public opinion.” Lin Qing suddenly lowered her voice. “Thank you.”

"Why are you suddenly thanking me?" Chen Xuan asked, somewhat surprised. "This matter isn't even settled yet. And even if we can muddy the waters and force the Limitation Agency to surface, that's just the beginning."

To completely dismantle this behemoth is no easy task that can be accomplished with just one or two clever tricks. If it were a skyscraper, then what they were doing now was merely digging out a single brick from the first floor.

“That was the beginning of everything, wasn’t it?” She put down her coffee cup and looked directly at Chen Xuan. “Even if you refuse to help me, I will still do it on my own, but it’s by no means an easy goal to achieve. Just thinking about it makes me despair. I might die in some forgotten corner, and the future will not change at all…”

"How could that be? Even if I don't help you, I won't turn you away," Chen Xuan shrugged. "As long as this shop approaches you, you'll always have a place to stay..."

He suddenly paused.

What stopped him from continuing was nothing other than a pair of warm and soft lips.

Lin Qing leaned forward and pressed herself against him.

Maybe it was a second, or maybe two or three seconds, but she quickly looked away. "But I still prefer you fighting alongside me. Okay, don't worry about it. This is how I'll express my gratitude in the future. I'm going back to my room to take a shower now."

After saying that, she ran upstairs with a grin, leaving Chen Xuan standing alone behind the bar.

……

……

The following afternoon at 1 p.m., the area in front of the panda enclosure at the zoo was packed with people. To maintain order, the local police station even deployed most of its officers to guide the flow of people at various intersections to prevent any accidents.

In the history of the park, there has probably only been such a grand occasion when the pandas were first brought here.

However, no one came here today because of the pandas.

"Time is almost up." Wang Baihu climbed onto the roof of the snake exhibit, which was a hundred meters away, and took out his binoculars to observe. "Nothing suspicious has been found yet."

"Can you see Honglian?" Captain Wan's voice came through the earpiece. He glanced around and then spotted a familiar figure in front of a convenience store. Honglian was dressed up today, wearing a baseball cap and sunglasses, with a string of earrings sparkling, and her distinctive red hair made her look like a delinquent.

This convenience store is less than 20 meters away from the panda enclosure. No matter where the masked woman appears, she can switch places with her immediately.

"You can see that she is in position."

Honglian could obviously hear their conversation too. She turned her head and glanced in the direction of the snake pavilion. "I want to know, have the two reinforcements sent from above taken their positions?"

"You don't need to worry about that. Someone will tell you who to arrest later," the captain said.

"At this point, we still won't be allowed to be told the names and abilities of the reinforcements?" Honglian was clearly dissatisfied with this.

"This is for confidentiality purposes. Your abilities are also known to members of other divisions," Wan Chongshan reassured her. "Focus on the mission. Take action as soon as you hear the instructions. Don't hesitate, no matter how much the other party doesn't look like it."

Suddenly, the crowd stirred.

"Excuse me, everyone, please make way so I can get to the front," a masked woman said in a coquettish voice.

"She's here! She's really here!" The crowd erupted in excitement, pointing all sorts of cameras and microphones at her.

Wang Baihu naturally saw her too—a "substitute" for the masked woman, whose clothes and appearance were nanometer-scale replicas. This was still the logistics team's specialty—playing along with the flow, creating a convincing illusion. This masked woman was greedy and short-sighted, willing to do anything to attract attention. She had no real ability whatsoever; she just happened to have a brother who worked at the telecommunications bureau. The two of them were envious of the popularity brought by the Shajiang Bridge incident, so they concocted this sensational farce.

She will fool all the audience in front of everyone, nailing all those who support the masked woman to their graves. When she herself becomes the clown, her theories will naturally become a joke.

Rather than overturning the truth, it's better to smear the person who tells the truth—a tactic the logistics team has repeatedly found effective.

Of course, the prerequisite is that they have to capture the real masked woman.

Wang Baihu guessed that one of the two supporters probably possessed a similar ability, capable of quickly locating their target in a crowd. Whether this was due to locking onto the target's ability or other characteristics remained unknown.

He glanced at his watch; it was exactly 1:30, thirty minutes before the masked woman's predicted 2:00 PM.

But the time left for her to find a replacement is running out.

buzzing-

Just then, his phone suddenly vibrated.

When Wang Baihu took it out and looked at it, his eyes widened in surprise. The organization had actually sent them an intrusion point warning.

"Warning: Class C normal erosion detected, location coordinates have been determined."

Why now of all times?!

"Ignore it, prioritize the task at hand!" Captain Wan said decisively. "It's only a C-level, it's fine to go half a day later."

"Understood—" Before Wang Baihu could finish replying, his phone vibrated again!
"Warning: Class C normal erosion detected, location coordinates have been determined."

"Warning: Class C normal erosion detected, location coordinates have been determined."

"Warning: Class B normal erosion detected. Location coordinates have been determined. Please proceed immediately to handle the situation."

Intrusion incidents occurred in quick succession within just a few seconds? And they quickly escalated from Level C to Level B—how is this possible?! Wang Baihu subconsciously checked the location coordinates and discovered that these intrusion points were actually quite close to him, all located within the adjacent botanical garden!

No way… A wave of shock surged through his heart. Theoretically, there's only one possibility for this phenomenon: a wanderer repeatedly traversing between two worlds, causing the machines to continuously capture the same waveform. And this behavior would indeed cause the intrusion point to expand rapidly!
Wang Baihu felt a sense of foreboding. He was about to tell Honglian his suspicions when he realized that his colleagues were no longer in front of the convenience store.

(End of this chapter)