As someone in sequence 001, I also want to give up today.

At 7 p.m., at the "Hot and Spicy" hot pot restaurant.

Li Xian pushed open the glass door.

A wave of heat, a mixture of butter, chili, and the aroma of various ingredients, hits you.

The restaurant was bustling with noise, and steam was rising from every table, with diners' faces appearing and disappearing in the steam.

"Brother Xian! Over here!"

Chen Zhe, sitting by the window, stood up and waved.

He had arrived, and the bottom of the pot was already laid out on the table.

The hot pot has two broths, one with a mountain of chili peppers and Sichuan peppercorns on the spicy side, and the other with a few goji berries and red dates floating on the clear broth side.

Li Xian slowly walked over, pulled out a chair, and sat down.

"Sure, I'll order in advance."

He looked at the pot bottom, which had already begun to boil.

"So thoughtful?"

"Absolutely."

Chen Zhe grinned, revealing a set of white teeth.

"An apology feast must be sincere. We've ordered all the meat: fatty beef, lamb rolls, tripe, beef aorta, and your favorite shrimp paste. A vegetable platter, a mushroom platter, tofu skin, enoki mushrooms... Is that enough?"

"almost."

Li Xian took off his coat.

"Eat first, and add more if you're still hungry."

The waiter brought over the dipping sauce, and the two of them mixed it themselves.

Chen Zhe prepared a bowl full of chili oil, while Li Xian followed the old custom—sesame paste, minced garlic, cilantro, a little oyster sauce, and a few drops of sesame oil.

Once the pot is boiling, add the meat first.

The beef rolls were cooked in the red broth for three seconds until they changed color, then scooped out, dipped in sauce, and put into their mouths.

The meat is tender, the richness of the butter and the spiciness of the chili explode on the tongue, paired with the aroma of sesame sauce, it's perfect.

"Cool."

Chen Zhe sighed contentedly and picked up another piece of mutton with his chopsticks.

"Speaking of which, how long has it been since we had a meal alone together?"

"It must have been about half a year."

Li Xian squeezed the shrimp paste into the pot one by one.

"The last time was on your birthday, at a barbecue restaurant."

"Yeah, back then I wasn't with Xiaoyu yet..."

Chen Zhe touched his nose a little embarrassedly halfway through his sentence.

"In short, I really need to formally apologize to you for this. It was really not right of me to keep it from you."

Li Xian glanced at him, picked up a slice of cooked tripe, and rolled it in a sauce of minced garlic and sesame oil.

"Alright, saying it once is enough. If you say it again, I'll really start charging you for emotional distress."

Chen Zhe chuckled:

"No way, I'll pay whatever you ask for. How about this, I'll treat you to this meal, and then next week, and the week after that—"

"Stop."

Li Xian raised his hand.

"Are you planning to pelt me ​​with food until I lose my memory?"

"Is it possible?"

"cannot."

Li Xian stuffed the tripe into his mouth and chewed it with a crunching sound.

"But I can reluctantly eat a few more meals."

They both laughed.

The atmosphere relaxed, just like it had countless times in the past twenty years.

They talked about the games they'd been playing recently, complained about bizarre things at work, and reminisced about the stupid things they did in high school—like skipping class to go to an internet cafe only to get caught by their homeroom teacher and punished by having to clean the toilets for a week.

"Do you remember what Old Liu said back then?"

Chen Zhe laughed so hard that tears almost came out.

"You two have something wrong with your thinking! You can't even clean the toilet properly, what kind of future can you possibly have!"

"And now you're a manager at a big company, and I..."

Li Xian paused for a moment.

"I'm just lying at home."

"That's called freelancing!"

Chen Zhe corrected.

"Cultural workers! Amazing!"

"Yes, yes, that's amazing."

Li Xian nodded perfunctorily and ordered another plate of fatty beef.

Halfway through the meal, Chen Zhe's phone vibrated.

He took it out and glanced at it, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly, then quickly turned off the screen and placed the phone face down on the table.

"Another sales pitch?"

Li Xian asked casually.

"Ah...yes."

Chen Zhe picked up his drink and took a sip.

"I don't know what's going on lately, I keep getting these kinds of calls."

Li Xian didn't reply, he just kept eating the mutton hotpot.

But his senses—the senses that had inexplicably become unusually sharp since yesterday—told him that just a moment ago, there were extremely subtle energy fluctuations around Chen Zhe.

It was hot and restless, like a suppressed flame.

It's very similar to the scorching heat I felt last night from the direction of the neighboring community...

Li Xian lowered his eyes and pretended to be focused on scooping shrimp paste from the pot.

He wanted to try it.

It wasn't a test, nor was it out of curiosity; it was just... a simple desire to verify something.

If Chen Zhe really has superpowers, then he should be able to be copied by [All-Encompassing Power], just like he copied Xiao Yu's abilities.

How do I copy it?

Li Xian recalled what happened in the bathroom yesterday—perceiving, understanding, and then "wanting".

He could now sense the faint warmth emanating from Chen Zhe.

Although very faint, it does exist.

So, what about understanding?

He deepened his perception, just as he had "seen" Xiaoyu's silver energy yesterday, and "seen" Chen Zhe.

Then he "saw" it.

It's not a scene visible to the naked eye, but an "image" at the level of perception—within Chen Zhe's body.

To be precise, there is a concentrated, orange-red energy core located on the left side of the chest cavity.

The core was slowly rotating, like a miniature sun, radiating continuous and steady heat.

Energy extends from the core into countless tiny channels, spreading throughout the body, but most of them remain dormant.

Only a few strands were slightly active in places such as the fingertips and pupils.

The nature of those energies...scorching, violent, yet with a strange sense of order.

It wasn't a wildfire; it was more like a precisely controlled furnace.

Li Xian understood.

flame.

Take control.

Compression and shaping.

He "knew" the essence of this ability—to convert thermal energy into a controllable physical form.

It can change the shape, temperature, and range of the flame at will.

From a tiny spark at your fingertips to a wave of heat that engulfs the entire arena.

Sequence 021: Flame Core Control.

It is lower than Xiaoyu's sequence.

But the quality and quantity of that energy were in no way inferior, and in some aspects even more... domineering.

Okay, now we have both perception and understanding.

So, "I want it".

In his mind, Li Xian gently "tapped" the orange-red energy core.

It felt as natural as yesterday when I was in the bathroom and "thinking" about cutting open a toothpaste tube.

hum-

That familiar tremor, emanating from the depths of my consciousness, reappeared.

It was even less noticeable than when it copied Xiaoyu's ability yesterday, almost imperceptible, but it was definitely there.

[Replicated Ability: Flame Heart Control (Optimized Version)]

[Optimization Results: Heat conversion efficiency increased by 80%, upper temperature limit exceeded the original theoretical value, and flame shaping speed increased by 150%]

Current level of mastery: Perfect

[Note: Now you can easily light a cigarette, grill skewers, keep warm in winter, and even accidentally burn down the kitchen.]

Li Xian: "..."

He put down his chopsticks, picked up his drink, took a sip, and tried to hide his expression.

Therefore, Chen Zhe really is a superhuman.

Fire type, S-rank, the same as Xiaoyu.

No wonder they're a perfect match—birds of a feather flock together.

"What's wrong?"

Chen Zhe noticed his pause.

"Not enough meat? Want two more plates?"

"No need, that's enough."

Li Xian shook his head and picked up a piece of cooked tofu.

"I was just thinking... what are you and Xiaoyu planning to do in the future?"

Chen Zhe paused for a moment, then became serious:

"I'm serious, Brother Xian. I've discussed it with Xiaoyu. Once she graduates and has a stable job, we'll... um, take the next step."

"Next step?"

Li Xian raised an eyebrow.

"marry?"

"It's still early!"

Chen Zhe quickly waved his hand.

"Get engaged first? Or at least have the two families meet formally. My parents already know, and they keep urging me to bring Xiaoyu home for dinner. As for you..."

He looked at Li Xian with a cautious expression.

Li Xian leisurely simmered the enoki mushrooms in the hot pot:

"What's wrong with me? I'm not an old fogey. You two can figure it out yourselves. Just let me know when you need me to step in."

Chen Zhe visibly relaxed, and his smile brightened again:

"Thanks, Brother Xian! I knew you'd be reliable!"

"but."

Li Xian then changed the subject.

"Why are you so nervous about meeting my parents? It's not like it's the first time you've come to my house for dinner."

"That's different!"

Chen Zhe had a bitter face.

"We used to be brothers, but now... cough, our status has changed, how can our mentality be the same? I dreamt last night that you were chasing me for three blocks with a kitchen knife."

Li Xian imagined the scene and couldn't help but laugh out loud:

"Me, take a kitchen knife? I don't even know where I keep kitchen knives."

"Too."

Chen Zhe also smiled.

"All you can do is use chopsticks."

The two ate for a while longer, chatting about all sorts of random things.

Chen Zhe shared some gossip about the company, while Li Xian complained about the editors' methods of urging him to submit his manuscript.

Like any ordinary dinner between two close friends, it was relaxed, casual, and imbued with the tacit understanding that comes with a twenty-year friendship.

Chen Zhe went to the restroom halfway through.

When he came back, he had a lighter in his hand, wanting to light a cigarette—he didn't smoke much, but he had a habit of having one after meals.

I pressed the lighter several times, but it didn't light.

"Tsk, it's out of air."

Chen Zhe muttered something and threw the lighter on the table.

Then, quite naturally, he gently rubbed his right index finger and thumb together.

A small cluster of orange-red flames appeared out of nowhere and ignited the smoke.

He took a drag, exhaled a smoke ring, the movement as fluid and natural as breathing.

Li Xian looked at the cluster of flames, then at Chen Zhe.

Chen Zhe was also stunned for a moment. He looked at his fingers, then at Li Xian, his expression a little stiff.

"Well……"

He gave a dry laugh.

"That new magic trick you learned actually looks pretty realistic, doesn't it?"

Li Xian stared at him for two seconds, then nodded:

"Hmm, it looks quite similar."

Then he continued to bend down and scoop the meatballs out of the pot.

Chen Zhe breathed a sigh of relief.

But no one noticed that Li Xian's lips curled up slightly when he lowered his head.

magic?

Okay, if you say it's magic, then it's magic.

Anyway, I've already copied it.

Li Xian mentally "looked" at the newly acquired orange-red ability icon, which lay side by side with the silver [Consciousness Slicing] deep within his consciousness.

One can clean, chop vegetables, and wash dishes; the other can light a fire to keep warm and grill meat skewers.

perfect.

My life skills are maxed out.

He picked up the last shrimp paste with satisfaction, dipped it in the sauce, and put it in his mouth.

Outside the window, night was falling and the city lights were shining brightly.

While this ordinary hot pot meal was taking place—

Meanwhile, in the capital city, thousands of miles away...

Superpowers Bureau, seventh basement level, strategic conference room.

This place is as chaotic as a vegetable market ravaged by a hurricane.

On the huge circular screen, a dense stream of data flowed like a waterfall.

A dozen or so staff members in dark blue uniforms sat in front of the control panel, their fingers flying across the virtual keyboard, their expressions serious.

An elderly man with gray hair, wearing a Zhongshan suit, stood in front of the main screen, his voice deep.

Old Zhou turned to the large screen, which displayed a map showing the distribution of S-level superhumans across the country.

"List the top twenty S-level states in the sequence separately—"

His finger swiped across the screen, stopping at a few dots of light.

【序列002·万物重构】【序列003·凛冬权柄】【序列005·因果置换】【序列008·能量支配】【序列012·意识切割】【序列013·真空涡旋】

"These few,"

Old Zhou spoke slowly.

"It is the sharpest sword in our hands, and also... the most unstable variable."

The young woman looked at the code names, and her Adam's apple bobbed.

She understood what Mr. Zhou meant.

The top twenty S-level individuals in the sequence and ordinary S-level individuals are two different concepts.

Ordinary S-class ability users, such as those after Sequence 050, have strong abilities, but their destructive range and total energy still have limits.

It is roughly equivalent to a "walking missile silo".

And the monsters in the top twenty of the sequence... especially the top ten.

Each of them possesses the potential to unilaterally destroy a small country.

This is not a metaphor; it is the conclusion written in black and white in the evaluation report.

For example, "Reconstruction of Everything" in sequence 002.

In theory, it is possible to decompose all the buildings in a city into basic particles and then recombine them into any shape within an hour.

For example, the "causal substitution" in sequence 005.

In a previous test, by switching the cause and effect of "firing" and "jamming," a fully armed special forces unit was unable to fire a single bullet for ten minutes.

As for the earlier sequence 001...

It was blank.

The file contains only a code name, with no ability to describe it, no record of it, and only one line of notes: "[Theoretically exists, but has not yet been confirmed]".

But these top twenty S-class students are all arrogant and have eccentric personalities.

Getting them to obediently attend meetings is harder than getting them to fight an S-class alien beast one-on-one.

"Old Zhou,"

The young woman asked cautiously.

"What if someone... refuses to come?"

Old Zhou remained silent for a few seconds.

Then, he said something that made the temperature in the entire command center drop three degrees:

"Tell them—either come to the meeting, or I'll have Sequence 002 'invite' them here."

A deathly silence.

Let sequence 002 "invite" someone.

That basically means, "Either you come over here yourself, or I'll dismantle your entire building and bring it over."

"Understood."

The young woman swallowed.

"I will issue a notice immediately."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"How many S-class contacts have you made contact with?"

"Hyotei said he's in Antarctica watching penguins, there's no signal, and he might not be able to make it back from the meeting."

"Chief, he's absolutely lying! I just saw him post a picture of the Northern Lights on Instagram!"

"Furthermore, Feng Huang said she is tracking a deep-sea monster that is suspected to be an S-class creature in the center of the Pacific Ocean and cannot get away for the time being."

"In addition, after statistics and confirmation, a total of 20 S-level personnel are confirmed to attend tomorrow's S-level seminar."

Zhou Zhengguo gently pressed his temples with his fingers: "34 people, and 20 of them showed up, that's not bad..."

PS:

Sequence 021 · Flame Core Control

Core capabilities: Extreme compression and myriad-shaped fire shaping.

Performance:

1. Incandescent flame core: The flame is compressed to a plasma state, generating an ultra-high temperature ray with absolute penetrating power, which can melt through most substances instantly.

2. Fire in Myriad Forms: Freely shape flames into forms, instantly condensing them into flame armor, blades, shields, or transforming them into spirits such as birds and hunting dogs to track and hunt.

3. Two polarities: It can condense a miniature welding torch at the fingertips for precision work, or it can deploy an explosive field covering the battlefield for saturation attacks.

Style Summary: The absolute master of flames. Combining surgical precision with artistic destructive tension, he is the deadliest "artist of fire" on the battlefield.