novelraw Chapter 8 : The Gathering of Shadows
Chapter 8 : The Gathering of Shadows
Chapter 8: The Gathering of Shadows
Longxi Republic, National Cybersecurity Monitoring Center, Jiang City Division.
At three in the morning, only the sound of keyboards clacking and the low hum of servers echoed through the massive data monitoring hall.
Auditor Xiao Wang rubbed his sore eyes, yawned, and mechanically processed the thousands of flagged videos the system backend had pushed to him.
Pornography, violence, gambling… he had long grown numb to such content—he could click “Delete and Ban” accurately even with his eyes closed.
Suddenly, a video labeled by the AI system as “Highly Suspected of Illegal Special Effects/Fraudulent Advertising” was pushed to the top of his review list.
“Another game company pulling some marketing stunt…”
Xiao Wang muttered as he habitually moved his mouse toward the “Delete” button.
But the flames on the video’s cover—and that shadowy figure standing atop a streetlamp—made him inexplicably stop his action.
As a seasoned auditor, he had seen too many cheap special effects and clumsy CGs, yet the texture of the flames in this clip looked far too real.
He clicked “Play.”
The video lasted only a dozen seconds, the footage shaking violently from the drunken hands of the cameraman—but the core scene made his scalp tingle.
A woman floated dozens of blazing fireballs between her hands. Opposite her stood a man, like a hero from legend, lightly balanced atop a streetlamp more than ten meters high, his coat fluttering wildly in the night wind.
Xiao Wang’s heart skipped a beat.
He immediately opened the frame-by-frame analysis tool.
Zoom in—then zoom in again.
He discovered that the flames had no point of ignition—they appeared from thin air—and the reflections and shadows they cast upon the surroundings were flawlessly consistent, nothing like post-production effects.
The strangest part was that the car’s rearview mirror in the background clearly reflected the same scene—angle, lighting, and movement perfectly matched—without a single trace of compositing!
“This… this is impossible…”
Xiao Wang gasped sharply, a fine layer of sweat forming on his forehead.
With trembling hands, he rewound the video and froze the frame on the man standing atop the streetlamp.
Though blurry, he could see the lamp’s casing slightly dented beneath the man’s feet!
That wasn’t something created by wires—it was real weight pressing down!
Meanwhile, the video’s comment section had already exploded.
“I declare, the 2077 blockbuster has been released early!”
“Fake! Look at that shaky camera—it’s hiding the CGI flaws, obviously.”
“Bullshit! Look at the debris flying from the explosions and the burn marks on the wall—if that’s CGI, the budget must’ve been astronomical!”
“The main point’s that guy on the streetlamp! Is he on a wire? I don’t see any cables!”
“Holy crap! I ran it through pro software—no cuts, no compositing traces! That means this is raw footage!”
At first, most comments were just jokes, but as more technical analyses appeared, the tone of the entire thread began to shift.
The teasing and doubt gave way to an uneasy mix of excitement and fear.
“Raw footage? You mean… it’s real?”
“Fire Queen and Flying Man? Is Jiang City about to have superheroes?”
“Don’t tell me it’s aliens… I’m scared now…”
“Send the location! I’m going there to witness history!”
Xiao Wang stared at the scrolling flood of comments, his scalp prickling.
Something in this world had gone wrong!
A strong sense of duty drove him to grab the internal phone and dial his superior. “Director, I found a video…”
……
Jiang City Public Security Bureau, “815 Task Force” conference room.
The atmosphere was even heavier than last night—almost frozen.
Everyone’s eyes were locked on the screen, where the slowed-down footage played frame by frame.
The flight path of each fireball, the explosion details on the walls, and the man’s gravity-defying stance atop the streetlamp were all clearly visible.
The image was grainy and full of noise, but its content made every officer’s skin crawl.
A woman surrounded by floating fireballs—like a fire goddess from myth.
Opposite her, a shadowy figure stood tall atop the streetlamp, posture straight as a pine.
“Have we traced the video’s source?” Chen Mo asked hoarsely.
“Yes,”
Technician Xiao Wang adjusted his glasses, face pale. “Uploader’s name is Li Wen, an ordinary office worker. He was drunk last night and accidentally recorded the scene.”
“And the tech department’s conclusion?”
Xiao Wang took a deep breath and opened another file. “They analyzed every frame. All known methods—CG compositing, AR effects, holographic projection—have been ruled out.”
“Also, the video’s location perfectly matches the fire alarm we received from Deshengli Third Alley in the eastern district.”
“Our field agents found signs of high-temperature burns on the walls and ground. Analysis showed combustion temperatures exceeding 1,500 degrees Celsius—but no accelerants or explosive residues were found.”
Each new clue on the screen struck a heavy blow to the investigators’ understanding of reality.
Chen Mo turned his gaze to the photos from the Deshengli alley site.
The walls and pavement were pitted with blast craters, their edges melted into strange, glassy ripples—like they’d been seared by high-energy weapons.
Everything matched the video perfectly.
“Unexplained force… fire manipulation… inhuman speed…”
“Captain…”
Xiao Li’s face turned pale, his voice trembling. “Could it be that there really are…”
He didn’t dare finish the word.
“Nonsense!”
The deputy bureau chief slammed the table, though his tone betrayed unease behind the show of authority.
“This must be some new high-tech crime method!”
“Maybe military-grade directed energy weapons—or… high-power laser projections!”
“We’re police! We deal in science!”
No one replied.
They all knew how hollow those words sounded.
After a long silence, Chen Mo finally spoke.
“From now on, the task force will expand its scope.”
“First, locate the video uploader immediately and bring him in. I want to know exactly what he saw—and what he’s hiding.”
“Second, merge the Zheng Wei case with this ‘Fire Flying Man’ case. Treat Zheng Wei and the two individuals in the video as ‘extremely dangerous persons.’”
“Third, notify every precinct and patrol in the city: any unexplained anomaly—no matter how absurd—must be reported to the task force immediately.”
His eyes swept across the room, his words landing like hammers. “Everyone, brace yourselves. We may be facing an unprecedented challenge.”
“Our worldview… may need an update.”
“In this world, there may truly exist… beings with powers beyond our understanding.”
Chen Mo’s voice echoed in the silent room, each word weighted like stone.
The room was stunned.
“Captain Chen, that’s too far-fetched!”
“Yeah, superpowers? This isn’t a movie!”
“I still think it’s some kind of tech crime—maybe powered exoskeletons or new portable energy weapons.”
The room buzzed with disbelief and protest.
They were police—firm materialists—trained to explain crime through science and logic.
Now their captain was asking them to believe in “superpowers.” It was like asking them to abandon everything they’d built their careers upon.
“Enough! Quiet!”
The deputy chief slammed the table again, glaring around the room.
He turned to Chen Mo. “Chen Mo, is this your final assessment?”
“Yes.”
Chen Mo met his gaze firmly. “I request that this matter be reported immediately to the provincial department—or even higher. This is beyond our bureau’s capacity to handle.”
The deputy chief stared at him for a full minute before replying slowly, “You may submit the report—but word it carefully.”
“Until higher authorities respond, the official narrative remains: ‘a new type of high-tech criminal organization.’”
“Internally, I’m authorizing your task force to expand operations. You may access all city surveillance and technical resources.”
“I don’t care if they’re superhumans or ghosts. My only demand—find them!”
“Yes, sir!” Chen Mo stood upright and saluted.
……
After the police withdrew the barricade from Deshengli Third Alley, night once again shrouded the ravaged battleground.
A graceful figure silently appeared at the alley’s entrance.
Lin Lan adjusted her gold-rimmed glasses and observed the scene from the shadows.
Wreckage everywhere, charred walls, cracked pavement—her eyes gleamed with analytic light.
Flames…
Explosions…
And traces of high-speed movement…
It seemed the woman named Sun Na had fought another unknown player here.
Just as she was about to step deeper into the alley for a closer look, a strange sensation rippled through her heart.
Her eyes narrowed, body melting into the deeper shadows as her sharp gaze swept toward the other end of the alley.
A chubby, balding man in a greasy suit was climbing out of an old Santana, sweat dripping down his face.
He toyed with a walnut string in his hands, his oily smile forced and nervous, his small eyes darting about.
The middle-aged man also sensed the presence of someone from the same faction.
Spotting Lin Lan at the alley’s mouth, he immediately bent slightly and grinned obsequiously. “Morning, friend.”
Lin Lan’s gaze passed over him to the darkness behind.
Someone else was there.
A young man in an ordinary jacket, plain-faced—someone who would disappear completely in a crowd.
Yet Lin Lan’s pupils constricted slightly.
Because she could feel it—that same aura of the 【Shadow】 faction emanating from him.
Three people!
Out of the four members of 【Shadow】, three had gathered here at once, drawn by the same event!
Lin Lan felt as though unseen hands were pulling strings behind the scenes.
The ordinary-looking man also noticed her. He pushed up his glasses, gave a gentle, harmless smile, and approached.
“Looks like we had the same thought.”
The first offline meeting of the 【Shadow】 faction quietly began in the desolate alley before dawn.
“And you two are?” Lin Lan spoke first, her tone cold and probing.
“Wang Defa, small business owner,” Wang Defa said, rubbing his hands with a fawning smile. “Identity: 【Curse Master】.”
“Call me A-Xiang,” said Chen Xiang with a mild smile. “Just an ordinary insurance salesman. Identity: 【Impersonator】.”
As he spoke, his facial muscles twisted—instantly transforming into Wang Defa’s likeness, down to the greasy grin.
Wang Defa jumped in fright, instinctively stepping back.
“No need to panic, just showing you my ability.” Chen Xiang reverted to his plain face.
Lin Lan watched without reaction, merely stating calmly, “Lin Lan, 【Shadow Controller】.”
After the brief exchange, an uneasy silence fell between them.
Eventually, Lin Lan broke it, her commanding aura pressing down on the other two.
“Since we’re all ‘one of our own,’ why don’t we find a place to talk properly?”
Chen Xiang adjusted his glasses, smiling stiffly. “Miss Lin is right.”
“I’ve got no objection,” Wang Defa said nervously, glancing between them.
One woman whose aura made him avert his eyes, another man whose smile hid unknown schemes—he felt like a husky lost among wolves.
Lin Lan gave them a calm glance. “Follow me.”
She turned and walked toward a black Bentley parked at the corner.
Chen Xiang and Wang Defa exchanged wary looks, then obediently followed.
……
Half an hour later, inside a private club atop a skyscraper in the city center.
Lin Lan sat gracefully at the head of the table and poured herself a glass of red wine.
“Now, let’s exchange the intel we have.”
She swirled her glass, going straight to the point. “I’ll begin.”
“A few days ago, there was a violent brawl involving a man named Zheng Wei. Based on collected intelligence and analysis, I strongly suspect he’s a player—his ability likely related to strength.”
“He’s currently wanted by the police and remains at large.”
“As for the two who fought last night—one was named Sun Na, her ability should involve fire. The other is unidentified, likely possessing speed-type abilities.”
“These three’s factions remain unknown…”
Although Lin Lan didn’t know Zhang Jie’s identity, Sophie’s report last night allowed her to infer all this accurately.
Wang Defa immediately interjected, “Those two who fought yesterday must be from 【Radiance】!”
“Otherwise, why make such a big scene? Idiots!”
Chen Xiang stayed silent, merely adjusting his glasses as if thinking deeply.
“Now that three of us from 【Shadow】 are gathered, we hold a major advantage.”
Lin Lan’s voice carried unquestionable authority as she naturally assumed command. “My suggestion—let’s consolidate our power, locate our final teammate, and then plan to eliminate 【Radiance】 one by one.”
“I agree.”
Chen Xiang quickly nodded. “Intelligence is the key now. We don’t know who’s in 【Radiance】 or where they are.”
“If those three are indeed from 【Radiance】, Zheng Wei and Sun Na are already exposed, and finding the ‘Flying Man’s’ identity is only a matter of time—but there are still five hiding in the dark.”
He paused, then added, “Oh, right—regarding intel, I may have found something new.”
“Oh?” Lin Lan’s eyes shifted to him.
“I came across someone on a niche history forum—someone who might be a player.”
Chen Xiang’s lips curved into a mysterious smile. “She seems to have an extraordinary understanding of ‘Game of Gods’—even mentioned metaphors involving ‘history’ and ‘mythology’ that aren’t in our known rules.”
“She’s cautious—I haven’t fully confirmed her identity yet—but I believe she’ll be a very crucial figure.”