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Chapter 150 - 149: S-Class Wanderer

The office was enveloped in a strange silence.

Everyone was still engrossed in the images they had just seen, unable to pull themselves away. They had known for a long time that the point of intrusion connected to another world, but due to restrictions, the vast majority had never crossed the boundary to catch a glimpse of it.

Honglian was one of the few in the division who had crossed the point of intrusion, but the differences between worlds could be vast. Most of the worlds she had seen were akin to Earth; otherwise, the mechanism wouldn’t have built the World’s Window in the city.

Thus, what she had seen and heard naturally formed everyone’s impression of the Otherworld: slightly skewed, but basically that familiar Earth.

However, this footage presented a drastically different Otherworld.

Not only had things changed, but even humans seemed different.

If such a world were to erode Earth, what would become of all living beings?

It wasn’t until the curtains were drawn open, and the bright sunlight poured over everyone, that they snapped out of this stupor.

"What the hell kind of world is this..." Wang Baihu murmured, feeling a chill in his heart.

"The one kneeling... is that the photographer?" Little Pigeon asked timidly.

"Precisely." Xiao Canong nodded, "This is the NO.9 intrusion point, recorded by an Execution Team member from headquarters. To rescue him, the mechanism dispatched over ten elite agents, but they were nearly wiped out. One barely made it back, bringing this tape at great cost."

Honglian looked at the bright and clean high-rise buildings outside the office and suddenly felt how peaceful and serene Jiang City was. The setbacks and difficulties previously encountered seemed trivial.

Luckily, such an intrusion point wasn’t in their jurisdiction.

Wait... the so-called Wanderer her superior mentioned, could it be—

"Now you understand how dangerous this man is, right?" Xiao Canong’s words confirmed her thoughts. "Headquarters’ experts speculate that World 9 harbors a powerful being capable of altering human thoughts and turning them into its thralls. The photographer delved too deep, becoming an empty shell devoid of self."

"You suspect that man is also a thrall of that being?" Honglian asked.

"It’s a possibility that cannot be ruled out."

"But he appears quite normal... and he has female companionship, unlike those worshippers in the video."

"Let me put it another way, maybe it’ll be easier to understand." Xiao Canong smirked, "The powerful being, often called a deity by mortals, has followers classified into ranks. Deities need both clever people to execute their will and ignorant worshippers as well as blind zealots. Doesn’t this make you think his normalcy is also suspicious?"

This made a lot of sense.

Honglian nodded, voicing no further objections.

"Headquarters analyzed that he is likely a Wanderer from a certain world who has visited similar worlds to World 9 and has now drifted here. The reasoning is simple: even for elite agents of the mechanism, entering such a world is life-threatening. If he were an ordinary Earth-born person who awakened here, it’s unlikely he’d survive."

"Wanderers are different. They may travel through multiple worlds in their lives, acquiring powerful abilities from other worlds. This power doesn’t just mean destructive force; the adaptability, conformity, and flexibility they gain may allow Wanderers to evade danger."

"That’s why Wanderers are usually hard to deal with. But this isn’t even the scariest part; having seen many worlds, they rarely consider any place as their home, which makes them more unscrupulous in their actions. Displaying terrifying power in front of thousands also indirectly proves his indifference to life."

Xiao Canong said in one breath.

Zhang Yingzi sighed, "I suppose... we’re being asked to take a hard line?"

"Bingo, headquarters has already classified him as an S-Class Wanderer, requiring us to capture him with full force, dead or alive." Xiao Canong shrugged, "You’ve probably studied the guidelines for fighting Wanderers, right? Capturing them alive is naturally good, but most of the time, it’s a luxury. Therefore, for your own safety, fight with all you’ve got the moment you meet him."

"The problem is we have to find him first," Zhang Yingzi said.

"Even if we find him, we might not be able to beat him," Wang Baihu whispered at a volume only Honglian could hear, "If I sacrifice myself, my family would be devastated."

Honglian rolled her eyes, "Alright, if we encounter significant danger, I’ll do my best to protect you."

"Sister Honglian, you’re the best... I’ll never compete with you for being the best agent in the team again," Wang Baihu said, moved.

"Even if we find him, we might not be able to beat him." Unexpectedly, Xiao Canong echoed Wang Baihu’s sentiment, "If we’re all there together, there’s a chance. But in reality, things change rapidly. Once we find him, we need to act quickly, which will undoubtedly create variables."

"Finding him is also a challenge; the intelligence team and the Execution Team combined number less than twenty, not to mention vacations and sick leaves... the division is really weathering the storm here."

The group chuckled awkwardly.

The Dimensional Limit Mechanism offers excellent benefits.

Two-day weekends, comprehensive insurance, and bonuses... none of it falls short of top private companies.

Though everyone harbors lofty ideals, ideals aren’t food, so why not take advantage if you can?

"The TV station incident is a rare opportunity; some want to take the lead in securing the Ability User, but everyone can see that money alone is useless in this matter." Xiao Canong tapped the whiteboard, "Recently, our public square campaign and free ability testing have boosted our image. Therefore, I’ve decided to formally launch an external recruitment plan, aiming to double the Jiang City division’s size within a year!"

This idea had been mentioned by the superior before, so it wasn’t a complete surprise to everyone.

However, implementing it brought many concerns.

"Captain Xiao, we joined the Dimensional Limit Mechanism to protect this world..." said an Execution Team member whom Honglian remembered as "Xiao," a fan of the second dimension, "Now that the mechanism is recruiting externally, inevitably disclosing benefits, it might attract many self-serving individuals."

Colleagues voiced their agreement.

Wang Baihu also nodded repeatedly, "That’s right, we can’t lose the mechanism’s ethos!"

They certainly had the qualifications and confidence to say so... Before joining the mechanism, nobody knew what kind of treatment was inside. Many joined because they or their families had been harmed by Ability Users and didn’t want such tragedies to repeat.

Taking advantage of the mechanism’s resources was another matter.

If outsiders were informed of these advantages ahead of time, the situation would be very different.

Xiao Canong laughed, "I’m delighted to see you care so much about the mechanism’s future. There’s no need to worry; Wang Qianduan and I have privately discussed it. His suggestion is to classify agents into two categories, regular and external. You all are regular agents, while newcomers will be external agents; their salaries and benefits will differ, making the process more flexible."

"So... we won’t be downgraded to external agents, right?" Little Pigeon asked anxiously.

"No, I wouldn’t be so heartless to loyal employees." Xiao Canong waved, "Regular status is lifelong, with no downgrades; there’s no cold performance evaluation either, as your faith is invaluable."

Honglian immediately raised her hand, "I also have a suggestion."

Xiao Canong squinted and smiled, "No, you still have to punch in, and smoking rooms will have cameras... After all, you have to set an example for newcomers, right?"

...

During lunch break, Honglian, Wang Baihu, and Little Pigeon walked out of the office building, planning to have lunch at a nearby restaurant.

"How did he know I wanted to get rid of the time clock?" she asked, puzzled, "Could this guy’s ability be the Mind Reading Technique?"

"I guess your tardiness record caught his attention." Wang Baihu, surprisingly, refrained from taking a jab at her.

"Sister Honglian is often late?" Little Pigeon asked.

"It’s not that bad, isn’t two or three times a week a lot? The city has traffic jams every morning!" she grumbled, "... Huh? Why aren’t you talking?"

Just then, they noticed some commotion at the park entrance. A middle-aged woman was desperately pleading with the security guard, who kept pushing her out with impatience and harsh reprimands, while a few suit-wearing onlookers stood by, pointing and chatting.

"Ah... trouble’s here," Wang Baihu muttered.

No sooner had he spoken than Honglian was already heading over there.