Chapter Five: The Terror Bonus

After a long while, Lin Lei hung up the phone.

The Blood Sakura Society was one of the most powerful extraordinary organizations in Biyang City, and also one of the evil cults that worshiped the forbidden entity known as the “Mother of Flesh.” Although their strength was nowhere near that of the Freedom League, as a local power in Biyang, their threat to the Biyang Investigation Bureau was considerable!

The strongest leader within the Blood Sakura Society was a fourth-stage source energy wielder, and also the only one at the fourth stage among them. Apart from the leader, there were a few third-stage priests. Of course, the majority of their members were only at the first or second stage.

Those who could be transformed into “Children of Flesh” after death were all fanatical devotees of the “Mother of Flesh.” In truth, even within the Blood Sakura Society, the number of such zealots was quite limited...

Killing two of their zealots was far more valuable than eliminating ordinary source energy wielders.

Less than ten minutes after Lin Lei ended the call, the harsh wail of sirens erupted as several patrol cars stopped in front of the apartment building. Soon enough, the entire apartment was cordoned off...

...

In the early hours before dawn, having dealt with two source energy wielders, Lin Lei hurried through the night to the Investigation Bureau.

Interrogation room.

Separated by a one-way mirror, Lin Lei stood beside Li Xueshu, gazing at the other side where the girl with swollen, red eyes was seated across from Chen Ning.

The girl was Feifei.

Li Xueshu’s eyes were deep, her expression complicated as she looked at the girl behind the one-way glass, her gaze carrying a subtle nuance.

“You know her?” Lin Lei raised an eyebrow at Li Xueshu, sensing an unfathomable meaning in her look.

Li Xueshu shook her head. “Not yet...”

She turned back to Lin Lei, resuming her usual demeanor:

“This girl is Lin Fei. Her two classmates and the young man still unconscious didn’t witness the ‘Child of Flesh’—they only saw you fire your weapon. It’s not a problem...

The main concern is Lin Fei. She witnessed the entire grotesque transformation of the ‘Child of Flesh’ and her mental state has been significantly impacted... The key issue is that, after examination, her source energy compatibility is somewhat out of the ordinary—so things are a bit complicated...”

Lin Lei couldn’t help but raise his brows. “Even erasing or altering her memory wouldn’t work? The Investigation Bureau should be capable of that, right?”

Li Xueshu rolled her eyes.

“The Bureau does have means to erase or alter memories, but there are always limitations and flaws—no guarantee of a permanent change. For ordinary people, it might suffice, but for someone with high source energy compatibility...”

“And the effects already inflicted aren’t something that can be remedied just by modifying memory.”

“The higher-ups have decided to temporarily absorb Lin Fei into the Investigation Bureau for observation. With her compatibility, she might one day become a source energy wielder herself...”

“And since you recommended her for recruitment, if she does awaken as a source energy wielder in the future, you’ll be rewarded with investigation points.”

Lin Lei was taken aback by this, but then nodded readily.

If he recommended a candidate who became a source energy wielder, he would receive a considerable number of investigation points. If that person entered the Operations Division, the rewards would be even greater.

Of course, even with excellent compatibility, not everyone could become a source energy wielder. Take Qiao’er for example—her unstable mental state meant that, no matter how gifted, she couldn’t receive the “Enlightenment Serum.”

Not to mention that it could take months just to get a turn for breakthrough materials, let alone the even scarcer and more crucial “Enlightenment Serum.”

Who knew when she’d actually receive a serum allocated by the Bureau...

As for natural awakening, the odds were even slimmer...

Lin Lei narrowed his eyes and said, “This Lin Fei doesn’t have the right temperament. Even if she joins the Bureau and awakens successfully, no matter how strong her gift, she’ll never be an investigator—at best, she’ll muddle along in logistics or some other support department.”

But Li Xueshu shook her head. “That may be true before awakening, but after awakening, one’s character can undergo a radical transformation. Take yourself as an example... How can you be certain what Lin Fei might become in the future?”

Her words made Lin Lei’s face flicker with a subtle expression.

Given Li Xueshu’s special abilities, there was surely a deeper meaning behind her words.

And recalling how she had arranged for him to appear at a specific time and place—at Park Seven, to save several people—and the particular look she gave Lin Fei, Lin Lei couldn’t help wondering if there was more to it.

“If I hadn’t intervened in this operation, would Lin Fei have died?” Lin Lei suddenly asked.

Li Xueshu shook her head. “Things have already happened as they have. There’s no point in speculating.”

Her reply left Lin Lei thinking even more.

Did she arrange this mission to help him gain merit and grow faster, or... for some other reason?

He turned and looked through the one-way glass at the girl with swollen eyes, his gaze narrowing.

...

Lin Lei did not leave immediately.

Instead, he went to one of the training halls rewarded by the Bureau.

At this hour, the hall was almost deserted.

He walked to a corner, stopping before a “punch strength” testing machine.

Boom!

He struck with proper form, landing a punch.

The digital display leapt to over fourteen hundred.

When he first came to the Bureau for testing, his strength was barely over five hundred kilograms—now it was nearly three times that!

In the past few days, he’d been injected with the “Enlightenment Serum” and had begun source energy cultivation, as well as seized energy from many monsters and enemies. His source energy was brimming, so this improvement was only natural!

He raised his eyebrows, focused his mind, and this time activated “Boiling Blood.”

In an instant, he could feel his heart racing wildly, his whole body heating up.

He punched the machine again.

The numbers on the display jumped directly above two thousand!

Joy flashed in Lin Lei’s eyes.

“My punch strength increased by over five hundred kilograms—my power grew by nearly thirty percent...”

He tested several more times, and the results were all similar.

After a while, he let the Boiling Blood state dissipate, feeling a slight dizziness in his head.

To be honest, the bonus wasn’t much higher than what “Nightstalker” provided, but the former didn’t consume “blood energy.”

However, “Nightstalker” could only be used in dim environments and was useless in many situations.

“After all, there’s a big difference in the devouring energy. The gap is normal...”

The more crucial point was that the bonuses from “Boiling Blood” and “Nightstalker” didn’t conflict!

If he encountered that second-tier monster again, he was confident he could now defeat it with ease.

“That second-tier monster was already considered strong among its rank... which means that, in terms of raw strength, I now count as one of the stronger ones even among the second stage.”

His eyes shone brightly.

In truth, with differing abilities, the strength of monsters and source energy wielders couldn’t be measured by physical power alone.

But when it came to close combat, strength was, without question, an extremely important factor.