"Overclocking Brain and Mental Shock belong to the same ability category. Would you like to fuse them?"


    "You can actually merge abilities of the same type?"


    Yang Xi was a bit surprised, but he immediately chose to proceed with the fusion.


    Within his perception, the two ability pearls inside his body began to devour each other under the effect of his power. His mental energy fluctuated violently, causing him to feel a slight sense of weightlessness.


    Fusion Complete


    Ability: Super BrainDescription: Actively unleashes a mental shock while greatly enhancing brain computation and deduction abilities.Rating: D-tier. This is a double-edged sword—use with caution.


    The moment the fusion was complete, an overwhelming drowsiness swept over Yang Xi like a tide, and he collapsed onto his bed, falling into a deep sleep.


    Morning.


    Knock, knock, knock.


    Yang Xi''s door was knocked on. When he opened it, a delicate-looking girl with a rabbit hairpin stood outside.


    "Thanks for last night."


    ???


    Who is this girl?


    It took Yang Xi a moment to realize that this fresh-faced girl in pajamas was actually the wavy-haired woman from last night.


    He hadn''t expected her bare-faced look to be so pure, a stark contrast to his first impression.


    "Here''s your coat. Thanks again for last night. I actually had a bit of awareness, but I was just too exhausted."


    Yang Xi took back his coat. As he rubbed the sleep from his eyes, he gradually became more awake. Smiling, he said, "No problem. It was just a small favor."


    He sniffed his coat and was surprised to find that it didn’t reek of alcohol. Instead, it carried a faint herbal fragrance.


    The girl explained, "I made sure to freshen it up for you. I smelled way too much like alcohol last night. Oh, by the way, my name is Lin Naixue."


    "I''m Yang Xi. Are you feeling okay? Any discomfort?"


    Yang Xi asked tentatively. After all, he had stripped her ability the night before. Though she was unaware she had ever possessed an ability, it seemed like the stripping process hadn’t affected her daily life. That put his mind at ease.


    After stuffing the last bite of fried dough stick into his mouth, Yang Xi took out a wet wipe and carefully cleaned his hands before opening a file on his computer.


    This was a video archive he had obtained from his colleague, Fan Peng. As a semi-official news agency, Lugang Evening News had the authority to document such incidents.


    The office’s 17-inch monitor displayed a crisp, high-definition image, instantly pulling Yang Xi back to the day of the incident.


    Location: No. 158, Bit Street—Honey City Convenience Store.


    At first, it was just a compilation of footage from several street cameras. However, under the simulation of Yang Xi’s Super Brain ability, he felt as if he was experiencing the event firsthand from a first-person perspective.


    With his brain overclocked, his ability to collect and process information reached terrifying heights. Even the minuscule ingredient label on a milk carton discarded by a fleeing pedestrian was crystal clear to him.


    Yang Xi felt like his brain was running like an overheated CPU, growing increasingly hot.


    At the scene, Glacier Hero was continuously dodging attacks from the Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf, trying to lure it away from the crowd that had already been evacuated.


    These Exobeasts descended upon Azure Planet through Black Cavities, which appeared unpredictably. Humanity had yet to develop a way to forecast their emergence. The only countermeasure was a global network of official agencies and hero management firms, ensuring enough heroes were positioned to respond swiftly.


    This Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf was not among the largest of its kind. Three years ago, a specimen in District Four had been five meters tall and nine meters long, causing devastating casualties. In comparison, this one was only three meters tall and six meters long—still a massive beast, nearly the size of a city bus.


    Glacier Hero kept restraining the Exobeast, gliding effortlessly across the terrain by generating ice beneath his feet while continuously launching Frost Bombs at the Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf.


    The wolf''s body radiated a fiery blood aura, clashing against the spreading frost from the hero’s attacks.


    Yang Xi paused the video at this moment.


    He repeatedly reviewed the footage of the Frost Bombs exploding against the Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf.


    Then, he compared it to the moment when the Honey City Convenience Store was struck by the frost blast.


    There was a significant difference in power between the two.


    "As an A-rank hero, Glacier Hero should be able to control the strength of his Frost Bombs at will."


    "Could it be a tactical decision?"


    Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.


    "No, that’s not right. His expression tells me that from the moment the Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf got within ten meters of him, he was already going all out."


    As a journalist, Yang Xi had studied microexpression analysis. Now, under the effects of Super Brain, his ability to read facial cues was on par with veteran criminal investigators.


    "If he was already going all out at that moment… why did the power suddenly spike? Judging by the frost’s impact, his strength tripled in an instant!"


    "There’s definitely a secret behind this!"


    "I just need to find the exact moment between his normal Frost Bombs and the one that suddenly became significantly stronger!"


    Yang Xi bit down on his pen and meticulously combed through the footage, frame by frame.


    "It must be between the fifth and sixth Frost Bombs. Glacier Hero did something that caused his ability to surge in power!"


    Like a shark that had smelled blood, Yang Xi zeroed in on that segment, extracting the relevant footage.


    Footage from five different camera angles captured various details of Glacier Hero’s battle against the Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf.


    The fifth Frost Bomb struck the beast’s nose, causing it to howl in pain.


    Glacier Hero skated across the battlefield, leaping over a hotpot restaurant''s storefront before landing on the asphalt road, ice shards blooming behind him like lotus petals.


    His blue bangs cast a shadow over his eyes as he seemed to concentrate for a few seconds. Then, as the Bloodthirsty Demon Wolf turned toward him, he clenched his fists and fired a massive Frost Bomb!


    The blast froze half the wolf’s body, but the burning blood aura quickly shattered the ice.


    Yang Xi replayed the footage over and over until he finally spotted a tiny detail.


    When Glacier Hero skated past the hotpot restaurant’s "Spicy" character, he briefly covered his mouth with his left hand.


    This wasn’t his usual movement pattern. Normally, whether for balance or flair, Glacier Hero kept his hands spread out while skating.


    But this time, just before landing, he had deliberately covered his mouth with his left hand.


    This was the only anomaly Yang Xi had noticed.


    His instincts told him—something was off.


    Yang Xi saved this short video clip to his phone. Even if he was just being overly suspicious, he had to uncover the truth.


    At the next desk, Fan Peng poked his head over. "What’s for lunch?"


    "How about frog hotpot? The weather’s cold, and a steaming meal sounds perfect. My treat—consider it payback for the meal I owed you last time!"


    Fan Peng grabbed Yang Xi and started dragging him out of the office. Unlike "ordinary employees" like Yang Xi, Fan Peng was an ability user—he could frame shots with his index fingers and thumbs, instantly taking photos or videos and wirelessly uploading them via his pinky, which could transform into desert sand.


    He called his ability "Paparazzi."


    This allowed him to bypass security checks at high-profile celebrity and political events, snapping juicy pictures to sell to tabloids for hefty commissions.


    "Man, it’s freezing out here. Do these girls not feel cold at all?"


    Fan Peng rubbed his hands together while eyeing the long-legged beauties passing by the hotpot restaurant.


    Yang Xi chuckled. His friend probably had no idea that these girls had a little trick called faux-skin thermal leggings.


    Fan Peng gave Yang Xi a sideways glance. "If only we could have lunch with these cuties instead of you, man."


    For some reason, Lin Naixue’s image flashed through Yang Xi’s mind.


    "Hey! What’s with that look? Get your head out of the gutter!"


    Fan Peng waved a hand in front of Yang Xi’s face, snapping him out of his thoughts.


    Just then, a fragrant breeze wafted in as a wavy-haired girl sat down across from Yang Xi. This time, however, she was dressed in a black business suit.


    She removed her sunglasses, raised an eyebrow at Yang Xi, and said, “Hey, handsome, mind if I grab a pair of chopsticks and join you?”


    Yang Xi was a bit surprised. “You work nearby too?”


    Did I misjudge her profession?


    Lin Naixue nodded. “I have two jobs—one during the day and a part-time gig at night.”


    Yang Xi signaled the waiter to bring an extra set of utensils. “That sounds tough. Are you short on money?”


    “Mhm, super short.”


    “Speaking of which, I’m not the one treating today. Our generous host is right here.”


    Yang Xi nudged the dumbfounded Fan Peng beside him.


    Fan Peng had dated plenty of girls, but this was the first time he’d seen someone as stunning as Lin Naixue.


    “Hey, hey, how do you know this girl? Didn’t you say you’ve never been in a relationship?”


    Yang Xi casually tossed aside a frog leg bone. “She’s my roommate.”


    “Are you kidding me?!”


    Fan Peng was instantly filled with envy and regret. Had he made a mistake renting out an entire apartment for himself?


    Because Lin Naixue was one of the rare female acquaintances Yang Xi had made, Fan Peng decided to play it cool for once, keeping his head down and focusing on his food.


    Yang Xi didn’t press further about why she was so desperate for money. Everyone had their struggles. If it weren’t for last night’s unexpected encounter, he might not have even known his roommate’s name.


    Though they lived in the same rented apartment, they were ultimately just passing acquaintances.


    The atmosphere at the table grew somewhat awkward. When it was just the two of them, Fan Peng would always find some trivial nonsense to argue with Yang Xi about. But now that Lin Naixue was here, he didn’t want to steal his friend’s thunder and was secretly panicking.


    "Come on, Old Yang! You won’t get anywhere with girls if you don’t take the initiative. Especially one of this caliber!"


    Fan Peng sent Yang Xi a message under the table. But before Yang Xi could even glance at his phone, a terrified scream suddenly erupted from the street outside!


    “A beast! A beast has appeared!”


    Everyone turned in the direction the screaming middle-aged man with a courier bag was pointing.


    On the fourth floor of the Silver Plaza shopping center, right where the "Bain Education" sign was hanging, a swirling black rift had suddenly opened.


    From the rift, several spider-like tendrils slithered out, violently tearing the portal wider, revealing a massive, half-meter-wide crimson eye.


    The vertical sl*t pupil adjusted for a moment, adapting to the light of Azure Star.


    Then, it saw the crowd frozen below.


    A few drivers, too distracted by the sight, ended up rear-ending each other, instantly causing a traffic jam at the intersection.


    “A beast is here! Run for your lives!”


    “Mommy! I want my mommy!” A little girl fell helplessly amid the panicked, shoving crowd.


    “Stay calm! Everyone, stay calm and evacuate in an orderly manner!” A traffic officer in a reflective vest shouted as he fought against the tide of fleeing civilians. But it was futile.


    Even though beast invasions had become a common occurrence, mass panic was still inevitable.


    After all, when it came to survival, no one was willing to yield. Each district’s underground shelters had limited capacity—if you were late, you’d be stuck outside.


    That’s why, on Azure Star, everyone took running seriously.


    Failing chemistry in elementary school? Not a big deal. But if your athletic skills were lacking, expect a serious beatdown.


    At school, the math teacher never dared to let the P.E. teacher "call in sick."


    “Beast invasion! Beast invasion! Threat Level: B! Citizens, please evacuate to the nearest shelter. Heroes are en route! Heroes are en route!”


    Emergency broadcasts blared on televisions and radios, while evacuation alerts flooded everyone’s phones.


    Yang Xi, Lin Naixue, and Fan Peng exchanged glances before hurriedly joining the fleeing crowd!


    At that moment, a muscular man in a comic-themed jacket suddenly leaped into the air, charging straight toward the beast!


    “It’s B-Class Hero—Hot & Sour Noodle Superman! He’s here to save us!”