Chapter 2: Chapter 1: What’s the Use of You?
He Xiaotian, however, had the good sense to keep these thoughts to himself.
Sure, his cousin had been blindly training for three years, but that muscular physique of his wasn’t for show.
Ever seen an eight-pack?
His cousin had one!
If you punched him in his abs, not only would he be completely unfazed...
...but He Xiaotian’s own arm would ache from the impact.
Even now, his cousin’s words echoed clearly in his mind.
"Frail scholar!"
’Fine, it’s no big deal if he looks down on me.’
’Being a frail scholar is way better than being a muscle-crazed lunatic who mindlessly messes around with martial arts every day.’
Apparently, their aunt was worried sick over it. Some acquaintances even said his cousin had lost his mind.
Because of this, many of the girls who used to pursue him had disappeared.
A handsome, rich guy was a good catch, but if he had something wrong with his head, you had to think twice.
Feeling rather listless, He Xiaotian got up, ready to clean the room.
CLICK!
The sound of the lock turning made his lazy expression freeze on his face.
’No way...?!’
A dreadful premonition surfaced in his mind.
"Xiaotian, come back to the station with me—"
The person at the door stopped mid-sentence.
In the living room, He Xiaotian and his cousin stared at each other, speechless for a long moment.
"You’d better tell me what’s going on here, or I’ll give you a taste of my furious fists." His handsome cousin, who surprisingly had the delicate features of an uke, cracked his knuckles, the sound completely at odds with his appearance.
"Heh heh, Cousin. If I said this was all a misunderstanding, would you believe me?" He Xiaotian said, flashing what he hoped was an endearing smile.
"Then why don’t you guess how many times I’m going to punch you?"
In the end, his cousin forgave him after He Xiaotian admitted his mistake with a sufficiently remorseful attitude.
But there was one condition he had to meet.
He had to make the room spotless again.
If even a single trace of residue or a strange smell remained...
...he would be kicked out and have to crawl back to his own home to face the "loving care" of his mother.
"Huh? Cousin, what’s this?"
He Xiaotian asked, looking quizzically at the transparent plastic bag on the living room coffee table.
"That? It’s residue from the scene of a missing person case. I was supposed to get off work early today and go out for dinner with my colleagues. But the station got a call saying someone heard screams from an alley in the East Side Food Street.
By the time we got to the food street and entered the alley, all we found was this black substance that didn’t belong there. Afterward, everyone else went to the restaurant we’d picked out, and they asked me to drop the evidence off at the station.
On my way back, I noticed my pants were dirty. Since I pass by our place on the way to the station anyway, I figured I’d stop by and change. It saves me from having to make a special trip back here before heading to dinner."
"You can do that? Isn’t that negligence of duty? Don’t you need to investigate immediately?" He Xiaotian was dumbfounded.
"Investigate how? Someone just heard a scream. Besides the stuff in the evidence bag, the crime scene was completely empty—impossibly clean. If so many people on the food street hadn’t testified to hearing the sound, we would’ve suspected it was a prank call.
But after questioning dozens of people, not a single person said they saw anyone enter that alley. We know nothing—gender, age, appearance. To make things worse, it’s a surveillance blind spot. We checked the security cameras from over a dozen businesses, but it was no use.
Right now, the only thing we can do is wait for the family of the missing person to file a report. We can’t just have a bunch of cops staring blankly at a bag of unknown substance all night, can we?"
"..."
’Alright, then.’ For He Xiaotian, who had never been to a police station and knew nothing about investigation procedures, his cousin’s argument was irrefutable.
He looked at the black substance inside the evidence bag on the coffee table and involuntarily picked it up to examine it closely.
From the outside, it looked like some kind of vomit, but it didn’t have a pungent smell.
There was a faint shimmer inside it, something like a crystal.
Holding it in his hand, though, he felt a strange chill.
It was as if something was staring at him, and it made him feel a little scared.
The black substance on the outside looked like the legendary Netherworld soil, giving off an ominous feeling.
At such a close distance, he even felt a little dizzy and nauseous.
’Could it be some kind of industrial chemical?’
’Is it harmful to humans?’
[Ding! Absorbable Experience Points detected. Absorb?]
"What?!"
"What is it?" He Xiaotian’s exclamation drew a question from his cousin.
"Nothing! It’s nothing!"
"You’re always making a fuss over nothing. In a bit, you’re coming with me to the station, and then we’re going out for dinner. Eating takeout every day is not healthy at all."
He Xiaotian didn’t hear a word his cousin said.
He was too busy marveling at the fact that he’d actually found a way to get Experience Points.
’Although the method isn’t clear yet...’
’...at least I finally have a lead, right?’
The only thing that made him hesitate was whether the black substance in the evidence bag would disappear if he absorbed it as Experience Points.
If his cousin hadn’t been the one to bring it back, he would have chosen to absorb it without a second thought.
’Better you than me, after all.’
If the clue in the missing person case disappeared because he absorbed it, his own cousin would have to take the fall!
After weighing the pros and cons, He Xiaotian made up his mind.
’If that really happens, then all I can say is, "Sorry, Cousin."’
’Besides, if he lost his job, who knows how happy our aunt would be!’
Being a police officer sounded glorious, but it was actually a dangerous profession.
Z County’s economy might be underdeveloped, and it had never had any ruthless criminals...
...but there was no guarantee that some vicious crime wouldn’t happen one day, leading to him dying in the line of duty.
More importantly, if he missed this opportunity today, he might never get another one.
Who knew how this black substance was produced?
’Cousin, I’m sorry, but I have to do this. If I gain some power in the future, I’ll definitely make it up to you,’ He Xiaotian said in his mind, then silently thought, ’Absorb.’
[Ding! 100 Experience Points acquired.]
The two lines of text in the upper-left corner suddenly changed.
[Experience Points: 100
Function: Scan]
"Phew!"
He Xiaotian let out a sigh of relief, and not just because he’d gained a hundred Experience Points.
He noticed that the surface of the black substance in the evidence bag hadn’t changed at all.
Only the crystal-like thing inside seemed to have vanished.
’The best of both worlds, the best of both worlds.’
Even if someone noticed this anomaly in the future, his cousin wouldn’t be held responsible.
And they certainly wouldn’t find out he was the one behind it.
But what was still a headache was that as soon as the old problem was solved, a new one appeared!
What was he supposed to scan with this so-called "Scan" function?
How many Experience Points would it cost each time?
He couldn’t forget he only had a hundred points!
’I still have to keep experimenting. It’s a long road ahead.’
He Xiaotian felt wronged. Other people’s Golden Fingers were all insanely cool and badass.
But when he looked at his own, it immediately felt inferior.
No!
It was downright abysmal.
It didn’t even come with instructions.
Ptooey!
If it weren’t for his cousin, he probably would have never gotten a single Experience Point in his life.
He Xiaotian didn’t know that his actions had done his cousin a huge favor, successfully averting a disaster at the police station.
"Alright, let’s go, Xiaotian. You haven’t had dinner yet, right? I’ll take you out for a big meal."
Eager to test the Scan function, He Xiaotian naturally wasn’t going to go.
He shook his head and said, "Cousin, I’ll pass. I still have to clean up the house. You don’t want to sleep in a mess like this tonight, do you? Just bring me back some takeout when you come home, that’ll be enough."
"Alright, then."
His cousin glanced at the disastrous state of the room and finally nodded.
Then, he took the evidence bag and left.
"Scan."
As soon as his cousin was gone, He Xiaotian immediately began a new round of experiments.
He first tried it on a teacup. The object was relatively small, so even if it cost Experience Points, it couldn’t possibly be an outrageous amount.
[Ding! This item cannot be scanned. Scan failed.]
Next, the coffee table, the TV, the bed, and even the security door—all of them failed, one after another.
"Sigh! What’s the point of having a useless Golden Finger like you?"
Comments