CATSR Chapter 107

The sand-manipulator couldn’t feel pain in his sand-formed body, but the horror of watching parts of himself vanish—a part that he could no longer sense—was all too real.

 

Staring in terror at the small mining robot near what used to be his legs, he felt his throat tighten, his breaths short and labored. He tried to scream, but fear gripped him too tightly.

 

His ability wasn’t just to control sand; he could turn himself into it as well. Physical attacks couldn’t harm him, not truly. Even if he were cut in half or scattered by the wind, he could sense and control his body within a certain range.

 

But now… he couldn’t feel his legs at all.

 

It was as if he were a freshly amputated patient, staring in shock at his missing lower half, his mind teetering on the edge of panic.

 

The mining robot moved past him, tapping its tool-like appendages on nearby rocks, showing no interest in him whatsoever. As a mining bot, it had no reason to focus on living beings—it only collected minerals.

 

Only when the eerie little robot moved away from his rock did he dare to relax, lifting his gaze toward the man standing resolute against the wind on the cliff above.

 

Technically, he could flee now. His mind was clearer, his energy steady; he could fully sand-form and escape within seconds. Missing legs or not, he’d survive. Modern technology could grant anyone prosthetics, especially for someone with abilities like his.

 

But he recognized the insignia on the man’s coat. This was a soldier of the Huaxia military—a group that, unlike his Mage Guild or the Superpower Alliance, reported directly to the government.

 

A government-aligned group had an image to maintain, which meant that this officer couldn’t just execute him out of personal spite.

 

Captured officially, his worst punishment would be a fine or a few days in detention. He could request his legs back afterward; surely, the Huaxia government wouldn’t deny him that.

 

“I surrender… please, just give me my legs back,” he called out in his native language.

 

This wasn’t some magical fantasy world where he had to fight for his life. For a minor offense like this, he’d be detained a few days and get his legs back— a pretty fair deal.

 

Jun Ye caught the meaning, even if he didn’t speak the man’s language fluently anymore. He simply nodded at the foreign ability user.

 

Luckily, this wasn’t a country where nodding meant “no.”

 

Pythius, pressed closely to Jun Ye’s waist, listened in with growing apprehension. Back when he led his own group, he often traveled with his underlings, administering “justice,” to the point where other guild members often boasted, “Just wait until our leader shows up!” whenever they got in trouble.

 

Now, he was genuinely worried this sand manipulator might shout something similar.

 

Helping out underlings was out of the question now—this guy had only lost two legs, and he could still fill in the missing parts with sand. Any fight, though, and he risked losing his hard-won boyfriend.

 

As dawn neared, the sand-manipulator, understanding the situation, lay in place in a half-sand state to avoid triggering the strange mining bot and to keep himself from fainting from pain due to his missing lower body.

 

Before long, the sound of a motor came from the sea. A squad of city enforcers, having already received Jun Ye’s message, arrived by speedboat.

 

They were well aware there was a sand manipulator here, but none of them expected him to be missing half his body.

 

As the enforcement squad stepped onto the rock and saw the half-formed figure of the sand manipulator, they collectively sucked in a breath. It was one thing to deal with dangerous ability users, but seeing only half of him alive and conscious was another matter entirely.

 

Since it was someone from another city’s jurisdiction who had handled the arrest, they refrained from asking too many questions. With exchanged glances that spoke of meeting a “psychotic serial killer,” they slowly approached, verified their badges with Jun Ye, and then one of them used a levitation ability to lift the sand user with the urgency of a top-secret mission. They whisked him away at high speed.

 

Pythius was absolutely livid.

 

These people! His police officer had come all the way here, leaving their cozy bed just to secure H City’s marine borders, and they acted like Jun Ye was carrying some infectious disease!

 

Clearly, only he could properly warm up his officer.

 

With that thought, Pythius slyly adjusted the temperature of his gun barrel.

 

Jun Ye, feeling the heat: “…”

 

He thought, This gun is way too unstable; I’ve never used such a temperamental weapon in my life. If this weren’t his partner, he’d be tempted to take it apart and rebuild it from scratch.

 

On the horizon, the sea began to glow with the first light of dawn.

 

Jun Ye checked the “Marine Border Enforcement” group chat on his phone; they’d successfully secured the borders against ability users. He issued instructions to the enforcement teams from City C and the others, establishing rotating patrols.

 

The chat became lively, with each city’s team confirming their duty rosters.

 

With a final look at his phone, Jun Ye climbed into the patrol boat headed toward an artificial island in H City. The closer he got, the stronger the resonant pull within his soul became.

 

The entrance to H City’s marine secret realm lay beneath this artificial island.

 

Jun Ye touched the gun at his waist, feeling the warm presence from his partner that no ordinary weapon could provide, softening his expression slightly.

 

Another time, he thought. Since it’s a Huaxia secret realm, there will always be a way to access it.

 

After reaching the artificial island, Jun Ye headed directly to the hotel arranged by H City. He closed the suite door behind him, unbuttoned his jacket, and removed the gun at his waist.

 

“Hungry?” he asked.

 

Pythius: Hungry, yes—hungry for you.

 

Snuggling into Jun Ye’s palm, Pythius couldn’t help savoring the warmth of being cherished. If he could, he’d love to be tucked away in an even cozier place by his officer.

 

But instead, he was placed onto the hotel bed.

 

Reality was always just a bit shy of imagination.

 

Turning back into his human form, Pythius lazily pulled the blanket over his lower half and looked up at Jun Ye with a mock seriousness. “I am a little hungry. Can I borrow your phone to order something?”

 

Jun Ye, noticing the bare skin of his partner’s shoulders, unlocked his phone and handed it over without a second thought. “Order some clothes, too. We’re about the same size, so no one will notice.”

 

“Got it. Does Officer Jun Ye have a preference? Sleepwear, casual, or… something a bit more… fun?” Pythius’s eyes sparkled mischievously as he browsed.

 

Jun Ye: “… For you to wear.”

 

“Oh?” Pythius blinked, and then, realizing, flushed a deep red. “Oh! Right. I’ll wear it.”

 

Jun Ye: “…”

 

He was fairly certain his words weren’t ambiguous, yet somehow his partner’s reaction suggested otherwise.

 

“I’ll just take a quick shower,” Jun Ye said, feeling the wear of the night’s operations—not just the encounter with the sand manipulator, but several other scuffles that had left him less than spotless.

 

“Need any help in there?” Pythius asked, cheerfully hinting at a full-service offer involving “warming up.”

 

“No need.” Jun Ye turned and walked to the bathroom.

 

“Oh…” Pythius’s spirits fell for a second but quickly revived. Grinning, he held Jun Ye’s phone and added his information into it—first setting up his fingerprints to match Jun Ye’s, then adding his own. He entered his phone number, even though he rarely kept a phone around due to his shapeshifting. For the contact name… Hubby!

 

Whoosh—

 

The faintest noise echoed, but with his heightened senses, Pythius picked up on the soft rustling of clothes outside the wall.

 

Someone was coming toward their room. Whether friend or foe, he couldn’t risk being spotted. In a flash, Pythius powered off the phone and shifted into a handgun, tucking himself under the pillow.

 

The same instant, a quiet “tap” sounded from the balcony as a figure landed gracefully outside.

 

Just as Pythius prepared to alert Jun Ye, the intruder used some unknown ability and teleported straight to the bed, reaching out for the pillow.

 

In that split second, Pythius thought, No way is this person getting their hands on me. This would endanger Jun Ye. He immediately shifted his form.

 

The intruder lifted the pillow silently, only to freeze, staring down in bewilderment.

 

…A pair of white underwear?

 

Underwear beneath the pillow? What kind of person does that?

 

The intruder was momentarily speechless.

 

Pythius mentally high-fived himself.

 

The intruder’s blank look lasted only a second before he put the pillow back and made for Jun Ye’s phone on the side table.

 

But suddenly, he sensed an overwhelming presence lock onto him, flooding him with the instinct to flee.

 

Years of experience in the shadows kicked in, and with a quick inhale, he lunged for the phone, activating his short-range teleportation ability.

 

Bam—Thud!

 

The bathroom door flew open, slamming against the wall, as Jun Ye burst out, colliding with the intruder.

 

“Ugh!” The intruder grunted, thrown sideways. Ignoring the impending impact with the wall, he desperately tried to reinitiate his ability.

 

In a swift move, Jun Ye struck, knocking the intruder out cold before he even hit the floor.

 

It happened so fast that Pythius barely had time to react before Jun Ye was already standing by the bed.

 

Jun Ye lifted the pillow—and froze.

 

…Underwear?

 

His… partner?

 

The showerhead was still running, a steady stream of water splashing onto the bathroom floor.

 

Pythius’s spirit brushed up against Jun Ye’s aura, nearly clinging to him, savoring the feel.

 

Water droplets clung to Jun Ye, slipping down his torso as his aura washed over him, warm and close.

 

Under Jun Ye’s gaze, the white underwear slowly turned pink, with an unmistakable hint of deepening color.

 

There was no doubt—it was his partner.

 

Jun Ye sighed, “Are you… alright?”

 

Pythius managed a flustered response. “S-So… majestic…”

 

“Hmm?”

 

Bang—Bang—

 

A loud pounding sounded from the door.

 

“Damn! What’s with this door? Enhanced with powers?!” Bai Mao yelled from outside.

 

“Captain, hang on! I’m coming—”

 

Jun Ye: “…”

 

“Break it down!” Bai Mao shouted.

 

An icy chill seeped through the room from the doorway.

 

Pythius quickly realized—The ice mage is trying to break in!

 

“Hurry up and put me on!” Pythius urged through their bond.

 

Jun Ye: “…No, I refuse.”

 

Outside, a triumphant voice called, “Open up, you sorry excuse for a door!”

 

“Put me on!!” Pythius yelled, panicking. Only I can witness Officer’s majesty!

 

Crack—

 

The door split open as frosty white mist billowed from the entryway.

 

“Captain!” Bai Mao burst in with a group of off-duty enforcers, who immediately froze, spotting Jun Ye standing cross-armed by the bathroom door, his face expressionless.

 

“Ca… Captain?” They looked as though they’d just made a huge mistake.

 

Jun Ye: “Take that intruder and hand him over to H City’s enforcement squad.”

 

Jun Ye turned and headed to the bathroom, closing the door behind him with a firm thud.

 

Outside, the team finally noticed the shadowy figure slumped in a corner, resembling a black, humanoid mass.

 

“Why on earth would a powered criminal try sneaking into an Enforcement Team’s hotel? Aren’t they practically asking to be caught? Quick, quick! Take them to the H City crime division for questioning,” Bai Mao instructed, then leaned toward the empty air beside him, whispering, “Did you see it? The captain was wearing… pink underwear.”

 

“Wasn’t it red?” came the equally hushed reply.

 

Bai Mao exchanged a knowing look with the invisible teammate. Whoa, captain, didn’t know you were like that.

 

Inside the bathroom, Jun Ye tugged at the waistband of his underwear, trying to remove it.

 

The situation felt far too embarrassing with his partner clinging to him this way.

 

But it wouldn’t come off.

 

Pythius stubbornly clung to him, sending a telepathic message, You’re done with your shower, didn’t bring fresh clothes… You’ll need to change underwear eventually.

 

That’s not the same, Jun Ye gritted his teeth, his voice barely audible.

 

Pythius always had a knack for turning serious situations into something ridiculous.

 

Going commando wasn’t an option Pythius would agree with—not when he was the underwear in question. But he had no chance in a strength contest. With one final, determined tug, Jun Ye managed to pull him off.

 

“You’re abusive! You’re not the gentle and patient partner I used to know!” Pythius cried, feigning hurt.

 

Jun Ye ignored him, wrapped a towel around his waist, set the water in the tub to a comfortable temperature, and dropped the underwear in.

 

For a moment, there was silence. After a while, Pythius flailed in the water, reverting to his human form with a gasp.

 

“Hah… You… tried to drown me…” he panted, looking thoroughly pitiful as he clung to the edge of the tub.

 

Unfazed, Jun Ye stepped outside, ordered a dry-cleaning service for his clothes, and requested several new outfits in his partner’s size. This hotel, dedicated to serving powered Enforcement Team members, operated with remarkable efficiency, and within ten minutes, everything he’d ordered was delivered.

 

Jun Ye glanced at the clothes on the table, then returned to the bathroom.

 

The water should have cooled by now, and it had been suspiciously quiet for a while.

 

Standing at the door, he saw Pythius slumped over the edge of the bathtub, looking as wilted as ever.

 

Jun Ye stepped forward, intending to pull him out.

 

The water was still pleasantly warm.

 

Full-spectrum mage perks, he mused with a raised eyebrow. Making it feel like a hot spring.

 

“Get out,” he said, retracting his hand and giving Pythius a pointed look.

 

“I need a kiss for energy…” Pythius looked up, face flushed, looking thoroughly “exhausted.”

 

They stared at each other for a long moment. Just as Pythius was about to give in and plead, Jun Ye finally said, “Come out here if you want one.”

 

“!!!”

 

Suddenly filled with energy, Pythius scrambled out, grabbing a towel to wipe himself off in a flurry, his eyes fixed nervously on Jun Ye as he leaned closer.

 

Closer. Their lips met.

 

…

 

They stood there, lips barely pressed together, not moving.

 

Jun Ye: “…”

 

Pythius: Success! Kissed the officer!

 

Jun Ye pulled back, casting a look at the slightly dazed Pythius, then turned and headed toward the door.

 

Pythius: “???”

 

“!!!”

 

Wait, no, really—my kissing skills are amazing! I was just so excited, I forgot to, uh… actually move…

 

Officer, please, let me explain, sob…

 

 

 

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Xiao Xiu is just so freaking embarrassing! little fool!!!

 

Thanks for reading!