INHA Chapter 4

Seal?

Xu Dongyou’s first reaction was confusion. But he didn’t ask immediately.

“That thing won’t follow me anymore, right?” Hou Mingjun still felt uneasy and asked for confirmation from the two men again. They gave him a reassuring nod.

“It’s a good thing you called the police back then. Otherwise, we wouldn’t have come to investigate this matter. Remember to call the police if anything happens in the future,” one of the men said.

Hou Mingjun finally relaxed completely and nodded.

Just then, footsteps were heard from the third floor, making Hou Mingjun tense up again, his expression alert.

Then familiar voices came. Hou Mingjun immediately recognized them as his parents and realized that they had gone out earlier.

At that moment, Father Hou and Mother Hou reached the fourth floor. Seeing Hou Mingjun, Xu Dongyou, and the two men sitting on the ground clearly injured from a fight, Mother Hou calmly asked, “Mingjun, are these your friends?”

“No, we were just coming downstairs when a small argument turned into a fight. These two heard the commotion and came out to help,” one of the men quickly came up with a believable excuse.

Mother Hou’s expression softened. “Young people can be hot-tempered, but don’t let small issues lead to fights. It only harms relationships.”

“Yes, yes, we won’t fight again. We’ll go to the clinic to get patched up now,” the man who threw the talisman said, grimacing as he got up and put his arm around the other man’s shoulders, heading downstairs.

“Wait a minute?” Hou Mingjun instinctively wanted to chase after them. They had helped him so much and even got injured; he hadn’t had a chance to thank them or treat them to a meal.

Xu Dongyou quickly stopped Hou Mingjun. “I’ll go see them off. You stay here with your parents.”

“Alright. Make sure to thank them properly. We’ll chat later,” Hou Mingjun hinted.

Xu Dongyou nodded and said goodbye to Hou’s parents.

Mother Hou waved and said to Xu Dongyou, “Dongyou, there’s a clinic not far from here. After you take them there, come back quickly. I’ll cook a big meal for you myself.”

Mother Hou always showed special affection for Xu Dongyou.

Usually, Mother Hou never cooked; it was always Father Hou. There were only two occasions when Mother Hou would cook: when Hou Mingjun returned home after filming for half a year, or when Xu Dongyou visited.

Seeing his family safe and sound, Hou Mingjun suddenly felt a deeper appreciation for happiness.

As Xu Dongyou went downstairs, he saw the two men from the so-called Anomaly Handling Bureau sitting in the small clinic across the street, with a nurse helping to bandage them up.

A cool breeze blew by.

Xu Dongyou felt a bit cold and couldn’t help but sniff. His vision and hearing slowly returned to normal as he stood there.

Standing here, he could hardly see the minor wounds on the faces of the two people across from him anymore.

He estimated that by nightfall, his cold and cough would worsen to the extreme. Even medication and injections would not provide relief; he would have to tough it out.

He needed to seize the opportunity to ask those two who they really were and why they possessed such abilities.

And… that thing called the “resentful spirit”.

With these thoughts in mind, Xu Dongyou tightened his coat and quickly walked over. He had already expended most of his energy, making it difficult for him to move fast.

When the two men saw Xu Dongyou come in, they smiled and greeted him, wincing in pain as the nurse gently tended to them.

After the bandaging was done, the three quickly found a quiet and secluded place.

From their appearance, these two men looked no older than twenty-eight. They were somewhat lean in build, with agile reflexes.

One of them said, “I know you have many questions. Take your time. But before that, we need to establish something.”

Xu Dongyou instinctively sniffed and his voice sounded a bit stuffy, with a slight nasal tone as he asked, “What is it?”

The man continued, “Did you notice from a very young age that you seemed to possess unusual abilities?”

Xu Dongyou pursed his lips slightly and didn’t speak immediately. After thinking carefully for a few seconds, he replied, “Yes.”

Having forcibly heightened his senses earlier, he didn’t sense anything uncomfortable from these two anymore.

Although he couldn’t use this ability now to judge whether these two harbored ill intentions.

However, in what seemed like an ordinary and mundane world, there existed something as terrifying and unpredictable as the resentful spirit.

Once an ordinary person encountered such a thing, there was simply no safe way to escape.

As for himself, even with his danger perception ability, he had no capability to attack or resist. The feeling of being unable to protect himself was truly unsettling.

Xu Dongyou was willing to risk danger to seize the opportunity to touch the mysterious world he could reach.

The two opposite him showed undisguised expressions of joy.

“Specifically, what kind of abilities do you possess?” asked the other, slightly more serious person. He then introduced himself, “I also have special abilities like you, so you don’t need to worry too much. We just need to confirm which category you belong to.”

Xu Dongyou blinked, feeling less nervous after hearing that the other also had special abilities.

However, Xu Dongyou had only seen the two use red threads and talismans to block the resentful spirit. He hadn’t seen how they defeated and sealed it.

What exactly were their special abilities?

After a brief thought, Xu Dongyou answered them, “My ability can enhance visual and auditory perception, and it can also make my physical reactions more sensitive.”

He chose not to reveal his ability to predict danger and his heightened intuition fully.

The two men glanced at each other, and one of them asked, “I remember you can see the evil energy left by the resentful spirit, right? That grayish haze.”

Xu Dongyou nodded.

This was something he couldn’t hide now, even if he wanted to.

The two men smiled even more joyfully than before, looking at Xu Dongyou as if watching a seedling about to grow strong.

“Now let me introduce myself. My code name in the Bureau is Zhang Wu,” said the man with slightly longer hair, skilled in using talismans, pointing to the other who used the red string and had a more calm demeanor, “He’s called Zhao Liu within our organization.”

None of them were using their real names.

“So, what does this Anomaly Handling Bureau you mentioned earlier do? Do all its members have special abilities like yours?” Xu Dongyou’s curiosity was thoroughly piqued.

He vaguely realized that perhaps from now on, he would be pushing open a door to a mysterious world he had never touched before.

“Don’t rush. Let me send a message to my captain first and brief him about your situation,” Zhao Liu said, extending his hand and tapping on the screen of what looked like an ordinary wristwatch but suddenly displayed a semi-transparent screen reminiscent of a sci-fi movie.

Xu Dongyou’s eyes widened in astonishment. Zhang Wu, who had been anticipating this moment, had an odd sensation, akin to seeing a small animal react unexpectedly.

“Isn’t it fascinating?” Zhang Wu came back to his senses and introduced the device to Xu Dongyou, saying, “Everyone in the organization has one of these gadgets. It’s convenient for making calls and video chats. It is also shock-resistant.”

Xu Dongyou nodded eagerly, his eyes sparkling as he stared at the watch, filled with longing. He then asked Zhang Wu, “Besides the functions of a phone, does this watch have any other special features?”

Zhang Wu’s face stiffened slightly, he pondered for a moment, and then said in a somewhat uncertain tone, “It does… For example, it can establish contact using spiritual energy when there’s no signal.”

“Ah?” Xu Dongyou exclaimed.

Although he knew this was already impressive, he couldn’t shake off a feeling of disappointment.

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