Chapter 73: Aberrant Parasite Hunter
After investigating the homeowner's background, the Combat Police sent a report to Zhang Kai's phone. Going through the information, Zhang Kai frowned. "The homeowner is Zhang Heng, thirty-eight years old. He lives alone following a divorce and has a son named Zhang Lei, who was awarded to his ex-wife during the custody proceedings.
"About a month ago, Zhang Heng's parents, his older sister Zhang Ling and her family, his younger brother Zhang Qiang and his family, as well as his ex-wife and son, all died during the Aberrant Parasite incident."
Yu Xian immediately got a terrible feeling. It was tragic. Zhang Heng's entire family was gone, and he was the only one left. In such a condition, he had consumed a Forbidden Fruit. It made him extremely unstable.
Suddenly, the pillar of crimson light contracted. Within the shrinking column, a blood-red substance gradually covered Zhang Heng. His face twisted in agony, yet he laughed maniacally through the pain. Amid that laughter, he slowly transformed into a two-meter-tall crimson humanoid monster.
After landing on the floor, he rolled his neck from side to side. Then he reached into his abdomen and pulled out an enormous blood-red scythe. His eyes shifted toward Yu Xian and Zhang Kai, who were outside the apartment. There was no trace of human emotion left in his gaze. It was cold and predatory, like that of a hunter observing its surroundings. He looked at them for only a moment before withdrawing his gaze, as if neither Yu Xian nor Zhang Kai interested him in the slightest.
Yu Xian remained calm. He cast Appraisal on Zhang Heng.
Name
- Zhang Heng
Codename
- Aberrant Parasite Hunter
Race
- Wraithborn
Gender
- Male
Age
- 38
Lifespan
- 0
Rank
- Upper Wolf Rank
Affiliation
- Lawful Neutral
[Abilities]
Bane of the Swarm
- Increases fighting spirit by 200% when facing insect-type enemies. Grants a 1% increase in power for every insectoid creature killed.
Hunter's Scent
- Can detect scents that provoke its fury and excitement, allowing it to relentlessly pursue its target until death.
Wraithborn Physique
- A cursed body obtained through the sacrifice of everything. Until all designated targets have been slain, it will never die.
Blood of Fury
- Can burn the user's blood while enraged, dramatically increasing its power until every drop of blood has been consumed.
Summary
- I may be dead, but I will kill them. Kill every last one of them!
After going through his attributes, Yu Xian silently watched Zhang Heng walk downstairs.
Zhang Kai frowned when he noticed that Yu Xian wasn't teleporting Zhang Heng away. "Yu Xian?"
With a complicated expression, Yu Xian sighed. "Zhang Heng is already dead. What's left of him is nothing but an obsession. He won't harm innocent people. His only targets are Aberrant Parasites. Just make sure everyone stays away from him."
Zhang Kai was still worried. "What if he causes a panic?"
Yu Xian let out a bitter smile. "We'll have to manage it as best we can. At this point, unless every Aberrant Parasite is wiped out, Zhang Heng can never truly be killed."
Unless Yu Xian kept constant watch over him, even if Zhang Heng were removed from Silver City, he would simply reappear in another city. Besides, Yu Xian couldn't help thinking that having Zhang Heng around wasn't entirely a bad thing. If he was present in Silver City, he would hunt down any Aberrant Parasite that showed up without exception.
By this time, Zhang Heng had reached the ground floor. His gaze swept across the surrounding crowd. Suddenly, his eyes lit up, and he bolted straight toward a young man.
The officers from the Combat Police unit responsible for guarding the perimeter immediately opened fire on Zhang Heng. Zhang Heng paid no attention whatsoever to the bullets striking his body. He rushed past one of the officers and swung his scythe in a single fluid motion, cleanly splitting the young man's head into two.
A Brain-Clinging Neural Parasite shot out of the young man's head and lashed toward Zhang Heng with its tentacles. But Zhang Heng snatched it right out of the air. Blood-red flames instantly engulfed the parasite, reducing it to ashes in the blink of an eye.
Under the horrified and bewildered gazes of countless onlookers, Zhang Heng turned and scanned the distance. Apparently locating another target, he changed his direction and began walking away.
Zhang Kai couldn't help sighing. "The hatred he carries for the Aberrant Parasites really is endless."
Yu Xian let out a quiet sigh as well. "When all's said and done, he's a pitiful man."
Zhang Kai couldn't argue with that. A moment later, he pulled out his phone and issued new orders, instructing the Combat Police not to attack Zhang Heng under any circumstances. However, to be safe, he assigned three officers to follow Zhang Heng and monitor his movements, ensuring that he did not harm any innocent civilians.
Then, Zhang Kai and Yu Xian returned to the patrol car. Zhang Kai didn't start the engine right away. After sitting in silence for a while, he said self-reproachfully, "What happened to Zhang Heng... in the end, it's because we, the Combat Police, didn't do enough. If we'd discovered the threat sooner and dealt with it earlier, maybe his family wouldn't have died."
Yu Xian took two cans of soda from his spatial ring, handing one to Zhang Kai and keeping the other for himself. He hooked a finger under the tab and paused midway through pulling it open. "It isn't you guys' fault, and it isn't the nation's fault either. The ones who truly deserve to die are..."
He never finished the sentence. But Zhang Kai knew he was referring to Peng Zu and the mysterious organization behind him. The entire country was currently searching for Peng Zu. The problem was that he had most likely altered his appearance, leaving investigators with virtually no useful leads.
After finishing their sodas, the two resumed their patrol. At one point, they passed a trash can and spontaneously stopped the car to compete over who could throw their empty bottle more accurately. As expected, both bottles landed perfectly inside the trash can, and they ended up in a draw.
Sometimes, a man's happiness really was that simple. The little game lifted both of their spirits considerably.
The next morning, Yu Xian returned home, took a shower, and changed into his school uniform. The moment he stepped out the front door, sure enough, Nora came skipping over toward him.
When she saw him, a brilliant smile blossomed across her face. "Good morning."
Yu Xian returned the greeting, and the two walked to school. After a while, a box of soup dumplings mysteriously appeared in Yu Xian's hand, and he ate as he walked.
The aroma was so tempting that Nora could hardly resist. In the end, she pulled out an assortment of vampire-friendly pastries from her spatial ring and began snacking as well.
In the past, she would never have eaten while walking down the street. To her, it wasn't ladylike. But ever since Yu Xian regained the ability to eat normal food, he had gradually led her astray as well.
After swallowing a soup dumpling, Yu Xian used a bamboo skewer to snatch one of her pastries. Before she could glare at him, he quickly changed the subject. "Nora, let me ask you something."
Nora puffed out her cheeks. "Go ahead."
"What do you usually do at night when you're not sleeping?"
Vampires didn't need sleep. So, he was genuinely curious about how other vampires spent their nights.
Nora blinked. As if it were the most obvious thing in the world, she replied, "I sleep."
Yu Xian froze for a moment. "But vampires don't need sleep, do they?"
Nora laughed. "That's true for vampires turned through the First Bite and wild vampires like you. I was born a vampire. My mother gave birth to me. I'm still growing, you know."
Although she was perfectly capable of staying awake, she still maintained the habit of sleeping. That would probably continue until she stopped growing. In other words, once she reached physical maturity, she would no longer need sleep.
Suddenly, a thought occurred to Nora. I will continue to grow. But what about Yu Xian?