"What, what feeling?" Sun Hang asked blankly.

"I didn't feel any noticeable energy drain. Was it you who provided the energy to generate that small flame just now?"

"No... I only summoned that little blue flame. The thing that came after, it popped out by itself," Sun Hang shook his head, "Hiss... So this combo technique can directly ignore the law of energy conservation, huh!"

"Those classic physical laws have almost been overturned by the mysterious creatures," Wang Xiyi continued holding onto Sun Hang's finger, showing no intention of letting go, "Next time when Chimera 17 shows up, you can let it have a taste of this."

"Good idea, but... about that dream," Sun Hang chuckled awkwardly, "Can we not tell Yang Qi and the others about it?"

"Hmm..." After pondering for a moment, Wang Xiyi roughly tousled Sun Hang's hair, "Depends on how you behave!"

"What behave?" Yang Qi's voice suddenly interjected, startling Sun Hang into jumping back a big step.

"Why are you out here?" Sun Hang said, pale-faced.

"The temperature suddenly went up so much that I could feel it even in the study... I was wondering if you guys were playing with fire and set the house on fire..." Yang Qi stared at Sun Hang, "By the way, why does your expression look so strange? Is there something on my face?"

As she spoke, she instinctively reached up to touch her cheek.

"No, nothing," Sun Hang shook his head vigorously, "I just got caught playing with fire, it's a normal reaction... You're right, I nearly set the house on fire just now."

"Did Wang Xiyi use that daytime flame?" Yang Qi asked.

"No... it's more terrifying than that kind of flame, but very strange..." Sun Hang took a deep breath and recounted what just happened to Yang Qi.

Of course, he completely skipped over the parts about the bitterbriar and the dream.

"Combo technique?" Yang Qi's eyes twinkled, "So... if you absorbed Wang Xiyi's meme, it could indeed lead to this sort of situation..."

"Has there been any precedent for this kind of thing?" Sun Hang couldn't help but ask.

"Yes, and there are several scenarios," Yang Qi nodded, "Years ago in Xinluo, there was a pair of sisters who became mysterious creature hunters after being infected by the same meme. When they activated their abilities together, they could amplify each other's effects, although not as ridiculously as you described earlier. Aside from that, there are hunters who were infected by human infectees, whose abilities could more or less resonate with their 'host,' though this resonance is mostly unidirectional... For example, Song Yarong, whom you infected, her meme can be controlled by you to some extent, which also falls under this type of resonance."

"And me and Mr. Wang..."

"Your situation is rare," Yang Qi said seriously, "But if you can use it properly, it'll be a very powerful trump card... Tell you what, tomorrow I'll take you to the testing ground. Besides that place, there's probably no structure in the Celestial City that can withstand this kind of fire power."

"Okay," Wang Xiyi agreed immediately.

...

Meanwhile, at the Celestial City Mysterious Creature Research Institute, in a laboratory on the sixth floor.

Song Yarong, working overtime, suddenly sneezed. A large swath of mist appeared inside her goggles, and the reagent in her hand spilled out onto the table, immediately corroding the protective mat below into pits and holes.

"Could it be that I've caught a cold?" Song Yarong blanked for a moment, turning to glance at the air conditioner in the corner—the panel still displayed a temperature of twenty-eight degrees Celsius, coupled with her thick clothes and the heavy protective gear she wore, she was not just un-cold, but even a bit stuffy.

"Strange..." Song Yarong muttered as she returned the test tube to the rack and began cleaning up the table.

...

...

Celestial City, Mysterious Creature Hunter residential area.

"Sis, we're back," Yang Lian's voice came from the doorway, as the two took off their shoes and walked in, curiously surveying their surroundings, "Weird, why is it so hot in here?"

Both of them were wearing down jackets, and a fluffy thick scarf was wrapped around Yang Lian's neck. The moment they stepped indoors, it felt like they jumped into a large furnace—though the room's heater was on, the temperature was approaching fifty degrees Celsius, clearly beyond what the heater could achieve.

"Someone almost set the house on fire," Yang Qi replied.

"Who? Night Slayer?" Yang Lian asked while hastily removing her scarf and down jacket.

"Those two," Yang Qi pointed at Wang Xiyi and then at Sun Hang.

"Sun Hang? What did he do this time?" Yang Lian asked in confusion, "Isn't fire Night Slayer's ability?"

"I can't explain it briefly, but if you want to know, come with us to the test site outside the city tomorrow," Yang Qi said, "The Investigation Bureau doesn't have any crucial tasks right now, right?"

"Same old... ever since the arrival of Eternal Night, the bureau hasn't had a moment of rest," Yang Lian sighed, "Though I recently recovered from severe injuries, the bureau won't let me return to work yet, insisting I take more rest... Besides, serving as Miss Ye's bodyguard is also part of my duties."

"Bodyguard?" Sun Hang chuckled, "I feel like your combat ability is no match for Ye Xuan's."

"...Although I must admit you're right, I will use myself as a shield in critical times, doing my utmost to ensure the target's safety," Yang Lian said firmly, lifting an eyebrow at Sun Hang.

"High EQ version: using one's self as a shield to ensure the target's safety," Sun Hang said, "Low EQ version: jungle mid synergy, one dies, one assists."

"You rascal..." Yang Lian glared strongly at Sun Hang, "Forget it, arguing with you about this is pointless... you'd better think of how to deal with Chimera 17 when it reappears."

"Simple, just drag it in front of me and give it a big slap first," Sun Hang said.

"Easier said than done... against such entities constantly evolving and assimilating new abilities, conventional tactics don't suffice," Yang Lian said, "No one knows what new abilities it might possess next time it shows up..."

"Hey, aren't you talking about me?" Sun Hang joked.

"Then be sure to give it a few extra slaps for me next time you see it," Yang Lian pouted, "Consider it on my behalf."

"No problem, fifty bucks a slap, no credit,"

"As long as you can manage, even five hundred is fine," Yang Lian said, gritting her teeth.

"Alright, but you said it, no reneging!"

"I'm not you!"

"You make it sound like I'm an unreliable person..."

"You two—" Yang Qi said, a little helpless, hands on hips while looking at Sun Hang and Yang Lian, "Why are you bickering like kids?"

"It's him who started it," Yang Lian said, pointing at Sun Hang.

"That was just the truth," Sun Hang raised an eyebrow.

"Enough, settle down... It's late, everyone get some sleep, we have work tomorrow!" Yang Qi instructed.

"Alright, alright," Sun Hang glanced at the clock on the wall, fifteen minutes to eleven.

By current young people's schedules, nightlife was just beginning... However, in Shuzhou shrouded by Eternal Night, people were perpetually under a night sky, so there was no day and night differentiation anymore.

Sun Hang crawled into his main bedroom and was about to turn around and close the door when a cold, smooth tail suddenly coiled around his wrist.

In the next second, Wang Xiyi squeezed in through the door.

Before Sun Hang could speak, he was already enveloped in the warmth of her embrace.

The nanoscale armor on her had been entirely shed; through the thin shirt, Sun Hang could vividly feel the distinct soft warmth of her skin and the hard cold scales, enticing him to playfully squeeze her waist a little.

Wang Xiyi pushed Sun Hang step by step to the bed, then pressed him down on the bed edge.

"Mr. Wang?"

Wang Xiyi's cheek pressed against Sun Hang's neck, murmuring in a tone strikingly different from usual, "Do you know what I last thought of before being frozen?"

"What was it?"

"That dream was rudely interrupted before it finished... such a pity," Wang Xiyi's voice whispered like a dream, the warmth of her breath flooded into Sun Hang's ear canal, tickling and heating it, "Since I have a chance to live again, I must make up for this regret."

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