After returning to Tianfu City, Sun Hang was assigned an office in the research institute that was second only to the director's—in the words of the Disaster Response Committee, this place would be Sun Hang's "principal's office" until the Mysterious Creature Research Academy was built.

But Sun Hang hadn't even had a chance to warm up the leather swivel chair with his seat when 0401 barged in with two large plastic bags.

"Oh? You've recovered so quickly?" Sun Hang glanced at the bandages wrapped around his knee, "You know it takes a hundred days to heal bones and tendons. The doctors and nurses must be furious with you for running around like this."

"It's just a scrape," 0401 said with a smile. "Hey, stop calling me 0401. I have a name—Yin Xiang."

"Speaker?" Sun Hang was momentarily confused. "That's quite a unique name."

"Yin Xiang! 'Yin' as in the county magistrate, 'Xiang' as in flying high!" Yin Xiang explained. "But never mind that... I heard from Yang Lian that the reason we're back to our normal timeline is because you took out that mysterious creature?"

"Something like that," Sun Hang replied. "I just dealt the final blow to a severely weakened target."

Sun Hang was very much aware that it wasn't him who killed the sinister apparition... Rather, it was the mysterious three monkeys statue that did.

"All of us are technically rescued by you, and thanks to you, that investigation task was rated as a top-tier mission. It not only cleared all my debts but also gave me an additional subsidy for it!"

With that, Yin Xiang raised the plastic bags in his hands. "See? Barbecue, skewers, spicy cold chicken, and beer... Do you know how hard it is to get hold of such good stuff these days? Well, let's not waste time, it will get cold. Come on, let's go up to the rooftop and enjoy!"

Yin Xiang dragged Sun Hang into the elevator directly up to the research institute's rooftop, spreading out the food he somehow procured on the ground. They both sat down, and with a "crack," opened the canned beer, with foamy bubbles pouring out like snowfall.

The rooftop of the research institute wasn't all that dark. The ambient glow from four large floodlights was enough to illuminate this area, but in contrast, the distant skyline of Tianfu City appeared much dimmer.

To conserve electricity, the power quota in all residential areas had been limited. Advertising signs were all shut down, factories, office buildings, and shopping malls were all closed. At a glance, the once light-polluted metropolis was now only dotted with sparse lights, most buildings hidden in darkness.

"Here's to your newfound freedom," Sun Hang raised his beer, clinking it with Yin Xiang's.

"Haha, 0398 must be kicking himself now. Such a good opportunity; next time he might not have such luck!" Yin Xiang took a big swig of beer, grinned with his eyes closed, "Ah... this is fantastic!"

"You really are lucky, to regain your freedom just as the Eternal Night descends," Sun Hang said, "So you can take this opportunity to leave Shuzhou for somewhere safer."

"Leave? No, I'm not planning on leaving." But as it turned out, Yin Xiang shook his head. "I've already applied for my formal assessment with the Investigation Bureau. Given the special circumstances now, all procedures are simplified. As long as I pass the written examination in two days, I can become a full-fledged investigator! Hey, I'll be an official now!"

"But aren't you afraid of death?" Sun Hang looked at him with some confusion. "You do know what the Eternal Night signifies, don't you?"

"Of course, I know." Yin Xiang replied.

"Then you should also know the risks of staying on as an investigator now, right?" Sun Hang said, "If it really doesn't work out, you could try applying elsewhere? With your experience as a temporary investigator, you should be able to get preferential treatment, right?"

"No... you've misunderstood me," Yin Xiang took another gulp of beer. "It isn't for the position, and it's not for the money... no, wait, money still matters... But mainly, this experience made me realize something."

"What is it?"

"I'm really terrified of dying, but that doesn't mean I have to be a deserter." Yin Xiang lifted his head, draining the remaining liquid in the can. "I was born and raised in Tianfu City. I'm a native of Shuzhou. I always thought I'd study here, work, marry, have kids, and then live a mundane life for decades... I never imagined there'd be a day when this land would be devoured by those things."

Sun Hang watched him silently, saying nothing.

"Running away is useless. First, it was Yundian, now it's Shuzhou—but then? Misty City? Qinzhou? Jing Chu? Am I going to run forever, with those things chasing me forever?" Yin Xiang crushed the can in his hand and hurled it far away with force. "Damn it! Run! To hell with running, I'm going to fight them here!"

"One can of beer, and you're already like this?" Sun Hang glanced at the can in his hand. The alcohol content marked on it was only 3%, which in the realm of beer, was quite low.

Could it be this guy had two bottles of the hard stuff before coming to find me?

But he didn't smell of alcohol?

"Are you sure this isn't just a momentary impulse?" Sun Hang asked.

"I've thought it over for several days, and I want to stay." Yin Xiang took a deep breath and continued. "Sun Hang, besides coming to thank you for saving my life, there's another matter I want to ask of you."

"What is it?" Sun Hang wondered to himself, could it be that this guy wants me to get him into the Mysterious Creature Research Academy?

With my title as the principal, arranging for a transfer student seems quite trivial.

"I want to become a Mysterious Creature Hunter." Yin Xiang said seriously.

"Pfft—" The beer in Sun Hang's mouth sprayed directly onto Yin Xiang's face, "You... You must be out of your mind, right?"

"No, I'm serious." Yin Xiang said, "I've already heard about Song Yarong's situation. According to those researchers, the 'Taishan' meme you possess, after infecting humans, has a high probability of allowing the infected to retain their self-awareness. In other words, using this meme, we can mass-produce stable state infected individuals."

"Who told you that?"

"Who told me doesn't matter, I just know I need power." Yin Xiang said, "To be honest, ever since I was a child, my dream was to become a Mysterious Creature Hunter. I don't want to be chased around by those mysterious creatures, unable to do anything..."

"Your childhood dream wasn't to be a Mysterious Creature Hunter, it was to be the protagonist in those popcorn movies." Sun Hang corrected, "The death rate for hunters is much higher than for investigators... Even if you do become a hunter, you're most likely just background passing through the lens, not the protagonist who's unkillable like a cockroach."

"I never said I wanted to be the protagonist... That night after you and 'Night Slayer' left, we encountered many mysterious creatures, creatures that couldn't even be killed by bullets, that could even charge at humans against a grenade blast... Can you feel that kind of desperation? I just want to have power, even if I can't beat those terrifying creatures, at least give me a chance to resist!"

"Infected individuals actively infecting humans is against hunter rules." Sun Hang looked at him calmly, "I can't help you."

"What about Song Yarong?"

"That was an emergency; if I hadn't acted, she would have died." Sun Hang said, "Only in such situations can I be exempt."

Yin Xiang hesitated for a moment, then looked at the edge of the rooftop and asked, "Does that mean if I'm on the verge of death, you would also save me this way?"

"You can jump off here; if you still have a breath left, I'll save you." Sun Hang said calmly.

"Okay, you've said it, don't go back on your word!" Yin Xiang hunched over, took several deep breaths, then screamed "Aaaaaah" as he charged toward the edge of the rooftop—

But just as he was about to touch the iron railing, his steps halted abruptly.

His knees buckled, and he fell to the ground, pounding his fist hard against the ground.

"Damn it, I... I'm still... not ruthless enough..." Yin Xiang gasped, "Sun, Sun Hang... How about you help me out and kick me down?"

"That would be murder, illegal."

"Damn it, damn it, damn it!!!" Yin Xiang cursed out several profanities, and then suddenly sprang up, instantly jumping over the railing.

He closed his eyes, body starting to fall, but at that moment, a twinge of regret suddenly welled up inside him.

Regret? Is there any use regretting now?

Just when Yin Xiang thought he would smash into a pulp, a huge force suddenly came from the ends of his limbs. He opened his eyes in surprise and found his hands and feet tightly bound by white mycelium, which then pulled him back up to the rooftop.

Yin Xiang lay on the ground, sprawled out, gasping for air—After a long while, he spoke, "Damn... Why did you pull me up."

"Would you dare jump again now?"

"Damn it... The courage I finally mustered up... You damn..." Yin Xiang cursed, short of breath.

"I just forgot to tell you, this place is too high. Falling wouldn't even give you a chance to be saved. Next time, choose a shorter building to jump from." Sun Hang placed a can of beer on Yin Xiang's forehead, "To celebrate getting another life back, another drink?"

"Drink... Damn drink!" Yin Xiang struggled to get up, pulled the tab, and drank deeply.

"Did you regret it in the moment you jumped out?" Sun Hang asked, looking at him.

"I'd be lying if I said I didn't, but since I've jumped, what good is regret?"

"If I give you another chance now, I promise not to pull you back, will you jump?"

Yin Xiang looked warily at the edge of the rooftop, hesitated for several seconds, then shook his head, "Forget it... We can talk about it next time."

"Actually, becoming a Hunter and jumping off a building are the same thing; once you take that step, there's no opportunity to regret." Sun Hang said, "I can pull you back from mid-air, but I can't bring you back from an infected to a normal human."

Yin Xiang: "..."

Just as Sun Hang was about to grab some skewers, the phone in his pocket suddenly rang.

This was a call from a military communication channel. As soon as Sun Hang answered, he heard a slightly panicked voice on the other end of the line: "The... The mountain is moving! Sixteen kilometers west of Tianfu City! A mountain is moving!!"

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