Chapter 41

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Chapter 41: This Damn Little Brat!

The golden dragon, easily ten meters long, seemed to shatter the very air as it surged between the high-rises, a surreal sight that left bystanders wondering if they’d accidentally stepped into a Xianxia (Fantasy Cultivation) novel.

“That young lady again?”

A lazy cop in a gas mask pressed a palm to his forehead, exasperated.

“Who else would waste the effort sculpting a dragon with such detailed form and then shout a move name like it’s anime?” the comms officer responded, equally unimpressed. 

“Make sure to cover her—don’t let people see her face. If she gets mistaken for a registered powered individual, it’ll be trouble. We just got paid, can’t afford an incident now.”

They weren’t just trying to protect her—they were protecting their own reputations.

As expected, the dazzling golden dragon didn’t really do much. Aside from being a visual spectacle, its only effect was to momentarily block Mi Xiaoliu’s rapid rooftop dash.

Technically, the energy-formed dragon could have just shot straight through the air with a “whoosh”. But no—they made it slow down, so the full visual grandeur of the dragon could be admired.

It was like throwing a brick at someone but thinking, “Hmm, this looks uncultured,” so instead you carve an intricate pattern into it with a knife before hurling it.

Its trajectory was so off the mark that all Mi Xiaoliu had to do was pause in place, and it narrowly missed her face.

Still, it had succeeded in interrupting her movement.

“Don’t return to base directly. Shake off Foboler first and change your clothes,” came Hermit Sister’s voice in her earpiece. “Your current identity is a ‘Avengers of Justice’ cadre—Foboler won’t dare go all-out.”

Most members of the vigilante group ‘Avengers of Justice’ were minors. If law enforcement used lethal force on kids, not only would it be a moral disaster, but the ensuing public outcry could last for months—marches, protests outside precincts, media storms… It had all happened before.

The same female journalist once saved by the black-clad figure was stirring things up again:

“The situation has escalated rapidly. Without the full context, people might find it hard to believe that such a massive operation is just to arrest one person…”

“I’M HERE!”

Something crashed down from above, smashing the camera equipment into the pavement with finality.

Yiwen made a dramatic entrance, striking what she believed was a cool pose. “Sorry, I couldn’t stop in time. The precinct will reimburse you.”

If she hadn’t yelled “I’M HERE,” the reporter might’ve actually believed her professionalism.

“Found you,” Yiwen said, eyes locked on the fleeing figure who’d just abruptly changed direction.

“No tossing things directly—it could cause major collateral damage,” her comms officer reminded her.

“I know that,” Yiwen pouted under her mask.

Fighting an enemy who was not worried about consequences while she had to hold back? 

Infuriating.

Mi Xiaoliu, sensing a presence, looked back—just in time to see that white-clad person from last time rapidly closing in.

She instinctively raised her fist, preparing to strike, but the white-clad figure stopped five meters away, glancing down to make sure the space below was clear.

Then, the fabric canopy that Mi Xiaoliu had been using as a foothold suddenly gave way beneath her. It felt like a steamroller had been dropped on her back—she plummeted dozens of meters and slammed into the ground with a deafening impact. The pavement cracked in a crater several meters wide. The glass windows nearby trembled from the shock.

“Master!”

She felt as if her organs had all shattered. Skin had torn and stuck to the inside of her clothes. If it weren’t for the reinforcement of her beginner combat suit, she probably would’ve died on the spot.

It hurts. Every part of her hurts.

And the regeneration was even worse.

“P… rin… cess…”

Hermit Sister’s voice came through the earpiece, panicked and glitching out—then silence.

The earpiece had broken.

This time, Yiwen didn’t make the mistake of underestimating her.

“She shouldn’t be dead. She’s a Level 4 ability user, after all.”

Yiwen looked uneasily at the dust cloud below. Based on her opponent’s performance against the Humpback Whale days earlier, she hadn’t dared hold back.

Level 4 was a tested ranking. Unless it was a mythical Level 5 or someone of the exact same skillset, there usually wasn’t such a thing as level suppression. Every ability type was too different. A high-level self-healer, for example, could still lose to a muscle-enhancement type.

Yiwen’s ability countered muscle-enhancers—she could reflect physical force back at her opponent. In theory, with equal experience, even “Humpback Whale” couldn’t beat her.

But the technique was hard to master. She rarely used it.

“Using Humpback Whale as a reference, this fall shouldn’t have caused injury. Ever heard of the ‘No Wounds if There’s Smoke’ principle?” the comms officer jokes. “But… isn’t this going a bit too smoothly?”

“Yeah. It’s not fair—she already has serious spatial abilities and on top of that, Level 4 physical enhancement?”

Yiwen descended cautiously, scanning for movement.

Not seeing her target only made her more nervous.

She had every reason to be—Mi Xiaoliu had just begun to stir and climb up from the rubble.

The smoke cleared just in time for Yiwen to spot her. Relieved, she dove down and pinned the girl to the ground again.

This black-clad enemy was indeed terrifying. Yiwen had only just reduced the gravity to avoid embedding her into the ground—and still the girl could move.

No time to hesitate—Yiwen snapped special ability-dampening cuffs around the girl’s wrists, underneath her gloves. They wouldn’t neutralize her strength, but at least she wouldn’t suddenly manifest some organ-crushing trick.

Even with gloves on, Yiwen could feel how delicate the girl’s wrists were—slender, more so than her own. Feminine.

Curious now, Yiwen lifted the girl’s hood—only to freeze.

A little girl?

Cute, too. Bright eyes, and a tear still clinging to the corner of one from the pain.

For a second, Yiwen genuinely wondered if she had the wrong person. She looked like some heartless bully picking on a child.

“White Whale, your chest cam might be covered in dust. I can’t see anything. Wipe it off,” the comms officer said.

“Hang on, let me restrain her properly first,” Yiwen said, taking out more cuffs. For muscle-enhanced types, you needed to immobilize all key leverage points.

But just as she leaned down, the girl suddenly kicked!

Yiwen blocked the first strike without emotion. After all, all attacks would be softened—at worst, like two kindergarteners brawling.

But the girl faked it and used her other leg to strike somewhere else—

“Tch!”

Yiwen let out a sharp cry and collapsed onto Mi Xiaoliu.

Not because the girl had overwhelming strength—no. It was, like before, maybe the force of a full-strength punch from a seven-year-old.

But the spot she hit?

That painful area—where gender differences become very obvious.

In simple terms: left of the right leg root, right of the left leg root, aimed up, and hit square-on.

This damn little brat!!

Yiwen rolled off, holding her injury, her face pale, then flushed, then pale again. That brief moment was all Mi Xiaoliu needed to throw her off and break free, cuffs and all.

“White Whale! Report status!”

The comms officer was clearly rattled by Yiwen’s cry.

“She ran. That brat ran.”

Yiwen got to her feet, limping, the pain finally starting to subside.

“She got away? Are you hurt?”

The comms officer was confused. Yiwen rarely swore. And…

“Brat?”

“Saw her face. Middle school girl. Blue eyes. Recommend termination on sight.”

“Can you give a detailed description?” The comms officer ignored the last part and muttered, “A middle schooler beat back Humpback Whale?”

“No.”

It had all happened too fast. Only the most obvious traits stood out.

“With your ability, how’d she escape at that range?”

“Ask again and die.”

“…Oh. Got it.”

The comms officer wisely shut up. The rage in Yiwen’s voice made it sound like the girl had murdered her whole family.

Behind her mask, Yiwen’s expression twisted.

This grudge will not go unavenged. Not until I’ve repaid her in full.

Translator’s Note: Both Mi Xiaoliu and Yiwen are Female, but different Pronouns will be used based on what the Characters themselves and what other Characters think their gender is.