“Name.”

“…Gu Shen.”

“Age.”

“Seventeen years old, my birthday is in one month and three days… Just a reminder, I’m still a minor. If you’re thinking of doing something, you should think carefully… Some things have legal consequences!”

“Gender.”

“???”

Under the spotlight, in the interrogation room, a table, three people.

Wei Shu on the left, Nan Jin on the right, and Gu Shen opposite, handcuffed to the chair with vine handcuffs, wriggling like a catfish, constantly winking at the one on the right, who constantly ignored him.

“Place of residence.”

“…Dongzhou Qinghe District, Dateng City, Beihuan Residential Area, Building 13, Room 703… Are you checking my household registration, officer?”

After routinely asking for personal information, Wei Shu nodded to the camera in the upper right corner.

The basic information was correct. This young man was not lying.

Mr. Shu in front of the screen held a cup of hot tea and smiled, snapping his fingers.

“Clatter—”

In the interrogation room, the two vine handcuffs loosened and turned into rustling dust.

Gu Shen breathed a sigh of relief, moving his wrists, finally feeling comfortable. He grinned at the camera and nodded to show his gratitude… He could tell that the old man was not a bad person. The handcuffs had been on him for a while, but they were only tight, not cutting into his skin.

The interrogation had officially begun, but the presiding officer, Wei Shu, sat in his chair, deep in thought… On the way to the interrogation room in the helicopter, he had read the young man’s file no less than ten times. From his birth trajectory to major events, he was actually a very ordinary young man.

But Shenhai (Deep Sea) provided a video from the subway train at the last moment of connection.

Under the effect of A-009’s ability, the light in the entire car almost shattered, and the specific details were not very clear, but it could be seen… that the young man named Gu Shen maintained absolute composure in his conversation with A-009.

This was rare, but not significant.

A-009 was a crazy “out-of-control person.” Her characteristics had not yet been fully explored… But obviously, being calm in front of her was useless. Anyone else would likely become a… calm corpse.

In the video, this young man actually made A-009 “calm” down too!

Wei Shu leaned forward slowly, his handsome face rendered ghastly pale in the light.

In interrogation, this was a way to apply pressure.

The young man was put in handcuffs because his “dangerousness” could not be determined. A guy who could “tame” A-009 was worthy of the utmost attention.

Based on past experience, people with ordinary files often had many unknown secrets, were good at disguising themselves, refused to communicate, and would not cooperate even when they entered the interrogation room. Wei Shu thought this was a tough nut to crack, and he was prepared to fight a protracted war.

He said, word by word, “You have the right to remain silent, but every word you say will be used as evidence in court and recorded in your file.”

The young man looked blank, a good disguise, but Wei Shu keenly noticed that he swallowed.

Hmm, a sign of nervousness… Is it working?

Wei Shu: “What happened on subway train No. 13 at 23:00 last night? We have the video. As long as you tell the truth…”

“Officer.”

Gu Shen interrupted him, scratching his head. “Sorry… I’m so thirsty. Can I get a drink of water?”

Wei Shu frowned.

“Officer, are you curious about what happened on the train?” After Gu Shen finished drinking water, he cleared his throat and gesticulated with lingering fear, “Let me tell you… that train was terrifying. I’m just a kid. After getting on the train, I saw a huge man, oh no, a burly woman…”

Wei Shu stared blankly as Gu Shen gesticulated and vividly described his experience after getting on the train.

Completely different from what he had imagined.

This was not a taciturn, uncooperative, stubborn element at all, but a social butterfly who confessed everything without being forced to.

There were some minor problems with the video of this subway ride.

It seemed to have been corroded by the power of A-009. Shenhai only provided a small part of the picture as it was about to exit the tunnel. Based on the young man’s vivid description, Wei Shu gradually pieced together the complete picture of the real event.

Half an hour later, the world was finally quiet.

Gu Shen slumped in his chair, took another big gulp of water, and asked expectantly, “Officer, how did I do?”

He concealed the story of meeting the girl in the white dress, and the silver ruler at the end.

This concealment was a test, and also a way to protect himself.

The other party didn’t seem to notice anything wrong… This disappointed Gu Shen, it seemed that the train’s surveillance was destroyed.

“…You did well, don’t say any more.”

Nan Jin responded coldly.

She glanced at the blank file in Wei Shu’s hand, which was now filled with dense handwriting. This interrogation was undoubtedly fruitful, because the questions they expected had been reasonably filled in.

This young man discovered the characteristics of “A-009” in the first encounter, successfully dealt with it, and survived… Although this explanation sounded incredible.

But the living person was right in front of them.

The boy named Gu Shen looked harmless and innocent, but Nan Jin knew very well that what happened on the train could not be achieved by mere luck… It required very strong observation skills.

“Um…”

Gu Shen asked carefully, “Officer, is the statement finished? Can I go home?”

Nan Jin hesitated.

Wei Shu silently rubbed his fingers, looking at the statement, not knowing how to respond for a moment.

“Creak—”

At this moment, the door of the interrogation room was slowly pushed open.

“Teacher.” Nan Jin stood up respectfully.

Wei Shu quickly ran over and handed over the file. The old man with the dragon head cane stood in front of the door, glanced at the file, and smiled, waving his hand to signal Wei Shu to stay.

“Young man, come.” He smiled and beckoned to Gu Shen, “I’ll take you home.”

Something about that sentence sounded strange…

Gu Shen took two steps back and smiled ingratiatingly, “Old Sir, you must be very busy, right? Actually, I suddenly don’t really want to go home… Sleeping here is quite good, there’s heating, beautiful women, just give me a blanket and I’ll be fine.”

…

…

15 minutes later.

A black business car was slowly driving on a suburban road.

Really slowly.

At this speed… it might be dawn before they reached their destination.

Gu Shen sat in the passenger seat and yawned loudly.

“When you’re old, you have to be careful when driving, in the middle of the night, if something happens, it won’t be good…” The old man in the driver’s seat smiled and turned his head, “Are you in a hurry, young man?”

Gu Shen smiled wryly, “How dare I…”

“You’re not that timid.” Mr. Shu said casually, “I saw the surveillance video of the car. By observing A-009’s newspaper at close range, you deduced the ‘answer’ to the problem. Your observation skills are very good, and your luck is not bad. If there had been physical contact at the beginning, then you would already be a puddle of corpse fluid.”

Hmm… it seems that the part where he received the “ruler” was lost.

Gu Shen tightened his clothes and said with an awkward smile, “Good luck, good luck.”

This old man, respectfully called “Mr. Shu,” had a face full of wrinkles, but his eyes were clear and without any turbidity. Beside him, one would not feel any pressure at all, but rather like basking in the spring breeze.

“Normal people who come into contact with ‘supernatural events’ wouldn’t be as calm as you, and wouldn’t be so calm after surviving.” Mr. Shu smiled and said, “We’re alone this time. Do you have any questions you want to ask?”

“…Of course I do.” Gu Shen sighed softly, “But some questions are better left unasked. I still understand that.”

What a smart young man, the old man nodded approvingly.

But some questions don’t have to be asked to be answered.

“Before losing control, A-009 was a member of the Guwen Society (Ancient Text Society). This organization is spread across the five continents and studies forbidden science. She successfully mastered the supernatural power of ‘corrosion and dissolution’ and successfully sent herself into the abyss.” Mr. Shu rattled off a lot of information, “Then… she became what she is now. For some research needs, we didn’t kill her directly, but constantly imprisoned and transferred her.”

“You’re lucky to have met her and survived. Now someone is starting to pay attention to you… This world will change soon. Would you like to consider hugging a thigh… like me?”

After speaking, Mr. Shu smiled and looked at the young man.

“…Huh? What did you just say? I didn’t hear you.”

Gu Shen acted clumsily, pretending to be blank, and pointed to the outside of the car window, “There was a dog barking just now, a lame one.”

The car was driving very slowly, and there really was a lame dog running alongside the road, looking like they were racing, and their speeds were about the same.

Black lines appeared on the old man’s forehead.

He stepped on the accelerator.

The roaring sound shattered the night—

The strong push back pressed Gu Shen firmly into the seat. The old man driving was expressionless, stepping on the accelerator to the end. The slightly bulky business car nimbly maneuvered and sped along the empty night road in the suburbs.

Ten minutes later.

“We’re here.”

The old man stopped the car, and Gu Shen rushed out, his face pale, and leaned against the wall, retching… This old guy was too vengeful. The car’s speed had soared to 180 km/h!

While Gu Shen was vomiting, the old man observed the mottled old tube-shaped building in front of him, his eyes narrowed, and he joked with a smile, “You live here? So poor, really not considering hugging a thigh?”

“Bah.”

Gu Shen glared angrily at the old man’s finger-rubbing gesture, “Poverty cannot be moved, might cannot be bent, don’t even think about buying me with money… I have integrity.”

“Oh… is that so?” Mr. Shu laughed heartily, “I admire you, I admire you.”

“Young man who cannot be bent by might, this is my number.” The old man slowly rolled up the car window, and finally handed out a piece of paper through the crack, “Call me anytime if you change your mind.”

Gu Shen glanced at the paper and memorized the string of numbers.

The paper flashed, and with a “chi” sound, it burned spontaneously without fire, slowly turning into ashes. The old man didn’t dawdle at all, leaving the flying paper ashes behind, stepping on the accelerator and speeding away.