Chapter 16: The Follower

"Pregnant?!"

Gao Yang and Qing Ling spoke in unison, both stunned.

A beast can get pregnant?

Beasts don't even have human reproductive organs, right?

Gao Yang's head throbbed. There were too many things to figure out. Yet here he was, still a total rookie, unsure of how many days he had left to live.

Qing Ling didn't hesitate and asked directly, "Are you sure she's not lying to you?"

"Sure." Officer Huang was resolute. "I can't think of any reason she'd lie to me."

"Are you sure the child is yours?"

"Uh…"

Qing Ling's question went straight to the core. Officer Huang pondered for a moment, then said, "I'm confident there's no grass growing on my head."

Qing Ling fell silent.

Gao Yang hesitated for a moment before speaking. "Officer Huang, can I ask you a personal question?"

Officer Huang gave a somewhat awkward smile. "I know what you're going to ask. Yes, my wife is a beast, but we have a great relationship. We've been in love since before I awakened, and even now, we have sex at least once a week."

Gao Yang nodded, gesturing for him to continue.

"My wife is a bit shy. She insists on turning off the lights when we're intimate, and she likes to have some red wine..." Officer Huang stopped himself, clearing his throat. "Ahem, you two are still young, so I won't get into the details. Anyway, since I've never been with a real human woman, I never felt anything was off during our intimate moments."

Officer Huang sighed. "My wife has always wanted a child, and I never used protection. I honestly thought beasts couldn't have kids."

"So, what are you planning now?" Gao Yang asked.

Officer Huang took out a cigarette, put it to his lips, then put it back down. "To be honest, when I first heard about my wife being pregnant, my first reaction wasn't shock but joy."

"Joy?" Qing Ling furrowed her brows.

"Yeah, the joy of being a father. I can't believe it myself," Officer Huang said, lighting the cigarette with determination, taking a deep drag. "I've decided to let the child be born, as long as the birth goes smoothly."

"You're crazy!" Qing Ling looked confused. "She's a beast!"

"I know…" Officer Huang gave a bitter smile. "But she's my wife, and there's my child in her belly."

Gao Yang didn't speak. Deep down, he supported Officer Huang's decision. He had a vague feeling that the birth of this child might reveal more secrets about this world. Of course, it would likely put Officer Huang in even greater danger, but this risk was worth taking.

"As long as you don't drag me into this, I don't care," Qing Ling said, no longer opposing the idea.

"Don't worry, I won't," Officer Huang said gratefully. He turned and leaned against the desk. "Alright, next topic: since the mission wasn't completed, I can't give you the sequence list. But I'll still fulfill the bonus and let you ask me two questions. Think carefully before you ask."

"How do you increase your talent level?" Qing Ling asked immediately.

"Why do you think talents have levels?" Officer Huang's gaze flickered.

"Yeah," Gao Yang said, equally curious. After all, he was the only one with a system.

"At first, I wasn't sure," Qing Ling lowered her head and looked at her palm.

"But my [Sword God] has experienced two upgrades. It's different from gradually getting stronger through physical training. At certain moments, a surge of energy floods through my body, and I feel like I've been reset, like a rebirth. My [Sword God] has gone through this twice."

"But your [Metal] hasn't?" Officer Huang continued asking.

"My [Metal] has only upgraded once, and I haven't had any further progress since then. When I first unlocked [Metal], I could only control metals weighing up to 1 kilogram. After the upgrade, I could control up to 10 kilograms. Logically, I should be able to upgrade again," Qing Ling clenched her fist. "I don't know what's going wrong."

"You've already figured this out on your own, that's pretty sharp," Officer Huang took off his hat and thought for a moment. "Actually, every talent can upgrade. It's rumored that they can go up to level 8. Your [Sword God] is only at level 3; you've still got a long way to go. Of course, my [Gun God] is also only level 3."

"So, how do you upgrade?" Qing Ling's eyes lit up.

"Sorry, I can't answer that."

"Why not?"

"It's a rule."

"Who made that rule?"

Officer Huang smiled but didn't answer.

"My turn." Gao Yang raised his hand like an eager student.

"Go ahead."

"How can I meet them?"

Officer Huang froze, then smiled. "You're quick on the uptake."

"Flattery won't get you anywhere," Gao Yang thought to himself, feeling that with his current abilities, if he didn't sharpen his wits, he'd be totally useless. "Officer Huang, does your superior have an organization? This rule… it's the organization's rule, right?"

Officer Huang nodded and sighed. "Actually, I'm not really part of the organization. I'm an external contractor. They contact me and give me tasks, treat me like a tool. I don't have direct contact with them. But since I've done a good job as their tool, I occasionally get some useful information from the intermediaries."

Officer Huang stopped smiling and became serious. "But they've forbidden me from sharing that info. If they find out, I might not end up in a good place."

"Why don't you join the organization?" Gao Yang asked. "Your current job should give you some advantages, right?"

Officer Huang smiled awkwardly. "Because I'm too weak."

"Too weak?"

Gao Yang felt a slight pain in his knee.

"I failed the organization's assessment. I'm still on probation, and a permanent position seems far away," Officer Huang looked out the window. "That organization is quite mysterious. It operates very quietly. Even awakened individuals stronger than us are extremely cautious."

"I see."

"However," Officer Huang turned back, "now that you two have joined, I think I might try applying for the position again. The premise is, of course, that you also want to join the organization."

"Definitely!"

Gao Yang agreed immediately and looked at Qing Ling.

Qing Ling, with a cold face, asked, "If we join the organization, will we know how to upgrade our talents?"

This woman… does she think about anything other than getting stronger?

"Of course."

"When's the interview?" Qing Ling asked.

"Don't rush, it'll be in the next couple of days. I'll let you know when I get word," Officer Huang glanced at his phone. "I can't talk anymore. I need to take my wife for an ultrasound."

Gao Yang teased, "Aren't you supposed to be working? Taking time off like this?"

"The joy of slacking off… you can't imagine," Officer Huang smiled one moment, then his expression suddenly darkened. In an instant, he drew his gun and pointed it at the door. "Who's there?!"

Qing Ling, closest to the door, swiftly turned and summoned her Tang knife, stabbing it through the office door as it slammed shut.

"Zii—"

Qing Ling pulled back her Tang knife and shook her head. "No one out there."

Gao Yang was stunned!

Wait a second, how could you just stab through the door like that? What if there's actually a beast behind it? What if you stabbed the wrong person and it was a human?

Better safe than sorry, I guess.

Officer Huang slowly returned the gun to its holster. "Looks like I'm being paranoid. I've been on edge lately."

He put his hat back on. "Alright, we're done here. Let's go."

…

The rest of the day passed quietly for Gao Yang.

He checked his system intermittently to monitor his luck points, and since there was no sudden spike, it meant the environment was safe and his identity as an awakened one hadn't been exposed.

Then, he continued grinding away on autopilot.

After the evening self-study session, Gao Yang went home alone.

In the deep of night, the streets were eerily quiet. The rain had stopped, but the ground was still wet, with puddles scattered everywhere. Under the neon lights, they reflected like little gateways to another world.

"Pitter-patter." Gao Yang stepped into a puddle, halting in his tracks.

Something felt… off.

He suddenly had an inkling: someone was following him.