Chapter 142: The Defeat of the Illiterate |
The team configurations of the Special Security Groups in various regions were essentially the same.
Each main team was divided into four squads, each with its own focus: the first squad was combat-oriented, the second focused on scientific research, the third on support, and the fourth was backup... commonly known as cannon fodder. The latter three squads typically provided support and service to the first squad.
In theory, this was how the assignments and distributions were regulated. However, in practice, due to the variety of abilities, especially special-class ones, there was no strict rule that an ability must have a single function. Sometimes, it was impossible to recruit suitable Espers, so positions were filled randomly.
For example, although Sun Han was the captain of Wuhao Team's third squad, her ability had nothing to do with support.
Sun Han was a B-class Esper with an ability called "Precise Detonation," nicknamed "Bomberman." As the name implied, she could "plant 'bombs'."
She could, by touch, cause a delayed explosion at a specific location, with a maximum power of 2 tons of TNT equivalent.
What did this mean? In the infamous Oklahoma City bombing, the terrorists carried about 2 tons of TNT equivalent, causing damage or destruction to 324 buildings across 16 blocks and triggering a seismic wave equivalent to a magnitude 3 earthquake.
Comparing this to the destruction caused by Guan Shan and Shadowman in the hospital fight, which collapsed only one building, illustrated the significant difference.
In short, Sun Han's ability was city-level in scope.
The reason Sun Han, despite her powerful ability, wasn't in the first squad was that the greater the power of her planted bombs, the shorter the delay time before detonation.
If she set a bomb with a 2-ton TNT equivalent, she would have to detonate it immediately, perishing with her own ability...
Therefore, under normal circumstances, Sun Han could only act as an amateur demolitions expert, a support role.
Despite this, her status as a B-class Esper was equal to that of the team’s instructor in Wuhao Team.
On the other hand, this also highlighted the disparity between Wuhao Team, where even the strongest in the first squad was only a C-class Esper, and other teams.
Sun Han saw the surveillance footage of Guan Shan suddenly drawing a gun, intimidating all the medical staff, and couldn't help but raise an eyebrow. "Quite the temper. I like it."
Guan Shan's publicly known abilities within the Special Security Group included his most iconic spatial storage ability, so this didn't surprise her.
Standing beside Sun Han was one of her team members, Qi Xingyu, a charming middle-aged woman in her thirties, dressed in a cheongsam, exuding a seductive aura with her peach-blossom eyes.
Qi Xingyu's seductive eyes narrowed as she smiled. "Not just a temper, I heard that the first time he demonstrated his abilities to the Special Security Group, he killed nearly twenty people without hesitation, more than the two criminals who were being besieged at the time."
"If it weren’t for the psychologist's green light, he would probably be on the wanted list now."
"To date, he’s probably killed at least a hundred people, right?" Sun Han marveled. "To think some Espers turn red after killing one or two people, it seems a bit unfair."
Qi Xingyu looked at Guan Shan on the screen. "I’ve heard that the 'Death Hive' and some Espers have started calling him 'Demon God'. That will likely be his future codename."
She licked her red lips and giggled. "But he does look quite handsome and polite. I really want to see what he looks like when he's fierce."
"Death Hive is nearly wiped out by him, of course he's fierce."
Sun Han snorted. "You want to see it, I do too!"
She clenched her fist, her eyes sparkling. "I want to fight him!"
Everyone in Wuhao Team knew Sun Han was a battle maniac, even though she wasn't very good at it.
She had used special drugs to raise her physical strength to D-class, challenging everyone she met. If she couldn’t win, she would use her ability to explode, often leaving her opponents disheveled.
Sun Han's opponents didn’t dare to fight her seriously, fearing she might miscalculate the blast and accidentally kill them... which left her feeling unfulfilled.
Facing such a notoriously fierce opponent, Sun Han felt her fighting spirit ignited. She continued watching, then frowned. "What book is he holding?"
She couldn’t read a single word on the cover. It looked like English but not quite, definitely not Chinese characters.
Qi Xingyu squinted at it closely but couldn’t recognize it either. The two of them exchanged glances and silently took out their phones to identify the text. "It seems to be... the Spanish edition of 'One Hundred Years of Solitude'?"
"What? What’s that?"
With only a middle school education, Sun Han was puzzled. She looked it up, but despite reading for a long time, she didn’t fully understand. At least, she learned it was a famous book, and Guan Shan had a foreign language edition.
"…"
Seeing the "serious reading" Guan Shan, a strong sense of defeat as an illiterate suddenly surged in Sun Han's heart.
She feared intellectuals the most.
Sun Han banged her head on the table in front of her, shrouded in gloom, feeling dejected. "What should I do? I feel like I’ve already lost."
Completely lost! She had utterly lost in another domain! Damn it, wasn't he supposed to be a combat Esper? How did he also have the advantage of a Brain Domain Developer!
Qi Xingyu laughed, her eyes twinkling. "Maybe he’s just pretending?"
Sun Han lifted her head. "?"
Qi Xingyu said, "Just as we know his general situation, he’s been in the Special Security Group for a month and probably knows about other group Espers. So, maybe he’s trying to intimidate you in advance and avoid conflict."
"Ah, so that’s it!"
Sun Han realized, then growled, "Such scheming, I can't let him get away with it. Once they settle down, I'll fight him tomorrow!"
She turned to Qi Xingyu. "You go probe him first, like before, use your 'Charm' to stir things up. He'll definitely take the bait."
Guan Shan, who was "seriously reading," was unaware that he was about to face a "honey trap."
After upgrading [Gravity Control], he secretly tested it.
Guan Shan chose clouds as his test subject...
Cumulus clouds have a density of about 0.5g per cubic meter. Now, Guan Shan could control a range of up to a thousand meters, able to move 2000 cubic meters of clouds. In a way, he could even change the weather in a localized area.
But it wouldn't be effective over a large area, and if he was on the ground, a significant portion of the clouds would be beyond his thousand-meter range, making them uncontrollable.
At night, few noticed the movement of the clouds.
The only one who noticed the anomaly was the helicopter pilot, who found it strange. Suddenly, the sky became clear, the moonlight unimpeded.
But he shrugged it off, thinking it was just a change in weather.
Guan Shan even secretly gathered the clouds into the shape of a cat, having fun until the skill entered cooldown.
With 2 skill points remaining, he divided them as usual, upgrading [Demonic Markings] and [Soul Burning Whistle].
At this moment, the pilot reminded, "Please prepare for landing."
Guan Shan put away his book and looked out the window. Wuhao Team's base was surrounded by a military base.