Chapter 9

The alarm was still ringing in his ears, and the air felt tense. Even though Shi Yu had already experienced something strange before, he never expected it to happen again so soon.

He was sure that no one from the Psychic Ability Association was on the second floor—he was the only one there.

What should he do now?

He quietly held his phone in his palm, thinking about how he could secretly message Wang Shan—the person he just added as a friend—and ask for help while the strange thing wasn’t paying attention.

Just as that idea came to mind, he felt something cold touch his ankle. It was as if something very light had just brushed past him.

He shivered. Was this thing warning him?

Did it not want him to give away his location?

Shi Yu stayed alert, his hand cold and sweaty, silently facing off with the strange thing on his left leg.

One minute passed. Then two. The strange thing that had just been threatening him was suddenly still, as if it had died.

Could it have malfunctioned like that creepy delivery box from before?

Shi Yu gathered his courage, just starting to feel brave, when the crawling sensation came back again. It grabbed his ankle tightly, not letting him move.

But… this time, Shi Yu noticed something strange.

It felt like the thing was… shaking?

His mind went blank for a moment. Was he imagining it?

No—he was the one being held hostage. Why would the creepy thing be shaking?

He stared at the empty air in front of him, feeling confused.

“Can you let go of me first?” he asked.

No one answered.

Shi Yu snapped back to reality. Why had he even tried talking to it? Creepy things didn’t understand human speech. It was already lucky it didn’t kill him—why would it let him go?

Maybe he was hallucinating. Maybe that’s why he let his guard down.

“Get it together, Shi Yu,” he told himself. The alarm on the roof had stopped. The Psychic Ability Association should be searching the whole building now. He just had to hold on a bit longer to be saved.

As he was trying to calm himself down, he suddenly realized—the grip on his ankle was gone.

After a light trembling, the strange thing slowly and carefully let go, like it was trying to hold itself back.

If it hadn’t warned him just a moment ago, he might’ve thought it actually understood his words and chose to let him go.

He stepped back. The weird sensation on his leg didn’t return. It was like the creepy thing had stayed where it was, invisible to the eye, still close by.

Shi Yu had a strange expression: it’s really not coming after me?

Was it really letting him go?

He let out a breath of relief. Just then, he heard footsteps coming from not far away. At that moment, something soft and delicate—like a green leaf—brushed against his fingers, then quickly disappeared as if it were shy.

A familiar voice spoke from behind him:

“Ugh, did you find Number 233 yet?”

“With how scared it is, how did it even get the courage to run away?”

Han Chuyi had just arrived, sounding annoyed.

He hadn’t even seen Brother Sang yet. Shen Yan, that fake gentleman, told him Sang was in the report room, but when he got there, no one was there. Now the meeting was messed up too.

Han Chuyi and Zhao Wen were checking the second floor with a special flashlight when they saw Shi Yu standing in place. As soon as Shi Yu heard their voices, he turned around. His eyes lit up like stars, full of excitement.

Han Chuyi paused slightly.

To be honest, he rarely saw anyone show such strong emotion. Shi Yu’s eyes looked just like a hopeful cat’s, and it made Han Chuyi instinctively stop and stare at him for a moment.

Shi Yu didn’t understand what the weird thing on his leg wanted. Seeing Han Chuyi stop, he blinked at him carefully and glanced down at his leg to signal something.

But that expression…

“Ahem, why are you acting cute all of a sudden?” Han Chuyi cleared his throat and turned his head away. “You’re fine—why are you pouting?”

Shi Yu: ???

Argh! So frustrating!

Did this guy not get his hint at all?

When did he act cute?!

He was clearly trying to get him to look at his leg. His leg!

Didn’t he get it?!

“Look at my leg,” Shi Yu said again, trying to keep his voice down.

Only then did Han Chuyi stop staring at those soft, shiny cat-like eyes and look at his ankle.

His first thought was—wow, such pale skin.

It was early spring, and Shi Yu was wearing work pants. Because of the strange thing’s movements, the pants had ridden up a bit, revealing his ankle.

It looked soft and pale, even a little pink from the cold.

Han Chuyi’s gaze drifted awkwardly, and he didn’t come back to himself until Zhao Wen pointed the special flashlight at Shi Yu’s ankle.

“Han-ge,” Zhao Wen called, nudging him.

Han Chuyi looked down, and under the special flashlight, he finally saw the little thing that had been grabbing onto Shi Yu and trembling.

Han Chuyi: …

Oh, so that’s what he wanted me to see.

He winced slightly, but luckily Shi Yu didn’t notice—because the moment the flashlight shone on his leg, Shi Yu finally saw what had been holding onto him.

Wait a second—that was… a mimosa plant?

Shi Yu had a strange look on his face.

Just as Han Chuyi was about to explain, a pair of hands reached out from behind. They were wearing black special gloves and picked up Number 233—the shy little plant that was still clinging to Shi Yu and didn’t want to let go.

“This is a plant-type creature. It’s considered one of the most harmless things in the Ability Users Association.”

“It doesn’t have any special traits—just accidentally gained the power of invisibility after being merged with something eerie.”

That’s why Shi Yu couldn’t see the little eerie creature earlier. Because No. 233 is labeled as the “Invisible Mimosa.”

The low voice finished speaking and placed No. 233 into a wooden flowerpot. Shi Yu was drawn to it, and his attention finally shifted from the harmless mimosa to the other side of the room, looking curious.

This person was strange.

The next moment, Shi Yu heard Han Chu Yi greet someone.

“Captain Fu.”

His tone was lazy and casual—polite, but just a little.

The man called Captain Fu looked up at the two of them but didn’t say anything.

Shi Yu couldn’t help but be surprised: Captain?

Could he be Fu Nanyao, the current leader of the Ability Users Association?

He seemed a bit… different from what Shi Yu had imagined.

In the novel, Captain Fu was described as someone who often stayed alone in the corner, silent and emotionless—like a weapon without feelings.

Except for Sang Huaiyu, he rarely talked to anyone.

It was said that the eerie thing he merged with caused him to be cold by nature. Later, during an accident, all the teammates he was close to were tortured and killed by eerie creatures, leaving him as the only survivor. Since then, he had severe PTSD, and at his worst, he almost lost the ability to speak.

The man across from them wore a black combat uniform. He was tall and looked like a silent, cautious black panther. Just now, because of the mimosa, he turned his gaze toward Shi Yu.

“Invisible mimosas rarely approach people on their own.”

Because of the mimosa’s nature, even though it gained the power of invisibility, this kind of plant almost never appeared around people.

Shi Yu met his gaze and realized—was he… asking him something?