Chapter 55

That night, Yang Yi and Li Mingliang and the others wandered around Wuming City as usual, and all surveillance systems remained on standby.

But after the entire night passed, everything remained calm and quiet, almost making people wonder whether the monsters that had been rampaging through Wuming City for seven to eight days straight had already fled entirely.

Now, not only did Li Mingliang’s squad mutter silently to themselves, but even Wei Chang’an and Chen Yushu didn’t know what to say.

As dawn broke, Yang Yi and the other awakened walked back along the road.

“They can’t stay hungry forever—they’ll have to come out eventually! Let’s see who outlasts who?” Qian Ming growled.

“That’s right, Captain Yang, why don’t you stay here for a few days? You can take in Wuming City’s famous sights,” Sun Yaxi added. “Local forum users are talking—many say they sleep more soundly now that they know you’ve come.”

“The Brain-Suckers haven’t consumed a human brain in two days straight—tomorrow they might just crack and show themselves. Let’s wait a little longer,” Li Mingliang said.

Before Yang Yi arrived, some of them had secretly planned to give her a hard time or watch her fail, to humble this S-rank awakened who was riding high on fame—after all, the situation here was truly dire.

Indeed, after two days, Yang Yi had achieved nothing.

This should have satisfied their quiet resentment—but now, with all the Brain-Suckers in the city fleeing in fear and hiding, it only proved once again that this awakened’s reputation as the number one was no empty boast.

Li Mingliang and the others had long believed that Brain-Suckers could sense the dark matter fluctuations on awakened individuals, and chose to attack ordinary people in places the awakened couldn’t monitor.

But the moment Yang Yi arrived, every Brain-Sucker in the entire city dared not emerge—and even remote surrounding areas saw no attacks. This was deeply puzzling.

Did this indirectly prove that, in the Brain-Suckers’ perception, Yang Yi’s power far exceeded that of all awakened individuals in this city combined?

Power isn’t claimed—it’s revealed through comparison.

So even though Yang Yi still hadn’t seen a single Brain-Sucker the next day, everyone’s attitude toward her grew even more respectful than before.

When returning to Lihao Hotel for breakfast, Director Zhou called again to check the situation; upon learning it was the same as the previous night, he could only laugh and cry.

“Sichuan Province is pressing us—they complained that you should’ve been sent there first, saying their biohazard situation is even worse.”

“Honestly, I thought with your abilities, you’d clear S-rank threats like the Fire Demon and Misty Town in a single day—today you’d fly to Fujian, tomorrow to Sichuan, and these A-rank threats would be nothing but child’s play.”

“Turns out I fell into the trap of experience-based assumptions. Biohazards come in all forms—when you face something as elusive as the ‘Smiling Mushroom,’ even raw power won’t help. As for these Brain-Suckers—if they’re hiding underground, unless you turn Wuming City upside down, there’s really no good way to deal with them…”

Director Zhou, who never bullied his subordinates and treated Yang Yi with particular warmth, added after a long chat: “If it’s still like this tonight, fly to Sichuan tomorrow—they’re pushing so hard they’re about to bang their fists on the table…”

Director Zhou’s words carried no blame or pressure—instead, he took responsibility onto himself.

Even if this was just a tactic, it still made Yang Yi feel uneasy; having arrived for two days with no results, she herself felt embarrassed.

“Then I’ll fly to Sichuan tomorrow morning,” Yang Yi said, stirring her soy milk as she spoke to Director Zhou on the phone.

The moment she spoke, everyone in the dining hall who had been quietly listening looked up at her. The awakened maintained their composure, but Wu Director from the Municipal Office’s reception team turned pale with anxiety.

As soon as Yang Yi hung up, Wu Director hurried over: “Captain Yang, you absolutely cannot leave! Our city has only been calm for two days—citizens have just started lowering their guard. If you leave now and the Brain-Suckers come out and start eating people again, won’t panic return?”

Moreover, to reassure the public, they had already released news of Yang Yi’s arrival to resolve the biohazard crisis; these two days of calm proved its effectiveness. Now was the moment of widespread public joy—what would happen if the Brain-Suckers returned the moment she left?

“Yang Yi can’t live in Wuming City forever! Sichuan’s biohazard is also A-rank—solve their problem first, then come back and deal with this slowly…” Wei Chang’an said. “If the Brain-Suckers keep hiding, there’s nothing we can do.”

He served alongside Yang Yi in the Capital Awakened Bureau and had survived the Misty Town incident with her—he naturally stood by her side.

“I’ll keep watching tonight,” Yang Yi said.

Back in her room, she stood by the window as the sun rose in the east and the city slowly came back to life.

She stayed in the best suite on the top floor of Lihao Grand Hotel, overlooking half the city.

Cars and pedestrians gradually increased on the streets; most still wore thick helmets and hurried along.

For the past two days, that faint sensation of being watched had kept returning—if this was why the Brain-Suckers hid, then as long as she remained here, they’d stay buried, perhaps even relocate to other cities.

She needed a strategy—a way to catch them all at once…

As she pondered, Yang Yi suddenly saw a group of people carrying red banners arrive at the entrance of Lihao Grand Hotel, then form ranks and begin beating drums and gongs, chanting in unison.

Just as she strained to hear what they were saying, the suite’s butler hurried in: “Captain Yang, a group of citizens has spontaneously organized a welcome team downstairs—they’re thanking you for coming to resolve the biohazard crisis…”

Was this truly spontaneous? So quickly? Or…

Yang Yi said nothing; the butler, seeing her silence, quietly fell still.

“You may leave,” Chen Huanyue walked in and told the butler.

Once he was gone, Chen Huanyue immediately said: “Yang Yi, this group was organized by someone behind the scenes—they don’t want you to leave Wuming City.”

“I understand—they haven’t solved the Brain-Sucker problem yet,” Yang Yi said calmly. After all, it was for the safety of the entire city; it was understandable. A harmless little tactic like this didn’t bother her.

Director Zhou had told her to go to Sichuan this morning—only other awakened, municipal office reception staff, and hotel employees had been present. It wasn’t hard to guess who had organized this.

Only about two hours had passed since then, yet their reaction was rushed, their methods crude, their display awkward—they were truly panicked at the thought of her leaving.

“You’re at the peak of your fame right now—they’re using your reputation to pressure you! They can’t solve this crisis themselves, and they don’t want to be branded incompetent, so they’re using you as a scapegoat, turning public opinion against you. They’re putting you on the fire—if you can’t solve Wuming City’s Brain-Suckers, what will people say about you?” Chen Huanyue looked more anxious than she did, a thin flush of anger staining his pale cheeks.

“What else could they say? That I’m a fraud, a powerless figure propped up on a pedestal,” Yang Yi replied coolly.