Chapter 241: Shadow Lord

The air in the conference room was stifling, like a window sealed with plastic sheeting before a storm, letting in not a breath of wind.

The projector's fan buzzed, the beam of light struck the white wall, and the image trembled slightly.

That was a high‑altitude aerial shot of Anhe City. A slanted luxury apartment tower stood alone, like a giant whose spine had been broken, surrounded by yellow caution tape, while tiny engineers scurried through the ruins like ants.

Everyone seated at the oval long table remained silent. These senior executives, who usually caused tremors just by stamping their feet in the Investigation Bureau, now wore ashen faces, stared at the grim scene on the screen, and poked holes through the file papers with their steel pens.

"In the past," Wei Gong said, seated at the head seat, his finger joints lightly tapping the table, producing a dull thud, "our Special Forces poured over three thousand rounds at Demon‑Eye Chen Shao, deployed Ouyang Feng, yet still failed to contain him."

"Not long ago, the Investigation Bureau's current ace, also the only anomalous one, Jiang Yuan, confronted him…"

He paused, his gaze sweeping over each face present.

"Result: Chen Shao emerged unscathed."

No one dared to reply.

This was more than a slap; it was tearing the Federal Weird Investigation Bureau's skin off and stomping it on the ground.

Wei Gong rose and walked to the projection screen. His Zhongshan suit looked somewhat thin in the light, yet no one dared to underestimate the old man's silhouette.

"Gentlemen, the times have changed."

The elder's voice was even, yet like a file grinding against everyone's hearts.

"In the past we faced Fierce Ghosts and strange tales—these pure Weird phenomena. Among them, the tales were more dangerous than the Fierce Ghosts, but though the tales were ferocious, they were dead, lacking any will to harm, merely following the Murder Rule like a pre‑programmed script."

"And these anomalous ones…"

"They possess consciousness, actively wielding these terrifying powers, posing great danger to society and causing extremely harmful effects."

"To deal with them, we must understand their origins."

"The root that creates these anomalous ones is a special existence."

He wrote two characters on the whiteboard: 【Weird Domain】.

"Weird Domain— a place where various strange tales are born, where rules are warped, such as Saint John Hospital. We do not know why it appears; we only know that while it drags people in and brings danger, it also offers us a chance to combat the Weird."

Then, with a heavy stroke of his marker, he wrote two more characters beside it: 【Domain】.

The tip of the marker scraped the whiteboard, emitting a harsh screech.

"Weird Domain gives rise to anomalous ones, and the anomalous ones possess a 'Domain' similar to the Weird Domain."

"The difference is that the former is static, while the latter moves."

Wei Gong turned, his marker pointing at the vague silhouette on the screen—a snapshot of Chen Shao standing atop the ruins.

"For Demon‑Eye Chen Shao, everything within his line of sight defines the range of his Domain; within that range, all phenomena are altered by the Domain's rules."

"And Silent One Xu An's Domain is a 'Correction Place' that interferes with reality; its maximum impact radius is estimated at over a hundred meters. When he summons the Correction Place to descend, he can act as a 'Disciplinary Committee' member, freely setting the rules within the Domain, and anyone who breaks them will be harmed."

"For ordinary people, and even for our Special Forces still fiddling with guns and explosives, this is a dimensional‑reduction strike."

The conference room filled with a collective gasp of cold breath.

Dimensional‑reduction strike.

Those four words were heavy. They meant that humanity's proud industrial civilization, before these monsters, was like a primitive wielding a stone confronting a modern army with tanks.

"Then… Director, do we have no way out?" a middle‑aged man in uniform couldn't help but ask, "What about Jiang Yuan?"

Everyone's gaze instantly converged on the corner.

Jiang Yuan sat there, idly twirling an Ace of Spades in his hand. Feeling the eyes on him, he didn't look up; with a flick of his finger, the Poker Card vanished from his fingertips.

"Well asked," Wei Gong nodded.

He lifted a pre‑prepared black file folder and slid it along the long table. The folder glided across the smooth surface and stopped precisely before Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan picked up the folder, untied the white cord, and drew out the documents inside.

At the top was a new credential. In the photo, his gaze was icy, the background a deep, pitch‑black void.

And in the codename field, there were only two characters.

【Shadow Lord】.

His codename had been changed from 'Flying Cards Guest' to 'Shadow Lord'.

"Dark Shadow Court." Wei Gong spat the four words as if reciting a decree, "This is your ability, Jiang Yuan. Chen Shao has his Demon‑Eye Domain, Xu An has his Correction Place rules. And you, you too harbor terrifying power within."

"At present, you indeed cannot yet impose domineering rules on reality like Chen Shao, nor summon a Domain to descend as Xu An does."

Jiang Yuan frowned, intending to rebut, but found himself at a loss for words.

In Anhe City, under Chen Shao's rule‑suppression, he truly felt a helplessness—a frustration of power he could not wield, a feeling that still makes his bones itch when he recalls it.

"However," Wei Gong's tone shifted, "your ceiling is higher than theirs."

"Even without a Domain, you already suffice to suppress and defeat Xu An; imagine what will happen when you truly possess a Domain."

A glint of light flashed in the old man's eyes.

"You can contain, you can enslave. Even future monsters you encounter… as long as you can stuff them into your Shadow, they become your troops, your generals, strengthening your foundation."

"When your Dark Shadow Court is filled with powerful monsters, Chen Shao's rules will be nothing but a joke before you."

The conference room fell into a death‑like silence.

"Therefore."

Wei Gong straightened his back, patted Jiang Yuan's shoulder, the force heavy as a mountain.

"From today onward, the Night Watcher Project is fully activated."

He scanned the room, his tone turning grim: "Notify the Technology Department, Logistics, Intelligence Department, Equipment Division. From now on, all resources of the Federal Weird Investigation Bureau shall be prioritized toward the Night Watcher squad."

"The Federal Weird Investigation Bureau must locate all anomalous ones scattered among the populace and attempt to cultivate its own anomalous ones, letting them combat the Weird and the anomalous; among them, Jiang Yuan is designated as a core cultivation target and also the main force of the Night Watcher Project."

Wei Gong looked at Jiang Yuan, "Jiang Yuan, you need to seek out, to seize. Any living, usable anomalous one—whether mad or perverse—must be brought back to the Investigation Bureau for containment or recruitment."

"What about those we can't bring back?" Jiang Yuan finally asked.

Wei Gong showed no hesitation, his gaze as cold as ice shards in a bitter winter: "Eliminate them before they cause greater harm. For example, Chen Shao."

"I'll grant you special privileges."

Lord Wei pulled a dark‑golden badge from his pocket and, with a "pa" sound, slapped it onto the table in front of Jiang Yuan. The badge bore an open eye, its pupil shaped like a sharp sword.

"First cut, then report."

"Within the Federation's borders, any incident involving Weird affairs, you may mobilize all resources. The local garrison, police, even the administrative chief must obey your commands. If anyone dares to block the way…"

Lord Wei lifted his teacup, took a sip, and moistened his throat:

"Let him come to me directly."

Jiang Yuan stared at the badge, then glanced at the two characters "Shadow Lord" on the credential. He suddenly felt his shoulders heavy. It was not just the weight of authority, but the weight of countless lives.

But he did not decline.

On that rainy night in Anhe City, watching the leaning building and seeing Chen Shao and Xu An swagger away, he understood a truth.

Reasoning cannot save people.