"What is this?" Kudo Hiroyuki asked.
A black fragment was pulled out from the opponent.
"It looks pretty dangerous. The guy losing control just now must have been because of this," Kurenai Gai shared his thoughts.
"Leave it to me, I can handle it. In fact, that's exactly why I came."
All three turned their heads simultaneously to look at Ling Luo.
"Really?"
It wasn't that Kurenai Gai didn't believe him; it was just that he had tried it himself moments ago, and the energy of this fragment was extremely overbearing—at least for now, he had no way to deal with it.
Kurenai Gai turned to look at Moroboshi Dan, asking for his opinion. He had no choice; the two of them seemed to know each other.
"Do you know something about this thing?" Moroboshi Dan stared intently at Ling Luo, trying to read something from his face.
"I know a little bit, and of course I can tell you, but before that..." Ling Luo answered very simply.
Ling Luo looked at Moroboshi Dan's injured arm. "We need to treat the wound first."
"Huh? A small scratch like this is nothing, it'll be fine in a moment."
Moroboshi Dan waved his uninjured hand dismissively, not caring at all. He had suffered all sorts of injuries, large and small; this one was a complete piece of cake.
Of course, despite saying that, Moroboshi Dan still subconsciously hid his injured arm behind his back.
Seriously, are you really burying your head to steal a bell, Moroboshi Dan?
As long as others can't see it, you aren't hurt?
Ling Luo's mouth twitched. He stepped forward, pulled the other man over with an attitude that brooked no refusal, found a spot without minding the dirt, and sat right down.
Faking that he was reaching into his pocket while actually pulling out bandages and medicine from the system space to dress the wound.
It was fortunate that his pockets were large; even pulling out these items wouldn't arouse suspicion.
Although there weren't many secrets left between them anyway, whatever he could hide about the system, he would.
Moroboshi Dan wanted to say there was no need to go to all this trouble, but seeing the warning glint in the other's eyes, he obediently shut his mouth.
Honestly, it was clearly the other guy's fault to begin with.
"That's called a Fragment of Darkness, and it really is a dangerous thing."
"Um, the fragments can attach to living beings to strengthen them, but they also make the host agitated and even lose their minds. The one lying on the ground is a prime example."
"And my mission is to collect these fragments."
System collection and my collection are no different. Yep, exactly.
"Is that so?"
...
The three returned to the base and shared this matter with everyone.
"I've already recorded this specific fluctuation. If we encounter it again next time, remember not to be rash. It's best to wait for teammates to solve it together."
Ozora Daichi wore a worried expression. This was definitely not good news.
"Especially you, Dan."
"Got it. Oh, right, Ling Luo said if we encounter that kind of fragment again next time, remember to call him." Moroboshi Dan added.
Although he didn't really want to let the other take risks, they truly had no way of dealing with that fragment themselves, and they couldn't just leave it be.
"No problem."
...
Ozora Daichi went to the laboratory, took out the tiny sample Moroboshi Dan had handed him earlier, and began his research.
"It really is a very special thing," X said.
"Ah, yes. This is going to be tricky," Ozora Daichi sighed. According to the young man, fragments like this were quite numerous.
Although the other had also mentioned that this particular fragment was quite special and ordinary ones weren't this powerful, sheer numbers were always a headache.
He thought back to what he had seen on the surveillance monitors earlier.
He had originally thought Ling Luo was just someone a bit mysterious, but now it seemed he had even more secrets.
Forget it. Trust him, and trust Dan's intuition.
...
Meanwhile, having returned to his villa, Ling Luo took a shower and lay down on the bed, but he couldn't fall asleep.
He should have been very tired.
Yet... he kept thinking of what he had seen in that brief instant.
Was it a hallucination? Or... something that would happen in the future or the past?
After all, he possessed the power of time; traveling through time and space wasn't impossible, even if he was currently only at level one.
Tossing and turning in bed, Ling Luo rubbed his head.
Ugh, his headache. As expected, he wasn't suited for brain-work.
...
"Soon, just wait a little longer. Very soon, it'll be ready soon..."
Someone's voice drifted over, though it seemed no one heard it.
The entity sounded like it was speaking to someone, yet even more like it was talking to itself.
...
Waking up from sleep, he felt refreshed and clear-headed.
Ling Luo went out early, carrying the pastries he had made beforehand, and headed toward a certain destination.
Along the way, he glanced at his panel, looking at the points displayed by the system: 62.
It seemed his harvest last night was decent. Take it slow, no need to rush.
Before long, he reached his destination.
That's right, the base of the New Generation Heroes.
Zero? (Crossed out)
Of course, he had come here with permission.
He knocked politely on the door, and a moment later, someone came over.
"Hello~! Come on in, Mr. Ling. I'm Minato Asahi." The person opening the door was the ever-energetic Minato Asahi.
"Ah, hello, Ms. Asahi." Ling Luo smiled, lifted the bag in his hand, and stated his purpose. "I'm here to see Dan. Oh, and these are some welcoming gifts."
"You're too polite."
"They're just some famous pastries from my hometown, don't worry about it."
"I'm right here, Ling Luo." Moroboshi Dan's voice came from the second floor as he waved to Ling Luo.
...
"Why are you here? You're not really here to babysit me, are you?"
Moroboshi Dan sat in a chair and gestured for the other to look at his arm. "Don't worry, it'll heal completely in no time."
"Oh~ is that so?" Ling Luo clearly didn't believe it.
In fact, he felt that if he hadn't come today, the guy wouldn't have been this obedient.
"O-Of course." Moroboshi Dan felt a bit guilty.
He decided to find an excuse for himself—he just didn't want the other to worry, yeah, that was it.
"Fine, fine, I believe you."
"Right, what happened to that Magma Alien yesterday? Did the Bureau send back any news?"
That's right, once they confirmed there was no danger, the Magma Alien had been handed over to the Bureau; after all, they were the professionals.
Speaking of business, Moroboshi Dan grew much more serious. "According to the news sent back this morning, the guy doesn't remember what happened at all, and..."
"And?" Ling Luo asked, puzzled.
"And that guy's condition is very bad. He seems a bit out of his mind. Perhaps if he stays in contact with that fragment a little longer, he won't be saved." Moroboshi Dan frowned.
"So it can grant a temporary boost in strength, but the price is huge," Ling Luo remarked. What absolute trash.
"Yes, just like you said earlier, that fragment has a certain degree of corrosiveness."
"Corrosiveness, huh." Ling Luo fell into deep thought. It really was troublesome.
"Don't worry, Daichi said he already has a preliminary understanding of the fragment. I believe he'll be able to build a counter-device soon."
Moroboshi Dan patted Ling Luo's shoulder, signaling him not to worry.
Ling Luo wasn't worried about that at all; after all, this so-called corrosiveness was useless against him.
And while the Light Warriors' light energy couldn't cleanse it, it could at least suppress it temporarily.
It was just that... how was he supposed to gently tell the other that there were a full 100 of those broken things?
Sigh, life isn't easy. Ling Luo sighed.
...
Note: The Bureau has a connection with the New Generation Heroes. After all, being Light Warriors, their reputation there is quite high.
Usually, when the New Generations encounter trouble they can't solve, they entrust it to the Bureau, and whenever the Bureau has the latest news, they share it with them. It's considered a win-win cooperation.