A Guide to Humanity’s Extinction

"A'Qing, when did you..." Ke Mingwei paused, lowering his voice to a deep murmur. "...become a superhero?"

Ke Mingqing froze. Under the night sky, absolute silence fell over the rooftop as father and son stood wordless for a long time.

Of course, Ke Mingqing was entirely faking this reaction.

After all, he had used Theater Puppet a few days ago to tip Ke Mingwei off that clues about Blue Pigeon were hidden inside the abandoned train station.

But one thing struck him as odd. He clearly remembered dropping his battle suit off with Kuroki Hitomi for routine repairs two days ago. During this window, even if Ke Mingwei had visited the abandoned railway station, he almost certainly wouldn't have found anything on Platform 7.

So why was the old man already locking onto his superhero identity?

Besides, if Ke Mingwei actually knew his son was Blue Pigeon, would he sound this calm? Shouldn't he feel guilty about accidentally using his own son as bait to draw out Clock Maker?

Thinking it over, Ke Mingqing caught on. The old man was fishing. Cops loved pulling this routine.

Hiding his inner disdain, he turned to stare unblinkingly at Ke Mingwei with a suspicious squint.

"Your mother was cleaning your room and found a design sketch for a superhero battle suit. She showed it to me."

Ke Mingwei's voice deepened slightly. "You aren't getting mixed up in anything dangerous, right?"

Ke Mingqing stared blankly for a second before rolling his eyes with a scowl of annoyance.

"Come on, it's just a design sketch. We high schoolers daydream when we have nothing better to do. What's so weird about that? Are us Muggles not even allowed to fantasize?"

He paused, resting his chin on the railing, and let out a low sigh.

"How could someone without superpowers ever become a superhero? A Muggle stays a Muggle for life. If the previous generation didn't carry Esper genes, someone becoming an Esper through sheer lucky genetic mutation is incredibly rare."

Ke Mingwei fell silent for a moment. "There's something I should have told you earlier."

"What is it?" Ke Mingqing turned his head from the railing to look at him curiously.

After a moment, Ke Mingwei suddenly said, "I actually looked into your biological parents."

Ke Mingqing feigned shock. "Dad, can you stop playing cop with your own family? What is there to investigate about two dead people? You're creeping me out."

"No, this is important." Ke Mingwei shook his head, murmuring, "I know you probably don't want to hear about them... but I have to tell you."

Ke Mingqing went quiet for a beat. "Go ahead. I'm listening."

"One of your parents was an Esper. He just kept his abilities well hidden and used connections inside the authorities to dodge the mandatory annual gene screenings."

Ke Mingqing froze, staring blankly toward the bustling, illuminated downtown. "My parents were... Espers?"

"To be precise, only your biological father," Ke Mingwei said softly. "Your mother was an ordinary person."

"Then why didn't my dad ever tell me?" Ke Mingqing asked in confusion.

"Because you were still little back then, and it wasn't convenient for him to tell you." Ke Mingwei hesitated. "Once you have kids of your own, you'll understand the feeling."

He sighed. "Fathers everywhere all think pretty much the same way."

'So that's how it is? My biological father was an Esper too.'

'Well, that's a good thing. Good thing this body's biological dad kicked the bucket early. Otherwise, half a year from now, I'd have to personally murder my biological father instead of my foster father. That would have been double the guilt.'

With that thought, Ke Mingqing asked, "Then why did my dad hide his super-human species identity from the authorities?"

Turning to look off into the distance, Ke Mingwei explained, "Back when your biological parents were still alive, government policies across the world were still flawed. Once someone was identified as a super-human species, they would be put under invisible surveillance. Their travel, activities, and even their jobs would be restricted. That's why quite a few super-human species chose to conceal their identities and pretend to be ordinary people."

He paused. "He simply wanted to live an ordinary life with you and your mother. There was no special reason beyond that."

Ke Mingqing stared blankly for a second, then nodded. "Oh, I see. So that's how it is."

The night wind blew in from high above the city, lightly ruffling his bangs. After a moment, he suddenly laughed. "What was the point, then? Hiding it from us for so long, only for a fire to take him away in the end."

"No, that fire back then..." Ke Mingwei hesitated, leaving the sentence unfinished.

Seeing his reaction, Ke Mingqing was taken aback. He thought to himself, 'Oh crap, don't tell me my biological dad wasn't burned to death, but killed by my eight-year-old third sister instead?'

After a brief silence, another thought crossed his mind: 'So the old man has been investigating the truth behind the Anhe District fire incident too? What will he think if he finally traces it back to his own daughter?'

Following that train of thought, Ke Mingqing probed with a sarcastic tone:

"Didn't he burn to death...? He couldn't even protect my mom back then. What kind of Esper was he?"

He finished with a low scoff.

Yet Ke Mingwei merely knit his brows in prolonged silence. He seemed to want to say something, but ultimately kept his mouth shut.

Eventually, he let out a long sigh. "What I really wanted to say is, since your biological father was an Esper, there's a high probability you've inherited Esper genes too."

Ke Mingqing's eyes widened slightly, a perfect imitation of any high school boy hearing he might become a superhero.

Ke Mingwei turned his gaze sideways, looking directly into Ke Mingqing's eyes. "At your age, the genes in your body should be on the verge of awakening. If not this year, then the next."

Ke Mingqing stood in a daze for a long while, keeping his head down in a stupor before finally looking up to murmur, "Dad, you mean... I might become an Esper?"

"Yes." Ke Mingwei nodded. "If that day really comes, I hope you'll tell your old man and not keep it from me."

He paused. "I'll hold onto that suit you designed for now. Once I settle a certain matter, I'll come help you... When that time comes, I'll teach you how to be a proper superhero."

Ke Mingqing turned to look at him. "Dad, you aren't even a superhero yourself. How are you supposed to teach me?"

Ke Mingwei answered, "I'm not a superhero, but I am a police officer."

"And?"

Ke Mingqing squinted at him, his face full of disbelief. "The kind of police officer who vanishes at the drop of a hat, and misses his eldest and second sons' birthdays in a row?"

Ke Mingwei choked on his words. He instinctively reached up to take a drag from a cigarette, only to remember he didn't have one in his hand.

He lowered his eyes in thought for a moment, then said meaningfully,

"Sometimes, a police officer understands how to be a superhero better than a superhero does. Think about it. Someone without the godlike strength to fly through the sky or tear up the earth, who still chooses to step forward, understands how to do these things far better than someone born with everything. The word 'responsibility' is the key to being a good hero."

With that, he reached out and ruffled Ke Mingqing's hair.

'Just keep playing your part,' Ke Mingqing thought, secretly rolling his eyes.

"Also, keep this on you, and don't tell anyone," Ke Mingwei said, pulling an old police badge from his pajama pocket. The badge was primarily red and blue, featuring an illustration of a police officer in a peaked cap in the center. "Take it out if you ever run into danger, and a friend of mine will come to help you."

Ke Mingqing raised an eyebrow. He could guess what was hidden inside this badge.

He figured it had to be a feather—a crow's feather. Rain Crow could pinpoint his location through it, or maybe it was just a simple locator or wiretap.

Taking the police badge, Ke Mingqing looked down at it and asked, deliberately playing dumb, "Which friend of yours is that amazing?"

"You'll find out sooner or later."

"Fine," Ke Mingqing said. "By the way, Dad, you just said you'd come help me after you finished something. But what is it? And why are you so sure I'll definitely awaken an Esper ability?"

"Matters succeed through secrecy. We'll talk about it later."

"Tch... you're always brushing me off like this. I ask you ten things, and nine of them have no answer."

"A police officer has to keep his mouth shut tight, otherwise things get messy. I caught plenty of flak for that when I was young," Ke Mingwei said, nudging his shoulder. "Go on back to sleep. It's getting late, and it'll be dawn soon."

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going to sleep... I was dead tired originally, but now I won't be able to sleep." Ke Mingqing nodded, slipping the police badge into his pocket.

Leaning against the railing, Ke Mingqing kept Ke Mingwei company as they gazed at the pitch-black night sky for a while, neither of them making a sound.

Finally, Ke Mingqing silently turned and walked off the rooftop alone.

Stopping in front of the iron door, he thought for a second, then suddenly looked back at Ke Mingwei's silhouette. "It's your fault for stringing me along. If I don't awaken an Esper ability, I'll resent you for the rest of my life, Dad."

"Then I'd actually prefer you resent me for the rest of your life."

Ke Mingwei spoke casually, finally pulling a cigarette from his pocket and placing it between his lips. "Still hasn't grown up..."

Not long after Ke Mingqing left, another figure arrived on the rooftop. By now, the sky was already growing pale.

"Honey, why aren't you asleep yet?"

Xia Wenna's voice came from behind him. Ke Mingwei turned around, leaned his back against the railing, and looked up into his wife's hazy, mist-veiled eyes.

He was in no rush to speak, merely lowering his head to quietly smoke his cigarette. The night breeze stirred his slightly long hair, and his deep eyes remained lowered beneath his bangs.

After taking a moment, Ke Mingwei removed the cigarette from his lips and spoke.

"It's nothing. I just came up to chat with A'Qing for a bit."

Xia Wenna walked up beside him and stopped by the railing.

She shook her head. "A'Qing really is a handful... Out of everyone in the house, that kid seems the most lost. A'zhi told me that every time she tries to have a heart-to-heart with him, he always babbles about nonsense to change the subject."

"He just needs time to grow up. Not everyone can move on from that fire," Ke Mingwei said absentmindedly.

"Why are you bringing up that fire again? It's been so many years. If you didn't mention it, he might have forgotten already..."

"That boy just likes keeping things buried inside."

Xia Wenna thought for a moment, and the mist in her eyes seemed to clear slightly. She said,

"Oh right, honey, didn't you ask me a couple of days ago about who used to play around that abandoned train station when they were little?"

Ke Mingwei's hand paused on his cigarette.

He hesitated, then nodded. In that instant, White Jack's words echoed in his mind again—'If you have time, perhaps you could visit that train station in the Old Jingmai District. Maybe you will discover an unexpected surprise.'

Ke Mingwei looked up, fixing his gaze on Xia Wenna.

"I couldn't recall it off the top of my head back then, but when I was sleeping just now, it suddenly came back to me for some reason," Xia Wenna continued, resting her right elbow in her left hand and propping her chin on her hand.

"When he was little, A'Qing used to run off to play at that train station all the time. I was angry about it for the longest time back then! No matter how much I scolded him, he wouldn't listen, and Xiao Li always covered for him too."

Ke Mingwei froze slightly, falling entirely silent.

Knitting his brows, he remained quiet for a long while before turning to stare deeply at his wife's face. After a moment, he asked, "Are you sure it was A'Qing?"

"Yes, he and Xiao Li often went there to play hide-and-seek together." As Xia Wenna spoke, a faint smile surfaced on her face. "Whenever I couldn't find them, I'd just wait outside the train station, and I caught them every single time."

At that moment, the horizon broke into the pale grey of dawn, and the first ray of sunlight beamed in from the distance.

With his head bowed, Ke Mingwei stood motionless, his face bathed in the hazy sunlight, his expression blurred and unreadable.

A moment later, he slowly raised his head, a faint glimmer shifting within his deep eyes.

........

........

A week slipped by quietly.

Throughout that entire week, Ke Mingqing did not visit the abandoned train station, not even once.

Because he knew there were likely one or two black-feathered, red-eyed crows keeping watch over the place.

He had changed his mind. Perhaps this wasn't the right time to let Ke Mingwei learn his identity. Otherwise, if Ke Mingwei tied him up, he would be completely helpless, losing even the chance to fake his own death to slip away.

Now, a certain item in his inventory gave him the confidence to survive against Clock Maker.

He was certain he could survive and turn the tables.

On August 22, Ke Mingqing opened his eyes right on time once again.

[Good morning, esteemed Red Name Player, "Ke Mingqing."]

[The current time is 08:00 AM, Wednesday, August 22. The time limit remaining for the "Exterminate Superhumans" mission is: 128 days, 16 hours, 0 minutes.]

The woven straw mat on the bed was soaked with sweat. Dripping with perspiration, Ke Mingqing raised his head and glanced at the switched-off air conditioner.

"I really want to kick Mom all the way into outer space. With her around, the power at home keeps cutting out..." Grumbling listlessly, he pulled out his backup phone and checked it.

[Red Lotus: Bubble Butt, I order you to come out and meet me. I have things to ask you!]

[White Jack: Busy.]

[Lin Yin: Feels like I haven't seen you in a while. Hurry over to the company, there's urgent business.]

[Blue Pigeon: On my way.]

The moment he received the messages, Ke Mingqing headed out the door.

He took the bus to Kuroki Hitomi's place. He didn't spot Rain Crow along the way, perhaps because that "police badge" had put Ke Mingwei's mind at ease. Changing into the Blue Pigeon Battle Suit at Kuroki Hitomi's home, Ke Mingqing darted straight for Hero Company at lightning speed.

Before long, on the 15th floor of Hero Company.

Pinching his nose, Blue Pigeon brushed past a superhero dressed in a yellow suit printed with feces and stepped into the commander's office.

At this moment, the three members of his squad—Dark Croc, Invisible Giant, and Shadow Girl—were already gathered there, while Commander Lin Yin was briefing them on the mission details.

"That concludes the mission briefing. Clock Maker's copycats are plotting an incident inside a shopping mall. You need to act fast," Lin Yin said from behind his desk.

Blue Pigeon narrowed his eyes, staring unblinkingly at Lin Yin.

'You mean you want me and Clock Maker's guy to go beat up Clock Maker's copycats?'

Thinking this, Blue Pigeon crossed his arms and turned his head to look at Dark Croc. The traitor wore a blank expression, looking completely unfazed.

"Something wrong?" Dark Croc asked coldly.

"Bro, aren't you gonna piss yourself?" Blue Pigeon said. "What if the real Clock Maker shows up?"

Dark Croc remained silent.

Before he could reply, the young Invisible Giant stood on tiptoe, hooked an arm around his shoulder, and took it upon himself to console him.

"Relax, newbie! Clock Maker is just my little dog. I'll protect you. When you run into danger, just shout for Lord Invisible Giant, and Clock Maker will drop to the floor barking in terror!"

Blue Pigeon raised his phone. "I recorded that."

The young Invisible Giant's face instantly contorted. "Don't mess with me... bro."

"Well, if Clock Maker ever kidnaps you for a live-streamed dissection, I'll loop this audio right on the stream, countering him in front of the whole country," Blue Pigeon said with a shrug. "If Clock Maker loses his temper, dissecting you will turn into a petty temper tantrum, completely ruining his image as an elegant villain."

Saying so, he tapped play on the recording, and the same words played back several times:

—"Relax, Clock Maker is just my little dog~... Relax, Clock Maker is just my little dog~"

—"When you run into danger, just shout for Lord Invisible Giant, and Clock Maker will drop to the floor barking in terror~"

Invisible Giant reached out to snatch it, but Blue Pigeon held the phone high out of reach.

Shadow Girl crossed one arm over her chest, covered her face with her other hand, and let out a sigh.

In a corner where nobody was paying attention, Dark Croc's cheek twitched slightly.

Hesitating briefly, Blue Pigeon turned toward Dark Croc. "You want to record one too? To die with glory. I'll loop the audio at your funeral."

"Utterly idiotic." Dark Croc's face was cold as ice as he looked away.

Just then, the phone in Blue Pigeon's hand vibrated.

He looked down and saw a message from Lin Yin.

[Lin Yin: I've already spoken with Rain Crow. The Clock Maker copycats in Leijing were actually cleared out long ago. But I want to use this opportunity to smoke out the 'mole' hiding right beside us.]

Blue Pigeon went silent for a moment, then lifted his gaze from the phone screen to look at Lin Yin's face.

From behind his office desk, Lin Yin put down his phone, interlaced his fingers, and smiled back at him as if nothing had happened.

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