Alien Species Invasion? I Kill Them Back.

Chapter 13: Chapter 11: Card Collector

"She said her name is Feng Ling. She also said an Alien Species exploded into a bloody pulp, so no human tissue could be identified. She asked if that would affect her reward claim." The dispatcher’s voice was fraught with anxiety. "Captain Su, is that even possible? Could it be a prank?"

Su Yuqing couldn’t stay in his office any longer.

He strode out of the room, rapidly firing off orders to his assistant, "Arrange for a vehicle. I’m going to the scene with the Special Attack Team. And tell Zhou Diao not to come! Have him get some rest for the meeting tomorrow morning!"

...

An endless night shrouded the city.

From the exit of the Supervision Building’s underground parking garage, several cars drove out in succession, heading for the West Suburban Villa District.

When Su Yuqing arrived, the city fire department was already there.

The conspicuous fire trucks had their headlights on, shining brilliantly in the dark of night.

The firefighters had already extinguished the flames. The villa in question was charred black. The ground was covered in puddles, murky sludge, and some kind of unidentifiable viscous substance.

Su Yuqing scanned his surroundings and quickly spotted Feng Ling in the crowd.

She was chatting with the fire captain, her hands in her pockets, looking a bit better than she had on the surveillance footage.

As Su Yuqing approached, he heard her say, "Of course I know arson is a threat to public safety, but there was nobody in the house when I set the fire, just an Alien Species. Can’t I get a discount for ridding the public of a menace? You want me to pay for a whole villa in full? I’m not a sucker."

"The Inspection Bureau will cover all damages to the villa." Su Yuqing walked over, looking at Feng Ling with a serious expression. "Feng Ling, I am obligated to remind you that any citizen who encounters an Alien Species should first call the police! Not rush in alone!"

Feng Ling paused for a moment. "I’ll call the police next time, then."

Su Yuqing: "..."

’What a casual reply!’

He turned away, silently telling himself to remain calm and composed. ’The most important thing right now is to investigate the scene!’

With mixed feelings, Su Yuqing stepped into the villa—

The first thing that came into view was a humanoid-shaped bloodstain, scorched and burnt, surrounded by splattered droplets of blood. The metallic stench was overpowering.

Further in lay an exceptionally bloated and enormous corpse. Its skull was shattered, with bits of brain scattered about like crumbled tofu. It was impossible to tell how many times it had been slashed.

Su Yuqing shot a meaningful glance at Feng Ling.

Feng Ling followed behind him, also investigating the scene with a serious expression.

She asked, "Why didn’t a Card appear after the Alien Species by the door died?"

"It probably went offline. When an Alien Species goes offline, it’s abandoning its current body. It won’t leave a Card behind." Su Yuqing took out his phone and photographed the scene.

Feng Ling recalled, "That woman crawling with worms did shout ’Offline!’ a few times. So she meant it literally."

She asked again, "I didn’t take the fat one’s Card. Will the reward money increase?"

"The Card doesn’t affect the reward amount," Su Yuqing replied.

"Oh." Feng Ling was slightly disappointed.

Su Yuqing glanced at her. "The Inspection Bureaus everywhere are facing a manpower shortage. To alleviate the situation, the higher-ups have designed a Contribution Value point system, which is estimated to be officially implemented next week. At that point, everything from killing Alien Species to turning in Cards will be recorded as Contribution Points in the citizen credit system. I’ll keep a record of this Card for you for now and convert it into Contribution Points for you later."

Feng Ling paused, slightly stunned. "Will there still be reward money then?"

A corner of Su Yuqing’s mouth twitched. "You can exchange Contribution Points for currency. One point of Contribution Value is equal to one million."

"That’s good, then." Feng Ling nodded.

Su Yuqing’s feelings were hard to describe.

He called over a member of the Special Attack Team to collect the Card.

The team member carried a cylindrical, alloy instrument. He placed it next to the corpse and gently opened it, revealing a stunningly intricate internal structure.

Then, the instrument emitted a special low-frequency noise.

Feng Ling could barely hear it, but the Card hovering over the corpse began to ripple visibly, slowly flowing into a glass tube inside the instrument.

"What is this thing?" Feng Ling whispered to Su Yuqing.

"A newly developed Card-collection device. It’s the only one in all of Qingjiang City." Su Yuqing watched as the instrument finished absorbing the Card, then turned his head to Feng Ling. "Where are the other Alien Species?"

"There’s one more over there—" Feng Ling pointed to the villa diagonally opposite them. "But I already collected its Card, so you don’t need to bring the device over. It looks heavy."

Hearing this, Su Yuqing pressed his lips together. After a moment of silence, he said, "It’s not about having more Cards. Combinations are more important than quantity."

Feng Ling had just learned that.

’But judging by Su Yuqing’s tone, it seems he also knows about the dangers of Pollution Value.’

’Why doesn’t he just say it outright? It’s so confusing. I haven’t seen anyone discuss Pollution Value on the Alien Star forums, either. Could the higher-ups be deliberately suppressing information about it? But for what purpose?’

Too much had happened today. Feng Ling couldn’t be bothered to waste any more brain cells thinking about it. She just wanted to go home and get a good night’s sleep.

She stretched her arms, yawned, and turned to leave.

"Where are you going?" Su Yuqing asked immediately.

Feng Ling stopped and turned her head. "To find a place to sleep."

Su Yuqing’s heart leaped into his throat again. ’Don’t just wander off! Who knows when that Alien Species that went offline might come back for revenge!’

Then he remembered that Feng Ling had been attacked at the Inspection Bureau today.

’The Inspection Bureau isn’t safe anymore.’

Even though Feng Ling had refused to join the Inspection Bureau, humans were naturally on the same side. Su Yuqing felt he had a duty to ensure her personal safety.

He thought for a few seconds, then pulled out a keychain, detached a single key, and handed it to Feng Ling.

"I have an apartment on Xiu Garden Road that’s been empty. You can stay there. This is the key to the main door." Su Yuqing instructed Feng Ling, "Try not to go out for the time being, and don’t go home either. We’ve identified four Alien Species suspects in this area. You killed three of them. If you haven’t seen the last one, it’s probably in hiding. Also, the Alien Species that went offline attacked you at the Inspection Bureau, which means it likely knows your identity. It might come after you again after it logs back in, or even ambush you near your home to get revenge. You have to be careful."

Feng Ling took the key and asked Su Yuqing, "What if it doesn’t come looking for me?"

Her tone actually sounded rather expectant.

Su Yuqing was speechless for a moment and felt a headache coming on.

"...Maybe you should worry about your injuries first. Do you need me to call a Doctor?" he asked.

Feng Ling looked down at herself.

Although the puncture wound from the tentacle had been severe, the opening was small, so it had mostly healed. The worst part was actually the area on her arm that had been corroded by acid; it was still a gruesome mess of blood and mangled flesh.

She guessed that the disinfectant hadn’t completely washed the wound clean, and the residual acid was interfering with her body’s regenerative abilities.

"Does your apartment have a shower?" Feng Ling asked.

Su Yuqing nodded. "The apartment has 24-hour hot water."

"Alright." Feng Ling tossed the key high in the air, caught it, and grinned at Su Yuqing. "Thanks."

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