That night, the other side.

A nameless pub with a shabby exterior, just like you'd find in any area of the city's poor. It hung old signs, neon signs embellished with the words "bar", many of which had been extinguished due to poor contact, but no one had any intention of repairing them.

The door to the bar opened. After work, Agent Liang Ye ended the night of revelry and walked out with a bottle of unfinished wine in his hand.

His face was ruddy and his steps were shaky, but he seemed to be in a good mood. The bartender at the front desk today is a young girl in fishnet stockings, a newcomer, with a sweet tone that almost melts away.

That made him have a few more drinks tonight, and he had more fun than usual. So when he pulled out of the middle of a bunch of men with green dragons and white tigers tattooed on their bodies, the time was already a lot later than usual.

Liang Ye hummed a small tune, and from time to time he picked up the wine bottle and poured it into his mouth. At this point, he didn't look like a trained warrior, much less like some transcendent with extremely dangerous powers. He looked like an ordinary drunk, and he was still immersed in the pleasures of sleepless nights.

Or maybe it's this shaky pace that deceives others and makes people think he doesn't threaten - especially those who are watching him with bad intentions.

Liang Ye staggered through the deserted street, and when he passed through a certain shadow, he poured all the remaining liquor from the wine bottle in one go, and then coldly picked up the wine bottle and slammed it into the darkness on one side.

Bang.

The bottle exploded to pieces on the body of an unknown person, and glass shards flew everywhere. Liang Ye's arm was long, and he dragged someone out of the darkness. The watcher slammed defenselessly into the pavement by him, letting out a low grunt.

Instead of anesthetizing him, the alcohol paralyzed the watchers who were watching him.

Liang Ye laughed: "If you think I'm drunk, you can ......

...... Hey? ”

When he saw the person under his feet, he was stunned for a moment.

The man was clearly wearing the uniform of the Ninth Secret Service Division.

It's your own people.

"You're from Nine?" Liang Ye frowned, "Then why ......?" ”

Before he could finish asking, there was a dense tingling sensation behind him.

Liang Ye immediately realized that there was more than one person in ambush.

In the darkness all around, around the corners, on the high platforms, there were warriors in ambush. They fired a tranquilizer bullet at Liang Ye, and a large piece of anesthetic needle hit him in the back, and the anesthetic quickly flowed into the bloodstream.

But he didn't fall. With a low roar, he kicked the warrior away from his feet, dragging his staggering body back into the back of a nearby building. But he didn't want a few fighters to immediately grab the zipline and fall from a high place and stop in front of him.

Liang Ye let out a low roar and flew between them, kicking one person head-on, and then locked on to the second person. The second fighter tried to dodge, but the skill he had learned all his life was vulnerable to Liang Ye, who grabbed his shoulder with a long arm and pulled him in front of him with a single blow, knocking him to the ground with a knee.

But during this time, he had several more anesthetic needles on his back and waist.

More warriors jumped down and gathered around him.

"The goal is still in action! The threat has not been lifted! ”

"Damn, how is this possible, this dose is enough to put down ......"

"The action is uncertain, and the target is not falling." The team leader pressed his headphones and shouted, "Please reassess the feasibility of the mission." If the target casts a ghost......"

"No, continue to do as planned."

A temperatureless sound came from the other end of the headset.

"Rest assured, captain, what you feared won't happen. He's not going to cast a phantom. After all......"

On the carrier, Professor Miyazaki paused in front of the microphone on the other end, and smiled confidently.

“...... No one knows the Nine Places better than I do...... No one is exceptional. ”

Sure enough, as he said, until the end, Liang Ye did not release his devastating phantom that made everyone fearful.

But other than that, he struggled almost with all his might, almost being pierced into a hedgehog by anesthetic needles all over his body, but he still stubbornly took down several agents in a row.

The last four ropes bound his limbs, and his limbs were pulled apart into large shapes, and his whole body was bruised by the exertion.

He raised his head like a trapped beast and roared, and at that moment everyone's hearts trembled, as if they had seen the thunder and electricity explode in the next second, and all of them instantly turned on their backs like the fry of the fish that had been blown up......

...... But that didn't happen.

Liang Ye fell.

"Report, the goal is taken. Now ready to take it back. ”

The team leader wiped a cold sweat, and at the same time looked at Liang Ye, who was lying on the ground unconscious, and secretly felt strange in his heart.

As long as you summon the Phantom, you have the power to easily defeat them. But why would he refuse to do it even if he was forced into such a situation?

......

"Very good, hard work, bring him back."

After Professor Miyazaki cut off the communication, another line was quickly connected.

It was another task force, and the target was another anomaly from the Secret Service 9 who had the power of the Phantom, a little girl named Fana.

The reason is also mental. Fana's problems were no secret in Secret Service Nine, and everyone knew that she imagined her phantom as her long-gone mother, but so far her mental assessment was manageable.

Apparently, someone judged that she was no longer so controllable now.

"Report, no trace of the target found." Someone debriefed.

"What do you mean without a trace?" Professor Miyazaki frowned.

"There was no one in her room." "Presumably she may have heard the wind or been aware of our presence."

Judging from the traces at the scene, she should have escaped through the window. ”

"Hmm...... All right. Based on previous observations, the Phantom in Red does have a sensitivity independent of the Anomalous itself, and it is not surprising that you have been discovered. Professor Miyazaki said, "Then you guys will close the team first, and then we'll talk about it." ”

After speaking, he frowned and thought for a moment. But it didn't take long for someone to come in in a hurry.

"Sir!"

"What now?" He glanced over at the agent.

"It's ......Agent Rosa," the agent snapped, "and he's gone from the interrogation room." ”

Professor Miyazaki: "......"

......

Somewhere in Jiangdu, an abandoned factory.

Click.

The electronic shackles that had been unbroken by the universal decipher fell to the ground. Luo Yajun glanced at Batman beside him, revealing a somewhat strange expression.

"So you really want to get in and out." He rubbed his wrist and glanced at Batman, "I thought you'd take me to a bat safe house or something." I was just wondering what a nest like a guy like you would look like...... You don't live in a cave, do you? ”

Batman ignored it. He didn't care, only pondered for a moment, then looked at Batman and said seriously, "I didn't do it." ”

He was referring, of course, to the video that proved that he had attacked his teammates.

To be honest, he doesn't care what other people think of him, and he doesn't even really care if they convict him for it. Those don't matter to him.

But only for Batman, he wants the other party to believe that he is innocent, even if the rest of the world doesn't think so.

"I know." Batman said lightly, "That's why I'm here." ”

"You know?"

Hearing this, Luo Yajun felt a little relieved, but at the same time he was puzzled.

"But how do you know? I mean...... After all, it seems like the evidence is conclusive, doesn't it? I only have empty testimony on my side, and I may not have had a mental problem because I was overstressed underground.

But the child who was killed was wearing closed-circuit surveillance, real-time video recording, and it was almost impossible to fake......"

"Almost." Batman interrupted him, continuing in a hoarse voice, "Someone recorded that video in advance and manually overlaid one of the camera's surveillance footage.

It's a pre-captured image that has been replaced with your appearance using AI face-swapping technology. The technical techniques are mature, and the ambient light is dim, so it is difficult to find flaws. ”

Luo Yajun was stunned for a moment, but quickly reacted.

"So they have to have someone who can manually override the surveillance content......"

"Someone inside the Secret Service Nine, and with a high enough level of authority." Batman continued, "This is not a single incident. You've been targeted. ”

"yes, obviously." Luo Yajun rubbed his temples, "I didn't believe it before, but now I feel that what those pharmaceutical people said may be true."

It's hard for others to say now, only that Liang Ye is estimated to be slightly stronger. I've seen him make a move, and he shouldn't be able to control it so easily......"

"Nope." Batman said lightly, "He won't summon the Phantom." ”

Luo Yajun was stunned: "Why?" ”

"Because that's not in order. Agent Liang Ye was afraid of the power of his phantom, and he was afraid that he would not be able to control it, so he imposed the restraint of 'rules' on himself. He will only unleash the Phantom's powers when he is given permission. ”

Luo Yajun was stunned for a moment: "Even if someone wants to be unfavorable to him?" ”

"I'm afraid so." Batman continued to say in that eerie voice, "Someone is targeting you, and someone who has the power and knows everything about you.

And ......"

He paused, his voice seemingly a few degrees lower.

“...... I think I already know who that person is. ”

Luo Yajun: "! ”