Containing monsters? Call me 749 the God of Slaughter!

The words are harsh, but they are true.

Zhao Gang turned around: "Let's get back to business."

"You are now a formal investigator, and as is customary, the team assignments need to be reassessed."

"But I applied to Director Chu, and you're still staying in Team Three."

"Why?" Li Haotian asked, somewhat surprised.

"Because you know the people here, and also because," Zhao Gang paused, his voice suddenly lowering, "I need someone who dares to disobey orders."

Li Haotian was stunned.

Zhao Gang's eyes were calm: "The bureau's concept of containment is correct, but reality is very complicated."

"Some anomalies pose a far greater risk to contain than to kill."

"Those above have their own considerations, but those below also face their own difficulties."

"You killed the infant spirit last night, and killed the mechanical vengeful spirit during today's test."

"From a systemic perspective, you are violating the rules."

"But from a tactical perspective, they are all the optimal solutions."

Li Haotian understood: "What do you want me to do?"

"Be yourself," Zhao Gang turned around and stared at him, "but be mindful of boundaries."

"I will give you a certain degree of autonomy during the mission."

"But you must remember."

"First and foremost, ensure the safety of our team members."

"Second, if it is necessary to disobey orders, there must be a plausible reason."

"Third," Zhao Gang's eyes sharpened, "you will bear all the responsibility yourself."

This is a deal.

Zhao Gang tacitly approved of his tendency to kill to a certain extent.

But if something goes wrong, Zhao Gang won't take the blame.

"I accept," Li Haotian said in a deep voice after thinking for a moment.

"Very good," Zhao Gang walked back to his desk, pulled out a task briefing from a folder, "This is your first official task."

Li Haotian took the briefing.

[Mission ID: D-0721]

Location: Gu Family Old Residence, northern suburbs of Jiangcheng

[Description: For a week in a row, nearby villagers reported hearing strange noises coming from the old house at night, sounding neither human nor non-human.]

Two days ago, a homeless man wandered into an old house and became mentally unstable, repeatedly muttering "White Hair, White Hair."

[Preliminary assessment: Abnormal event, energy reading level D+ (medium to high threat)]

[Feature Analysis: Suspected Corpse-Revolutionary Anomaly (White Zombie Variant)]

[Mission Objective: Investigate and contain]

[Mission Team: Third Action Team (led by Zhao Gang)]

[Special Note: This residence is an ancient building, a municipal-level cultural relic protection unit. Efforts must be made to preserve its integrity during the operation.]

D+ grade, a variant of the white zombie.

It was stronger than the mechanical vengeful spirits they had encountered before, and it was right at the limit of the three teams' permissions.

"I will personally lead this mission," Zhao Gang said. "The team members include you, Chen Feng, Lin Yu, and Zhang Jiuxuan."

"Zombie-type anomalies typically have extremely high physical defense, rendering them ineffective against ordinary firearms."

"The department's standard containment procedure is to use a specially made talisman and an ink-line net to restrain the body, and then transport it back to the containment facility."

"However, the interior structure of the Gu family mansion is complex and the space is narrow, making it difficult to use ink line mesh."

Zhao Gang looked at Li Haotian: "Your ability to sense weaknesses will be crucial in this mission."

"I need you to find the zombies' weaknesses and design the safest and most effective containment plan."

"Or, provide a kill plan if necessary."

The last few words were spoken softly, but the meaning was clear.

Li Haotian nodded: "Understood."

"Go get ready. We'll meet in the equipment room in an hour." Zhao Gang waved his hand.

As Li Haotian left the office, he felt his heart racing.

This is not nervousness, but excitement arising from anticipation.

What ability do you gain after killing a D+ level abnormality?

And Zhao Gang's attitude.

He didn't seem entirely opposed to killing, he just needed a reason.

For Li Haotian, this was much easier to handle.

After all, not every place has surveillance cameras!

......

An hour later, in the equipment room.

Li Haotian changed into his formal investigator uniform.

The dark blue training uniform features a silver "749" emblem embroidered on the left chest, representing the official rank.

He quickly checked the equipment.

It includes a rune pistol that can fire specially made corpse-suppressing bullets, an ink line launcher, a portable psionic detector, a tactical knife, and a lightweight protective vest.

Zhang Jiuxuan leaned closer, holding a bulging satchel: "Brother, I've prepared some extra good stuff. Just let me know if you need anything."

He opened a corner of his satchel, revealing yellow talismans, glutinous rice, a bag of black dog blood, and even a small bag of copper coins.

"A specialty of Maoshan, specifically designed to ward off zombies," Zhang Jiuxuan said with a smug smile.

Lin Yu was adjusting the detector, not even looking up: "Zhang Jiuxuan, your old-fashioned method almost blew you up last time."

"That was an accident!" Zhang Jiuxuan protested. "I improved the formula this time; there absolutely won't be any problems!"

Zhao Gang walked into the equipment room.

He was fully armed, with two specially made pistols hanging from his waist and a rectangular metal box on his back.

"Have you all memorized the mission briefing?" Zhao Gang scanned the group.

"The Gu family's old residence was built two hundred years ago, covering an area of ​​about 300 square meters. It has two courtyards and a complex internal structure."

"Based on the homeless man's description and energy readings, the abnormal activity was mainly in the vicinity of the shrine in the backyard."

"Our action plan is for Chen Feng and Lin Yu to work as a team, entering from the front yard and clearing the path."

"Li Haotian and Zhang Jiuxuan will form a team and enter from the side courtyard, primarily for surveillance."

"If there's anything inside, don't let it escape."

"I will provide support from the center."

"Remember, the objective of this mission is containment."

"But if uncontrollable risks are encountered..." Zhao Gang paused, "the use of lethal means is permitted."

Everyone answered in unison, "Understood!"

Two black SUVs drove out of the underground parking garage of the Jiangcheng branch of the 749th Public Security Bureau.

We drove through the city and headed towards the northern suburbs.

Inside the car, Li Haotian closed his eyes to rest, but was actually checking the system interface:

[Host: Li Haotian]

[Rank: Formal Investigator (60/300)]

[Abilities: Underwater Breathing (Beginner), Insightful Vision (Beginner), Mechanical Affinity (Beginner)]

Experience points: 60

[Kill Log: Drowned Corpse (F+), Infant Spirit (E), Mechanical Wraith (D-)]

240 more experience points needed to level up.

A D+ level abnormality, killing it should yield a lot of experience, right?

"We've arrived," the driver said.

The car was parked in a desolate hilly area.

About a hundred meters ahead, an old house with blue tiles and white walls stood alone in the twilight.

The house was surrounded by sparse trees and overgrown with weeds, with a stone path leading to the tightly closed vermilion gate.

It was already evening.

The setting sun dyed the sky a dark red, and the old house cast a long, eerie shadow.

Everyone got out of the car, and Zhao Gang made a gesture.

Chen Feng and Lin Yu moved silently to the front yard, while Li Haotian and Zhang Jiuxuan went around to the side yard.

"Wait." Li Haotian suddenly stopped.

He activated his spiritual vision.

Above the old house, he saw a faint gray-black aura, slowly swirling like smoke.

The aura contained dark red threads.

That was intense resentment!