Chapter 154: Power Suppressor
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
Lin Xu stepped out from behind the bathroom partition and returned to sit by the narrow bed. He stared down at his hands, furrowing his brow as he carefully retraced the events of the past few days.
He remembered he hadn’t eaten anything unusual, nor had he touched anything out of place. Back during the apocalypse, the major bases did have ways to suppress powered individuals—one method involved power transplantation, another used power suppressors.
But aside from Heinrich, no one else knew he even had powers. Human memories of powered beings had long vanished into history, and it was unthinkable that anyone within the Imperial hierarchy could suddenly produce a power suppressor.
Recently, the only time he’d unleashed his abilities on a large scale was traveling to Planet Z9. Maybe Imperial forces detected something abnormal then. But Lin Xu’s identity was well concealed during that trip—otherwise, he would be facing charges for illegally trespassing in an Imperial prison on top of everything else.
The spatial disturbances caused by his power use might have been recorded by machines, but given the Imperial’s strict technological mindset, scientists would first assume it was a cosmic phenomenon, not some near-mystical human mutation like powers.
It was even more impossible that, within less than a month, they could have designed, built, and deployed a suppressor. Still… Lin Xu could think of no other explanation for the sudden loss of his powers. This ability was encoded in his genes.
Suddenly, an idea struck his mind like lightning. He rose and slowly scanned the detention cell.
There were no exposed main lights in the room; the pale walls emitted a soft, eerie glow, illuminating everything evenly. The power cables running to all the facilities were hidden behind the walls.
A power suppressor worked by generating an electromagnetic field that stifled the energy in a powered person’s bloodline. It needed a constant supply of electricity. Cut the power, and the suppressor would fail. His physical mutations hadn’t weakened despite the loss of his powers.
Lin Xu made a decision to take a risk. He turned with purpose and walked over to the metal chair opposite his bed—the chair was the same pale color as the room, and its legs were bolted to the floor.
He grabbed the backrest with both hands and pulled hard. Cracks sounded beneath his feet as the screws anchoring the chair to the floor popped loose one by one. With a final yank, Lin Xu lifted the entire chair free.
At that exact moment, alarms began to wail sharply inside and outside the detention area. The guards would be rushing over soon. Lin Xu couldn’t hesitate. He raised the metal chair and slammed it against the pale wall.
The first blow dented the wall, knocking out the lighting system behind it; the white glow dimmed instantly into a dull gray. Then came the second strike, then the third—
Within three seconds, the wall had been struck nearly ten times, finally collapsing with a loud crash. Lin Xu kicked inward, knocking the panel down completely. Behind the white wall was a thick metal barrier—his escape wasn’t going to be that easy. But the metal wall wasn’t his target.
Once the white panel was down, the wiring behind it was exposed. Lin Xu slashed through the cables with his claws, and immediately the cell plunged into darkness. The ventilation system stopped running. He tried summoning his powers—still nothing.
Outside, guards rushing to check the alarms found the cell in darkness and the door locked due to the electrical failure. They began pounding on the door, desperate to get in. Lin Xu had bought himself some precious time.
He dragged the mangled metal chair across the room and began smashing against the opposite wall. Inside the dark cell, Lin Xu pounded the wall with the chair, while outside, a group of officers hammered at the door with a breaching tool.
One hit, two hits, three— The second white wall cracked and shattered. Lin Xu yanked out exposed wires. At that moment, the heavy door slammed open, and the harsh light from outside flooded the cell.
“Don’t move! Lin Xu, hands where I can see them!” Merk shouted, gun raised, backed by a line of armed officers. Lin Xu ignored the command. He shielded the wall breach with his body and silently extended his claws, slicing through the power lines.
Bang bang bang— Blue energy pulses shot out from the officers’ stun guns, illuminating the darkness with sharp bursts of light. Sparks flew from the severed cables, short-circuiting the system completely.
In an instant, Lin Xu summoned his powers. Familiar strength surged through his limbs. With telekinetic force, he deflected the barrage of energy blasts aimed at him, the bolts streaking harmlessly along his body without a single hit.
The blasts scorched the floor and walls, leaving blackened scorch marks in their wake.
But then— A flash of light caught his eye. As he deflected the last three shots, a syringe darted forward, plunging into his calf. “Hss…”
Suddenly, Lin Xu lost control of his leg, a stiff, numb sensation creeping up his body. The energy blasts hadn’t reduced him to a pulp, but the powerful sedative was taking effect.
He was resistant to most anesthetics, but this dose… whoever administered it had clearly cranked it up to a terrifying level. Before he could even finish a breath, dizziness and darkness swallowed his mind. The struggling prisoner held on for three seconds before staggering and collapsing. Merk glanced back at the officer who hadn’t fired a stun gun but was holding a tranquilizer pistol. A new face.
“Who are you?” Merk demanded.
The man flashed his badge. “Special observer. Detective Merk, this prisoner is extremely dangerous. But our superiors have made it clear—he is not to die.”
“I understand…”
No, wait—Merk realized he had seriously underestimated Lin Xu’s danger. He’d always thought Lin Xu was just a wealthy, powerful beta with a fragile body. But looking at the chaos around him, there was no way an ordinary beta could have ripped a chair fixed to the ceiling free, then smashed through the detention cell’s reinforced walls.
—
Meanwhile, on a nearby screen, a news broadcast was playing.
“Our reporters have learned from the police that they have gathered substantial evidence…”
The footage showed clips of Lin Xu at conferences and hearings, interspersed with some vague rumors and expert legal opinions. Since Lin Xu’s arrest, he had been held tightly in custody, with only his lawyer, Metz, working outside. Reporters could only rely on old footage and speculation to fill the headlines.
Yuanxiao was curled up on the couch with Arnold. Suddenly, the little dragon leapt up onto Arnold’s arm, its white paws clutching his sleeve, wagging and squirming.
“Yip yip woo woo woo woo…”
[I want Papa! Why didn’t Papa come to see me? Where did he go? I missed Papa so much, I wanted Papa!]
“Yuanxiao, be good, be good,” Arnold hurriedly patted Yuanxiao’s back, but he couldn’t understand Yuanxiao’s cries and could only cautiously ask, “Are you a little bored? Do you want to play with me?”
“Wuwuwuwu…”
[Did Papa not want me anymore? Papa didn’t want me anymore! Did Papa think I didn’t fly well, or that I was silly, so he didn’t want me anymore? Wuwah, would Papa eat me?!]
As Arnold finished speaking, huge tears welled up in Yuanxiao’s blue, glassy eyes. Yuanxiao whimpered and cried softly, flapping his wings while pitifully and helplessly rubbing his head against Arnold’s sleeve.
“Wuwuwu…”
“Yuanxiao, my precious, why are you crying?” Arnold flusteredly wiped Yuanxiao’s tears. “Are you hungry? I’ll find you something to eat.”
Arnold had recently been helping Lin Xu take care of Yuanxiao, and he also needed to go to Lin Xu’s house to feed the rabbit-cats.
Arnold rummaged through a pack of Sea Crystal Dragon crystals Lin Xu had prepared for Yuanxiao, took out a few crystals, and put them in front of Yuanxiao. Yuanxiao stretched out his paw and caught an especially large crystal, eating it while continuing to cry, “Wuwuwu…”
Arnold realized he had misunderstood something again. He anxiously wiped Yuanxiao’s tears, but Yuanxiao twisted his head, flapped his dragon wings, hugged several crystals, and flew toward his eggshell.
Yuanxiao put the crystals into the eggshell, then hid inside and settled down. Finally, he pulled the other half of the eggshell over to cover the bottom half. He pulled hard, then licked the seam between the eggshell halves, resealing the shell tightly.
Yuanxiao curled his back inside the egg, pulled his tail forward to hug it, returning to the state he was in before hatching. He was still softly crying.
Baby dragons had an instinctive fear of being abandoned by their parents. While the dragon race would abandon weak-flying hatchlings, they would never abandon unborn eggs. So baby dragons, when feeling abandoned or scared, would crawl back into their eggshells and pretend to still be an egg.
That way, Papa and Dada would come back.
—
His eyelids were heavy, as if stuck together. Waves of dizziness spun in the back of his head, and his temples throbbed. Lin Xu’s consciousness gradually returned; he could feel cold air against his cheek.
His vision was pitch black, indicating the room he was in was dimly lit—not the white-glowing six-sided detention room he’d been in before.
Before losing consciousness, Lin Xu had cut the power to the white detention room, and his abilities briefly recovered to block incoming bullets. So, were his abilities restored now?
Lin Xu’s eyes remained too tired to open fully. He tried to use his telekinesis to flip up his sleeve. Suddenly, a sharp, vibrating pain focused on the side of his neck surged. A strong electric current entered his skin at the pain point and went deep into his bones and brain.
“Haah…”
Lin Xu’s muscles convulsed, and his whole body rolled off the bed, falling onto the concrete floor. Only when Lin Xu’s abilities completely ceased moving did the electric shock slowly weaken, and the smell of burning filled his nose. Every movement of his body trembled; cold sweat broke out in waves after the shock.
Lin Xu lay half-prone on the floor, struggling to open his eyes and reach for something on his neck. He tugged on it but couldn’t pull it off. Because the collar was slightly separated from his skin, he got shocked again.
It was a sealed neck shackle, over six centimeters thick, made of half-metal and half-synthetic material. When the wearer used their abilities or tried to pull it off, it emitted a strong electric shock, instantly disabling them. It was another form of an ability suppressant.
The neck-shackle style suppressant did not generate an electromagnetic field to suppress abilities. Instead, it acted passively, sending out painful warnings when the restrained person tried to use their powers, interrupting the ability’s activation. Who was it… who had made this thing…
Lin Xu barely opened his eyes. He lifted his head and looked toward the direction of the light ahead. Through the isolation bars, he saw the man sitting opposite him wearing a pair of polished leather lace-up ankle boots. Above the boots were finely tailored white dress pants. The man’s voice came from above.
“The floor is cold, get up.” It was the emperor’s voice. Why was he here? Did he know about the history between the ability users and the suppressants? Lin Xu supported his body with his arm, adjusting his line of sight to see the emperor’s face and upper body.
A pair of blue eyes stormed into Lin Xu’s memory—provocative, sharp, aggressive… All masked beneath arrogance, overlapping with the eyes of someone in his memory palace under the dim light. A strong intuition struck Lin Xu’s insides, making his heart drop. Another soul resided within the body of this Imperial emperor.
“Alfred Nobleson, you’re here too.” Lin Xu spoke, his voice hoarse. Alfred raised an eyebrow and then smiled, “So easy to recognize?”
Author’s note:
This is a sad story. When the author gets stuck writing, they like to eat, hoping that while food goes down their throat, inspiration will come bubbling up from their brain. By the time this story reached here, the author had already gained eight pounds.
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